Miao Chu

Chapter 244 Promise
Madam He originally thought that the chilled sweet and sour pork would be very appetizing, but as she ate it, she realized that it wasn't at all.

She was so engrossed in eating the sweet and sour pork that she completely forgot about the rice.

In the past, whether it was sweet and sour pork ribs, tenderloin, or other similar dishes, because of their strong sweet and sour flavor, no matter how well the seasoning was prepared, people would more or less want to eat rice to balance it out.

But because of the ice, this dish reduced the intensity of the sour and sweet flavors, giving it a strangely light and easy feel. It felt like it should be left to enjoy the taste on one's own, and all the flavors should be preserved so that the rice could not steal even a bit of its place.

The dish that really goes well with rice is the perilla and cucumber.

The aroma of perilla is so unique, an unexpected flavor. It pairs perfectly with the freshness of cucumber, a match made in heaven. The seemingly contradictory words "refreshing" and "rich" are perfectly embodied in this dish.

She usually felt that cucumbers tasted better when they were cooked than when they were raw, but now that they were cut into thick slices and fried thoroughly on both sides, the edges of the cucumbers even had mottled tiger-skin wrinkles, but the juice inside was locked in tightly, and not a single drop escaped.

Cut the perilla leaves into thin strips, stir-fry them, and their aroma will be fully released, allowing the flavor to deeply penetrate the cucumber.

The cucumber was very soft and ripe, but it still made a slight "crunch" sound when you bit into it. It was salty and savory with a hint of spiciness.

The same flavor bursts forth with every bite, and that juice is absolutely amazing. It's the juice of cooked cucumber, made by frying it in lard and then cooking it with soy sauce and dogwood. It carries the refreshing taste of cucumber, the spiciness of dogwood, and the unique aroma of perilla leaves after being stir-fried, all coming together perfectly.

If someone with an insecure palate were to taste this for the first time, they might even begin to doubt themselves – Am I worthy of eating this? What have I done to deserve it?
With these two dishes silencing her, Madam He had no interest in anything else while eating; she only knew how to eat.

As she gets older and has seen more of the world, having tried all sorts of new and exciting things, her stomach now prefers more familiar flavors.

The dishes in front of me all used ordinary ingredients. Except for the sweet and sour pork, which required deep-frying and was a bit of a hassle—but not really a hassle for the chefs—the rest were all home-style dishes.

Song Ji's home-style dishes, even with different combinations and seasonings, still fall within the familiar taste framework of people's palates. For some reason, they always taste particularly delicious, comforting, and even surprising.

The surprise was expected and didn't require you to spend any effort or energy to adapt. It was like meeting a close friend in a foreign land. The other person had changed completely, was full of energy, and was overjoyed to see you. After meeting and chatting, you found that they were still the same as before, with the same temperament and the same way you used to get along. You didn't need to get to know each other again, except that you were both more mature and experienced more.

After your late-night chat and sleeping side-by-side, all your feelings boiled down to one sentence—Hey! It's you! It really was you!

Song Miao prepared the dishes, but not a lot. Since it was a small dining table, she cooked according to the number of people coming, naturally taking into account the appetites of the elderly and the child.

So after the meal, apart from half a basin of leftover ice, a little bit of minced garlic and dogwood crumbs, even the perilla leaves on the table were picked clean—Madam He tried mixing them with cucumber slices and eating them with rice, and they were extremely delicious, so she couldn't stop eating them.

When she picked up the last piece of sweet and sour pork, Madam He finally came to her senses.

Only one piece left?

She was about 70-80% full, but still wanted more, so she couldn't help but ask, "Shopkeeper Song, do you still have any perilla and cucumber? How about another small dish? I'll have a couple more bites of rice with it."

Zhu Jie'er, who was still eating the last piece of sweet and sour pork in her bowl, suddenly opened her eyes wide and hurriedly looked up at Song Miao. If she hadn't been too busy to speak, she really wanted to ask, "Can I have a few more pieces of sweet and sour pork?"

The maid beside her hurriedly replied, "I already told the lady when I sent out the invitations, asking her to make it according to the number of people, not too much, there's no more than that!"

As he spoke, he quickly gave Song Miaoshi a meaningful look.

Song Miao also replied, "It was made exactly according to the quantity, and there was no more. If the old lady has time, she can come and visit often. If she doesn't have time, she can ask the kitchen to make it at home, which is about the same."

what?
But it was so different, it wasn't the same taste at all, it wasn't delicious at all!

So the old man and the young boy sat at the table together, and simultaneously let out a long sigh, one long and one short. The old man frowned, and the young boy frowned, both looking quite disappointed.

Holding the last piece of sweet and sour pork with her chopsticks, Old Madam He was actually a little reluctant to eat it right away.

She couldn't help but ask, "Isn't that a difficult question to ask? Why is your sweet and sour pork fried so crispy and tender?"

"To my shame, the other day when Zhu'er came home, she mentioned the chilled sweet and sour pork she had at your place, so I asked my family to make it. It was delicious, but it was completely different from what you made. I just don't know what the problem is!"

Song Miao then asked the cook in Madam He's household how to make this sweet and sour pork.

After listening for a while, she said, "Most of the kitchens in the mansion make it according to the recipe of sweet and sour pork tenderloin, and they also use small tenderloin. It is tender, but the key to sweet and sour pork is that it is tender, crispy and juicy. Solid meat can be tender even if it is juicy, but it is difficult to make it crispy."

"Then what should we do?" Old Madam He asked subconsciously, having listened intently.

But as soon as she finished speaking, she realized her mistake and hurriedly said, "The shopkeeper's secret recipe should not be revealed, right? Young lady, please don't mind, I misspoke!"

