The fragrance of herbs is renowned throughout the eight directions
With Tao Shuo's lectures and the public release of some dietary recipes, a trend of dietary supplements swept through Jinzhou Prefecture.
Wealthy families would order dishes from Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant for banquets at home, such as nourishing beef tendon or various pastries. Ordinary families also began to make simple medicinal porridges and soups. Even the owner of Taihetang jokingly said that since Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant opened, everyone's health had visibly improved.
Diners didn't even want to miss the Winter Solstice, constantly nagging about Wang Pan'er making medicinal dumplings for everyone.
Medicinal dumplings? I've never heard of such a thing before. These diners really know how to plan!
Wang Pan'er was both amused and exasperated. She said to everyone, "The Winter Solstice is a time for family reunion and happiness. The dumplings should have fillings that we've eaten since childhood to be considered the right ones. Every family has different tastes. The point of what we're eating isn't the dumplings themselves, but the taste of home!"
Upon hearing this, everyone agreed that it made sense. The popularity of medicinal cuisine had been overwhelming lately, driving everyone a little crazy.
The owner is even more clear-headed than the diners; he's truly a remarkable person.
Because of this, there were surprisingly few customers at noon on the day of the Winter Solstice. Wang Pan'er simply waved her hand and hung up the "Closed" sign, telling the girls in the shop to take leave and go home early to celebrate the festival.
After Aunt Tian finished counting the ingredients for the day, she was about to buy some flour and pork to chop and make dumplings at home. Before she could leave, Wang Pan'er called her back.
“Aunt Tian, you and your son have no relatives or friends in Jinzhou Prefecture. It just so happens that Xiaoyao and I are also spending the festival alone. Why don’t you stay in the shop to knead dough and roll out some dumpling wrappers, while my sister and I go to buy some meat? We can pick up Brother Yan on the way and have a reunion dinner together tonight.”
Aunt Tian stopped, cheerfully agreed, and turned to go into the kitchen to start kneading dough.
Wang Xiaoyao excitedly grabbed Wang Pan'er's arm and pulled her towards the door, saying, "I definitely want the chive and pork filling. I haven't tried the three-delicacy filling yet, and I'd like to try it too. Also, the glutinous rice balls and taro balls you mentioned last time."
"Stop, stop!" Wang Pan'er patted Wang Xiaoyao's stomach. "You only have one stomach, can you eat all that?"
Wang Xiaoyao pushed away Wang Pan'er's slapping hand, pouted, and complained, "We're so busy every day that we don't have time to eat properly. That's not right. We make money to live a good life, but now we're so busy with business that we can't even take care of our daily lives."
These words reminded Wang Pan'er.
The medicinal cuisine restaurant is now thriving, and the young women working there are putting in their best efforts, fearing that the business will go out of business.
Money can never be fully earned; she could hire more people to replace the two sisters in the shop.
They had been in Jinzhou Prefecture for four months, and they still hadn't had a chance to slow down and properly appreciate this bustling and prosperous city.
We no longer face the struggle to survive. Isn't the point of continuing to work hard just to have spare money so we can live a better life?
As for the social values they desire, these cannot be changed or obtained overnight by accumulating the necessary energy.
Wang Pan'er's thoughts raced. Given the current situation, besides enjoying life, she really couldn't find any other reason to make money.
She began to assess the situation in the shop: "We need to extricate ourselves from the medicinal cuisine restaurant, and we must have a reliable person to take over our jobs. In the kitchen, Liu Xiaoniang is indeed as good as she said, and she is perfectly capable of being the head chef. However, the selection of the front-of-house staff and the manager is a problem."
"Hmm." Wang Xiaoyao pondered for a while and nodded. "Although Aunt Tian is a conscientious person, she can definitely manage the purchasing for both the medicinal cuisine restaurant and the pastry shop without any problem. But conscientious people are always a bit too honest and dull. If unexpected things happen, it's hard for them to be flexible and adaptable, so it's not suitable to promote them as managers. As for the others, they are good as apprentices, but they lack the decisiveness to be managers. Tomorrow, I will go and pick someone for Sister Pan'er."
"Speaking of which, have you decided on a name for your shop yet?"
"I'm thinking of calling it 'Thousand Opportunities Pavilion,' providing women with hundreds of thousands of opportunities to meet the needs of thousands of sellers." Wang Xiaoyao raised an eyebrow. "What does Sister Pan'er think?"
Wang Pan'er looked amazed: "Excellent, I'll go and order a plaque for you right away!"
After ordering the signboard and buying the fillings, it was time for Li Qingyan to finish school.
Students walked out of the school in small groups.
