Chapter 49 Chapter 49 Chang'an Cinderella dropped a golden treasure...
The people in the restaurant were ready to pack up and eat dinner. Aunt Duan had worked all day and was so tired that her back and waist ached. She said impatiently, "We are closed today. Madam, please go out early tomorrow."
The lady in gray looked disappointed, but she still leaned against the pillar at the entrance of the restaurant and refused to leave. Duan Zhiwei hurried over and pulled on the sleeve of Aunt Duan and said, "Although the evening meal has been sold out, we haven't eaten yet. If you don't mind, you can eat with us."
The lady in gray finally smiled gratefully: "Thank you, Madam Duan."
Aunt Duan wanted to say something, but Duan Zhiwei waved her hand to stop her. Although Aunt Duan was confused, she shut her mouth and stopped talking.
Tonight Duan Zhiwei wants to try making pickled pork with preserved vegetables as a new dish. There happened to be some leftover bacon from Chinese New Year hanging on the beams, and the butcher shop also delivered some fresh spare ribs today, with spring bamboo shoots and lettuce nestled in a bamboo basket.
Add scallions, ginger and cooking wine to blanch the bacon and spareribs, throw them into a frying pan and stir-fry until golden brown, then put them together with spring bamboo shoots, lettuce and bean curd leaves in a black clay pot and simmer over low heat.
After an unknown amount of time, an enticing "gurgling" sound came from the pot. It was the sound of countless thick-cut bacon and pork ribs tumbling in the delicious soup.
Large clouds of steam rose from the cracks on the edges of the earthenware jar, and the delicious aroma of the broth spread from the fire room to the front hall.
Pu Tao had just finished wiping the food table, and he smelled the aroma as he walked to the fire room. He sniffed hard and said, "It smells so good."
She took a small table and went to the most hidden corner of the beam to get the expensive spices, but was stopped by Duan Zhiwei: "This is not an ordinary broth, no spices are needed."
If you are stewing ordinary meat, you need to use a small gauze bag to add pepper, star anise and other spices when cooking together. But this pickled pork with preserved vegetables has a naturally sweet smell, and just needs some salt sprinkled on it, the purpose is to capture the freshness of spring.
While Duan Zhiwei was waiting for the fire to light, it suddenly started to rain outside. It was the kind of drizzle that occurs in spring. People wouldn't feel anything when it hits them, but the pickled plums, beans and eggplants drying in the corners of the eaves were doomed.
Duan Zhiwei quickly took A Pan and Pu Tao to collect them, and the lady in gray also joined in to help. She looked enthusiastic and kind, and won the favor of everyone in the restaurant.
Although "spring rain is as precious as oil", it is still chilly in spring after all. Everyone is shivering with cold hands and feet when blown by the cold wind and drenched by the spring rain.
At this time, it would be best to drink a bowl of fresh and delicious hot soup. Duan Zhiwei wrapped a piece of cloth around the boiling earthenware jar and opened the lid. The soup was still bubbling in the residual heat of the jar. When the heat dissipates, you can see that the pickled pork soup is thick and white, with green lettuce and white spring bamboo shoots floating in it, which makes it more appetizing.
Duan Zhiwei scooped a bowl for everyone, and gave the first bowl to the kind-hearted lady in gray.
The Yan Du Xian dish was very successful, the soup was rich and delicious, the bacon was firm and chewy, and the fat was crispy and not greasy, but melted in the mouth. The spring bamboo shoots and lettuce inside are crisp and tender. Duan Zhiwei deliberately cut the lettuce into thick pieces, which absorbed the soup. When you took a bite, the rich soup burst in your mouth, which went well with the sweet lettuce.
After a busy day, everyone was eating in silence. However, the lady in gray ate slowly and at a leisurely pace, showing the elegance of a lady from an aristocratic family.
She was the first to get the soup, but the last to finish it. She put down her bowl and chopsticks gracefully, then stood up and saluted Duan Zhiwei with her hands crossed, saying, "I haven't eaten for a few days. This is really a delicious dish."
She took out a dozen copper coins from her purse. When Duan Zhiwei heard that she had not eaten for several days, he was not willing to accept her money. He just said that the meal was not worth it and refused to accept her money.
