36 Old Duck Winter Melon Soup
◎ Flirting fails, so I sulk◎
Yanshu drove the carriage to the Lu family.
Inside the car, Lu Fei sat upright, pinching his brows with his hands, looking a little tired.
He originally prided himself on being aloof and not a partisan, but in the past few months, he has been running around everywhere to take care of his brother Lu Yun's affairs.
Now, with money flowing out like water, and the women and children in the family even resorting to self-torture in front of the nobles, things are finally showing some signs of progress.
The Lu family was a prominent family in Jiangnan. Over the centuries, they had produced countless prime ministers and generals.
However, during the decades of chaos, the aristocratic families were slaughtered and most of them were left with only empty shells.
Since the founding of the country by Emperor Jiande, he inherited and expanded the imperial examination system of the previous dynasty and recruited talents on a wide scale.
As a result, class mobility became more frequent, and the old aristocratic families such as Lu, Wang, Cui, and Gu became increasingly decadent.
By the time of Lu Fei's generation, the Lu family had become almost the same as a poor family.
Fortunately, both brothers worked hard and became Jinshi in the imperial examinations.
Who would have known that his elder brother Lu Yun was involved in the Tanzhou Pearl Corruption Case, becoming a scapegoat for the royal family, and causing him to let down his newlywed wife.
He thought to himself: Now, with the mediation of Princess Anguo and others, the emperor has softened his stance towards the Jiang family, and his brother's affairs have been basically suppressed.
When the time comes, he will go...
Just as I was thinking about it, I heard a noise outside.
Yanshu suddenly shouted:
"Who are you? How dare you ram the carriage of an imperial official?" His voice trembled at the end, and he was obviously afraid.
The person's voice was calm and steady, with no emotion in his voice.
"Is that Lord Lu Feilu in the car?"
Lu Fei frowned slightly and was about to stand up, lift the curtain and get out of the car, when he felt a "whoosh" and was thrown down by a huge force.
His eyes suddenly went dark...
In the distance, Chen Yue stroked his chin and said curiously:
"Liuguang, this Lu Fei has no grudge against you in the past or in the present, why are you looking for someone to beat him up?"
He looked around, feeling a little nervous:
"He's an official appointed by the imperial court after all. His rank is much higher than ours. If people knew about this..."
Xie Linchuan held the black whip in his right hand and wrapped his left index finger around the whip, making his quartz purple narrow-sleeved shirt look more heroic.
He said coldly, "Imperial officials? Haven't I beaten enough imperial officials?"
Chen Yue sighed, thinking of Xie Linchuan's "achievements".
One year, they were drinking in Fengle Tower. A minor official named Qin, relying on his father being the governor of the northern wing of the Privy Council, insisted on having a pipa-playing girl sleep with him.
Xie Linchuan went to say a few words, and he even cursed at him. As a result, Xie Linchuan kicked him and broke his leg.
I heard that he later became a cripple, and was still a playboy, and finally contracted a serious disease and died.
Another time, a militia member cheated by playing football, and Xie Linchuan punched him in the face, causing him to spit out two teeth on the spot.
However, this one now...
Chen Yue shook his head:
"Lu Fei is a censor who got his position through the imperial examination, unlike those who received imperial favors. If he reports this to the Censorate, the spit from those civil servants will drown us."
The Censorate, especially Xue Lian, was so frightened when they went berserk that even Emperor Taiping was terrified. In the Tanzhou Zhenzhu corruption case, it was he who carried the coffin to court, forcing a retrial.
Xie Linchuan pulled the whip from his hand and sneered:
"Is the Imperial Censor? I'm afraid of them? They're just empty talkers."
This is not bragging. He has fought with that old-fashioned Xue Lian several times.
On the other side of the alley, Yanshu was screaming and yelling. If you didn't know, you would think he was being beaten.
Chen Yue is a Cuju enthusiast after all. After watching Lu Fei's game, he felt a little sorry for his talent:
"After all, he's a good football player. Just teach him a lesson and don't beat him to death."
