Chapter 92: Ending, Prosperous and Good Times
Baorong knew that she could not avoid the interrogation, so she confessed everything clearly. She felt that there was really nothing to do with Lord Xu.
Speaking of which, many people came to her house this year to talk about marriage, but her knowledge of love was mostly from storybooks, and she was stubborn and had no idea at all.
After Baorong recounted her entire experience, from meeting Mr. Xu to attending the opera at the teahouse, Baozhu realized that the girl had no ulterior motives. However, if she allowed that girl to hang around Baorong all day, something would inevitably happen.
This person clearly had bad intentions. Baozhu couldn't come up with any foolproof plan, so she just told her not to pay any attention to him in the future.
On the second day of the second month, spring comes, the ice on the river breaks, and boats from the north and south start their busy journey for the new year in groups of three or two.
Boats were coming and going on the river, and the city of Bianjing was also bustling with people. This year, a great scholar in Bianjing opened a Jingshe to teach, and many scholars and students rushed here from other places upon hearing the news. If they could get some guidance from that great scholar, they might be able to pass the autumn examination this year.
Since this great scholar opened his school, many famous scholars began to open their own schools to teach. It was for this reason that the city of Bianliang became extremely lively during this period.
The restaurant held this eating competition to promote its reputation and also to attract these foreign students.
The second day of the second month is the day when the dragon raises its head. It is a good day and the eating competition in the restaurant also starts today.
After handing the matter over to Jiang Shi, Baozhu no longer cared about it. However, since the competition was about to start today, Jiang Shi had to ask her to go there to keep things under control. Baorong knew that there would be something exciting to watch today, so she went along as well.
The venue has been set up. Because this eating competition has been held before, many old diners still have an impression of it. This year, more people want to participate. Jiang Shi and Danier thought of a way to screen the people first. The ten people in front of the stage today are the ones who stayed in the end.
The food for the competition was the newly prepared rice bowl prepared by the store. Originally, they wanted to make bibimbap, but the cost was more expensive than the rice bowl. This rice bowl was simple, and the toppings were freshly fried and had a very wok-flavored texture.
Originally, the off-season after the beginning of spring meant that attracting customers wasn't just about attracting the wealthy. This rice bowl was inexpensive and good quality. If you ordered vegetarian toppings, like the vegetarian eggplant and three-fresh vegetable topping, the price was even lower. If you ordered a semi-meat dish, like the stir-fried pork and green pepper topping, the price would be higher. However, these were the cheapest items in the restaurant. The prices were reasonable, and even ordinary people could afford them.
The Zhen family had publicized the eating competition early on. Many people knew about it the first time, and many people also knew that the Zhen family restaurant was honest the second time. It was not a big deal if you spent a few copper coins to register and then you could eat your fill.
So whether they wanted to make a living or make a profit in one go, they all spent some money to register for the competition. Jiang Shi and Baozhu calculated that the registration money was equivalent to the money spent on this competition.
The wealthy, who disdained the idea of eating in public, naturally refused to sign up for such a small fortune, but these people loved to join in the fun. Jiang Shi was very considerate of these wealthy, frequent diners who were willing to join in the fun, and personally invited them to sit at the table to judge and award the contestants.
This year's eating contest wasn't just about the restaurant contributing money. Knowing that the Zhen family had invited many wealthy families to participate, Jiang Shi persuaded those who had frequent business dealings with the Zhen family, and each one of them agreed to contribute money and goods. After all, the business had been going on for a long time, and the mutton vendor who usually supplied the restaurant with mutton, in order to win over the Zhen family and knowing that many wealthy families in the city would be attending the competition, and also to draw their attention to his sheep, offered a whole lamb for first place this year.
The second one gets a piglet, the third one gets a goose, and the third one gets a chicken.
In addition to the prizes offered by these regular suppliers, Zhen's Restaurant also offered silver this year, as well as discount coupons for its own restaurant. In addition to the sheep, the first place winner of this year's competition will receive a five-liang silver ingot, the second place winner will receive a three-liang silver ingot, and the third place winner will receive a one-liang silver ingot. These are all real silver coins, so naturally everyone wants to win.
This morning, the store entrance was crowded with people watching the excitement. Jiang Shi also had an idea, and said to these people,
"Everyone, the officials have just received a note. This note corresponds to the ten contestants on the stage. Whoever is chosen as the first place winner of today's competition can use this note to get half off the price of any meal at the restaurant."
