Wu's name is Wu Wan. Wu Wan chatted with Miss Xu for a long time before she got up and left. It was time for dinner. She was carrying a large food box, which contained braised herring. Today Miss Xu wanted to prepare fish balls and other things to sell tomorrow, so they had braised fish for dinner, and she took one back with herring.

Strangely enough, Shao Ge'er only eats the food prepared by Miss Xu. Even the braised herring that he often eats, he never gets tired of it and can eat a whole bowl of bean porridge with the braised fish.

Of course, even the bean porridge was cooked by Miss Xu.

Miss Xu clearly told her how to make bean porridge, how long to soak the beans, how much beans and rice to add, how much water to add, and when to use high heat and when to use low heat to make the bean porridge soft and sticky. But the porridge she made was not as delicious as Miss Xu's.

Even the taste is much worse.

Carrying the lunch box, Wu Wan returned to Laixi Lane.

Her alley is right in front of Guihuaxiang, and most of the houses are two-story houses, so they are naturally more expensive than those in Guihua Lane. However, Laixi Lane also has ordinary small courtyards, and the price is five to ten taels of silver more expensive than similar courtyards in Guihua Lane, because there is a small river in front of Laixi Lane, which was dug artificially several decades ago and is convenient for the people in the town to use for washing clothes. Both sides lead to the pier on the North Street, and it is a stream of running water. There is also a big locust tree at the intersection of the alley, and there is a well under the locust tree for people who don’t have a well at home to get water. There is a stream in front of Xishui Lane, and a well not far away, so the house prices are generally more expensive than other alleys.

When they reached the entrance of Laixi Lane, Wu Wan ran into a little girl about ten years old washing clothes by the river, and said to her, "Erniu, tell your wife that Miss Xu in Guihua Lane will sell braised herring, fish balls, and fish head tofu stew tomorrow. Remember to buy them early, otherwise they will be sold out soon."

The little girl who was washing clothes immediately responded, "Mrs. Xia, I understand."

Most of the families who could afford to live in a house with two courtyards were engaged in business and were much wealthier than ordinary people. They would buy one or two maids.

Along the way, Wu Wan would tell everyone she knew.

She is a generous person and likes to chat with the ladies in the neighborhood. All the ladies and their families in the whole alley know her.

Originally, several families living next to Wu's family knew that her evening meal was very delicious, and that it was bought from Miss Xu's family. The surrounding ladies also spread the news to their good friends in the neighborhood, and now all the women in the entire alley are planning to go to her house tomorrow to buy some to taste.

At the same time, Xu Qinyu was making fish balls at home.

Since she wants to make fish balls, any size of herring will do. The herrings that Uncle He sent to her before were all around two or three pounds. Due to the fishing nets, fish weighing less than one pound could not be caught. Now, she also accepts those that weigh more than three pounds. The fish meat is sliced ​​and pounded into fish balls, and the fish head can be roasted with tofu so that nothing is wasted.

She planned to set the price of fish balls at five cents per portion, with one portion consisting of about ten half-pound fish balls. One pound of fish meat could produce about one and a half pounds of fish balls. Fish meat was cheap, but it required starch, so she added mung bean starch. There was no starch here, she ground mung beans into powder and filtered it out herself. It was not difficult to grind mung beans into starch, so she gave the job to her fourth brother.

While she was slicing the fish, Ning Jie'er was helping by the side, scraping off the remaining fish meat from the fish bones, not wanting to waste it.

Sister Ning now helps her scrape fish scales and does other chores within her ability.

Xu Qinyu planned to give Ning Jie'er 500 coins every month as pocket money, and then see what Ning Jie'er wanted to do in the future. She didn't necessarily have to help her with work, she could hire someone to do it.

The price of fish head stewed with tofu depends on the portion. There are five cents, ten cents and fifteen cents per portion.

All in all, the price of braised herring is the most reasonable.

After the fish balls are made, you can keep them and make another pot tomorrow, otherwise they may not be enough to sell. The fish head and tofu pot will be made tomorrow, as today's braised herring has been sold out.

Just as the fish balls were cooked, someone knocked on the door. Xu Qinyu went over to open the door. It was a middle-aged man in his forties, tall and wearing the clothes of an official from the yamen, with a long sword on his waist. When he saw Xu Qinyu, the man asked, "Are you Miss Xu?"

Xu Qinyu nodded, "Who are you?"

I already have a rough guess in my mind.