When talking about Cuju, one thing comes to his mind:
"In a few days, the Liao envoys will arrive in Beijing. The emperor intends to invite the Liao to play a game of cuju with us."
"Last time Lu Fei played for the Flames, even the Third Prince knew about it and specifically asked for him to go. You beat him up, aren't you afraid that he'll steal your limelight?"
Xie Linchuan heard this, his dark eyes blazed with rage, and he raised his whip and pointed it at Chen Yue:
"Bah, who the hell is he? He's my defeated opponent! Why am I afraid of him?"
Chen Yue smiled, pushed the whip away from the other party, and exclaimed in surprise:
"When are you going to play him—"
After a moment, he finally understood:
"I was wondering, Liu Xingliang, he disappeared after just one match. Turns out it's you."
This is exactly what happened in the final between the Flame Team and Qiyun Club, when Xie Linchuan pretended to be Liu Xingliang and crushed Lu Fei to help Qiyun Club win the championship.
Xie Linchuan snorted, without commenting, and just stared at the green-walled carriage in the distance.
Seeing that he didn't get angry, Liu Yue asked again: "If it wasn't about Cuju, why did you beat him?"
Xie Linchuan's face suddenly turned cold as ice, with a sharp light in his eyes:
"Shameless and ungrateful people, they deserve to be beaten!"
…
In the evening, after returning to the Lu Mansion, Yanshu did not dare to disturb Old Madam Lu and others. He only secretly took medicinal wine, bandages and other things to help Lu Fei apply medicine.
Lu Fei waved his hand, indicating that he should do it himself.
Yanshu glanced at the smooth but purple back and said with a sad face:
"My dear, why did you let those thieves beat you up today without fighting back?"
His master was an expert at Cuju and knew a few martial arts moves, so how could he just submit and let them beat him like this?
Lu Fei took the medicine without saying a word.
Yanshu looked so painful that he grimaced, but he had a calm expression, as if he didn't feel any pain.
He ignored Yanshu's nagging and asked another question:
"You said this morning that the owner of the Songhua Brewery suddenly fired Caizhu?"
Yanshu knew that Caizhu was the master's spy placed in the Xinghua Restaurant.
"It's not just Caizhu. The shopkeeper said business was bad and he wanted to go back home, so he sent away all the maids and servants and closed the shop."
Lu Fei rubbed the medicine on his chest, thinking silently.
When the two men attacked, they deliberately avoided his face and legs, as if they knew his official status and that there was going to be a Cuju match.
"The colored beads have been discovered."
Yanshu also reacted and scratched his head:
"That Gao? Even though Madam Jiang rejected his marriage proposal, how could he, a commoner from a merchant family, dare to assault an official appointed by the imperial court, my lord?"
"It's not him." Lu Fei frowned, his eyes were filled with gloom, and a trickle of blood oozed from the corner of his mouth.
…
Lu Fei was filled with worry, but Xie Linchuan was smiling happily.
Since he learned about Jiang Qinglan's identity, in addition to beating up Lu Fei and arranging matters with Princess Anguo, he also ran to the Xinghua Restaurant all day long.
As soon as he entered the house, he was so dizzy that he forgot the word "pride".
That afternoon, he pestered Jiang Qinglan and said with a smile:
"Madam Jiang, can you please introduce today's dishes to me?"
Jiang Qinglan is very sensitive and she feels quite strange about Xie Linchuan's behavior in recent days.
Although she tried her best to keep a distance from him, as a restaurant owner, how could she respond when a customer asked about the dishes?
She then said:
"Today we have braised chicken legs, braised pig ears, braised tofu skin, and several kinds of porridge... Oh, by the way, I just made old duck and winter melon soup today. It clears away heat and reduces internal heat, perfect for summer heat."
The tone was a little light.
Xie Linchuan's heart was full of passion, still immersed in honey. He didn't notice the difference in her tone. He thought: I have eaten those stewed dishes and porridge before, and this old duck soup...
