Chapter 8 Chapter 8 Hosting the All-Vegetarian White Jade Jade Cup, Mother and Child...
Duan Zhiwei originally wanted to finish the deal with the abbot and go home, but when he saw that it was already noon, he thought about having lunch in the vegetarian restaurant of Nanyan Temple. The Suzaitian Hall is located in front of the bamboo forest. It is green and quiet.
It’s just that Nanyan Temple has been very popular recently, with BMWs and luxury cars passing by the entrance one after another, so the vegetarian hall that serves lunch should not be empty.
Duan Zhiwei had a vague sense of foreboding. She was hesitating whether to get up and leave when a young monk brought her a portion of vegetarian mushroom steamed buns.
The soup base of the steamed bun is a half-black, half-yellow fermented black bean sauce, with a few pieces of mushrooms floating on it. Duan Zhiwei hesitated for a moment, picked up the chopsticks and took a bite of the mushroom.
The mushrooms were not fully soaked and tasted like a piece of wood soaked in salt water. The noodles were cooked so soft and mushy that they could not be picked up with chopsticks.
No wonder there is no business at all, and no wonder people want to buy the recipe for lotus cake, Duan Zhiwei thought.
In the spirit of not wasting food, Duan Zhiwei gritted his teeth and finished the bowl of salty noodle soup. He stood up to leave, but when passing by the courtyard, he saw a woman in a black linen dress, bending down and deftly peeling yam. With a few swipes of the knife in her hand, a basin of white yam was peeled.
It looks more stable than Aunt Duan who has run the shop for many years. Duan Zhiwei was just feeling curious when the young monks in the vegetarian hall suddenly became a mess.
Duan Zhiwei overheard from the side and found out that several ladies from wealthy families wanted to have lunch here. However, the chef in charge of the kitchen had gone out to travel and would not be back until March. Only a few young monks were left in the kitchen to help with the cooking.
No wonder the food tastes so bad, Duan Zhiwei thought.
The abbot came in hurriedly and gave the little monk some instructions. Just as he was about to leave, Duan Zhiwei stopped him.
Duan Zhiwei looked at the black vegetables that the young monk had cooked, then looked at the abbot who had a difficult look on his face and said, "I heard that several ladies from high-class families are coming to have lunch. You may want to try my cooking skills, abbot."
Seeing her hesitation, Duan Zhiwei struck while the iron was hot: "I am also good at making some good vegetarian dishes. Cabbage with melon puree is milky white in color, tender and light in taste; golden mushrooms in a green pot are bright in color and have a salty and fragrant aroma; and the mushrooms are braised with choy sum, which is moist and delicious. I guarantee that the ladies will be satisfied."
As soon as these words were spoken, the young monk following the abbot wiped his saliva with his sleeve.
The abbot hesitated for a moment, probably because he had a full understanding of the skills of the young monks, so he nodded and said, "Then I will trouble you, my lady donor. I will pay you the salary later."
Duan Zhiwei waved her hands happily: "I am just trying to make a good relationship. Salary is another matter. But time is tight and I need to find a helper." She immediately pointed to the black-clad woman who was still sweeping the floor silently and said, "Then let that lady come and help."
The abbot seemed to have something else to do, so he just agreed and left.
Duan Zhiwei went to the kitchen and looked around. Although the kitchen was small, it had everything you need, including dried mushrooms, vegetables, and tofu. There were also all kinds of seasonings on the stove, such as salt, sauce, vinegar, plums, peppercorns, and cinnamon.
When Duan Zhiwei turned around, she saw the woman following her quietly, with a gray cloth wrapped around her face, and she didn't say a word.
Duan Zhiwei had to break the silence herself: "I am Duan Zhiwei from Xiping Duan family. I wonder if my wife..."
The woman was silent for a moment, bowed slightly and said: "My name is A Pan." Then she covered her face with the cloth again with her hands and refused to say another word.
