Zhao Xian had not expected that the situation in the Great Northern Dynasty was so complicated. The border was unstable, factional strife was fierce, and there was infighting within the royal family. All these contradictions weakened the strength of the Great Northern Dynasty.
General Lin picked up his teacup, took a sip, and sighed:
"Why did you bring up these things to Young Master Zhao? I am old now. I can neither go to the battlefield nor go to the court. I can only stay here and retire. But I still have a heart to serve my country."
My greatest wish now is to completely defeat the barbarian kingdoms and truly make the Great Northern Dynasty prosperous and powerful.
The two talked for quite a while until a servant came to announce that it was time to eat.
Zhao Xian led the old general to the restaurant, where the food was already prepared and the table was full.
Yang Ruotong was already quite good at cooking. After returning from her parents' home last time, she learned to cook from two of her servants. With the seasonings she bought from the system, her culinary skills were no less than those of the chefs in restaurants.
At this moment, Zhao Xian brought out a wine jar, opened the lid, and a rich aroma of wine wafted out.
General Lin sniffed and immediately became excited:
"This is the taste! I'm going to drink to my heart's content today."
At this moment, Yang Ruotong pulled Lin Xi and Liu Xuan over, and the group sat down at the table.
"Sister-in-law, you're amazing! You made so many delicious dishes all at once. No wonder Young Master Zhao said that everything you can find in restaurants is here. It seems that's absolutely true," Lin Xi said excitedly.
Zhao Xian filled the old general's wine cup to the brim, and poured one for himself as well. The other girls, who did not like drinking alcohol, substituted tea for wine. The group raised their cups and drank them down in one gulp.
The old general complained that the wine cup was too small and wanted to change to a bowl to drink from, but Lin Xi glared at him, and the old general dared not make any further demands.
It seems that General Lin is still a little afraid of his granddaughter. If he starts drinking, he will never stop. With Lin Xi by his side, the old general probably won't dare to drink too much.
Most of the dishes on the table were unfamiliar to the old general and Lin Xi. As they savored the food, Zhao Xian explained them to them.
General Lin couldn't help but sigh, realizing that he had lived so long and still had so many delicious dishes he hadn't tasted.
The meal lasted a long time. With Lin Xi present, the old general couldn't drink much, but he still enjoyed himself.
After the meal, the old general and Lin Xi prepared to leave. Zhao Xian brought out a wine jar filled with five jin of baijiu (Chinese liquor) for the old general to take back.
If it were anything else, the old general would have refused without hesitation, but Zhao Xian gave him fine wine, which he could not refuse.
Lin Xi took out twenty taels of silver to pay Zhao Xian, but Zhao Xian refused to accept it no matter what, so Lin Xi had to give up.
At this time, Yang Ruotong packed some pickled vegetables and preserved eggs for General Lin to take with him. These were excellent snacks to accompany drinks, and General Lin could not refuse them.
After seeing that General Lin and Lin Xi had left, Zhao Xian returned to the restaurant. Although it was past noon, there were still quite a few diners in the restaurant.
Three days have passed, and the restaurant's business is operating normally. The biggest highlight is that business is booming, with room reservations already booked for more than ten days in advance.
Zhao Dani has been working very hard these past few days. Fortunately, Zhao Xian brought a chef to help him. Originally, he was supposed to go back after a while, but now it seems that won't work. He may have to continue working at the restaurant.
The head chef was very happy to accept the offer. If he went back home, he would only be paid the wages of a servant. It was different to be a head chef in a restaurant; the wages would be much higher.
Meanwhile, the processing of kimchi and preserved eggs in the courtyard was proceeding smoothly. Zhao Xian had also resolved the issue of raw materials, which were delivered daily, relieving Liu Xuan of her worries.
Zhao Xian has been in Qing'an Prefecture for five days. With Zhao Cheng and Qin Shiyu at home, he is not worried about anything. He plans to return to Shuixian Village in a couple of days. Before going back, he will visit Prefect Shen at the prefectural government office.
Early that morning, Manager Lu was going to Shuixian Village to buy liquor wholesale. Zhao Xian asked him to bring back two more jars of liquor, as he planned to give two more jars to Prefect Shen.
Since Manager Lu was not here today, Zhao Xian took care of some business at the restaurant. There weren't many customers in the restaurant in the morning, but the kitchen was not easy, and the chefs were all busy.
Zhao Xian went to the kitchen to see what was going on, and tried to make as little noise as possible so as not to disturb them.
They were about to start cooking, and two kitchen helpers were cleaning the stove. The stoves had been burning all day yesterday, and there was a lot of wood ash inside, which needed to be cleaned thoroughly.
After cooling overnight, the temperature of the wood ash dropped, making it the perfect time to clean it up. Several stoves were emptied of a large bucket of wood ash, and the two men carried the bucket outside to dispose of it.
Just then, a chef carrying a basin of lard turned around and, not noticing someone carrying wood ash, bumped into a large wooden barrel.
Because the chef's hands were also covered in lard, the collision caused the pot and lard to fall into the bucket containing wood ash.
The wood ash still retains some warmth, and the lard, having been rendered for a short time, also retains some warmth. When the lard is poured into the wood ash, the entire space is filled with the mixed aroma of wood ash and lard.
The smell was unpleasant and a bit pungent. The sudden situation left everyone dumbfounded. Someone who used to be in charge of the kitchen was about to get angry when he suddenly remembered that he was no longer in charge of the kitchen, so he looked at Zhao Xiaoshan.
The chef was completely dumbfounded. Lard was precious, and this bowl of lard was quite expensive. Due to his carelessness, he had ruined it. If the restaurant asked him to compensate, he would lose half a month's wages.
Everyone else was stunned. Since Zhao Xian happened to be in the kitchen, where he was a partner in the restaurant, everyone turned their attention to him.
Zhao Xian walked over and looked at the situation in the wooden bucket. At this time, the lard had completely dissolved into the wood ash. This situation gave Zhao Xian an idea. Didn't the ancients extract alkali from wood ash, add lard at a specific temperature, and after a certain process, finally make soap?
However, soap did not exist during the Northern Dynasties. People used soapberry to wash things. This stuff could remove dirt, but it had to go through a series of processes before it could be used, and it was very inconvenient to use.
At this point, Zhao Xian had already conceived the idea of making soap. The process of making soap was very simple, but directly pouring lard into wood ash was definitely not going to work, at least not procedurally. However, there were some remedies. Although it couldn't be made into soap, it would certainly be fine for washing hands and kitchen utensils.
It would be a real shame to throw away this mixture. Instead, we could make it into a detergent and use it in the kitchen first to see how it goes.
Everyone held their breath and stared at Zhao Xian, who was staring at the wooden barrel in deep thought, assuming he was considering how to handle the situation.
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