"Brother Lou is here." Shopkeeper Wang had changed his address to Lou Yunchun without knowing when. "We've been waiting for you. Please take a seat."
Qin hadn't seen him up close since she'd seen him on Xiayuan Night. After that, she'd mostly seen him riding back and forth in front of her house, in the constant wind and snow. Seeing him today, she felt he had a touch more of a presence than he had on Xiayuan Night. Her gaze shifted to Xu Jiang, and she couldn't help but smile.
With such a lively person around, even a god would have to come down to earth.
"It's time to serve the food." Xu Jiang asked everyone to sit down, and she and Zeng Zhui went to the kitchen to serve the food.
First up was Shredded Ginger Rabbit, Zeng Zhui's specialty. Remove the rabbit's head, clean it, and chop it into small pieces. Shred the young ginger, dice the garlic, and mince the aniseed and bay leaves. Heat the wok over high heat. Once it's hot, add a generous amount of oil. Once the oil is about 70% cooked, grease the wok with the rabbit meat and quickly stir-fry. Add the garlic, spices, and beans, stir-frying until fragrant and cooked through. Finally, add the shredded ginger and remove from the wok once it's cooked through.
This dish is fresh, spicy and fragrant, and it is so tempting that the shopkeeper Wang stared at it as soon as it was served.
"Brother Zeng, you are quite capable!"
Zeng Zhui smiled complacently, and went back into the kitchen to bring out a dish of stir-fried reed duck. Xu Jiang had made this dish for several gentlemen before, and this time it was Zeng Zhui who took on the job, so she was happy to relax.
“I made this one, too.”
Seeing everyone staring eagerly, Xu Jiang smiled and urged, "Stop showing off and serve the food quickly. We're all hungry."
Then, stewed reed duck, shrimp soup, steamed egg with shrimp, fried tofu, and cold-mixed sunflower greens were served one after another.
In this situation, how could Du Kang be absent? Xu Jiang then served a pot each of yellow wine and rice wine before taking her seat.
Xu Jiang personally poured a glass for everyone except the young child, then raised her glass, thought for a moment, and said with a smile, "I'm not toasting anyone else, but to my relatives and friends, to my neighbors, and to the good wine and good food tonight."
Shopkeeper Wang was the first to agree: "Okay!"
Everyone then raised their glasses and drank together.
Xu Jiang and Lin Hongchu clinked their hands and said, "Thank you for your hard work these days."
Lin Hongchu smiled, "Thank you for your hard work, Boss."
Xu Jiang whispered again, "You can only drink this one cup."
"Okay." She could drink it secretly.
Xu Jiang turned to Lou Yunchun, who was waiting for her. The two of them said nothing and just touched each other quietly.
Everything is implied.
Zeng Zhui stared at the wine in front of him worriedly. Thinking of Du Hui's ugly face and how he cried for his parents while copying books, he didn't dare to drink.
Seeing that he was unhappy, Shopkeeper Wang simply poured wine into his mouth and said, "If your teacher asks, just say I forced you to do it. Eating and drinking should be enjoyable. What's the point of being restrained?"
Zeng Zhui was easily persuaded, poured himself another glass, and drank with Shopkeeper Wang.
The party was harmonious and Manager Wang asked everyone to drink. He even persuaded Lou Yunchun to drink several glasses. Finally, Qin raised her glass and clinked it with his before they stopped drinking.
Seeing Lin Hongchu's blushing face, Xu Jiang quickly took the cup from her and stuffed a bowl of reed duck soup into her mouth while she looked at him with resentment.
Lou Yunchun silently pushed his bowl into her hand, and she also filled a bowl for him.
"faint?"
"Yeah." Lou Yunchun drank a bowl of wine to suppress the rising drunkenness.
Qin also liked the reed duck stew, which, with its shredded bamboo shoots, dried mushrooms, and yam, was mild, fresh, and warming, and she ordered several bowls. The shrimp soup and shrimp steamed egg were light and sweet, and the two children loved them.
Shredded rabbit with ginger and stir-fried duck were the most popular dishes, and Xu Jiang finished two bowls of rice with them. Lin Hongchu had developed a good appetite since following her, not to mention Shopkeeper Wang, a gourmet. The group ate heartily, and by the time they had eaten their fill, there was very little left on the table.
Shopkeeper Wang's little cotton-padded jacket felt sleepy after the meal, so the family took the two little ones and said goodbye and went back first. The remaining four people worked together to clean up the dishes and clear the mess.
Finally, Xu Jiang made some sobering tea for everyone to help them get rid of the hangover and avoid being scolded when they returned.
As they sat and chatted, Xu Jiang remembered Feng Miao's suggestion to help Jiang Gu publish a collection of works, so she asked, "Have you heard of Jiang Gu?"
After hearing these words, Lou Yunchun and Zeng Zhui couldn't help but frown.
Zeng Zhui asked back, "Why did Madam Xu suddenly ask about him?"
"Wen Feng knows him?"
"know."
Xu Jiang was a little surprised. "Do you really know him? You've only been in Kyoto for a short time, how did you know him?"
Zeng Zhui looked rather conflicted. "I met him before in Pingkangfang, but we only met over a couple of drinks."
"Pingkangfang?"
Seeing the three of them staring at him with eyes that showed one cannot judge a person by appearance, Zeng Zhui quickly defended himself, "Don't get the wrong idea. I had just arrived in Kyoto and didn't know Pingkangfang was such a romantic place. I couldn't find a place to stay, so I just randomly found a restaurant to stay in. I only stayed there for one night and moved out the next day."
Xu Jiang said to Lin Hongchu, "See? This is what we call 'hanging out' with others. I..." She glanced at Lou Yunchun, coughed lightly, and didn't say anything else.
Lin Hongchu nodded and looked at Zeng Zhui, "Mr. Du will definitely break your legs if he finds out."
Lou Yunchun also said: "The court is now strictly disciplined. If you want to enter the officialdom in the future, you must leave a good reputation and avoid places of pleasure."
"I just stumbled in!" Zeng Zhui almost pointed to the heavens and swore, "Besides, my family has a family precept that forbids visiting prostitutes. Violators are punishable by fifty lashes. Besides, after stumbling in that day, I burned incense and confessed my sins, fasted for three days, and nearly starved to death."
Seeing that several people were trying to hold back their laughter, I realized that they were making fun of me and was speechless.
"You guys are so bad."
Xu Jiang urged, "Tell me quickly, how did you get to know Jiang Gu?"
"He was drunk and walked into my room by mistake. Later, to make amends, he treated me to a drink." Zeng recalled the scene that day, his brows furrowed. "When I found out that he was Jiang Xiaoping, I wanted to make friends with him, but that drink made me give up the idea."
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