next day
Jiang Yuwei got up early and tidied herself up. Ning Huaizhi heard the commotion outside and got up as well. Jiang Yuwei smiled when she saw this:
Did I wake you up? Nothing's going on at home today, why didn't you sleep a little longer?
Ning Huaizhi said with a smile while washing his face:
"I'll be taking you there in an oxcart today."
Jiang Yuwei realized she didn't know how to drive an oxcart, so she kept quiet. Right now, she really needed Ning Huaizhi to take her there. She wasn't comfortable leaving Ning Wan at home alone, so she decided to bring her along.
After the family of three finished packing and locked the door, they drove the oxcart to town.
Upon arriving at South Street, sure enough, the first house at the street entrance was the very grand Xu Mansion. The servant at the gate greeted Jiang Yuwei and said:
"Manager Zhang only sent me to pick you up; no one else is allowed to enter the mansion."
Jiang Yuwei nodded and then said to Ning Huaizhi:
"Huaizhi, you and Wan'er wait for me outside. I'll come out when I'm done. If you're bored, you can go for a stroll in town."
Ning Huaizhi nodded and waved for her to go inside quickly.
Jiang Yuwei followed them into the mansion and was immediately shocked by the luxurious interior decoration of the Xu family. This was truly a grand and wealthy family. The scenery in the courtyard was perfectly matched. Just maintaining the flowers and plants in the courtyard must cost a lot of money every month. As Jiang Yuwei was silently marveling at this, she was led to the kitchen by a servant.
"Madam Jiang, this is the kitchen. Go in and prepare."
Jiang Yuwei nodded her thanks to the servant and then went into the kitchen.
A plump old woman was washing pots when she saw a stranger enter the kitchen; her expression immediately changed.
"Hey, hey, whose maid are you? How dare you wander into your master's kitchen?"
Upon seeing this, Jiang Yuwei quickly smiled and bowed, saying:
"Auntie, my name is Jiang Yuwei, and I'm the cook that Manager Zhang invited today."
The maid who was washing vegetables nearby nodded upon hearing this and said:
"Old Lady Li, don't frighten her. Didn't Steward Zhang say yesterday that he'd hired a chef to cook for the household? Have you forgotten?"
The maid got up and vigorously shook the water droplets off the vegetables. Whether she couldn't control her strength or did it on purpose, all the water droplets that were shaken off landed on Granny Li.
Upon seeing this, the maidservant quickly covered her mouth and said in a sarcastic tone:
"Oh, I didn't mean it, Granny Li. I was just excited to see the new head chef. I advise you to be nicer to her. Maybe she'll be in charge of the Xu family's kitchen from now on. It's also your son's fault for not being a good cook. The masters in the house are tired of the food. He doesn't know how to change things up. He can only make a few dishes to fool people. I think Steward Zhang has been wanting to replace him for a long time!"
Old Lady Li, already irritated from being soaked, became even angrier upon hearing Sun Zhaodi's words about her son. She scooped up a ladle of dishwater and splashed it on Liu Zhaodi, angrily shouting:
"You little brat, if you dare say another bad word about my son, I'll tear your mouth apart! Jiang Yuwei hasn't even started as a chef yet, and you're already licking her boots?"
Sun Zhaodi didn't expect Granny Li to splash her with dishwater. Not one to back down, she rushed over and tried to pull Granny Li's hair.
Jiang Yuwei stared in disbelief at the chaotic scene before her. Just as she was hesitating whether to step forward and break up the fight, Steward Zhang arrived with several servants.
Seeing that a fight had broken out in the kitchen, he rushed forward and shouted:
"Stop it, all of you! If you don't want to stay in the Xu household anymore, I'll ask Madam to sell you all to slave traders!"
Upon hearing this, Sun Zhaodi quickly released her grip on Granny Li's hand and smiled at Steward Zhang:
"Manager Zhang, please don't get angry. I didn't fight with Granny Li. We didn't fight. Everyone, please disperse."
Manager Zhang frowned and said in a deep voice when he saw that Sun Zhaodi was soaked to the bone:
"Look at you, what kind of behavior is this? We have important guests coming to our mansion today, so hurry up and change your clothes and get to work."
Upon hearing this, Sun Zhaodi quickly nodded and withdrew.
Manager Zhang glared at Granny Li, who was standing to the side with her head down, and said angrily:
"And you, at your age, are still fighting with a little girl! You'd better behave yourselves today! If you dare to disturb our distinguished guest, you can forget about staying at the Xu residence!"
Having said that, he ignored Granny Li and smiled directly at Jiang Yuwei, saying:
"Yuwei, please excuse my poor appearance. I've left a stove for you, so you can go and cook. If you need anything, just ask Granny Li. We have all the ingredients we need. When Sun Zhaodi comes out in a bit, have her help you. Today, you and the cooks in the manor will each prepare ten dishes, is that alright?"
Jiang Yuwei smiled and nodded, saying:
"no problem."
Jiang Yuwei had already planned out the menu for today, and the crayfish had been washed beforehand. Seeing that time was tight and Sun Zhaodi was not someone she could rely on, Jiang Yuwei rolled up her sleeves and started cooking the crayfish as soon as she entered the kitchen.
At this moment, Li Pozi's son, Li Hu, also entered the kitchen. Seeing Jiang Yuwei busy by herself, he glanced at her disdainfully and complained to Li Pozi:
"Mother, look at this! These days, anything can get into the Xu family's kitchen!"
Seeing this, Granny Li glanced at Jiang Yuwei sideways and nodded, saying:
"Yes, son, let's hurry up and cook. We shouldn't delay the master's meal. We don't even know if the food made by others will be palatable!"
Jiang Yuwei was too busy to pay attention to the troublesome mother and son. She was only there to cook a meal and wasn't going to work as a chef at the Xu residence. Let them say what they wanted. If they really angered her, she certainly wouldn't let them off the hook.
Jiang Yuwei prepared the base sauce and put the lobsters into the pot. Just then, Sun Zhaodi slowly walked out. Jiang Yuwei said directly to her:
"Manager Zhang said to come and help me. We're pressed for time, so you have to do whatever I say!"
Sun Zhaodi was about to hide in the back and slack off, but when she saw Jiang Yuwei say this, she didn't dare to argue and just nodded impatiently.
Jiang Yuwei asked Sun Zhaodi to wash the bean sprouts and greens, soak the wood ear mushrooms, and then threw her a piece of tripe to wash it several times with flour.
Jiang Yuwei selected a piece of pork tenderloin, sliced it, and marinated it with salt. She also mixed some minced meat with chives, cut the eggplant into large slices, and split them in half to make fried eggplant fritters. She then dipped the stuffed eggplant fritters in batter and fried them in oil at 80% temperature. Soon, a whole plateful of fritters was ready.
Li Hu frowned as he smelled the aroma of the food wafting from Jiang Yuwei's kitchen. He gestured to Granny Li to come and take a look. Granny Li understood and quickly put down the vegetables she was picking. She then sneakily squeezed into the kitchen with her small, beady eyes darting around.
Seeing this, Sun Zhaodi, who was impatiently washing the tripe, squeezed hard on Granny Li and shouted in a shrill voice:
"Hey, what are you doing here? Don't you know your own size? The aisle in here is so narrow, why do you have to squeeze in like this? Are you trying to sneak in and learn the new chef's cooking skills?"
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