Chapter 198 A Year's Plan Begins with Spring
"Old man! Thank you so much!" Su Ying thanked the old man running the Hu Bing stall.
"You're welcome! It's not easy to run a small business!" The old man smiled bitterly.
Look at other people, their business is booming, while mine is deserted and even worse than before.
Alas, comparing people will make you die, and comparing goods will make you throw them away!
"Uncle, how many years have you been running the Hu Bing business?" Su Ying was free to chat now.
"It's been five or six years, alas!" The old man was dejected and didn't want to talk.
"Uncle, I have a new food here. Are you interested in trying it?" Su Ying could see that the old man was unhappy that she was taking away his business.
"New food?" The old man looked at Su Ying in surprise.
"Yes, we have been eating Hubing for so many years, and it is Chinese New Year, so why not make some new food to change the taste." Su Ying shared her business experience.
"Aying!" Niu Er's wife gently pulled Su Ying.
How can you just give away your money-making methods? That's all money!
"It's okay!" Su Ying smiled at Niu Er's wife. She had to be grateful for the help she received.
"What new food?" asked the old man.
"Rice cake!" Su Ying said with a smile, "It's soft and fluffy, sweet and sour, fragrant and soft, suitable for all ages."
"Really?" The old man was excited. "Girl, can you tell me about it? I'll go back and give it a try."
"Soak the rice for two or three hours, until the grains are soft when squeezed with your hands. Grind it into a paste, mix it with an appropriate amount of water, sugar or honey, and let it ferment. Steam it in a steamer for 15 minutes until it is cooked."
Su Ying explained the general method, "You can try making a small amount, getting the right amount and the right heat. If you have enough time, you can dye the center red with vegetable juice for a beautiful color."
Rice cake is not that difficult to make. It is a delicacy that Su Ying, a modern-day woman, ate in her childhood.
It is not common in normal times and can only be eaten during festivals.
"Ah, ah! I'll go back and try making some." The old man with the Hu Bing said as he began to pack up his stall. "Here, girl, take these Hu Bing and eat them!"
"Oh, old man, keep it for yourself! We're not hungry!" Su Ying declined. "There will be a lot of people in the afternoon, and the Hu pancakes will be sold out in no time."
"Take it. It's a matter of reciprocity. I don't have much to thank you for right now. A few Hu Bing are nothing." The old man at the Hu Bing stall said enthusiastically.
Both stalls were closed, leaving a large space empty, and someone immediately set up their stall with baskets.
Before leaving, I made an appointment with the old man Hu Bing to set up a stall together tomorrow.
"Second uncle, third uncle, I'm going to the county government office to take a look." Su Ying did not go home.
"Let's go!" Su Lao'er and Su Laosan loaded all the tools onto the ox cart and went back through the alley with Niu Er's wife.
Su Ying came to Fulu Lane and knocked on the corner door.
The door opened quickly, and the doorman Lai Ada's smile froze when he saw Su Ying.
There were many guests visiting during the New Year, and the masters were all at home, so Lai Ada was in high spirits and did not dare to slack off.
"What's the matter, girl?" Lai Ada felt that the girl looked familiar, and judging by her clothes, she was poor. He guessed that she was a distant relative of the yamen runner or servant.
"I'm looking for Lord Hu! Please let him pass on the message, uncle." Su Ying was not surprised that the doorman had such a bad memory.
There are so many people coming in and out of the Hu family. The doorman has always been snobbish and looks down on people. How could he remember an insignificant little girl?
Lai Ada looked at Su Ying calmly without saying a word.
Su Ying suddenly realized and handed over a handful of money.
Lai Ada took it and asked, "What do you want to see you, sir?"
"I'm looking for Aye." Su Ying felt a little powerless.
The King of Hell is easy to send away, but the little ghosts are difficult to deal with. This kind of doorman is the most difficult to deal with and you can't offend him, otherwise you won't be able to get in at all.
If you complain to the owner, he will lose face, and sometimes he needs this kind of doorman to keep away people he doesn't want to see.
"Who is your Aye?" Lai Ada was even more confused.
The more I look at this girl, the more familiar she looks. Who is she? Why did she come here looking for her father?
