Aunt Wang was overjoyed to see old friends again. She held Lin Dan's hand and talked for a long time. Lin Dan felt like she was back home when she came back here. She tied her headscarf, rolled up her sleeves, and started working naturally. When the handsome man came back with two buckets of water, he saw her sitting in the kitchen grinding soybean milk. Aunt Wang was adding firewood to the stove, mumbling about her experiences over the years, "They really taught their apprentices to starve themselves to death. If I had known that they were such heartless people, I would never have passed on my skills to them."
"Not everyone is like this. Isn't there a saying that goes like this? 'The master teaches well, and the apprentice takes care of him in his old age.' It was my aunt who taught me the skill of making tofu. Now, I'm back to take care of you in your old age." Lin Dan chuckled.
Aunt Wang waved her hands quickly: "Stop saying that. I only taught you for three months, and you still do so much work for me every day. I'm the one who's taking advantage of you. How can I let you support me in my old age? My youngest son and I can still make a living, so don't become a burden to you!" As she spoke, her eyes became red. Her own son didn't care about her, but the little girl who only learned one dish from her treated her as a relative. How embarrassing it was for her!
The youngest child walked in with red eyes and said in a hoarse voice: "Sister Lin, thank you for your kindness. I recently found a job as a long-term worker in Mr. Zhou's house. I help feed the animals every day. I can support my mother and it's not hard. Don't worry."
Lin Dan waved her hand and said, "The support I mentioned is not that kind of support. You may have misunderstood. Auntie, you taught me one dish back then, and now I will teach you three dishes. Once you learn them well, you can attract more business and live the prosperous days again. What do you say?" As she spoke, she filtered the ground soy milk repeatedly with gauze and poured it into a large pot to boil.
The handsome man said nothing, but had already taken over the task of grinding the soy milk, his eyes fixed on Lin Dan who was talking.
Lin Dan diced coriander, shallots, pickled mustard tubers and other side dishes, and stir-fried sesame seeds and peanuts with oil until fragrant, then put them into a bowl and pounded them, and set them aside for later use. He said slowly: "You only sell one dish all year round. After customers have eaten it for a long time, it will no longer be fresh, and your business will naturally be quiet. You are very good at making tofu, why don't you make a few more tofu dishes? The dish I am teaching you now is what I learned from Fushun County. It is called tofu brain, also known as tofu pudding. It is a semi-finished tofu, but the taste is no worse than tofu, and it has two flavors: salty and sweet. Your store is next to the official road, and you have customers from all over the world. When northern guests come, you treat them to salty food, and when southern guests come, you treat them to sweet food. , it is eaten hot in spring, autumn and winter, and chilled in well water in summer. Tofu pudding has no flavor, and the seasoning depends entirely on the sauce. There are many types of sauces, including spicy, fragrant, hot and sour, and sweet sauces such as sucrose, brown sugar, and maltose. A bowl of tofu pudding with two spoons of sauce, with only this one dish, you can make hundreds of flavors and easily meet the needs of any customer. Isn't it much better than simply selling tofu balls? Besides, tofu pudding is simple and easy to make. After it is sold, a large bucket can be boiled in less than 35 minutes. It is cooked and eaten immediately, and customers can eat the freshest ingredients at any time. How can they not like it?"
When it comes to cooking, Lin Dan talks nonstop. Before she knows it, she has made two bowls of tofu pudding, one spicy and one wolfberry and brown sugar. Both are bright red and look very delicious.
The handsome man quietly picked up the salty tofu pudding and took a bite. The extremely fresh and tender taste immediately conquered his taste buds. The strong bean fragrance rolled in his mouth along with the spicy soup and slid into his throat. The taste was simply indescribable. His eyes lit up slightly, and he immediately picked up the sweet tofu pudding and took a bite. The sweet and tender tofu pudding slowly melted on the tip of his tongue, and he tasted a little bit of astringency when he bit through the wolfberries. It was simply a stroke of genius. The texture was so tender and smooth, and the flavors were so varied that he couldn't stop eating after taking a spoonful.
Aunt Wang and little brother Wang took a bite with half belief and were immediately amazed by the delicious taste.
Lin Dan made tofu pudding and fried a plate of Zhenxiang tofu, and also served it with two flavors of sauce, sweet and salty. If the customers are not satisfied, they can mix it themselves. Finally, she made a slight improvement to Aunt Wang's specialty dish, tofu balls in broth, and made them into dry-fried tofu balls. They were solid when put into the pot, but hollow when taken out. When you gently break open the crispy shell with your hands, you will find a layer of sweet and thick soy milk hanging on the inner wall. They taste crispy and tender, dry and juicy, and have a wonderful taste. Then you use burnt chili peppers, minced garlic, and chopped wild onions to make a dipping sauce, which you stuff into the cavity of the tofu balls and eat together. They are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, fresh, fragrant and spicy, and the taste is amazing! If you can’t eat spicy food, you can replace the dipping sauce with red bean paste or sesame and peanut crumbs, the taste is also amazing.
These three dishes are extremely flexible and versatile. As long as the customers like them, they can be made into any flavor. Once you learn how to make them, you will never have to worry about it for the rest of your life. Aunt Wang and Brother Wang were not stupid people. After tasting the dishes and listening to the explanation, they felt happy and ashamed at the same time. They didn't know whether they should accept this gift.
