The snow fell heavier and heavier, and the fire in the fire pit drove away the chill of the snowy night.
Jiang Yanyi looked at Feng Shuo who was sitting at the table eating noodles, and his eyes couldn't help but glance at his legs.
The wall was more than ten feet high, but he didn't fall and lost any limbs. He was still able to sit here and eat in good health. He was really lucky.
When she was off guard, what she was thinking was written all over her face, and it was difficult for Feng Shuo to pretend not to know.
He said with a gloomy face: "What are you thinking about all day long?"
Jiang Yanyi said casually: "I miss you."
As soon as these words were spoken, the room fell into silence, with only the crackling sound of the firewood burning in the fire pit.
Jiang Yanyi also realized that her answer was too ambiguous. She coughed twice and said, "What I mean is that I am thinking about your injuries."
To avoid embarrassment, she used tongs to turn over the potatoes buried under the hot ashes, squeezed them with her hands, and muttered, "Why are they not cooked yet?"
Feng Shuo thought she was hungry because she was eating roasted potatoes, so he handed her the bowl of noodles: "Would you like some?"
Jiang Yanyi's first reaction was that he didn't think his action was wrong, and he said seriously: "This is longevity noodles, specially for the birthday person."
Feng Shuo looked serious, unusually: "I'll give you half of the noodles and half of my life span, there's nothing wrong with that."
Jiang Yanyi paused as he held the fire tongs, his heart beating faster again.
This guy is really flirting without knowing it!
She buried the potatoes back into the hot ashes and said, "What nonsense are you talking about? I've had dinner and I'm not hungry now. The longevity noodles are for good luck. If you can't eat any more, just leave it alone."
How could he not eat? Feng Shuo drank up all the noodle soup.
The soup made from dried scallops is not only fresh, but also has a hint of sweetness. The bamboo fungus and spare ribs are stewed until soft, with a mellow and delicate taste.
He can handle another bowl.
Jiang Yanyi obviously didn't know what he was thinking. After seeing him put down the bowl, she handed him the embroidered kneepad and said, "We were in a hurry and didn't have time to prepare any gifts. I only made a kneepad."
There was still a quarter of an hour before midnight. Although it was a bit dull, it was still a birthday celebration for him.
Feng Shuo took it, gently stroked the embroidery on it with his fingertips, and whispered, "Thank you."
The embroidery is not very delicate, but the stitches are dense and dense, and it is obvious that every stitch has been carefully crafted.
Maybe the fire in the fire pit was burning too strongly, or maybe the noodle soup he had just eaten warmed his stomach, Feng Shuo felt a warmth in his heart.
This rotten life didn't seem as bad as he once thought.
Outside the house, the snow was like salt and cotton wool, and inside the house, a fire was burning brightly. Feng Shuo looked at Jiang Yanyi's soft profile, and his usually cold eyes suddenly became a little tipsy.
As soon as Jiang Yanyi raised her head, her gaze met his. She wanted to look away, but her sight seemed to be stuck by something and she couldn't move it at all.
When Feng Shuo's lips pressed down on her, she subconsciously closed her eyes.
His lips were much softer than she had imagined. Perhaps because he had drunk some wine before, there was a faint scent of alcohol between his lips.
They separated at the touch of a dragonfly on the water, as softly as a feather brushing against the lips. Jiang Yanyi thought it was over, but unexpectedly his lips pressed down again...
This time it was a bit rough, the kiss was awkward and wild, and it was at this moment that Jiang Yanyi truly realized that he was actually very strong in this aspect.
So much so that she had no power to resist.
When Qiu Kui's door creaked open, Jiang Yanyi didn't even have time to react before Feng Shuo blew a palm fan over and closed the kitchen door.
Qiu Kui was up at night. She saw that the kitchen light was still on and the door was closed. She couldn't help but called out in confusion: "Hua Hua, are you still awake?"
Jiang Yanyi quickly pulled Feng Shuo to hide outside the back door of the kitchen, then opened the kitchen door and said, "The soup isn't ready yet, I feel like it's too cold to leave the door open, so I closed it."
Qiu Kui shrank her neck, rubbed her arms with both hands and shivered: "Hua Hua, go to bed soon after you are done, it's already midnight, hey... Hua Hua, why are your lips swollen?"
Jiang Yanyi touched his slightly stinging lips with his hand, "Really? I guess I accidentally burned myself when I tasted the soup just now."
"Ah? Is it serious? Do you want to get some medicine to apply?" Qiu Kui looked worried.
Jiang Yanyi felt a little guilty, but he could only continue to lie: "It's okay, it doesn't hurt anymore. Don't stand outside, what if you catch a cold?"
Qiu Kui then remembered that he had to go to the toilet, so he hurried to the toilet with his hands covering his stomach, looking painful.
