104 The magnificent Fengle Building
"Get her out of here!"
After turning a corner, I saw a woman dressed as a peasant woman carrying a shoulder pole and shouting loudly along the alley. There were two not-so-big pottery jars hanging on both ends of the pole, and a piece of wood wrapped in coarse cloth was stuffed into the mouth of the jar, which seemed to serve as a wooden lid.
Ye Yunzhao looked calm and followed.
The woman heard footsteps behind her and turned to look. Seeing a pretty young lady, she stopped and asked with a smile:
"Madam, would you like some pickled bamboo shoots? We can have it with porridge at home, or use it in soup or stir-fry. Would you like some?"
She had never eaten pickled bamboo shoots before, so she nodded and asked, "How much is it?"
As soon as she heard this, the woman understood what she was talking about. With a smile, she opened a wooden lid, and a salty aroma immediately wafted out. A bamboo chopstick was stuck inside, and she stirred it a few times. "I'll sell it for a penny, or even a tael of silver. From your accent, I don't think you're from the capital. Why don't you buy it for two or three pennies? First, I want to try something new, and second, I wonder if you're used to it."
These words completely touched Ye Yunzhao's heart. He waved his hand and said, "Auntie, please give me five cents."
The woman agreed with a smile and put down the shoulder pole. Only then did Ye Yunzhao realize that she was carrying a small bamboo basket on her back.
The woman took out a cut lotus leaf from the bamboo basket, placed it on her left hand first, and used the bamboo chopsticks in her right hand to pick up some bamboo shoots from the pottery jar three or five times. Then, her fingers flew and the lotus leaf tightly wrapped the pickled bamboo shoots. She also tied a leaf from some unknown plant to it, which served as a handle and was very convenient.
Ye Yunzhao looked at the little thing curiously, paid five coins, and asked, "Auntie, do you know which is the largest and most famous restaurant in the capital?"
The woman was packing her things, thinking she was going to broaden her horizons. As she picked up her shoulder pole, she replied, "Of course it's Fengle Tower. I heard that if you enter the best private room in Fengle Tower, you can see the imperial palace!"
As she spoke, she looked towards a place, then took two steps back and pointed at one place, saying, "Look, that's it!"
Ye Yunzhao stood beside her and looked over. A vermilion eaves was visible outside the streets. Her eyes lit up, and she hurriedly thanked him and hurried over to that place.
It took her some time, and after many turns, she finally reached the main entrance of the restaurant. The three large characters "Feng Le Lou" were written in flowing calligraphy on the gilded plaque. When she got closer, she discovered that the characters were actually carved from jade.
This is the hope of the people of Xixiang!
Looking at the restaurant with carved railings and jade bricks in front of him, Ye Yunzhao did not hesitate and walked in.
Unlike the inn she had carefully selected, there were more than a dozen waiters at the door. When they saw someone, they immediately came forward and said, "Sir, please come in. What would you like to eat?"
The interior was even more magnificent, with small wooden signs engraved with the names of dishes hanging on both sides of the counter. Ye Yunzhao took a quick look and counted them in his mind. There were actually seventy or eighty different dishes.
"Sir? Sir?" Seeing that she didn't say anything, the waiter hurriedly introduced with a smile, "What would you like to eat? Our signature dishes include coral crystal sashimi and steamed sea bass..."
Ye Yunzhao knew in her heart that he was not the manager. She had originally thought that the shopkeeper should be keeping accounts at the counter, but after entering, she found that the person keeping accounts at the desk was also dressed as a waiter. She said gently, "Waiter, can I meet with your shopkeeper alone? Please tell him that I have a very profitable business for him."
The waiter, who had been full of enthusiasm just now, was stunned. He looked up and saw that she was wearing a coarse cloth dress and had an ordinary bun with only a sandalwood hairpin on it. She was carrying a small bamboo basket in her arm, which was covered with a layer of even worse coarse cloth. She couldn't even speak Mandarin.
The waiter who had worked hard in Fengle Building guessed her identity at once. He was afraid that she was a poor woman from some remote village who couldn't even afford a dish, so how could she talk about making big money? If he introduced such a person to the waiter, he didn't know how angry the shopkeeper would be!
He thought so in his heart, and did not change his previous enthusiasm. He still smiled and said: "Sir, the shopkeeper is out on business. Why don't you order two dishes first and eat them. When the shopkeeper comes back, I will help you find out."
Ye Yunzhao was stunned. She didn't have much money on her. Eating here...
She glanced at the price on the small wooden sign, her heart trembling, then smiled and pointed to a stool in a corner of the first-floor lobby. "It's unfortunate. I just had dinner before leaving. How about this? I'll sit there and wait. If the shopkeeper comes back, you can tell me."
The waiter wasn't surprised, having already guessed the poor woman couldn't afford the meal. However, the woman was quite polite, and if he chased her away in public, it would affect business. After thinking it over, he hesitated and said, "Then please sit for a while, sir. But you must not move around. If the manager finds out, I'm afraid he'll deduct my wages."
Ye Yunzhao nodded hurriedly. She could empathize with the miserable worker in front of her.
Seeing her sitting quietly in the corner, the waiter said to another waiter, "How dare you come to our Fengle Building if you can't afford it..."
The waiter beside him asked, "Why did you let someone like that in? The shopkeeper is on the third floor discussing business with a distinguished guest. If he saw us, he would probably be furious."
The waiter replied, "Come on, do you want me to kick her out? I've lost my patience in just half an incense stick of time. Just wait and see."
Ye Yunzhao sat there, watching the people coming and going. She felt that the capital was too prosperous. Why were there so many snobs? When everyone saw her, they all put on a look of contempt...
