Chapter 69 Peeling a Loquat at the New Shop
After returning from Xiangguo Temple, Lu Qiong wanted to make a Luohan noodle dish based on her memory.
Lu Xuan and Wei Pan, each carrying a small bamboo basket, came running in from the back alley, panting, "These are all washed..."
The mushrooms, radishes, and bamboo shoots in the bamboo basket were all wet, so Lu Qiong smiled and nodded, telling them to put them on the stove.
Yang Jie'er was an expert at kneading dough, so she naturally assisted from the side. She kneaded the dough, let it rest, stretched it into long strips, folded it in half, and stretched it again. The method of making these thin noodles was similar to that of dragon beard noodles.
What's different is the side dishes; the Luohan noodles are all vegetarian, with tofu crumbs, shredded carrots, bamboo shoots, and mushrooms. The bamboo shoots and other ingredients are served as toppings, and the soup base is mushroom broth.
The water in the pot was boiling, bubbling gently. Lu Qiong then put the chopped shiitake mushrooms into the water, and the broth became sweet and clear.
Yang Jie was cooking noodles in another pot. After the noodles were cooked, she rinsed them with cold water, drained them, and put them in a bowl. She took the opportunity to glance at the soup and said, "The soup looks really good, but it tastes too bland."
I was going to say I had no appetite, but I changed my words when I got to the point.
Lu Qiong stirred the broth in the pot, then sprinkled in a pinch of salt: "It won't be bland if you add the topping."
She then switched to a different pot, heated it up, poured in oil, and first added shiitake mushrooms and shredded carrots, sautéing them until fragrant. Then she added chopped tofu and bamboo shoots, stir-fried them evenly, poured on sauce for color, and added sugar to enhance the flavor.
The vegetable broth is poured into the noodles, and then the freshly made topping is poured on top. Before you even taste it, the aroma is already there, and the presentation is also great. The plain white noodles and the dark brown topping make it much more appetizing than before.
Sister Yang thought so too, but unfortunately this bowl belonged to a customer, so she could only crave it in her heart.
As soon as it was served to the customer, he also found it novel. He picked up some thin noodles with his bamboo chopsticks, slurped them up in one long gulp, as if there was no end in sight, and only after he had eaten his fill did he praise it enthusiastically: "It's so fresh! I never eat this kind of bland soup..."
Sister Yang nodded in her heart again. How could soup noodles taste good without seasoning?
Lu Qiong never argued with them, and Sister Yang was always a fence-sitter.
When there were fewer customers in the shop, they each served themselves a bowl. This time, Sister Yang stopped complaining that the soup was bland and instead exclaimed in amazement, "How come even the bamboo shoots are flavorful?"
Lu Qiong could only respond to this with one word: "It's so good!"
Perhaps it's because the start of summer is approaching, but there are already many fruit stalls selling loquats on the street, each fruit plump and ripe.
Seeing someone hawking their wares at the bridge, Lu Qiong gave money to Lu Xuan and told them to buy loquats. She intended to buy some to try, but Lu Xuan ended up spending all the money and then spread her hands innocently.
Lu Qiong couldn't win the argument, but she was still unwilling to give up, and sighed, "I'm just worried you don't have enough money..."
Despite all the careful planning, they forgot that Lu Xuan was a big glutton.
Fortunately, good news came in the afternoon: the broker at the shop helped us find a good shop!
Ago chuckled: "It's just that the location isn't as good as this one..."
Seeing Lu Qiong frown, he immediately added, "However, the size and rent are reasonable!"
It's located near the wharf, which is closer to Longjin Bridge. It's not exactly remote, but it's outside the inner city.
The rent is only twelve taels, which, upon closer inspection, is more cost-effective than shops nowadays, since it's more than twice as spacious.
Lu Qiong was also unusually conflicted, fearing that the newly selected shop would not do well, and would not be able to attract regular customers or new diners.
She had seen similar things in her past life; a business that was booming at its original location would go out of business after moving to a new location. It was hard to fathom.
"Let me think about it carefully and I'll give you an answer tomorrow."
Ago knew this wouldn't be easy, so he smiled and said, "If you have any doubts, why don't you come with me to take a look at the shop? You might just find it suitable."
Lu Qiong declined again, and A Ge didn't insist. After finishing his tea, he said goodbye to her.
After the person left, the diner who had been eavesdropping couldn't help but frown: "Manager Lu, if you change the location, where am I supposed to eat? No other place has pastries as delicious as this."
Before Lu Qiong could reply, other diners echoed her sentiments, most of them familiar faces, making her situation even more difficult.
She could only try to appease them first, smiling as she served them fresh tea: "Please don't worry, everyone. This matter is still undecided. Besides, Longjin Bridge isn't far from here..."
She said she wasn't in a hurry, but in reality, she tossed and turned all night and didn't fall asleep until midnight.
When I woke up, I saw that Lu Xuan and Wei Pan had gotten up early and had hung their clothes out to dry in the yard. Xue'er had been fed and breakfast was being prepared.
They sat on the threshold, holding a small plate of loquats. They peeled them before putting them in their mouths. Lu Xuan probably picked a sour one, because her face immediately scrunched up.
Lu Qiong snatched the loquat away, saying, "You're eating loquats without having breakfast? Be careful, or you'll get a stomachache!"
Wei Pan, who had been in pain last year, awkwardly put down the loquat she was about to put in her mouth.
Lu Xuan didn't care and was playfully fighting with Lu Qiong, trying to snatch the plate from her. But someone made a big move and the plate slipped from their grasp and crashed to the ground.
The surroundings fell silent instantly.
Lu Qiong was stunned as she stared at the shattered porcelain plate on the ground.
Lu Xuan rarely saw her like this, and she was anxious, but she didn't dare to raise her voice and disturb her: "Sister... I don't want to eat loquats anymore."
