Chapter 45 Yellow Croaker in Soup
Seeing that his master placed all his hopes on his granddaughter, Li Xinrong returned to Australia and told his wife Axia about it. Axia was also worried that his master might have some mental problems.
Li Xinrong is an orphan who was taken in by his master. His original name was Li Sanniu, but his master thought it was not good, so he gave him this name, firstly because it was in line with the "Rong" character in his senior brother Yue Zhirong's name, and secondly because it meant prosperity.
The master is a poor man. His wife died when he was young, and when he was old he learned that his only son had passed away. This blow was undoubtedly a devastating disaster for the master.
And that bastard Ding Shengqiang actually did such a thing to betray his master and ancestors. It is not impossible that the master has gone crazy.
As Yue Baohua's eldest disciple, and also his adopted son, he had to take over Baohua Building for his master, provide for his old age, and take care of Ningning for Brother Zhirong, whom he had never met.
He said that he would resign when he returned to Hong Kong this time, and Axia also supported him.
The couple had made plans, but starting from yesterday evening, TV stations in Hong Kong and Macau took turns broadcasting news about Baohua Building, and each news report was more fierce than the last.
He saw his master's granddaughter carrying Ding Shengqiang on TV, and heard the host on the radio talk about the relationship between Yue Ning and several families. This morning was even more outrageous. As soon as he arrived in Hong Kong, he found that his niece had occupied an entire page of the newspaper because of kissing Qiao Junxian.
He was confused now. How could a master who was an honest restaurant owner face such a situation?
The family of four walked into the street. This street usually has a lot of customers, and it was even more lively at this moment. Li Xinrong protected his children and wife as they squeezed through the clothing store.
Oh my god! Isn't Baohualou closed? Why is the entrance crowded with people?
Baohualou actually set up its roast meat stall on the sidewalk, and people lined up in several rows.
His fifth junior brother, A Wei, stood on a stool and shouted with a loud speaker: "Buy and get free. Buy Uncle Hua's roast duck and get Yue Ning's crispy duck for free. The more you buy, the more free you get. The free gifts will be given away while supplies last. It's okay if you don't buy. You can try it for free. If you like it, you can buy it later."
Apprentices from Baohualou are selling roast meat.
"I've always eaten Uncle Hua's roast duck. Can I just buy this glass-skinned roast duck?" someone asked.
Ah Wei lowered his head and said, "I'm sorry, Ningning's roast duck is for giving away today. I just want to take advantage of Uncle Hua's reputation to try out the effect. I'll sell it individually tomorrow. How about you come over tomorrow?"
"I bought half of Uncle Hua's roast duck, but only got one serving of Yue Ning's crispy duck. There's not enough crispy duck. Who should I give it to when I get home?"
"Aunt, I really didn't expect that everyone would give me this much face. I'm really sorry. Tomorrow, tomorrow, okay? Ningning said that tomorrow we'll buy her glass-crusted roast duck and give her her sake lees-crusted roast pork."
"What does this crispy roast pork taste like?" someone asked.
Ah Wei chuckled: "I just saw her seasoning it. She said it was based on Guizhou's crispy whistle, and she added sweet rice wine. It's a little different from the barbecued meat we usually eat."
"Will you sell the crispy roast pork tomorrow?" someone asked, "Or will you buy it and give it away for free?"
"I can't make the decision on this. You have to ask Ningning." Ah Wei followed Yue Ning's instructions and put the blame on Yue Ning.
Ah Wei saw Li Xinrong and his family of four walking in, and he said, "Brother Rong is here."
Ah Wei ran to Li Xinrong and said, "Brother Rong, Sister Xia."
He bent down and pinched Li Xinrong's son's face: "Hello, little A-Ming."
Li Xinrong's son also has the character "Ming" in his name, just like Yue Baohua's apprentice Ah Ming. To distinguish them clearly, he is called Little Ah Ming when he comes to the restaurant. Little Ah Ming looks up and says, "Hello, Uncle Wei."
Xiaoyu also said, "Hello, Uncle Wei."
