After leaving the Tianlang Escort Agency, Lu Qiqi strolled around the streets for a while. She had been in Heshun Prefecture for so long, but hadn't had a proper chance to explore the area yet.
During the previous famine, Heshun Prefecture took in many wealthy merchants, and now Luzhou Prefecture is taking in the refugees.
Heshun Prefecture naturally opened its city gates and let people into the city.
The streets were bustling with activity, filled with passersby, merchants selling all sorts of goods, their calls, and children's laughter—a truly delightful atmosphere.
It seems that Heshun Prefecture has never refused to open the city gates, nor has it imposed the harsh policy of requiring fifty taels of silver to enter the city.
In fact, everyone inside and outside the city knows that the so-called oppressive policies are nothing more than selfishness.
However, Lu Qiqi felt that the magistrate of Heshun Prefecture had done a good job of currying favor with the local magistrate, extorting so much money from wealthy merchants, and yet a serious plague had also broken out in Heshun Prefecture.
The magistrate's official hat remained firmly in place, without the slightest sway, demonstrating that he possessed considerable skill.
Lu Qiqi walked to a stall selling glutinous rice balls, sat down, ordered a bowl of glutinous rice balls, and spent two coins.
Steaming hot glutinous rice balls were served, and the owner bowed and smiled, saying, "Please enjoy your meal, young lady."
"Thank you," Lu Qiqi said calmly.
She stirred the glutinous rice balls with a small spoon. The rice balls rolled around in the light yellow sugar water, looking adorably silly.
Lu Qiqi remembered that there were dried osmanthus flowers in her space, so she used her mind to take out a small white porcelain bottle from her space.
Pour a dozen or so golden dried osmanthus flowers into a bowl. The aroma of the dried osmanthus flowers meeting the hot sugar water is especially pleasant.
Lu Qiqi couldn't help but swallow, then scooped up a soft, glutinous dumpling with a small spoon, blew away the heat, and put it in her mouth to take a bite.
The glutinous rice balls are soft and chewy, bursting with juice when you bite into them, instantly filling your mouth with the aroma of sesame.
Lu Qiqi raised an eyebrow, finding the glutinous rice balls surprisingly delicious, and began to devour them.
After finishing the last sip of the sweet soup, she felt warm all over. She was thinking of bringing some back for Lu Dahai and the others to cook with glutinous rice balls that night, and she was sure they would love it on Wednesday.
Lu Qiqi turned her head and saw the calligraphy and painting stall opposite the glutinous rice ball stall.
She recognized the man at the stall, and after a moment's thought, she remembered.
Wasn't that the man in blue who led them to the severely affected epidemic area of Tianxin Village?
He came here to sell calligraphy and paintings, but it seems his business isn't doing very well!
If you ask how she figured it out, it's naturally because of the man in blue's worried expression.
Only business people who are having a bad day or can't make a sale will show this kind of expression.
Then, Lu Qiqi looked up and saw a piece of paper next to the calligraphy and painting.
The paper says it can be used to copy calligraphy and paintings, or to copy books.
Lu Qiqi noticed that there were only two paintings and calligraphy works, which she guessed was because the paper and ink were expensive, and the man in blue had painted two works just to make a sample.
Let passersby see his skills.
After asking the owner of the glutinous rice ball shop to pack up some raw glutinous rice balls for her to take home, Lu Qiqi walked to the stall of the man in blue.
The man in blue had his head down, and Lu Qiqi thought he was frowning, but it turned out that there were books under the table.
The man in blue was reading a book right there in the bustling city, seemingly oblivious to everyone around him.
Lu Qiqi was surprised that she had guessed wrong when she was observing someone for the first time, and she was a little embarrassed.
The man in blue sensed a shadow and looked up to see Lu Qiqi.
He was taken aback at first, then stood up and bowed to Lu Qiqi.
Before he could even utter a sound, Lu Qiqi hurriedly said, "No need for such formalities."
She didn't want to hear someone call her "village head" in the bustling city; if people recognized her face, it might affect her future travel.
"Did you write this?" Lu Qiqi asked, pointing to a painting of koi fish playing among lotus flowers.
"Yes... young lady, that's right!"
The man in blue's change of address made Lu Qiqi think he was very sensible, and she smiled with satisfaction.
Actually, compared to his paintings, Lu Qiqi thought his calligraphy was better, with sharp strokes and a masterful style.
However, she soon noticed the difference in the paper. She had bought a lot of writing supplies at the bookstore before and had seen the paper of this era to some extent.
Lu Qiqi said, "Is this paper probably not Xuan paper?"
After a moment of stunned silence, the man in blue said, "This is not Xuan paper. Xuan paper is too expensive and easily gets dirty and damaged. We can't afford to waste it by setting up a stall here."
He spoke frankly, without the slightest embarrassment a scholar would feel when his words were exposed, quite unlike his wife, Rumei.
Lu Qiqi then asked, "Is this kind of paper much cheaper than Xuan paper? Do ordinary scholars prefer to use this kind of paper?"
The man in blue nodded. "One sheet of Xuan paper can buy six or seven sheets of this kind. Most of the poor scholars in the academy use it to write their articles."
A brilliant idea flashed through Lu Qiqi's mind, and she asked, "What's your name?"
"My name is Zhao Zhiwei."
Lu Qiqi secretly memorized his name, then turned around and went back to the glutinous rice ball stall. After paying, she happily took a bag of lotus leaf-wrapped glutinous rice balls and drove the carriage back to Tianxin Village.
As the carriage approached the courtyard, the sound of horses' hooves soon drew Li Changlong out to check.
Lu Qiqi got off the carriage, and Li Changlong skillfully took the reins of the horse. He said, "Hurry back to the house and eat. Brother Lu sent over a fish today, saying that he caught it in the river. I just put it on the table and was waiting for you to come back so we could eat together."
Upon hearing this, Lu Qiqi carried the lotus leaf bag into the house.
As soon as she entered the room, she smelled a fresh aroma. After taking a deep breath, she couldn't help but exclaim, "It smells so good!"
When Lu Qiqi returned on Wednesday, he immediately turned into a little tail, following behind her.
Seeing the lotus leaf in Lu Qiqi's hand, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Sister Qiqi, what is this?"
Lu Qiqi handed the lotus leaf to Zhou San and said, "These are glutinous rice balls. After dinner, cook them in ginger and brown sugar water."
As she spoke, she took out the remaining dried osmanthus flowers from today, saying, "I'll add some more dried osmanthus flowers when it's done cooking; it will smell especially fragrant."
When I heard Lu Qiqi say that on Wednesday, my mouth watered so much that I couldn't wait to put the glutinous rice balls in the pot and cook them right away.
Lu Qiqi felt a little regretful as she watched Zhou San take the glutinous rice balls to the kitchen. She preferred glutinous rice balls cooked in ginger and brown sugar water to those cooked in fermented rice wine.
The lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth is something to savor just thinking about.
However, the fresh fish soup on the table also moved her, making her feel that the glutinous rice balls in her stomach had been completely digested, and she was ready to do something big again.
It must be said that Li Changlong's cooking skills are quite good, and he has inherited the Li family tradition. The fish soup is thick and smooth, and the fish meat is fresh, tender and delicate.
What pleased Lu Qiqi the most was that the fish had very few bones, so even if Xiao Xibao ate it, she wouldn't have to worry about her choking.
So, Lu Qiqi finished her meal comfortably.
During the meal, she praised Lu Da in her heart several times without reservation.
She plans to tell Lu Da about her idea of generating revenue for Tianxin Village tomorrow.
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