Chapter 42: Master Qin's Moment of Glory...
"Your dishes are here!"
The waiter deftly carried the tray through the lobby, and a tempting aroma suddenly wafted up. The conversation in the lobby gradually subsided, and many people couldn't help but take a deep breath.
"Try it." Qi Chengming gestured to the table, indicating to the Second Young Master Wen.
Scrambled eggs with tomatoes, spicy and sour lotus root slices, fried chicken wings, and roast duck. Four dishes, served with two bowls of solid, glistening white rice.
Dishes stir-fried in an iron wok are generously coated with mutton fat and cooked over high heat, resulting in a wonderfully aromatic wok hei (wok aroma). The simple dishes have a light sheen of oil, and the seasonings are used generously, but the cooking process is minimal, consisting only of stir-frying—preserving the original flavor and texture of the vegetables without overcooking them.
The fried chicken wings are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, the crispy skin of the roast duck melts in your mouth, and the fresh way of eating thinly sliced meat with sauce and pancakes is so delicious that it makes your tongue almost fall off.
Tears streamed down her face.
"I heard that these red berries used to be for ornamental purposes, and I don't know what they're called. After the Bai Family Restaurant made them into a dish, the prince really liked to eat them... It's said that they can only be found in Liuzhou City!" Whispers came from not far away, and it was unknown who knew the inside story and was gossiping.
Qi Chengming casually glanced around, remaining calm despite the crowd's exclamations.
This is nothing.
Most of his favorite dishes were made with pork, but unfortunately there was no pork to eat, no potatoes to bring happiness, and no chili peppers to add the finishing touch.
Waaaaah...
In his opinion, most of the delicious dishes have been sealed away, so it's not worth getting so excited.
However, when the ancients, who were eating stewed dishes, were just beginning to have their tongues and stomachs thoroughly captivated by stir-fried dishes, these dishes were already sufficient.
It's good to release delicious dishes gradually, like a slow and steady stream.
Qi Chengming recalled...
The piglets brought from Yiyang County are about two or three months old now. We still need to figure out how to castrate them and how to get them to market.
A few days ago, Qi Chengming saw that it was almost ready, so he couldn't wait to ask Aunt Fang to make one. Unfortunately, the taste and meat quality were no longer very good, and even the lard had a slightly foul smell and an indescribable strange taste.
Even if a palace maid who came to taste the dishes thought it was heavenly and incredibly delicious, Qi Chengming, whose palate had been spoiled by modern cuisine, still shook his head.
He can be very easy to please when he's in a good mood, but he can also be incredibly stubborn when he's fixated on something—he was delighted that Xiao Chengzi kept urging others to raise him, and then he tried to glare at everyone who was still standing there.
Thus, this batch of pigs became failed experiments and were simply kept as breeding pigs.
Qi Chengming couldn't accept the old-fashioned breeding methods; he wanted a batch of "pigs" that were thoroughly clean.
...
The boy gazed expectantly at the four fragrant dishes.
Wen Zhongnan's chopsticks paused for a moment before heading straight for the scrambled eggs with tomatoes. He also preferred fried chicken legs and wings, and buried his head in his food, devouring it with gusto: "..."
I feel so happy I could cry.
Sure enough, no matter how many times, this series of new royal dishes is incredibly delicious!
Wen Zhongnan couldn't feign any exaggerated expression of tasting delicious food for the first time, but he ate with great relish and with elegant manners, which showed his upbringing from a young age.
"Isn't it delicious? You should pay more attention to those young piglets on the estate; we'll have even better dishes in the future." Qi Chengming felt that his tone sounded like he was just making empty promises, but he was telling the truth.
"I will pay more attention." Young Master Wen said this very seriously, as if he was fully aware of the destructive power of delicious food.
Actually, all Wen Zhongnan could think about at that moment was incredibly delicious braised pork, sweet and sour pork ribs, stir-fried pork with green peppers, and spicy blood curd... Many people couldn't accept spicy blood curd, but the new emperor loved it. Every time Wen Zhongnan went there, he would order this dish so he could enjoy a hearty meal with him.
As they were eating, a low sigh suddenly broke out in the hall. The person murmured sadly, "...Why are there so many Bai Family Restaurant's exclusive dishes in Liuzhou City?! How am I supposed to endure this after I leave here?!"
“Let’s just bear with it for now. I asked the manager, and he said that Baijia Restaurant in Liuzhou Prefecture might serve this ‘Volcano Hibiscus’ in the future. It’s more realistic than us having to come all the way here to eat every time.” His companion pointed to the scrambled eggs with tomatoes and advised him.
I can tell from their voices, they're two gourmets.
Qi Chengming felt sorry for them, but he smiled.
