29 Juxing Tower
◎With this kind of situation, no wonder he can become a big boss.◎
There was an orange tree in the yard, its slender branches stretching lazily in the breeze. If it were a little taller, it could have slipped through the cracks in the window frame.
A wisp of autumn wind slid past it proudly, slipped in like a loach, slapped the wooden frame of the window with its tail, slowly came to the bed, and lifted the hair of the woman on the bed.
The woman frowned slightly, grabbed the quilt and turned over. Her black hair spread on the soft bed like a waterfall, and her arms were draped over the quilt.
The beautiful spring weather outside attracted many sparrows to chirp, which made Song Jinyi upset and forced her to get up.
She was picking up her clothes, lifting her legs high to put on her underpants, and accidentally fell over, her butt landing on the bed. Her ear was pressed against the wall, and she realized that the quality of the wall was poor and she could hear the conversation next door.
"I didn't want to come to Shengjing for a birthday banquet. My restaurant in Lizhou makes a few hundred taels a month. Why would I come here just for a few bucks?
I just heard that Madam Li from Lizhou, Madam Chun Sanniang and Madam Cheng from Yunzhou, as well as some great chefs from other places, are all here. I thought this birthday banquet must be something special, so I followed them here. I wonder if you sisters have any gossip?"
"I can't say anything about this, I can only reveal one thing to you: you will definitely not lose out by coming here. It is more valuable than the silver you earn in a year."
"Is it really that amazing? Then I must prepare well. In your opinion, who among them has the best chance of winning the championship?"
"The ones you just mentioned are the most powerful ones, but I heard that Miss Song once competed with Chun Sanniang and defeated her."
"She? I don't know where she came from..."
When Song Jinyi heard the other party mention her, her eyebrows slightly frowned, and she thought unhappily: Why are you still saying bad things about her? She didn't provoke him.
When Song Jinyi changed her clothes and went out, there was no one in the yard. Suddenly, she heard hurried footsteps. She looked over and bumped into Xie Wuyang who had just entered the yard.
Xie Wuyang stepped into the threshold and saw Song Jinyi staring at him. He explained, "I asked them to let me in. I didn't sneak in."
The North Garden and South Garden are divided into left and right with the large garden in the middle as the axis. In order to protect the women, men in the North Garden are generally not allowed to set foot in it at will.
It was probably because Xie Wuyang was still young and good-looking, and was very popular with girls. And since they had something to look for her, they let him in.
Song Jinyi asked Xie Wuyang why he was looking for her.
Xie Wuyang said that he had just arrived in Shengjing. He had long heard of Shengjing's prosperity and beauty and wanted to go out and see the city. However, he was unfamiliar with the place, so he wanted to go out with Song Jinyi.
Upon hearing this, Song Jinyi looked at him twice more. It was strange. He didn't like to go out in Yunzhou City, but he was very active in going out in Shengjing.
******
Song Jinyi was dazzled as she walked down the street. Shengjing City was indeed the capital of Great Xia. Everywhere she looked, she saw brothels and painted pavilions, embroidered doors and pearl curtains, carved carriages parked in the streets, and BMWs racing on the imperial roads. The gold and jade were dazzling, and the silks and satins were fragrant.
New sounds and charming smiles are heard in the willow-lined streets and flower-filled alleys, and pipes and strings are tuned in teahouses and taverns. All the nations are in sync, and all the countries are connected. All the treasures from all corners of the earth are gathered and sold in the market; all the exotic flavors from all corners of the world are in the kitchens. [1]
But after walking for half an hour, Song Jinyi heard Xie Wuyang's stomach rumbling. She turned around and asked, "Are you hungry? Didn't you have breakfast?"
Xie Wuyang nodded somewhat embarrassedly.
"Never mind, it's almost noon, let's find a restaurant and have brunch and lunch together."
Song Jinyi also didn't know where to find delicious restaurants in the huge Shengjing City.
Song Jinyi asked a passerby and followed the passerby's instructions, turning left at this intersection and right at that intersection. She and Xie Wuyang, two outsiders, walked for two hours, circled back to the starting point twice, and finally reached their destination.
Yanchifang, with its interconnected streets and alleys, stretches as if it has no end. The road paved with bluestone slabs is passed by vendors driving donkeys to pull goods, and sedan chairs inlaid with pearls and jade pass by. Some people are busy trying to make a living, while others have the leisure to stop and admire the scenery of the moat.
