Chapter 23 The chili peppers have been found, but they are dry...
That night, Song Jin did not return to Ma Ti Lane, but stayed in the back room to discuss the menu with the old woman and several maids.
As they were discussing, the topic started to go off track.
A maid said, "In Suzhou, there are many people who love to eat. Not only do they love to eat, they also love to write. They are all rich and free people. If we can get a distinguished guest to write about us and praise us, then our Shi Ding Lou will become famous. Then, will we still be worried that there will be no customers coming to our restaurant?"
Another woman said, "I heard that many people, in order to please others, go around looking for something delicious and fun, some look for restaurants, some look for kitchen servants. Now it's almost summer, there is an ice cream vendor not far from our city gate, and it's very busy at the gate every summer. It would be great if we could be as busy as that."
"It's so lively, you'll be exhausted."
The two old women sat together, holding a bowl of tea in their hands, joking with each other, but Song Jin took it to heart.
"Then do you know who the potential diners are?"
The two women shook their heads: "How can we know this? We will know when we get here."
Song Jin knew it, but she didn't want to just wait, she had to make some preparations.
"So what are the rules for inviting people to a banquet?"
The old woman replied, "Most people have banquets at home, so three soups and five cuts are the minimum. But we are not setting up a banquet here. At most, we are trying out the dishes and tasting the flavors. It is hard to say whether they are good or bad."
"Yeah, yeah, let's just focus on making the dishes. It's too far-fetched to think about that."
Song Jin nodded to show that he understood, but he didn't stop thinking in his mind.
Why does this rich man want to eat something so special? He wants to be different. If you treat him as an ordinary diner, your first impression will not be good.
Why are there always people playing the piano and singing in those big restaurants? That stuff doesn’t fill your stomach, it’s about creating an atmosphere. Song Jin can’t fall behind, she has to keep up.
It’s fine to invite someone to sing, but the atmosphere is still something you can consider.
That night, she, Hong Xing, Chun Yun and Cai Wei slept on the same bed. When they heard that there might be a big diner coming, the four of them were so excited that they couldn't sleep.
"What do you think? If our store becomes popular, will we be able to save money in the future?" Hong Xing asked in the dark night.
Caiwei said: "If it gets hot, we can wash a layer of skin off our hands when we wash the vegetables."
Chunyun smiled: "Then I'll dry it under the stove."
"Well, we are busy all the time, but we are busy for others. Our pockets are empty. Now that our master is gone, I don't know if he will think of us when giving us rewards during festivals."
Song Jin only realized at this time that there was a master in the courtyard. If the master was good, the maid would also have an easy life.
Rewards are inevitable during festivals and holidays. When there are rare foods, the master will also think of his servants. However, it may be a good thing for Chunyun, but not necessarily for Caiwei Hongxing.
When the two of them followed Ye Wenfu in the past, they were rarely beaten or scolded, as it was all borne by Song Jinchunyun.
She thought that perhaps the two of them were not satisfied, but she had no choice because her grandmother had stuffed it into her mind.
"Why were you sold to the Bai family?"
Song Jin was a little curious. After all, she was not young at that age and could have been married. Why didn't she get married and was sold to the Bai family instead?
It is impossible for a family child like Mancao Chunyun to be resold, unless the Bai family falls into decline.
The people like Caiwei and Hongxing did not seem to be slaves like them, destined to die there for the rest of their lives. They were more like being sold to work, after all, selling good people into slavery was not allowed.
"Why else? The master gave us a lot. For people like us, we can just go to whoever gives us the most. Whether it's marriage or selling, we have our parents above us, so it's our turn to decide."
Song Jin suddenly realized that although he did not allow people to abduct and sell people, he did not interfere with his family members selling their children on their own initiative. Therefore, it was not uncommon for husbands to sell their wives, fathers to sell their daughters, and sons to sell their mothers.
Some families cannot survive without selling their properties. They may be able to survive by selling, but that is not the way to live. Some families do it purely for more money, and do not consider the future of their children.
"So what are your plans for the future?"
"People like us have no future." Hong Xing turned over and muttered.
Song Jin was speechless, but Chunyun squeezed Song Jin in the dark night and said, "What about you, sister?"
"I want to renounce my citizenship." Song Jin blurted out this wish almost without thinking, a wish that he had shouted in his mind thousands of times day and night.
The other three were silent. After a while, they sighed and fell asleep quietly.
The next morning, Song Jin got up early, washed and dressed, then took advantage of the free time in the store to go to the Bai family alone.
She was a fake young lady, and when she was alone she was too lazy to pretend, so she didn't bother hiring a sedan chair and just walked on the street by herself.
It was still early at this moment and there were few pedestrians on the street. There were only children rushing to school, shops preparing to sell breakfast, and Song Jin, a temporary idler.
The Bai family was a little far away, so Song Jin walked until the sun rose and his body was hot before he walked out of the Bai family's door.
After I knocked on the door, the doorman answered the door and invited someone in.
"Can I help you pass the message?"
Song Jin smiled and shook his head: "I came to the kitchen to ask the mothers-in-law for some advice on cooking. I won't disturb Grandma for now."
The doorman nodded twice, turned around and closed the door, and Song Jin went in alone.