The tomatoes have just been planted, and the yield is too low; there's only enough for a few days to make a special dish for people to try. But the reputation will spread quickly, reaching far and wide. Most importantly… here's the reason for the people of Liuzhou to reclaim their land!
Tomatoes don't require much soil, but they do need sufficient fertility. Qi Chengming has fertilizer in production, just waiting for the people to cultivate a usable piece of wasteland.
The Bai family restaurant openly monopolized this dish. In the future, the surrounding towns will need a lot of tomatoes. The government will step in as a representative and sign contracts with the people who are willing to cultivate the land to grow tomatoes, guaranteeing their stable income and providing various incentives for vigorous promotion.
This is first-come, first-served.
There's no rush to provide support for other land reclamation workers... Once the wasteland is cultivated, won't they still have points to buy corn and sweet potato seeds? These are also suitable for planting in Liuzhou. The order is potatoes, corn, sweet potatoes—they're all interconnected.
"Hello—" a very soft voice rang out.
Qi Chengming suddenly snapped out of his daze and saw the Second Young Master Wen remove the jade pendant from his waist and wave it in front of his eyes: "Snap out of it now? Don't look so serious while eating."
Young Master Wen curled his lip in disapproval: "The food is so delicious, it wouldn't be good to waste it."
He felt that Wuyou was too preoccupied with too many things, unable to distinguish when to relax and when to think about official business, which led to her early death. In his previous life, Wen Zhongnan treated people as friends, seeing them most clearly through letters from afar, yet precisely because of the distance, nothing could be changed.
In this life, he was always there to remind me, starting with eating, that I must get rid of bad habits.
"It's an old problem of mine."
Qi Chengming readily agreed, a smile playing on his lips. He put aside all his other thoughts and decided to focus on having dinner with his new friend.
Yes, the Second Young Master Wen gave him the feeling of a gentle spring breeze... well, sometimes it was a foul breeze. In short, he truly lived up to his reputation as someone in the original story who was good at making friends everywhere and wanted to be a young swordsman! When he wanted to be friends with someone, his carefree and unrestrained demeanor was irresistible, and he was very comfortable to be around.
This perfectly captured Qi Chengming's desire to make a friend.
So far, the only person he can truly talk to on equal terms is Steward Song, but sometimes Steward Song seems to have some kind of bias towards him. Meanwhile, Xiao Dezi and Xiao Chengzi sometimes listen silently to Qi Chengming's complaints, living like his shadows...
In other words, only the Second Young Master Wen fits this feeling.
After a satisfying meal, the two left the restaurant.
The customers sitting in the next shop drinking tea, eating snails, picking up bamboo baskets and buying tangerines gradually dispersed.
The largest of the guests had palms like palm-leaf fans, and a few copper coins slipped through his fingers as he hurried away.
"...!" Wen Zhongnan walked ahead as if he had heard something. His eyes changed from lazy to sharp in an instant. After he saw clearly the group of "passersby" who were following him, the former General Wen, who had just been in a panic, chuckled and restrained his imposing manner.
Well, even the carefree boy from his youth wouldn't sneak out to play with him alone. It's still the same group of old acquaintances.
The two of them strolled along the bustling street in the heart of Liuzhou.
Wen Zhongnan had indeed never seen what Liuzhou looked like many years ago. He looked around at the clean streets and had something he'd been curious about since before dinner:
"—So you're researching fertilizer to make the streets so clean?"
If Wen Zhongnan remembered correctly, Wuyou was extremely clean. In her previous life, she also tried her best to gradually promote this policy from pilot projects to wider implementation, using shared interests as a binding force, showing great care.
"It's a combination of reasons," Qi Chengming admitted, "but I only found out about it recently."
God knows!
Because it was his first time being a prince and he lacked experience, he was so focused on figuring out how to make fertilizer that he was completely absorbed in it! When he came to his senses, he found that Master Qin had taken care of everything and managed it all perfectly.
The same goes for fertilizer, land reclamation, and now street cleaning. He only mentioned the idea when he first arrived in Liuzhou, and Master Qin has already put it into practice with remarkable efficiency!
He can sort out all the difficult and complicated matters and make them easy to understand.
"I learned from that experience that I need to let go more." Qi Chengming shrugged nonchalantly. "You can't rely on yourself alone."
He believed without a doubt that if he hadn't transmigrated into the body of a prince, a fact he couldn't change, then if he had put Master Qin in his position… his abilities would definitely be far superior!
Therefore, Qi Chengming deeply realized the importance of being a leader. What he needed to learn was how to coordinate and manage as a superior, putting everyone in the right position, without having to do everything himself.
"You would say something like that?" Young Master Wen was taken aback, his gentle and affectionate peach blossom eyes widening in disbelief, as if he had seen the sun rise in the west.
"Is it surprising that I said something like that?!" Qi Chengming protested, asking back with the same shocked tone.