Duan Zhiwei also knew that now was not the time to chat, as several ladies from wealthy families were still waiting for lunch, so he asked Ah Pan to help wash the vegetables. He first picked out some even-sized cabbages from the bamboo winnowing basket and scooped them into a round bowl shape. He then cut shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and radishes into cubes and stuffed them into the cabbage bowl before steaming it.
She wanted to test A Pan's cooking skills, so she stood aside and taught her how to make the sauce. Pour soy sauce and vegetarian broth into a wok, add starch to thicken it into a rich soup, wait until the cabbage pot is half cooked, pour the broth into the pot and cook, and soon the fresh, fragrant and delicious white jade pot will be ready.
Duan Zhiwei was pleasantly surprised to find that Ah Pan was really quick at doing things, so she started chatting with Ah Pan again: "Madam, your cooking skills are really good..."
A Pan only replied with two words: "Thank you".
Duan Zhiwei had no choice but to stop trying to get close to her. He chopped up a piece of tofu, mixed it with diced mushrooms and starch, and kneaded it into balls. He then fried them in a pan until they became golden yellow balls. He then fried a plate of oily vegetables and placed them under the plate, then put the golden balls on top. A plate of tofu balls was ready.
With the help of Duan Zhiwei and A Pan, white jade emerald pot, mother-and-child tofu balls, crispy fried black shredded silk, stir-fried kale, and three-fresh rice crust were smoothly transported out of the kitchen.
Duan Zhiwei thought about it and decided to make a plate of eight-treasure rice as the final dessert. She washed the glutinous rice, steamed it, then added vegetable oil and mixed it well. Then cut the candied dates, walnuts, candied kumquats and pine nuts into small pieces and mix them together with the glutinous rice. Take out a few small coarse porcelain bowls to compact the glutinous rice, then steam them together.
The steamer was already filled with a sweet aroma. Duan Zhiwei seized the opportunity to take out the glutinous rice, put it on a plate, sprinkled it with sugar, and then decorated it with some red and green silk.
The glutinous rice is crystal clear and plump, giving off a light rice aroma. The candied dates and kumquats are brightly colored and look beautiful when adorned on top.
Several young monks helping in the kitchen had been secretly swallowing their saliva from the beginning. Duan Zhiwei was kind enough to make a few more servings of eight-treasure rice pudding, but he did not expect that the young monks were very well-behaved and shook their heads, refusing to eat.
Duan Zhiwei had to give up and picked up another one to give to A Pan. A Pan also waved his hand and sat alone in the shadow of the corner, staring at the bamboo forest in a daze.
Duan Zhiwei was just wondering what to do when the abbot came back in a hurry and said that several ladies from wealthy families were very interested in the vegetarian meal at noon and wanted to meet the cook.
This was exactly what Duan Zhiwei wanted. If any merchant could get to know a lady from a wealthy family, their business would surely be able to take off. So she did not refuse and followed the abbot readily.
The private room of the vegetarian hall is on the second floor. It is decorated with emerald curtains and a painting on the wall. It is truly elegant. Four women dressed in luxurious attire were kneeling at the table. When they saw someone coming, they all stopped smiling.
The chief old lady had white hair, which she neatly pinned with a gilded honeysuckle leaf hairpin. Her back was straight and she looked very energetic. When he saw Duan Zhiwei, he first looked at her sharply, and then gave her a kind smile.
"Are you today's cook?"
Duan Zhiwei politely bowed and said, "It's me, the concubine. I heard that you ladies invited me here. I wonder if the dishes are not to your taste."
She was actually quite confident about the dishes, and just changed the subject on purpose. The old woman nodded with satisfaction and said, "The dishes are quite good. I am very interested in this stir-fried three muds. Could you please introduce it to me?"
The dish is red, white and black, and the color is very bright.
Duan Zhiwei said: "This dish is called stir-fried three pastes. First, stir-fry the yam paste with vegetable oil, then stir-fry the red bean paste with vegetable oil. After it is stir-fried into a sandy state, put it next to the yam paste, and finally boil the hawthorn paste."
