Chapter 59 Chapter 59 Gourd, Chicken and Rice Soup. ...
Jizhu, who was at home, was also looking forward to her two sisters coming back.
She stayed at home alone that day, picked some weeds in the vegetable garden behind the house, played with Sui'er for a while, and then came back to eat some hot food with two buns combed for her by Aunt Lu. Although she was very young, she was able to carry firewood, strike flint, and start a fire in a very professional manner.
Sui'er followed and was still wondering, "It's not even afternoon yet, do you eat lunch at home?"
Jizhu nodded. "Sister said to eat small meals frequently. It's good for the stomach."
The two of them sat by the stove, warming themselves by the fire and chatting, "When will my sister come back?"
"Do you miss her?"
"I'm worried about them." Ji Zhu said.
Hearing the sound of shoes, Chen Sui'er said, "Someone seems to be coming. Is it your sister who has returned?"
When I went out to look, I found that it was Zhuang Huiniang who had returned from Shengchangli. Her tofu at Shengchangli was selling well.
Speaking of which, Ji Xu gave tofu as gifts to many families during the New Year's greetings, and became famous. She sold out all the twenty yuan worth of tofu she had sold there. She was very happy and came to tell Ji Xu that she was going to order twenty-five yuan worth of tofu tomorrow.
Seeing that Ji Xu had not returned yet, only the little sister was making a fire to cook. She was not even as tall as the stove.
"Go play with Sui'er, and heat up the food, okay? Let Auntie come."
He drove Ji Zhu away, lit a big fire, and soon heated up the food in the pot. Fearing that Ji Zhu would get burned, he brought it out.
"Eat it, be careful it's hot."
There was only a bowl of rice, topped with some tofu, bacon, and cured pork ribs, all of which were specially prepared for Ji Zhu at noon.
Although Ji Zhu was shy, she was familiar with the Chen family and remembered what her elder sister had taught her. She said in a gentle and tender tone:
"Aunt and Sister Sui'er are eating too."
Zhuang Huiniang was so grateful for this favor that she said with a smile, "We don't have the habit of eating lunch together, so Xiaozhu can eat by herself."
While cleaning up the remaining water in the pot, he made it clean.
Jizhu shared the cured pork ribs with Sui'er, which was very delicious. The two of them were very happy.
Zhuang Hui Niang checked the sparks in the stove, and then she felt relieved to let the two girls keep her company. She went home and would come back later.
In the afternoon, Jizhu and Sui'er went out to play and picked some grass to make rings.
I happened to be picking tail grass near Mrs. Xiao's house. Her door was open today. The girl in the house was thin and small. Her bun must have been combed a few days ago and was hanging loosely. She looked at them from a distance, wearing an old quilted dress that covered her too much.
The older Chen Sui'er waved and said:
"What's your name? Come here, we'll make a ring for you too. It'll be beautiful."
Although the girl didn't speak, she was thinking about coming over. She saw Mrs. Xiao coming out of the house, leading her inside, and said with a smile:
"You guys play, my little one can't talk and is very shy."
After playing with weaving straw and putting on rings for a while, Sui'er went home because her aunt asked her to wash her hair because the weather was good.
Jizhu was waiting at home. She wondered if her sisters would also need to wash with hot water when they came back.
She scooped water from the jar into the pottery pot, and used flint to make a fire. When she was heating the water, she heard the sound of a wheelbarrow, and she rushed out to meet it.
"Sister! Second sister! You're back!"
"Yes, all the tofu pudding and tofu are sold out. Look, what is this?"
Ji Feng took out a Hu pancake wrapped in two or three layers of hemp leaves from her bosom and waved it in front of her.
After peeling off the innermost layer of oil-soaked leaves, Ji Zhu kicked her feet and asked happily:
"Is it a cake?"
"It's Hu pancakes! They're stuffed with mutton, and they're delicious. They're only seven cents each. After I finished eating, I bargained with the old man. I said I wanted three, three! He was deaf, and it took him a long time to hear me. He said thirty would be seven cents each, so I had no choice but to pay..."
Ji Feng and Ji Zhu talked about their experiences of the day, and they didn't stop talking until dinner time.
Ji Xu also couldn't help laughing for a few times. They had a simple lunch, just a soup. Because today was the seventh day of the first lunar month, they also had a seven-vegetable soup. The chicken they got from the second day of the first lunar month had not been eaten yet, so the soup contained chopped fried chicken, dried water chestnuts, radish, diced bacon, cabbage, tofu, and a handful of chopped celery leaves.
Ji Zhu also broke the Hu pancake into three pieces and gave one to Xu and Feng.
"My sister and I have eaten it. It was freshly baked and tasted even better." Ji Feng said.
"Let's eat Xiaozhu's too, it's delicious!" said Jizhu.
Ji Xu took a bite and nodded, "Sure enough, Xiaozhu's is more delicious!"
