The store suddenly had such good business that Jiang Yanyi did not dare to slack off at all. She personally watched the kitchen prepare the dishes, fearing that something might go wrong, and asked Chef Yao to add a few birthday dishes.
The lobby on the first floor also had to be redecorated, with red silk hung on it and a gold-plated plaque with the word "longevity" placed on the wall. The festive atmosphere of the birthday celebration was instantly apparent, and the flower cakes used for the birthday banquet were also printed with patterns of happiness, wealth, longevity and joy using molds.
Men and women had to sit at separate tables, and the tables in the lobby had to be placed on both sides, separated in the middle by the twelve-leaf mahogany landscape screen that Yang Xiu had bought.
"After the 9:00 p.m., the guests who come to celebrate the birthday of the An Mansion will have to come here for dinner. Yang Xiu, go and invite a troupe of actors." Jiang Yanyi instructed Yang Xiu while inspecting the lobby and looking at the empty stage.
Birthday celebrations require a lively atmosphere. Although it costs a little more money to invite a troupe to perform, at least it saves face.
Yang Xiu hesitated: "Boss, we can just attend the meeting. If we hire a troupe, won't we have to pay for it?"
Jiang Yanyi said: "Just do as I say."
The old lady of the An Mansion is celebrating her birthday, which is a big event. From who to invite to what dishes to serve at the birthday banquet, everything should have been planned in advance. However, the servants of the An Mansion suddenly came to them, which obviously meant that something went wrong in the mansion and they were unable to entertain these guests.
If this birthday banquet is successful, it will not only help the An family regain their face, but also provide an opportunity to make friends with the An family. Furthermore, it will also promote the reputation of Ruyi Tower.
Those who come here to dine are all dignitaries. If they want to hold a banquet in the future and find it troublesome to do it at home, they will contract it to Ruyilou, which will be a big business again. So today's banquet must be done beautifully even if it doesn't make any money.
Yang Xiu has been with Jiang Yanyi for so long that he knows that Jiang Yanyi has his own reasons for everything. Every time they think that Jiang Yanyi is making a loss, he makes a lot of money in the end. This time he chose to listen to Jiang Yanyi.
When the guests of the An family arrived, the waiters on the first floor invited them to take a seat.
The guests who came to eat more or less wanted to see the An family make a fool of themselves, but as soon as they entered the door, the waiters immediately came up to take the cloaks or coats they took off, saying that they were taking them to dry. The guests could not help but feel fresh and attentive to this, even more than when they visited someone else's house to celebrate a birthday.
When they were led to the table and sat down, they found the lobby decorated festively. Not only did the waiter brew a cup of steaming hot tea, but he also brought a charcoal basin for heating. The guests immediately felt good about it.
People who knew each other sat at the same table, chatting about family matters or talking about the current war in the Great Xuan Dynasty. On the stage, gongs and drums were beating loudly, and birthday songs were being sung, creating a lively atmosphere.
Some people don't like to eat antique soup and have never eaten it before. They came here just to celebrate the birthday of Mr. An. When they heard that there were authentic works of King Liaonan and poetry collections of talented scholars who came to eat in the restaurant, they became curious and asked to take a look. Many of them even wrote poems when they were in the mood.
Jiang Yanyi set up a place on the third floor to sell stationery. The smarter waiters would trick guests into going to the third floor and persuade them to buy some pens, inkstones, and paper. No wonder they were so active, mainly because Jiang Yanyi had said in advance that as long as they persuaded guests to buy the items, they would get a commission.
Opposite the writing instruments shop was the rouge shop, where female customers would often follow Chu Shubao upstairs or leave the shop after buying rouge. The young men persuaded by the waiter were shy and afraid of being laughed at by the girls if they didn't buy anything, so they would mostly buy some paper and pens.
Jiang Yanyi saw that most of the guests in the lobby were seated, so he ordered the kitchen to bring the pot up quickly.
When organizing such a large banquet, we have to take into account the tastes of most people. Lamb is the most popular meat for entertaining guests. It was not common for ancient people to eat spicy food. There were also elderly people and children at the banquet, so the birthday banquet always prepared a clear soup lamb hotpot.
