Chapter 49 discusses childhood fun, autumn fatigue, picking dates, and tofu soup.
"Did Manager Lu roast these chestnuts himself?" Xie Xun sat at the table in the corner, a plate of steaming chestnuts with a fragrant aroma in front of him.
Lu Qiong also heated up a pot of osmanthus wine, placed it on the table, and nodded with a smile: "Xie Lang is right, these were just made, they are still crisp now, just the right time to eat them."
After speaking, he poured a cup of osmanthus wine. The faint fragrance of osmanthus, mixed with the aroma of wine, filled the surroundings, intoxicating everyone.
Xie Xun recalled the osmanthus wine he drank during the last Mid-Autumn Festival, which gave him a headache for a whole day afterward. He still felt lingering fear, but in the end, he let go of his clenched hands.
With no new customers to attract, Lu Qiong struck up a conversation with him: "Since you failed the exam, what have you been up to lately, Xie Lang?"
"These are just trivial matters, I wouldn't dare to be presumptuous in front of Manager Lu." Xie Xun smiled, making it impossible for anyone to find fault with him.
Lu Qiong scoffed inwardly, but didn't expose him. She wondered how he, as the son of the Xie family, had spent his childhood—was he confined to the schoolhouse all day studying?
When the topic of childhood fun came up, Xie Xun fell silent, but his ears turned red.
What is this? Lu Qiong became increasingly curious. Although she didn't say anything, her bright eyes were hard to ignore.
Xie Xun coughed lightly before slowly speaking: "If Manager Lu wants to know, then I will tell you."
When Xie Xun was eight years old, he was playing with his classmates in the backyard of the school when someone brought some sweet potatoes from who-knows-where. The group started roasting the sweet potatoes, which set the surrounding grass on fire. This not only attracted the attention of the headmaster, but also resulted in Xie Xun being scolded.
When his mother found out, she confined Xie Xun to the mansion and made him copy the Analects for a month. In the end, he not only memorized it perfectly but also developed excellent handwriting.
Lu Qiong found it amusing that he had set the school on fire, actually doing what she had once wanted to do: "You really can't judge a book by its cover..."
Xie Xun was so amused that he couldn't lift his head. He pursed his lips, picked up the cooled osmanthus wine from the side, and drank it down, feeling slightly drunk.
Finally, he added, "But the sweet potatoes that day were especially sweet."
Hearing this, Lu Qiong clapped her hands, her eyes sparkling: "Actually, I've done something similar before, but it was a little different."
When she first started cooking, she "blew up" the kitchen, but she became more and more determined after each setback. She learned about heat control, the order in which ingredients are added, and seasoning. Eventually, she even dared to study recipes independently, occasionally making "culinary disasters," but also making unexpected discoveries.
Lu Qiong changed her approach to Xie Xun's story, and after finishing, she also reminisced about her past life.
Perhaps sensing her sadness, Xie Xun poured her a glass of wine, a smile playing on his lips: "Young lady, you certainly have a talent for cooking."
Lu Qiong didn't know what he had to boast about, so she laughed along with him.
After the previous craze for "congee hot pot" subsided, Lu Ji was able to return to its original state, and closed in the afternoon on this day.
The advantage of a newly rented house is that it's quiet.
Although Tongjifang was not bad before, there were still some inconveniences. Now the courtyard is larger and surrounded by high walls, making it more secluded.
Lu Xuan was cooking porridge in the kitchen, while Lu Qiong was washing clothes in the yard. Although hand washing was tiring, it was very convenient because she didn't have to go outside to fetch water.
"Sister," Lu Xuan brought over a small plate of washed dates, still glistening with water droplets, "these dates are so sweet!"
Lu Qiong squatted on the ground and opened her mouth to be fed a red date, which was crisp and sweet. She spat the pit into her palm and put it aside.
The yard is a bit empty, and the land in front hasn't been planted yet. We just removed the weeds and turned the soil over.
"Shall we buy some seeds today?"
Following her example, Lu Xuan squatted down beside her, chewing on a crunchy date: "What can we buy? It's too cold here, nothing will survive."
