Chapter 132

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Protagonist:

Song Miao

Upon returning home, Song Miao first soaked the white kidney beans in water, then went to pack her luggage.

Going out to work, naturally everything was kept light and simple.

She gauged the weather, picked out a few sets of clothes, and also packed away the ingredients Han Li had sent over yesterday, specially leaving some easy-to-cook ones at home, and briefly explained to Cheng Erniang how they could be prepared, particularly pointing out the dried scallops, saying: "If there's a morning you can't be bothered to move, take this to boil a porridge, add a small handful, add a tiny bit of salt, and that porridge will be extremely fresh."

Cheng Erniang waved her hand repeatedly, saying: "Last night while I was packing I also overheard a bit, it's too expensive! Young Master Han, in order to invite Young Lady to such a faraway place to do hard work, specially bought these to curry favor, saying we'd eat together, but it's just a superficial gesture; if I took them, what would that make me?"

She also said: "Take them all, don't leave any, don't! In the future when our shop prospers and we earn big money, we'll grit our teeth and be just as willing to buy them!"

If one were to say that originally Cheng Erniang had still been constantly worried, fearing the rising water would affect business and the family would lose its livelihood, from what she had seen this whole time, she had long since changed her mind and switched her tune.

The water had risen that high, yet a whole crowd of patrol officers and bailiffs still had to squeeze into carriages to come eat a bowl of noodles.

As for the masters inside the Taixue who are revered by people, day after day they either wore tall boots or dragged wooden clogs to wade through water, and still had to brave the rain to come eat at the small dining table — to speak honestly, she was even a bit worried they'd fall, every time urging them to walk slower; if the water was truly deep and the rain heavy, she'd tell them not to come at all.

And now, Song Xiaoniangzi had been invited to Yingzhou to work; although she knew it would definitely be hard, the compensation was also truly generous.

Having eaten for this long, and seeing the long lines of diners at the Two-Student Food Lane, plus all the subsequent events, Cheng Erniang had full confidence in Song Miao's skill, no longer worried like before, but instead hoping this food shop would open quickly, and business would explode in the future.

In addition, because she had personally witnessed Song Miao's character and conduct, she was convinced that unless Heaven went blind, there was no reason this business wouldn't take off, and it would surely grow larger and larger.

With the shop's business good, and Song Xiaoniangzi being a fair person, as long as she herself worked hard, Song Miao would absolutely not shortchange her.

Thus Cheng Erniang worked diligently every day; besides helping Song Miao, she also learned characters and arithmetic, fearing that although she currently held the lead, in the future she might instead fall behind and be caught up by whoever-knows-when additional people would be hired and expanded.

And at this moment, Xiao Lian on the side was tiptoeing to observe the many ingredients on the table; seeing Song Miao mention dried scallops, she hurriedly went to look at how precious the dried scallops were, her eyes not leaving them for a second, but hearing her mother speak, she also followed along nodding vigorously, saying: "Sister, I think plain porridge is very fresh too!"

Song Miao smiled and stroked her head; in the end she still left a bit of each thing, then returned to her room.

Just as she was organizing, Cheng Erniang knocked and entered the room, bringing over a bundle of things, saying rather embarrassedly: "Young Lady is going on a long journey, I can't help with anything else, so I just made some cloth towels out of linen."

She also said: "They're all hemmed; when the time comes you can use them to wipe hands, wipe feet, wash hair and wring it out — all fine. Young Lady, don't disdain them; although these things are cheap and a bit coarse, they dry easily when hung, and if they get dirty or worn out you can throw them away without heartache..."

Song Miao hurriedly accepted them.

That stack of linen towels was thick, a good ten-plus sheets; though rough to the touch, all four sides were overlocked, the stitches couldn't be called even but they were very dense — one look and you could tell they were made with care.

She praised: "Lately there's been a lot of rain, I was just worried towels wouldn't dry on the road and would get musty; Er Niangzi has really helped me a great deal!"

Saying this, she re-wrapped the linen towels properly and carefully put them into her travel bag.

