In the evening, Jiang Miao said he would make some rice dumplings for the family the next day, so Uncle Jiang took some money and went to several familiar households to buy some glutinous rice.
If you soak the glutinous rice in advance, the rice dumplings won't swell up to the point of bursting the leaves when they are cooked. Uncle Jiang felt a little distressed when he saw Jiang Miao pour all the glutinous rice he bought into the basin, saying that he would soak it together tomorrow. This glutinous rice is much more expensive than the brown rice they eat, and to be honest, it just tastes like rice. Although it is more fragrant and sticky, it still tastes like rice, right
The rice dumplings tasted better when eaten by wealthy families. They would pour half a bowl of sugar and dip the rice dumplings in it. It was sweet and sticky. But how could ordinary people afford that kind of sugar
"Uncle, do you have any bacon at home?" Fresh meat dumplings are delicious, but there is no meat to buy in Jiangjiawan.
Uncle Jiang nodded: "Yes, there is a big one in the basket hanging above. I can take it down for you if you want. Is it for tomorrow's meal?"
"It's used to wrap rice dumplings. The bacon is too hard, so soak it overnight to remove the saltiness."
Uncle Jiang paused as he held the stick. Wrapping zongzi with meat? Would it taste good
"Uncle, what's the matter?"
"No... nothing, do you really want to use the bacon buns?" Uncle Jiang couldn't help but confirm it again.
"It would be better to use fresh meat, but we can't buy it here." Jiang Miao said with some regret.
Uncle Jiang silently took the bacon and put it in a pot to soak. Before leaving, he looked at the two ingredients that didn't go together, and went to talk to Aunt Jiang with a lot of questions in his mind.
"What do you know? Maybe A Miao learned this way of eating from outside. There are so many people in Liangjing, and they eat all kinds of things." Aunt Jiang thought he was making a fuss. A Miao opened a shop, could he be so unreliable when it comes to food
Jiang Yu gestured to them for a long time today, saying that the shop was doing good business and there were too many customers coming every day to count. Jiang Yu also gave her the monthly salary he earned last month, saying it was for the family.
Could Second Aunt Jiang accept it? She pushed the money back at that time. But Jiang Yu was so stubborn that she insisted on giving it to her, so she had no choice but to accept it and save it for her to buy a dowry in the future.
After collecting the money here, the boss over there brought back another bag of money, saying it was given by A Miao. Second Aunt Jiang couldn't help but sigh. She often heard people say that it was easy to make money in the city. She didn't believe it at the time, but now it seems that it is really easy to make money! It's a pity that she is old and the family can't do without her. Otherwise, she can go out and find something to do. Wouldn't it be better than staying at home
Uncle Jiang was rebuked, but he didn't get angry. He turned to ask about Jiang Yu. This girl doesn't know how to talk, and doesn't know how to vent when she encounters something. She came back in a good mood this time. I don't know if she really let it go, or if she was pretending because she was afraid that they would worry.
"She seems to have really let it go. I told her about the disaster that happened to the Liu family before, but she didn't react much."
"Why are you telling her this?" In Uncle Jiang's opinion, it would be best to just treat the Liu family as dead and not mention them at all.
"I will feel unhappy if I don't tell you. This is retribution! Didn't the Liu family look down on Xiaoyu because Liu Wang made some money from business? I asked around and found out that Liu Wang had hooked up with another girl before they came to cancel the engagement. I don't know how this time, but Liu Wang was caught selling adulterated goods by the government. Not only did he have to pay compensation, he was also beaten. When the other family heard about it, they also went to their family to cancel the engagement. I was so happy. How could I not tell Xiaoyu about this good news?"
Uncle Jiang felt pretty happy too, thinking that the family was doing nothing, and thought it would be a good idea to tell Jiang Yu.
The next morning, before daybreak, Jiang Miao got up to soak glutinous rice and prepare the ingredients, while Uncle Jiang and Aunt Jiang took the girls in the family to pick leaves for the zongzi. The women were very good at picking leaves, and in more than an hour, the backpacks and sacks they brought were all full.
Several people carried the leaves back to the village. The villagers who met them on the way were a little surprised. They thought that the leaves could not be eaten or used, so why did they pick so many? How many zongzi would they need to wrap
Aunt Jiang didn't explain much, just said she needed it, and went home. As soon as they reached the gate, the aroma of rice mixed with the aroma of meat wafted out from the kitchen. They hadn't eaten in the morning, and after smelling it, their stomachs started to growl.