Side dishes such as lotus root, winter bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and tofu are served on various plates in attractive shapes. A few plum blossoms are also placed in the middle or on the edges of the plates, making the originally ordinary ingredients seem to have a more artistic conception.
The guests were full of praise and their original intention of laughing at the joke was gone.
Old Mrs. An was supported by her daughter-in-law and granddaughter-in-law as she entered the restaurant. Jiang Yanyi went forward to greet her and was surprised to find that this Old Mrs. An was actually the old lady who had given her and Feng Shuohong the title at the Han Mansion.
"May you live a long and healthy life, old lady." Jiang Yanyi greeted her with a smile.
Old Mrs. An was hard of hearing and couldn't hear clearly what Jiang Yanyi said, but she seemed to recognize Jiang Yanyi and nodded and smiled at her, looking very kind.
"Mother, the guests are still waiting, let's go over there." The noble lady who was nearly forty years old and was supporting Old Madam An said. She had raised eyes, extremely thin lips, and a very arrogant look. Perhaps she only regarded Jiang Yanyi as an ordinary merchant woman.
Jiang Yanyi guessed that the woman was probably Mrs. An's daughter-in-law.
Since everyone else had spoken, she was too embarrassed to say anything more and let a waiter lead them to the lobby.
Mrs. An's granddaughter-in-law nodded to thank Jiang Yanyi. Although her face was powdered, her eyes were still red, and it was obvious that she had just cried.
Jiang Yanyi also nodded to Madam An Shao. Madam An Shao's eyes gave her an inexplicable feeling of familiarity.
The guests all went to eat, and Chu Shubao and Chu Huibao also had time to rest for a while.
Chu Shubao rested her elbows on the counter, one hand on her chin, and muttered to Jiang Yanyi, "Young Madam An must have been scolded and cried by her mother-in-law. Look at how mean her mother-in-law is."
Jiang Yanyi glanced towards the lobby. Old Madam An had finished talking to a few other old ladies and had already taken a seat at the table.
She gestured to Chu Shubao to keep quiet: "Say less, it would be bad if someone heard it."
Jiang Yanyi didn't know what the An family was like, but Chu Shubao had gotten a rough idea of the An family's situation when she was chatting with a few young girls about makeup. She leaned closer to Jiang Yanyi and whispered, "It is said that Madam An doesn't like her daughter-in-law. She only married Madam An to repay the kindness she gave General An when he was injured..."
This familiar and bloody plot...
Jiang Yanyi's body trembled, and he interrupted Chu Shubao, "Is this General An called An Yongyuan?"
Chu Shubao asked in surprise: "How do you know?"
Jiang Yanyi thought to himself, how could he not know that An Yongyuan was the villain in the Xizhou copy in the original book!
In the book, his first wife was abused to death by her own mother, so when he met the heroine, he found that she had a pair of eyes exactly like his first wife, so he imprisoned her, but was soon beheaded by the emperor.
No wonder she felt that Madam An's eyes looked familiar when she saw her just now.
The reason why Jiang Yanyi remembered the villain An Yongyuan was because the emperor mistakenly thought that he touched the heroine, and the heroine refused to explain, and then the two of them unfolded a series of heart-wrenching and painful plots.
There are many flash points in the old romance novels, but the scale is definitely large and the meat is stewed fragrantly, unlike later novels, which are bland and tasteless.
Jiang Yanyi reviewed the plot and found that the current timeline no longer matched the original book. The plot where An Yongyuan imprisoned the heroine was after the heroine ran away from home due to Lu Linyuan's anger, but before the Turkic prince abducted the heroine.
At present, the Turkic prince and Jiang Yanxi are still imprisoned in prison, and An Yongyuan’s first wife is not dead, so the plot of him imprisoning the heroine should not happen again.
Jiang Yanyi was still a little worried. Facing Chu Shubao's question, she evaded the question by saying, "The restaurant is hosting a banquet for the An family today. How could I not even know the name of the host?"
Chu Shubao thought about it and it seemed to be true. She patted her head and said, "I was stupid."
Jiang Yanyi left the counter under the pretext of going to the kitchen, but actually went to the female customers' side.