Seeing this, Cheng Erniang smiled so wide her teeth nearly showed, then took something else from her sleeve, saying: "My skill is really crude, originally I was still a bit embarrassed — earlier I measured the size and made Young Lady two pairs of cloth shoes; try them and see if they fit!"

She also said: "These shoes are made with clean soft scrap cloth; though not valuable and not very good-looking, they can be worn inside the room."

Song Miao sat on the bedside and tried them; sure enough they were a bit ugly, but once on her feet they fit extremely well, and were comfortable; the insoles were especially soft, and walking was very light.

She was a bit surprised and delighted, looked up and said: "They wear very well!"

She also said: "When did Er Niangzi make these? So many stitches, so time-consuming and laborious..."

Cheng Erniang watched her try the shoes, saw they fit, and laughed hehe, saying: "Young Lady takes such care of us mother and daughter; I just do some needlework in my spare time, what's there to mention!"

She said bashfully: "To speak presumptuously and out of turn, though I rely on Young Lady for support and am a hired hand, in my heart I actually regard you the same as Xiao Lian."

Song Miao couldn't help but laugh: "Er Niangzi is so young, yet could not have given birth to a daughter as big as me."

She put the shoes away properly, knowing the sentiment and effort within were the heaviest, the price secondary, so she sincerely thanked her, and didn't bring up any money or silver, only planning that when she returned this time, she would bring more local gifts and presents for the mother and daughter.

In a moment everything was packed; seeing the hour was about right, the two hurried to the front hall to prepare dishes.

The white kidney beans had already soaked through; Song Miao first boiled them once in water to remove the bean odor, then went to handle the pig trotters — she planned to braise a pig trotter flower.

Braised pig trotter flower is fatty but not greasy, also soft and glutinous, exactly matching the taste those masters hoped for.

This dish isn't hard to make, especially since ingredients are simple; the main ingredients only use pig trotters and white kidney beans, two flavors, it just takes time and effort.

This time Song Miao bought all front pig trotters; this position moves the most, bears the most weight, the skin is also thickest; after braising, the soup color is the most milky white and rich.

If using hind trotters to braise, the skin is only a thin layer, the tendons are also fine and thin; it's very hard to boil out a rich soup.

These pig trotters had actually already been scorched by the stall owner, but Song Miao feared the scorching wasn't thorough enough to remove the gamy smell of the pig skin, so she used fire to thoroughly scorch them again; after scraping and washing clean, she put them in cold water, added heavy ginger, scallion, Sichuan pepper, and a bit of white vinegar to blanch.

Wash the pig trotters in warm water; after washing clean, add enough boiling water to cover the trotter flowers high, also add ginger slices dried in a dry wok, scallion, Sichuan pepper, and a few slices of angelica dahurica, a few slices of Chinese angelica, and half a piece of aged tangerine peel to braise together.

The water was already boiling; after adding ingredients, bring to a boil again on high heat, then turn to low heat to slow braise. The fire is best kept very low; check from time to time; when braising the soup surface should only emit tiny bubbles, not a rolling boil.

Braise clear like this for two hours, then add the white kidney beans, braise another half hour; only in the last quarter hour before taking off the pot add salt.

Calculating the time, Song Miao cooked rice, kneaded dough, and also had Cheng Erniang catch a tender chicken, helping to clean that chicken thoroughly, steep it in boiling water until cooked, then shock it in cold water twice.

She shredded the chicken meat, tossed it with soy sauce, vinegar, minced garlic, scallion and other seasonings, and also chopped the lettuce hearts, quickly stir-fried a large plate with mustard seeds.

Several dishes were ready; outside one could already hear voices — sure enough, a crowd of masters arrived as expected.

After everyone was seated, a wooden board was placed, and a large large sand pot directly sat on the table.

Taking advantage of Cheng Erniang serving soup to the guests, Song Miao said: "Earlier several masters all said they wanted to eat fatty meat; this time I braised a trotter flower soup; the meat is very fatty and glutinous, also soft, fortunately not very greasy; everyone taste the flavor; if you like it, if there's a chance in the future I'll braise it again."

The masters nodded vigorously.

In a moment the soup was portioned; Song Miao was still bringing dishes, but saw everyone rushing to hold their own bowls, already starting to eat the trotter flower soup.

