Chapter 35 Chapter 35 Show your skills.
"Che'er, come here."
Wang Dianji returned to the kiln and waved to Chen Che'er, who was covered in dust and bent over with bricks on his back.
The cart unloaded the bricks, dusted them off under the eaves, and followed Wang Dianji into the room.
Wang Dianji asked, "I'd like to take you in as my apprentice and teach you the art of accounting. Would you be willing?"
"I wish! I wish!"
Chen Che'er was so happy that he was about to kneel down and kowtow to acknowledge his master.
Wang Dianji stopped him with his hands, "Don't kneel down yet. I really enjoy your wild rice and cucumber."
Chen Che'er then said, "Master, if you like it, I'll send some more tomorrow."
Wang Dianji shook his head. "That's inconvenient. Tell me how to make the wild rice stem vegetable. If I want to eat it, I can make it myself anytime. That's cheaper."
"Why, this isn't even possible?"
Seeing his hesitant look, Wang Dianji's face turned cold and he threw away his sleeves.
Sister Xu did tell his eldest mother, Aunt Lu, how to make it. Aunt Lu even watched her cook it and went home to talk about how complicated it was. Chen Che'er also listened to her and could imitate her.
But this was Sister Xu's craft, and she made a living in the kitchen. She told herself that it was her own doing, and if she wanted to tell others, she should ask her opinion first.
But Chen Che'er couldn't refuse Wang Dianji's request, so she pretended not to know and said:
"I don't know how to make this water chestnut dish, but I'll tell you, it's made by a sister from my village.
She's been in the palace before, so she knows a lot. If the clerk wants to know, why don't I go ask her?"
"In that case, stop working and go ask quickly!
If Gan Jiantu stops you from leaving, just say it was me who told you to do it."
Wang Dianji urged him to come back within an hour.
At this moment, Ji Xu was selling steamed cakes in Shengchang. He had two baskets in his hands. He had just delivered the cakes to the families who had placed orders yesterday and was still selling them along the way.
"Sister Xu!"
Chen Che'er came over, sweating profusely, and finally bent down to catch his breath, then continued,
"Wang Dianji asked me about the water chestnut dish, oh, the way to stir-fry water chestnut with meat!
I thought this was Sister Xu's cooking, so I came to ask for your opinion. Can you tell him? He also wants to make it every day."
Ji Xu didn't think it was a big deal. She couldn't buy water chestnuts now, nor did she sell water chestnuts fried with meat, so it didn't matter if she told Wang Dianji.
Although the cooking method of "stir-frying" did not exist at that time, it would not be a problem for her even if others knew about it. Her skills were honed from childhood to adulthood. She made money in the kitchen and was confident in her skills.
"Of course," Ji Xu said, "but does he want to take you as his disciple?"
When Chen Che'er was mentioned, he grinned foolishly.
"Yes, this is all thanks to Sister Xu's water chestnut dish. Oh no, I have to go back quickly. Wang Dianji is pressing me hard."
Chen Che'er ran away in a flash. He had already spent a lot of time looking for Ji Xu everywhere. His back jumped three feet high in the distance, waving his hands and saying:
"I'll thank Sister Xu when I get home!"
Ji Xu also felt relieved for Chen Che'er. His family all hoped that he could learn accounting skills so that they could earn some money.
Wang Dianji twirled his beard after listening to the recipe, pondered for a moment, and then waved Chen Che'er out, "You go back to work first."
Chen Che'er wanted to ask when he could become his disciple and have tea, but he was afraid that being too impatient would not show his sincerity and would annoy Wang Dianji, so he went back to the kiln to carry bricks.
It was noon at this time, and all the servants of the Gan family in the low-rise house had gone to work in the kiln in front, leaving only Wang Dianji.
In the southeast corner of the row of houses, there was a low stove shed. On the ceramic stove was an old iron cauldron picked up from the relatives' home. Some firewood was piled next to it. On the paint-chipped wooden table, small ceramic jars were crowded together, filled with seasonings such as salt, sauce, and fermented black beans.
Sometimes their servants would save some money and light a fire in the kitchen to cook some meat for a snack.
