Chapter 91
Gu Xinxin paid the innkeepers and asked them to go buy the fish. After all, they were in the business, so where could they buy the best and freshest fish? They were definitely better than Gu Xinxin, an outsider. Besides, they had kitchen helpers, so as long as Gu Xinxin paid them, she wouldn't have to do anything like killing and scaling the fish.
She is only responsible for preparing the seasonings for the fish, including spicy, numbing, hot and sour, and five-spice. In addition to the fish skin, grilled fish fillets, and fish jelly mentioned earlier, she also plans to make charcoal-grilled yellow croaker and pan-fried fish fillets.
After all the seasonings were ready, Gu Xinxin took a look around and suddenly felt that the taste was too strong. They were all heavy-flavored. Although the five-spice dish did not contain chili peppers, it was actually also heavy-flavored. It was just that the seasoning was well made, and the taste was neutral and not so prominent, but it definitely tasted delicious.
Anything that tastes delicious is most likely to be strongly flavored, with a lot of oil and salt. You will definitely have to drink water non-stop after you finish eating it.
After thinking about it, she simply made a few lighter flavors. The fish balls only needed to be boiled and could be eaten dry later. Then she made a few pieces of fish tofu, which could be boiled in the fish soup pot and still tasted delicious.
She was busy all afternoon and was so tired that her back and waist ached.
Gu Daniu was also helping in the kitchen, and he kept asking, "Are you telling the truth? Don't let them not show up, or our ten taels of silver will be wasted."
The fish cost five taels of silver, and the seasonings three taels—seasonings are always the most expensive. Sichuan and numbing peppercorns are rare locally and are imported from other places, so they're also expensive at the grocery store. The remaining two taels were for labor and renting the inn's kitchen.
Of course, we didn’t use their main kitchen, as the inn still had to do business, so we used the kitchen in their backyard.
Gu Xinxin said while busying herself: "Forget it if you don't come. We can eat it ourselves or take it away. The weather is getting cold and this thing can be kept. We can eat it on the way back."
Gu Daniu gritted his teeth in pain: "What kind of family is this? They eat ten taels of silver!"
Ten taels of silver are enough to buy pigs for two days, and they are not enough to eat them all in a month.
Without waiting for Gu Xinxin to say anything, Gu Daniu asked again, "What if he doesn't like it? You didn't sign a written agreement with him. We made it, and he has to pay for it whether he likes it or not."
Gu Xinxin was speechless for a moment before she said, "Even if you don't like the food, just pay for it."
Master Cheng was a man of conscience and wouldn't embezzle her money. Of course, if he really didn't give her money, then she'd be at a disadvantage. As the saying goes, the food wasn't wasted, and she could easily take it home to eat on the way.
If it really doesn't work, just sell the recipe.
She just saw the shopkeeper's eyes light up.
Gu Xinxin was impatient with Gu Daniu's chatter and sent him to wait at the door. "You should know Cheng Shansong? Don't you? Never mind. There are two of them, one tall and big, the other... very thin. I guess they have trouble walking. They might have been pushed or carried here."
Gu Daniu was very willing to do this job, at least he didn't have to kill fish and make fire here.
Cheng Shansong and Master Chen arrived not too late, but not too early either. It was already getting dark when they arrived. Gu Daniu recognized them immediately, because Master Chen's thinness was something no one else could imitate. He only needed to ask a question before he was sure that this was the person he was waiting for.
After bringing the person in, he hurried to the back to call Gu Xinxin.
Then, I helped Gu Xinxin bring out the prepared meal. It was called a fish feast, but that didn't mean it had to be fish only; some side dishes were also allowed. Pan-fried dried fish was paired with white tofu, while pork floss was definitely served with white porridge. Fish balls and fish tofu were cooked with cabbage in a bowl of soup.
The rest of the plating is also matched with other things.
Cheng Shansong had a great appetite. He smiled as he smelled the food and said, "It makes my mouth water. What about you?"
This question was addressed to Master Chen who was standing next to him. Master Chen also smiled and said, "It really tastes good. I actually have a rare urge to try it."
But the impulse was just an impulse. After taking two bites of each dish, Master Chen put down his chopsticks, frowned, and covered his stomach: "I feel like I want to eat, but I don't want to eat at the same time."
He was silent for a moment. This feeling was all too familiar to him. He'd always felt this way whenever he encountered something delicious in the past two years. If he encountered something unpalatable, it was even simpler. He wouldn't even feel like eating it anymore. He simply didn't want to eat it.
Gu Xinxin was a little disappointed, but Master Chen quickly cheered up: "I should thank Miss Gu. Actually, I haven't had the urge to eat for a long time. After all, what I see on weekdays are what I eat regularly."
No matter how rich the Chen family is, it is impossible for them to search all over the world for food that he has not eaten - besides, he is a foodie himself, and there is nothing he has not eaten in the surrounding area, not to mention the capital.
Because he had eaten it before and knew the taste the moment he saw it, he was waiting in his heart and had no desire to eat it. But what Gu Xinxin prepared today were all things he had never eaten before. Since he had never eaten them before, he would definitely want to try them. This is human nature.