The man said, "I am Xu Ren, Xu Kongmu, who works in the government office. I came here today to discuss something with your husband."

It turned out to be Xu Kongmu. He was looking for Fourth Brother, probably because it was related to the Jinyinzhai theft case. Fourth Brother gave him the clue, so he came to ask Fourth Brother?

Xu Qinyu said: "Xu Kongmu, please come in."

After leading the person in, Pei Weixuan also came out of the room. When he saw Xu Kongmu, he nodded slightly and invited the person to sit down in the main hall. Xu Qinyu served two cups of hot tea. The tea was not very good. She bought it to make tea eggs.

Recently, there are more glutinous rice and pork intestines for sale at the dock. There are quite a few eggs left from Mr. He, so she made them into tea eggs and sold them. This is also simple to make. After the eggs are cooked, add soy sauce, salt, a little spices and water and continue to boil. Then pour an appropriate amount of tea water into the eggs. The key is to soak the cooked eggs in the tea brine for an hour, so that they can absorb the flavor and taste better.

Two cents each, and they sell very quickly every day.

Xu Kongmu came here today not for the food prepared by Miss Xu, but also for Pei Weixuan.

He knew that the Jinyinzhai theft case was solved so quickly this time because of Pei Weixuan's reminder. This young man knew that the theft was related to the horse shopkeeper just by hearing about the case. He was a man of great talent, and the yamen lacked such people. Although clerks and officials are different, it is not impossible to be promoted if a clerk works for a long time. So he came to ask Pei Weixuan if he was willing to work in the yamen as a clerk to help solve the case.

Xu Kongmu told Pei Weixuan the purpose of his visit.

Pei Weixuan pondered for a moment and said, "I am afraid that I will have to offend Xu Kongmu's kindness. I am a criminal exiled here and cannot enter the government. I am afraid that the higher-ups will blame me. In addition, I also ask Xu Kongmu to keep an eye on the Jinyinzhai theft case for me. Pei does not want outsiders to know that I am related to this case."

Although Empress Dowager Fu and the new emperor were unlikely to be so far-reaching as to inquire about what he was doing here, and Empress Dowager Fu also felt that he was a complete waste who could not make any waves and would not pay any attention to his family at all, all he could do was to continue to live with his head down, hiding quietly and waiting for an opportunity.

The eldest brother once told him that if anything happened to him in the future, he would leave some of the black-armored guards he left behind to him. Those black-armored guards were all loyal to the eldest brother.

Once he has cured himself of the poison, he will not stay here anymore but will go and seek revenge on the black-armored guards.

But before anything big happens, he will never reveal his identity so as not to put his family in danger.

Therefore, when he leaves, he cannot tell his family directly and will find an excuse to leave home.

Xu Kongmu was stunned for a moment. He probably didn't expect that Pei Weixuan was a criminal exiled. In that case, it was indeed not appropriate to let him work as a minor official in the government.

Xu Kongmu didn't force it, but bowed and said, "Sorry for bothering you."

In this case, Xu Kongmu did not want to stay long, so he stood up and said goodbye. Pei Weixuan saw him out and came to the courtyard. Miss Xu was scooping fish balls and putting them in a jar. Fish balls are food that can be preserved for several days, especially in such a cold day.

Xu Kongmu smelled the delicious aroma and couldn't help asking, "What is this food?"

Xu Qinyu smiled and said, "These are fish balls, made from fish meat. They cost five cents each, and one portion is ten half a pound. You can eat them after heating them up. Adding a few drops of sesame oil will make them taste better. You can also simmer them in oil or cook them with other side dishes. They taste fresher, and the fish bones inside are beaten into a paste, so they are more suitable for the elderly and children."

Xu Kongmu thought of his two-year-old grandson, who was just starting to eat. He could buy some fish balls and bring them home for his grandson to eat, and for the whole family to taste.

Moreover, the fish balls smell really good. I had eaten the delicious food made by the young lady in front of me at Brother Xia’s house a few days ago. It was so delicious that I can’t forget it.

Xu Kongmu said, "Then please pack five pounds for me, I will take it back and try it."

"Okay, Xu Kongmu, wait a moment." Xu Qinyu found some oil paper and wrapped five pounds of fish balls for him.

Xu Kongmu took out fifty coins from his pocket and handed them to Xu Qinyu.