Two rounds of screening have already taken place, and the ten people on the field now are the ones left until the end.
The spectators who had just casually reported their numbers and received number tickets were silent for a moment, as if they regretted saying a number casually. Those who had not yet received number tickets, after listening to what Jiang Shi said, began to look carefully at the people on the stage, looking at which one looked like they could eat more. After deciding on the candidate in their minds, they came to ask Danier for the ticket.
It was not until the time came that the person who was picking up the ticket stopped.
Baozhu struck the gong, and a stick of incense on the stage was lit. Ten people immediately picked up their bowls and spoons and started eating one mouthful after another.
In order to help their supporters win first place, the spectators here shouted the numbers on the cloth tags behind these people and cheered them on with all their might.
The people on the stage were eating enthusiastically. They had fought their way through all the obstacles and finally made it to the end. Today, the first place would not only get silver but also a sheep. Everyone was eating with all their might.
When the two incense sticks burned out, the time had come. The old customer who spent the most money in the restaurant struck the gong, and everyone who was eating stopped.
Jiang Shi was watching the place. Danier was counting how many bowls each person had eaten. Many people had just bet on the strongest person in the place, but when they counted, the first place turned out to be a skinny-looking girl.
The girl ate six large bowls of rice, each one scraped clean of every grain. Zhen's Restaurant, hoping to capitalize on the competition to promote its rice bowls, naturally didn't skimp on the rice used for the competition. For convenience, they didn't use the bone-in toppings, but instead used freshly stir-fried shredded pork and green peppers on top of the rice.
The rice used is new rice and smells very fragrant. This rice with toppings is mainly sold to people who come to the city to work after the spring or to students from other places. There are many bustling people in Bianjing City, but it is rare to see such a bustling place as Zhen's Restaurant. Now there are many workers and students from other places who come to watch the fun. Seeing the white rice, the rice soaked in the toppings absorbed the soup, and the aroma mixed together, they swallowed their saliva again and again.
After all, it was a food high in oil. No matter how delicious it was, people could not stand it if they ate too much. The competition was over and everyone on the stage had a bloated stomach. They felt better after eating the hawthorn meatballs distributed by Danier. Only the little girl who ate the most was still as usual.
After asking, Baozhu found out that he was a juggler in the tile house. Among the 360 professions, this was the most tiring one.
The boss always beat and scolded her, and she never had enough to eat all year round. When she saw that she won first place, Jiang Shi brought the sheep to her, but she just waved her hands and refused to take it. She felt a little embarrassed after receiving the silver and eating so much food, so how could she ask for another sheep?
Seeing this, Jiang Shi explained to him for a long time. The little girl blushed and said something to Jiang Shi. Jiang Shi then ran over and asked Baozhu,
"The girl asked if she could exchange the sheep for money. If she took a sheep home, she would definitely be beaten and scolded."
Anyway, the store needed sheep every day, so Baozhu exchanged them for silver according to the market price.
When the money was handed to her, the little girl felt dizzy. The copper coins for registration were what she had saved for a long time. She was dizzy and hungry all day long. She always ate a lot, and the copper coins she saved were only enough for one or two meals. Seeing that she had to pay some copper coins for the competition, she thought she would just eat her money back, but she didn't expect to get any money in return.
Thinking that he couldn't take the money back, he heard Jiang Shi say that he could deposit the money in the restaurant. If he saved enough to reach the lowest level, he could be recorded as a VIP and get discounts every time he came back to dine.
Knowing that she would be questioned by the boss if she took the money back, the girl simply gave it all to Jiang Shi and asked him to record it. She would then deduct the money directly from the account when she came to eat.
There were about ten people in the field, tall and short, fat and thin. Few guessed her number correctly, only two or three. At first, these people didn't understand what Ah Zhong said, so they just picked the number randomly. When they saw that they had guessed correctly, they got the half-price coupons and started showing off everywhere.
The restaurant's rice bowls this time are mainly sold to those who come to Bianjing City to work after the spring, or to those students from other places, or to the skilled workers in the nearby tile factories.
The people who come to the restaurant for the competition are all ordinary people, so they naturally promote the rice bowl that is most suitable for ordinary people. The portion is large and filling, and the price is not expensive. If you want to add meat or other dishes, you have to pay extra. If you only want the vegetarian dishes to go with the rice, the price is even lower.
