When the beef was halfway through stewing, a strong aroma was already emitting from the pot, making the two bandits itch with saliva dripping from their mouths as they walked around the stove, anxiously asking, "It's been stewing for a quarter of an hour, should it be ready to eat?"
"It's still early. The meat will need to be stewed for at least half an hour before it becomes soft and tender." Lin Dan picked up a handkerchief to wipe his hands. "Could you two brothers take me to my carriage? I want to get some seasoning."
The two bandits immediately became alert and pointed at the bottles and jars on the stove and said, "Don't be nosy. There are all kinds of seasonings here. Isn't it enough for you?"
Lin Dan was not flustered and explained in a gentle voice: "It's like this, my beef stew is still missing a seasoning to make it fully flavorful. You two are taking me there and taking me back, I'm a weak woman, how can I escape from you? If I have this seasoning, this pot of beef stew will be several times more delicious than it is now."
The two bandits smelled the rich fragrance in the air and thought to themselves that it would taste even better than it does now. How delicious would it be? The royal chef's cooking skills were indeed better than those of ordinary people. Then they thought of Lin Dan's method of slaughtering cattle and became a little scared again.
Lin Dan took out a piece of rope and wrapped it around his wrist. The two bandits nodded reluctantly and locked the kitchen door before leaving to prevent Shaoyao and Dujuan from running away. The three of them walked to the deepest part of the village, and after wandering around they found a cave. The outside of the cave was covered with vines, and if no one had pointed them out, they would have really overlooked it.
The two bandits pulled aside the vines and shouted, "Go in and find it yourself, hurry up!"
Lin Dan used the torches of the two men to peek inside, and indeed saw his five carriages parked in the cave, as well as dozens of locked large boxes, all of which contained stolen goods. She took a quick glance and then walked in, climbed onto one of the carriages, knocked open the mud seal of a large jar, scooped a few spoonfuls of wine with a long spoon, poured it into the empty small jar, and quickly covered the mouth of the jar with brown paper and tied it tightly with a rope.
Although she moved very quickly and sealed the wine jar in just a few breaths, the two bandits still smelled the indescribable aroma of the wine and felt a little nauseated.
"What kind of wine is this? Why is it so fragrant?" the two of them said with salivation.
"It's just an ordinary drink. I brewed it for fun. It's not worth much." Lin Dan's expression was slightly stiff and his eyes were dodging.
The two bandits looked at her deeply before taking her away. After returning to the kitchen, Lin Dan poured the wine in the jar into the stewed beef and stirred it slowly with a spatula. The already rich soup became even thicker and mellower as she stirred it. Each piece of stewed beef was covered with a layer of shiny and sticky juice, and a strange aroma filled the air. The aroma was like a sharp weapon, penetrating through the kitchen doors and windows and lingering over the village, making people intoxicated.
"Hurry, hurry, bring some beef up for us." The bandit in charge of guarding Lin Dan and the others urged them while knocking on the empty bowl.
"My two brothers, the meat is not yet cooked through. We have to wait a moment longer." Lin Dan explained kindly.
"It doesn't matter whether it's rotten or not, as long as it's cooked. Just take it out when I tell you to. Why waste your time talking?" The two bandits were so anxious that their eyes turned red. Stimulated by the aroma, they wanted to dive into the pot and eat their fill. The other bandits also smelled the smell and ran over, insisting on having a taste of the meat in the pot. Fortunately, the bandit leader was able to keep his composure, otherwise the kitchen would have been looted long ago.
"What kind of wine did that woman put in the pot that smells so good?" After leaving the kitchen, the bandit leader immediately grabbed his subordinates and interrogated them, twitching his nose from time to time to sniff the lingering smell in the air.
"Boss, I'll take you to see it." The two bandits said as if offering a treasure: "It will take a while before the food is served. How about we brothers drink first?"
"Okay, go and bring the wine out." Several people carried the large jar to the main hall, tore off the brown paper and looked inside, and suddenly felt a little dizzy. There is no other reason, it's just that this wine is so fragrant. If you smell it open, it is stronger than ordinary Shaodaozi and mellower than Wuliang aged wine. Before you even take a sip, your saliva is already all over the floor.
"Fill it up for me quickly, quickly!" The bandit leader took out a big bowl and shouted anxiously. After drinking it all in one gulp, he was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, praising the wine repeatedly. The rest of the people couldn't hold back either, and each of them scooped a bowl and drank. The strong aroma of wine filled the air, attracting more people...
Xiao Zhu and his companions were originally discussing how to escape and rescue the shopkeeper, but suddenly they smelled an indescribably strong aroma of meat. They immediately became quiet and said with certainty, "The shopkeeper is making beef stew with rice wine!"
"I'm hungry!" a servant murmured, licking his lips.
The rest of the people looked at each other, and their stomachs began to growl. As soon as the shopkeeper starts cooking, people who are not hungry will immediately feel hungry. Even the man who was resting with his eyes closed opened his eyes and looked towards the kitchen, his Adam's apple moving up and down uncontrollably.
Everyone was silent for a moment and then started discussing again, but they didn't expect that an overbearing aroma of wine would invade from all directions, making them anxious. Xiao Zhu, who had never lost control of his emotions despite being arrested, beaten, and imprisoned, spat fiercely and cursed, "Damn it, these beasts dared to steal our wine!"
The handsome man who had remained silent all this time suddenly asked, "What kind of wine is this?"
Xiao Zhu gritted his teeth and said, "There is a legend in Zhongshan County. I wonder if you have heard of it - Liu Xuanshi once sold wine from Zhongshan Wine House..."
The man was very knowledgeable and immediately asked, "Xuanshi Drunk Wine, Thousand Day Wine?"
