Chapter 65 (Hot Pot Chicken)

The food street is called a street, and it really is a street.

Mr. Xiao's carriage stopped a few dozen meters away from the street entrance because there were already crowds of people there.

Just like before, they will try out business for three days before officially opening on the fourth day. Today is the fourth day and the whole street is full of hired jugglers, making it as lively as the Lantern Festival.

But it was daytime.

Yan Qiushu led Wan'er all the way inside. The outermost area was a store selling candied fruits, dried fruits, biscuits, cakes and the like.

Going further in is the tea shop.

Going further in, to the middle area, there are all kinds of snacks, such as the one that specializes in breakfast, which has added new dishes such as fried dough sticks and steamed buns.

Next came the various noodles, including steamed buns, steamed bread, steamed rolls, clear soup noodles, knife-cut noodles, and the beef noodles we had eaten earlier, etc.

Yan Qiushu likes to eat these noodles. She could not walk any more after walking here. She and Wan'er each bought a steamed bun and a fried dough stick and shared them. Wan'er was hesitant at first. How could they eat on the street?

Aren't her teeth visible to others?

But when Yan Qiushu was eating with gusto, and she couldn't put the food down, she had to open her mouth and eat. As she ate, she found that this feeling was actually not bad. Passers-by on the street did the same, and no one would pay special attention to anyone.

After finishing the meal, Yan Qiushu went to buy some buns.

We passed several shops along the way, including a milk tea shop, a barbecue restaurant, and a place selling snacks and cold noodles, all of which were our own shops, but there were also many that were not ours. Then we arrived at... a barbecue place!

There is no unspoken rule here that you can only eat barbecue at night.

Because Yan Qiushu didn't say anything, and the first time she took the Xiao family to eat barbecue was at noon, so the skewers restaurant opened in the morning. The stove was turned on and the skewers were put on. The skewers of meat were sprinkled with condiments and exuded an enticing aroma, so that even diners who have never eaten these things will unconsciously go there after smelling the aroma.

Yan Qiushu suddenly realized that the strong-smelling skewers, salty restaurants and fried chicken shops were all placed at the innermost part.

This way, customers can come along, smell the food, and buy something else to eat halfway through the journey, instead of eating at the outermost perimeter and then having difficulty getting inside.

After all, when it comes to barbecue, it’s hard not to be tempted by the smell, but this may not be the case for things with lighter flavors.

Yan Qiushu couldn't walk either.

There are so many delicious foods!

But she still remembered that she came here not just to watch the excitement. For a gourmet food shop like this, she had to see where changes needed to be made.

Xiao Huaiqi has actually done a pretty good job. The decoration here is basically of the same style and design. The staff's clothes are almost the same, but there have been slight changes based on the style of each store.

I guess they accepted her suggestion, made the same arrangement, and managed it together.

But there may not be enough shops, as some shops are separated by an empty shop.

This should be the next store to open.

Even so, there are already enough customers. The customers who were attracted by the hustle and bustle and the early publicity have been lingering in this paradise-like place and are reluctant to leave. It is just like some of the commercial streets with extremely large customer flow that Yan Qiushu had seen in her previous life.

Many people came out of the barbecue restaurant, holding a handful of skewers in their hands, eating and laughing: "Oh, this is so delicious!"

"Finally I can enjoy my meal. When I came here yesterday, I was told that one person could only buy ten skewers at most. Did you mean that I was short of this little money?"

"I thought all the food here was pig offal, but I didn't expect the halved pig's trotters to be so delicious!"

"Let's go find a place to sit down and eat."

Yan Qiushu was standing on the side of the road watching the passers-by walking by. Some were eating while chatting with their friends. They all sounded satisfied, which made her feel satisfied as well.

She has a share in this food street!

Satisfied, Yan Qiushu was also observing. She always felt that this street looked very rich, but it just felt like something was missing.

What's missing?

She sniffed, and the aroma of roasted spices, the aroma of grilled meat, and the sweet milky aroma of cake all filled her nose, but there was still something missing -

Yan Qiushu suddenly realized that it was the overbearing spiciness of hot pot and the spicy flavor of grilled fish!

It was not the clear soup base of the present world, but the hot pot she had in mind was the spicy hot pot of later generations, so spicy that it made people love and fear it at the same time, eating until their mouths became red and swollen and their foreheads were covered with sweat, but they were still reluctant to stop.

But this kind of hot pot cannot be made for the time being.

There is not enough chili. Nowadays, she gave too much chili, and even a child like Dongdong can bear it. It shows that the spiciness is still far from enough. I just hope that Xiao Wai Ting can find something good when he comes back this time.

But it seems that grilled fish can be made?

The grilled fish doesn’t need to be too spicy, make it light in flavor, and then make other dishes when you have other flavors?

Yan Qiushu felt itchy in her heart when she thought of this.

But at this time, the biggest worry is...

"Sister Shu, what are we going to eat for lunch today?" Wan'er looked at the roadside delicacies for a long time, but still couldn't decide what to eat.

This one is delicious, that one is delicious too!

Choosing either one seems like a loss.

