Chapter 129 Chapter 129 Gai Fang Dufa...
Manager Xu said, "I'll bring over some more spices this afternoon. Madam, please let me know if you need anything, and I'll send more."
If this succeeded, it would definitely benefit the spice business, so Lin Qiuran couldn't be expected to develop the spices himself. Besides that, Manager Xu had nothing else to do, so he chatted for a few minutes before taking his leave.
After the others left, Lin Qiuran flipped through the book to check the profits. Last month, she'd received 1,800 taels, Tangyuan 200, and a portion of Wufangzhai's profits.
A few years passed, and the chefs made many new flavors of dim sum. Lin Qiuran was not interested in dim sum and was not good at it. She didn't care about the withdrawal of several of the dim sum she had made before. The remaining dim sum made a profit of several dozen taels of silver a month for several shops.
This also proves that things that you put effort into will be rewarded. If you don’t put in the effort, even if it starts out well, it will gradually become unsatisfactory.
The money can be used to buy a shop and rent it out to collect rent. The shops in the capital are also very profitable. Besides, the housing prices are rising. In the long run, there will be several hundred taels of silver in a year, enough for Lin Qiuran to buy two more pieces of jewelry.
The next step is to develop spices. To be honest, these spices are the result of Lin Qiuran's improved craftsmanship by the Lin family after she developed the modern thirteen spices. She had never thought of hiding her shortcomings at the beginning, so there is no way to make up for her old capital now.
When she thought about paying tribute, she suddenly remembered that she and Sun had used the excuse of feeling unwell for the first time since arriving in the capital to avoid attending the palace banquet on New Year's Eve last year. This year, Sun could still use the excuse of being too old to attend the palace banquet on Mid-Autumn Festival, but she certainly couldn't refuse.
There have been a lot of things to do in the past few months. Lin Qiuran plans to work on the spices first, and then plan to prepare for the palace banquet after he finishes preparing the spices in July.
Lin Qiuran spent the afternoon in the kitchen cooking and experimenting with spices, but he had no idea what to do.
Lin Qiuran couldn't help but wonder, if it only took half a day to come up with this recipe, wouldn't that mean the spices were too simple? After all, it was something to be offered as tribute, so how could it be so easy to make?
Thirteen Spices is also the result of the hard work of our predecessors, how could it be so easy?
Seeing that Tangyuan was about to finish school and Xiao Xun was about to come back, Lin Qiuran rubbed his sore neck and shoulders and came out of the small kitchen.
Sure enough, as soon as Lin Qiuran entered the house and sat down to drink some tea, Tangyuan came back.
He eats here every day, and after dinner he plays martial arts for a while before returning to his own yard. Sometimes Xiao Xun comes back later than him, so he goes out to play first and doesn't rush his studies.
Tangyuan had been so happy to be home these past few days, probably because he was getting along well with his classmates. Lin Qiuran didn't ask him about Qi Songan again, but she would privately check to see if he was injured.
But it looked good last night.
Xiao Xun soon returned. It was hot, so they had cold noodles tonight. The noodles were made with a mixture of eggs and minced fish, and the broth was made from chicken, duck, pork, beef bones, and dried cuttlefish.
It is delicious even if you eat it alone, it is soft and chewy and has a fresh flavor.
The braised meat has the salty fried sauce that is commonly eaten in Beijing. It is made by stir-frying bean paste and minced meat, and sprinkled with shredded cucumber, carrot, bean sprouts and chopped pickles. When mixed well, the color looks good and it tastes good.
Tangyuan liked this, though he added a little chili oil. Lin Qiuran preferred the minced meat with cowpeas and shrimp with tofu, accompanied by the river shrimp that Zhuangzi had sent. The shrimp were fried, their shells crispy, and sprinkled with chili powder, making them fresh and fragrant.
Lin Qiuran ate two and was taken aback. Perhaps she could add chili powder to the spices. Besides Sichuan peppercorns, there were also chili peppers, which could change the color and flavor of the spices. Occasionally, when making non-spicy dishes, Lin Qiuran would add some chili peppers to season them. Besides, the Thirteen Spice already contained Sichuan peppercorns. Some chilies had a stronger aroma than a less spicy flavor. She could try that in the next few days.
Tangyuan lowered her head and ate quickly. She ate three bowls of noodles, two bowls with fried sauce, one bowl with minced meat and cowpea, and half a plate of small river shrimps. After eating, she burped.