"Xiaoyu is getting more and more beautiful." Ah Wei said to Li Xinrong, "Brother Rong, the chef and Ningning are busy in the kitchen. I'll go and call them for you."
After hearing what A Wei said, Li Xinrong said to A Xia, "A Xia, take the children inside and sit for a while. A Wei and I will go to the kitchen to take a look."
Li Xinrong and A Wei walked side by side: "Why was there so much noise yesterday?"
"Brother Rong, you should have come here yesterday at noon. It would have been so satisfying to see with your own eyes how Ning Ning dealt with that heartless bastard!"
Ah Wei excitedly described yesterday's scene to Li Xinrong. It was just a short walk, and when he arrived at the kitchen door, Li Xinrong saw everyone, including his master, gathered around the counter.
"Master! Brother Rong is here!" Awei shouted.
Yue Baohua turned around and said, "Ah Wei, I told you that your brother Rong is here. Come in and tell us."
Li Xinrong saw a tall and heroic girl, who was even more beautiful in person than what he had seen in newspapers and on TV.
"I heard from Ah Wei that the chef and Ning Ning were in the kitchen, so I came straight over." Li Xinrong came over and saw a large yellow croaker on the table. "What are you doing?"
"Ningning wants to make the big yellow croaker in soup for the Manchu-Han banquet. Yesterday, when that group of young masters and young ladies came, Ningning didn't make it. She said that those young masters and young ladies who studied abroad didn't understand the meaning of this dish." Asong said excitedly.
Yue Ning called out affectionately, "Hello, Uncle Rong."
Just because he resigned and came back to support Baohua Building when the company was in dire straits, in Yue Ning's heart, he is his own uncle.
"Okay." Li Xinrong responded with a smile, "Big yellow croaker in soup?"
"It's a Huaiyang dish that's been selected for the Manchu-Han Banquet." Yue Ning introduced it to him, "In the golden autumn of October every year, when hairy crabs are plump, they are stewed with crab roe, crab meat and eight delicacies in broth, and then stuffed into the belly of the yellow croaker, which means a belly full of heaven and earth. It was also when I entertained my brothers and sisters yesterday that I saw that the blue crabs were plump and the crab roe was full in the shell, so I came up with this idea and wanted to invite Uncle Rong to taste this dish."
Li Xinrong knew that his niece was trying to show off her skills to him, and as long as she was really capable, he would be relieved.
"I've heard of it but never seen it. Today I can broaden my horizons." He also came over and stood there.
"I'm talking about how to debone a whole fish." Yue Ning picked up the serrated knife for cutting toast again. Traditionally, bamboo strips should be used, but later she found that a serrated knife was also good. She used the serrated knife to measure the length of the yellow croaker bones. "We just said that we should first use the knife to measure the length of the fish bones, and then cut."
Yue Ning was seen holding a serrated knife and inserting it into the fish gills. After two or three strokes, he pulled out the entire yellow croaker bone.
Yue Ning handed the yellow croaker to Ah Zhong and said, "Pour some water in and try it."
"It's definitely not leaking. Uncle Hua has already said that you can make crispy glutinous rice chicken and can even make a whole chicken and take its bones apart, so how could this possibly leak?"
“Don’t be lazy. Everyone makes mistakes sometimes. Even if you are confident, testing won’t take much time and can eliminate unnecessary risks. The diners who are willing to spend money on this dish have high requirements. There are so many ingredients stuffed in. After steaming, the appearance is not perfect. The guests are well-mannered and if they don’t say anything this time, they won’t come next time. It will affect the reputation of the restaurant and your own reputation.” Yue Ning said in a deep voice.
"Pour it in immediately." A Zhong poured the water in, and the fish's belly became full, and indeed, not a drop of water leaked out.
"Soak in the scallion and ginger water." Yue Ning went to get the crab meat and crab paste that had been opened from the blue crab. "For the authentic yellow croaker soup, if you have hairy crabs, add hairy crab roe. If you don't have any, just fish maw, abalone, sea cucumber and other eight delicacies will do. Now let's make the soup."
"How about Australian lobster and blue dragon meat?" Asong asked.
"You can try it." Yue Ning said as he was frying the soup ingredients, "How about we make a Hui-style stinky mandarin fish stuffed with stinky tofu next time?"
