Chapter 17 Chapter 17 The Stolen Grilled Fish The grilled fish was tender and juicy...
Duan Zhiwei saw the scholar crying and carrying a bundle, and couldn't help asking him, "My dear, didn't you make some money by setting up a bookstall at noon?"
I earned ten cents.
The scholar also recognized Duan Zhiwei, wiped his tears and said: "In the blink of an eye, all the copper coins I earned were stolen."
Duan Zhiwei was silent for a moment. Pu Tao could see that his wife's sympathy was overflowing again, so he hurriedly said, "Madam, there are no extra rooms in the backyard."
Duan Zhiwei whispered to Pu Tao: "I just need an accountant."
She had difficulty writing many uncommon characters, and the price calculation system of the dynasty was complicated and difficult to learn. She needed a cheap accountant. Pu Tao thought quickly: "Then clean up the storeroom and make room for a bed."
The warehouse is filled with pickled fish, fermented bean curd and summer dried bacon. If it is tidied up a bit, it might be barely habitable.
Duan Zhiwei discussed it with him, but the scholar quickly wiped his tears and agreed. He crossed his hands as a greeting and bowed deeply to Duan Zhiwei: "Zhen Hui from Zhongshan Zhen family, I am grateful for Madam Duan's kindness. If it weren't for you, I would have to sleep under the bridge."
They also had to avoid the night patrols of the Jinwu Guards.
As he said this, he was afraid that Duan Zhiwei would regret it, so he added: "I worked as an accountant for the Sheng family, a drug dealer in Qiantang County, Lin'an, for two years. I was very good at accounting, but the Sheng family later became impoverished and fell into poverty, so I lost my job."
Duan Zhiwei: “…” This person doesn’t sound very auspicious.
Duan Zhiwei brought Zhen Hui back to the restaurant, asked A Pan and Pu Tao to clean up the warehouse, and he moved out a pile of bamboo strips, and then gave him an inkstone and a brush.
He moved a small bed to one side and sat down: "Write."
Zhen Hui asked cautiously, "I wonder what the lady wants to write."
Duan Zhiwei said: "I'll tell you to write down Xinfeng wine, green ant wine, meat-filled Hu pancakes, locust leaf cold noodles, lotus leaf fragrant porridge..."
After writing a long menu, Duan Zhiwei strung the bamboo strips together with a rope and hung them on the earth wall so that diners could see at a glance what food was available in the restaurant.
The doctor from the wine shop came in and bowed to Madam Duan: "Boss, the jar of Xinfeng wine and the jar of Green Ant wine you requested have been delivered."
Duan Zhiwei hurriedly got up from the bed and instructed the wine doctor to carry two large jars of wine into the fire room.
A bucket of Xinfeng fine wine costs ten thousand yuan, which is a little expensive and is sold to students from wealthy families; Green Ant Wine is light green in color, turbid, and has only a slight smell of alcohol. It is cheap, ten cents a bowl, and is suitable for poor students.
Duan Zhiwei saw the wine master out and saw a basket of lively river fish on his ox cart. They looked very fresh. Seeing her like this, the wine master said flexibly: "Shopkeeper Duan is a frequent customer of my wine shop. If you like these fish, just take two away."
Duan Zhiwei had run a restaurant in both of his lives, so how could he not understand the hidden meaning of the other person's words? He just lowered his head and took out his purse: "How can I take your fish for free? This box of fish looks fresh, so I'll buy it."
The wine doctor took the money and smiled happily: "Manager Duan is worthy of opening a restaurant. He has a keen eye. This fish was just caught from the Wei River. It is not only fresh but also very fat. It is most suitable for making stuffed fish." After saying this, he bowed again and drove away.
Duan Zhiwei called A Pan over, asked him to pick up a fish, remove the head and tail, cut open the back, and rub four qian of salt evenly inside and out. Then, he fried fennel, coarse salt and other spices, and rubbed them into the fish's gills and belly, then wrapped it with hemp paper and hung it in a windy place.
This is the Wind Fish Method, it will not go bad for a year.
With the remaining fish, Duan Zhiwei decided to add a grilled fish to tonight’s menu.
A large bamboo board was placed at the entrance of the restaurant, with the words "This restaurant is newly opened, and everyone who comes will receive a pot of green ant wine." written on it.