"The food at the academy isn't good, not even one-tenth as good as at home," Tang Yuan added. "Some of the older people would climb over the wall and go out at noon and night, and come back after they'd finished eating."
Lin Qiuran said, "You're still young, and you can't study like this. If you really can't get used to the food, there's a day every month when I can ask your husband for leave and take you out to eat."
Of course he couldn't take leave every day, as he went there to study, not to enjoy himself, but one or two times a month would be fine.
Tangyuan: “Really!”
Lin Qiuran nodded. "Of course it's true. You have to promise Mom not to climb over the wall and leave. You're still young. If someone has bad intentions and kidnaps you, you won't be able to escape even if you learn martial arts from your father. Tell Mom and Dad what you want, and don't put yourself in danger."
Tang Yuan nodded seriously, "I know, I won't do that. A gentleman's word is as good as gold!"
Lin Qiuran: "Then our Tangyuan is still a little gentleman."
Lin Qiuran kept her word. On the 26th of the month, when Tangyuan wanted to come out, she asked for leave from her husband.
As for the child, perhaps others are like this too. All the children from wealthy families are spoiled. Lin Qiuran doesn't want him to envy others too much.
This time he also brought something for his classmates and explained to Lin Qiuran, "Mom, not only do I bring things for them, they also bring things for me. However, what they bring is not as delicious as what I bring."
Tangyuan thinks that the food he makes at home is the most delicious food in the world.
Tangyuan: "I even told them where I ate it."
Lin Qiuran estimated that this child had invisibly attracted a lot of customers to Jindinglou, and the profit was expected to increase this month.
After a few days, the thirteen spices developed by Lin Qiuran finally took shape. Now there are more than twenty spices in the thirteen spices.
Lin Qiuran removed several of the original spices and added scallop powder and shrimp powder to enhance the flavor and aroma. Naturally, he achieved some success. For example, wontons were originally cooked in bone broth. After cooking, he added seaweed, dried shrimp, a little salt, and a small piece of lard. The wontons were then topped with the bone broth, which made the wontons fragrant and the broth delicious.
They are all dry goods and can be stored for a long time. They also contain pepper powder, which can also prevent insects.
But now you only need to take a small spoonful of Lin Qiuran’s freshly made thirteen spices, add a little salt, a small piece of lard, dried shrimp and seaweed, and pour hot water on it. It tastes fresher and has less of the thick and greasy taste of bone soup.
The mushroom delicacy has also been improved. We selected several special mushrooms from Qiannan, dried them and ground them into powder, then mixed them with spices and added shrimp powder to enhance the flavor. The taste is even better than before.
In mid-June, Lin Qiuran finished all these and had Manager Xu and Xu Yuanheng take a look at them. The matter was considered done. Whether he would be selected or not would depend on Yu An's letter. It would probably take more than a month to know the result.
Xu Yuanheng said to Lin Qiuran, "Even if you don't get selected, you can still sell it out. Your hard work will not be in vain."
Lin Qiuran worked hard for a month, but he couldn't find any results just by testing the spices. After they were ready, he had to cook them. Only when the spices could be seen in the dishes could it be proven that they were useful.
Xu Yuanheng didn't want Lin Qiuran to work hard for a month only to be disappointed in the end.
Lin Qiuran smiled and said, "Well, this Thirteen Spices has been sold for so many years, it's time to change the recipe. If it doesn't work out, we'll just make both the old and new ones. Otherwise, some people prefer the old one, and we'll lose customers if we suddenly change it."
Xu Yuanheng: "Okay, I'll go back to Yu'an tomorrow."
The stuff is valuable, so Lin Qiuran has made a few extra portions. However, these are to be sent to the capital, and perhaps even to the emperor in the future. If anything goes wrong, no one can take the responsibility.
I can rest assured knowing that Xu Yuanheng will send it back personally.
Lin Qiuran took two steps outside and winked at the maids to bring some things. Several maids followed with the things. She said, "This is a gift for you. It's some special products from the capital. The other one is for my family back home. Please bring it to my house for me. Please give this letter to the housekeeper. By the way, Tangyuan has adapted well to school. He got first place in the exam a few days ago and he got first place again this time."
Xu Yuanheng is Tangyuan's godfather, and telling this to him would make him happy.