“…Uh.” Wen Zhongnan looked away with a subtle expression, then changed the subject, asking, “Speaking of which, why are there so many wary people on the street?”
With Wen Er's keen senses, he could tell that after arriving in this area, everyone on the roadside—whether it was the vendors hawking their wares, the pedestrians strolling around, or the imposing yamen runners patrolling—seemed to be subconsciously scanning something from time to time.
That's not the kind of reaction a normal person should have.
Wen Zhongnan frowned, worried that some bullies might have appeared on the streets in the past two days.
He couldn't stand seeing this, so he had no choice but to draw his sword and fight for justice.
Qi Chengming roughly knew the reason.
Master Qin had already reported to him, but he didn't understand the specific details. Now, by "traveling incognito," he could finally find out the truth.
Qi Chengming called out to a thin old man on the roadside whose eyes were wide open and focused: "Old man, what are you doing?"
Before the old man could impatiently wave him away, Qi Chengming magically slipped the few copper coins in his hand into the skinny old man's tattered sleeve.
Wen Zhongnan stared in astonishment at the boy's practiced stance, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.
...Oh my god, he really endured so much today! Can he vent to someone (this is a new word)? He's really holding it in.
"..." The gaunt old man's expression changed, and his attitude underwent a complete 360-degree transformation. He became incredibly smooth and enthusiastic, covering his sleeve as he answered, "I'm watching to see who doesn't use the public toilet."
Wen Zhongnan: "?"
Why should we watch this?
Qi Chengming nodded.
He knew that the public toilets were built by Master Huang and Master Qin according to the streets, and that corresponding policies had been introduced.
"The county magistrate said that from now on, people can no longer... um, you know what?" The old man glanced at Qi Chengming's delicate, refined face out of the corner of his eye. He grinned, revealing only a few teeth, but didn't utter the crude words directly.
“Those who violate the rules will be punished, but if you catch someone violating the rules, you can go to the government office to collect money.”
The old man explained why he was so excited.
Wen Zhongnan suddenly realized.
No wonder everyone on the street is constantly watching their surroundings. How could they not? It's like they're waiting to pick up money at any moment.
Qi Chengming added the specific notice issued by the government: "To be precise... those who violate it will be fined for minor offenses and have their cooperation with the Prince's Mansion terminated for serious offenses. Currently, many people in Liuzhou City rely on the Prince's Mansion for their livelihood."
"Those who follow the instructions can receive a portion of the high-efficiency fertilizer developed by the Prince's Palace after the fertilizer matures. Moreover, those who report people urinating or defecating indiscriminately on the way... if their reports are verified, they will also receive a reward."
“Yes, yes.” The old man became even more excited and whispered, “Your Highness is so kind. He’s one of our own from Liuzhou. Everyone knows that the money comes from the government, but the person in charge of the money behind the government is Your Highness!”
"Once the fertilizer arrives... and there are still merchants willing to buy it, this old man can finally make some money! So it won't be entirely useless..."
He kept talking on and on.
Looking at the old man's almost unrepairable patches and holes, the faint smell of rancidity emanating from his body, the few unkempt strands of white hair, and the satisfied smile on his face, Wen Zhongnan felt a sinking feeling in his heart.
Although he yearned to roam the world, it didn't mean he was an naive and ignorant young nobleman. An elderly man of that age, placed in a poor family, if struggling to survive and facing winter...
A frail and useless elderly person is likely to starve to death by saving food.
Whether they did it voluntarily or were forced, this is the cruel survival experience of ordinary people.
Wen Zhongnan suddenly let out a breath, looked at Qi Chengming with admiration, and said seriously, "Then it sounds like... His Highness has done a great thing."
“No, money can solve many problems, but those who pay attention to people’s livelihoods and put forward practical solutions are more worthy of praise,” Qi Chengming replied sincerely.
Yes, there were no generous merchants who were initially willing to buy large quantities of fertilizer from the common people; they were just shills hired by Master Qin. It was only later, when merchants followed suit for profit, that they gained cooperation with the Prince's Mansion, thus creating a virtuous cycle.
But initially... Master Qin was very determined to do so.
It might have been just a few coins, insignificant to them, and the total amount might not even equal the salary of some people in the Prince's mansion. Yet, it had already saved many lives.
Qi Chengming greatly admired and respected Master Qin's attitude of having the people's well-being at heart.
So he planned to give Master Qin a big compliment, give him all the rewards and treat him with great care and concern.
This subordinate is incredibly capable!
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Author's Note: Qin Liusong: ...? (Grinning foolishly) (Blushing)
Wen Zhongnan (cracked.jpg): ...I was even there.
(I accidentally wrote an extra thousand words today... I'll post them all together as an extra chapter.)
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