Xu Qinyu took it and said with a smile, "We will also have fish head and tofu stew for sale tomorrow. If Xu Kongmu thinks it tastes good, he can send someone to buy it."

Xu Kongmu nodded and left.

After leaving Pei's house, Xu Kongmu was walking on the road and smelled the fragrance of the fish balls in his arms. He couldn't help it. He twisted one with his hand and put it in his mouth to taste it. It was indeed very delicious and chewy, with only the fish meat being a bit fresher. There was no earthy smell at all, but he still felt that the fish in the fatty fish he ate that day was more suitable for his taste. It was fresh and spicy, and the fish balls were indeed more suitable for the tastes of the elderly and children.

My wife, daughter and grandchildren will definitely like it.

Thinking of this, Xu Kongmu felt a little bit of anticipation in his heart.

He lived on West Street. He was only a minor official with a low salary, but his wife was a business owner with two shops and the family had a small fortune. He also thought that the fish balls were not only delicious but also very cheap, and ordinary people in the town could afford them.

To be honest, fish balls with this taste can be sold for hundreds of coins per pound in Donglaiju.

No one can match her cooking skills. It is obvious that the young lady just wants the people in the town to be able to afford it.

Xu Kongmu couldn't help but look up to Miss Xu.

After returning home, Xu Kongmu put the oil paper in his hand on the table.

Seeing this, his wife Xiang laughed and asked, "What did you bring back?"

The fish balls have been completely cooled down after this journey, and the fragrance has been greatly reduced. It is indeed difficult for people with poor sense of smell to smell it.

Xu Kongmu said that he had eaten delicious food made by a young lady at Xia Yuanzhi's place a few days ago, so he went there specially today to buy some for his family to try. He did not mention that he went to the Pei family to look for Pei Weixuan.

Xiang couldn't help but ask, "Is it really that delicious?"

"Madam, you will know after you taste it."

Xiang asked the maid to bring a pair of wooden chopsticks. She picked up a fish ball and it was a little cold in her mouth, but even a cold fish ball did not have any fishy smell and was fresh and chewy.

Xiang was surprised and said, "It's really delicious. It shouldn't be cheap, right?"

Xu Kongmu said, "It tastes better when heated."

After that, he couldn't help but say, "Madam, guess how much silver is one pound of this fish ball."

Xiang also often dined at Donglaiju. The dishes there were not cheap, and they were really not as good as a simple fish ball like this. She felt that the fish balls cost at least dozens of coins per pound.

She said, "It should be at least a hundred coins per pound. If it's sold at Donglai House, it would be at least a hundred and twenty or thirty coins."

Xu Kongmu smiled and said, "Only ten cents a pound."

Xiang was extremely surprised. “How can fish balls with such craftsmanship and such taste be so cheap?”

"Yes, this young lady not only makes delicious fish balls, but I heard she also has braised herrings. The small ones are five cents each, and the big ones are eight cents each. Tomorrow she will also have fish head and tofu stew. Would you like to buy them all and try them?"

Xiang naturally said, "Let's buy some tomorrow and try them."

She then remembered that her grandson had not eaten much in the evening, so she told Xu Kongmu about it. Xu Kongmu was also a little worried, "Why didn't he eat well?"

Xiang sighed, "The egg custard I cooked tonight wasn't very tasty. I only ate a few bites and then refused to eat."

"It's still early, why don't you heat up the fish balls and invite everyone to come out and try them? Xige'er can try some, too."

Xiger is Xu Kongmu’s two-year-old grandson.

Xiang immediately asked the maid to go to the kitchen and heat up the fish balls. Not long after they were heated, the whole house was filled with delicious smells. Before Xiang could call anyone, her son and daughter-in-law came over with Xiger in their arms. Her daughter Xu Yunlan also came over and started shouting, "Mom, what a smell! It smells so good."

Xu Yunlan is only fifteen this year. She looks more like her father, tall and handsome.

Xiang smiled and said, "Your father brought you some delicious food."

The fish balls were heated up quickly and the cook brought them to the table. She heated two pounds of fish balls and put one pound on a plate. There were about twenty balls in one pound and a few drops of sesame oil on them.

Xu Yunlan remembered when she was a child, her family still lived in a small courtyard, and the food and clothing were not as good as they are now. What she looked forward to most every day was whether her father would bring back some delicious snacks or other cooked dishes. The smell of the fragrance reminded her of her childhood and her heart was warmed.

Xiang tried another fish ball that had been heated and dripped with sesame oil, and it was indeed even more delicious.