At first she waited patiently, but after one incense stick of time, and another incense stick of time...she waited for a whole hour, but the shopkeeper that the waiter mentioned did not come back.
The friendly waiter came back, looking embarrassed. "Sir, I guess the shopkeeper is busy and won't be back today. How about you come back tomorrow?"
Things had come to this point, so there was nothing else to do. After Ye Yunzhao left, the waiter said to everyone, "Watch carefully these past few days. Don't let the woman who just left come in again! She's like a living reincarnation of a piece of wood. How could she sit so well?"
As for these, Ye Yunzhao knew nothing about them.
*
The next day was a good day with a gentle spring breeze.
Ye Yunzhao got up early in the morning and took out a new set of clothes from his bag, specially for changing after the wedding, and then went to Fengle Tower eagerly.
The waiter who was very easygoing yesterday suddenly turned ferocious today, pushing and shoving her to prevent her from entering: "You can't even afford to eat, how can you have any business! Get out of here, get out of here! You drank tea for nothing all day yesterday, what's wrong? You still want to eat and drink for free today!"
Only then did she realize that the waiter wasn't friendly or easy to talk to. She glared at him and said, "If you don't want to speak frankly, just say it. Why waste my whole day?"
Ye Yunzhao waved her sleeves and left. This time she did not go to the big restaurant, but just looked for a similar restaurant on the street, called Liuji Restaurant. It looked spacious and bright, but the tables and chairs were old. Only a piece of calligraphy hanging on the side of the counter was well preserved.
When she came in, Manager Liu was using an abacus at the counter.
Ye Yunzhao stepped forward quickly: "Boss, can we chat alone for a while?"
After calculating the number and writing it down carefully, Manager Liu looked up at her. After looking her up and down, he asked, "What's the matter?"
Ye Yunzhao's face lit up with joy. He quickly placed the small bamboo basket on the counter and lifted the coarse cloth, revealing the gray, dry, branch-like woven mushrooms inside.
"I wonder if the shopkeeper has ever tasted the shiitake mushroom? Look, although it may seem insignificant, just adding a little to a stew or stir-fry will make it delicious, surpassing many other mushrooms..."
Before she could finish her words, Manager Liu waved his hands repeatedly and threw two copper coins into the bamboo basket like a beggar: "No! No!"
Before she could say anything else, Shopkeeper Liu impatiently scolded the servant: "Fusheng, what are you still standing there for? Send this poor beggar away quickly!"
The servant named Fusheng hurried forward to push her. Ye Yunzhao's figure flashed and he said anxiously, "Boss, if you don't believe me, I'll give you some for free. Wash the braided mushrooms, soak them in water, and add them to the old hen soup. The taste is really different!"
Seeing her relentless determination, Shopkeeper Liu glanced at the rotten branches in the bamboo basket and snorted, "The mushrooms we use are the world-famous Dengzhou Chicken Thread Mushrooms. Where did you get your poisonous mushrooms to dare to compare?"
Chicken filament mushroom? Ye Yunzhao was stunned. Isn't this just pine mushroom?
Although pine mushrooms are known as the king of wild mushrooms, their unique smell is loved by some and disliked by others, and their slippery and crispy texture can be said to be highly polarized.
If you use morels to make soup, it will taste delicious and more suitable for the general public.
Seeing that she refused to leave, Manager Liu urged her a few more times, and the servant also pulled her with a dark face.
Ye Yunzhao said hurriedly: "If I'm not mistaken, those are the people who like chicken shiitake mushrooms! Doesn't the shopkeeper want to attract new customers?!"
"Wait..." Shopkeeper Liu raised his hand and called the servant.
These words clearly struck a chord with Shopkeeper Liu. His family's restaurant was inherited from his ancestors. Unlike other restaurants, which often had to worry about rent, this one was granted by the Emperor! He had grown up hearing stories of his family's past. When his grandfather was young, an elder in the family had once served as a cook for the Emperor. The Emperor was so pleased that he even wrote a special inscription and rewarded him with gold and silver. This was naturally considered an unparalleled honor. Even so, both business and reputation should have continued to improve.
But for some unknown reason, the restaurant, passed down from generation to generation, became increasingly destitute. Now, under the management of Manager Liu, business was worsening, and even their signature dishes were no longer known.
Shopkeeper Liu is not incompetent. He has tried all the possible methods, such as developing new dishes and lowering prices appropriately, but business still shows no improvement.
He laughed at himself, thinking that he was really confused. He actually wanted to see what the woman was talking about, the weaving mushroom.
But he knew in his heart that no matter how good the braided mushrooms she mentioned were, they couldn't compare to the chicken-thread mushrooms. How could such a small amount of mushrooms help him attract new customers?
It's really a desperate attempt to find a cure.
He sighed, his expression gentler than before, and lowered his head to fiddle with his abacus beads: "Forget it, forget it, just kick her out quickly."
【Author’s words】
I'm going to advertise, please take a look, all the county magistrates~ I wish you all a happy reading, there are many pre-collected books in the column, welcome to eat [狗头叼玫瑰]
[Pre-collection 1] "The Guide to Making a Fortune by Setting Up a Street Stall in the Song Dynasty": See how the heroine makes a fortune by setting up a street stall in the Song Dynasty, and opens a shop that is comparable to Fanlou.
[Pre-collection 2] "Daily Business of a Teahouse in Bianjing": See how the heroine, after being forced to dress as a man, restores her identity to run a teahouse, marries a rich and handsome man (the hero becomes her son-in-law), and reaches the pinnacle of her life.
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