Tang Fan walked over: "A-Dong, what's the matter with you, come in and talk."
A-Dong's small face was all wrinkled: "Master Tang, this is the water chestnut cake and tofu roll that my wife asked me to send."
The water chestnut cake is cut into small squares, and there are water chestnuts embedded in the translucent pastry.
The tofu roll is a thin egg skin wrapped with steamed glutinous rice mushrooms and diced tofu, and then fried in lard. The outside is browned, and the inside is soft and fragrant, which is very appetizing.
Tang Fan glanced at it, the basket was full, and he couldn't help but tease, "Why didn't you steal it today?"
A-Dong sighed, and said awe-inspiringly that he was not only stealing food: "I'm afraid I won't be able to come and deliver you snacks in two days."
In fact, although Master Tang is a foodie, he is by nature willing to go with the situation, and he will not be too demanding on the quality of life. It doesn't matter if there is any, so after hearing A-Dong's words, he just smiled and said: "Why, you have committed a crime. Wrong, to be banned?"
A-Dong shook his head: "No, no, I heard that the master is going to bring back his new concubine, the wife is very unhappy, and Sister A-Chun said that when the master comes back, the wife will not be the master of the family. It's not easy to get out."
Tang Fan was very strange: "Even if your master comes back, isn't she still a mistress of the house? Why can't she be the master of such trivial matters as delivering snacks?"
A-Dong held his chin: "I also listened to what Sister A-Chun said. She told me not to say it casually, and you can't tell others after listening to it!"
Tang Fan picked up a piece of water chestnut cake and put it in his mouth, thinking that the Li family's cook was really good, and teasing her: "Then don't tell me, I'm afraid I can't help but say it."
The ancients were precocious, and the little girl was at the age of active gossip. She wanted someone to share it with, how could she not say it, seeing Tang Fan's refusal, she wrinkled her face tightly: "Then, then don't tell anyone I know. , no one will know that I said it!"
Tang Fan chuckled: "Okay, okay, just say it if you want."
A-Dong said: "I heard from Sister A-Chun that my wife has been married to the Li family for so many years, but she has not been able to do anything. Even the young master Lin was born to the master's concubine. Because of this incident, the master always threatened to divorce his wife. It's just because my wife's family has a distant relative who is an official, so the master has always had scruples. This time, the concubine that the master will bring back, I heard that she is pregnant, so the wife is very unhappy during this time. Even we have to keep a low profile. , Sister A Chun asked me not to come to deliver things after today, lest I be met by the master, misunderstood, and bumped into you."
Tang Fan was surprised: "Even so, but your mistress has been in charge of the Li family for so many years, and your master travels far away to do business, and she manages the housework for the Li family, how could your master treat her like a servant, and want to leave just rest?"
And as far as the Mrs. Li family he met, she was not like the kind of person who had no opinion and was bullied by others.
After all, A-Dong is still a little girl. Hearing this, he was a little dazed. After thinking for a while, he said, "Sister A-Chun said that something happened to my wife's family a long time ago, and I needed a lot of money. No one else could help me. Our master took out his savings to help his wife's family, and later because of this incident, the family became very poor, and the master could not continue to study and be an official, so the wife always felt that she owed the master."
Logically speaking, the servants can't chew the tongue of the master's family, and talk about this kind of private affairs in the house, but A-Dong is still young and treats Tang Fan as her own. Second, recently, she also felt the atmosphere of the Li family. Very depressed, so I couldn't help but secretly complained to Tang Fan.
Tang Fan suddenly realized that there was still such an inside story. Before he saw that Li Man was taking a concubine and planning to divorce his wife, he would inevitably think of Zheng Cheng and Zheng Sun, but now it seems that Li Man was able to To help his wife's family to disperse the family wealth is also considered very righteous.
If there are causes and consequences, if what A-Dong said is true, and he is also a man, it is not difficult for Tang Fan to understand Li Man's psychology: the imperial examination is more important than life for a scholar. He had to give up a lot of money for his wife's family, but because of livelihood problems, he had to give up studying and switch to business. However, as time passed, the relationship between husband and wife gradually faded. What a mistake, no matter how rich a businessman is, after all, his social status is still not as high as that of a scholar, so Li Man regrets it, and it is human nature. After all, not everyone is willing to pay blindly without asking for anything in return.
But in the end, these are the family affairs of the Li family, and have nothing to do with Tang Fan. Master Tang just listens to gossip, and by the way makes up for Li Man's mental journey. Of course he doesn't know anything about a little girl like A-Dong. Instead, he said, "A-Dong, you can just talk to me, don't go outside and talk nonsense, or your grandfather and wife will find out, and you will suffer."
A-Dong nodded like a chicken pecking at rice: "I won't tell anyone except you!"
Tang Fan took another water chestnut cake and put it in his mouth, nodded, "That's right."
He never had any airs, and even a little girl like A-Dong could be so casual in private after spending a few days together.
Only then did A-Dong realize that his mouth had never stopped, and he pulled the basket over to take a look, dumbfounded.
The water chestnut cake inside was swept away!
But she clearly watched Master Tang eat very slowly!
Noticing the stunned look of the little girl, Master Tang smiled politely: "I came back from the yamen late today, and I haven't had time to eat dinner."
A-Dong taught him a lesson from a very young adult: "Sir, you can't do this. After all, pastries can't fill your stomach as a regular meal. You should eat some porridge, rice, etc.!"