Jiang Miao sat in the open space in front of the kitchen wrapping zongzi, spreading it out, rolling it up, and then tying it up, a small green water chestnut zongzi appeared in front of everyone. Soon, there were many more in the basin.
"Brother Miao, are the rice dumplings ready to eat?" Jiang Yue asked, her eyes unconsciously drifting towards the kitchen.
"It will take a while. I have cooked porridge in the kitchen. You guys can go and eat it." The rice dumplings need to be cooked for a longer time so that they will not be undercooked. Jiang Miao used something to press them in the water and cooked them for about an hour.
After they finished drinking the porridge, they moved a stool and started making zongzi together. The bacon had been soaked overnight and was already soft, and the saltiness was much lighter. Jiang Miao marinated it with rice wine and ginger, and added some soy sauce and brown sugar to adjust the color and flavor. When making zongzi, put a piece of it in the seasoned glutinous rice, and the smell alone made people feel hungry.
A few little ones came to make trouble at this time, but Jiang Miao let them learn by themselves. Anyway, they would be able to eat the ugly dumplings they made later.
Everyone was making zongzi while chatting, and soon all the glutinous rice and meat prepared by Jiang Miao were used up.
"It's almost done. I'll go in and take a look." Jiang Miao walked into the kitchen, poked one of the dumplings with chopsticks, and pinched it with his hands. The dumplings became soft and elastic, which meant they were cooked. He picked up the dumplings and put them in a wooden basin, then walked out with a bunch of dumplings.
There were ten dumplings in this hanging, and there were exactly ten people in the yard, so each of them got one. After peeling off the green leaves, the aroma became even stronger. Uncle Jiang, who was originally skeptical, took a bite of the dumpling and was conquered by the taste. The bacon inside tasted like a string, and the slightly chewy texture mixed with the soft, salty and fragrant glutinous rice was so delicious.
After eating this bunch of glutinous rice, they went in and got a few more to eat. If Jiang Miao hadn’t said that eating too much glutinous rice would be difficult to digest, they probably wouldn’t have wanted to stop.
After eating the rice dumplings, Jiang Miao had more confidence in the new products in the store. He and his uncle put the rice dumplings into sacks and tied them up, then sent them to the main road at the entrance of the village. At this time, the carriage had come to pick them up.
The driver saw them coming from afar and rushed over to help. Several large bags of zong leaves were piled into the carriage, so the four of them had to squeeze outside.
"Mr. Jiang, I'm sorry. I should have driven the bigger carriage earlier."
"It's okay. I didn't expect to pick so many." Jiang Miao comforted.
After everyone was seated, the driver whipped his horse and drove towards Liangjing City.
After returning to the city, Jiang Miao unloaded the rice dumplings leaves in the yard, then called on others to come and wash the leaves. He got on the carriage, first ordered pork, and then went to buy glutinous rice from Manager Wang.
When Manager Wang saw Jiang Miao, he was very happy. He said that he had not made a mistake in choosing Jiang Miao. He knew at first glance that this Jiang Miao was a capable person. After the shop opened, he took care of a lot of business for him.
"What would you like to order today?" asked Shopkeeper Wang.
"Give me some glutinous rice. Let's start with 200 kilograms."
"Making zongzi?" Shopkeeper Wang's foodie radar was immediately turned on. At the beginning of spring, he brought two ducks to Jiang Miao, who cooked them for him. He ate so much that he wanted to rush back overnight to catch a few more.
"Well, the Dragon Boat Festival is coming soon, let's make some rice dumplings to sell." Jiang Miao finished speaking, and then added, "Don't worry, I'll send you a basket when I'm done."
Jiang Miao smiled: "Aren't you afraid it will taste bad?"
"I accept it even if it doesn't taste good." Shopkeeper Wang now highly recognizes Jiang Miao's cooking skills. How can a small rice dumpling stump him
As they were talking, the glutinous rice had been weighed. Jiang Miao paid the money and hurried back to Jiang's shop. After the first month of probation, he raised everyone's wages a lot, and these people worked harder.
Fresh meat dumplings tasted better than cured meat dumplings. After they came out of the pot, these people simply ate a few dumplings each and saved dinner. Jiang Miao asked them to bring bamboo baskets, put some on the carriage, and gave some extra to the driver. When they passed by Wang's shop, they gave him a basket, and when they returned to the yard, they distributed another basket to the residents in the yard. After everyone finished eating, they praised it, and then they paid for some, saving themselves from making it themselves.