Yan Qiushu looked around and was also hesitant.

Shui Yu pointed to a shop across the street and said with a smile, "Miss, we haven't eaten at this shop in the mansion yet. Why don't we try this one?"

Yan Qiushu took a look and saw the sign saying: Hot Pot Chicken

"Okay!" Yan Qiushu nodded in confirmation and walked over. Wan'er followed closely. However, as they walked, Yan Qiushu suddenly turned around and walked in another direction.

Wan'er shouted anxiously: "Sister Shu, this is it! You've gone the wrong way!"

After she finished speaking, she noticed a passerby looking at her, her face suddenly turned red, and she quickly covered her mouth with both hands.

Passersby smiled kindly: "The little girl has changed her teeth, she is so cute."

Wan'er was stunned for a moment, and the blush on her face deepened. It was no longer because she was embarrassed about showing her missing teeth, but because she was ashamed of being exaggerated.

Yan Qiushu happened to see it, waved to her, smiled, and said hurriedly: "What do you think? Isn't it cute? Normal people won't laugh at you. If someone does, tell Brother Pingsong and let him beat the other person up."

Wan'er trotted over and happily threw herself into her arms.

She was really afraid of being laughed at, but she didn't expect that others were complimenting her.

Yan Qiushu took her to the entrance of the milk tea shop, pointed at the order sign above, and asked, "What flavor would you like to drink? This shop may not have drinks, so you can eat and drink at the same time."

Wan'er glanced at the words and made a tangled choice: "Strawberry."

Yan Qiushu also said: "Then I will have strawberries too."

The two bought strawberry flavored milk tea, and asked Shui Xuan and the others to buy their favorite flavors as well, and then went into the store.

This time Yan Qiushu came out a little late, and there were already quite a few customers in the store. There was a big iron pot on each table, but it was not embedded in the table, but on top of the table. There was also an iron plate at the bottom of the pot, which contained some charcoal. It didn't look like much, but it could keep the pot warm.

The iron pot was filled with a mixture of roast chicken, cucumber, taro and other ingredients, and it looked like a very generous portion.

Seeing them coming, the waiter immediately came forward to greet them with a big smile on his face, which made people feel happy: "There are quite a few guests, do you need to share a table? If we put two tables together, we can order two different flavors of hot pot."

"No, let's have two tables." Yan Qiushu shook her head. She certainly didn't come out alone, and she was accompanied by two tall and strong male guards, so she asked these two to get dressed, and she, Wan'er and Shui Yu sat at one table.

"What would you like to eat? We have everything on the wall. I can recommend the small ones." The clerk pointed to the nameplates of the dishes hanging on the wall and said, "When you come to our restaurant, the must-order dishes are the hot pot roast chicken and hot pot duck. If there are three of you, you don't need to order other side dishes. But we have some snacks. If you can't finish them, you can take them away."

Yan Qiushu listened and looked over with her good eyesight in this life. She found that there was milk tea on top. She was surprised and asked, "Your shop also serves milk tea?"

The clerk shook his head and said, "No, but there's a milk tea shop two shops away. If you order, I'll go over and get it for you."

Yan Qiushu silently glanced at the milk tea on the table. Oops, she was just thinking out of habit!

She thought that in this era there was no take-out, and the drinks in ordinary restaurants were generally expensive and unpalatable. She didn't expect that they were willing to run errands directly. She was surprised and said, "Is this a service that your restaurant has always had?"

The clerk smiled and said, "It was requested by the trainers after we moved here, but the customers seem to like it."

If nothing unexpected happens, it should be a request that Xiao Huaiqi or his subordinate Shui thought of.

Yan Qiushu admired him in her heart. She had forgotten this point, mainly because she had never done business and didn't know much.

She followed the waiter's recommendation and ordered hot pot chicken. She didn't order anything else and asked them to serve the food directly. The food came very quickly, as if it had been prepared in advance. The two of them had just taken a sip of milk tea. Yan Qiushu was just enjoying the delicious strawberry meat in it when the food came.

The overall color of the hot pot chicken is reddish brown, with pieces of chicken of similar size mixed with cucumber and taro cubes, and a lot of garlic and ginger. The aroma of sauce and meat is so delicious that it goes well with rice!

Yan Qiushu decisively put down the milk tea and reminded, "Eat quickly."

"Hmm!" Wan'er pursed her lips and smiled, picked up the chopsticks and started eating.

The first thing I ate was a piece of chicken thigh.

I don't know how the owner made it, the chicken thigh meat looks soft, but when you actually bite it open, it is very elastic. The fat on the chicken skin has disappeared, leaving only a layer of tight chicken skin, which shrinks quickly when you bite it off.

The chicken thigh meat was no longer blocked by skin, revealing smooth meat that did not look old. Instead, it was soft and elastic. Her teeth were not good at chewing, and she felt a little tired at the first bite, as she didn't get anything.

So she deliberately shifted her position for the second bite and bit it with her side teeth. The sharp points of her canine teeth bit into the meat smoothly, and with a little force, a large piece of meat was bitten off. It was a little tough, but it was still tender and smooth when she ate it. Before she knew it, the meat slid down her throat.