Seeing Qiu Kui enter the toilet, Jiang Yanyi asked Feng Shuo to come out of the kitchen and climb over the wall to go back.
Because of the impulsive kiss just now, both of them are now a little uncomfortable and don't even look at each other.
Jiang Yanyi originally wanted to find a ladder for Feng Shuo, but unexpectedly he just stepped on the courtyard wall and easily climbed over the wall.
Jiang Yanyi was afraid that he would fall again, so he quickly reminded him in a low voice: "Be careful not to slip."
Feng Shuo: “…”
He really didn't want to know what she was worried about.
After watching Feng Shuo's back disappear over the wall, Jiang Yanyi went back to the kitchen to clean up. The moment she stepped into the room, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind: Is this really the first time he has climbed over her wall
***
The next day, Jiang Yanyi slept until dawn before getting up.
When I pushed the door open, I saw a vast expanse of white in the yard. There was a thick layer of snow on the courtyard wall, and icicles as long as a finger hung from the eaves. They were as clear as crystal and looked quite beautiful.
Jiang Yanyi hung the bird cage under the kitchen eaves, rubbed his hands and breathed out, "It's really cold today."
The parrot in the cage trembled its wings and mimicked: "It's so cold!"
Qiu Kura had already started a fire in the fire pit and buried a few sweet potatoes in the hot ashes beside them to roast. He called Jiang Yanyi to come in and roast by the fire.
Jiang Yanyi added water to the parrot's feeding trough and put some broken rice in it. Instead of going into the house to warm himself by the fire, he made a fluffy snowball from the ground.
"Okra!" Jiang Yanyi called out.
Qiu Kui looked over blankly, and the snowball in Jiang Yanyi's hand happened to fall on her shoulder, covering her with broken snow.
Okra was stunned for a moment, then smiled foolishly.
He stopped sitting around the fire and ran to the yard, made a snowball and threw it at Jiang Yanyi.
The snow froze their hands, but Jiang Yanyi and Qiu Kui were running around and sweating, so they didn't feel cold. The snow in Xizhou was very heavy, and the snow in their yard was almost above their calves.
When they were tired from playing, they went into the house to warm themselves by the fire. They took out roasted sweet potatoes from the ashes and each of them held one in his hand to eat as breakfast.
Peel off the skin of the roasted sweet potato, and you will see the orange sweet potato flesh inside, one strand after another, steaming hot. It tastes sweet in your mouth, but not greasy.
Jiang Yanyi said, "Let's shovel the snow out of the yard and build a snowman at the door!"
When Qiu Kui heard this to the snowman, he nodded repeatedly.
The two of them ate the sweet potatoes faster, gasping from the heat but unable to hold back their laughter.
Jiang Yanyi used a shovel to shovel the clean snow in the yard into a basket, and then carried it to the door.
The snow in front of the houses along the street had been cleared, and because there were so many people on the street, the snow had been trampled and melted, and the ground had become muddy. Passers-by put their hands in their sleeves, their backs hunched and their necks hunched due to the cold.
Jiang Yanyi brought a few more baskets of snow outside the door, and then rolled snowballs with Qiu Kui.
When acquaintances passing by saw him, they couldn't help but tease him: "Shopkeeper Jiang still has a childlike heart."
Every time Jiang Yanyi just smiled as a greeting to the other party.
When Aunt Guo, Yang Xiu and Bing Shao came to the store, Jiang Yanyi asked Aunt Guo to go to the kitchen to cut mutton slices. It was snowing heavily today, so there would definitely be more people coming to the store to eat soup pot. Yang Xiu was asked to shovel the snow in the yard, and Bing Shao was arranged to pick up the old scholar.
It's snowing so heavily today, and it's hard to stop an ox cart in the south of the city. Jiang Yanyi is worried that the old scholar, as he is old and has difficulty walking, might get into an accident.
She made a snowman that was nearly one meter tall, used walnuts for eyes, and several stones to make a smiling mouth. She then bought a bunch of candied haws and stuck them on the snowman as hands.
When children passing by saw the bunch of bright red candied haws next to the snowman, more than one of them cried out of greed.
Because the snowman was very eye-catching next to the store entrance, everyone passing by would inevitably take a second look at Jiang Yanyi's store, which was similar to the later generations' practice of wearing cartoon suits to advertise in front of stores.
As soon as noon arrived, Jiang Yanyi's store became busy. Although there were not many customers coming to the store to dine due to the heavy snow, there were still many customers who requested to take their food home.
Most of the dishes were mutton hotpots, and fewer were dry hotpots. Jiang Yanyi was also happy to have some free time.
Her initial marketing plan was to give a free side dish to every order. Vegetarian dishes were hard to find in winter, and meat was too expensive, so Jiang Yanyi gave away bean sprouts and tofu the most, and occasionally a plate of flower cake.