Xu Yuanheng was a little surprised and surprised, "He's doing well in his studies."
Lin Qiuran said, "He's still young, so I can't really tell."
Xu Yuanheng walked out, shaking his head. "That's different. Getting first place in Yu'an's academy wouldn't be surprising, given the small number of students. But Tangyuan went to Songshan Academy, considered the best academy in the capital. He still managed to get first place, proving he's learned well and worked hard. Don't think it was easy because he started out learning superficially. There are so many students, why didn't others get first place?"
Xu Yuanheng: "Take it slow and persevere. Don't spoil him too much. Only then can he go a long way in the future. Who knows, he might even be able to enter the Imperial College. Next time I come to bring him gifts, don't bring toys. Brush, ink, paper, inkstone, and rare books. Has he learned to play chess and the zither now?"
Lin Qiuran nodded. "However, the teachers at the academy teach in a simple way. I'm thinking of hiring a teacher to teach him for half a day during the monthly holidays."
Choose one of the two to learn, otherwise you will only have two days left, and just learning will take up one day, which is not fun.
Xu Yuanheng nodded, understanding what was going on. "You don't have to see me off. I'm leaving now. I'll come see you next time."
Lin Qiuran nodded slightly and watched Xu Yuanheng leave.
This exam was also taken at the beginning of the month. There were six subjects in total, and Tangyuan got first place in all of them. After that, Lin Qiuran never heard of Tangyuan being beaten again. During that period, when she attended a banquet, her wife asked her how she took care of the children.
Even the most aristocratic and powerful families want their children to succeed, not just be useless playboys. Lin Qiuran was simply saying to be stricter, keep a closer eye on the child, praise the child's character and academic performance, and be more humble in public. It's not right to say that it was all the child's own fault, that they hadn't been disciplined or taught much, and that they were simply naturally intelligent and therefore ranked first.
Wouldn't that make people hate you? And Tangyuan also works hard.
When she attended the banquet, she heard people talking about Jindinglou. She had not specifically promoted it. Later she found out that it was Jiang Sijie who mentioned it.
Jiang Sijie married the grandson of the Minister of Revenue. Lin Qiuran saw him twice in the past two months. The capital city is a big city, but also a small city. The person he met in Yu'an was met again in the capital city.
Even if Jiang Sijie didn't say it, Lin Qiuran would always go to Jindinglou, and anyone who noticed would find out that she opened Jindinglou. Some people would also mention the flower viewing banquet at Anyang Marquis Mansion and Dingbei Marquis Mansion that day. There were all kinds of flowers in this season, but it was winter at that time, and the flowers on the plate were really eye-catching.
Anyone who talks to Lin Qiuran always brings up what happened in the past, but no one feels comfortable asking her to host a banquet for them again.
Lin Qiuran gradually established himself in the capital by attending banquets and running his business. Now, when he went out, he could speak the Beijing dialect.
Lin Qiuran calculated that in a few months, he would have been in the capital for a year. He could go back to Yu'an during the Chinese New Year this year or next year to visit his former relatives and neighbors, and to see Manager Shi and the others.
If there is a chance, I will bring Liu to live in the capital for a while.
After the banquet, Lin Qiuran returned to his uncle's mansion. The weather was hot, but better than before. The capital was located in the north, so it was cooler than Yu'an in summer, and there was ice in the mansion.
There is an ice cellar in the Bo Mansion, so there is no shortage of ice. Just put a basin of ice in the ice cellar at night and you can sleep comfortably until morning.
Sun was amazed. "It's really cool. Who came up with this idea? Store ice in the winter and use it in the summer. It's really cool."
It’s not hot at all. In previous years, I had to go under the trees to cool off, but not this year.
After Sun had cooled down for a while, she said, "Alright, alright, it's cool now, take it away. I have a fan, it's not hot anymore, save these for Tangyuan."
Tangyuan went to the academy every day. It was scorching hot there, and there was no ice. Sometimes he even had classes outside, under the scorching sun. He bought two extra sets of clothes for the academy, otherwise he wouldn't have enough to change into.
But it would be nice to go home. He was young and playful, so he didn't even bring an ice basin home. He would play outside after dinner, catching cicadas and fishing, and floating in the lake when it was hot.
Lin Qiuran smiled and said, "If he doesn't need it, you don't have to save it."
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