The guests of Song Family Eatery, whenever they eat, are often single-mindedly devoted, even speaking extremely little; but more or less there are still some "pass me that sauce dish," "I want more soup! Where's the soup spoon?" "My bowl is empty, how come a pair of communal chopsticks is missing!" and such mealtime talk.

But today, this table was especially quiet.

Among those who previously wanted to eat fatty meat, naturally Chen Fuzi was one.

He ate in a bit of a daze.

He wanted to eat fatty meat, but didn't expect it to be this kind of "fatty meat"!

The pig trotter was divided into four; a large large piece, very fully submerged in the soup, braised until already semi-transparent.

His chopsticks hadn't even had time to pick it up; just his hand accidentally brushed the bowl edge, and that meat desperately trembled in the thick white soup, skin and flesh quivering, the soup also swaying back and forth — the soup was completely milky white, extremely rich and mellow, the fragrance gentle, meat aroma entwined with bean aroma — it was simply seducing the tongue.

Chen Fuzi swallowed a mouthful of soup and trotter flower together; because he swallowed too urgently, he almost thought he would knock his teeth.

To his surprise, before his teeth could even dodge, he heard a "clang" — looking down, it turned out the pig trotter bone had fallen back into the bowl — but there was clearly still skin and meat in his mouth!?

It turned out that with just one more leverage point, the skin and meat separated from the bone on their own; almost the moment it entered his mouth, half of it melted, melting in his mouth into a texture that was both fragrant and sweet, and thick and heavy.

Clearly a pure piece of meat, yet eating it felt nothing like ordinary meat — like a large block of sweet, rich, tender tender tender tender tender tofu — except this tender tofu had no tofu flavor, only oil fragrance and meat fragrance, possessing the idea and sensation of fat but no fat taste, let alone greasiness — it simply couldn't become greasy.

And after swallowing that mouthful of already-melted "meat tofu", Chen Fuzi chewed once more and encountered a sticky, gelatinous texture — that was the pig trotter's skin and tendons.

The skin was both soft and glutinous, but unlike the "meat tofu" it didn't fall apart at a touch; instead it stubbornly persisted — yet a nudge of the tongue against the upper palate and it surrendered too, wrapping full skin-and-meat fragrance as it slid into his belly.

The front trotter has a large tendon running through it; by now it had been braised long enough that the tendon and skin had both released gelatin — eating it was glutinous, yet still with a hint of chew, but it could be eaten by just pressing with the lips, no teeth needed.

Then there was the lean meat; front trotter lean meat never easily becomes tough no matter how it's cooked — at this moment it was tender to the peak, one suck and it fell off the bone, wrapped in thick but not greasy, instead very smooth soup juice, together lying lazily on his tongue.

White kidney beans had been added to the soup; the beans had already burst open and turned sandy, powdery-soft and dense — long slow braising over low heat had drawn out the rich flavor of the pig bone marrow — a sip of soup was both fresh and sweet, rich and mellow; a sip and his lips were faintly stuck by that gelatinous texture, giving rise to an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.

Chen Fuzi ate with eyes half-narrowed, instinctively picking up the other half that had fallen back into the bowl and dipping it in the dipping sauce before him.

Just one mouthful of pig trotter dipped in the sauce, and he couldn't help but let out a "hmm" sound from his nose.

Such sounds rose and fell around the table, seemingly meaningless, yet each knew what the other wanted to express.

The pig trotter was delicious, but that was in a light way; once dipped in the sauce, it instantly wrapped on full flavor.

Chen Fuzi ate cilantro; inside were stir-fried spicy zhuyu fragments, salty-fresh soy sauce, a touch of fragrant vinegar to cut grease and enhance freshness, also garlic paste, cilantro fragments, and some unknown condiments picked out — fragrant, spicy, salty, fresh — paired with that light and fresh trotter flower, eating it made one unable to stop.

Accompanying the trotter flower soup were rice and a portion of chicken shred cold noodles.

The rice need not be said — steaming hot, absorbing the rich soup juice, carrying gelatinous texture and meat fragrance, then ladled with a bit of dipping sauce, chewed and swallowed, the flavor was truly satisfying.