Song Jinyi stood in front of the most lively restaurant in Shengjing - Juxinglou, looking up from below with her mouth wide open.
This restaurant is taller and more prosperous than Zuichunlou. Its carved eaves reflect the sun, its painted buildings resemble flying clouds, its green railings extend low to the windows, and its green curtains hang high above the doors and windows. [2]
There were nobles dressed in silk and satin constantly coming and going in the vermilion gate. Even the waiters standing at the door to greet guests were wearing brand new cotton and linen clothes. There were also foreign men with yellow hair like Xie Wuyang coming in and out.
The place is a good place.
but……
Song Jinyi stood there, looked at herself suspiciously, then looked at Xie Wuyang, and asked a practical question: "Why did that passerby think that poor guys like us could afford to eat in this restaurant?"
Song Jinyi asked a soul-searching question, while Xie Wuyang said something shocking: "Sister, I want to eat at this restaurant." Xie Wuyang stared at Song Jinyi eagerly.
A quarter of an hour later, Song Jinyi, sitting in the restaurant, clutched her purse and deeply regretted why she couldn't resist the temptation of Xie Wuyang's beauty and was tricked into coming in.
When Song Jinyi was feeling uneasy, the waiter was putting dishes on the table. Song Jinyi was stunned for a moment. She hadn't ordered any dishes yet, so she quickly asked what was going on.
The waiter explained that these dishes were not meant to be eaten; they were called "kan cai" (viewing dishes). As the name suggests, they were not meant to be eaten, only looked at. This was a custom at banquets in the Song Dynasty.
It is said that this tradition originated from a palace banquet. When the emperor invited his ministers to dinner, a plate of fruit would be placed on the table before the meal began. [3]
Song Jinyi asked: "When will the main course be served?"
The waiter said, "It will be served in a moment. I promise not to keep you waiting any longer."
Song Jinyi ordered a meat dish, braised pork with preserved vegetables, and a vegetarian dish. The waiter asked, "Sir, are you sure you want these two? Would you like to add a staple food?"
Song Jinyi took out two pancakes from her arms and said, "You don't need this, I brought my own." The waiter stared at her with a complicated expression, but she didn't care and gave the pancakes to Xie Wuyang.
"I went to the kitchen to get two pancakes before I left. I wasn't planning on eating out, but it's okay. They'll come in handy now."
After a while, a dish of braised pork with preserved vegetables and a dish of Dongpo tofu were both served.
While the two were having dinner, Xie Wuyang noticed that Song Jinyi had a strange look on her face and asked, "Are you dissatisfied with the food?"
Song Jinyi paused and said no, and she was not lying. This Dongpo tofu tasted good, fresh and delicious.
However, the taste of this Braised Pork with Preserved Vegetables was slightly inferior to the ones she had eaten before. If she said it in public, wouldn’t that ruin the party?
Song Jinyi turned her head left and right and glanced around. All the diners were happy and dissatisfied, and they were all toasting their glasses and talking happily. If she suddenly spoke out at this moment, she would definitely become the target of everyone's criticism.
Song Jinyi could guess that if these people heard her, a village woman from the countryside, "slandering" the things they were satisfied with, they would definitely criticize her in writing and verbally, calling her blind and lacking self-awareness.
After dinner, Song Jinyi reminded Xie Wuyang to put on his hat, and she felt in her purse to pay. When she felt the empty purse, she was shocked. It was over!
When she changed her clothes this morning, she took the wrong purse, and there were only a few coins in it!
She looked at the clerk who came to collect the money and could only smile awkwardly. She asked sadly, "Can I buy on credit?" The clerk's expression revealed the answer.
A person slowly came down the stairs on the left side of the hall. Before the person arrived, the voice came first, "Isn't this Madam Song?" The sarcastic tone immediately made Song Jinyi recognize that it was Chun Sanniang's voice.
Song Jinyi turned around and saw the other person for the first time, and the words that popped out of her mind were "enemies meet on a narrow road".
Chun Sanniang walked up to Song Jinyi and said sarcastically, "Why don't you stay in your room and come here to eat a free meal?
