Chapter 98 General's Spare Ribs

Jiang Yanyi pushed Chu Yan back to their courtyard in the Chu family.

Although they moved out, Mrs. Chu had kept the courtyard for them, so that they would have a place to rest when they came occasionally.

Chu Jiabao came over and gave Jiang Yanyi a purse, which surprised Jiang Yanyi.

Chu Shubao smiled and said, "Every year before the New Year, Jiabao would embroider a purse for the family. Yiyi, you are the first one to receive it this year!"

She glanced at Chu Jiabao and pretended to be jealous: "In previous years, I was the first one to receive it."

Jiang Yanyi smiled and thanked Chu Jiabao when she heard it.

The purse in her hand was exquisitely embroidered, and every stitch and thread was carefully crafted. It was made of Su embroidery, and it was difficult to buy such exquisite ones even on the market.

If a young lady had nothing to worry about and lived a pampered life, she wouldn't spend so much time and effort to please the whole family every year.

Jiang Yanyi thought about the status of the second branch in the Chu family, and more or less guessed why the girl in front of him had to do all these things herself.

Children who are not spoiled are always fragile and sensitive.

Chu Jiabao snorted at Chu Shubao, and wanted to get closer to Jiang Yanyi, but when his eyes touched Chu Yangui who was reading in a wheelchair, he didn't dare to go over.

Chu Yangui's complexion was still pale, but the sickness on his face was much better than before, but his body was too thin, and the clothes that originally fit him still looked a little loose on him.

He noticed Chu Jiabao's little movement, but said nothing.

Chu Jiabao said to Chu Shubao, "Big sister, if you didn't take me with you to rub rouge, I would have to embroider your purse last this year."

She glanced at Jiang Yanyi, pinched the corner of her clothes and said awkwardly, "Second sister, I heard that you bought the teahouse in Ruyifang, and I want to do business with you in the future."

Second Master Chu himself is useless, and her mother is divorced and can't plan for her. Second Master Chu has no male offspring, so it's only a matter of time before he remarries in the future. Second Master Chu often gets angry with her because of her mother's affairs. By then, when she has a stepmother, it won't be long before her biological father becomes her stepfather.

Chu Jiabao also thought that she would be a well-behaved young lady in Xizhou, and when she was old enough, her family would help her find a marriage.

But seeing that Chu Shubao, as the eldest daughter of the Chu family, could ignore the opinions of outsiders and follow Jiang Yanyi to do business, and even made a lot of money, she couldn't help but have some thoughts.

Before a woman gets married, she competes with her father, and after she gets married, she competes with her husband, but if she doesn't have a strong father or a promising husband, will she die in this life?

Chu Jiabao is the most active one among the sisters of the Chu family. Because she has received little care since she was a child, everything she does is purposeful. Even if her mother had a quarrel with Liu before, she would risk being blamed and scolded by her mother, but she still wanted to play with Chu Shubao and the others.

Because Old Madam Chu hopes to see her children and grandchildren get along well, she can win Old Madam Chu's favor by doing this.

Chu Shubao and her sister are indeed simple-minded. As the eldest sister, Chu Shubao is sometimes a little careless, but she and Chu Huibao have always treated each other equally. She approached them with a purpose at first, but now she has become open-hearted to Chu Shubao and her sister.

Because of her mother, Chu Jiabao also disliked Jiang Yanyi and her brother at first.

But now, perhaps because they are in the same boat, she sometimes cries at night when she thinks of her mother. Jiang Yanyi and her friends will never see their mother again in this life, which will probably only make them more painful.

Seeing that Jiang Yanyi did not have a hard time after moving out with Chu Yangui, but instead slowly expanded the business by himself, she really admired Jiang Yanyi and wanted to live a promising life like Jiang Yanyi.

Jiang Yanyi knows Chu Shubao better than the other three sisters of the Chu family. She didn't know how to respond to Chu Jiabao's sudden request.

