The next morning, Zhao Shiyun dragged Lin Yan into the city. He had inquired yesterday and found out that the merchants were selling meat on North Street, a street specializing in livestock.
Entering Luoyang Town from the city gate is East Street, with restaurants, teahouses, rice shops, and cloth shops. Walking all the way to the end is the intersection where all the streets meet. The streets of West Street, South Street, and North Street all enter from here.
West Street was where small vendors gathered. Lin Yan usually set up his stall not far from the main street. South Street was where rouge, perfume, jewelry, and jade were sold. North Street, close to West Street, was where meat, livestock, chickens, and ducks were sold.
When Lin Yan and his companions arrived at North Street, the mutton stall had just been set up, displaying slaughtered sheep. A man was dismembering one of them. Zhao Shiyun approached and greeted him, "Brother Hu." This man was the same one who had come to buy the fragrant tofu yesterday.
"Brother Zhao." The man greeted him warmly, and nodded when he saw Lin Yan next to him.
Zhao Shiyun pulled Lin Yan forward. The two of them watched Brother Hu cutting the mutton skillfully and were very impressed.
"Brother Hu, which part of the mutton should I buy for stewing?" Lin Yan asked curiously.
Brother Hu glanced at Zhao Shiyun and saw that he didn't react. He knew that this man was a man of great influence, so he replied, "Lamb belly, lamb ribs, and lamb tendons are all suitable for stewing. Just add some radish. If you want to roast it, lamb legs, lamb chops, and lamb tenderloins are all good choices."
"How do you roast this leg of lamb? It's so big."
"That's easy. Just light a fire, roast the lamb over it, and turn it occasionally. You can roast a whole lamb this way. If it's lamb tenderloin, you can slice it thinly, put a pot on the charcoal fire, and roast it like that. Adding some cumin will make it even more delicious." Brother Hu suddenly remembered something and said, "Oh, right, the pot you use to make fragrant tofu can be used to roast meat."
Lin Yan was educated, "Thank you, Brother Hu."
Brother Hu waved the hand holding the knife and said, "You're welcome."
While Brother Hu was unloading the mutton, Lin Yan and Zhao Shiyun discussed and decided to buy some lamb ribs to stew and some lamb tenderloins to roast.
Mutton was rare and sold for 40 wen per jin. Seeing that few people were buying, Brother Hu decided to give Zhao Shiyun and his friends 35 wen per jin. Lin Yan smiled and thanked him, asking him to help weigh two jins of lamb ribs and two jins of lamb tenderloin.
The total was 152 wen, and Brother Hu rounded off the change, taking 150 wen. The two men wrapped the meat in oil paper and put it in their backpacks. Zhao Shiyun said, "Brother Hu, if you're still in town at the next market, come to my place for some fragrant tofu. I'll treat you."
After they bought the meat, people had already lined up behind them. Brother Hu took the time to respond, "Okay, I'll definitely go." Then he started to get busy again.
The two of them didn't stay any longer and prepared to go to the grocery store to buy some things. Zhao Shiyun looked at Lin Yan and said carefully: "Brother Yan, I said I would treat Brother Hu to some fragrant tofu. Do you have any objections?"
Lin Yan looked at him inexplicably: "What can I say? Brother Hu gave us a discount on mutton, so it's only right that we treat him."
Zhao Shiyun chuckled, his husband was so nice.
Arriving at the grocery store, the two walked straight towards Ziran. The waiter came forward and greeted them warmly, "What would you like to order, sirs?"
"Waiter, please get us a bag of cumin."
"Okay!" Cumin is expensive and is usually bought by wealthy people. Ordinary people rarely buy it. The waiter recognized that the man had come to ask about it last time and quietly weighed more for him.
Lin Yan took the cumin and felt it. He immediately realized there was something wrong. There was too much. He looked at the waiter, who extended his hand towards the counter. "One bag of cumin, 50 wen. Check out over there."
Lin Yan smiled and nodded at the waiter, took out two coins and put them in his hand, "This is a reward for you."
The waiter took the copper coin and smiled even more.
Zhao Shiyun looked at his husband in confusion, not knowing what was going on, but he didn't ask. After leaving the grocery store, Lin Yancai explained to Zhao Shiyun, "The waiter weighed more for me. He's such a good person."
Zhao Shiyun suddenly understood.
We wandered back to West Street, wanting to see what side dishes were available. We had radishes at home, but we were tired of them. We looked around and saw that there were only a few fresh wild vegetables available at this time of year: ground radish, chrysanthemum radish, and gray radish. If we wanted to eat them, we could just pick them in the mountains when we had time; they weren't worth buying.
When he was almost at the end of West Street, he saw a peddler pushing a cart and about to leave. Lin Yan noticed with his sharp eyes that the things on the cart were sections of sugarcane!
"Wait a minute!" Lin Yan called out to the vendor and walked a few steps forward. The vendor had almost sold out, and seeing that there were few people around, he was about to go from street to street to sell out the rest. Hearing this, he stopped pushing his cart and asked, "Hey, little brother, do you want to buy some sugarcane?"
Lin Yan reached out and pulled around. The vendor was selling black sugarcane and green sugarcane, long strips with the leaves still on the top. There were only five strips left on the cart: two green sugarcanes and three black sugarcanes.
"How much is it?" Lin Yan asked the price.
"Ten cents a piece."
"This is too expensive. Can you make it cheaper?" Lin Yan was a little reluctant.
The vendor hesitated and said, "I only have five left. Do you want them all? If so, you'll have to pay 40 cents."
Lin Yan felt that it was too much, and it would be difficult to take so many. He wanted to bargain again: "35 cents, I want them all." If it doesn't work out, then forget it, and he won't have to take it back.
Unexpectedly, the vendor agreed immediately. Lin Yan turned around and looked at Zhao Shiyun with a grin. Zhao Shiyun smiled helplessly: "Go ahead, I'll carry it back."
The vendor helped bundle the sugarcane, and Zhao Shiyun heaved it onto his shoulder with a single effort. Lin Yan counted out the copper coins and handed them to the vendor, and the two of them headed home.
When they reached the city gate, Lin Yan suggested, "Brother Shi Yun, why don't we take an ox cart back?"
Zhao Shiyun didn't feel too tired, and the sugarcane took up a lot of space and was difficult to store: "Forget it, we can just walk there."
"Then tell me when you're tired, and I'll take over."
Zhao Shiyun knew that her husband was worried about her, and although she agreed with him, she didn't intend to let him bear the burden in her heart.
Back home, Zhao Shiyun placed the sugarcane in the corner of the yard. "We just had chicken yesterday, so we're not going to eat this mutton tonight," he said. "I'm going to put it in a basket and hang it in the well so it won't spoil." He didn't know how long Brother Hu and his men would be selling it, so he had to buy some today.
I also have chili powder at home. When I grill the meat, I will sprinkle it with cumin and chili powder. It will definitely taste good.
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