"Plant some radishes, then we can pickle them and eat them, and cabbage too, that can be pickled too..."
Before Lu Xuan could reply, her face suddenly scrunched up, she sniffed, jumped up, and rushed into the kitchen. All that could be heard was her regretful voice: "My porridge is burnt..."
In the end, he couldn't even finish the porridge, so he cooked some noodles again and kept fussing until 1-3 PM before he finally ate his meal.
Spring drowsiness, summer fatigue, autumn lethargy, winter hibernation... Lu Qiong spent her afternoons sleeping through all four seasons. When she woke up, the wind had picked up in the yard, blowing the clothes she had just hung out to dry. With nothing to do, she decided to take some money to the market to pick out seeds.
Tongjifang was located in the west, while the current residence is in the east, also adjacent to East Street, making it convenient for going out and traveling.
Regardless of what kind of business they're in, most vendors will roast a few portions of chestnuts, which will sell out quickly. Some also offer crispy leaves, which are leftover steamed cakes. After being baked until crispy, they can be dipped in honey and made into a nice tea snack.
Lu Qiong didn't like it much, firstly because it was too sweet, and secondly because it made her hands dirty. She also didn't plan to promote this dim sum at Lu's Restaurant; it was too much trouble.
The surrounding area was bustling with noise, and she walked along the side of the street, having to be careful to avoid pedestrians, so she could only walk slowly.
A figure flashed before my eyes and quickly disappeared into the crowd. Judging from the tall figure, it looked somewhat like Meng Sheng? But why was he carrying a load on his shoulders?
The area around the Rainbow Bridge is full of food stalls. Xu Miaogu had already set up her stall, and when she saw Meng Sheng arrive, she rushed over to help unload it.
"Brother Meng, are you a little tired? Maybe I can do it myself next time?" Xu Miaogu asked with some concern when she saw him covered in sweat.
Meng Sheng squatted down, walked around the pole, put down the load, and then stood up: "With your thin arms and legs, how can you carry this?"
These two large bamboo baskets, one filled with fruit and the other with freshly boiled fermented rice gruel, were not baskets that Xu Miaogu could lift alone.
The old woman at the next stall laughed, "Young lady, don't worry about it. If your husband is willing to do it, then let him do it. Otherwise, this job will be left to you from now on..."
Xu Miaogu lowered her head, her voice soft, but she couldn't bring herself to say, "He's not..."
Others loved to tease the young woman, laughing heartily: "If it doesn't work out today, we can always say it won't work out tomorrow!"
Perhaps Meng Sheng was thick-skinned and didn't show any reaction when others joked with him, but his hands moved even faster, almost mixing up several things.
Finally having a moment to spare, he saw a customer arrive at the candied hawthorn stall across the street. He strode forward and simply said, "I'll buy you some candied hawthorn!"
Xu Miaogu followed behind but couldn't stop him, so she gave up. Only her tightly furrowed brows showed her worry.
Pei Ya looked up at the last candied hawthorn on the bundle of straw, her eyes sparkling. She pointed to the top candied hawthorn and was about to ask someone to take it down when a large hand snatched it away first.
The man looked fierce, with thick eyebrows like caterpillars that had fallen from a jujube tree. He was dark and indistinct. When Pei Ya met his gaze, her heart skipped a beat, and tears immediately fell.
Meng Sheng had never seen such a scene before. Holding a candied hawthorn in one hand, he didn't know what to do with the other. Although he wanted to comfort her, his tone became forceful, like ordering a subordinate in a military camp: "You're not allowed to cry!"
When he got angry, Pei Ya cried even harder.
This attracted a crowd of onlookers, and Meng Sheng felt flustered, thinking how easily a young woman could shed tears and how difficult it was to comfort her. Xu Miaogu also rushed over upon hearing the commotion, snatched the candied hawthorn from his hand, and handed it to Pei Ya, softly asking, "Do you want some candied hawthorn?"
Xu Miaogu has a gentle appearance, but you can see her determination through her eyes, and her gentle voice also carries strength.