This year, many great scholars have opened academies to teach, and now several academies are not far from Zhen's Restaurant. As a result, there are many more students from other places near the restaurant. Since they come to Bianjing to study, they don't have time to think about food. Living in Bianjing City is quite expensive. Zhen's Restaurant is quite famous in this area. The competition they have been holding recently has been very successful. I heard about it shortly after arriving in Bianjing.
The food there is not expensive, and now there is a rice bowl with vegetables and meat, and the portion is large, so it is definitely affordable.
Those who work in Bianjing City can't bear to eat it every day, but the newly served rice with toppings in the restaurant is large in quantity and full in taste, so it's good to have it every few days.
The eating competition was over and the crowd was quickly cleared. The restaurant continued to open its doors to welcome customers. Now that they had attracted these customers, they naturally wanted to keep them. All diners who came into the restaurant today had discounts, free drinks and two plates of side dishes.
Some students from other places saw that Zhen's Restaurant provided three meals a day and thought it was a good deal. After asking, they simply paid the money and planned to eat there for a long time.
This rice bowl was indeed cheap and cost-effective. Not only these students, but also teachers from nearby schools would come to order for the students, with about twenty servings a day. The ordering business was in full swing, and they also received many orders from government offices. Jiang Shi did not hire a runner for this job, but assigned it to a young waiter in the store.
Nowadays, Baozhu goes to the restaurant mostly to lend a hand, and thinks about the shop in Hedong by the way. She wants to convert a shop in the city into a restaurant, and keep a spice shop as it is enough. The city is also a transportation fortress. There are many merchants traveling back and forth every year, but there is not a single decent restaurant in the city. Since they are merchants, they are all wealthy people. Besides the goods they are transporting, eating comfortably is the most important thing along the way.
After all, Madam Xu had met more wealthy businessmen, so she had a plan in mind and asked A Niang what these businessmen were like when they went out.
As soon as she got home, Madam Xu said Aunt Zhen had just left. Although the Zhen and Dong families hadn't been able to form an in-law relationship, they might have had some concerns before, but now that the Dong cousin had been engaged, their relationship had become closer again. Aunt Dong often invited Baorong to banquets, and some families that were suitable for the Zhen family would also come to talk to Madam Xu.
The last time Dong's cousin got engaged, Madam Xu and Zhen's father both went to the banquet.
"The emperor is celebrating his birthday this year, and all the vassal states have sent envoys to congratulate him. The city of Bianjing will surely be very lively at that time." Aunt Zhen came today mainly for this matter. When Xu Niang told Baozhu about it, Baozhu roughly understood it.
This is an opportunity.
Last year, the emperor sent envoys to various countries to celebrate his birthday. This is the first time since the founding of our dynasty that all nations have come to pay tribute. Now that life is better and the border troops are strong, it is natural to let those vassal states come to Bianliang to see what a real great power is.
Since Uncle Dong was in the Guanglu Temple, he naturally heard a lot about these things. Since he had news, he naturally had to share it with his family. The grand occasion of these foreign envoys coming to the capital together was only recorded twice in previous history books. This was also a scene of great prosperity.
Once those foreign nations arrived, the city of Bianliang was not only bustling with foreigners, but many merchants would also take the opportunity to come to Bianliang to do business.
As a great country, it naturally treated foreigners who came to pay tribute with courtesy. Merchants traveled far and wide, visiting many places large and small within the country, but they also visited many foreign countries. Only those merchants who traveled specifically to the west were quite familiar with these places.
Naturally, these people made a lot of money, and what they brought back were basically spices, some of which were as expensive as gold. If they could make this route work, they would naturally make a lot of money in the future.
Baozhu naturally sensed an opportunity. She put the Hedong restaurant issue aside for now, focusing on the lucrative business at hand. The bakery continued to make spring boxes, but stopped making the traditional holiday treats. Madam Liu picked out a few treats and asked Baozhu if they could be sold to the foreign envoys. Baozhu flipped through the list she'd sent, choosing long-lasting treats like peach and lotus cakes and fresh flower cakes.
Starting from March, envoys from small countries came to Beijing one after another. They came all the way to Bianliang, and naturally they wanted to bring back some local gifts. The beautiful and long-lasting snacks in the pastry shop were naturally the best gifts. They were packed in carved wooden gift boxes, which made anyone who saw them feel very impressive.
