After the New Year’s Eve dinner, Xu Qinyu and Wen returned to Laixi Lane.
Ning Jie'er's Linglong Pavilion closed a few days ago, so she didn't go back with them these days.
As soon as she arrived at Laixi Lane, Xu Qinyu went forward and knocked on the door. Someone opened it. She thought she would see Ning Jie'er or her grandmother, but it turned out to be her fourth brother.
He must have just returned and looked exhausted.
Xu Qinyu was delighted and said happily, "Fourth brother, you are back?"
She really missed her fourth brother. Ever since he brought back five thousand taels of silver last time, he left Yuanbao Town within two days and had not returned until now.
Although the two of them planned to let their relationship take its natural course, they could be considered to be in love after they slept in the same bed together in Raozhoucheng before. However, Fourth Brother was busy, and she was also busy, so they rarely spent time alone together on weekdays. It seemed that they simply skipped the romance and lived their lives with the trivialities of family life.
However, she hasn't told her family about her relationship with her fourth brother yet.
Pei Weixuan took back five thousand taels of silver from Huo Ye. After that, he helped to carry out a convoy before the New Year and sold a batch of glassware. He finally returned to Yuanbao Town on the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month.
Wen looked at her son and daughter-in-law with a smile. How could she not see that Yu Niang's expression was different when she looked at her son.
"Let's go, everyone go in first."
Xu Qinyu followed Fourth Brother into the house and subconsciously took his arm. "Fourth Brother, have you eaten yet?"
Pei Weixuan said, "I've already eaten with my grandmother and the others. The kitchen is boiling water. Yu Niang will be here soon..."
Before he could finish, Xu Qinyu hurriedly said, "Fourth brother, wash first."
She knew that the remaining half of her fourth brother's sentence must be for her to wash first.
There is only one stove in the kitchen, and we usually boil water in pots. Now that it is cold, we need a lot of hot water even for washing.
Judging from her fourth brother's appearance, she knew that he must have returned to Yuanbao Town immediately after protecting the escort. He did not stop on the way and must be exhausted from the journey. Naturally, it would be better for him to wash up first.
Pei Weixuan didn't refuse and went back to his room to wash up with hot water.
The water had already been boiled in the kitchen, and then Xu Qinyu and Wen came.
Ning Jie'er and the others have already washed up.
There was a little snow in the southwest this year. The snow stopped in the past few days, but it was still a little cold. After washing up, Xu Qinyu did not go out to the wooden pavilion in the courtyard to blow her hair. It would be easy to get a headache with wet hair in the snow and ice.
Not long after she finished washing up, she heard a knock on the door. Knowing it was her fourth brother, she went to open the door.
Pei Weixuan said, "Come and help Yu Niang wipe her hair."
Otherwise, her hair is thick and can never be dried, so she falls asleep with half-wet hair, and then she will have a headache the next day.
Xu Qinyu was also used to it and moved aside to let her fourth brother in.
After Pei Weixuan entered the house, he took out a thick velvet towel and helped her wipe her wet hair. Xu Qinyu was also busy, asking her fourth brother how his trip was and whether he encountered any danger. She was worried that he might encounter some danger.
In fact, we encountered a group of bandits on this trip.
Even in prosperous times, there are always mountain bandits and river bandits. Now that the world is a little chaotic, there are even more mountain bandits and river bandits.
Colored glaze is expensive, and many people have started to inquire about it, wanting to know who made it and want to get their hands on it.
This time they encountered the Boshan bandits, who were willing to sacrifice their lives for wealth. However, the ones who transported the glass every time were the most skilled in martial arts among the black-armored guards.
The black-armored guards were all extremely skilled in martial arts, and they were the most skilled among them, so they were naturally not afraid of these bandits. Except for a few black-armored guards who were slightly injured, the others were fine.
Fearing that Yu Niang might worry, Pei Weixuan paused and said slowly, "I didn't encounter anything this time."
Xu Qinyu turned around and glanced at her fourth brother. His face was calm, and he was wiping her hair with his eyes half closed.
Fourth brother is always like this no matter what he says or does. I don’t know whether what he says is true or false.
Xu Qinyu naturally couldn't help but nag him a few times, telling him not to hide anything from her and his family, as everyone would be worried about him.
Pei Weixuan just said "hmm" softly.
It took more than half an hour to finish drying my hair.
Pei Weixuan also planned to return to his room and let Yu Niang rest early.