Given Wang Dianji's status, he didn't need to cook here himself, but today, he went to buy a piece of lean meat himself, and then went to the Gan family's water chestnut field, picking and choosing a few water chestnuts.
The woman who looked after the fields flattered him, "Why don't you break off some more to eat? There's still plenty!"
Her son also worked in the kiln, but he was eager to become Wang Dianji's apprentice, so that day he specially picked two baskets of water melons to honor him.
However, Wang Dianji did not like this. Seeing that Chen Che'er was experienced and smart, he casually asked him to carry him home.
Speaking of which, Chen Che'er is quite sensible. She made water chestnuts and vegetables to honor him. Otherwise, how could he show off in front of his wife? It's a pity that he is not from the Gan family.
After Wang Dianji returned, he took out half a bottle of cooking oil from the house. Soon, smoke rose from the low kitchen behind the kiln, and a pungent smell of burnt food wafted out.
“Cough cough cough… cough cough…”
Wang Dianji ran out with his nose covered. His face was covered with black dust. When he opened his sleeves, even his nostrils were black.
Why? He was clearly following a recipe, so why was it so pungent? Could it be that Chen Che'er made up a recipe to fool him?
"I'm not kidding, this is definitely what my sister did."
Chen Cheer, who was called to the back room, was busy explaining. After thinking for a while, he said,
"Perhaps it's because everyone has different abilities. For example, Dianji is good at accounting.
My sister is a good cook. Although she knows the method, she can't make it perfect at the moment. Don't worry, try a few more times and maybe you will be able to do it."
Wang Dianji naturally knew this, but how could he not be anxious? His wife had ordered this dish for lunch, and it was almost noon.
"Go and find your sister and ask her to cook the water chestnuts and melons for me." Wang Dian said.
Chen Che'er didn't move. He said, "That won't work. My sister Xu is busy selling steamed buns to make money. The autumn is getting colder day by day. She is anxious to get money to build a tiled house. I don't want to delay her business."
As soon as he heard about selling steamed cakes, Wang Dianji knew it was the girl named Ji. Some boys in the kiln had bought steamed cakes from her and were very happy about them. Wang Dianji looked down on the craftsmanship of such a young girl. Even when he saw a lot of people around her, he never went up to buy from her.
"I didn't realize you were so arrogant!"
Wang Dianji said,
"Alright! You lead the way, I'll go see her myself!"
Recently, Ji Zhi still sells food in Shengchangli, but he no longer sells pickled vegetables. He sells preserved fruits instead. They are from the nectarine tree in the backyard of his home. The nectarines are sliced and dried into preserved fruits.
Jin Shi saved them up and only caught some during festivals to give them to them. When Ji Zhi wanted to sell them, she initially refused.
However, Ji Zhi promised her that he would make money from the sales. The price of the preserved fruit was set by Jin, and she could only get five pieces for one dollar.
“This one is too thin.”
"I have plenty of preserved pears at home..."
Many people waved their hands after seeing this.
The ancestors of Shengchangli were rich. In the past, they planted more large pomelo trees than those in Benguli. Most families had one, and they made preserved fruits when they couldn’t finish eating them in season.
Therefore, Ji Zhi only sold one copy by noon.
Seeing Ji Xu from afar, she couldn't help but clench her basket tightly, but she saw Chen Che'er, leading an old man in a gray robe, talking to Ji Xu.
Men, women, old and young, along the path, leaned forward to take a look, discussing the pros and cons.
"Isn't that Wang Dianji from the Gan family kiln?"
"He's got those two eyes on his forehead, and he's here to buy our favorite steamed buns?"
"Come and take a look at the Gan family! They are one of the richest families in Shengchang. Tsk tsk..."
"Girl, since you've sold all your baskets of steamed buns, why not make some for me, just for your brother? It won't be much trouble for you."
Wang Dianji thought that he was willing to give them a good opportunity, so they should be respectful and agree.
Ji Xu said, "Of course it's not a big deal, but you, Dianji, didn't tell the truth. I don't know whether I should do it or not."