The chicken shred cold noodles were yet another flavor — the chicken shreds still had chicken skin, very tender and smooth; seasoning was aged vinegar sour, mustard seed spicy-numbing, Sichuan pepper oil numbing, soy sauce salty, garlic paste fragrant — a small spoon of sesame paste harmonized everything — inside were also blanched tender lettuce stem shreds, spinach shreds, tender carrot shreds — evenly mixed, noodles smooth and chewy...

Paired with that pig trotter soup, it was practically another kind of "dipping sauce".

A tableful of people ate with body and soul, eating to the point of self-forgetting — even the last white kidney bean stuck to the bottom of the soup was scraped out and sipped up.

When Song Miao came again to ask for feedback, almost immediately someone covering a belch said: "Young Lady need not say 'if you like it' — it's definitely liked; also don't 'braise another round' — this soup can be braised often, braised more and more — I feel tomorrow it can be braised again!"

For a moment everyone at the table nodded repeatedly, like old chickens pecking rice.

Song Miao took the opportunity to lay out the follow-up arrangements — only saying that starting tomorrow they would no longer take meal reservations, wait until return to speak again, and also wanted to settle accounts with everyone, calculate the money previously kept here.

The moment these words came out, practically everyone at the table looked up — even someone who had been eating until sweating, just unfastened his baozi to wipe, was so startled the handkerchief in his hand dropped to the ground.

"What??"

"Business is going well, how can you just wash your hands at this time? You leave, what happens to this whole stall?"

"Didn't you say there was still a while? How come tomorrow you're not doing it? Too fast, right? How can this be??"

"Slow down, Lao Cao, pinch my thigh, see if my ears have gone bad — how come I'm hearing such strange weird words!"

Not only could the others not accept it, even Chen Fuzi in his heart couldn't help but give rise to resentment — he wished he could stuff a few other kitchen households into Han Li's arms to take away, and not set their sights on his own small dining table.

But no matter what, it was already a settled matter — the various masters in the end could only each accept it with numb faces, but no one was willing to settle any accounts, only urging Song Miao to hurry back — once back, quickly send someone to the academy to notify them and so on.

A group of masters came with empty bellies, but everyone was in high spirits, walking with wind at their backs — returning, clearly each had eaten full and satisfied, yet all hung their heads dejectedly, unable to summon a bit of energy.

Everyone bid farewell and left, each silent — when they reached the alley entrance, suddenly one person, none other than Cao Fuzi, said: "Ah ya, seems I left an umbrella in the food shop inside."

Then said: "You go ahead, no need to wait for me — I'll get the umbrella and return myself."

The others didn't think much of it, and had no energy to mind him, letting him go.

And this Cao Fuzi turned back to Sour Date Alley End, walking and jogging, hurriedly returning to Song Family Eatery — entering the door he first called out "Song Xiaoniangzi!"

He didn't mention any dropped umbrella, only said: "Will you take a birthday banquet? Just a family banquet, two or three tables, price negotiable!"

Song Miao seeing the person return, at first was somewhat surprised — hearing the other's question, she nodded and said: "Many thanks for Mr. Cao's concern, my family takes birthday banquets — only unsure when — these two days I must go out, afraid I won't make it in time."

Also asked detailed dish requirements, and asked who the birthday was for.

That Cao Fuzi then said: "It's my old wife — she celebrates her birthday in late May."

He first mentioned a few sentences about his wife's preferences and banquet arrangements, then from his sleeve took out a small cloth bundle, placed it on the table, and said: "This is the deposit — settle it first, in case there's no time to speak later."

Finished speaking, he coughed once, then asked again: "Also don't know if Young Lady will be back by May — tomorrow you might not necessarily depart, can you make it in time to help make a pot of Tian Luo Niao? Price negotiable — I already told my family about this dish, and she blamed me for only caring about my own good food, not the family..."

Just as he was speaking, a cough sounded from the doorway, followed immediately by coughs one after another.

Song and Cao, one looked up, one turned back — and saw in twos and threes, quite a few masters standing outside.

"Lao Cao, so the umbrella you dropped was a Tian Luo umbrella?"

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