"You guys eat this too?"
His original intention was that drinking from the same pot of soup with her would be considered a step closer to them.
Jiang Qinglan, however, had the wrong idea: powerful and wealthy people are very particular.
Could it be that he was afraid that the new dish would taste strange or harmful to the body, so he insisted on us trying it before he would eat it?
She muttered inwardly that she was being pretentious, but she didn't show it on her face. She smiled and said, "That's right. Tuantuan and I have all eaten it."
"Okay!" Xie Linchuan responded immediately, staring at her with his peach blossom eyes, his gaze sparkling.
Seeing his resolute look, Jiang Qinglan thought to himself: It is indeed so!
In ancient times, eunuchs tested poisons for the emperor, but today I am tasting food for him?
But I am not a eunuch, and you are not the emperor.
As she went to the kitchen to get some winter melon and duck soup, she imagined writing three big words on Xie Linchuan's forehead:
Blind! Talk! Research!
…
Soon, the soup arrived. In a white porcelain bowl, the duck meat had been slowly simmered, rendering the fat completely. The broth was clear and slightly yellow, dotted with golden oil rings.
The winter melon was sliced thickly and stewed until it was translucent. The flesh was soft and fat-like, but the edges still retained their shape.
Xie Linchuan's mind was not on the chicken soup or duck soup, his eyes were fixed on his hand beside the soup bowl.
She was wearing a blue-purple climbing bra.
The sleeves of apricot-white fine cloth were rolled up high, revealing a wrist as slender as white jade.
There was a wound across the index finger of his left hand. Although it was no longer bleeding, it was still slightly white.
Xie Linchuan often played with guns and sticks, so it was inevitable that he would get some minor injuries. He knew that this was the result of a cut on the skin and the result of being soaked in water.
He suddenly felt a little sad.
What would Lord Jiang think if he knew the life his daughter was living?
He asked in a daze: "Is your hand injured?"
Jiang Qinglan's heart skipped a beat.
His question was really ambiguous.
Even in modern times, if a male customer goes to a female owner's restaurant to eat and they are not familiar with each other, and he sees that her hand is injured, he will at most think about it in his mind.
In ancient times, men and women were most concerned about keeping separate.
An ordinary man shouldn't even look at a woman's hand. But he not only looked, but also discovered that she was injured; not only discovered, but also asked about it.
What does he want to do?
Jiang Qinglan immediately retracted his hand, smiled awkwardly and said, "It's okay." He turned and walked towards the counter.
The thumb of his left hand unconsciously stroked the wound on his index finger.
This was the cut she made this morning while rind- ing a winter melon. Without a sharp, easy-to-use paring knife, she had to use a kitchen knife. The winter melon was large and round, and she struggled to control the pressure, resulting in a small cut.
In fact, when cutting vegetables or frying meat in the kitchen, it is inevitable that your fingers will be cut or splashed by hot oil.
However, the original body was a lady from a secluded place, with white and tender hands, so the few wounds on them were so obvious.
But what's wrong with Mr. Yan? Is he drunk? Slippery and slick, acting like a playboy?
No matter how good-looking a man is, as long as he has a frivolous look, he will look like a rogue and be disgusting.
She was quite busy at the moment, and as soon as she thought of this, she went to fish for the braised lotus root, leaving Xie Linchuan behind.
The sky gradually turned indigo and it was already late.
Xie Linchuan ate a bowl of winter melon and old duck soup and a bowl of mixed lettuce for a long time.
After the people at the next table changed several times, he finally stopped looking around and asked people to pay the bill.
Jiang Qinglan heard this and was about to leave, but then he remembered his abnormal behavior just now and called Wang Huiniang over.
But Wang Huiniang said a few words and came back.
She pursed her lips, half smiling, and said, "That gentleman said he wants to pack a serving of old duck soup and wants you to come over and talk to him."
Jiang Qinglan knew that he couldn't escape, and thought to himself:
Forget it, just assume he's drunk. As a modern person, it's no big deal if a handsome guy makes a few jokes about me.
