In May, at the beginning of summer, the banyan trees along the street are becoming increasingly lush. Occasionally, pedestrians can be seen resting and enjoying the cool shade under the trees. Diagonally opposite the banyan trees is DouDou Tavern. It's noon now, and customers are coming and going at the tavern's entrance, so business seems to be good.
"Brother Fang, have you eaten yet?" Lu Chaoyang asked Fang Shiming, who was standing under the tree.
Fang Shiming was the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites. He rarely interacted with Lu Chaoyang on a regular basis. The two met at a banquet where they shared similar interests and had a very pleasant conversation.
"I just went out to find food and haven't decided what to eat yet." He was also single, and there was only one old woman in the house who did laundry and cooking. That old woman was tall and strong, and she could wash clothes very cleanly, but her cooking was less than satisfactory.
Eating her cooking every day was tasteless and bland, but thankfully she never asked for wages. She had been working in the manor for a year and had never mentioned raising her pay.
Lu Chaoyang put his arm around his shoulder and said readily, "That's perfect. I'll treat you to barbecue skewers and beer. We'll drink until we're drunk."
Fang Shiming was completely confused. What were barbecue skewers? And what was beer?
In the blink of an eye, they crossed the road and arrived at DouDou's Tavern. The proprietress, Yuan DouDou, saw them and smiled happily.
Fang Shiming had never seen such a beautiful woman, more beautiful than a fairy. She smiled at him, like a crabapple blossoming in spring, passionate and unrestrained yet with a hint of shyness.
"Come on, let me introduce you. This is my friend Yuan Doudou, she is the owner of the tavern, and this is my friend Fang Shiming."
Fang Shiming's face turned red, and he stared blankly, unable to utter a word.
Yuan Doudou suppressed a laugh and greeted him, "Hello, welcome to my shop. Please feel free to order whatever you like."
"What do you mean? You're treating?" Lu Chaoyang pressed.
Yuan Doudou smiled brightly: "Yes, it's my treat, you pay, okay?"
Lu Chaoyang guessed that she wouldn't be so generous; in his memory, Yuan Doudou was a stingy miser.
He came to eat, and not only could he not get a free meal, but he also couldn't get a discount. When it came to beer, others would get a free beer if they drank five, but he had to pay for each beer he drank. He couldn't expect to get any advantage from her.
"You're such a cheapskate." Lu Chaoyang crossed his arms, puffing out his cheeks like a little frog.
Fang Shiming was dumbfounded. Lu Chaoyang was always serious and unsmiling when it came to official business. People had given him the nickname "Ice Face" behind his back, which was a way of complaining about his stern face, as if someone owed him a lot of money. But here, facing a fairy-like girl, he completely changed. His every move became somewhat comical, making people unable to help but laugh.
Yuan Doudou didn't stand on ceremony, rolling her eyes at him, "Lord Lu, it's a small business, please be understanding."
"Okay, give me twenty skewers of mutton and six bottles of beer." Lu Chaoyang was just teasing her. He wouldn't take advantage of Dou Dou. Dou Dou had two children and a heavy financial burden. He was hoping that Dou Dou could earn more money.
Fang Shiming also knew that the chef at Lu Chaoyang's residence was very skilled and could cook all kinds of delicious food. There was no need for him to go out to eat, as the chef might not be as skilled or as hygienic as him.
"Brother Lu, what is this beer?" Fang Shiming asked, puzzled.
Upon hearing this, Lu Chaoyang became interested. When it came to beer, he was the most qualified to speak on the subject. Back when Dou Dou wanted to make beer, she took the production process to a nearby brewery, but the brewers shook their heads and said it was impossible to make.
He went to the tavern for a drink and overheard her chatting with An Rong. He learned that she was developing a new type of beer, a completely new kind with carbonation, but they didn't have the equipment to make beer, so it was impossible to achieve.
Lu Chaoyang suddenly thought of his friend, Su Bing.
From a young age, he loved to study all sorts of strange and wonderful techniques, and invented some things that no one in the world had ever seen before, and no one knew what they were called. Everyone said he was crazy.
Lu Chaoyang sent someone to Kyoto with the blueprints and told him that if he was interested, he should hurry to Ping'an Town.
As expected, Su Bing was overjoyed to see the blueprints and was so excited that she couldn't sleep all night. The next day, she took the blueprints and several of her men to Ping'an Town.
Yuan Doudou was an outsider. When she saw Su Bing, she couldn't help but suspect that Su Bing was also a time traveler. She deliberately used some words from that era, such as cell phones and computers, but the other party seemed confused and ignorant.
Upon hearing about these unfamiliar things, Su Bing kept asking Yuan Doudou what they were, how to make them, and if she could draw a blueprint for him.
Yuan Doudou was so annoyed that she could only lie to him, saying that those were all things she dreamed about, and that she couldn't remember what they looked like.
Su Bingxin was unwilling, but he had no choice but to give up. He focused on making the tools needed to make beer. In less than half a month, all the equipment was ready. Yuan Doudou was amazed by his speed. This is the legendary Chinese speed.
It must be admitted that the wisdom of the ancients was evident; with just a few lines of text and a rough blueprint, Su Bing was able to replicate the appearance of modern equipment.
Compared to Li Dahai, Su Bing is a craftsman of the same caliber as Lu Ban.
"Look at this color, golden and clear. And look at this foam, doesn't it look like a layer of snowflakes?" Lu Chaoyang proudly introduced the beer. "Do you know what it's called?"
"Beer?" Fang Shiming was unsure, but Lu Chaoyang had just mentioned many times that this kind of drink was called beer.
Lu Chaoyang feigned mystery: "No, no."
"What is that?" Fang Shiming was also confused.
“This wine is called Snowflake.” Lu Chaoyang shook his head, looking very serious.
"The name is nice, quite evocative," Fang Shiming praised.
“It’s not just the imagery, it’s also very realistic.” Lu Chaoyang became more and more excited as he spoke. “Do you know who came up with this name?”
Fang Shiming watched with great interest as Lu Chaoyang shook his head, as if a long tail was sticking up behind him.
"Could it be that Brother Lu started this?" Fang Shiming thought he was right this time.
Lu Chaoyang said smugly, "No, no."
"This name was given by DouDou. What do you think? Isn't it amazing?"
I just want to ask everyone in the world, who could have thought of beer, and who could have given beer such a fitting name? Only Yuan Doudou.
Yuan Doudou, standing to the side, had black lines on her forehead. Couldn't Lu Chaoyang be a little more low-key? She was just taking advantage of being a transmigrator to plagiarize other people's work, which was not a respectable thing.
But she couldn't admit to plagiarism because she didn't know exactly where the plagiarism occurred.
In the end, he could only make up a story, saying that he had met a master on the mountain who gave him blueprints and told him the specific process, and then disappeared.
Lu Chaoyang once thought that this was just a story made up by Yuan Doudou, and that she was just trying to hide her strength.
Fang Shiming had never seen Lu Chaoyang so excited before. Could it be that he liked Yuan Doudou?
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