The emperor's birthday is in June, so these foreign envoys have to stay in Bianliang for some time.
There are many foreigners in the restaurant recently. These people often order all the dishes, but among these foods, the jiaozi is the most popular.
Madam Xu was also thinking about this business. Her two warehouses were originally filled with mostly dry goods and rice. After hearing the news, she sold all the rice and kept a lot of silk and porcelain. She originally wanted to get some tea permits, but they were rare and she couldn't get any no matter how hard she tried, so she had to stock up on more silk and porcelain.
With those vassal states coming to pay homage, it is possible that foreign trade routes will be opened up, and by then the prices of these silk and porcelain will surely increase several times more than they are now.
Those silks may not be shiny after a long time, but this porcelain is not a big deal. Ah Xiu now hired workers in Suzhou to raise silkworms and weave silk in the countryside. In order to make money and to supplement her elder brother and his wife, she asked merchants to help transport the goods. In addition to the silk woven by Ah Xiu herself, she also collected the silk from those weavers.
Pei Yan had a lot of things to do at the beginning of the year, and he had to arrange the affairs of the government office for the whole year. Therefore, he did not come home during his two days off, but only sent letters back.
I have had some free time these days, so I hurried back.
Knowing that he was also concerned about his hometown in Hedong, Baozhu handed him the letter from Landlord Shi to read together.
"Uncle Shi has already arrived in Pingyang County. He's certainly capable. We originally thought that the village head Zhou had confessed everything, but we didn't expect him to have hidden money. We were planning to let him go and have the traffickers take him away. Uncle Shi is just waiting for our letter to decide what to do with him."
"Since I've given you a chance, but you still don't repent, I'll send you to see the authorities." Originally, he still remembered their old friendship, but after this incident, he realized that people die for money.
Several roof tiles were broken by the snow in winter. Now that the weather is getting warmer, it is a good time to go up to the roof to replace the broken tiles. The sun is warm and it makes me feel warm on my body.
Baozhu yawned and held the ladder for him from below. As the couple chatted, they heard a knock on the door outside.
After the spring, many flowers and plants were planted in the yard, and two new osmanthus trees were transplanted. Aman took care of these flowers and plants every day with all his heart. Aman put down the watering can and trotted to open the door.
After a while, he replied with a smile on his face.
"It was my wife's family who sent someone to announce the good news. She said my second sister-in-law has given birth!"
As soon as she heard the news, Baozhu asked Pei Yanqing to come down from the roof. The couple changed their clothes and went to the warehouse to pick out some cloth. Then they went to Zhen's house together.
Mrs. Kong rushed over as soon as she heard the news. The Kong family's sedan chair had just entered the courtyard when Baozhu arrived. Fortunately, she knew that it would only be a few days. Mrs. Xu had not left the house during these days, and the midwife had been staying at home for a few days, fearing that something might go wrong.
Fortunately, everything went well.
Because my elder brother was in Suzhou, I couldn't take care of many things when Axiu gave birth, so I could only give her some money. This time, we prepared everything that could be prepared for Miss Kong's birth, and now we have enough people to hire. Miss Xu was very impatient, so she took care of everything before she gave birth.
Madam Xu gave the midwife a big red envelope and happily sent her out. Everything in the family has been going well in the past two years, and she just hopes that everything will continue to go well in the future.
The paedia had been changed. Miss Kong had just woken up from exhaustion after giving birth. Mrs. Kong sat beside her and wiped the fine beads of sweat from her face with a hot towel. Mrs. Kong's eyes were also red. After wiping the sweat from her face, she carefully brought the baby who had just spoken to her to show her.
Miss Kong had just given birth and was very weak. Baozhu tiptoed in to take a look. The two of them exchanged a few words, and then Baozhu closed the door and left.
Seeing that the two of them were about to say something more urgent, Baozhu covered her ears and pretended not to hear. She then went to pull Pei Yanqing to chatter, but the two of them were just playing dumb, which made her feel like she was punching cotton.
In April and May, many foreign envoys came to Beijing. Patrols were carried out day and night in the city of Bianjing. The Waizi was more lively than before, and more and more people came to the restaurants. From time to time, a foreigner with curly hair and a big nose could be seen. At first, the waiters in the restaurant were scared, but now they have learned a few words of foreign language from him.
The better the restaurant's business was, the more foreign diners were recommended by Jiang Shi to go to the bakery to buy snacks.