The clothes Li Qingyan wore were no longer made of faded, washed fabric. Now he wore a simple, coarse cloth of clear blue, which, though still plain, was well-groomed and his gait was proper, making him look every bit the upright gentleman. Because he had enough to eat and wear, he was no longer emaciated, and his height had visibly increased.
Normally, this person would keep a low profile in the shop, not standing out from the crowd of students, but today, she was remarkably conspicuous. They hadn't expected that even at the academy, Li Qingyan would still be surrounded by students.
Li Qingyan and his classmates discussed today's lessons as they stepped out of the academy gate. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of two figures at the side of the gate, stopped in his tracks, and exclaimed in surprise, "Master, Second Master!"
Upon hearing Li Qingyan's address, the students realized that the two young women in front of them were the owners of Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant.
The students, who love to join in the fun, usually spend their days lecturing and can't get a table at the medicinal cuisine restaurant. But today, having finally met the owner, they swarmed in like a flock of bees.
Wang Pan'er and Wang Xiaoyao were surrounded in the middle, feeling like they had become mascots.
Wang Pan'er shouted loudly, "Don't push, don't push! Today is the Winter Solstice, and we've come especially to take Brother Yan back to the inn for a reunion dinner."
"Brother Yan is really lucky. Not only does the teacher like him, but he can also find work at Shanhe Medicinal Cuisine Restaurant. We can only get a table once a week on our days off, but the two owners can even come to pick you up for a reunion dinner."
"Stop your nonsense." Li Qingyan shooed away the students who lacked tact. "Men and women shouldn't touch each other. Don't frighten our two masters."
The students took a few steps back, but some still refused to give up: "Please, boss, have mercy! Look at us students who are starving for food. We don't ask for much, just let us taste all the dishes in the shop!"
"You're asking for far too little? You're asking for the moon. I'm different. I'd be happy if you let me try all the pastries."
Have some shame!
The students chattered noisily.
Wang Pan'er decided to seize the opportunity and announced to the crowd: "Our Shanhe Pastry Shop will be opening soon! We'll have Brother Yan bring some pastries for everyone to try. Welcome to come and support us!"
The crowd cheered again, and there was a hint that they were about to surge forward once more.
"Go away, go away!" Seeing this, Li Qingyan quickly stood in front of the two sisters to separate them from the students. "They have lost their sense of propriety. Please excuse them."
Wang Pan'er and Wang Xiaoyao moved a little further away: "It's alright, it's alright. They're busy with schoolwork and it's rare for them to get some fresh air. They're in high spirits, which is understandable."
Li Qingyan took the pork and various vegetables from the two sisters and followed them into the medicinal cuisine restaurant.
Wang Pan'er thought that Aunt Tian had already rolled out the dumpling wrappers and was waiting for them to go back and chop the filling, but before she even got close to the door, she saw that the building was brightly lit and bustling with people.
Mu Chuan, standing in the center of the crowd, turned around upon hearing the noise from the doorway. He looked at the newcomer, tilted his head slightly, and smiled, his features exquisite and radiant.
Wang Pan'er was overjoyed and couldn't help but shout out from outside the store: "Mu Chuan!"
Mo Feng and Xian Ying greeted the two sisters with clasped hands, saying, "Miss Wang, Second Miss Wang."
There were also quite a few followers, about ten or so, dressed in various styles, tall and short, fat and thin, rich and poor, gathered together. They also called out "Miss Wang" and "Second Miss Wang" along with Mo Feng and Xian Ying.
Four people felt it was too lonely, but a dozen or so was just right. Wang Pan'er was in a good mood and invited everyone, "Since you're here today, let's have a reunion dinner together in the restaurant!"
We absolutely have to eat dumplings this time.
Mu Chuan gave a wink, and his entourage placed the gifts on the table, lining them up in a row.
There was half a pig, and many delicacies from the mountains, such as hazel mushrooms and walnuts. As they went on, Wang Pan'er's eyes widened: "They even have bird's nest, cordyceps, and fish maw! This is too precious, I can't accept it!"
Mu Chuan helped Wang Pan'er take the blame: "Miss Wang has good taste. These are things my mother often eats, and they are also favorites of women in the capital. Although they are expensive, they are far from emptying their wallets."
Well, it seems only these sisters are emotionally impoverished.
Exhausted, Wang Pan'er forced a fake smile that revealed eight teeth, and held out her hand to ask Mu Chuan, "So, where's your gift?"
Mu Chuan took out a belt and placed it in Wang Pan'er's hand: "How could I forget yours? Last time you said your back ached, and I thought that when we practice martial arts, we wear belts, which does make it less likely to hurt. You're always stir-frying and cooking, so I specially found a belt that women can use, which should make you feel better."
Her casual remark was taken to heart by Mu Chuan. His thoughtfulness made even the most exquisite dishes on the table seem less impressive.