Xu Qinyu was just about to tell her fourth brother to rest early, but when she saw him in a silk gown, with handsome features, broad shoulders and long legs, her heart started beating a little faster, and she couldn't help but say, "Fourth brother, come here."
Pei Weixuan glanced at Yu Niang and saw that her eyes were evasive. He thought she wanted to say something and moved closer to her. "Yu Niang, do you have anything to say?"
Seeing his handsome face approaching, Xu Qinyu tiptoed over and pecked the corner of his lips quickly.
After pecking the corner of her fourth brother's lips, her heart beat faster and her cheeks felt a little hot.
Pei Weixuan was stunned for a moment, and his eyes darkened. He had been enduring this for a long time. When he got along with Yu Niang a few days ago, he could see that she was willing to accept him, but he thought it would take two years for her to clarify their relationship with him and marry him. He never thought that she would kiss him.
At this moment, his self-control collapsed instantly.
He held Yu Niang's wrist and bent down to kiss her.
Before Xu Qinyu could come back to her senses, a somewhat cold lip landed on her lips, followed by the fourth brother's passionate kiss.
Then she became a little breathless.
At some point, the two separated. Xu Qinyu felt a little dizzy. She heard her fourth brother say in a hoarse voice, "Yu Niang, go to bed early."
Xu Qinyu hummed a sound with a dizzy head, and saw her fourth brother striding away. His steps were a little messy and a little weird.
Xu Qinyu looked down at her clothes again, hurriedly pulled them together, blushed, and ran to the bed. She covered herself with the quilt, covering herself tightly with it, even covering her head, and lay there motionless.
…
The next morning, Xu Qinyu woke up.
Last night she actually had a dream in which she and her fourth brother got married. The dream became a little vague after that.
When she woke up, she kept thinking of the scene of herself marrying her fourth brother in a red wedding dress.
Last night she was thinking that she was already eighteen, and even if she couldn't do anything else in a relationship, she could at least kiss him, so she kissed him for some unknown reason.
But I didn’t expect that Fourth Brother was also a little out of control.
She certainly won't regret it.
I just think that being in love feels good.
She was in a daze for a while, then got dressed and got up.
Today is New Year’s Eve, the Chinese New Year.
Xu Qinyu plans to make roast suckling pig today.
When she made roast suckling pig for the corrupt official at Zhu's Restaurant in Raozhou City, she was a little greedy and wanted to eat it. After she came back, she was busy and had no time to make it. Now it is the New Year, and she has a few days of free time, so she can roast it and let everyone in the family have a taste.
As soon as I got up and went to the kitchen, everyone was already busy in the kitchen. Breakfast would definitely be something cooked casually, and the New Year's Eve dinner in the evening was the highlight.
On ordinary days, the New Year’s Eve dinner is either eaten at noon or in the late afternoon. This year’s New Year’s Eve dinner will be eaten in the late afternoon.
When she went to the kitchen and saw her fourth brother, Xu Qinyu was still a little embarrassed and didn't dare to look at him.
Pei Weixuan's ears were also a little red.
Wen also noticed the subtle atmosphere between the two.
But she didn't say anything. She never interfered in the affairs of her son and Yu Niang.
We had a simple breakfast, and Mrs. Wen and Mrs. Zhu cooked some noodles.
After resting for two hours, the family began to prepare the New Year’s Eve dinner.
The ingredients were purchased two days in advance, and even the brick oven for roasting suckling pig was ready.
Xu Qinyu mainly made roast suckling pig, while others helped wash and cut vegetables, prepare ingredients and light the fire.
Fourth brother had already lit the charcoal fire, while Xu Qinyu marinated the suckling pig and started to brush the crispy syrup on the skin. After brushing the crispy syrup on the skin, he waited until the skin was completely dry before taking it over and starting to grill it.
After half an hour, the fragrance became stronger and stronger.
The neighbors around here have become accustomed to it and know that it must be Miss Xu's family preparing the New Year's dinner. They have not forgotten the fragrance of the New Year's dinner made by Miss Xu last year. They thought that last year's fragrance was the limit, but this year's taste is not inferior to last year at all.
Last year's fragrance was delicious, so fresh, this year's is a rich and unique meaty aroma, they all have the same characteristic, making them drool.
"It's shortening my lifespan. Every year I have to smell the New Year's Eve dinner that Miss Xu makes. It makes my own New Year's Eve dinner taste bland."