The Bai family's kitchen was bustling with activity early in the morning, with people cooking, boiling water, and making noodles and pancakes. When Song Jin came back, they had already finished preparing breakfast, and were now killing chickens and ducks to prepare lunch.
When the maids saw Song Jin coming in, they were all very enthusiastic.
"Is Mancao back? How's the restaurant? Are there any customers?"
Song Jin smiled and said, "There are some customers, but not many."
Granny Li comforted her: "It's always like this in the beginning, but it will get better slowly. The dishes you cook are the favorites of Grandma, so they must taste good, but some people just don't know it yet."
"I hope so."
As he spoke, Song Jin glanced around and found the figure of Mancao's mother. A strange atmosphere flowed between the two of them.
"mother."
Song Jin called out first, and then Mrs. Chen responded, "Hey, are you busy lately?"
"The store is just getting started, so it's a bit busy. But with Arong and Hongxing helping me, it's not too bad."
"That's good."
Mrs. Chen avoided his gaze and as soon as she finished speaking, she lowered her head to pluck the feathers of the chicken she had just slaughtered.
Song Jin suddenly realized that perhaps Mrs. Chen was not asking about Song Jin, but about the vine.
This feeling is very strange, but the two of them maintain a strange balance. It doesn't seem like a conversation between mother and daughter, but more like a conversation between a human and a ghost, and Song Jin is the ghost.
She walked closer and spoke to Mrs. Chen: "I had another dream last night. I dreamed of that cave..."
As expected, Mrs. Chen stopped plucking the hair and asked, "Really?"
Song Jin added: "I saw her. She has gained some weight and her eyes are sparkling."
Mrs. Chen didn't respond, but nodded her head a few times. Song Jin seemed to see two drops of water falling on the back of her hand.
Song Jin had lied and felt upset. He wanted to comfort her with some words but didn't know how, so he just changed the subject.
"Mom..." Song Jin shouted, but then he felt guilty for having snatched the vines, so he lowered his voice: "The customers in the store all praised my good cooking skills..."
"That's good, do business well and make money well." After saying that, he looked at Song Jin, who was wearing a blue cloth Taoist robe: "Are you used to wearing this?"
Song Jin smiled and said, "It's good and convenient, but the sleeves are too big, so I have to tie them up every time I go to the kitchen."
"It's hard to wash dirty clothes. You have to clean them up before you go out to meet people. Don't let customers see the dirt and say your shop is not clean."
Song Jin was somewhat happy, at least he cared about her: "I know, mother."
Mrs. Chen also smiled and continued to pluck the hair. Song Jin said no more, said he was going to find his father, and left the kitchen.
She said she was going to look for her father, but actually she went straight to the greenhouse in the corner of the house. If she remembered correctly, the peppers should be bearing fruit by this time of year.
Thinking about the peppers in his heart, Song Jin couldn't help but quicken his pace. Once he entered the greenhouse, he started looking for peppers.
Sure enough, she found it, but the quantity was too small.
There are three or four pots of peppers in the room, with only two peppers in one pot. The peppers are full of fruit, currently green with yellow, and Song Jin estimates that they will turn red in a few days.
But how can it be stolen?
Song Jin rarely hides her skills. Apart from chili peppers, she always has some hidden tricks up her sleeve.
Just as she was staring at the chili pepper in a daze, she suddenly heard someone calling her from behind. She turned around in horror and saw a man of about seventeen or eighteen years old in blue clothes standing behind her with a silly smile on his face.
"Mancao, you're back?"
It was Changsheng, the garden slave who grew flowers and grass with Song Jin's father. Her father had intended to arrange this marriage. Thinking of this, Song Jin felt a little embarrassed.
"Yeah, come back and have a look..."
"Is the store not busy?"
"It's still early, there are no customers in the store, it won't be busy until noon."
"Oh," Changsheng said as he put down a pot of gardenia that was about to wither, "Master and I are moving flowers in the backyard. The gardenia is about to wither, so we can't put it outside."
Song Jin curled his lips, not knowing what to say in response.
"You came to see the master, but what's the matter?"
Song Jin asked hesitantly, "Um... when will the peppers turn red?"
Changsheng heard her ask about the chili peppers and introduced them skillfully: "It will probably take about seven or eight days. When they turn red, they will be ready to be served. Why? Do you like them?"
Song Jin smiled shyly: "I want to ask, after these peppers turn red, can you give me some, about a dozen."
After hearing this, Changsheng rolled his small but clever eyes and said, "If you want it, I can definitely get it for you."
"Really?" Song Jin was a little surprised.
"That's natural. Grandma may not know clearly whether these fruits are good or bad. If others don't say anything, who will care about this?"
Song Jin became a little happy: "Then I will come to you when I need you, okay? If I come late, you can help me pick the peppers and dry them, and then I can do what I want."
"Dried? Yes, I have some. I saved a lot of seeds and dried them thoroughly."
Song Jin suddenly remembered that peppers are annuals, so they have to be planted. If they are planted, wouldn't they be dried peppers? And they don't have to be planted all at once. They can be planted in batches throughout the year, so they can bear fruit from May to October.
She had found her chili peppers, but they were dry.
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