Although she had only met Old Madam An twice, she had a good impression of her, and she still didn't want anything to go wrong at today's birthday banquet. Moreover, An Yongyuan was considered a capable general under Feng Shuo. The death of Madam An in the original book was a huge blow to him, and he was almost devastated.
Feng Shuo is in need of people right now, and she also hopes that Madam An will be well forever, so that An Yongyuan will not end up like the original book.
Jiang Yanyi glanced over and found that Madam An was sitting next to Old Lady An. Old Lady An would pick up food for her from time to time. The two of them seemed to be getting along very well. However, Madam An's dissatisfaction with her daughter-in-law was almost written on her face.
There was a table of women nearby who were eating and talking about settling down.
"It's a good thing that the An family found Ruyi Tower today, otherwise they would be so embarrassed!"
"I wonder what happened at the An family? We agreed to hold the birthday party at their home, why did they suddenly change the location?"
"Tsk, isn't it the granddaughter-in-law of the An family? She comes from a small family and doesn't know how to manage a household. My mother-in-law gave Old Madam An's birthday banquet to her, but she messed it up, didn't she?"
"You should marry a virtuous wife. Even something as important as celebrating an old man's birthday can still go wrong. It shows that this person has little filial piety."
"That's nothing. I heard that the young wife is restless!"
"There's even this? She's so lucky to be able to marry into the An family, and she's still not satisfied?"
The voice was deliberately lowered, and the women at the table all moved closer together unconsciously. Jiang Yanyi happened to be standing at a low table where the teapot was placed against the wall, and she heard it clearly. She pretended to make tea and deliberately delayed time.
I only heard the woman who said that Madam An was restless whispering, "This scandal was suppressed. It is said that she had an affair with a minor official named Lu from the government office. The two of them had an affair and both fell into the lake. She was rescued by Lu. General An went to pick her up and his face was ashen."
"No wonder General An didn't come back from the military camp today when Old Lady An celebrated her birthday..."
These words are not as sharp as a knife, but they are better than a knife.
Jiang Yanyi didn't say anything. Maybe she was just being too sensitive, but when the ladies mentioned someone with the surname Lu at the government office, she immediately thought of Lu Linyuan.
However, in the original book, Lu Linyuan and Madam An Shao had no connection at all, so it shouldn't be Lu Linyuan.
Seeing the waiter carrying the tray to serve the dishes, Jiang Yanyi stopped thinking, went over and personally picked up two plates of birthday dishes and placed them on Mrs. An's table: "This is a birthday dish given by our shop. I wish you a long life and happiness as vast as the East Sea!"
"Live as Long as the Southern Mountains" is a turtle soup served in a pumpkin carved with exquisite patterns. The slaughtered turtle is added with white fungus, shiitake mushrooms, and ham, and stewed in a casserole two hours in advance until it is soft.
The pumpkin carved with the patterns of fortune, wealth, longevity and happiness is steamed in a steamer until it is 70% cooked and then taken out. At this time, the pumpkin is cooked but not mushy, and it will not deform or break the wall after pouring into the turtle soup. Cover the pumpkin with a lid, the shape is very unique, and the turtle soup is not only delicious, but also has a hint of sweetness.
"Fortune as Rich as the East Sea" is a steamed fish dish. The whole fish is cut and fried in oil until both sides are golden brown. Shredded mushrooms and ham are stewed in a fragrant bone broth. The fish body is then decorated with mushrooms and ham. The broth is poured into the fish belly for seasoning, and then the fish is steamed again. The skin of the steamed fish is golden brown, and the meat inside is delicate, tender and fragrant.
Old Madam An's hearing was not very good, but when she saw Jiang Yanyi serving the dishes and saying something, she still couldn't stop smiling. She nodded to Jiang Yanyi to express her gratitude.
Mrs. An also spoke for once: "I would like to thank the store owner on behalf of my mother."
She looked Jiang Yanyi up and down, perhaps because she thought Jiang Yanyi was too beautiful, a bit of condescending contempt flashed in her eyes.
Jiang Yanyi remained unmoved and continued to smile, "You are too polite, Madam."
After saying that, she left.