Ji Feng smiled and said, "Sister, just spoil her!"
The Cui family also eats seven-vegetable soup, which is made of beans, rice, taro, turnip, sunflower, radish, and cabbage.
Cui Si's food tasted bland. "Why don't you put some meat in it?"
Liao said, "Meat is so expensive now. When the price drops in a while, we'll have a good time. Look at your brother, he's not picky about what he eats."
Cui Guangyao ate with a loud slurping sound, like a pig with food in the trough.
Cui Si said, "He's out in the open all day, so he'll eat anything he wants when he's hungry."
"I think you should go hungry for a couple of meals so you won't be so picky." Liao said.
"The bailiff is coming! The bailiff is coming!"
In the alley, Ji Xu picked up the bucket and ran, turning five or six corners and hiding. After five or six days, he had become proficient in doing this.
That day, she came out of the alley selling tofu, carrying her basket as usual, with the remaining tofu in it, and sneaked into the city.
However, he did not ask everyone one by one if they wanted tofu as usual, but instead stopped in front of the largest restaurant in the city.
"Sister, what are we doing here?"
This is where wealthy families send their servants to buy food and drinks.
After coming to the city for several days, Ji Feng had a general understanding of this place and asked in confusion.
"Running around like this isn't a long-term solution. If we could find a restaurant that regularly orders tofu, we wouldn't have to hide from the city officials and run around all the time."
Walking a long way every day and being nervous in the alleys is really exhausting. If they can have a big order to back them up, plus the takeout they get, they can save money quickly and rent a small shop for 2,000 coins. They don't have to hide all day long, which is safer.
Now they can sell fifty or sixty pieces of tofu and a bucket of tofu pudding every day, plus the goods that Zhuang Hui Niang buys and sells here every day, which adds up to a total of 270 yuan. After saving for five days, it is still not enough to cover the rent of the store.
"Sir, what would you like to eat? The chefs at Fuxiang Restaurant are all famous chefs in Kuaiji County, and they are best at making meat soups and mixed dishes."
The shop boy came to greet the customer, wearing an old brown jacket and trousers.
"This is our first time here. I wonder what kind of meat soups are available?" Ji Xu asked.
As soon as Ji Feng came in, he looked around with a lot of curiosity. He saw that there were food tables lined up in the shop, and many of them had diners eating together and chatting with each other.
Further in, after climbing the stairs, there is a private room separated by a screen. The people there are more particular, eating at separate tables. You can vaguely see young men wearing crowns and silk clothes clinking glasses and exchanging cups.
When he heard Ji Xu's words, his eyes lit up and he asked:
"Sister, shall we have lunch here?"
This Fuxiang Restaurant is one of the largest restaurants in the city. It has a square and spacious layout. In addition to the area for diners in the front, there is also a kitchen in the back. There are always guys serving dishes from inside. I'm afraid that no one in Bengu has ever been to this restaurant.
Ji Feng became excited when he thought about it, but he also felt sorry for his money. Having a meal in this restaurant would probably cost a lot of money.
"Yes, it's time for lunch."
After listening to the waiter announce the dishes, Ji Xu said,
"Two bowls of chicken, gourd and rice soup."
"Okay!" The waiter ran to serve the dishes.
"Let's sit there."
There was only a lacquered wooden dining table with a bamboo mat underneath and two soft cushions on the mat. The two sisters Xu and Feng knelt down opposite the table.
Ji Feng lowered his head curiously, touched the cushion, and said to Ji Xu:
"This cushion is so soft! It feels so comfortable on my knees."
Thinking about the price the shop boy said, he said with a pain in his muscles:
"Two bowls of soup cost eighty coins, which is enough to buy a chicken. It's too expensive. My sister told me to go to that little restaurant and pick up some cakes and pastries to fill my stomach. It's more economical."
"It's okay, Fengmei, just eat your meal. We've worked hard these days, so we should come to this restaurant and have a good meal. Besides..."
Ji Xu pointed to the basket beside him, in which there was still some tofu left.
She waved to Ji Feng, and Ji Feng leaned over to her at the desk. She moved her lips and whispered something.
Ji Feng's eyes flickered when she heard this. She covered her mouth and sat down again. She no longer had any worries and waited for her bowl of chicken, gourd and rice soup with peace of mind.
Not long after, the waiter brought it over. The bowls were all made of red pottery. Although the paint on the wooden chopsticks was peeling a little, it was obvious that they were lacquered wooden chopsticks.
The chicken was chopped into pieces and the gourd was cut into rolling knife shapes. There was plenty of meat and vegetables, and it was placed on the rice soup, which smelled fragrant.
"Enjoy your meal, sir."
Ji Feng couldn't wait to scoop up a mouthful and eat it. He exhaled a breath of hot air and nodded.
"Well, it's a restaurant after all, so the food is quite delicious. The gourd is sweet and the rice is soft and sticky."