But she was not good at making pastries. Except for the egg tarts, all the cakes in her store were bought from a pastry shop. But after Lai Fu Restaurant started selling more exquisite cakes, the egg tarts were the only cakes in her store that were favored by diners. However, she did not give away egg tarts, which resulted in her store not having an advantage in cakes.
When it comes to plain pastries, Jiang Yanyi is indeed not as good as those pastry chefs who have been making pastries for decades. She also feels it is not worthwhile to spend a lot of money to buy exquisite pastries.
After much thought, Jiang Yanyi felt that Western-style cakes had a relatively low production cost and a soft and sweet taste, and perhaps they could win the favor of the powerful because of their novelty.
When she tried to make it, she used her homemade oven and ruined three cakes before she finally succeeded. The first one was not baked well because the temperature was not high enough, the second one was too high and the cake was all burnt, and the third one... it shrank after cooling down.
Jiang Yanyi feels that the ingredients used in Western-style cakes are actually similar to traditional steamed cakes, except that one is baked and the other is steamed.
After mastering the temperature and ingredients for each layer of the cake, Jiang Yanyi sprinkled some raisins on the chiffon cake he made next. This enriched the taste and made the sweetness more diverse.
Making chiffon cake is much more time-saving and labor-saving than making egg tarts. When a new product is launched on the market, it is natural to promote it for free first, and then charge for it after the market is opened up.
What made Jiang Yanyi happy was that after the chiffon raisin cake was delivered to the diners' tables as gifts, it received unanimous praise. Some diners even wanted to buy one, saying that their mother had bad teeth and such a fluffy and soft snack was perfect for her.
More and more people came into the store. Although it was freezing cold outside, they felt warm inside the store because Jiang Yanyi had placed a charcoal basin under each table. In the basin, silver frost charcoal was burning, which burned for a long time but without any smoke.
The diners who entered the restaurant felt that every detail was thoughtfully arranged, which made them feel happier while eating.
"When will the storytelling start today?" an old customer who had been to the store yesterday couldn't help but shout.
The diners who hadn’t heard it yesterday couldn’t help but ask, “What book are you talking about?”
"I bet you haven't heard of it! Dream of the Red Chamber!"
"What kind of book is this? Mr. Ding from Lai Fu Restaurant never mentioned it."
When Mr. Ding was mentioned, someone inevitably chimed in: "I heard that Lai Fu Gudong Soup also invited Mr. Ding over today. Doesn't it look like they are trying to compete with us?"
"Let's not talk about food, just talking about storytelling, is there anyone in Xizhou City who can tell stories better than Mr. Ding?"
"That's not necessarily true. I heard the old man telling stories in this shop yesterday and he was quite eloquent!"
While the diners were arguing, the old scholar took a sip of tea in the backyard, straightened his collar and went outside the shop. His back was straight, and just like yesterday, he struck the wake-up stick and opened his voice, and began to tell today's story.
At first there were voices in the store, but it soon became quiet. Some people who loved storytelling but couldn't afford to eat hot pot squatted at the door of the store in the wind and snow to listen.
Jiang Yanyi was afraid that the old scholar would feel cold, so he asked Yang Xiu to put a charcoal basin under the old scholar's table.
***
Today is the day of rest for the army. Normally, Chef Li should come to her shop, but it is almost past noon and Chef Li has not come yet. Thinking of Chef Li's old back pain, Jiang Yanyi can't help but feel worried.
The lunch break was over, and when Jiang Yanyi was inviting everyone to eat, Chef Li came over with a chill on his face.
Jiang Yanyi hurried forward to greet him, "Master, if it snows so heavily again in the future, if it is inconvenient for you to come from the Xizhou camp, then don't come. What will you do if something happens on the way?"
The severe winter is different from ordinary seasons, and few people walk on the road leading to the Xizhou camp.
It was the first time for Yang Xiu and Bing Shao to meet Chef Li. Since Jiang Yanyi called him Master, they showed some respect to Chef Li.
The old scholar was of the same age as Chef Li. Chef Li guessed his identity as soon as he saw his clothes and the long table in the hall. Seeing that Jiang Yanyi was making a great success in the store, he was happy from the bottom of his heart, and a lot of the depression he had been feeling along the way was also relieved.
He said, "I wasn't delayed on the way. I went to Lao Yao's house."
Jiang Yanyi brought a brazier over to warm Chef Li's hands: "What happened to Master Yao? I met him in the blacksmith shop a few days ago."
Chef Li sighed and said, "He had a falling out with the owner of Lai Fu Restaurant and is no longer working at the restaurant."