Lu Qiong also came to her senses and smiled as she patted her head: "It's okay, just eat less."
Just then, a delicious aroma wafted from the kitchen, indicating that the porridge was almost ready, so she went into the kitchen.
Lifting the lid, steam billowed out. The porridge contained shiitake mushrooms and diced carrots. Seeing that there were no scallions, Lu Qiong went to the field to cut some scallions, washed them, chopped them, and sprinkled a handful onto the porridge.
Soon they were all sitting in the main room, each holding a bowl of porridge to taste.
Lu Xuan held the spoon and gently stirred the porridge, then hesitantly asked, "Did the broker's words bother you, sister?"
After saying that, he frowned, not missing any change in Lu Qiong's expression.
Lu Qiong was amused by her appearance: "It's rare to see you so serious... But I've already thought it through, so hurry up and eat, or the porridge will get cold."
Seeing that she wasn't faking it, Lu Xuan nodded and blew on the porridge in front of her to cool it down.
Lu Qiong had indeed made up her mind. After hearing A Ge's introduction of the shop, she actually had the idea of taking it over, but she also had many concerns.
After a night, she had thought it through. Perhaps the broken porcelain plate had startled her awake, making her want to take another look at the shop.
As temperatures rise, pedestrians on the street have all changed into lighter clothing. Perhaps because the clothes are lighter, people feel more light and are more inclined to move around.
When they arrived at Lu's restaurant, they busied themselves as usual, steaming cakes, stewing porridge, kneading dough, and cooking soup dumplings...
The shop has just received a new batch of tea leaves, and Lu Qiong still needs to study the techniques of brewing and preparing tea. She takes a small handful of tea leaves, puts them in a bowl, and grinds them finely, gradually revealing the astringency of the tea.
Smelling the aroma of tea, Sister Yang brought over a pot of freshly boiled water and poured it into a bowl. White foam immediately rose to the surface of the dark green tea. "Young lady, have you made up your mind? That shop pays twelve taels a month..."
It seems no better than the embroidery shop that sells for a thousand taels of silver.
Lu Qiong was unaware of her concerns and nodded gently: "I just went to check it out. It's not exactly remote, but it's the only way to enter the city after you enter the city gate, so there might be a lot of tourists."
Besides, the shop was originally a restaurant, so it didn't need much renovation. We just needed to buy new furniture, build a few new stoves, and other odds and ends.
Seeing her say that, Sister Yang didn't know whether to feel relieved or worried, but she was just following orders and couldn't interfere.
There are many things to do at the new shop, and the shop cannot be moved for the time being. Apart from taking time to check on the progress, Lu Qiong usually stays at Lu's shop.
The hired helper was introduced by Wu, the stonemason who had previously built the low wall. Lu Qiong had to meet him first and explain his requirements.
The shop was divided into three areas. The outermost left side, with the kitchen near the front door, and the back door used to store miscellaneous items, led out of the kitchen to the main hall. Turning right, one would find the shopkeeper's office where he would do the accounting and collect money.
Like other restaurants, it should also have a large wooden shelf for displaying wine or other items.
As for the tables and chairs in the lobby, she hasn't decided yet.
However, before that, Wu the stonemason and his team had to lay a layer of floor tiles. The original ones were too old, the walls also needed repair, and the chimney and roof needed to be inspected. All of this would take a lot of time and cost Lu Qiong a lot of his savings.
As the weather got hotter, they also needed to provide the craftsmen with refreshing food, so they made perilla drink in the shop.
I bought all the perilla leaves from the pharmacy, which saved me a lot of trouble. Half a pound was enough to make a pot of perilla leaves. I also added the juice squeezed from a few citrons, let it cool, and then had someone deliver it to me.
During this period, Lu Xuan and Wei Pan were the most proactive, often running back and forth between Zhouqiao and Longjinqiao.
"They're still laying floor tiles..."
"Stonemason Wu is building a stove in the kitchen..."
The diners laughed at them for not getting tired, but the women just kept running around and seemed to enjoy it more.
Lu Qiong was serving a customer bean soup with a few loquats when the customer laughed and said, "Your shop will be open for a while!"
She knew this too, so she removed the tray, smiled and nodded, "That's right, I'm just hoping it can be finished before summer."
Who would have thought that instead of getting the shop, they would get Li Jie'er instead?
That day, Lu Xuan went to the new shop as usual to "supervise" the construction, swinging her money bag in her hand. However, there were not many copper coins in the money bag, so she was not afraid that someone would steal it.
Wei Pan was more well-behaved, following along at a leisurely pace.
Longjin Bridge is closest to Nanxun Gate, and carriages often pass by, as do many vendors. However, Lu Xuan heard a familiar voice.
"Pickled plums, sour plums..."
The already quiet voice was further muffled by the surrounding clamor of vendors, but Lu Xuan still recognized who it was.
It's Sister Li!
At first, she thought she had mistaken someone for someone else, but when she got closer, she was sure that this was indeed Sister Li!
She immediately left Wei Pan behind and walked towards Li Jie'er, her voice excited: "Li Jie'er! What are you doing here?"
When Li Jie'er saw her arrive, she was somewhat stunned, and then stammered without explaining why she had come.
However, Lu Xuan didn't care. Seeing that there were many pottery urns at her feet, she knew that these must be the "pickled plums" and "sour plums" she had mentioned.
They simply pulled the person away as well: "Don't buy anything yet, it's too sunny today. Come with us first, your sister will definitely be happy to see you!"
But Li Jie hesitated, especially since there was an unfamiliar face standing next to Lu Xuan.
Having stayed in Bianjing for a long time, Lu Xuan had become more impatient. She directly pulled the person away, and Li Jie'er could only sigh and follow.
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