Xu Yunlan also picked up a piece and started eating. Her cheeks were puffy and her eyes were bright. "Dad, where did you buy this? It's delicious."

While she was eating, she also picked up a piece for her nephew, thinking that he would not eat it.

My nephew has not had a good appetite these days and has lost some weight.

Unexpectedly, my nephew smelled it, opened his mouth and took a bite, then shouted in a baby voice, "Aunt, I want more."

Xu Yunlan said happily: "Mom and Dad, Xige'er also likes to eat."

Even Xu Yunlan's brother and sister-in-law couldn't help but try it, and they all said it was delicious.

Of the last two plates of fish balls, Xiger ate six or seven and shared the rest with everyone.

It has been a long time since Xu Kongmu saw his family enjoy eating together so much, so he plans to buy the braised herring and fish head and tofu casserole to try them tomorrow.

…

After Xu Qinyu finished her work in the kitchen, she had to prepare hot water for her fourth brother's second medicinal bath.

Pei Weixuan felt much better this time than last time. Although his meridians were still black after soaking for a while, he did not lose consciousness. He kept his eyes closed, but he must have been in great pain. His meridians were twisting and turning, and his face and lips were pale. This time it lasted for half an hour. When he opened his eyes, the medicinal properties in his meridians had subsided and returned to normal.

Seeing this, Xu Qinyu and Wen couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

…

The next day, after Xu Qinyu sold breakfast, she came back with some ingredients for lunch, and the whole family started to get busy.

Recently, Mrs. Luo didn't dare to come home to make trouble. After finishing her housework, Mrs. Wen went out to continue washing clothes for others.

Pei Jianing stayed at home to look after the two children.

When Xu Qinyu and Pei Weixuan returned with the ingredients, Wen had not returned yet.

Sometimes Wen would come back in an hour or two, and sometimes in three or four hours. This was probably because he had finished washing the clothes.

Several people started to get busy. The little black panther Moyu ran around with a fish in its mouth. Xu Qinyu let it do what it wanted. Anyway, the fish would be food for it and the little white snake in the future.

Yes, the little black panther was renamed Moyu.

Because when she first called him Mo Shui, Ning Jieer said, "Sister-in-law, it's so nice to call the little white snake Bai Yu, but why is the little black panther called Mo Shui? Mo Shui should be ink, right? Why not also use the word "Yu" in Sister-in-law's name, Mo Yu, which just matches Bai Yu and sounds nice."

Xu Qinyu also thought they were good, one white jade and the other black jade.

So before the name "Mo Shui" lasted even one day, it was renamed "Mo Yu".

Not to mention, one is made of white jade and the other is made of black jade, they are really good.

I don't know whether it was because Pei Weixuan's ointment was effective or because Mo Yu had a strong recovery ability, but after a few days of raising it, it could already run and jump around in the yard on its hind legs. It was a very energetic little leopard. Sometimes when Xu Qinyu came out of the kitchen, she even saw it walking back and forth in the yard with a small branch in its mouth. I don't know what it wanted to do, but I guess it was just too energetic.

At this time, people's eyes are met with a pair of ignorant little beast eyes.

People look away helplessly.

The little beast started playing by itself again.

This Mo Yu not only played by himself, he also went to poke the sleeping little white snake. It didn't stretch out its claws, but just poke little Bai Yu. The little snake had already been pushed from the stove to outside the kitchen. Occasionally, Xu Qinyu and the Pei family would pick it up and put it next to the stove in the kitchen, and little Mo Yu would continue to poke it. Sometimes when the little white snake woke up, Xu Qinyu felt that it was a little confused. It probably didn't know why it could run from the stove to the pile of firewood under the stove.

The little white snake wakes up almost once every few days. When it wakes up, it runs to Xu Qinyu to ask for food. If Xu Qinyu is not around, it goes to find Pei Weixuan. If both of them are not around, it goes to find Ning Jie'er or other people. It probably hibernates the rest of the time.

Little Moyu continued to play with the fish in his mouth.

It can also coax Feng Ge'er and Yan Jie'er, and the two children stare at it with interested eyes.

Xu Qinyu made another pot of fish balls, braised more than thirty herrings, and stewed fish heads with tofu for more than ten portions.

These are all cooked in one big pot, saving time and effort.

At around 3:45 p.m., the residents of Guihua Lane spontaneously came to line up in front of Pei's house. When the residents of Laixi Lane also came, they found that quite a few people had already lined up in front of Pei's house.