"Has anyone sent food to Lord Hu before?" Su Ying asked in a different way.
"Delivering food?" Lai Ada paused. "You, you came here with Shopkeeper Zhu!"
Lai Ada finally remembered and hurriedly bowed and said, "Please come in, please come in!"
In the morning, Su Bucheng delivered food, and he had done it before. He took the food but did not let anyone in.
After it was sent into the inner house, Lord Hu came in person and asked where the person who delivered the food was.
They chased Su Bucheng for a long distance before finally catching up with him, and respectfully invited him back home.
County Magistrate Hu was busy talking to Su Bucheng and had no time to punish Lai Ada.
Seeing how Magistrate Hu treated the person who brought the food with such respect, Uncle Lai A felt that Su Bucheng looked familiar.
The last time Su Bucheng was sent out of the house, the doorman really didn’t remember him.
With Su Ying's hint, all his memories connected together, and Lai Ada knew that the person in front of him was at least a distinguished guest of Hu Erlang.
I dare not neglect you any longer, please come in and I will personally lead you to the reception room in the front yard.
"Sir, a girl wants to see you." Lai Ada heard the voice of County Magistrate Hu in the reception room.
"Oh, Ah Ying is here! Please come in! Haha!" Magistrate Hu looked up. "I was so excited that I forgot the time!"
Su Ying came in. Her father and County Magistrate Hu sat next to each other, with a lot of official documents on the table in the middle.
"Sold out?" Su Bucheng stood up and stretched his numb waist, legs and feet.
"Yes, I saw you were late, so I came to see you." Su Ying saluted Magistrate Hu, "Happy New Year, sir!"
"Happy New Year, Happy New Year! Come and sit down! I was so busy talking about official business with your father that I forgot the time. I'm sorry!" County Magistrate Hu was all smiles.
Even though it is the New Year, any incidents within the jurisdiction must still be reported. Those that are not urgent will be handled after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, while those that are urgent must still be handled.
County Magistrate Hu was ambitious and wanted to make further achievements in his political career. Now that his advisor had left, Su Bucheng was there, so he pulled him together to discuss the matter.
Su Bucheng raised the most urgent issue: there were too many people in the county town, and the yamen runners could not just patrol the streets. It would be better to divert the crowd.
There is only one main street, and people at both ends are crowding in in a chaotic manner, blocking the way and making it easy for stampedes to occur.
Pedestrians are advised to walk on the right, so that the street will naturally split into two one-way straight lanes on the left and right, making it less likely to get stuck.
The yamen runners drew a white line in the middle of the road and patrolled back and forth to maintain order.
These are Changan’s basic operations during the Chinese New Year every year.
County Magistrate Hu immediately ordered people to make arrangements, as no one wanted an accident to happen during the New Year.
In previous years, Wu County was poor and not many people came for the New Year, so there was no need to worry about these things.
Things are different now. With prosperity comes greater responsibilities.
Afterwards, the two of them made specific arrangements for gathering all the villages and hamlets to learn how to open mountains and build roads after the New Year. The main thing was that burning rocks involved safety, and the location had to be a remote place with few people.
Then there are spring plowing and sowing, mulberry silkworm breeding, two seasons of rice and sugarcane, which are the highlights of Wu County this year.
A year's plan begins in spring, and there are a lot of things to do after the new year.
Su Bucheng planned to finish selling fried dough sticks early and rush back to repair the remaining road. Otherwise, there would be a section of the road left during the spring plowing season, and he didn't know when he would have time to continue the road. It would be better to finish it in one go.
The more he chatted with County Magistrate Hu, the more excited he became, and he forgot to inform the people who were setting up stalls.
"Your Excellency cares about the people, which is a blessing for the people!" Su Ying praised.
"Aying, let's go back tomorrow, okay?" Su Bucheng asked.
"Okay!" Su Ying didn't ask the reason, and guessed that her father was trying to repair the village road.
"Hey, Aying, why don't you ask the reason?" County Magistrate Hu laughed. This father and daughter duo were amazing. They worked in perfect harmony.
"There are a lot of things to do after the New Year, so the road in the village must be repaired quickly!" Su Ying smiled. This was not difficult to guess.
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