Chapter 50 Friends (Thanks to King Danfei Wuya for the reward)
Three dishes are listed at the bottom of the paper: Pickled Fish, Tomato Fish Balls, and Braised Kidney Fish.
Then he showed the paper to everyone: "You all heard it, I am not bragging, the head of the Yan family said it was delicious after eating it, right!"
Including Han Xing, no one understood what the prince was planning to do. They just thought that he was creating a new recipe and was just being young and wanted to be praised.
They all laughed and said, "Yes, it is indeed delicious. Your Majesty's cooking skills are excellent!"
Jin Sui smiled and said to Yan Jiulang, "Master Yan, please come often in the future. You are the first friend I made in Yan. No matter when you come, I will make delicious food for you!"
The Border Town Fish Balls star, I choose you! Yan Jiulang was stunned for a moment. When was the last time someone told him so sincerely, "You are my friend?" Oh, it should be when he was eight years old...
He poured a glass of wine for himself and Jinsui respectively, raised his glass and said, "It is Yan's honor to have a friend like Your Majesty."
The wine is not very good. Next time I come, I will bring some good wine to the prince.
Yan Jiu used to be a very meticulous eater, but this was the first time he ate from a big pot, with a bunch of rough soldiers, and he actually thought it was pretty good.
After drinking a few glasses, Cheng Yu started singing. He sang the Chuci, which sounded quite nice.
Jinsui used chopsticks to tap the bowl as an accompaniment and cheered from time to time.
Wei Zhubo was sweating anxiously beside him. Why didn't the prince take the opportunity to talk more with the head of the Yan family? What kind of song is this drunkard singing? Han Xing lowered his head to eat the whole time, but Jin Sui found that this guy was stealing the dishes on the table. He used chopsticks like stringing candied haws, stringing seven or eight meatballs.
He quietly passed it to Heihu behind him. Heihu opened his mouth and ate it the same way as eating skewers. He could stuff three or four in one mouthful...
The moon was already high in the sky when they finished their meal. Yan Jiu naturally could not go home and had to stay overnight in the border town.
Then Jinsui saw how extravagant it was for the head of a noble family to stay overnight outside. A few servants came to clean the place first, just like they did during New Year's Day, even sweeping the roof.
If the floor wasn't made of yellow mud, it would probably have to be washed with water. The bedding on the bed was changed and a curtain was hung.
There was a carpet on the floor beside the bed, and all the supplies, such as a tea stove, chamber pot, and washbasin, were brought with them.
Jin Sui sighed as he watched: "Damn it, he looks more like a prince than I do!"
She pulled Wei Zhubo over and asked, "Are you sure that Patriarch Yan brought gifts when he came? Could it be that he brought things for his own use?"
Unexpectedly, Yan Jiu heard it. He chuckled and personally took out an exquisitely carved lacquer box and handed it to Jin Sui:
"I came here in a hurry and did not bring any valuable gifts. Please do not despise me, Your Majesty."
When Jin Sui opened it, he saw a jade pot wrapped in thick silk, which looked very valuable.
Jinsui originally wanted to say that this thing is of no use in the border town, so you might as well cash it in.
But I also feel that this is too embarrassing. I am the King of Li now, and I cannot do such petty things.
He accepted the gift with a smile and said, "How could I despise such a valuable gift? Thank you, Master Yan. This city is bitterly cold, and I don't have anything to offer as a return gift."
"Well, Master Yan, please read these Thirty-Six Counts. If you have any questions, I will help you solve them."
She thought about it and felt that her gift was too small, so she raised her hand and said, "Wait a moment."
He did not give the jade pot to Wei Zhubo, but turned back to his room and put it into the space.
Then he took out a box of energy bars, picked a glass jar to put them in, took it out and stuffed it into Yan Jiu's arms: "I see that Master Yan likes to eat sweets, so this box of palace candies is for you."
Heihu behind her was scratching his head anxiously. "Sending such delicious brown sugar to outsiders? I haven't had brown sugar for a long time."
"Refuse it! Master Yan, please refuse it! You are an adult and the head of the family, how can you love candy?"
Yan Jiu really refused: "Haha, this gift is more valuable than what I gave you, I can't accept it."
Jin Sui pointed at the energy bar and said, "It's just a dessert. You can have it as a snack while you read. It's not expensive."