The fish meat had been processed by A Pan and neatly arranged in a coarse porcelain basin. Duan Zhiwei poured in scallion and ginger water and a bowl of white wine to remove the fishy smell.
In order to make the fish body crispy and the fish meat firm, first wipe the water off the fish and fry it in a pan until both sides are golden brown.
The most important thing is the soul sauce of grilled fish. Various spices are fried in a pan, then added with black bean sauce, pepper, onion, garlic and a spoonful of bone broth to cook the sauce.
Place some tofu skin and mushrooms under the grilled fish, put the fried fish on top, pour the sauce on it, and bake it in the Hu pancake oven at the door.
Pu Tao added two pieces of firewood under the stove, and the fire burned more vigorously. The grilled fish soup in the stove began to bubble rapidly, and the bubbles burst with crackling sounds, and a rich aroma filled the streets.
As dusk fell, many scholars from Xuanyangfang came out to look for food. When they smelled the aroma, they began to look for the source. Duan Zhiwei stood at the door and greeted the guests: "Today's restaurant only has grilled fish. It's just fished out of the Wei River. It's very fresh."
"Sir, would you like to have a seat in the restaurant? Every diner who comes in today will be offered a pot of green ant wine." She suddenly said to two scholars who were standing in a corner and watching.
The two scholars were caught off guard when their names were called. They didn't know whether to leave or stay, so they had no choice but to go into the restaurant.
A plate of steaming and fragrant grilled fish was served on the table. The fish skin was baked to a golden and crispy texture, slightly curled up, and looked very tempting and fragrant.
The scholar picked up a piece with chopsticks and put it in his mouth. The tender and firm taste of the fish meat instantly bloomed on the tip of his tongue, and the seasoning was also spicy and fresh. The side dishes below absorbed the soup, the mushrooms were smooth and the tofu skin was delicious and chewy.
Duan Zhiwei brought over a pot of green ant wine at just the right time. The scholar ate the grilled fish in sips and enjoyed it very much.
Soon the entire restaurant was full of people, and there was a plate of grilled fish on each table.
Yuan Shenji appeared at the door at this time. Duan Zhiwei looked at him without surprise and said, "The captain is here. There is already an empty table waiting for you."
Su Xun followed him, looked at the grilled fish on other people's tables several times, and swallowed.
Duan Zhiwei wanted to serve them a pot of expensive Xinfeng wine, but Yuan Shenji stopped him: "No need, Yuan is on duty at the Wenchang Gate of Daming Palace tonight, so it's not appropriate for me to drink."
Su Yu wanted to have a drink, but after hearing what his boss said, he had to give up and said with a wry smile: "Yes, yes, no drinking today, no drinking."
A plate of fresh, spicy grilled fish was served on the table. Thinking that Yuan Shenji would be on duty tonight, Duan Zhiwei served them two bowls of millet rice and said, "This grilled fish is also good with rice."
Yuan Shenji looked around. Under his feet was a mattress made of green bamboo, which looked very cool. Colorful silk flower baskets and lanterns were hung on the four corners of the wall. The food tables were arranged neatly, and there were several beautiful lotus flowers in a coarse porcelain vase in the corner.
On one side of the wall were menus of various kinds made of bamboo, and on the other side was inscribed a poem which read: "I get up in the morning and have two bowls of rice, and I'm full, so don't worry about me."
Although the calligraphy was not elegant enough, it was quite in the style of the Duan family's wife. He looked at Duan Zhiwei who was busy in the fire room, and a smile appeared inadvertently at the corner of his mouth.
After finishing the first serving of grilled fish, the scholar wiped his mouth with satisfaction and left. When he met his classmates on the way out, he chatted with them for a few words and then praised the newly opened Duan's Restaurant, saying that the grilled fish there was very delicious and the flavor was something he had never tasted before.
With the recognition of the previous wave of diners, the next wave heard about it and came to Duan’s Restaurant. There was limited space at the dining tables, so a long queue started to form at the door. Most of them are scholars preparing to take the imperial examinations.
Duan Zhiwei had no choice but to urgently cut some white linen paper, assign numbers to them, and let Pu Tao take a small Huchuang and sit at the door to watch and call out the numbers. After all, if the order was messed up and caused dissatisfaction among the customers in line, it would be bad for the restaurant's reputation.
After a day of hectic activity, it was finally almost curfew and the diners finally left one after another.
Because she was busy, Aunt Duan had to take off her scarlet skirt and change into linen clothes, complaining about her back pain.