It's not just one family that thinks this way; almost everyone living in Laixi Lane thinks this way.
It’s just that Xu Ji doesn’t prepare New Year’s Eve dinner on weekdays, otherwise they would definitely not be willing to cook the dinner themselves and go to Xu Ji to make a reservation.
But no matter how greedy they are, they can only endure it.
By the time the roast suckling pig is fully cooked, the aroma is already incredibly fragrant.
Last year, when old lady Zhu was about to fail, she made Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, and this year it was roasted suckling pig.
Chinese New Year is a day for family reunion, and she attaches great importance to it. She wants to have a good meal with her family every Chinese New Year.
When the roast suckling pig is ready, prepare the other ingredients.
The rest are a few home-cooked dishes, most of which are appetizing and refreshing.
At the time of Shen, everyone gathered together to start eating the New Year's Eve dinner, the highlight of which was naturally the roast suckling pig.
After helping to distribute the roast suckling pig to everyone in the family, Xu Qinyu took a piece for herself. She squinted her eyes in satisfaction as she took a bite. It was crispy and crackling, and it was not only crispy but also fragrant. It tasted even better than the roast suckling pig Xu Qinyu made in later generations.
This time's roast suckling pig was even more fragrant and flavorful than the one he'd roasted for the corrupt official in Raozhou City. This was because Xu Qinyu had made several of the seasonings herself, like the fermented bean curd and soybean paste needed to marinate the suckling pig. Furthermore, the pork here was fed wild mountain vegetables and leftovers, unlike later generations, where pork was raised on feed and quickly sold. The pigs here, while slower to grow, were still fragrant, and the taste was worlds apart.
"Fourth sister-in-law, this is delicious." Ning Jie'er's eyes lit up as she ate.
It was so fragrant. The fat under the pig skin was roasted and melted a lot. Not only was the skin crispy, but even the fat under the crispy skin was roasted to a slightly burnt texture. However, when roasted to this extent, the skin should be over-roasted, but the suckling pig roasted by Fourth Sister-in-law did not have that. The skin was crispy and the inside was also a little burnt. Although it was a little oily, it was not greasy. The next layer was lean meat, which was not dry at all and was very tender, tender and fragrant. When you take a bite, the crispy skin is connected with a little crispy fat, plus the tender lean meat. It is so delicious that Ning Jie'er wants to live with Fourth Sister-in-law for the rest of her life. She will never get married and will give all the money she earns to Fourth Sister-in-law.
It was indeed delicious, and Xu Qinyu was very satisfied.
The restaurant and Xu's will definitely add this roast suckling pig and Buddha Jumps Over the Wall in the future.
Buddha Jumps Over the Wall requires reservation at least several days in advance, but this roast suckling pig does not require reservation, just one day in advance will do.
The family finished a roast suckling pig weighing almost 20 kilograms, and they also finished most of the other dishes.
After Xu Qinyu finished eating, she had no plans to go to the night market.
After a busy year, I just want to take a break.
The whole family was roasting charcoal fire in the main room, chatting, and celebrating the New Year, feeling warm and happy.
…
On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Xu Ji opened for business. As soon as it opened, I felt that everyone was motivated and content, and the whole company was united. There were occasional minor frictions on weekdays, but these basically disappeared after the Lunar New Year.
It has been three or four months since the merger with Donglaiju. The original chefs and kitchen assistants of Donglaiju have learned almost everything from her, so Xu Qinyu can let them cook on their own.
Fourth brother didn't leave until after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, so he followed her to Raozhou City to take a look.
This time, the two of them did not go into the city, but went directly to the construction site.
The place where the restaurant was built was next to a big village called Pingxing Village.
In addition to the many craftsmen that Mrs. Lu had helped to find, most of the laborers were from Yuanbao Town, as well as from Raozhou City and Pingxing Village.
Originally, when Pingxing Village knew that a restaurant was going to be built nearby, they were a little unhappy and had an xenophobic mentality.
But the villagers had a formal deed for the house in Raozhou City, so they didn't want to make trouble. When they learned that the house they were building also had an attic and they needed to find craftsmen and laborers, and that even the laborers would be paid thirty cents a day, the dissatisfaction in their hearts immediately disappeared, and they all rushed over to respond to the job.
As long as the person is diligent, Gong Ge'er and Tao Qi will want him.