Chu Shubao seems careless on weekdays, but she knows her sisters' personalities very well. She half-jokingly said to Chu Jiabao, "Ayi runs a restaurant. Jiabao, are you going to help wash the dishes? You should come with me to make Rouge. Look, the second purse has to be embroidered by me!"

Chu Huibao was spoiled when she grew up, but she didn't have the high expectations placed on her as the eldest daughter in the family. She lived a more relaxed life than Chu Shubao and was pure in nature. , didn't hear anything from the elder sister's words, only remembered the purse, and immediately shouted: "The third one is for Huibao!"

Chu Jiabao rubbed the little tuft on Chu Huibao's head, "Okay, okay, the third one is for you."

She also knew that her words were too abrupt, and explained to Jiang Yanyi: "The eldest sister can sell rouge in the second sister's antique soup shop, and I think I can also go there to sell pearl hairpins and jewelry."

The speaker is unintentional, but the listener is intentional.

Jiang Yanyi thought about the layout of the future business district, and then thought about the structure of the teahouse. She might be able to create an ancient business district.

The teahouse is a rare five-story building in Xizhou City. It was built in the shape of a hexagonal pagoda. The wooden staircase is spiral upward. There is also an indoor pool in the center of the lobby on the ground floor, and a stage is set on the pool. It is said that this building was built by a rebel king in the previous dynasty for his own enjoyment.

When the Hu family was still in power, this teahouse was also equivalent to a higher-class brothel, with courtesans and prostitutes often performing on the stage.

Now that this building has fallen into the hands of Jiang Yanyi, she is still counting on doing more business with female customers, so naturally she will not hire courtesans and prostitutes.

Jiang Yanyi thought that the first and second floors would be dedicated to food, the third floor would sell rouge and powder, clothes and jewelry that women like, and the fourth floor would sell the four treasures of the study and folding fans commonly used by men and other elegant items. When

the reputation is big, some idle land that cannot be fully used can be rented out, which can not only earn rent, but also gain fame and attract business.

With a rough calculation in mind, Jiang Yanyi said to Chu Jiabao, "If you sell jewelry, you will need a lot of capital."

It would be fine if you only sold ordinary pearls, but if you sold those gold, silver and jade hairpins, you would not dare to do this business without several thousand taels of silver. But if you don't sell hairpins made of real gold and silver, ordinary pearl hairpins covered with iron and copper may not be appreciated by the girls from wealthy families.

Chu Jiabao only had an idea in mind. She had never done business before, and had never calculated the costs. After hearing what Jiang Yanyi said, she couldn't help feeling a little frustrated: "I thought too simply."

Chu Shubao said: "Ayi has moved to a bigger place, and my rouge business has also improved. I'm in need of manpower. Just because you don't want to embroider the second purse for me, you don't want to do the rouge business with me?"

Chu Jiabao knew very well that Chu Shubao said this deliberately so that she would not have the psychological burden.

This seemingly heartless cousin has used all her heart to protect this family of sisters.

She said yes with red eyes.

When Jiang Yanyi was with Chu Shubao, he only thought that she was a heartless girl who could be used as a blanket when the sky fell. But now I feel that this girl is very thoughtful, but she sees things clearly and lives freely.

Her mother, Liu, was a superficial person, but she was rare in her understanding.

A few people chatted in the yard about the decoration of the store after the move. Chu Huibao insisted on eating pickled fish, so Jiang Yanyi went to the kitchen with a smile on her face. The three sisters of the Chu family followed her.

The chef of the Chu family was already cooking. Lamb was stewed in a clay pot. It had been stewed for several hours. The soup was boiled white, and the meat and bones could be separated with a light touch of chopsticks. Now it was simmered on a low fire. Glutinous

rice balls were being fried in a large pot on the stove. The balls were made of fragrant glutinous rice and freshly chopped pork filling. They were coated with egg liquid and flour and put into the pot to drain the oil. They were crispy and golden when picked up, and they were fragrant in the mouth.

Master Dunzi on the chopping board was cutting a roasted chicken with a shiny golden skin...

