Spring is coming

"No need." Xie Hanqing smiled and left a broken piece of silver. Before leaving, he patted the shoulder of the stall owner next door.

This money is enough to pay for another hundred or ten bowls of scented tea.

Mo Jingchun put it away silently, his previous impatience gone.

I set up a stall in the morning and it was sold out by mid-morning. I closed the stall and went home. It started to rain halfway. It was drizzling, not heavy, but it was annoying enough for people who went out without an umbrella.

Fortunately, Mo Jingchun brought a straw hat and ran back to the store in the mud. Mo He and Erya guessed that she was getting wet and had already heated hot water for her in advance.

"When it rains in spring and warms up, the thin clothes in the box can be turned out to dry in the sun."

Mo He stood under the eaves and chatted with Erya.

"Sister-in-law, Erya, please help me take a look. Is it appropriate for me to go to Tian's house dressed like this later?"

This kind of spring rain won't last long. By the time Mo Jingchun came out, the rain had stopped.

She changed into clean and fresh clothes, dried her hair, and carefully combed her hair into a double bun in front of the large water tank in the courtyard. She also specially pinned the pearl flowers that Bo Qingshan gave her during the Chinese New Year on her hair.

"It's beautiful. The girl is as juicy as a cabbage that has been soaked in the rain!"

Erya was holding a chicken leg with one hand and gnawing on it.

She had gotten up early and had breakfast, but she still couldn't hold back the smell that just wafted from the kitchen. She was skinny when she first came here, and Mo Jingchun and Mo He only allowed her to eat four meals a day, but now she has become fuller.

Fortunately, Mo Jingchun ran a restaurant and could afford to feed her like this.

"How can you say that to someone!" Mo He held his forehead.

"That's good." She threw down the wooden comb and ran into the kitchen to wrap the two portions of black rice dumplings and fried dumplings she had specially set aside in the morning in oil paper, and then tied them with thin hemp rope.

"Erya, come with me to Tian's house."

Mo He stayed in the store to open the business. She took Erya to follow the news she had learned yesterday, bypassed several winding alleys, and found the back door of Tianjia Restaurant.

This is a large courtyard, with the front room being paved, but there are eight rooms in the backyard, where the waiters, shopkeeper Tian and his wife usually live.

Yesterday, Bo Qingshan asked her to show her attitude from the beginning and personally visit and invite the remaining two shopkeepers with gifts.

The person who opened the door for her was a young woman, about the same age as Mo He, with a small black mole on her chin and a very graceful figure.

"Mrs. Tian." She guessed at the other person's clothing and age.

"Excuse me, are you...?"

Mrs. Tian didn't remember that she had ever seen the girl in front of her, so she asked politely.

"I am the shopkeeper of Xiang Qinghuan, my surname is Mo."

She was generous and generous, and Mrs. Tian reacted as soon as she heard Xiang Qinghuan: "Oh, it's Shopkeeper Mo! What's wrong?"

"I haven't visited you for a long time. Today is the Shangsi Festival. I made black rice and three kinds of fried rice for Mrs. Tian to try."

Mo Jingchun smiled and handed over the carefully wrapped snacks.

"Ah, thank you very much. Come in and sit down! Look at me, I even forgot to welcome you in."

Mrs. Tian welcomed her in and watched her seat enthusiastically.

The two chatted for a while, and as they spoke, they began to address each other as sisters.

"My little sister is hosting a banquet in the store tomorrow night and has invited several other shopkeepers. Sister Xiangyun must come with Shopkeeper Tian!" She told her earnestly.

"Okay, I'll definitely come!"

This is also the case in the Zhao family.

Before parting, she also received the fried rice dumplings made by Mrs. Zhao and had some exchanges.

Both shopkeepers agreed to attend the banquet at noon tomorrow. She started to prepare the food list when she had some free time, so she handed over all the work today except the main course to Mo He and Er Ya.

She originally bought Erya with the intention of settling down and sharing Mo He's affairs, but as they got along with her over time, she gradually discovered that this girl was very talented in cooking.

So now she occasionally teaches Erya one or two dishes to practice, or sets aside one dish for her to practice every day.

Erya is happy to do anything as long as she touches the food.

She slowly wrote and drew on the paper, and the four shopkeepers and their wives, together with them, a total of ten people, finally formulated twelve spring delicacies.

The first dish is braised spring chicken with potatoes. When choosing chicken, choose young chickens that are about half a year old. This is the time when the meat is tender and delicious. Add yellow potatoes and simmer until pink and glutinous. It will melt in one sip. Garnish with sprinkles of chili peppers. Enhance flavor.

The second step of pickling Duxian is essential. "Marinated" refers to marinated bacon and ham; "Xian" refers to fresh pork belly, chicken, etc.; "Duk" means stewing over low heat.

Rich soup, crispy pork belly and bacon, fragrant and crispy spring bamboo shoots...

There are also grilled pork and honey-grilled pork ribs.

All kinds of "fresh and tender" ingredients suitable for spring, such as prawns, garlic sprouts, celery, and white bream, are all listed here.

No one who loves to think about food can find fault with this table.

She prepared everything with satisfaction, washed her hands, packed up and changed her clothes. Shopkeeper Tian, ​​his wife, and shopkeeper Zhao and his wife arrived and prepared gifts.

It seemed like they had agreed to come together.

After waiting for a while, the guilty shopkeepers Lai and Qiu also arrived in despair. They did not bring their families, but came alone and empty-handed.

It can be seen that Lai and Qiu are in the same boat, so they have a better relationship.

Tian and Zhao, who could see it more clearly, walked closer in unison.

Mo Jingchun naturally led a few people to the second floor. At this moment, there were only a few of them in Xiangqinghuan.

Today the store closed early in the afternoon, so Mo Jingchun had time to prepare the table.

Erya took on the role of serving tea and serving dishes. She was even taller than Shopkeeper Qiu, and standing next to him put a lot of pressure on him.

Especially when she had a sinister smile on her face, and then she was about to serve soup for Shopkeeper Qiu. Shopkeeper Qiu refused in a hurry: "Oh no, no, no... I, I can do it myself."

Halfway through the meal, Arita, Zhao and Mo Jingchun were chatting happily, and the atmosphere was lively. If Qiu and Lai had their own concerns and were absent-minded, it would be considered a great time for the guests and hosts.

There was a strange flash in Mrs. Tian's eyes.

After Mo Jingchun left yesterday, she asked someone to find out if anything happened the day before yesterday. When the servants came back to report, they guessed that Mo Jingchun held the banquet to warn the two families about his dirty tricks.

Mo Jingchun hasn't mentioned it since he walked in. I'm afraid he's waiting for Shopkeeper Qiu and Shopkeeper Lai to mention it themselves...but he's a tolerant one.

She blew on the bowl gently and took a sip of the extremely delicious pickled soup. Then she heard Shopkeeper Qiu standing up while no one was talking, talking to Shopkeeper Lai next to her.

He looked ashamed: "I didn't expect Shopkeeper Mo to be such a little girl... Qiu admired me. Some unpleasant things happened between Qiu and Shopkeeper Mo before. Fortunately, Shopkeeper Mo didn't care about it. Qiu felt ashamed. Today I came to apologize and hope that the two families can live in harmony in the future."