It was also agreed in advance that if anyone was found to be lazy and not working properly, they would not be paid a penny and would be fired directly.
Gong Ge'er and the others certainly didn't know what kind of character these people had. When they started working, there were actually a few people who gathered together to be lazy. Gong Ge'er and Tao Qi and the others immediately drove them away and didn't pay them a penny for that day.
Naturally, these people also want to make trouble. They think they are the local tyrants and that the strong dragon cannot defeat the local tyrant, so they start to cheat.
Gong Ge'er and Tao Qi are even more powerful. They don't even want the troublemakers' fellow villagers.
This concerns his own interests, the daily wages of thirty cents.
The person in charge also said that as long as you work for a full month without taking a leave, you will be given one or two taels of silver at the end of the month.
One or two taels of silver a month, such a high wage, no one would be willing to pay it. Without Gongge'er and others stepping in, these people would have scolded and driven away several fellow villagers who were working in a dishonest way.
Gong Ge'er also told everyone, "Our boss is building a restaurant and a house for diners to rest. We will definitely hire people in the future. We will need both male and female workers because we will be entertaining both male and female guests. So everyone, work hard. In the future, let your sons, daughters, young wives, or even your wives come to work in the restaurant. Our boss said that the monthly salary will not be less than 800 coins."
"Eight hundred wages?" Everyone was a little skeptical.
Gong Ge'er said, "Why would I lie to you? Our boss is the boss of Xu's in Yuanbao Town. The waiters at Xu's get 800 coins a month, and if you work longer, your salary will increase."
"Xu Ji? I think I've heard of it. I have relatives in Yuanbao Town. I heard the food is delicious, the wages seem to be quite high, and the owner is very nice."
When this was said, everyone half believed it, but they also felt vaguely that this restaurant was built outside the city, how could it really attract customers? If there were no customers, then hiring so many waiters would be useless.
But now the boss promised that as long as they work hard, they can work as waiters in the restaurant if there is a suitable candidate in their family in the future, so they naturally work hard.
Xu Qinyu came over on the fourth day of the Lunar New Year and saw that the restaurant had made great progress compared to half a month ago.
Because even during the New Year holidays, everyone was still working hard. Xu Qinyu asked Gongge'er to pay double wages to the craftsmen and laborers on the construction site during the New Year holidays, so everyone was very motivated and were willing to do so even if they could not go home for the New Year.
The attic on the restaurant side, the houses on both sides, and the house where she and her family live are all being worked on at the same time, and they will be almost completed by spring.
Even the hot spring halfway up the mountain is starting to be built.
However, there is no rush to dig a hot spring. First, make some bamboo pipes and connect the pipes from the mountain to the bottom of the mountain. It will not be too late to dig a hot spring after the house is built.
It is difficult to buy large amounts of iron, so it is impossible to make iron pipes to carry the hot spring water down the mountain. The only way is to cut down thicker bamboos on the mountain, penetrate the core, and connect them. It can also be used. Iron tools are more likely to rust, so they are not the best choice.
When she came over to see the progress of the construction site, she saw that Gong Ge'er and Tao Qi, several supervisors, had lost a lot of weight. Xu Qinyu was still very grateful to them.
During the Chinese New Year, she not only left a red envelope with ten taels of silver for Gong Ge'er, but also for Tao Qi and the other two. Xu Qinyu kept them all, planning to give them all the wages, the red envelope and the reward money she gave them when the project was completed.
She also came here to recruit people, waiters for the restaurant and waiters for the two nearby residences.
It just so happened that Fourth Brother had some ability to see through people's hearts and could screen out most of those who were cunning and deceitful. When Xu Qinyu was recruiting people, she wanted Fourth Brother to help with the screening to prevent him from not being able to judge people's hearts and causing trouble in the future.
It was easy for Xu Qinyu to recruit people. She just built an oil shed in front of the construction site, with a square table and two stools underneath. She sat on one stool and the other was for her fourth brother.
The tentative wages for the waiters in the restaurant and the mansion here are 800 coins per month.
The waiters in the restaurant and the women's department can hire older women, even those in their thirties, but they must be clean and tidy. If they look sloppy, Xu Qinyu will directly exclude them without the help of Fourth Brother.
The waiters for female and male guests must be separate. Female guests only need female waiters, and male guests only need male waiters.
The restaurant's waiters are tentatively scheduled to be around thirty people.
There are tentatively thirty people on each side for the female and male guests, and there will be two or three people guarding each courtyard.
