This year's wine includes not only red wine made from wild grapes on the mountain, but also green wine made from green grapes.
The cost of making wine from green grapes is relatively high, with the purchase price being around thirty cents per kilogram. Because it is the first year, the purchase price of green grapes is also relatively high. When these grape trees grow up, two can climb a wooden rack, and the yield is very good. Two grape trees can produce more than 100 kilograms. In the future, the grape trees will grow bigger and bigger, and produce more and more fruits.
Basically, one grape tree can earn one and a half taels of silver.
Before, we asked everyone to use the open space in front of and behind their houses. Every household planted two or three, and those who planted more could plant a few more. Basically, they could get a harvest of four or five taels of silver. Those who planted more could get a harvest of more than ten taels of silver.
In this way, the more than one hundred coins I spent on each grape seedling when I bought it is nothing compared to the money I earn now.
Some families who were familiar with Xu Qinyu even divided one or two mu of their land or half an mu of land to grow grapes. They had no harvest last year and were laughed at by neighbors and relatives. But this year, when the grape trees began to bear fruit, they could earn more than ten taels of silver from one mu of land and more than one hundred taels from one mu of land. Even if the grapes planted last year did not yield any harvest, they could still make a lot this year, which made those relatives and friends who had laughed at them shut up. They wished it was their own family who planted two mu of green grapes.
However, there are only a few families who are willing to use one or two acres of land to grow grapes.
Most households in Yuanbao Town and nearby villages planted one or two grapes. When they learned that these green grapes could really be sold for around thirty cents per pound, they began to believe it and planned to buy more grape seedlings and plant more this year.
But when the winery staff went to harvest the grapes, they had already told them that the price of grapes would only be higher in the next two years. After two years, when the production of green grapes increases, the price will still drop. The other thing is to make everyone think that growing crops should be the priority. If they really want to grow crops, they can use the front or back yard or vegetable garden at home, and there is no need to use too much arable land.
So after making green wine this year, many people bought some grape seedlings and started transplanting.
The green grapes harvested this year are similar to the wild grapes picked from the mountains, so the total amount this year should be able to produce 60,000 to 70,000 bottles. The cost of green wine is higher, but the price of wine is not planned to increase. A bottle of wine costs three or two silver dollars, and if the price is higher, it will be a bit of a premium.
This kind of green grape is a bit like crystal grapes and is quite sweet. The proportion of sugar needs to be adjusted when brewing wine. Xu Qinyu also taught Xu Diao how to mix sugar.
Wine made from green grapes is also sweeter. Xu Qinyu plans to keep some of them and sell them in the wine shop and Xu's, keeping about 10,000 bottles. Last year, when she went to the capital to sell wine, all the wine was bought by the King of Handong. She is a little worried this year. The King of Handong dares to embezzle military pay. If he really uses his power to bully her and doesn't pay for the wine, she will only cry.
Therefore, Xu Qinyu would not allow Zhen Wu to send this year's wine to the capital, but to send it to other provincial capitals. At worst, he could sell it slowly.
Xu Qinyu had also won a few acres of green grapes, which were growing well, so she invited tenants from nearby to come and take care of them.
Xu Qinyu also has a hundred acres of land in Yuanbao Town. She collected 40% of the rent, and after deducting the taxes, there was still a lot of food left. Some of the food she collected before was sent to the wine house, and the rest was stored in the house in Laixi Lane. When she moved a few days ago, she also moved all the food there here.
Every year's food is basically eaten up, and new food is stored for the next year.
In order to store food, Xu Qinyu built several granaries inside the house when he first built it.
By the time the wine was almost brewed, it was already two months later. By the end of summer, the first batch of wine had fermented and was ready to drink. Xu Ji Winery in Yuanbao Town and Xu Ji outside Raozhou City both put some in stock, and the price was set at two taels of silver, after deducting the transportation costs on the road.
In Xu's Restaurant in Yuanbao Town, wine sales are slower. After all, Xu's Restaurant receives guests from within the city, all of whom are wealthy and powerful nobles who have plenty of money, so sales are better.