"What Yan is talking about is this colored glass jar. This should be colored glass from the Western Regions. I have never seen such a transparent colored glass vessel in Yan."
Yan Jiu now believed that King Li Weizhou was selling treasures. He could even use such a precious glass jar to store snacks.
Jin Sui slapped her forehead. She was really drunk after two glasses of wine. She hadn't thought of this before!
She hurriedly pushed the glass jar into Yan Jiu's hand and said with a smile: "Since I have given it to the head of the Yan family, there is no reason for me to take it back."
"If Master Yan feels that this is too valuable, you can give me some more as a gift in return!"
Regardless of the fact that Wei Zhubo was coughing and almost hoarse, she continued, "But there is no need for a return gift like the jade pot. I don't need it in the border town.
I have three thousand men under my command, and it is almost autumn, and I don’t have enough supplies for the winter.”
"If Master Yan is willing to give some food, cotton, linen, and charcoal in return, I will be very happy to accept them."
Wei Zhubo secretly pinched his thigh and said, "My Lord! What a good opportunity to make friends with the head of the Yan family, why did you only care about money?"
Only then did Yan Jiu accept the jar under Hei Hu's disappointed gaze and promised:
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. Yan's return gift will surely satisfy Your Majesty."
Jin Sui was overjoyed, and all the nobles from the sixteen states of Yan came to visit the border town!
I have plenty of glass jars! She knew that these "treasures" were more valuable for their quality than quantity. For example, if you took out one side of the two-sided mirror you sold to Mr. Jin, you could still sell it for five thousand taels, but if you took out ten sides, you could only sell it for a thousand taels at most.
This kind of thing needs to be bought at the right time, like now, and it is most cost-effective to give it to each other as gifts.
As the King of Li in Yan, she only has the title but no real power. If the nobles of the sixteen states join forces to make things difficult for her.
Even if she had ten thousand taels of silver, she couldn't buy much food and supplies. But by exchanging gifts with Yan Jiu, even if Yan Jiu cheated her, the supplies she got in return were still more cost-effective than if she went out to buy them herself.
Another deal was concluded, Jinsui was very satisfied, and his attitude towards big customers became even better.
Before going to bed, he told the cook to make the flour fermented well, as the Yan family would have breakfast the next morning, so it had to be prepared carefully.
When she turned off the lights and went to sleep, she found that the light in the guest room was still on. Yan Jiu's figure was reflected on the window, and he was reading a book.
He is such a patient guy. If he is attracted by a book, he will definitely skip meals and socialize with others and just finish reading the book first.
The fact that he could endure until now before reading Thirty-Six Stratagems shows his character.
The next morning, Jinsui personally cooked a bowl of tomato fish ball noodles for Yan Jiu as breakfast.
She escorted Yan Jiu and his group ten miles away from the border town until the group turned into a black dot. Then she turned her horse's head and said to Wei Zhubo with a smile:
"Didn't they say before that even if the border town opened up for trade, there would be nothing to sell?"
"Now that I have it, I'll open a restaurant to sell fish ball noodles."
"The name of the store is 'Li Da Wu Xian Restaurant', and there's a banner next to it that says 'Yan Jiu Lang said it was delicious after eating it'!"
"Haha, I hope the business is booming!"
Wei Zhubo wanted to twitch his lips to express his attitude, but it hurt when he twitched his teeth, so he could only cover his mouth and persuade: "Your Highness, you can't do this! What will happen if the head of the Yan family sees this? How can you hang up what others said at the banquet as a banner!"
He also looked at Cheng Yu pleadingly, hoping that Cheng Yu would stand on his side and persuade the prince together.
Unexpectedly, Cheng Yu laughed and said, "This is a good idea! A good word from the head of Yanzhou Yan family will surely become a golden signboard."
"Your Highness made a mistake at the banquet last night. When he wrote that sentence, he should have asked the head of the Yan family to sign it."
Jin Sui slapped his thigh and said, "I thought so too! I was just afraid that you would think I was too petty."
"How about catching up with him and asking him to sign before he gets too far away?"
Wei Zhubo was so anxious that he cried. He jumped off his horse and hugged Jin Sui's horse head: "My Lord, I asked you to hang the banner. Please don't ask Master Yan for an autograph!"
Although both were embarrassing, the degree was different, and Wei Zhubo still knew how to choose.
(End of this chapter)
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