Chapter 199 Lotus Pond BBQ
Almost failing to follow Prince Zhao's train of thought, Su Ruojin was stunned for a moment before she remembered the thank-you gift she had mentioned at the entrance of the alley: "Roast duck."
Zhao Lan left satisfied after hearing the answer.
Didn’t you just say that you couldn’t sell it? How come it seems like you got the happy dumpling again?
Shuangrui bowed to the Su family members who were seeing them off and said, "Dr. Su, Madam Su, please stay." After that, he turned around and said to her alone, "Second Madam, please prepare the recipe." The implication was that they could come and get it at any time.
Su Ruojin: ...Uncle Xue’s preserved eggs haven’t started selling yet. Is Young Prince Zhao so anxious?
After seeing off the young prince, Su Yanli finally had time to ask his daughter, "Did you meet the young prince when you didn't come back last night?"
Su Ruojin shook her head and was about to tell her father about Carpenter Zhang. But when she saw her mother and brother, she decided not to let them worry. Instead, she said, "I'll go to my father's study and write a roast duck recipe for the young prince."
Su Yanli understood that his daughter wanted to talk to him alone, so he nodded and said, "Yes!"
The Su family lived in a bigger place, and Su Yanli's study was not in the backyard, but in the front yard. Cheng Yingzhen took Su Xiaomei back to the backyard first. Su Sanlang was tired after a day of playing, so he sneaked back to his own yard with Silang.
Only Su Dalang, Su Ruojin and Su Yanli went to the study.
As soon as he arrived at the study, Su Ruojin admitted his mistake to his father, saying that he should not have given the blueprint he had found to make a self-defense weapon to Prince Zhao, which almost put Carpenter Zhang in danger.
Su Yanli never blamed his daughter for these things. It was true that he was indifferent to fame and wealth, but life had to go on. If it weren't for his daughter using delicacies and rare toys to curry favor with Lord Fan and Prince Jin's Mansion, the Su family wouldn't have had such a comfortable life.
"Ajin, don't blame yourself." He said, "The Liaoxia people have been active in the capital for a long time. Have you forgotten what Carpenter Zhang said about Carpenter Li? Even if they didn't have your blueprint, they would have planned something else."
Su Yanli has always been tolerant, and Su Ruojin knows it, but she still feels guilty. Su Yanli doesn't know how powerful the musket is. It is a deadly weapon that can change dynasties.
But after her father said this, she felt relieved. At least he understood why his daughter did this, and that was enough.
Su Dalang was listening on the side. As he grew up, he also began to learn things other than books. Knowing the worldly affairs is learning, and understanding the human nature is writing.
The next day, after his shift, Xue Changcheng went to Su's to look for his young lady, "Ah Jin, Uncle Xue is here to bother you."
The Xue family has been living a much better life since they got the job of making kangs three years ago. Now they have a recipe for food, so they will definitely have more money.
Su Ruojin saw Xue Changcheng smiling like a wolf grandmother, and walked into Su Ruojin's housekeeping room with a flattering look on his face. He smiled helplessly and quickly stood up, "Uncle Xue, please take a seat."
Xue Changcheng not only did not sit down, but also put away his smile and assured her seriously, "Ajin, I am really not a bad person, nor am I a foreign spy."
"Uncle Xue, if you were a bad guy, you wouldn't have been able to leave the Imperial City or the Dali Temple yesterday."
Xue Changcheng was afraid that the young lady would not believe him, and was worrying about how to prove his innocence. When he heard this, he was very happy, "Yes, yes, Ah Jin, just believe your uncle."
"Sit down, Uncle Xue!"
Although Xue Changcheng did not treat Su Ruojin as an ordinary young lady, as an elder, it was not appropriate for him to stay for long, so he reminded her embarrassedly, "Early... Learn it as soon as possible so that you can go back and make arrangements."
Su Ruojin also realized it, so she took him to the workshop and asked the others to go out first.
The key to making preserved eggs is alkali and quicklime. Without these two, preserved eggs cannot be made. The rest of the ingredients, such as tea powder, yellow mud, etc. are all common ingredients.
Su Ruojin told Xue Changcheng: Generally speaking, to make one thousand duck eggs, about two pounds of soda ash, seven pounds of quicklime, and one pound of tea powder are needed. He also told him the proportions of wood ash, salt, water, yellow mud, etc.
Pour soda ash, salt, tea powder, etc. into a pot and boil, then pour into a vat with yellow mud in advance, stir evenly, and cool for later use. Dip the selected duck eggs in the cooled slurry to make them evenly covered with mud. Then roll the eggs in a mixture of quicklime and wood ash to make them evenly covered with powder. Finally, put them into a vat and seal them for storage. Generally, they will be mature and ready to be taken out of the vat in about a month.
“It’s been so long!”
Su Ruojin smiled and said, "I have some ready-made ones here. I'll supply them to you first. When you make the jars, you can supply them to all the restaurants and food stalls in the capital, as well as ordinary people's homes. The profit lies in quantity and longevity."