Since we're from the same hometown, if you don't have money, I can help you." Then he leaned closer and said, "Just kneel down and beg me." After that, he raised his sleeves to cover his face and laughed.
Listening to her pigeon-like laughter, Song Jinyi's face turned cold, she pursed her lips and said nothing. After thinking for a while, she ignored Chun Sanniang.
At this moment, the shopkeeper came rushing over after hearing the noise. He was a father-in-law who was nearly fifty years old. He had a kind face, a faint smile on his lips, and his eyes were covered by wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, looking like a silly Shar-Pei dog.
He asked, "I heard from the waiter that you two didn't bring any money. From your accents, you don't sound like locals, so you must be from outside. It's not uncommon for you to leave your wallet in your package when you're out for a trip. You can come to the store and make up for it next time you have a chance."
Song Jinyi heard that this was the shopkeeper giving her a way out.
She immediately responded, saying that she was in a hurry to go out and would come back tomorrow to make up the money.
The matter could have ended like this, but Chun Sanniang, who was not able to watch the show, stepped in to cause trouble.
"Our Madam Song is a small shopkeeper after all. How could she not even come up with a few dozen copper coins? Perhaps she doesn't like the food in this restaurant and doesn't want to give it to you?"
She smiled maliciously, "I just heard her tell her servant that the food tasted just average. If she cooked it, it would definitely be better."
Song Jinyi's eyes were as big as copper bells, but she couldn't shoot out any lightning-like shrewdness, otherwise she would really want to kill Chun Sanniang.
The shopkeeper's attitude was gentle, and he seemed to be genuinely trying to figure out what the problem was. Song Jinyi explained, "I really don't think so. I just think it could be slightly improved."
The shopkeeper said, "Don't worry, young lady. Regardless of whether it's reasonable or not, I, Du, will never do anything that is disrespectful."
Song Jinyi pointed at the pork with preserved vegetables and said, "It actually tastes pretty good, but it could be made better. I tasted this dish and it seems it was steamed a little too short and not thoroughly enough.
People with sensitive taste buds may detect a slight fishy smell. Secondly, it's best to sauté the minced ginger with the bean sprouts so that the flavor is better released during steaming. Mixing the minced ginger directly with the meat will affect the taste."
After Song Jinyi finished speaking, she saw that the shopkeeper didn't react. She guessed that he might be unhappy, so she said, "But actually, this vegetarian dish is very well made. It's definitely better than anything I've had before."
The shopkeeper waved his hand, frightening Song Jinyi into thinking he was about to get angry and startle her. She jumped back, only to see the shopkeeper telling the waiter to ask Chef Li in the kitchen to make two servings of preserved vegetable braised pork, one according to this...
Song Jinyi replied at the right moment, "My last name is Song."
"Do what Madam Song just said, and do it according to the previous method."
The Xia people love to be lively and bustling. The guests in the hall would order dessert after their meal and stay here to watch the show, while those who had not finished their meal would eat while waiting. People outside who heard that there was a lively scene inside would also crowd into the hall to watch and have fun. Passersby only saw that the Juxing Tower was packed with people inside and outside, with no way out.
About an incense stick of time later, the waiter brought out two servings of preserved vegetable braised pork. The owner asked the diners around to pick up a piece of pork with chopsticks to taste it. Most people chose the one on the left. "I can't say it's particularly good, but it just tastes good."
“This one has a richer flavor, and the pork belly is well-cooked, without a hint of fishy smell.”
…
The shopkeeper asked the waiter which one was on the left. The waiter hesitated and said, "This one was made according to the method of this lady Song."
The shopkeeper laughed heartily and said, "I pride myself on having the best food in Juxinglou, but I never expected there are always better people out there. Thank you so much for your guidance, Madam Song. I wonder what position you hold?"
Chun Sanniang, who was watching the show, did not see the scene she wanted, so she snorted coldly and left.
Song Jinyi scratched his head. He didn't expect the shopkeeper to be so broad-minded. Not only was he not angry, but he humbly accepted other people's opinions. With such a broad mind and such a vision, it's no wonder that he could become a big boss.
The shopkeeper wanted to waive the meal fee. Although Song Jinyi did not refuse, she had already made up her mind that although she was unable to do so today, she would pay the full amount for the meal tomorrow.
【Author’s words】
【1】Dongjing Menghualu
【2】Water Margin
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