Xianying whispered to Mofeng, "You still say the belt isn't valuable enough? I think you're quite cunning, young master. This belt is especially unique among our treasures. You're just using us as a stepping stone to please Miss Wang!"
Mu Chuan raised his eyes and gave him a sinister glance.
Xianying pursed her lips and fell silent, wisely taking two steps back.
When the group arrived at the shop, Aunt Tian, being very perceptive, went and made two more bowls of dough.
The attendants felt embarrassed to sit around waiting for their meal, so they started washing vegetables and chopping fillings, each busy with their own tasks.
Wang Pan'er habitually wraps dumplings into the classic crescent shape; Li Qingyan pinches and squeezes them to create the most nimble and quick large-bellied shape; after learning a few fancy styles, Wang Xiaoyao fell in love with ingot-shaped dumplings.
As for Mu Chuan... Mu Chuan's name is so bad it makes you frown again and again. Wang Pan'er doesn't want to call it a dumpling, she wants to call it a lump.
"Young Master, please don't cause any more trouble. Sit down and wait for your meal."
Wang Pan'er, unable to bear it any longer, chased Mu Chuan away.
With nothing to do, Mu Chuan forcibly dragged away Wang Xiaoyao's exam materials.
Wang Xiaoyao's progress is impossible to reach without someone explaining it to him, unless he is a child prodigy.
Mu Chuan asked curiously, "Have you taken on a new teacher?"
"No, it's Yan-ge'er! Yan-ge'er is the tutor for the children of the ladies in the academy. He is very knowledgeable and has just passed the county-level imperial examination. The teacher said that he has a good chance of passing the provincial-level imperial examination next autumn. Since he doesn't bother me, I can't help but ask him."
“You little rascal, then bring Yan Ge’er here. I have something to say to him.”
Wang Xiaoyao passed the entrance exam and proudly shouted, "Brother Yan, Brother Muchuan is looking for me!" Then she darted back to the cutting board to continue making her dumplings.
Mu Chuan brought out a set of cups and saucers, invited Li Qingyan to sit opposite him, and said after looking at the tea: "I have heard that Brother Yan is learned and talented. Could you spare some time to discuss the topic of 'On the Distinction Between Righteousness and Profit'?"
Mu Chuan's calligraphy is vigorous and unique, already showing signs of becoming a master, which must be due to his early training.
Li Qingyan, respecting talented individuals, sat down respectfully: "I am honored by your appreciation and will do my utmost."
Mu Chuan's move was intended to test Li Qingyan's character.
Debating the issue of righteousness versus profit is particularly sharp; if one conceals their true feelings, it becomes difficult to justify their argument.
This kind of simple-minded young man, raised by a dutiful mother, was no match for the scions of powerful families in the capital. After seven or eight visits, Mu Chuan had figured him out.
Mu Chuan clasped his hands in a fist salute to him: "If Brother Yan can enter officialdom and become an official, it will be a blessing for the people. I hope you will always uphold your original aspirations and remain consistent from beginning to end."
The debate was short, and by the end, dumplings were already on the table.
Wang Pan'er set out the bowls and chopsticks, and beckoned Mu Chuan to sit down beside her: "Come and eat!"
Mu Chuan first put seven or eight pieces into Wang Pan'er's bowl before taking care of himself: "I will be able to stay for two more days this time, so please treat me well, Miss Wang."
Stay for two more days.
Mu Chuan's gentle tone captivated Wang Pan'er the next day, leaving her still dazed. She thought that after noon, she would rest in the shop and then explore Jinzhou Prefecture with Mu Chuan.
Strangely, Aunt Tian hasn't bought the ingredients yet today.
Wang Pan'er frowned as she looked towards the main entrance.
After a long, long time, Aunt Tian pushed her wheelbarrow back into the shop.
The cart only contained food ingredients, not medicinal herbs. Granny Wang looked solemn, as if she were shrouded in dark clouds. A young man from a security escort agency was also with her.
Wang Pan'er often reminded her employees not to panic in the face of trouble, as panic would only make things worse. In the event of an unexpected situation, they should immediately assess the current situation to avoid greater losses before devising a solution.
Aunt Tian had been anxious the whole way, and when she finally saw Wang Pan'er, she almost lost her composure. She quickly took a few deep breaths, composed herself, and said as calmly and clearly as possible, "Master, something terrible has happened! Our batch of medicinal herbs has been robbed. The head镖师 (chief escort) said the next batch won't arrive for another five days. I begged the head镖师 to spare some for our medicinal cuisine restaurant, but he said the restaurant already doesn't have enough and they need to be prioritized. So, we might not be able to serve any more meals for the time being."
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