Pu Tao didn't know the inside story, so he blinked and asked, "My lady, why haven't you eaten for a few days?"
"Won't you feel hungry if you don't eat for a few days?"
Duan Zhiwei originally wanted to cover Pu Tao's mouth, but unexpectedly the lady in gray suddenly burst into tears.
"My real name is Li Lan. My father, Li Yan, is also a member of the royal family. My mother died young. After my father married my stepmother, she also died of a sudden illness. My stepmother treated me harshly, beating and scolding me, and sometimes even not giving me food."
Aunt Duan put on a sympathetic look: "There has never been a good stepmother since ancient times. It's also a pity to see such a stepmother."
Li Lan continued, "One day I went to Nanyan Temple to burn incense. On the way, I met a koi with red fins and golden eyes. It was so cute, so I brought the fish back to my pond. Whenever I fed it, it would float up. Whenever I chatted with it, I felt very happy."
She suddenly covered her face and said, "I heard recently that Tuohan Kingdom wanted to select a girl from the clan as the queen. The Honglu Temple came to my house to look at her, but my mother only chose my sister. Although I am interested, I really don't know when and where the selection will be held. And I don't know where the koi fish has gone recently. It may have been eaten by my mother."
"I was really desperate and had to wander around. I didn't know when I ended up in Xuanyangfang. I was hungry. Madam Duan helped me in Qujiang last time, so I mustered up the courage to come in." She cried sadly and everyone felt very sympathetic towards her. Pu Tao's eyes were red and she kept asking Duan Zhiwei to help her.
Duan Zhiwei actually found out the time and place of the Tuo Khanate king's beauty selection from a foreign envoy in broad daylight, and hurriedly said that he knew it.
However, all the noble ladies of the royal family were wearing rare and famous flowers and expensive robes and skirts, except Li Lan, who was wearing a grey patched jacket. Although she was beautiful, would the king really like this outfit?
Li Lan said it was no big deal, because her koi with red fins and golden eyes could make her wish come true. However, she didn't know where the koi had gone. She wanted to take advantage of the fact that her stepmother was taking her sister to Qujiang Garden tomorrow and secretly go back home to look for it.
Everyone looked at Duan Zhiwei, and Duan Zhiwei had no choice but to say, "I'll take you there on the donkey cart."
Li Lan held her hand and kept expressing her gratitude.
The next day, when the curfew was lifted, Duan Zhiwei was preparing to cook some steamed buns and wontons with the freshly boiled shrimp roe soy sauce. Aunt Duan pushed her and said, "Mrs. Li is so pitiful, and you still have the mood to cook breakfast? Ah Pan and I are here, so go ahead."
Duan Zhiwei: "......Okay then."
Li Lan's residence is in Anyifang. It is a grand house with three entrances and three exits. However, the family has fallen into decline and the house is desolate. The red pepper room, which should have been gorgeous, is covered with traces of mottled and falling off.
As expected, her stepmother and sister were not there. Li Lan anxiously leaned over to the edge of the pond and called out, "Fish, fish, please come out."
There was no movement.
Duan Zhiwei also walked into the pond. This pond had probably not been taken care of for a long time. There was a thick layer of withered duckweed floating on the surface, and there was no sign of fish swimming.
Li Lan knelt by the pond, covering her face and crying. Duan Zhiwei had to squat down and pat her shoulders to comfort her.
"Don't cry! Your mother killed your fish and buried it under the locust tree in the yard." Suddenly, a girl with long hair and colorful clothes descended from the sky. "You can take out the bones and hide them in the house. If you need anything, just pray to it and you will get what you want."
The girl disappeared immediately after she finished speaking. Before Duan Zhiwei could react, Li Lan stood up quickly, went to the locust tree and started digging the soil with her hands. Duan Zhiwei walked around the garden, found a shovel, and helped her dig.
Sure enough, there was a complete fish skeleton buried in the soil. Li Lan began to break down and cry again. Duan Zhiwei had been dealing with mandarin fish for several days yesterday and felt inexplicably guilty, so he could only stammer to comfort her.
Unexpectedly, Li Lan cried for a while, then cheered up, put the fish bones in the brocade box in her room, and then began to make a wish.
