Beauty Consultant
"Braised meat?" Neither Tang Xingkang nor Han Rong had ever heard of this dish. Seeing that Fu Zhiqiao did not stop them, they approached with curiosity.
She instructed Jiang Shun to slice the cooled meat into thin slices so that everyone could have a taste.
Jiang Shun started out as a vegetable cutter, so his knife skills are naturally superb. The braised meat he cuts is of moderate thickness and is neatly arranged on the plate. After being drizzled with a little braising broth, it looks very tempting.
Fu Zhiqiao called on everyone else in the kitchen to come and try it.
Tang Xingkang couldn't wait to pick up a piece and taste it, but because Fu Zhiqiao was also there, he didn't dare to be too presumptuous and waited patiently for the chopsticks to be handed over before making a move.
Tang Xingkang picked up a piece of meat and put it in his mouth, his eyes shining: "It really tastes good, it's perfect as a snack with drinks." After saying that, he quickly picked up a second piece of meat and started eating.
"Boss, is this braised food? It leaves a fragrant and spicy aftertaste in your mouth!"
"The fat on the meat has all melted away, making it oily but not greasy at all—it's so delicious!"
A chorus of exclamations came from the small kitchen. The pork used to make the braised meat was the finest five-layered pork belly, which was fatty yet not greasy, and had an irresistible aroma!
This pot of braising broth is for making braised beef later. Once they taste the braised beef, they will know what true culinary delight is.
As the saying goes, the older the braising liquid, the better the flavor.
Once the old braising liquid is prepared, it can be used repeatedly. Simply store it in an earthenware jar, and when you need it again, just take it out and boil it. It's very convenient. The saying that a good braising liquid can be passed down for hundreds of years is not an exaggeration.
"Today is just a taste test. The braised pork needs to be kept warm when it comes out of the pot, and the braised beef needs to be cooled completely before slicing."
Pork belly has fat that solidifies and turns white when it cools down, making it inedible. But braised beef is different. Once it cools down, the beef becomes firm and doesn't break easily when sliced. You can easily cut it into thin or thick slices.
Braised beef? Jiang Shun was utterly shocked.
After everyone left, Jiang Shun was alone in the small kitchen, thinking about what his employer had said about making braised beef in the future... He felt a sense of unease.
Perhaps the employer is incredibly powerful, or perhaps the employer has powerful connections… Jiang Shun comforted himself. He started as a vegetable cutter, and his greatest wish was simply to find a good master. Now, having been promoted to the position of sous chef by Fu Zhi Qiao, Jiang Shun was both surprised and delighted. He was delighted that he finally had a chance to get ahead, but surprised to suddenly learn that he would be making braised beef.
Slaughtering cattle for meat is illegal!
The law stipulates that beef cannot be slaughtered arbitrarily; if discovered, one can go to jail.
Jiang Shun had never tasted beef in his entire life, nor had he ever seen anyone eat beef.
He remembered that when he was a child, there was an old ox in the village that was too old to work. As soon as it died, it was sold to someone. According to the village elders, it was bought by a high-ranking official. Jiang Shun was shocked that someone would dare to eat beef without fear of death, and this incident remained a vivid memory for him even as an adult.
He also wanted to know what beef tasted like. If he could make braised beef himself, would he have the chance to taste it?
In the end, his desire overcame his fear. What did it matter if he made braised beef? If something really happened, his employer would take the blame. He would do whatever his employer told him to do.
After figuring this out, Jiang Shun focused on memorizing the spices. His employer's time was precious and he couldn't answer his questions anytime. He had to familiarize himself with these steps as soon as possible.
*
Because the charcoal hadn't arrived, the task of teaching Gao Xiangfeng how to barbecue was delayed.
As autumn draws to a close and winter approaches, Defu delivers the accounts for the entire autumn quarter of Taibailou.
Fu Zhiqiao sat in the study, carefully checking each and every income and expenditure.
The performance in July and August was relatively flat, but the performance in September was much higher. Fu Zhiqiao was not surprised by this. Taking advantage of the success of the imperial examination, many people held celebratory banquets at Taibai Tower after the results of the provincial examination were released. Therefore, the performance in September was higher than that in July and August.