“Why are there so many people queuing?”

"Aren't you from Guihua Lane? The fish cooked by Miss Xu is delicious. We come here every day at this time to buy it."

"Hey, aren't you guys from Xixiang? I know you. Isn't this Mrs. Chen? Are you here to buy some fish too?"

"Yes, we heard that Miss Xu from Osmanthus Lane cooks delicious fish, so she made extra fish balls and fish head stewed with tofu today, so we came here to buy them."

"Are there any new foods today? No wonder they smell so different. I thought they were the food that the young lady ate at home."

"I just don't know if it's expensive or not? It must be a bit expensive. We are already satisfied that Miss Xu can sell us such a cheap braised herring."

"Yes, yes. I am already very grateful to Miss Xu for being able to eat braised herring."

Even in the restaurants on North Street, it is impossible to get a plate of delicious meat for just five or eight cents.

No one in Laixi Lane expected that the people in Guihua Lane would be so protective of Miss Xu.

In fact, they didn't know how the fish cooked by Xu Xiaoniang tasted. They had never even eaten braised herring.

Most of the people living in Laixi Lane are business owners' families, and they occasionally go to restaurants to eat. I think the people in Guihua Lane may not be able to eat delicious food on weekdays, and have rarely eaten in restaurants, so they think the fish cooked by a young lady is delicious.

In short, we have to wait until they have tasted it to know how it works.

Xu Qinyu opened the gate and saw that everyone was queuing up. She quickly apologized and said that she was delayed because of too much work today.

The ladies, sisters-in-law and young ladies in Osmanthus Alley all laughed and said, "Don't panic, young lady Xu. We are not in a hurry. Take your time."

Xu Qinyu then told me the prices of fish balls and fish head stewed with tofu.

Fish balls are five cents a pound, and fish head stewed with tofu is five cents, ten cents, and fifteen cents. Naturally, the price varies depending on the size of the fish head.

I heard that these two new foods are not expensive, probably just a little more expensive than the braised herring. Fish balls are the most expensive, but in fact they are still affordable. It is worth spending ten cents to buy a pound of them to try them.

Customers at Guihua Lane have been eating braised herring recently. Although it tastes good, they can't resist eating too much. This time there are fresh foods, so the price is a little higher. Most of them buy a pound of fish balls, or a portion of fish head stewed with tofu.

The people in Guihua Lane are usually more frugal. Even if there are new foods, each household will only buy one of them. Those who buy fish balls will not buy fish heads, so in the end there will be both fish balls and fish heads left over.

The food at Laixi Lane is quite affordable, and some people just ordered a little bit of everything.

The one who bought it first couldn't help but eat a fish ball first. This one was convenient to eat, and the fish ball was still fresh out of the pot. It smelled fragrant and tasted even more delicious in the mouth. After tasting it, the woman immediately said, "My lady, give me another two pounds, no, five pounds of fish balls." Such delicious food, at ten cents a pound, their family could still afford it.

Someone in the back started to yell, "Hey, Mrs. Chen, you bought one kilogram earlier, and now you're buying five kilograms. Is there anything left in the back? Leave some for us."

Xu Qinyu also felt that if the sales method was followed, the people behind would definitely not be able to buy anything, so she could only say, "Each person can only buy two kilograms of fish balls now."

The Chen family's sister-in-law muttered a few words before leaving with regret.

Even though there was not much left at the end, there was still one braised fish left. The last customer smelled it and ordered two.

When she got home, the two fish were just enough for the whole family, so she felt that it was the right decision to buy the extra one, otherwise there would definitely not be enough.

Needless to say, no matter whether you have tried the braised fish or fish balls and fish heads in Lai Xi Lane, no one said it was not delicious, and everyone was impressed by the taste.

I plan to continue to buy it tomorrow.

Only after all the food was sold did Xu Qinyu, Pei Jianing and Pei Weixuan return to the kitchen.

Today, I am very grateful for the help of Sister Ning and Fourth Brother. She collected the money and the two of them went to help serve the fish.

The kitchen is warm, and Xu Qinyu likes to stay in the kitchen when she counts money on weekdays.

She moved the wooden box over, and the copper plates inside made a clattering sound. It contained the money from this morning's breakfast and the money from the fish sale just now. She poured the copper plates onto the table, and a large pile of money came out with a clattering sound.