However, she was not completely unprepared. She took down her armband, picked up something from the counter, and hid it in her sleeve along with her hand, refusing to take it out.
Xie Linchuan saw her approaching, glanced at her sleeve, and said with a smile: "It seems that the weather is not too hot?"
What are you doing? Are you guarding against me like a thief?
Jiang Qinglan knew he was joking, so he ignored the strange words and said seriously:
"Mr. Yan, these two dishes today, plus the soup, cost a total of one qian and thirty wen."
Seeing that he was about to speak, she preemptively said, "Mr. Yan, I have kept all the accounts here."
He placed the account book in front of him, then quickly withdrew his hand and hid it in his sleeve.
Seeing her serious expression, Xie Linchuan stopped teasing her and slowly looked through the account book:
June 19th: two braised pig's trotters, two servings of fish porridge, one serving of lettuce, and two coins and twenty-eight cents of silver.
On the first day of July, twenty pig's trotters to be taken away in envelopes, and four ounces of silver;
One cucumber rose roll, one braised pork elbow, two taels and one qian of silver...
Well, Baoqing and Yang Song, these two are really good eaters!
When had Xie Linchuan ever seen these trivial accounts?
After a quick glance, he grasped the key point and said with a smile, "Mrs. Jiang's handwriting is quite good. Did you learn it from your father?"
In fact, Jiang Qinglan's calligraphy is based on the Liu style, which he taught himself.
But she guessed that the original body really learned the handwriting from her father, so she had to answer:
"That's what I learned from my father since I was young."
Xie Linchuan was very excited:
"You're a girl, but he taught you to write with such grace?"
Jiang Qinglan had no idea that in Xie Linchuan's eyes, she had become a completely different person these days.
With the blessing of Jiang Yuan's holy light, she, a little cook in the city, was even given the word "style".
At this moment, she felt that his words were incoherent, so she casually said, "I was young at that time, and I can't remember clearly."
Pointing at the account book, he turned the topic to money, "Look carefully, Mr. Yan, I've spent a total of twenty..."
Xie Linchuan's passionate heart suddenly turned cold, and he interrupted her: "Do you have to calculate it so clearly?"
He was smiling, but for some reason, he suddenly stopped smiling.
Suddenly, that handsome face turned cold, which actually made Jiang Qinglan feel a little creepy.
She coughed fakely:
"Of course. We're businessmen, sisters, and we have to be clear about our accounts. Mr. Yan and your sister have spent a total of 23 taels, 7 qian, and 42 wen, leaving us with 26 taels, 2 qian, and 58 wen."
"Okay!" Xie Linchuan said sternly, a single word to the point. He picked up the sealed lunch box and was about to leave.
Jiang Qinglan quickly took out the small golden ball and was about to speak when he got a fierce glare from the man. He couldn't bring himself to say anything about folding the golden ball into silver to keep accounts.
She smiled awkwardly: "Mr. Yan, take care."
Why... does he seem a little angry? Is he annoyed by her nagging?
Chekhov wrote a novel called "The Death of a Petty Official".
There was a cautious civil servant in Russia who was sitting in the back row behind the general while watching a play. He accidentally sneezed.
He was terrified and apologized to the general again and again. The general had not noticed the sneeze at first, but because of his constant apologies, he finally got annoyed and scolded him.
After returning home, the man became ill due to worry and eventually died.
At this moment, Jiang Qinglan felt that he was a bit like this small civil servant.
They are rich people who don't care about this little money at all, but she keeps nagging and nagging, which seems a bit annoying?
But Mr. Yan is weird today. Sometimes he is frivolous and sometimes he is angry. Maybe he took the wrong medicine?
She held the little golden ball in her palm and thought to herself: I really can’t afford to offend a master who needs to be served!
【Author’s words】
I will post it tomorrow. I will update it earlier today and change the update time to 11pm tomorrow. Thank you for your love. [Hug]
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