Pei Ya's tears had already stopped; she simply nodded and obediently wiped away her tears with her round palms.
Xu Miaogu was also moved and held the candied hawthorn to her lips. Pei Ya opened her mouth, but because it was made from large hawthorns, she couldn't bite into it in one go. She could only nibble off a piece of the sugar coating, which was crisp and sweet, and she quickly smiled.
Xu Miaogu patted her head and said, "Eat more, this is all for you."
When Pei Yu came out of the shop, Xu Miaogu had already calmed him down and explained the situation to him. Pei Yu felt it wasn't right to take things for free and wanted to pay her, but Xu Miaogu refused.
Back at the stall, Xu Miaogu turned to Meng Sheng and asked, "Brother Meng, why would you fight with a child for food?"
Meng Sheng was embarrassed, feeling like a million ants were gnawing at his heart, but he stammered and finally whispered, "I didn't buy this for you..."
Xu Miaogu didn't know what to say to him. Meeting Meng Sheng's dark eyes, she said firmly, "Brother Meng, I appreciate your kindness, but you can't do this again next time. It bothers others and implicates me."
Upon hearing the word "implicated," Meng Sheng panicked. He never imagined it would lead to this situation. He had been perfectly fine just moments before and wanted to defend himself, but when he met Xu Miaogu's eyes, he couldn't say anything.
In the end, all he could do was mumble a "hmm".
Remembering that she hadn't paid for the candied hawthorns, Xu Miaogu took out a few copper coins: "Brother Meng, this is the money for the candied hawthorns... please don't accept it!"
Seeing this, Meng Sheng had no choice but to accept it.
At the other end of the Rainbow Bridge, Lu Qiong was still picking out seeds. There weren't many seeds to choose from because of the cold weather, only radishes, cabbage, scallions, garlic, and chives... She picked up a little of everything, especially radishes, since raw pickled radishes taste so good!
After buying the seeds, they began to allocate the land: radishes in three rows, cabbage in two rows, and the rest in one row each.
Then Lu Xuan dragged over a few bamboo poles and placed them in the middle of the yard, panting, "Let's build a fence around the field first, otherwise Xue'er will run in."
Lu Qiong agreed, took out a wood-chopping knife, and simply split the bamboo into several sections about half a person's height. However, the gaps between the sections were quite large, so they could only keep out "gentlemen".
Sow the seeds, water them, and everything is done.
Lu Qiong fetched water and called Lu Xuan to come and wash their hands. After dinner, they would go to Lu Ji's restaurant.
"I just went to see Wei Pan." Lu Xuan put her hands in the water, which was a little cold.
Lu Qiong nodded and put away the remaining seeds: "Then why did you come back so quickly?"
Since moving to East Street, it's closer to Wei Pan's house, just across East Street. Lu Xuan often goes to visit her, and the two of them walk along the Bian River, reaching the end and then walking back.
Lu Xuan's hand remained in the water: "Wei Pan and her mother had a fight. Wei Rong is taking the imperial examination next year, but he hasn't been going to school these past few days, so he wants his mother to stop spending money on him..."
Wei Pan is still wearing summer clothes. She can't fit into last year's padded jacket anymore. She hasn't had time to alter it before the weather gets cold.
Lu Qiong saw what she was thinking and told her to take her hands out: "You'll get sick if you catch a cold, so hurry up and clean them."
Lu Xuan hesitated, then dried her hands and went to her bedroom, where she seemed to be fiddling with something until dinner time.
She braised some meat and stewed some tofu soup, adding eggs and small shrimp to the broth, making it both fresh and tender. Lu Qiong drank about half a bowl and decided to go to the market tomorrow to buy some inexpensive seafood to enhance the flavor of Lu Ji's congee hot pot.
"What do you think, Xuan'er? Although it can't compare to Nan Shi Dian, the shrimp porridge and soup are quite good."
Perhaps because she had something on her mind, Lu Xuan took a sip of soup before saying, "It's fine."
Such a lukewarm reaction? Lu Qiong shook her head, poured the remaining tofu soup into a bowl, and said, "This is what you call a delicacy..."
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