Chu Huibao's eyes widened as she looked at this and that, wanting to eat everything.

Chu Shubao was helpless, afraid that Chu Huibao would make trouble, so she had to carry her back to the room first.

Jiang Yanyi was also amused when she saw Chu Huibao's tearful face when she was dragged away by her sister.

She told the chef that she wanted to make pickled fish, and the chef specially prepared a pot for her to stir.

Jiang Yanyi had made pickled fish many times before, and she was very familiar with it and made a big pot full of it. Her cooking skills were so experienced that even the chef of the Chu family felt ashamed.

Jiang Yanyi saw the ribs soaking in the wooden basin nearby and asked, "What are you going to cook with these ribs?"

The chef said, "To answer the second lady's question, we were going to make steamed ribs with rice flour, but the shopping boy came back late and was afraid that we would miss dinner, so we decided to make soup with ginseng."

We already had mutton soup, so it would be too heavy to have another rib soup.

Jiang Yanyi picked up a rib and looked at it. The bones were small and the meat was firm. She said, "It's a pity to make soup with such good ribs. Let's make it into general ribs."

The chef had never heard of this dish, so Jiang Yanyi had to cook it herself.

The ribs had already bled out a lot of blood from being soaked in cold water, but Jiang Yanyi still blanched the ribs with a mixture of cooking wine and ginger. At this time, the fishy smell of the ribs had been almost gone.

Drain the oil in the pot, add scallions and ginger when it is 60% hot, stir-fry until fragrant, add dogwood sauce and stir-fry until evenly mixed, then pour in cooking wine, add water to the pot, and pour in red yeast rice water to adjust the color.

Red yeast rice has been the best natural dye for cooking since ancient times. The red yeast rice wine sold in the market is brewed with red yeast rice.

After the red yeast rice water is put into the pot, the color of the whole pot of soup becomes bright red and pleasant. Jiang Yanyi adds some sugar to enhance the flavor and increase the layered taste, and adds some soy sauce to season.

After the water boils, put the blanched ribs into the pot, add bay leaves, cinnamon, and star anise and simmer over low heat.

The meaty aroma of the ribs is more intense under the action of spices, and the red yeast rice is naturally colored. The stewed ribs are bright red and look very beautiful.

After the ribs are stewed until they are soft, remove them from the pan. If you want to keep it simple, you can just serve them on a plate.

But to make the General's Ribs, there is a frying step.

Jiang Yanyi asked the kitchen servant to bring her some sweet potato starch, coated the cooked ribs with the starch, and poured a large amount of oil into the pan. When the oil temperature came up, she fried them until the shell was crispy and then took them out. She also fried a small plate of peanuts.

Only a small amount of oil was left in the pan, and a handful of chopped green onions were thrown into the pan and stir-fried. Then, add the dogwood and green peppercorns and stir-fry until fragrant.

Then, pour the fried ribs and peanuts into the pan and stir-fry until they are well-flavored before serving. If there are fried small twists, you can also add some small twists to the ribs at the last step. Unfortunately, there was no time, so Jiang Yanyi did not make twists.

The spare ribs were taken out of the pot just in time for dinner.

Marquis Xing'an came to Xizhou, and Chu Changping, now a general under Feng Shuo, naturally had to receive Marquis Xing'an together, so he didn't come back for lunch.

The family still had lunch in the courtyard of the two elders of the Chu family.

During the meal, Chu Huibao saw that the pickled fish she had been thinking about was finally available, and her eyes almost lit up. After picking up her chopsticks, she almost raised her head to pick up the fish and buried her head in eating.

Old Madam Chu deliberately asked Jiang Yanyi and his sister to sit next to her. It was probably because she saw that the two grandsons were cold to them when they paid their respects earlier, and she wanted the grandsons and granddaughters-in-law to understand how much she valued Jiang Yanyi and his sister.

Jiang Yanyi picked up a piece of spare ribs for Old Madam Chu.