Tang Fan innocently said, "But I rarely open fire at home, so I only cook some millet porridge. If I drink porridge every day, I'm afraid I will faint from hunger in the yamen."
A-Dong expressed his sympathy and rolled up his sleeves to do his part: "Then do you still have something to eat in your kitchen? I'll go and cook it for you!"
After saying that, without waiting for Tang Fan to stop him, Deng Deng stared and ran into the kitchen.
Although A-Dong is young, she has been sold into the Li family as a slave since she was a child. Although the Li family's wife will not treat others harshly, A-Dong can still do the work that should be done. Being in charge of the house, cooking with fire is the basic skill.
In less than half an hour, a bowl of fragrant green onion egg fried rice came out.
The rice is freshly steamed and fried, the two eggs she found in Tang's kitchen, and the chopped green onion was bought by Tang Fan on the street last time. It's a bit vague, but it's barely usable.
From this point of view, A-Dong is definitely a qualified little cook.
Tang Fan is a man after all, of course he couldn't get enough of the water chestnut cake just now. Seeing this bowl of egg fried rice in front of him, he blinked and praised without hesitation: "A-Dong, you really are Yi Ya's reincarnation!"
A-Dong was at a loss: "What is Yi Ya, can I eat it?"
Tang Fan: "...It's not important, but you've been here for too long, so you should go back, or your mistress should find you."
He actually quite likes to be with the little girl A-Dong, at least it's much easier to get along with than A-Xia.
Every day in the yamen, facing the mountains of files, it is either a childbirth case or a murder and wounding case. It’s easy to feel dark after reading too much. When I get home, I can chat with such a person, which is actually a way to relax my mind, but After all, A-Dong is not Tang Fan's servant, so he can't stay here all the time.
A-Dong stuck out his tongue: "It's okay, I'm still young anyway, and I have nothing to do when I go back. Sister A-Chun and the others love me very much, but I'd better go back, so as not to be told by Sister A-Chun!"
Sending away the bouncing A-Dong, Tang Fan tasted the bowl of egg fried rice and found that it tasted really good, at least much better than the one he made himself.
After the fall of the Tang family, in order to make his sister's marriage successful, Tang Fan sent the only two servants left in the family to her sister's husband's house, and there was no one around him, and because he lived alone , Living is relatively simple. Tang Fan has always hired temporary workers to clean the house every once in a while. When he is free, he does it himself. Although Master Tang likes to eat, the only thing he can cook is bland white porridge.
But now, in order to be able to eat hot meals when he gets home, he has begun to seriously consider buying a servant who can cook to come back as a cook.
We don't want to have the skills of the Li family's cook, but at the very least, we must reach the level of A-Dong, right
That A-Dong came back to Li's house with a basket and humming a ditty. As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he ran into A-Chun who came out of the mother's room. The latter glared at A-Dong, and A-Dong stuck out his tongue in a guilty conscience. , smiled at A Chun flatteringly: "Sister A Chun, have you eaten yet? I'll take a look at the kitchen and bring you some?"
A Chun poked her on the forehead: "You went to Master Tang's place to be lazy again? Master Tang is busy with other affairs, and has no time to greet you little girl, don't think that I don't know that you will steal snacks when you go there. Don't put your nose on your face, Mrs. Tang is in a bad mood, we should be alert now!"
"Yes, I get it!" A-Dong knew that she was always hard-hearted and soft-hearted, so she agreed repeatedly, looked at the food on her hand, and didn't move a few chopsticks: "My wife refuses to eat again? But it's not A-Xia today. Is my sister on duty, why are you here to deliver meals?"
A-Chun sighed, pulled her aside, and said in a low voice, "Ever since A-Xia was rejected by Master Tang last time, she has also been very sad, and she was in a mess. I was afraid that she would bump into the wife, so I helped her share some of the burden. As for the wife's affairs, we people of the moment can't handle that much. Don't go to Master Tang's place for a while now, the master will bring someone back soon, and you will definitely need to make a new yard at that time. Smart, go and help clean up!"
A-Dong naturally complied and said, "Sister A-Chun, then you can go and eat first, I'll just watch over here."
A Chun said: "There are still dishes and dishes that have been confiscated!"
A-Dong pushed her out: "I'll collect, I'll collect!"
A Chun had no choice but to take her to the kitchen first.
As soon as she left, A-Xia came back.
A-Dong snorted: "Sister A-Xia, your face is very ugly, are you not feeling well?"
Since Tang Fan rejected A-Xia's proposal to be a concubine, she has been depressed, but today's face is paler than yesterday.
A Xia forced a smile: "It's nothing, it's just that my little day has come, and my stomach is a little uncomfortable."
A-Dong blinked, she was not old enough to experience these things, but she was familiar with her eyes and ears on weekdays, so she naturally understood: "Then you go to rest, I'll just come here."
"It's okay," A Xia patted her head, "Where's A Chun?"
A-Dong: "Sister A-Chun has been busy so far and hasn't eaten yet. I asked her to eat first."
A-Xia: "What's the lady's order?"
A-Dong: "Sister A-Chun said that my wife didn't eat a few bites, and there were still some dishes that were confiscated. I was about to collect it!"
A-Xia: "Then I'll go in and collect it. Can you help me get it to the kitchen later?"
A-Dong: "Okay!"
She watched A-Xia walk in, thinking that it was really hard for a woman to be a child. Sister A-Xia was awkward even walking, it must be very painful, and she thought that she would experience this kind of horror in a few years. thing, could not help shivering.