Business has been good in recent months. Jiang Shi is always smiling when he reconciles accounts with Baozhu every month. This year, Baozhu not only pays him monthly wages, but also agrees to give him extra money at the end of the year based on this year's revenue.
If you want to keep people, you have to be willing to spend money.
Danier originally followed Chen Niang to learn cooking. Baozhu saw that she was quite clever, so she asked Jiang Shi to take her under her wing. She didn't have to cook in the kitchen in the future. If she could manage things, it would be suitable for her to be the shopkeeper in the front room.
Baozhu is willing to give everyone a chance and is generous, so the waiters in other restaurants come and go and don't stay long, but no one who comes to Zhen's restaurant is willing to leave. Everyone just looks forward to when Baozhu will open a new shop.
Among the shops in Hedong, Baozhu originally wanted to reserve one in the city to open a restaurant. A'niang also said that it was a good place and opening a restaurant would naturally make money. After hearing what A'niang said, Baozhu also had an idea in her mind and told the shop assistants about this idea.
Jiang Shishi is now capable of taking care of things on his own, and he will be the one to take care of the shop in Hedong in the future. As for the restaurant in Bianjing, whoever has the ability will be in charge.
The shop assistants knew there was an opportunity, so they all worked as hard as they could. Baozhu saw how they were doing and decided that even if they couldn't become the shopkeepers next year, she would at least give them a raise.
After finishing her work at the shop, Baozhu took advantage of her free time to go to the county with Pei Yanqing. With the Dragon Boat Festival approaching, gifts needed to be prepared and sent to various households. She had a fairly close relationship with the wives of officials, as Pei Yanqing was the chief official, and they were very polite to each other. Even if they didn't talk about it on weekdays, they would always have to exchange favors during the holidays.
As soon as she entered the city, Baozhu recalled the scene when she first came here. She suddenly felt that the city had changed a lot. The streets were clean and the stalls were neatly arranged. From time to time, there were yamen runners patrolling the streets passing by. These yamen runners recognized Pei Yanqing the moment they saw him, and they all stood up straight and greeted him respectfully.
After the people had gone far away, Pei Yanqing said, "Most of these yamen runners have been replaced. Not only were they all lazy in the past, but they also secretly collected money from street vendors."
Baozhu looked at him with a smile on her face. Since he took office, the people's lives have become much better.
The rotten drum at the gate of the county yamen had never sounded. On his first day in office, he replaced it with a new one, and it was always being beaten. The city seemed awash with grievances. He sorted through the long-standing cases and assigned them to other departments. If the county lieutenant refused to handle them, he would assign someone else to handle them. Under his thunderous tactics, the yamen was completely transformed. Injustices that needed to be redressed were cleared, and the wrongdoers were sentenced accordingly.
This drum has not been struck for a long time.
Baozhu was curious about the changes in the city, so she simply jumped off the carriage with him. Pei Yanqing asked the servant to lead the horse back, and the two of them strolled leisurely along the street together.
A vendor recognized Pei Yanqing and ran after him with a pancake in his hand, offering him some to eat while he ate.
"Sir! My land has been occupied by bullies for more than ten years. Only since Sir Pei took office have we finally gotten justice—"
Many people recognized Pei Yanqing and came over with snacks and food. "The government sends people to patrol the streets every day, and there are also yamen runners patrolling at night. Even petty thefts are rare in the city now!"
"Nowadays, when there is a complaint in the government office, the officials will handle the matter very quickly!"
…
Baozhu thought of the time when she and Baorong listened to storytelling in Wazi and heard several plays in which he solved cases. She couldn't help laughing at the thought.
Pei Yanqing often took people out to patrol the streets, and because of this, everyone knew him. Aman accepted the food that people gave him. Life was not easy for the people, and Baozhu paid the money to each of them.
The dish was sent home by Aman, and Baozhu and Pei Yanqing continued to move forward. Pei Yanqing talked to her about the bridge and the roads in the city.
"They were all donated by the wealthy families in the city. This section used to be a dirt road, but now it's all been replaced with bluestone slabs."
They were all born in humble families, and since they became officials, they should be good officials who serve the people.
As the sun sets, the sky turns red and the shadows of the two people become longer and longer. They will have to walk through spring, autumn, winter and summer together for decades.
No matter what, as long as we are together, it is always a good time.
—End of Text—
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