Xue Changcheng nodded. Although the profit was small, the advantage was that the capital was small and it was easy to operate.
Seeing that the profit period of preserved eggs is long, Su Ruojin told Zhao Lan a joke, "If Uncle Xue doesn't mind the trouble, you can find a village near the water to raise a large number of ducks. Not only can you meet the demand for eggs, you can also sell the male ducks and the female ducks that don't lay eggs to the young prince's restaurant."
Hearing the words "young prince", Xue Changcheng's eyes lit up. Is this related to the noble? I am so lucky. The suffering of being interrogated by the Imperial City Bureau and the Dali Temple for a day and a night was not in vain!
When he came, Xue Changcheng's smile was slightly ingratiating, but when he went back, he wanted to laugh out loud. The ancients were right. It is true that misfortune often leads to blessing, and blessing often leads to misfortune. Good and bad fortune are interdependent!
Worth it, totally worth it!
Seeing a fifth-rank official so happy about making money from menial work, Su Ruojin sighed.
Lord Xue was born in a poor family and was the last in the imperial examination. He finally got an eighth-rank job in the Ministry of Works, and also schemed to marry the daughter of a sixth-rank official in Beijing to help him. A few years ago, that sixth-rank official actually helped Lord Xue to be promoted to the sixth-rank director of the Ministry of Works, but that was where he stopped. After that, for many years, Lord Xue stayed at this sixth-rank position, so he turned his attention to all the resources around him that he could use, including Lord Fan, who was connected to Su Yanli.
It can be said that Lord Xue was a good soldier who wanted to be a general. No matter how busy he was, he was working hard to rise to the top. However, it seemed that Madam Xue, the daughter of a sixth-rank official in Beijing, whom he married, had not learned how to dance with everyone like a mistress of the house. Instead, he learned the nobleness of the wives of officials in Beijing clearly. Xue Liuniang said that Madam Xue’s dowry had not many shops to begin with, and most of them were poorly managed and were on the verge of bankruptcy. How could they subsidize the household expenses?
Forget it, every family has its own way of living. If it weren't for her, an adult, Su Yanli and his wife, one a otaku and the other a socially anxious person, would probably be worse than Lord Xue!
When I got home, Shutongshu, who had been out buying food, came back.
Su Ruojin asked quickly, "Uncle, how much did you buy?"
Shu Tong said: "The weather was dry, and the grains nearby were either collected by the wealthy families in the capital or by the big merchants. I didn't get much. Later, I went to Old Man Feng's place and collected a lot in the deep mountains, but I couldn't transport it all out in one go, so I found a cave near the exit of the mountain to hide it."
Su Ruojin first praised him for his clever mind, then started to worry: "Is it damp? Will it be eaten by small animals like mountain rats?"
Shu Tong said excitedly, "Father Feng helped me find it. He said that when he was out of the mountains, it rained one day and he accidentally found this great place. Unlike other caves that are low and damp, this one is hidden in a place about ten feet high. The entrance to the cave is full of bushes, so most people can't even notice it. After entering, it's dry and clean, with no signs of animal activity."
"That's a really good place." Su Ruojin was happy. "Looking at the weather, I'm afraid it won't rain much for a while. The young prince's people came over to get the roast duck recipe in the next two days. I asked them to help transport the food to the capital in batches."
Shu Tong was just about to ask how to transport it to the capital, but unexpectedly, the Second Lady had already solved it. Then he didn't have to worry about it. After reporting, he hurried back to hug his son.
Two days later, someone came to get the roast duck recipe, but Siping not only brought the recipe, but also invited Su Ruojin to come over, "If Second Madam doesn't demonstrate it in person, the chefs will always cook it not taste right. Please come with me."
"But there's an oven on my recipe, do you have one?"
Siping got the recipe but didn't look at it carefully. Upon hearing this, he quickly unfolded it and took a look. It would take some time to make the stove. "Then..." The young prince asked him to invite people over. What should he do?
"So urgent?"
"My master wants to eat."
Su Ruojin: ...I didn't expect the young prince to have such a big appetite.
Well, I can make do with it.
Su Ruojin thought that Siping was taking her to a restaurant, but unexpectedly, when she got off the car, she found a quiet and exquisite house. Furthermore, after entering, she found a large pond full of lotus flowers.
She turned and looked at Siping with a look of surprise. Isn't this the Little Prince Restaurant?
Siping smiled guiltily: "The master has been busy outside for half a year and finally came back, so he is relaxing here."
Su Ruojin...
The imperial city is a place where every inch of land is valuable, yet there is such a large lotus pond. Not only that, the capital city has little rain and is dry, but the pond is rippling with green waves, as if it has not rained for a long time.
She had seen how the privileged class enjoyed themselves.