The cooking competition in the southwest will also be held in three days.
Actually, Xu Qinyu had not wanted to participate at first. She had participated in many cooking competitions of all sizes in her life, and even won the world-class one. She had no regrets, so she had no interest in the cooking competition here. If Zuixianlou had not used this method, she would not have wanted to participate.
Now she is just trying to prove herself, to show off to Zuixianlou, and to bring more traffic to Xuji.
In the past two months, Xu Qinyu also asked Huo Jiang to find out some things about the Kong family and Zuixianlou.
I also know that ten years ago, Kong Kun, the owner of Zuixianju, participated in the once-in-a-decade cooking competition. He was only thirty at the time, and there were many famous chefs who were older than him and whose cooking skills were better than his, so he did not win the championship.
As for Kong Kun's father, the former owner of Zuixianlou, he had also been in Zuixianlou for thirty years, but he had never participated in this cooking competition which was held once every ten years.
Huo Jiang even found out how Zuixianlou got started.
Know what happened to Kong Kun's father back then.
After hearing this, Xu Qinyu couldn't help but frown, and then asked, "Huo Shouwei, have you found out whether Yan Mingcheng was instructed by Kong Kun or his father to come to Xu's?" For some reason, after hearing about Kong's father's past, she always felt a little weird in her heart. It was too coincidental. He was the only one left in his family who died in the famine, and then he met his master, who was alone. He learned the craft from his master for several years, but his master and he were poisoned by carbon monoxide because they burned charcoal for heating at night. As a result, his master was too old and could not be rescued. He was younger and rescued him, but then he sold all his master's property for fear of being reminded of his master, and took the money to make a living in other places.
Shouldn't he stay in his master's hometown, use the cooking skills his master taught him, and promote his master's recipes and reputation?
Xu Qinyu felt it was a bit strange.
But when Kong's father was learning skills from his master, he was only about 11 or 12 years old, a teenager. When his master got into trouble, he was only in his early twenties. I think he would not have done anything to harm his master.
Xu Qinyu didn't have the ability to figure out human nature based on just one incident, so she could only keep this doubt in her heart.
She heard Huo Jiang say, "My Lord, Yan Mingcheng was sent to Xu Ji by Kong Kun's father."
Because he couldn't question Yan Mingcheng openly, Huo Jiang secretly followed him for a while. After Yan Mingcheng left Xu Ji, he stayed in the casino for several days before going to Kong's mansion. Huo Jiang naturally followed him. He was a martial arts expert, so it was easy for him to enter the mansion alone. He also heard the conversation between Yan Mingcheng and Kong's father outside.
Yan Mingcheng went to see Kong's father to ask him for money.
Kong's father asked him how his studies at Xu's were going and whether he had learned Xu's recipe.
Yan Mingcheng could only say that the owner of Xu's was still wary of him, and that new helpers had to wait three months before they could start working in the kitchen and learn everything, so now he could only stay in the kitchen and do odd jobs.
Then Yan Mingcheng asked Kong's father for money, but Kong's father said, "We discussed it before. Before you go to Xu's, I will give you 5,000 taels of silver. If you can learn Xu's 10 signature dishes within half a year and give me the recipes, I will give you another 20,000 taels of silver. Now you are asking me for money, which is of course not possible. If something happens to you and you are kicked out by the owner of Xu's, wouldn't I be left with nothing, both the money and the recipes?"
Yan Mingcheng's eyes flickered slightly, but he said no, he said that he performed very well in Xu's and worked very efficiently, and Xu's boss was also optimistic about him, so maybe he could go to work early.
But Kong's father had lived for several decades and made Zuixianlou the largest restaurant in Raozhou City. He was also an old fox. He did not believe Yan Mingcheng's words at all and even became suspicious.
He asked, "Did you lose the money I gave you in the casino?"
He is also familiar with Yan Mingcheng.
Yan Mingcheng was not from Raozhou City, nor was he from Zuixianlou. Kong's father did not dare to let the assistant chef of Zuixianlou go to Xuji to learn cooking skills.