She paused and continued, "The characteristic of this dish is that the yam is soft, sticky, smooth, refreshing, and sweet. The bean paste is delicate and dense, with a mellow sweetness, slightly sweet and sour, and you can taste the fragrance of hawthorn fruit, which can open your appetite."
The old woman nodded slightly: "I have not had a good appetite recently. No wonder I feel hungry after eating this fried three muds."
The younger woman next to her saw her nod, and tactfully called the maid to give her a reward. The maid handed Duan Zhiwei a bulging purse.
Today was a great harvest, Duan Zhiwei thought, holding his purse.
The old woman sighed again and said, "When I was in Suzhou in my early years, I also loved eating sweets. I sent all kinds of candied golden dates, candied green plums, pine nut jujube candies, and jade belt cakes to Cui's house. Now that I am old, I am too lazy to eat sweets."
Duan Zhiwei was about to leave, but after hearing this, she stayed for a while and said, "I can also make some Suzhou-style snacks, and I'm good at making sesame cakes."
Seeing that the old woman was somewhat interested, Duan Zhiwei continued, "Choose the best jujubes, steam them and make a paste, then mix in fried pine nuts, peach meat, osmanthus honey, and sugar lard."
The old woman continued, "I ate this sesame cake when I was young. It was baked to a golden color without any burnt spots, with a thin and crispy crust and no oil overflowing."
Duan Zhi smiled and said, "I live under the locust tree at the end of Tongyifang. If Madam wants to eat sweets someday, just send a servant to find me."
Duan Zhiwei received the reward and happily ran downstairs with her purse and skirt lifted. As a result, she saw A Pan hiding in the shadows and sweeping the floor alone.
Duan Zhiwei was curious and went to find the abbot, only to find out that A Pan was a refugee who had escaped from Guangzhou. There was a drought in Guangzhou that year and the whole family suffered. She was the only one left who escaped to Chang'anfang.
Beitianfang was originally a charitable organization established by the temple to relieve the poor, and its affairs were also run by monks. So Apan found a job in Nanyan Temple.
A Pan lost her family during the escape, and there seemed to be a big scar on her face from being bullied and whipped. She covered her face with a piece of cloth, as if the joys and sorrows in the world had nothing to do with her.
However, "when I was young, I didn't know the moon, I called it a white jade plate." Her parents named her A Pan, so she must be a girl who grew up in a loving family.
Duan Zhiwei smiled awkwardly and said to the abbot: "My snack shop is short of staff recently. Can you let Ah Pan go to help me? I don't want the salary for today's vegetarian banquet."
The abbot was kindhearted. The life in the temple was poor and no one was talking to Ah Pan, who was doing odd jobs in the kitchen. So he nodded and said, "I have no objection, but Ah Pan is not a slave. We still need to listen to his own wishes."
Duan Zhiwei prepared a long speech, such as how much the salary is, employee benefits, and that his aunt is stingy but kind, but Ah Pan looked up at Zhuye and nodded: "Let's go."
Duan Zhiwei got stuck halfway through preparing a long paragraph of terminology.
It was now dusk, and Aunt Duan was drinking yogurt under a locust tree while waiting for Duan Zhiwei to come home. From afar, she saw her driving a donkey cart with a person sitting diagonally in the back.
Duan Zhiwei enthusiastically pulled Ah Pan into the store and called Aunt Duan: "Aunt, find a quilt."
Aunt Duan, holding a pot of milk, pulled Duan Zhiwei out of the store and asked, "You brought someone back?"
"Yes, I asked you to help me, not because you are so busy that you don't have time to drink with Mr. Li, the vegetable seller across the street."
Mrs. Duan blushed: "Is he reliable? Did he ask for a salary?"
When Duan Zhiwei told her about A Pan's experience, tears immediately welled up in Aunt Duan's eyes. She wiped her tears with a handkerchief, put on a kind face again, and ran to care for A Pan.
Duan Zhiwei shook his head and glanced at the sky through the rammed earth window. The moon was as bright as a white jade plate tonight, and it was the reunion night.
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