Duan Zhiwei cleverly kept the last plate of grilled fish for herself. She placed the grilled fish on the dining table and served each person a bowl of millet rice. Everyone was exhausted and ate in silence.
Only the new scholar Zhen Hui quickly finished a bowl of rice, then wiped his eyes with his sleeve and said, "I have never eaten such delicious food in my life."
Then he stood up, bowed deeply, and said solemnly: "Zhen will never forget the kindness of Madam Duan in taking me in. I will pass the imperial examination next spring..."
Duan Zhiwei has always been good at making promises to others. This was the first time he saw someone making promises for him, and the promise was about passing the imperial examination. He suddenly didn't know what to say in response.
While I was writing a draft, Ah Pan, who had gone into the kitchen to wash dishes, stumbled out and said, "Oh no! There's a thief in the house."
Everyone jumped up, and Aunt Duan ran while wailing: "Who the hell took my gold-inlaid agate hairpin and my gold and silver hairpin..."
Duan Zhiwei ran to the fire room and quickly looked around. The most expensive items were the plum blossom wine vessels, which were not missing. The Xinfeng wine in the jar was also not missing. She breathed a sigh of relief and asked Ah Pan, "What is missing?"
A Pan pointed above his head. Duan Zhiwei looked up and saw that the wind fish wrapped in hemp skin and hemp paper hanging there were gone.
Pu Tao ran in holding the hem of her skirt and said, "Madam, madam, something bad has happened. A large jar of fish sauce in the storeroom is missing."
Duan Zhiweiyin asked: "What else?"
Pu Tao scratched his fingers: "Crab sashimi, suan tiao, wine-pickled shrimp, meat sauce..."
Duan Zhiwei was shocked: "All gone?"
Pu Tao said, "Nothing is missing."
Duan Zhiwei: “......?”
Only a jar of pickled fish was missing from the entire warehouse.
Duan Zhiwei looked around again and found that only a jar of pickled fish and a few pieces of wind fish were missing. He didn't even throw away the few pieces of lamb's trotters in the basin that were prepared to be made into fresh shrimp trotter sashimi. Mutton was expensive, and a few trotters cost Duan Zhiwei more than a hundred copper coins.
If I go to the government office to report the loss of such a small amount of stuff, I'm sure I'll be beaten by the head of the neighborhood, so I'd better give up.
Duan Zhiwei couldn't breathe, so he had to open the door and cursed, "What a tasteless thief! The crab sashimi is obviously more delicious, okay?"
After curfew, Yechi lit the lights early. The palace maid Hongyao carried a red gauze palace lantern and walked through the flower gardens. The concubine Wang, whom she served, suddenly remembered to drink a bowl of almond curd tonight, so Hongyao had to get up at night and go to the imperial kitchen.
The water clock with a dragon-like shape and pearls beside the hall kept dripping water into the ground in the quiet night, reminding people that it was already midnight. The candle held by Hongyao was blown by the night wind and jumped fearfully on the gauze, making people feel a subtle sense of foreboding.
She walked to the deep end of the pool and suddenly heard someone talking. She hesitated slightly, then thought that since she had the token with her, it should be OK, so she poked her head towards the source of the voice.
An old woman in palace clothes was holding a bowl of sesame porridge. She tapped the edge of the bowl with a spoon, her face pale, and chanted: "Cats and ghosts can come, but they will not stay in the palace..."
Hongyao saw that the old woman had a dull look in her eyes and her whole body seemed to be pulled by something. She kept shouting "cat ghost". She covered her mouth in fear and ran back.
She ran along the corner of the red palace wall. Her mind worked quickly and she realized that this place was closest to Wenchang Gate, where there were always rotating Jinwu Guards on duty.
The guards usually carried cold knives and looked ferocious, so the palace maids did not dare to talk to them. But at this moment, Hongyao wanted to run to Wenchang Gate and tell Yechi that an old woman was practicing witchcraft.
But suddenly she heard a strange cry. She didn't dare to stop, but dropped the red gauze lantern and started running wildly without paying attention to etiquette.
They would soon reach Wenchang Gate, she encouraged herself.
A black shadow jumped out from the bushes, and its sharp claws made a harsh sound on the ground. Hongyao only remembered a pair of eyes that emitted a strange green light in the dark night.
That was the last thing she saw before she died.
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