Yan Mingcheng was a chef he had met in another state. His cooking skills were average, but he loved gambling and lost his restaurant. His wife left him and took the children with her and returned to her parents' home. After that, Yan Mingcheng could only work as an assistant cook or chef in other restaurants to make a living.
When Kong's father asked this, Yan Mingcheng began to hesitate.
Kong's father knew that he had lost all the five thousand taels of silver he had given him, and he was very angry. He told him that no one from Xu's was allowed to go to the casino, and if he was discovered by the young cook of Xu's, she would definitely chase him away. Kong's father then asked him if he had already been discovered by the cook of Xu's and chased out.
Yan Mingcheng also said no, but still asked Kong's father for money.
Kong's father refused to give it to him, because he knew clearly in his heart that Yan Mingcheng must have been discovered by the cook at Xu's when he went to the casino and was chased away. Now Yan Mingcheng wanted to cheat him out of the last bit of money.
Yan Mingcheng was so angry that he said that if he didn't give him money, he would spread the news that Kong's father had bribed him to learn from Xu's master.
Kong's father sneered and said, "There is no evidence of the deal between you and me. Besides, I just worked as a chef in Xu's. Xu's company recruits chefs. What does it have to do with me? Yan Mingcheng, don't think that the five thousand taels of silver are easy to take. I told you that if the deal doesn't work out, you have to return the five thousand taels of silver to me. Now there is no way out. You have to return the five thousand taels of silver to me. If you can't take it out, you will not be able to leave Raozhou City."
Yan Mingcheng saw the old man with gray hair in front of him. His eyes were frighteningly cold and he was a little scared. He didn't dare to ask for money anymore. He muttered a few words and turned away.
In the end, the two parted unhappily.
Afterwards, Yan Mingcheng was probably a little afraid of Kong's father, so he left Raozhou City.
Huo Jiang followed Yan Mingcheng for a few more days, and then he returned to his own state capital. Apart from threatening Yan Mingcheng a few times, Kong's father did nothing else.
Xu Qinyu learned the whole story from Huo Jiang. After listening, she didn't say anything. However, for the helpers and staff who came in the past two months, Xu Qinyu asked Huo Jiang to check the backgrounds. Only when there was nothing unusual did she let them enter Xu's.
Now it has been almost two months and the cooking competition is about to begin.
This cooking competition had a huge number of participants from other prefectures and Raozhou City, almost hundreds of people.
You have to know that this competition is different from the usual small fights. If you can really win the championship in this once-in-a-decade competition, you will not only become famous, but also receive rewards.
This year's reward is a rare mineral. This mineral is extremely rare and has little use in other places. Only when mixed with iron can the resulting iron tools be extremely strong and sharp.
Therefore, this kind of ore is perfect for mixing with iron to make a set of knives.
Xu Qinyu can actually use any kind of knife.
However, having a set of sharp and handy knives can make cutting vegetables much more comfortable and is also good for the wrists and hands.
So even for this small piece of ore, she wanted to win this year's competition.
Three days later, the cooking competition officially began.
The event was held outside the prefectural government office in Raozhou City.
Outside the prefectural government residence there was a relatively empty market place, which was perfect for the competition.
This was also approved by the prefectural government.
The cooking competition is similar to that of later generations, but the auditions of later cooking competitions had tens of thousands of participants, while the number of participants now is much smaller.
This competition is divided into the opening, middle and final rounds.
If one could take first place in all three events, it would be considered as a triple-first place winner, which is a bit like the imperial examination, and it also borrows the jackpot of the imperial examination of winning three times in a row.
Three days later, all those who want to take part in the competition must go to the venue, draw lots, and compete in the order of the draw.
The first round was also very simple, just like the auditions in later generations, with almost the same ingredients and seasonings. As long as the dishes were prepared within the specified time and the judges tasted them, they would pass if all the judges gave them 60 points.