Taibailou's performance is now very stable, with a net profit of at least eight or nine thousand taels per month. If there are any events or celebrations, the restaurant's profit can reach tens of thousands of taels.
Then, she opened the account books of Fuyun Pavilion.
The income of Fuyun Pavilion has not fluctuated much, maintaining a monthly income of nearly a thousand taels. Moreover, most of the customers in Fuyun Pavilion are regulars, and new customers are introduced by old customers, so she is satisfied with this performance.
A letter was also brought along with the account books.
The current manager of Fuyun Pavilion is Chunlan. In her letter, she asked when Fu Zhiqiao would have time to come over, as the members have repeatedly expressed their desire for Boss Fu to hold another makeover event.
Winter is just around the corner, and we can't wear the same one or two makeup looks all year round, right? The ladies are already eager to learn some new things from her.
Fu Zhiqiao did some quick calculations and realized that it had been almost half a year since she last visited Fuyun Pavilion.
The waiter at Taibai Tower said that the charcoal would not be available for another two or three days. In two or three days, she would have to prepare the barbecue ingredients and teach the makeup to the members of Fuyun Pavilion. There was definitely not enough time. She would have to teach Gao Xiangfeng how to barbecue before she would have time to deal with the affairs of Fuyun Pavilion.
After thinking for a moment, Fu Zhiqiao sent a message to Fuyun Pavilion, saying that she would be holding a winter makeover party in five days and invited all members to participate.
At the same time, she was also thinking that she would become increasingly busy in the future, and she would have less and less time to guide members on makeup. She thought it would be better to find a helper to handle this matter. After sifting through the people in her mind, she sent Qiuqin, the maid in her courtyard, over.
Yinxing had grown up with her since childhood, and no one could send her away. So Qiuqin, the head maid, became her target.
Qiuqin was a maid she bought when she first came to the capital. In her small courtyard, her status was second only to Yinxing. When Granny Cui was not around, Qiuqin and Yinxing took turns taking care of her daily life.
On weekdays, when Fu Zhi Qiao was doing her makeup, Yin Xing and Qiu Qin, as her personal maids, would be present. Qiu Qin had watched her do her makeup for so long that she had picked up some tricks of the trade.
When Fu Zhi Qiao told Qiu Qin that she was going to send her out of the manor to be a junior steward, Qiu Qin hesitated a little. She knew that the young lady was trying to promote her status, but if she was sent out of the manor, where would she live? Renting a room would be a big expense.
Qiuqin's family was poor, and she was sold to a brokerage firm by her father. Later, she was sold into the Fu family by the brokerage firm. Now she has gotten used to life in the Fu family. She pursed her dry lips and stammered, "Miss, this servant does not want to leave the manor..."
As someone right under her nose, Fu Zhi Qiao immediately guessed what she was thinking.
"You will work at Fuyun Pavilion during the day, and return to your residence to rest after the shop closes. Your monthly salary will be doubled, and everything else will remain the same."
Now Qiuqin has no worries at all.
To improve Qiuqin's makeup skills, Fu Zhiqiao gave her a few days of intensive training on beauty and makeup. Every morning when Fu Zhiqiao did her makeup, she would ask Qiuqin to stand aside and watch, and she would use herself as an example to explain to her.
Qiuqin was flattered and became even more diligent in her studies.
During the day, Fu Zhi Qiao went out to run errands, while Qiu Qin stayed at the mansion to practice with the maids.
After a few days of learning, Qiuqin's makeup skills improved by leaps and bounds. Although she couldn't compare to Fu Zhiqiao, it was enough for a group of noble ladies who were relatively new to makeup.
Her makeup skills improved, but Qiuqin's mindset remained unchanged.
Qiuqin was used to being a maid, and she always carried an air of humility. It was one thing to be humble in the mansion, but it was definitely not appropriate for her to go out and face noble ladies in this state.