Chu Chengmao saw the lake green purse hanging around Jiang Yanyi's waist, and several sisters also rushed to pick up food for her. Even Chu Huibao, the foodie, reluctantly put the fish fillet she had just picked up into Jiang Yanyi's bowl.

On the other hand, he, who used to be the most popular among the little guys, was ignored. Chu Chengmao felt more and more upset. Seeing Jiang Yanyi pick up ribs for Madam Chu, he said, "Grandma is old and has bad teeth. It's hard for her to eat these fried things."

Jiang Yanyi heard that he was unhappy, but she thought he was worried about Madam Chu, and said, "These ribs were stewed until soft before frying, so they are not hard to eat."

At this time, Madam Chu had already bitten into the ribs, which were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Cornus officinalis and Sichuan peppercorns were added during the stir-frying process. The golden skin had a spicy taste, which was just what Old Lady Chu wanted. The meat inside came out with a light touch of the teeth. The meat was tender, and the aroma of the spices during the stewing process was all cooked into the meat, making it extremely fragrant.

Old Lady Chu smiled and said to Chu Chengmao, "Grandma is greedy, but you can still bite it!"

She turned around and picked up another piece for Old Lady Chu, "This rib is delicious, old man, you should try it too."

Chu Chengmao thought that Old Lady Chu deliberately let Jiang Yanyi step down. He knew that his grandmother favored his aunt's two children, so he didn't say anything and just picked up a piece of ribs to eat.

After biting open the crispy outer shell, Chu Chengmao found that the meat inside was indeed as soft and tender as Madam Chu said. He was stunned.

He took another piece and praised, "The chef in our house is good at cooking."

Chu Huibao made a face at him, "These ribs and pickled fish are made by my second sister, not the kitchen staff."

Chu Chengmao just put the ribs he picked up in front of his mouth, and for a moment he didn't know whether to eat it or not.

He hesitated for a while, but finally opened his mouth and ate it. However, he didn't touch the ribs and pickled fish again, although he thought these two dishes were the most delicious.

Chu Huibao found that he didn't compete with her for the pickled fish, and she took the initiative to give him a piece: "Why don't you eat fish, second brother?"

Facing the gazes of everyone at the table, Chu Chengmao said with a guilty conscience: "I don't like fish."

Chu Huibao was full of suspicion, because he had just competed with her for

food. Chu Shubao secretly pinched Chu Huibao's hand. Chu Huibao knew that her sister meant for her to stop talking nonsense, so she just buried her head in eating.

Although Chu Chengmao didn't stretch his chopsticks to the two dishes, the fragrance still penetrated his nostrils. He glanced at Jiang Yanyi, who was sitting next to Mrs. Chu and eating politely, and endured it!

He ate slowly, because according to the Chu family's eating habits, there would definitely be leftovers at the end.

But several pairs of chopsticks went in and out of the spare ribs plate and the sauerkraut fish soup pot, and the spare ribs were gone at a speed visible to the naked eye.

A crack appeared in Chu Chengmao's heart.

It's okay, there's still sauerkraut fish.

He comforted himself.

Chu Huibao took a spoon and scooped in the sauerkraut fish soup pot. After scooping away the last piece of fish meat, he scooped twice more to make sure there was no meat. Then he said with some disappointment: "There's no fish..."

Chu Chengmao: "..."

The crack in the word "forbearance" became even bigger.

It's okay, at worst he can just use the soup to soak some rice.

Chu Chengmao ate till the very end. Before leaving the table, Mrs. Chu asked him concernedly, "Brother Mao, didn't you have a good meal outside?"

Look how hungry the child is. How many bowls of rice have been added?

Chu Chengmao looked at the pickled fish dish and nodded.

Mrs. Chu told him to eat slowly and ask the kitchen to make more if there was not enough. The old man was a little full after this meal, so Jiang Yanyi and Chu Shubao accompanied him to go for a walk to digest the food.

Everyone left the table one after another. Chu Chengbai still looked haggard after the death of his concubine. His first wife, Mrs. Xue, spoke softly and seemed to be very considerate, but her raised face was a bit mocking.