If Zhao Lan, who was not far away, knew what the young lady was thinking, he would probably ask in return, "Then what about me when I was fighting for my life in Nanyue?"
Siping brought the young lady to the pavilion on the lotus pond, "Sir, the second lady is here."
Zhao Lan had already stood up and was looking at her with a smile.
In the lotus pond, the air is fresh, and the lotus leaves on both sides sway slightly. The lotus flowers stand upright above the lotus leaves, graceful, fresh and beautiful. A red dragonfly flaps its wings and flies over, standing on the lotus stems, flapping its wings, which is very interesting.
The young lady, dressed in light green clothes, stood among the green lotus and pink flowers. The wind blew across the pond, her dress fluttered, her long black hair swayed, and she looked pretty and lively.
Zhao Lan came here to relax today. He did not wear the dark brocade robe as usual, but a light green robe, which had a bit of the flavor of floating clouds and hidden cranes. He tied a silver leather belt around his waist, which made him look more handsome.
Long eyebrows are painted in ink, and eyes are like lacquer dots.
The moment he saw Su Ruojin, his eyes, which were as calm as a pool of dark ink, suddenly showed a layer of joy, "Ajin."
The young prince today was so different from usual that Su Ruojin was not used to it. She was so amazed that she forgot to greet him. She was awakened by the nobleman's deep voice and quickly bowed: "Ajin greets the young prince."
When Prince Zhao, who had bright eyes, heard this title, his gaze dimmed noticeably.
Su Ruojin didn't notice the change in the young master opposite her. She asked in confusion, "Young prince wants to eat roast duck? Here?"
“Is it not possible?” Zhao Lan calmed down his alienated mood and became as gentle as the breeze again.
Looking at the lotus pond outside the pavilion, it was clear and clean, and there was a smell of smoke as ingredients were being roasted. Was Prince Zhao sure he was not joking?
The young lady looked at him with confusion.
Zhao Lan was prepared and looked up.
Shuangrui brought three or five servants and carried a whole set of barbecue tools to the small pavilion. Soon, the small pavilion was filled with them.
“Are we going to have a barbecue here?”
Zhao Lan looked at the surprised young lady. He no longer looked as cold and serious as he did when he visited Carpenter Zhang a few days ago. Although he didn't smile, his eyes and brows gave people the impression that he was smiling. Is this the difference between working and being in private?
Su Ruojin actually got used to it.
She saw the slaughtered duck placed on the tray and looked up at Zhao Lan. He wouldn't think that the duck was also roasted on the grill, would he?
This is a misunderstanding. No wonder Siping brought her here.
He shook his head and pointed at the duck, saying, "This is not roasted on a grill. It needs a stove like the one used to roast Hu pancakes. Only then will it taste good."
"Siping, go find someone."
"Yes, sir."
I didn't know where Siping was, but I responded anyway.
Su Ruojin smiled.
Although it is in the city of Bianjing, to get from the Su family to this private garden, one has to cross half of the capital. It is noon now and one is already hungry. So one should quickly marinate the duck so that one can roast it later.
Su Ruojin rolled up her sleeves and started to work.
Chunxiao and Qiuyue are coming up to help.
Zhao Lan stopped them with a look.
Mao Ya was about to go forward, but Qiuyue reached out and pulled her. She turned to look at Qiuyue, and Qiuyue shook her head at her.
Just when Mao Ya was puzzled and wanted to ask how she could handle so many things without anyone to help her, Prince Zhao rolled up his sleeves, washed his hands, and asked with a smile, "How can I help?"
Su Ruojin was waiting for Mao Ya and the others to come up to help, but she didn't expect Zhao Lan, a nobleman who was not interested in worldly affairs, to roll up his sleeves. She was quite shocked, "Little Prince, you..."
"We came out today to relax, so we have to have some fun."
Su Ruojin took a look at the pile of barbecue ingredients and realized that he was indeed here to enjoy leisure and fun, so she agreed to his wish. She guessed that it was impossible for her not to agree to his wish, as he was a noble young prince and could do whatever he wanted.
So, Su Ruojin taught him how to make ginger and scallion juice, and she rubbed salt on the duck herself. The two of them stood at the small stone table, leaning against each other unconsciously, and marinated the roast duck together.
Zhao Lan was like a good student, asking from time to time what the function of this seasoning was and what that spice was. Su Ruojin answered every question and even treated him as a chef who was learning how to roast duck.
Mao Ya was standing by and gradually realized that something was wrong.
This is not about learning how to make roast duck, this is clearly a way to get close to the young lady by learning how to make roast duck!
Did you see it, young lady?
It took a long time to marinate a duck.
Su Ruojin felt so hungry that she turned around quickly, took the skewers and put them on the grill, holding the brush in one hand while directing Zhao Lan to bring the oil bottle.
"I'll pour it for you."
"What do you mean by help me pour it? Aren't you hungry?" Being hungry, Su Ruojin lost her sense of distance and retorted without thinking.
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