Duan Zhiwei was quite skeptical about this, but within a short while, a gorgeous green peacock silk shirt, a branch of delicate apricot blossom, and a pair of eye-catching red satin soft-soled shoes inlaid with gold pearls appeared on the incense table.
Duan Zhiwei has always liked pearls, and he could tell at a glance that the pearls were round and sparkling, and must be no ordinary items.
Li Lan immediately picked up her clothes and changed them from behind the screen. She was naturally beautiful, and the apricot blossoms on her temples were not priceless, but they suited her very well, making her eyebrows look like distant ink and her eyes like water.
She glanced at the sky outside and said anxiously to Duan Zhiwei, "Please give me a ride, Madam Duan."
Cinderella's pumpkin carriage suddenly turned into Duan Zhiwei's broken donkey cart. When she drove the donkey cart and carried Li Lan to the Qujiang Royal Garden, a group of beautiful young ladies in jewels and pinks were already waiting there.
It seems that the Daming Palace also gave the king of this small vassal state a little face by specially surrounding the imperial concubine's favorite pavilion in the middle of the lake with a layer of gauze curtains. It is said that the king was sitting inside.
Li Lan's attire was luxurious and she was really good-looking, so not only did the noble ladies look at her, but even the foreign envoys were dazzled by her. She was soon invited into the pavilion by the foreign envoys, and the other girls all sighed with regret.
Duan Zhiwei was dressed in the coarse linen clothes she usually wore for work today, looking dusty and dusty. She was in no hurry to leave, but stood outside the garden to join in the fun, wanting to see who the king would finally choose as the queen, but someone suddenly grabbed her arm.
She turned her head and saw that it was Yuan Shenji who was on duty in Qujiang.
A trace of anger appeared in his eyes: "I just thought Madam Duan was joking, but you actually came here to participate in the selection of the King of Tuohan Kingdom."
He looked quite disappointed, so Duan Zhiwei had no choice but to ask, "Captain, do you think I'm here to participate in a talent show when I'm dressed like this?"
She told him everything about Li Lan. As a military general, Yuan Shenji had also heard some things about the former Dingyuan General Li Yan, so he had no choice but to apologize to Duan Zhiwei.
Duan Zhiwei turned his head and ignored him.
The two of them pushed and pulled each other outside the garden for a long time, but then they saw Li Lan hurriedly running out and said to Duan Zhiwei: "It seems that my mother has found me. I hope my wife can send me back home quickly."
Duan Zhiwei was also unwilling to face her cruel stepmother who killed fish without blinking an eye, so she quickly pulled the donkey's reins, said goodbye to Yuan Shenji, and drove away in a hurry on the donkey cart, raising yellow sand all over the ground.
As she drove, she asked Li Lan about her situation. Li Lan blushed and said, "The king is young and handsome, and he is also very gentle and considerate. He said it was still cold in spring, and he personally poured me a cup of tea."
It would be fine if the King of Tuo Khanate didn't have a bald head like his envoys. Duan Zhiwei felt relieved and sent Li Lan back to his mansion.
The two got off the donkey cart, and Duan Zhiwei realized that she was limping and couldn't help asking, "Are you injured?"
Li Lan said timidly: "I lost a shoe when I ran out of the garden..."
Duan Zhiwei: “…”
Duan Zhiwei had never expected the plot to develop to such an outrageous level. She could only give a dry laugh, say goodbye to Li Lan, and drive away in her donkey cart. I think tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, there will be guards carrying a pair of shoes inlaid with gold pearls, looking for someone all over the city.
Li Lan watched Duan Zhiwei walk away, then returned to her room, put on her tattered gray jacket, crushed the beautiful apricot blossoms without blinking, hid the remaining pearl shoe in the secret compartment under the bed, and then fell asleep on the couch.
The stepmother and stepsister hurried back and ran to Li Lan's room first. Seeing her sleeping on the couch, they closed the window and left.
Li Lan opened her eyes and quietly walked to the window. Seeing that the two annoying people had really gone far away, she locked the doors and windows again, took out the embroidered shoe from the secret compartment again, and looked at it for a long time.
Then he sneered.
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