Fu Zhi Qiao had a headache. Training a helper was really not easy, and with Granny Cui not around right now, she didn't even have anyone to help her with the training. She also had to go to Taibai Tower to teach Gao Xiang Feng how to barbecue, so she didn't have time to train the maids. Therefore, this task fell to Yin Xing.
"Girl, I...I can't do it." Ginkgo refused; she didn't know how to train people!
Fu Zhiqiao said earnestly, "Yinxing, you are the most trusted person by my side. I don't trust anyone else with this matter..."
Finally, under her barrage of sweet talk, Ginkgo was successfully brainwashed.
Yes, she's no longer just an ordinary maid. Over the years, she's traveled all over the country with her mistress and has seen quite a few big scenes. She's even handled imperial edicts...
Thinking of this, Ginkgo unconsciously straightened her chest.
With Fu Zhi Qiao's flattery and praise, Yin Xing agreed.
Thinking about what Fu Zhi Qiao said about training Qiu Qin to be bolder.
Daring? Ginkgo's eyes darted around rapidly.
*
It must be said that ginkgo has a certain cleverness about it.
How can you make someone bolder in a short period of time?
Of course, we should give her status and let her become arrogant.
She recalled the time when she was at the Fu family mansion in Qingzhou. At that time, the master had just passed away, the madam was in deep grief, the eldest daughter was unconscious, and Xiaoqin, the maidservant of the second daughter, bullied her quite a bit during that period because she had the second daughter's backing.
Why did Xiaoqin, who was also a maid, dare to bully her, the maidservant of the young lady? It was because the master had passed away, and the second branch of the family saw that the first branch of the family had lost its support, so they took the opportunity to try to suppress them.
To put it bluntly, it's like a dog relying on its master's power.
Back in Qingzhou, Yinxing had always followed the young lady around like a little shadow. Now, after being with her for so long, she had seen more of the world and broadened her horizons. Although she was just a maid, she was always greeted with a polite "Miss Yinxing" wherever she went.
These changes were all brought about by the girl.
In her eyes, her daughter is the most outstanding person in the world!
Xiaoqin became bolder because she had the second young lady backing her up, so Qiuqin can too!
"Qiuqin, the young lady sent you to Fuyun Pavilion because she values you. You should know that most of the members of Fuyun Pavilion are noble ladies. Once you go there, you must make a good impression and not embarrass our young lady, understand?"
Qiuqin's legs went weak upon hearing this, and she cried out, "Sister Yinxing, I... I can't do it..."
Qiuqin was actually older than Yinxing, but the ranking in the mansion was based on status rather than age, so Qiuqin usually addressed Yinxing as "elder sister".
Yinxing pulled her hand. "Qiuqin, are you sure you want to give up such a good opportunity? Think it over carefully. If you really don't want to, I'll go back and tell the young lady to send someone else to Fuyun Pavilion."
"No..." Qiuqin was willing, but the thought of facing a group of noble ladies in the future frightened her.
"Don't be afraid. As long as you're sweet-talking and master the makeup skills the girl taught you, no one will bully you."
Seeing that no one was around, Yinxing lowered her voice and said to her, "Besides, you have to remember that our girl is not an ordinary person. With her backing you up, you can rest assured!"
"This girl isn't an ordinary person either?" Qiuqin asked, giving her a puzzled look.
"Our young lady is the Lady of Ming'an County, personally bestowed upon her by the current Emperor."
Fu Zhi Qiao's being granted the title of County Lady was widely known in Qingzhou City, but few people in the capital knew about it. This was partly because she herself was low-key, and partly because there were simply too many high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital, making her status as a County Lady quite inconspicuous.
With a mysterious look on her face, Yinxing whispered in Qiuqin's ear, "That's nothing. You probably don't know, but our young lady is going to be the Crown Prince's consort!"
Qiuqin's eyes widened, as if she couldn't believe it.
"real?"
Why would I lie to you?
Yinxing's words gave Qiuqin a boost of confidence. Although she didn't immediately become much bolder, she at least stopped showing her fear so easily.
Seeing Qiuqin's transformation, Fu Zhiqiao gave Yinxing a thumbs up: "I knew you could do it!"
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