Xiao Yunying took off her apron and took out the unfinished ingredients and hawthorns from her basket:
"These vegetables can be kept for a while. The whole winter melon is too big for me to carry, so I only cut a piece. It's best to eat them as soon as possible. They can be stir-fried or made into winter melon and pork rib soup or meatball soup, which tastes good too."
Tomatoes can be eaten raw, but I don't know if you like the taste. You can cook them with sugar to make tomato sauce, and then use it to make sweet and sour sauce for the sweet and sour carp and apple sweet and sour pork that I taught you last time. It tastes better and looks better.
Sweet and sour sauce can also be used to make sweet and sour pork ribs and sweet and sour pork tenderloin. Both involve frying first and then stir-frying, and the methods are largely the same, so I won't go into detail.
After explaining how to cook the ingredients, Xiao Yunying took out a few large apples, picked out two big ones, and gave them to Ling Qi: "These two are for you. They are fruits I picked on the mountain. They are crisp and sweet. Thank you for protecting me when I left the city yesterday."
Ling Qi, flattered, held up the apple: "Young Master..."
He came back yesterday and told me everything that Miss Xiao had done, including how he had been discovered.
He thought he would be punished by the young master, but to his surprise, the young master didn't say anything after hearing Miss Xiao's reaction to discovering him. He simply told him to leave and not to disturb him while he was reading.
"This is from Miss Xiao, please take it."
"Thank you, young master."
Xiao Yunying slung the basket over her shoulder and teased him deliberately, "Why thank him for the fruit I gave him?"
Ling Qi said with a silly grin, "Thank you, Miss Xiao."
Xiao Yunying smiled and replied, "You're welcome," then instructed Chen Yuancheng:
"Although winter melon is light and refreshing, it is cold in nature. Since your spleen and stomach are weak, you can't eat too much of it. Don't overindulge. The other dishes are fine, but since you are taking medicine, it's best to ask your doctor if it will interfere with the medicine's effects. Apples are neutral in nature, so you can eat them without any problems."
Chen Yuancheng asked, "The doctors at Chen Family Medical Hall have never seen these dishes before, so how would they know if they would interfere with the medicinal properties?"
"Oh yeah, what do we do now?"
She knows a lot about vegetables, but not much about traditional Chinese medicine.
"My medicines are all for regulating the body. I can take them or not. I just don't need to take them when I eat these dishes."
"No, the medication to regulate the body cannot be stopped arbitrarily."
She now understands that, according to traditional Chinese medicine, if minor illnesses are left untreated or the lesions are not eliminated, they will eventually accumulate and develop into serious illnesses.
She didn't know what illness Chen Yuancheng had, so she didn't dare let him stop taking his medication arbitrarily.
Chen Yuancheng said, "There aren't that many incompatible ingredients. You don't need to worry. I have some medical knowledge and can sense the properties of ingredients. At most, it will just reduce the medicinal effect, but it won't harm your body."
"You know what I'm doing. My intention is to make sure you eat well, not to ruin your health because of this."
No, it won't.
After giving her instructions, Xiao Yunying said, "I'll be going now. You go eat."
"I send you."
"No need, the food won't taste good if it gets cold. You should eat your meal. Just have the steward bring it to me."
Chen Yuancheng nodded: "Go ahead."
The kitchen manager agreed and escorted Xiao Yunying out of the mansion. On the way, when no one was around, Xiao Yunying secretly took out a five-tael silver ingot and slipped it to her.
"This is?"
"Shh, Auntie, don't make a fuss. This is to thank you for helping me put on this show last time, which made me earn a lot of money."
The steward smiled even more politely: "Miss, there's no need for that. I just can't stand that young master of the Tang family, who has a bit of money and goes around showing off. Our Chen family just doesn't like to be ostentatious, otherwise he wouldn't have the chance to run around in the city."
Xiao Yunying patted her arm: "Auntie, please accept it. I ran into Young Master Chen both times I came here. Although it was a thank-you gift from me, you are in a managerial position, which might make people think too much. That's why I took this opportunity to give it to you secretly."
"Then... I'll accept it."
The steward put the silver into his pocket and said, "My husband's surname is Li, so you can call me Aunt Li. In the future, if you have any fresh mountain delicacies or wild vegetables, just send them to the Chen family. As long as the items are good, the Chen family will accept them."
Xiao Yunying thought of her father and brother: "Does the Chen family accept wild game?"
"Yes, send whatever is fresh."
"I understand, thank you Aunt Li."
After saying goodbye at the gate, Xiao Yunying hurried towards the city gate.
Manager Li returned to the kitchen. Chen Yuancheng had not yet left. She took out a silver ingot and repeated what Xiao Yunying had just said.
"Please feel free to accept anything Miss Xiao or her family sends you in the future. Any extras can be sent to Huiweilou."
"Yes." Steward Li held up the silver ingot: "Young Master, this silver..."
"Since it's a thank-you gift from Miss Xiao, you can keep it."
"Thank you, young master."
Chen Yuancheng turned and left the kitchen. Ling Qi had someone bring the dishes and followed him. He carried all the apples himself: "Young master, Miss Xiao is really generous. She gave five taels of silver in one go."
Do you think she's bribing the manager?
"A little."
When will you ever be smarter?
Ling Qi didn't understand: "What's wrong with me?"
Why do you think she gave you the apple?
Ling Qi looked down at the apple in his arms: "Miss Xiao said it was to thank me."
"Do you think these apples aren't worth five taels of silver?"
"yes."
The apple in my arms was just a little bigger, a little redder, and a little smoother than the other apples; otherwise, it was no different—just an apple.
“You’ve been by my side since you were a child, including in the capital. Have you ever seen an apple that looks so good?”
"No."
“I’ve never seen such beautiful apples before. Not only me, but even those people in the capital may not have seen such beautiful apples. The seven or eight apples in your arms are definitely worth no less than five taels of silver.”
"No way."
Chen Yuancheng shook his head: "You only see the surface of things. Miss Xiao may have given you things with the intention of building a good relationship with you, but it is definitely not to bribe you. It is more out of gratitude."
"Young master, how did you figure that out?"
"Think for yourself, and don't say anything. Go back and store the apples properly. After I have lunch, I will personally deliver them to my parents and grandmother to have a taste."
"Young master, the two largest ones inside were given to me by Miss Xiao, don't forget."
"Say one more word and I won't even leave you the core."
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