Yang Zhizhi and Xu Yunlan were very excited when they learned that Xu Qinyu was going to participate in the cooking competition held once every ten years. When the time came, they discussed with their parents and wanted Xu to remember a few days so that they could watch their good sister's competition. Although they knew in their hearts that their good sister would definitely win, they wanted to watch the process more.
Xu Kongmu and County Magistrate Yang certainly would not stop them. If they were not so busy with official duties, they would also like to go and watch Miss Xu's competition secretly.
However, although the head of the family could not go, the wives of the two families had time, so they each brought their sons, daughters-in-law, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren to live in Xu Jixian.
Because they were all girls and their grandchildren were only a few years old, it was fine for them to live with their mother, so the two families lived in two adjacent courtyards.
On the Xu's side, Xu Qinyu has already had people start building another garden.
This garden is for those who have families to live in.
The design of the garden was also designed by her fourth brother. Although it is a large garden, each courtyard is separated and does not interfere with each other, so she will never accidentally enter other courtyards.
In the blink of an eye, it was three days later.
When the people at Xu's knew that Xu Qinyu was going to the city to take part in the competition, they all wanted to go with her, but they were busy at the restaurant and certainly couldn't go with her. However, many of Xu's regular customers knew that she was going to take part, so they all ran to join in the fun and encourage her, even Madam Lu went over.
Xu Qinyu asked Lianhua to drive the carriage into the city early in the morning and all the way to the outside of the prefect's mansion.
When we got there, we found that it was packed with people. In addition to the chefs who were taking part in the competition, there were also many ordinary people watching, and even people from other states who came to watch the competition and enjoy the excitement.
Xu Qinyu and Lianhua parked the carriage. Lianhua held her hand. Xu Qinyu didn't know how Lianhua did it, but she easily squeezed into the crowd and came to the front.
At this moment, it was just a lottery. Xu Qinyu stepped forward and took out the household registration document.
When you first register, you will write down your basic information such as your surname, address and household registration. Now you can participate in the competition with your household registration document.
After taking out the household registration documents, the lottery will begin.
Xu Qinyu gave the household registration document to the gentleman.
These judges are all gentlemen, and the title of "sir" is also a sign of respect, because those who can serve as judges are all respected old gentlemen who have achieved success in other fields. Most of them are gourmets, and some are famous chefs in various states who have won the championship in previous cooking competitions.
Therefore, these gentlemen are all in their forties or fifties and are absolutely fair.
But now I'm quite curious to see such a young lady coming here.
An old man smiled and said, "Young lady, are you here to participate in this year's cooking competition? You look a little young, I wonder who your master is? Isn't it too early for you to participate at this age?"
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "In reply to the old gentleman, I don't have a master. I figured out all the cooking skills by myself. I also opened two restaurants in Raozhou City."
As soon as she said this, all the judges' eyes fell on her.
There were twenty old gentlemen who came to judge the competition. Upon hearing this, they couldn't help but look at Xu Qinyu, thinking that this young lady was exaggerating.
Generally speaking, cooking skills are closely related to age. Only after years of practice can cooking skills get better and better.
There are many famous chefs among these judges. They have all learned cooking from their masters or elders in the family since childhood. Each of them has practiced for more than ten years. By the time they dare to participate in this competition, they are at least thirty years old. What's more, this young lady said that she has no master and figured out her cooking skills by herself. I am even less confident that her cooking skills can pass the test.
The old gentleman who asked the question did not say anything else, but he had a deeper impression of Xu Qinyu in his heart.
I still have a slightly bad impression of her. I feel that the girl in front of me is a little too eager for success and is eager for fame and fortune.
Xu Qinyu didn't care. She was just telling the truth. There was nothing she could do if these old gentlemen didn't believe her.
She went over and drew a wooden stick with 456 written on it, which was considered relatively late.
Lotus glanced at the wooden stick and whispered, "It's a little far back."
Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter whether you are in the front or the back."
This was heard by several old gentlemen in the front, who kept looking at her, and they believed in their hearts that the young lady in front of them was a little arrogant. You know, even if it was the first time, there was still a difference between the front row and the back row, and it would be better to be in the front row.