Xiao Zhu looked at him in surprise and nodded, "Yes, this wine is the legendary Thousand Days Wine. Shopkeeper Lin traveled in Zhongshan County for three years and visited many places before finally recreating the recipe for the Thousand Days Wine. After it was successfully brewed, it was buried underground for seven years. It was only recently dug out and is ready to be sold in the capital for a good price. When the wine jar was opened, a wine worm had already grown in it. The wine is very mellow and thick. Although it won't make people drunk for a thousand days, it can make people drunk for three days and three nights."
"Xuanshi Getting Drunk" is an anecdote that has been passed down for hundreds of years. It tells the story of a man named Di Xi in Zhongshan County who was a master in brewing wine. A drunkard named Liu Xuanshi came to his house to buy wine. Di Xi sold him a jar of wine, but forgot to tell him that this kind of wine has a strong aftereffect and must be drunk in moderation. If a person gets drunk, he may not wake up for a thousand days. After drinking a lot, Liu Xuanshi returned home and passed out from drunkenness. His family thought he was dead and buried him. After a thousand days, Di Xi suddenly remembered this incident and hurried to look for him. The Liu family then dug out the buried Liu Xuanshi. Liu Xuanshi had just woken up and his body was still permeated with a strong aroma of wine. People around him were also intoxicated after smelling it for three months before waking up.
This wine was later named Thousand-Day Wine and can be regarded as the true celestial wine.
His nose was permeated with the aroma of wine and his ears were lingering with the noisy sounds of bandits playing drinking games. The handsome man licked his dry lips and said through gritted teeth, "They are really a bunch of beasts!" As soon as he finished speaking, he broke the rope and stood up with a gloomy face. He originally wanted to wait until late at night to take action, but now he can't bear it anymore.
"You, you, you, how did you untie the rope?" Xiao Zhu and others looked at him in amazement.
"You stay here first, I'm going to rescue Manager Lin, and when you hear the whistle, come out and meet me." Fearing that the few people running around would alarm the bandits, the handsome man gave them some special instructions after untying them. Then he broke the iron chain on the door bolt with his bare hands, and then put it back together again, and sneaked in the direction where the smell of meat was the strongest.
Lin Dan was stir-frying beef tendons, while Shaoyao and Dujuan formed the pounded beef into meatballs and put them into the milk soup made from beef shank bones. Seeing the man pushing the door open, the three of them were slightly stunned. Lin Dan reacted the fastest. He immediately pulled the man in and closed the door with his backhand.
"Why are you here? Where are Xiaozhu and the others?" she asked in a low voice.
"I'm here to save you." The man's weapons had been confiscated by the bandits, and he was now picking out kitchen knives in the kitchen. His tone was very steady, "I'll send you out of the village first. Don't run around once you enter the forest. Go down along the creek and wait for me in the open area at the foot of the mountain. Xiaozhu and I will follow." The scene later will be a bit bloody and not suitable for women to watch. It doesn't hurt for Xiaozhu and the others to stay until the end to save them, and they can also help him clean up the bodies.
After thinking about it, the man tried to pull Lin Dan's wrist, but she gently pushed him away. "There are more than thirty bandits in the village, and you are alone. How can you deal with them? Sit down and eat something, we can go down the mountain later." As he spoke, he brought a plate of stir-fried beef with green onions and stuffed the bowl and chopsticks into the other person's hands.
The man subconsciously took the bowl and chopsticks, wolfing down a few mouthfuls, his eyes flickering with a look of satisfaction and enjoyment. Then he paused stiffly, his tone slightly awkward: "Now is not the time to eat, follow me!"
"Why are you leaving? Sit down and eat!" Lin Dan gently slapped away the man's outstretched hand, with a slight smile in her voice.
The man looked at the back of his itchy hand, then at Lin Dan's smiling face, and unconsciously fell silent with his eyelids drooping.
Shaoyao and Dujuan looked at the stewed beef that had been scooped out of the pot and complained, "I told them the meat wasn't cooked through yet and that we had to simmer it for a while longer, but they insisted on scooping it out to eat. What a waste!"
"It's a blessing that only things were destroyed and no one was harmed." Lin Dan listened with a smile in his eyes, "There's no noise anymore, let's go take a look."
The man immediately put down his bowl and chopsticks and stood up, but Lin Dan pressed his shoulder and pushed him back, "You sit down, we'll go." After he finished speaking, he and the two little girls each carried a plate of hot food and walked out slowly. Even if they encounter bandits, they can cover it up by using the excuse of serving food. They are not afraid at all.
The man touched his shoulder with a strange expression, and then followed closely. The group arrived at the hall smoothly, only to see the floor full of bandits, with a few of them lying on the table, snoring loudly. The air was filled with an indelible aroma of alcohol, which came rushing over as soon as the door was pushed, making it impossible to walk. Snoring sounds could be heard from several other houses, indicating that these bandits could not resist the temptation of the thousand-day wine and had passed out drunk.
Shaoyao and Dujuan stood on tiptoe to look at the wine jar placed in the middle of the hall and said with gritted teeth: "The whole jar of wine was ruined by them!"
Lin Dan patted the two little girls' heads and said the same thing: "It's good that they didn't cause any harm to anyone. Let's pack up and go."
The man looked at the drunkards on the ground with a surprised expression. He never expected that Manager Lin could solve the problem without any effort and there was no need for anyone else to help.
Lin Dan walked around the man and said slowly: "With me, there is nothing that can't be solved by a meal." Just as the voice fell, there was a sound of horse hooves outside the mountain village, and groups of torches were approaching this place. No one knew what had happened.
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