He took out his purse and handed it to Gu Xinxin, feeling a little embarrassed: "You've worked so hard for nothing."
Gu Xinxin blinked and took the purse without hesitation: "It's not in vain. At least I made some money. I have to thank Master Chen for his kindness."
After hesitating for a moment, she said, "Mr. Chen, I've actually heard of this situation before. The reason you want to eat but don't want to eat is most likely because you have worms in your stomach. These worms are mostly found in raw food, just like they can grow in vegetables and meat, but sometimes people can't see them and mistakenly think they don't exist..."
Young Master Chen was horrified: "Bugs? There are bugs in my stomach?"
Gu Xinxin quickly said, "Don't be afraid, Mr. Chen. Bugs don't eat people..."
She herself didn't believe this, because worms really do eat people. Otherwise, why would a person lose their appetite, become more susceptible to illness, and experience all sorts of symptoms if they had worms in their stomach?
In short, having bugs in the stomach is not a good thing.
Cheng Shansong pressed on, "What if there are bugs?"
Gu Xinxin was embarrassed: "I don't know. Perhaps Mr. Chen can ask the doctor. Before, the doctor didn't know what the condition was, so he couldn't diagnose or treat it, but now he knows, he should be able to find a targeted treatment."
Cheng Shansong looked at Master Chen and said, "Why don't we go back and ask the doctor to take a look?"
Gu Xinxin is not a doctor either.
Young Master Chen nodded and looked at Gu Xinxin again: "Thank you Miss Gu for your advice. If it's true... I will definitely reward you handsomely later."
Gu Xinxin waved her hand, and seeing that Cheng Shansong had stopped eating, she smiled and said, "It's getting late, so I won't keep you two any longer."
Cheng Shansong was responsible for sending Mr. Chen back.
Gu Xinxin returned to the house and opened her purse. Gu Daniu followed closely behind her: "How much?"
Gu Xinxin's mouth twitched, but after a pause, she still took it out in front of him: "It's a silver note, one hundred taels."
After all, they were a wealthy family. They spent a hundred taels at a time. Gu Xinxin had worked hard for half a year and had only saved up a hundred taels. Moreover, she spent money quickly. After getting a hundred taels, she had almost spent it all.
Gu Xinxin stuffed the banknote back and asked Gu Daniu, "How about buying a house in the county town? Or one in the prefectural capital? If I buy one in the prefectural capital, I'll have to save up for another two years."
Gu Daniu immediately said, "Of course I have to buy in the county town. I can save the rent first. As for the prefectural city... I'll buy it when I make more money and save enough. Anyway, this business can't be done in the prefectural city now."
A delivery every five days would be enough, so there's no need to spend extra money on a house. Besides, where would I put my workshop after buying a house? Wouldn't I still have to deliver goods from the village?
"Besides, Xiang Rong and Wenshu might be able to pass the exam and become students. Then they can go to school in the county town." Gu Daniu said. Gu Xinxin was speechless for a moment: "Can't you be more promising and send them to the provincial capital to study?"
The school in the county town was for students who were called "tongsheng" (literally "boys"). If they passed the examination and performed well, they could become "scholars" and stay in the prefecture to study for free. If their grades were not so good, they would return to the county town.
As for the students on government academy, they have always been the best among the scholars.
Gu Daniu didn't dare to think about it. After all, there were hundreds of students taking the exam in a county, and in a prefecture... there would be seven or eight hundred people competing for those few places for government stipend students. Gu Xiangrong and Gu Wenshu had never shown any talent for studying since childhood.
Even if the two of them are hardworking enough now, to be honest, to be able to reach the top, it is not enough to just be hardworking, you also need talent.
Otherwise, since they are all archery, why can Gu Daniu only be a hunter, while the famous sharpshooter can become a general in the military camp?
But he only thought about this in his mind. It was obvious that Gu Xinxin had great confidence in her brother. If he poured cold water on her, Gu Xinxin might get unhappy and spend the money out of spite.
The father and daughter were talking when there was a knock on the door. The innkeeper asked, "Sir, are you ready for bed?"
Gu Xinxin glanced at Gu Daniu, who frowned but still stood up and opened the door. The shopkeeper smiled as he held a tray and said, "I made some Tremella soup. Would you like a bowl, sir? It's free. It's a little gift from me."
Not asking for money meant there were other things going on. Although Gu Daniu couldn't read or count, he was smart enough, so he asked, "Boss, do you have anything to say?"
The shopkeeper took a look inside and asked: "Is Miss Gu here? The dishes that Miss Gu prepared in the kitchen today..."
Gu Xinxin asked Gu Daniu to invite the person in: "Boss, do you want the recipe? But the boss is a little late. I need to discuss the recipe with Master Chen."
The shopkeeper suddenly felt a little uncomfortable: "Mr. Chen? Did Mr. Chen ask for Miss Gu's prescription?"
Gu Daniu looked at Gu Xinxin in surprise. When did this happen? But Gu Daniu was not stupid. He did not say anything at this moment. It would not be good for him to expose Gu Xinxin.
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