“Can I eat it?”
"I've said before that Cantonese cuisine is not authentic but has tradition. As long as it tastes good, it's fine! There's nothing wrong with that."
Li Xinrong watched Yue Ning's skillful techniques and detailed explanations, and his heart finally settled down. He walked to the side of the chef and watched Yue Ning cook with a calm expression, just like the chef.
"It's very comfortable to see Ningning cooking so leisurely."
Yue Baohua sighed quietly, "When we were in the northwest, Ningning told me that she could cook. I didn't believe it either. I thought that a little girl like her, who grew up in the northwest, could only cook, but how could she really be a chef? Until she made fish soup. I knew that her cooking skills might be better than mine, but I still don't know how your brother Zhirong taught her. It would be great if your brother Zhirong was here."
"Master, it's all in the past. Don't think about it anymore." Li Xinrong said, "From now on, you can just wait and enjoy Ningning's blessing."
"Grandpa, Uncle Rong, please go out and sit down! We'll be ready soon." Yue Ning's soup ingredients were ready.
Yue Baohua put his arm around his eldest disciple's shoulders and said, "Let's go and try your niece's cooking."
The master and his apprentice walked out with smiles on their faces. The two children saw Yue Baohua and ran over to him, calling him, "Grandpa."
Yue Baohua's son is in China. His eldest apprentice is talented, hardworking and has good character. Axia is also a gentle and housekeeping woman. The two children are very well-behaved. This family of four also gave Yue Baohua family warmth during the long days.
He hugged the children in each hand and looked at Axia: "Axia, I'm sorry to have worried you."
"What did the master say?" A Xia was still unsure and looked at her husband.
Li Xinrong smiled and pulled his wife and said, "Come on, we're waiting to eat the food Ningning is cooking."
Yue Baohua took them to the second floor. They were using a private room today. When they entered the room, cold dishes were already on the table.
Li Xinrong looked at the beautifully presented cold dishes. His master was not good at this. He asked, "Is this Ningning's skill?"
"yes!"
Li Xinrong pulled out a chair for his master and waited for him to sit down.
This was a family reunion dinner, and there was no need to serve each dish one by one. Yue Ning and his three uncles were done with the preparations, so they simply served all the dishes together.
The grandparents, Li Xinrong's family, and three brothers sat down together. Yue Baohua opened a bottle of Moutai brought back from the mainland, and the master and his disciples filled it up together. Yue Ning drank Coke with the children.
Yue Baohua raised his glass: "Luckily, we have you!"
"What did the master say?" Asong turned to look at Yue Ning, "Luckily, we have Ningning."
"What do you mean by lucky to have me?" Yue Ning said, "Luckily we have each other. It's not easy to get together. Right!"
"Yes, yes!" Yue Baohua's eyes moistened, "Everything will be fine in the future."
Everyone clinked their glasses and took a sip.
Yue Ning passed the stewed yellow croaker to Li Xinrong and handed the knife to him: "Uncle Rong, please!"
The belly of the yellow croaker was cut open and the soup flowed out, exuding a rich aroma.
Li Xinrong scooped a spoonful of soup for the chef and picked up a piece of fish. He then tried a bite himself. What was the taste like?
"It seems that I still need to go back to Baohua Building and learn the craft from Ningning."
Ah Ming opened his clay pot rice with great interest: "I have learned from Ning Ning, Brother Rong, try it, is this clay pot rice different?"
Yue Ning picked up an egg yolk chicken wing for each of the two children and said, "Let's eat chicken wings."
These things are the favorite of children.
"Thank you, sister!"
Xiaoyu took a bite and exclaimed, "Wow! It's delicious! Mom, eat it quickly."
Everyone was eating comfortably together when Ah Zhong walked in: "Ningning, there's a call from the TV station."
Yue Ning went downstairs to answer the phone. The person from the TV station called Yue Baohua's office but couldn't get through, so he called Baohua Building's reservation number directly and asked Yue Ning if she was free tonight so that she could be on tonight's "Letting Down Your Guard".
Isn’t this too hasty?
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