In the super deluxe version of this nourishing soup, a whole, large oyster should be placed on top.
Amian estimated that she had prepared enough ingredients for ten people, but somehow ended up at a shop selling goat milk.
She secretly peeked a few times, firstly because she saw the newborn lambs, now able to run and jump, which were very cute; secondly, she noticed the two owners of the goat milk shop, chatting and laughing, their relationship harmonious. The wife of the goat milk shop owner was quite a bit older than A-Mian and was a particularly capable woman. Perhaps due to drinking too much goat milk, the couple had gradually become more and more plump in recent years.
In A-Mian's eyes, this was a sign of great fortune; looking around the city, there were hardly any fat people.
In short, they would never abandon their comfortable home to follow Meng San's many rules.
So he felt relieved and happily went back to the shop.
"Is that the blacksmith's wife? Why isn't she coming over? She probably wants to drink our goat's milk again. I'll have to talk to Meng San about it next time."
The woman nodded: "That's right, he buys a lot. Last year he bought for two whole months, earning five or six hundred coins."
Amian ran back to the shop, chattering about what she had seen and heard on the way, excitedly preparing for her big business deal the next day.
"If they don't come tomorrow, I... I thought we shouldn't waste it, so I'll use it all to help you recover!"
Meng Chijian silently closed his eyes.
He seemed to have passed away peacefully.
After a while, he opened his eyes again and saw that A-Mian was about to put her hands into the ice water that had just been poured to wash the ingredients. He quickly said, "Put it there and don't move!" He grabbed her two hands and patted them on the left and right sides before picking up the kettle and diluting the ice water into warm water.
Amian worried: "Won't the oysters die from the heat if we put them in?"
“They must be afraid of the cold too.” Meng Chijian decided to help them wash as well.
Ah Mian chuckled at him and deftly tore off the membrane from the pig's kidney. "Hmm, luckily it's cold, so it won't spoil even if we leave it until tomorrow. I'll give you ten coins for your work."
Ten coins for a temporary worker—hiring Meng Chijian was more cost-effective than hiring Meng Jing, because he could do more work. However, Ah Mian knew when to stop. After cleaning up the ingredients, she quickly grabbed a broom and swept the shop clean.
On the afternoon of the second day, A-Mian set up a pot at the door and started stewing.
Not long after, Wang Zixuan and his group arrived. Wang Zixuan had large dark circles under his eyes, and the others also looked listless, yawning repeatedly.
"Hey, they said they wouldn't play cards, but once they start, they play all night long..."
"I'm resting after eating today; I'm too tired to play anymore." One person looked around the stall and asked, "How much is a bowl?"
“One hundred coins a bowl,” A-Mian lifted the pot lid. “Oysters this big in the market cost fifty coins each.”
The man smirked, "Young lady, do you think I don't know the market? You're buying so many, it can't be the price of a single bird. How come you sell them to those country bumpkins for thirty-one bowls, but charge us a hundred? Do you think we're easy targets?"
"The 31-yuan bowl only has half an oyster and a few slices of pork kidney. You asked me to make the best yesterday, so I bought this much. If you want the 31-yuan bowl, that's fine too."
Hearing a dispute at the door, Meng Chijian leaned against the doorframe and watched the commotion.
"Forget it, I don't even know how many hundred coins I lost last night!" Wang Zixuan waved his hand. "Let's have six bowls first, I'm so sleepy..."
"I want ten bowls."
Amian looked to the other side in surprise and saw Ji Hengzhi and his group.
"Why should we be here first?!"
The quick-witted pageboy next to Ji said, "Who's so blind as to haggle over a bowl of soup that costs a hundred coins? It's that nouveau riche, who thinks he doesn't live to see tomorrow and is always thinking about burying people in money!"
Wang Zixuan yelled, "Are you ever going to stop?"
"I told you, once the academy opens, you must apologize to me in front of everyone. Only then will it be alright."
"Keep dreaming!" This was followed by a string of vulgar and offensive language.
The two groups immediately started hurling insults at each other, creating a highly charged atmosphere.
Amian quickly told Adou to move forward a bit to prevent the two groups from fighting and overturning her stall.
"Lu Amian, if you don't sell me this soup today, I'll take care of you too!" Ji Hengzhi shouted.
Wang Zixuan retorted, "If you sell them all to him, I... I'll give you a piece of my mind!"
For a moment, both groups stared intently at Ah Mian.
Amian turned her head and beckoned to the head servant (who had been paid), and Meng Chijian walked over calmly with a wood-chopping knife in his hand.
"Everyone line up, one bowl per person, whoever's turn it is their turn. Why are you arguing and messing with me?" Ah Mian, taking advantage of the situation, had already started collecting money and serving soup.
Meng Chijian scanned the faces of everyone present one by one.
In his presence, Ji Hengzhi and Wang Zixuan, who were not yet of age, seemed rather foolish for some reason.
Especially their jumping up and down arguing, it seems quite...
How should I put it? It just feels childish.
With someone maintaining order, Ah Mian's business was completed quickly.
After selling all ten bowls, they earned an extra tael of silver.
Seeing that she had sold out, Meng Chijian told her to go back to the shop to rest first. He cleaned and put away the wooden buckets and other items, then put the cart under the tree and fed and watered Adou.
Ji Hengzhi and his group bought five bowls, as did Wang Zixuan, resulting in another draw.
He originally just wanted to cause trouble, but now he's picked up the soup and taken a few sips; it tastes alright.
However, it wasn't particularly amazing.
Ji Hengzhi usually eats very carefully, but after drinking a bowl of soup, he broke out in a light sweat, which warmed his hands and feet and made his internal organs feel very comfortable in the winter.
While eating, he secretly observed the blacksmith shop. He was quite surprised to learn that one of his classmates' families owned a shop.
Moreover, he somehow noticed that although Ah Mian was not as big as the thug, she was able to make the thug run around like a headless chicken.
"And this is...?"
Meng Chijian walked up to him, blocking his view between him and A Mian. "I am her husband."
It was quite common for couples to be married. Ji Hengzhi had one legal wife and five or six concubines in his family, but he had never seen his birth mother since he could remember. She was said to be a maid who died of illness not long after giving birth to him.
Although he was ostensibly from the Ji family, he was not actually born to the principal wife and was certainly not the favored son among the many children in the family. Otherwise, they wouldn't have sent him to this remote little town.
What he often saw was a husband with many women, but he couldn't linger among them, nor did he need to have much interaction with them.
Seeing Meng Chijian finish his work, A Mian ran out and pulled him to build a snowman. The way the two held hands felt very unfamiliar.
Are they a married couple?
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