After taking a bite, Wan'er looked at the place on the chicken leg where her teeth had bitten off, smiled happily, and continued to gnaw on another piece of meat.

Yan Qiushu picked up the cucumber as the first piece.

It’s not anything else, but the tender green color, which has been stained with a light brown after being cooked for too long. It looks a bit soft and chewy, which makes me inexplicably appetizing.

When she put it in her mouth, her eyes lit up.

Most of the time, she likes cucumbers to be crispy and sweet, but the cucumber she ate this time was soft and had a slight sweetness, but more of it was tainted with the salty aroma of the juice.

It’s not spicy at all, but the salty and fragrant soup is full of meat flavor. With every bite, you feel like you are eating meat even though you are eating cucumber!

Yan Qiushu was satisfied with the meal, but she felt that if the dish was modified a little bit, it might taste even better, that is... adding potatoes!

She suddenly missed potatoes very much.

Chicken fried potatoes, French fries, mashed potatoes...all delicious!

Even with such thoughts, Yan Qiushu still worked hard with Shui Yu and Wan'er and finished most of the pot of food, plus half a cup of milk tea.

"Burp~" Wan'er burped.

After the fight, she covered her mouth embarrassedly and rubbed her belly with her other hand.

As if the disease was contagious, Shui Xuan beside him also burped, followed by Yan Qiushu. Even the two grown male guards next to him rubbed their stomachs contentedly. There was no big burp, but it would be soon.

The portions at this restaurant are really big, and the prices are quite affordable, a whole meal costs only eighty cents!

Every time Yan Qiushu looked at the prices, she always felt that the money she saved now was enough for her to live a life of luxury in this era, as long as nothing unexpected happened.

"Girl, do you want to go shopping again?" Shui Yu asked.

Yan Qiushu looked at Wan'er, not wanting to say anything, just questioning with her eyes.

Fortunately, the two had been together for a long time, and Wan'er understood what she meant at the first time and shook her head.

Yan Qiushu looked at Shui Yu again.

Shui Yan also understood and took her out.

It's time to go back.

As the group stepped out of the carriage, a hurried and familiar voice suddenly rang out: "Miss Xiao!"

Yan Qiushu didn't realize at first that she was being called. When the voice came in her direction again, she suddenly remembered something and turned around to look.

She saw the handsome boy coming towards her, looking at this side nervously.

Yan Qiushu narrowed her eyes slightly and simply stood there, waiting for him to come over.

Xue Jiahe was delighted, and his heart became more and more excited. He tried to speed up his pace and finally came in front of her, revealing a slightly silly smile: "Miss Xiao, I haven't seen you for a long time."

Yan Qiushu still looked at him coldly.

Wan'er was confused. She looked at Sister Shu beside her, and then at the boy who looked familiar but unfamiliar. Did she know this person?

She remained silent.

Xue Jiahe suddenly felt a little nervous. He subconsciously touched his hair and found that there was nothing wrong with it. He asked in confusion, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Yan Qiushu said coldly: "Did you ask your mother to go to the Xiao Mansion to propose marriage?"

Xue Jiahe was stunned, his face flushed immediately. His first reaction was to think that he was asked to propose marriage. Just as he was about to nod, his mind understood this sentence and he said in confusion: "No, my mother proposed marriage? Why didn't she tell me?"

The coldness in Yan Qiushu's eyes faded slightly, and she said calmly, "Maybe it's because I refused."

The redness on Xue Jiahe's face faded, and he said disappointedly: "Ah? Miss, you can think about it again. The results will be announced in two days. I think I did well in the exam, so I should be able to get a good ranking..."

Yan Qiushu said word by word: "Your mother proposed marriage for you so that you could take me as your concubine."

Xue Jiahe paused, looking at her in surprise, the sallowness on his face completely disappeared, and his face turned slightly pale.

Seeing this, Yan Qiushu said, "I thought you knew about your actions, and I wanted to scold you. I helped you out when I saw injustice, but you turned your kindness into hatred. But now it seems that you didn't know about it, so forget it. We are not familiar with each other, and we don't need to be familiar with each other in the future. If we meet again in the future, please just don't recognize me, Master Xue."

After saying that, she took Wan'er's hand, turned around and quickly got on the carriage.

Behind him, Xue Jiahe stared blankly at her back as she disappeared into the carriage. Soon the carriage started moving away.

He is still there.

Until his good friend Zhao Qi came over, slapped him on the back with a smile, and frightened him so much that he staggered two steps.

Zhao Qi was so scared that he quickly supported him, fearing that he would fall again. With his other hand, he stuffed the pile of cakes he had just held for him into his hand and asked with a smile: "Hey, everyone has left, why are you still standing here?"

Xue Jiahe came back to his senses, forced a smile at his friend, held a pile of cakes, and bowed with difficulty, saying: "Sorry, I have something else to do, I'll leave first, Brother Zhao, eat and drink well, just put it on my bill."

After saying this, he ran quickly towards the mansion.

He had to go back and ask clearly what it meant to take a concubine for him.