"Brother, is this basket for eating at home?" Little Stone was very happy when he saw that there was still a basket.
"The store packs it every day. You can go to the store and get it when you want to eat it." Jiang Miao ruthlessly broke his thoughts.
"Ah?" Little Stone's face fell, "Who should I give these to?"
"Send it to Xiao Mu's brother. By the way, after you have breakfast at the store tomorrow, ask Sister Xiao Yu to bring you some rice dumplings. Take them to your teacher and give one to each of your classmates."
"Oh!" Little Stone nodded, his attention still on the basket, "Can Brother Pei Che eat so much?" It's a big basket!
"He has classmates too, how can he eat alone?" Jiang Miao said, turning around and seeing Pei Mu silently taking a zongzi and walking towards Xiao Baidian, he quickly stopped him.
"Be good, Little White Spot won't eat this, Little Stone, go get some dried fish to feed it."
Pei Mu felt a little regretful. The rice dumplings were so delicious, why didn’t Xiao Baidian eat them
The Jiang family shop posted a sign for breakfast in May. Everyone gathered around to take a look and discovered that the only items on offer were rice dumplings, and they were made with fresh meat, salted egg yolk, and pork ribs. Each dumpling cost five cents, which was a fair price.
"Is the Madam of the Crown Prince at a loss?" Ever since Jiang Miao's identity was exposed, she had been calling him that in secret. But when they met, she would still politely call him Shopkeeper Jiang.
"Who knows? I'm used to eating sweet rice dumplings, so I'm actually quite interested in the salty ones. I heard that some people in the south eat salty rice dumplings."
"Tsk tsk, I won't eat it. This salty rice dumpling must taste weird." The staunch sweet lover looked disgusted.
There were many different opinions, and most people were pessimistic. But when the pot of rice dumplings was brought outside, the unique aroma still attracted many customers.
Jiang Miao prepared a bunch of wooden sticks in advance, and asked the waiter to cut the ropes and peel the sticks when customers came to buy, so that the customers could eat them. It was convenient and hygienic, and there was no need to worry about getting your hands sticky.
Such a thoughtful gesture won unanimous praise from everyone, and the salty rice dumplings also won the hearts of most of the customers.
After finishing his meal, a customer wanted to order some as a gift. He looked at the counter, then glanced inside and asked, "Daniu, where is Shopkeeper Jiang?"
"He didn't come today. He went out to deliver rice dumplings to someone." Da Niu was busy and said without raising his head.
"I want to discuss a business with him. When can he come back?"
"I'm not sure. Why don't you talk to me and I'll tell him when he comes back?" Daniu suggested.
"That's fine, I guess..."
Jiang Miao didn't expect that business would come to him just one day after he was away. He went to the Imperial College with a basket, and when Brother Fang saw him, he asked, "Are you sending food to Prince Pei again?"
"I brought some for you, too." Jiang Miao smiled and took out a few and placed them on the table. "Try them later. They are salty and have fresh meat. See if you can get used to them."
"Prince Pei is so lucky! You are almost becoming a celebrity in the Imperial College. Even Li Siye asked about this when he passed by last time." Brother Fang said.
"Of course not. It's rare for a man to be the wife of a prince, no matter where he is."
"It's not because of this, it's because you often come to bring food to Prince Pei."
"Never mind him, I'm going to go in now. By the way, finish your meal early while it's still warm." Jiang Miao gave an instruction, picking up the basket and leading Pei Mu inside.
As soon as they left, Brother Fang opened a rice dumpling and was about to take a bite when he found someone coming over.
"Li Siye, you're back!" Brother Fang greeted him warmly. Li Siye would visit the Education Office every few days.
"Well, what is this in your hand?"
"It's fresh meat dumplings. Just now, Madam Pei came over to deliver some food and gave me a few." After Brother Fang finished speaking, he noticed that Li Siye's eyes lingered on his hand for a moment, and hurriedly said, "By the way, you haven't eaten yet, right? Can I peel one for you?"
Li Siye coughed softly and said, "My stomach is indeed a little empty. Give it to me and I'll take it inside to eat." He was from the south and had been an official in Liangjing for decades and had not been back home. Today's meat dumplings really brought back his homesickness, so he asked for it shamelessly.
Fang Xiaoge tied up the remaining dumplings and handed them to him. After taking a bite of the dumplings in his hand, Fang Xiaoge suddenly felt a little regretful. He should have taken two less.
(End of this chapter)