Lin Dan never talked nonsense. After pointing out the dishes, he also taught some business tips: "In spring, autumn and winter, you can provide free hot tea to the guests. In summer, make some jelly and keep it chilled at any time. Then hang a flag with "Free tea". Naturally, tired guests will stop to drink. You can also ask them if they want to eat. The business will naturally develop. After all, there are only a few people who can read. I can sit by the roadside and wait. When I see the caravan coming, I can shout at the top of my voice to attract popularity. Aunt Wang's craftsmanship is here. I am not afraid that the guests will be dissatisfied. If the guests are satisfied, you will have a reputation and your life will be more and more prosperous. Don't you think so?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Aunt Wang and Little Brother Wang kept nodding, their eyes moist. They could see that Lin Dan really wanted to help them, otherwise he wouldn't have said so much. I never expected that just a small act of kindness back then would bring me such blessings today. There are indeed many good people in this world.
This busyness lasted until the evening. Lin Dan walked freely on the official road with the stars above his head, and his heart felt open. She will take back what belongs to her, and she will also pay back what she owes to others. She wants to live a clear and honest life.
The handsome man followed her silently, looking at her with complicated eyes.
It takes time to learn how to cook three dishes, so Lin Dan had no choice but to stay in the town for a few more days and help out in Aunt Wang's shop every day. After making some hot tea, Brother Lin sat by the roadside and shouted, which really attracted many caravans and passers-by. They originally planned to drink the free tea and leave, but they were attracted by the strong aroma coming from the kitchen, so they ordered a few bowls of tofu pudding to try it. They were so impressed that they couldn't stop. Drinking one bowl was nothing. Some people with big appetites drank four or five bowls and still felt unsatisfied. There was no one who didn't like it.
It only took three days for Aunt Wang's small shop to go from being deserted to being packed with customers. Three days later, Lin Dan left. Aunt Wang researched some new flavors and sold them, which received very good responses. Over time, the dilapidated thatched hut was transformed into a sturdy earthen house, and a few years later it was rebuilt into a row of wooden houses. Finally, it developed into a restaurant specializing in tofu pudding, which was famous far and wide. Aunt Wang's daughter-in-law was squeezed out of business and came back with a smug look on her face to kowtow and admit her mistake, but was driven out and became a laughing stock in the surrounding area.
Lin Dan was still unaware of these events. She brought her mother back to the capital and placed her in a small courtyard that she had already bought. Without even taking a rest, she went to Xicheng District to check out the shops. She has been planning to return to Beijing to open a store for two years, and it can be said that "everything is ready except for the east wind."
There is a saying about the capital that "the east is rich, the west is noble, the north is poor, and the south is humble." Most of the residents in Xicheng District are the rich and powerful; most of the residents in Dongcheng District are the wealthy; the poor live in the North District; and the South District is inhabited by refugees from outside the city who make a living by hard labor and are therefore of low status.
Lin Baotian is good at Shandong cuisine. Lin Dan has studied Shandong cuisine over the years. Naturally, he wants to continue cooking Shandong cuisine when he returns to open a restaurant. In the chef world, there is a saying that Shandong cuisine is official cuisine, Cantonese cuisine is business cuisine, Sichuan cuisine is folk cuisine, and Huaiyang cuisine is literati cuisine. Since we want to serve official dishes, we naturally have to open a store in Xicheng District so that we can attract customers.
Lin Dan had already sent several servants back to Beijing to look for a shop. After waiting for three or two months, he finally found a grocery store in Qingyun Lane, Xicheng District, which could no longer operate and was ready to be transferred. Opposite this grocery store was Yan's Restaurant.
Logically speaking, since Lin Dan had arrived in the capital safely, the handsome man should have left, but he refused to leave and did not give any reason. He just followed Lin Dan silently like a guardian. Sensing that he had no ill intentions, Lin Dan ignored him and went straight to negotiate the price with the grocery store owner.
The handsome man stood at the door waiting, his eyes turned to the Yan's Restaurant opposite, with a somewhat subtle expression.
"You want to open a restaurant and serve Shandong cuisine?" The grocery store owner rolled his eyes and changed his words, "Manager Lin, I don't mean to embarrass you. It's just that something happened in my family and I need a large sum of money. Although the price you offer is appropriate, it is not too high. In the past few days, several groups of people have come to us and offered a better price than you. The highest bidder wins. This is the rule of doing business. Don't you understand?"
Lin Dan frowned and said, "Shopkeeper, why don't you tell me what price you want? I'll see if it's suitable. If it's suitable, I'll take it. If it's not suitable, forget it."
The grocery store owner quoted a price that was totally beyond Lin Dan's ability to afford. She thought about it for a moment and said decisively, "Boss, please wait for me for a day. I will bring the silver here tomorrow. Please prepare the transfer documents."
After the deal was settled, she asked her servant to go back to get the goods, while she strolled around Qingyun Lane for a few laps to see what was going on.
"Three hundred and sixty taels of silver. This price is enough to buy two shops like that. You're losing money." The handsome man followed her closely with a deep voice.
"You don't understand. I want that shop." Lin Dan waved his hand firmly.
The handsome man turned around and looked at the Yan's Restaurant, which was doing a booming business and was crowded with customers. He then looked at the grocery store opposite and couldn't help but sigh in his heart: Is Lin Dan preparing to challenge the Yan's Restaurant?
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