"That old guy is just a straight-talker with a stubborn mind! I told him a few years ago that the restaurant owner is a businessman and told him not to think too highly of himself and call others brothers, but he didn't listen. Now the restaurant owner has hired a royal chef and doesn't need his two broken shovels and spoons anymore, but he let someone break his ancestral kitchen knife. Tell me, isn't this shameful?"
Jiang Yanyi asked Chef Yao that day if he was willing to come out and work with her. Chef Yao said that it was not fair. She thought Chef Yao was still working at Lai Fu Restaurant, so why did he leave suddenly
Jiang Yanyi said, "I know about this. At that time, I felt sorry for Master Yao and wanted him to come and open a shop with me. Master Yao said that it was not fair to do so. I didn't hear anything about when he left."
Chef Li said, "Of course Laifu Restaurant didn't dare to let the news out that he had left. Over the years, Laifu Restaurant had many old customers who were supported by Lao Yao's cooking skills. Once he left, it would be strange if those old customers could stay. The people at Laifu Restaurant had the nerve to persuade him to go back, so I went over and scolded them and they left."
He changed the subject and said to Jiang Yanyi, "You have always been careless. You should be careful about cooking recipes and the like. Lao Yao told me that the owner of Lai Fu Restaurant has been keeping an eye on you. You bumped into him at the blacksmith shop that day, and when he returned, the owner of Lai Fu Restaurant asked him what the tin box you made was for."
"Old Yao went to pick up the repaired kitchen knife today, and heard the blacksmith say that someone asked him to make a few more tin boxes like that, but the blacksmith refused to accept the order."
Although Jiang Yanyi didn't have much contact with Chef Yao, he probably knew Chef Yao's temper.
However, she was not too confident in anything. What she said in the blacksmith shop was just a test. Chef Yao turned around and really broke up with Lai Fu Restaurant. She didn't know if this was a trick played by the owner of Lai Fu Restaurant. What if the other party heard that he wanted to poach people and deliberately took advantage of him
However, Chef Li and Jiang Yanyi are still trustworthy.
She said, "That tin box is just a small stove for heating a pot. If you hide it, it will always be copied by others. As you said, Master, you have to pay attention to the recipe. My store has just launched a dry pot, but I can't do it alone. I want to ask Master Yao to come and work with me. What do you think, Master?"
Chef Li shook his head: "I'm afraid Lao Yao won't come. The owner of Lai Fu Restaurant already thinks he has something to do with your restaurant. If he leaves Lai Fu Restaurant and comes to you right after, won't that give people something to talk about?"
The old scholar who was eating suddenly shook his head and said with emotion: "People, in this life, are not forced to death by others, but by themselves. When you are alive, you don't live for yourself, but for the gossips of others."
Jiang Yanyi added a set of bowls and chopsticks for Chef Li. He was about the same age as the old scholar, and both of them had no children.
Chef Li has worked diligently in the fire camp all his life. The old scholar suffered too much criticism when he was young, but now he is more open-minded.
The two old men drank a few glasses of wine and talked about everything under the sun. They felt like they had met too late.
During the meal, Chef Li was moved by the old scholar's words and turned around to persuade Chef Yao to go.
But Chef Yao couldn't get over the hurdle in his heart and refused to agree.
When Lai Fu Restaurant saw that Jiang Yanyi was trying hard to poach people, it also panicked. The manager of Lai Fu Restaurant went to Chef Yao's house several times in person, but Chef Yao refused to see him.
Before Jiang Yanyi could continue swinging his hoe, he was stunned by another wave of actions from Lai Fu Restaurant.
Lai Fu Restaurant found that even though they had invited Mr. Ding, the best storyteller in Xizhou, to tell stories, they still failed to snatch customers from Jiang Yanyi. After some inquiries, they learned that they had never heard of the books Jiang Yanyi was telling.
Because there are too many people coming to Jiang Yanyi's store to listen to stories every day and the space is not big enough, the old scholar has changed from one show a day to three shows a day.
The seats were always full, and people who came into the restaurant didn't want to just sit there and do nothing, so they often ordered something to eat, and the hot pots in the restaurant also sold very well.
Lai Fu Restaurant directly sent people to listen to the storytelling, and after listening, they ran back and retelled the story of "Dream of Red Mansions" in their own antique soup shop.
Basically, this is a chapter of the story that was just finished in Jiang Yanyi's shop today, and you will be able to hear it in Lai Fu's Antique Soup Shop tomorrow.
In terms of excitement, the old scholar on Jiang Yanyi's side naturally tells the story better, and you can always hear the latest storylines.
However, because Jiang Yanyi's restaurant was packed with diners and the door was also crowded with people, some people who were unwilling to hear the storytelling could only go to Lai Fu Gudong Soup to listen.
Author has something to say: Jiang Yanyi: It’s not easy to do business, I sigh every day~Alas~
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2020-12-01 16:50:11~2020-12-01 23:56:51~
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Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!