The two dishes had excellent meanings, especially the pumpkin carving with the inscription "blessings as vast as the East Sea", which drew the guests' admiration.
This is Chef Yao's signature dish. It not only tests one's knife skills, but is also a delicate job. If one cuts with a little more force, the pumpkin will be ruined.
After Jiang Yanyi left, Madam An covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief, as if she smelled something that made her uncomfortable. "The owner of this restaurant looks unfamiliar. I wonder where he came from? There are even cosmetics in the dining area. If you don't know anything, you might think this is some other place!"
The woman sitting next to Madam An whispered, "Madam An, you are devoted to worshipping Buddha, but you don't know that this host is extraordinary. She is the second daughter of the Chu family. The King of Liaonan went to the Chu family to propose marriage a few days ago. The betrothal gift alone is shocking."
Mrs. An said with a hint of meaning: "She is good-looking."
These words were obviously a compliment on Jiang Yanyi's appearance, but in reality they were saying that she was just a womanizer who used her beauty to please men.
The Chu family got such a good marriage, and many families were jealous, but they did not dare to say it in front of others.
After hearing what Mrs. An said, the woman also looked at Jiang Yanyi's back and smiled: "Several girls from the Chu family have started this business of being in the spotlight. If you don't know, you would think that the Chu family is having trouble making ends meet."
Mrs. An, who was usually hard of hearing, suddenly said, "Suniang, I'm tired."
Mrs. An had no choice but to stop talking and said to the wives of officials who were still eating, "Please enjoy your meal. Mother is not in good health. I will take her downstairs to rest first."
The wives of officials then said some flattering words. Old Madam An stood up, and Young Madam An naturally followed suit to support her.
**
Jiang Yanyi was looking at the account book at the counter while clacking away on the abacus. He made a rough calculation and found that Ruyi Tower had made more than two hundred taels of silver in less than half a day after opening.
This number successfully soothed Jiang Yanyi's heart, which was hurt by spending money like water these days.
She happily asked Chu Shubao beside her: "How much did you make from selling rouge?"
Chu Huibao was in charge of the accounts, and he immediately replied, "Thirty-seven taels."
It was a good start. Jiang Yanyi was in a good mood. Looking at the busy lobby, she was thinking about making something delicious to reward the waiters. Then a waiter ran over in a panic and said to Jiang Yanyi, "Boss, Mrs. An fell down!"
Jiang Yanyi was startled, thinking that it was Madam An who fell, and hurriedly walked outside the counter: "Where did you fall?"
The waiter said, "Old Madam An was tired. After Madam An sent her to the carriage, when she got off the carriage, she twisted her ankle for some reason and fell directly from the shaft of the carriage, breaking one of her front teeth."
There is a street in front of Ruyi Tower, which is paved with blue bricks. If your front teeth hit the ground, you might actually break them.
When Jiang Yanyi walked out of the shop, he saw a group of people gathered in front of the An family's carriage. Mrs. An was surrounded by several maids and old women. She had a handkerchief covering her mouth, but the handkerchief was stained with blood.
Instead, Mrs. An was pushed aside, at a loss.
The noise was clearly happening in front of the An family's carriage, but Jiang Yanyi seemed to sense something and looked across the street. Sure enough, he saw a carriage parked on the side of the road with the curtain half lifted, and the person inside was none other than Feng Shuo.
Why is he here
The author has something to say: Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2021-01-08 23:59:52~2021-01-09 23:59:39~
Thanks to the little angel who threw the rocket launcher: pp 1;
Thanks to the little angels who cast mines: 2 for "What are you doing pouting"; 1 for "Jinxi and A";
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: Habitual Toothache 20 bottles; Second Blood Evidence 18 bottles; A, Fresh, Bamboo String Thoughts, Mu Yao, Little Pig 10 bottles; Ledden, Sisi, Serving the People's "Currency", Rainbows All Over the Sky, Super Big Wall 5 bottles; One-Eyed Looking Up 2 bottles; Dreaming in vain, It's 00 La, Yizhilu, Tao Shengsheng, Yizhi Xiaoliangjin, Yiduo Xiaohua, Xiachong Buyubing 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!