This means we will recruit ninety people this time.
Xu Qinyu plans to recruit more than 40 people in Raozhou City and more than 40 people near Yuanbao Town.
When they learned that the young lady under the oil shed was the owner of this restaurant, everyone was very surprised. They couldn't help but look towards the oil shed, and they were all amazed at how amazing this young lady was. She was so young, but she had already opened a restaurant, and now she wanted to open a restaurant outside the city.
I went home specially in the evening to talk to my family.
So the next day, many young women came to respond to the call.
Xu Qinyu doesn't want anything as long as the clothes are dirty, the hair is greasy, and even the nails are dirty.
But most people either have dirty clothes or greasy hair. Some people have clean clothes and well-groomed hair, but the cracks between their nails are dirty.
Therefore, Xu Qinyu just took a look at the ten in front of her and decided not to take them.
One woman couldn't help but say, "Are you kidding me, little girl? We already have more than ten people here, and you don't want any of them. Didn't you say you wanted to recruit forty people?"
Xu Qinyu said gently, "I'm here to entertain distinguished guests and make a living by catering. Look at you, you don't even take care of your appearance. There's even dirt under your fingernails. If distinguished guests saw this, who would be willing to come back a second time to eat and play? So, don't blame me, Auntie. I only look for people who truly love cleanliness and tidiness."
Seeing her polite words, the woman softened her tone a bit, but she couldn't help but mutter, "What's the point of being clean? I have to do farm work at home, how can I be so clean? Do I have to be so careful just to hire a waiter?"
Xu Qinyu nodded. "Yes, they must truly love cleanliness. Otherwise, even if they are hired, they will still be fired if they find that the hygiene is not up to standard after they start working."
Seeing Xu Qinyu's politeness, the woman wanted to say something to her, but the handsome man next to her had an ice-cold expression on his face. He just glanced at her indifferently, and she felt as if she were immersed in ice. She no longer dared to say anything rude to the beautiful young lady in front of her, and left in a hurry.
Fortunately, we managed to recruit a few people on the first day, including two women, three young ladies and two young wives, as well as three boys in their teens.
They are all from the nearby Pingxing Village.
The next day, more people came, including some women, young ladies, wives and young men from ordinary families in Raozhou City who came to respond to the call.
In the next few days, we recruited all the people.
Xu Qinyu also had to teach them how to massage their muscles and bones and clear their meridians.
She didn't understand these things, so she asked her fourth brother for help.
After returning to the inn at night, the fourth brother taught her step by step. He asked her to lie on the bed and rubbed the meridians and bones on her back with his fingers. He also told her what meridians these were, how to rub them, the amount of force, etc.
There will be some pain in some places, but Fourth Brother said that this is just a sign of congestion in the meridians, and that they need to be slowly massaged without much force.
When Fourth Brother helped her massage her meridians, she began to feel warmth all over her body. It was indeed very comfortable, and it made Xu Qinyu feel a little drowsy.
After her fourth brother taught her once, she began to massage him. He would also remind her if she did something wrong.
When she was massaging Fourth Brother's muscles and bones, his shoulders, back, waist and abdomen were stiff, which distracted her a little.
In addition to teaching her, the fourth brother also taught Gong Ge'er, and when the time comes, Gong Ge'er will have to teach the other guys who take care of the male guests.
In addition to recruiting people these days, Xu Qinyu has been busy learning this from her fourth brother, and Gong Ge'er also comes to the inn every day to learn.
In addition to these, Xu Qinyu also plans to recruit some kitchen helpers and chefs, as well as apprentices. The restaurant is much larger than the restaurants in Yuanbao Town, so she has only temporarily planned to have about 30 waiters. When the business is good in the future and she is too busy to handle it, she will make other plans.
Because the restaurant is quite large, there are not enough kitchen helpers and cooks, so we have to recruit both.
For the next half month, Xu Qinyu was busy recruiting people and learning how to massage muscles and bones from her fourth brother.
She and her fourth brother were temporarily living in Raozhou City. They had hired three kitchen helpers and a chef, as well as guards skilled in martial arts. The restaurant was outside the city, so they definitely had to hire some guards to ensure the safety of the guests.
Huo Jiang and a dozen other black-armored guards mixed in to respond to the call.
These were also the people selected by Pei Weixuan, all of whom were the ones with the highest martial arts skills among the black-armored guards.
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