Is it possible that she is addicted to her food and gets anxious when she can't eat it for a while?
He had to ask her to make it right now, and couldn't wait even a day. Wang Dianji clearly had other uses for this dish.
This girl was very clever. Wang Dianji thought he could trick her, but he didn't expect her to see through him.
He thought that if the lady asked for food again in the future, she would have to look for her again, and he would not be able to hide it any longer, so he said:
"Let me tell you, it was my Gan family's master who tasted it by mistake and specifically requested the food."
Ji Xu thought for a moment and said, "I'm going with you now, just for one thing. If Wang Dianji uses this as bait to deceive him again, I won't be so easy to talk to."
She figured out that Wang Dianji wanted to use this dish to curry favor with the master of the Gan family, so he tried to coax Chen Che'er by offering to take him in as a disciple. When she asked him about the recipe, she was afraid that the master had no intention of taking him in as a disciple at all.
However, this matter cannot be done by forcing Wang Dian to do it. If he is unwilling in his heart and only teaches the basics perfunctorily, over time, the apprentice will never be able to make progress. He must be truly willing to do so.
Therefore, Ji Xu also wanted to do his best to help Chen Che'er make friends with Wang Dianji, so he agreed.
Wang Dianji's old face flushed with shame, and he grumbled, shaking his sleeves, "Let's go quickly."
So Ji Xu was led to the low kitchen in the kiln, and was supposed to be taken to the Gan family's east kitchen to work. It was fully equipped with all the cooking utensils and was spacious enough for him to work with.
But Wang Dianji didn't want the cooks in the east kitchen to see how it was done, so he brought it here and did it quietly.
Although the kitchen was a bit crude, it was no problem for Yu Jixu, especially since he had an iron pot. There was nothing missing. The only difference was that there were some charred carbon residues inside.
Wang Dianji smiled awkwardly, "I just made a mistake."
He also ordered Chen Che'er to clean it up.
Chen Che'er went outside to clean the iron cauldron.
Ji Xu was processing the water chestnuts. She was very meticulous in her work, even peeling off the outer skin to make it taste better.
Wang Dianji couldn't help but feel dissatisfied, because the method he knew about didn't include this step!
Ji Xu saw it and said frankly: "The method you told Dianji is indeed what I used to do at home.
Now that we know Wang Dianji is going to send it to the Gan family, I have to make it carefully for him, right?"
Wang Dianji felt relieved after hearing this and nodded, twirling his beard.
Watching her slicing and shredding the food, her hands moved so fast that it seemed as if he was dazzled.
And as for the fire, why was it that the fire she made was so obedient? Why didn't it choke the iron cauldron?
Wang Dianji was dazzled by what he saw, but he had to admit that he was a layman in this area.
Soon, the aroma of the fried water chestnut and pork wafted out, attracting the busy young men in the kiln to stretch their necks to smell it.
"Take this, take this!"
Wang Dianji took out a carved lacquer food box from his room, and took out a painted red pottery plate from it. This was used by the master of the Gan family.
He specially brought it here to serve this dish because it looked decent. He even looked down on the coarse sand pottery plate from Chen Che'er's house.
“Who grows this eggplant?”
Ji Xu saw a patch of eggplants next to the stove shed. There were purple flowers in the seedlings and eggplants of different sizes hanging on them.
Wang Dianji was happily packing his food box, not forgetting to set aside a small bowl to keep for himself to eat with wine in the evening. Hearing this, he said:
"It's Ah Xiao's eggplant. He's a refugee from Shu who came here to sell his body. He's the only one who loves to eat eggplant all day long."
"Che'er, ask him if he is willing to sell this eggplant?" Ji Xu said. She was attracted by the shiny purple eggplant.
"What are you selling? Just pick whatever you want. If he asks, just say I, Wang Dianji, picked them." Wang Dianji said. He still wanted to be on good terms with Ji Xu.
Ji Xu ignored him and asked Chen Che'er to ask. Chen Che'er came back and said, "He said he is willing to sell it."
Ji Xu picked two, compared the market price, and asked Chen Che'er to send five coins.
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