Because the competition is very simple, the same ingredients and seasonings are provided, everything is exactly the same, and the dish is made, and then the judges have to taste it. This means that the judges have to keep eating the same dish made by the contestants for several consecutive days. No matter what kind of delicious food it is, eating it for several days in a row will get a bit boring, not to mention the dishes made by the contestants are of varying quality. As time goes by, contestants with similar levels may be given lower scores by the judges.
Furthermore, the ingredients for this debut are still pork belly, and we are going to make braised pork.
The more you eat this, the more you get sick of it. If you've been eating braised pork for several days in a row, even if the next contestant's dish is better than the previous one, they may not get a high score because they're too sick of it.
So when the young lady in front of them said that it didn't matter whether they were ranked first or last, they thought Xu Qinyu was arrogant.
After Xu Qinyu drew the lot, she was not in a hurry to leave. Her lot would definitely not be her turn until a few days later, so she planned to stay here and watch the contestants ahead of her.
Yang Zhizhi and Xu Yunlan also came.
They finally squeezed to the front and saw Xu Qinyu at a glance. They moved next to Xu Qinyu and said happily, "Qinyu, we are here too."
Xu Qinyu was also very happy to see her two good friends and started chatting with them.
As for Mrs. Lu, she sat on the top floor of a nearby attic, where she had a better view.
This attic does not welcome everyone. The ladies of higher status from aristocratic families who want to join in the fun also stay in the attic and watch.
Two hours later, all the contestants had drawn their lots.
Xu Qinyu also saw Kong Kun, the owner of Zuixianlou.
She herself did not know Kong Kun, but Huo Jiang did, so he drew the appearance of Kong Kun and his father for her to see.
Kong Kun had participated once ten years ago, but he missed the championship that time. Ten years later, he came to participate in this cooking competition again, thinking that after another ten years, his cooking skills had become more sophisticated and he should be a sure winner. However, when he saw the owner of Xu's restaurant and Miss Xu also coming, he felt a little uneasy.
It's really because Xu Ji has been too popular these days. He originally thought that Xu Ji's crispy suckling pig was the only dish that tasted good, and thought that the young cook got the recipe from somewhere by accident and it became Xu Ji's signature dish. But what he didn't expect was that after Xu Ji became popular, many regular customers of Zuixianlou also went to Xu Ji to eat, and they all said that everything at Xu Ji was delicious, and there were many signature dishes, and every signature dish was worth trying. He started to get a little nervous.
But he had no choice but to watch more and more customers go to Xu Ji.
He had never eaten at Xu Ji, and Xu Ji's food could not be taken away, as it was only available to guests staying in the restaurant. He couldn't be so shameless as to go to Xu Ji to eat.
Now we can only hope that it is because the young cook at Xu's knows many strange recipes that people often go to Xu's to eat because of the novelty. Today's cooking competition depends on taste. If ordinary dishes can be made delicious, then the young cook will not have much chance of winning.
…
Xu Qinyu glanced at Kong Kun and then looked away.
She didn't know that Kong's father had sent Yan Mingcheng to Xu Ji to learn skills, and whether Kong Kun knew about it, but she must try her best in this competition.
When the judges announced that the first competition of this year would be braised pork, many of the contestants who drew the first lot showed joy.
Braised pork in brown sauce is a dish that all chefs know how to cook, and the taste is basically the same. Braised pork in brown sauce is made with pork belly. This dish can be very greasy, which is very beneficial to the contestants in the front.
Kong Kun drew number 37, which meant it would be his turn in the first few rounds, so he felt relieved.
After Xu Qinyu knew about it, she was not panicked.
After the first round of competition officially started, the chefs on site also started to get busy.
There are only ten stoves on site, with ten people in a round.
Soon, the sounds of cutting vegetables, scrubbing pots, frying pans and frying pans could be heard.
The onlookers watched quietly or talked quietly, but their voices were not loud.