Mrs. Liu felt sorry for her son and wanted to go to the kitchen to make another soup for Chu Chengbai.

Finally, no one was in the restaurant. Chu Chengmao was about to scoop some pickled fish soup into the bowl with a spoon, when the maids who were cleaning the table suddenly swarmed in.

Chu Chengmao looked unhappy: "What?"

The servant saw that he had put down his chopsticks, thinking that he had finished eating, and pointed at the pickled fish bowl and smiled shyly: "Second Young Master has finished eating, can you give me this bowl of soup as a reward? We all plan to use this soup to soak rice."

Chu Chengmao: "..."

He silently put down the soup spoon: "You can take it away."

It's just a bowl of pickled fish, what's so special about it.

The servant happily retreated with the pickled fish bowl, and the maids began to clean the table.

Chu Chengmao felt depressed.

Damn it, he still wants it!

Feng Mansion.

Today, a banquet was held to entertain the Marquis of Xing'an. The chef of the Feng Mansion also brought out all his skills. Various delicacies were sent to the front hall.

Feng Shuo sat in the main seat. The first person sitting on the left below was the Marquis of Xing'an. Below him were several of the Marquis of Xing'an's trusted generals. On the right were the generals under Feng Shuo, and Chu Changping was already among them.

Lu Linyuan also had a seat for his meritorious service in inciting the Marquis of Xing'an to revolt, but he was ranked last. He was thinner than before, but his face was calm and composed, and he was obviously tempered a lot.

"I have long heard of your reputation, and it is Yang's honor to discuss a great cause with you today." The Marquis of Xing'an was nearly fifty years old and had a beard. Perhaps it was because of the self-cultivation he had done in the past few years. Although he was a military general, he had an elegant demeanor.

He raised his glass to Feng Shuo: "Yang offers a toast to the prince."

"Your Highness is too polite. Danzhou is in trouble thanks to your help." Feng Shuo raised his glass in response.

The strong liquor went down his throat, and there was no taste except a burning pain.

Jiang Yanyi was not in the antique soup shop today. The Chu Mansion was too far away from here, and he could not taste it at all.

"The battle in Danzhou was narrowly won because the emperor did not expect Yuzhou to rebel. When the court mobilized troops, Yuzhou would also be unable to avoid a battle." Xing'an Hou sighed.

On the surface, he was saying that Yuzhou would be in danger, but in fact he was seeking credit from Feng Shuo. This time, the court was caught off guard and Chu Changping and his family broke through the siege. The Yuzhou army played an indispensable role.

Feng Shuo said, "Your Highness can rest assured. Xizhou has 200,000 soldiers stationed there, and it is no problem to send 30,000 to 50,000 to Yuzhou for defense."

Xing'an Marquis has 50,000 troops in his hands. If he sends another 30,000 to 50,000 troops to a small Yuzhou, it will be hard to say whether Yuzhou will be ruled by the Yang or Feng family.

Xing'an Marquis did not expect to run into such a soft thorn.

Since he agreed to form an alliance with Feng Shuo, he would not easily fall out with him. Now he is saying this just to divide more benefits.

Chi Qing is best at playing the black and white cop with Feng Shuo, and he immediately said, "Your Highness, try this roasted suckling pig. It is roasted with wild boars just caught in the mountains. It tastes better than ordinary pork."

Xing'an Marquis picked up his chopsticks and put them down again. He came to Xizhou in person, so it was impossible for him to come just to have a meal with Feng Shuo.

Since Feng Shuo refused to take the hint, he just got straight to the point and said it clearly.

Xing'an Hou said: "Prince, I will not keep you in suspense. I have only one daughter. I have brought Yuzhou to this point only for my daughter's future. Since Prince has not married yet, Yuzhou is willing to form a friendly relationship with Xizhou to form a Qin-Jin alliance."

This meant that Feng Shuo should marry his daughter as his principal wife.