"but,"
She lowered her voice and said,
"The chicken is a little tough, not as good as the poached chicken my sister made when she built the new house."
The two smiled at each other and lowered their heads to eat. After finishing, Ji Xu went to the boy who had originally entertained them to pay the bill and said to him:
"Could you please tell your boss if he wants some tofu dishes in the shop?"
"you……"
The shop boy was filled with surprise and immediately looked towards the market building outside the door.
"The girl is really brave."
The news about the restaurant naturally spread. He had indeed heard that there was a lot of delicious tofu in the streets recently. It was said that a retailer was selling it on the move. Even the city officials had heard about it, but they had never caught him in the act.
They never thought that this girl would dare to sneak into the city and do business in their restaurant. If she was caught by the city officials, she would probably be extorted a large sum of money before the matter was settled.
If the girl had not spent money to eat two bowls of soup in the store before, he would have started to yell. After all, they were running a legitimate store and what they hated most were these roving retail traders. Not only did they disrupt the order, but they also affected their business to some extent.
The status of city residents is really low nowadays, and the government regulations are all suppressive against city residents. There are still a few people who dare to become city residents to make a living. By then, they will not only not make any money, but also lose their registered citizenship status, and their descendants will be affected.
Even their Fuxiang Restaurant, although the shopkeeper Xu is a local resident and the restaurant is under his name, the actual owner is a wealthy family named Qiao from the east city of the county, and the head of the family is the uncle of the county magistrate.
Shopkeeper Xu was a descendant of the Qiao family. Every year he would collect the money and hand it over to the Qiao family's accounting office. The Qiao family would also occasionally send a treasurer to check the restaurant's accounts.
As Ji Xu said this, he rolled up his sleeves and stuffed ten coins into the shop boy's pocket.
"Well, just wait."
This money was enough to cover a day's wages for the shop boy. After just one word, he walked away and went into the inner room.
Soon, a middle-aged man with a slightly plump figure, a round face, big ears, a bun, and wearing a cotton robe came out. He whispered:
"Lady, please come this way."
Ji Xu was led to a quiet shop, where he saw baskets of vegetables and bags of grain piled up. It was the shop's shop, connected to the corridor.
Ji Xu stood at the door and could see the diners coming in and out at a glance.
Shopkeeper Xu heard this and asked:
"I've heard of tofu, but you're selling it, aren't you afraid I'll report you to the city gate and have you arrested?"
But the girl spoke with a measured manner and a calmness beyond her age. She was not frightened by his words and said with a smile:
"I'm sure your restaurant wouldn't do this to its customers. Besides, if the owner really wanted to do this, why would he show up and call me here? I'm afraid he wanted to see the tofu first."
After saying that, he opened the basket, revealing the tofu in the ceramic basin, which was as white as jade and square.
Shopkeeper Xu had only heard of it from the public, but this was his first time seeing it.
"Made of beans?"
"That's right, three cents a piece, it's a fresh delicacy. If Fuxiang Restaurant can make tofu dishes, it will surely overshadow the other restaurants.
As for the cooking method, I learned how to make tofu in Chang'an and I know how to cook a few tofu dishes. I can teach your chef in person."
"Come with me."
Shopkeeper Xu led the way to the back kitchen, where he saw two rows of ceramic stoves, each with six burners but no fire chambers. Several cooks were busy at work, occasionally calling out:
"Small cauldron, high heat!"
The boy outside who was responsible for adding firewood added more firewood and blew up the fire in the stove, and the water in the small pot began to bubble.
There was a table, a knife and a fork on the side, and a cook was butchering a chicken and a fish, while the servants helped to clean the internal organs, scoop water and pass the plates.
A boy came out with a plate of leftover soup and put it into the basin with a clang, calling out:
"Sun Linlang! Wash the dishes!"
Sun Linlang, who had just returned from the toilet, complained, scooped a ladle of hot water from the big iron pot, added it to the basin, and then squatted down to scrub.
The cook complained, "I was saving that boiling water for boiling the chicken, but you scooped it away for me."
Sun Linlang grumbled, "Isn't there still plenty left? Enough for you to blanch three or five chickens. How can you clean the plates with cold water?"
"I think you just think the water is cold, so you keep scooping hot water for me."
"Did you waste your firewood?"
The two started arguing, and only stopped when Manager Xu arrived.
Ji Xu was waiting nearby when he saw Shopkeeper Xu saying something to a man wearing a small hat, a knee-length apron, and armbands.
The man was the most experienced cook. He glanced at Ji Xu and said:
"I'm a seasoned chef with decades of experience. Do I need a little girl teaching me how to cook? And she's a tofu seller, too."
However, the shopkeeper Xu was willing to let her try it, and the shop would not suffer any loss. The cook was not in a position to say anything, but hurriedly cleaned up the place and made room for the stove and a knife and fork for her.
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