Song Miao smiled and said, "Of course it's not good to spread it around, but it's not that we can't say anything at all—does the old lady not trust us? Besides, there are no secrets to cooking. If you tell us the secrets, they're worthless. Even if you don't tell us the secrets, a chef with some knowledge can make it almost exactly the same after just one look and one bite."

She said, "I usually slice pork belly into very thin, long pieces, season them, coat them with batter, roll them into small pieces, fry them, and then fry them again—when the old lady returned home and mentioned it, the cook understood."

There was no need to go back to the manor to find a cook. Upon hearing this, Old Madam He understood and said, "No wonder you said solid meat couldn't be fried to this texture! It turns out you need to use meat slices to make rolls! No wonder the outside is so crispy and the inside is so tender!"

As she spoke, she couldn't resist taking a bite of the sweet and sour pork.

Sure enough, I didn't notice it when I didn't say anything, but now that I'm looking closely, inside the crispy shell, at the cut surface, the meat pieces are rolled up in layers, and when you bite into it, the meat juice gushes out.

"Actually, you can also make sweet and sour pork by rolling thin slices of pork neck into the fried pork. Although pork neck is very tender and has a lot of marbling, it can't be fried to the same crispy texture as pork belly. It will be more tender. Madam, you can try both and see which one you prefer."

After Song Miao finished speaking, she smiled and said, "However, everyone is used to different heat and seasonings, so the taste of the food will naturally be different. Even with the same recipe, the same method, and the same master, the taste will not be the same."

"The old lady thinks my sweet and sour pork tastes even better than usual. Perhaps it's because it's a perfect match for my cooking. I just hope that our connection will continue and that she'll come over often in the future to patronize my business!"

Even if you don't come to visit, I hope you and Sister Zhu will come more often—Xiao Lian has been talking about her new friend these past few days. Yesterday I made amber walnuts, but she didn't want to eat them, saying she wanted to wait for Sister Zhu to come so we could eat them together!

Who doesn't like being remembered?
Who doesn't like being remembered because they are "themselves"?

Not to mention that Zhu Jie'er was extremely anxious, even Madam He, whose tastes had always been "compatible" with Song Miao's cooking, felt an urge to come back here again tomorrow for a meal, or even two, to try out the sweet and sour pork made from pork neck rolls, and to chat with this young lady Song for a while.

Madam He had always believed in sharing joy rather than keeping it to herself. Thinking of the glutinous rice cakes she'd eaten today, the perilla and cucumber salad, and the chilled sweet and sour pork, she couldn't help but ask, "Does Miss Song accept guests for meals outside the main venue?"

“I have a garden at home where the lotus flowers are in full bloom and will soon be in full bloom. I was planning to invite a group of old friends to get together, enjoy the flowers and drink tea, and of course, we’ll have a meal. If you have some free time, could you come over and help me add a few dishes? We don’t need anything else, just bring what we have today!”

***
Song Miao and Xiao Lian went out to see the old woman and the child off. Da Bing was tidying up in the front hall when he heard the noise outside. He couldn't help but whisper to Cheng Er Niang beside him, "Er Niang, I almost couldn't help but interrupt just now. Our mistress makes so many delicious dishes. These dishes today are certainly good, but the old lady hasn't seen any of the other dishes that are just as good or even better! Why don't we ask her to prepare the whole feast!"

Cheng Erniang also said, "Although this is not very polite, it makes a lot of sense. We just won't say it out loud. If we could give our young lady a chance to cook a feast, I'm afraid that after the banquet, every single person who ate at the feast would be turned into a customer of our restaurant!"

Following the arrangements that Song Miao had given them long ago, the two checked and filled in any gaps, preparing everything that could be packed up for the next day. By then, it was getting late.

Seeing that the agreed time had arrived and the coachman, Master Xu, still hadn't come, Cheng Erniang couldn't help but wonder, "Could it be that I remembered the time wrong?"

Dabing said, "It seems that Master Xu had some trouble at home these past two days, which is why he came a little late. It's not a big deal for me; at most, I'll just go home to rest a little later. Just don't let it delay my morning meal delivery."

Hearing Dabing's explanation, Cheng Erniang didn't say anything more.

Everyone has their share of little and big things happening at home. As long as it doesn't cause any major disruptions in the end, that's fine.

About half an hour later, Master Xu finally arrived late.

Before the mule cart had even come to a complete stop, seeing Dabing standing at the door, he immediately exclaimed, "Hey! I wanted to come and pick you up earlier, but the kid next door suddenly got a fever again and kept talking nonsense. His family begged me to take him to see a doctor first. I finally found a clinic and thought I'd hurry over, but who knew that the road to Zhouqiao was completely blocked."

"I heard that there was a near collision with a carriage ahead, but thankfully it didn't happen. It's just a pity for someone like me who has duties to perform, watching as it gets dark, but there's nothing I can do. Fortunately, although it's dark, it's still early..."

He kept explaining, and Dabing wasn't really happy about it, but since the other party was using the child as an excuse, he didn't want to find fault, so he said, "Never mind, I'll be earlier next time."

When the carriage was opened, Dabing felt even more uncomfortable.

As soon as I opened the door, I saw a lot of yellow mud on the floor inside, and some places were still wet, as if they hadn't been cleaned yet—in the middle of summer, in this heat, if it had gotten wet in the morning, it would definitely have dried by now.

This looks like they just finished delivering goods and rushed over before they even had time to pack up.

He couldn't help but ask, "Second Madam said that Master Xu knows every road well and knows how to run fast. Even I know that Zhouqiao is always congested in the morning, at mealtimes, and at night. Why are you still taking that route?"

Master Xu, looking completely unconcerned, said, "It's no big deal, just a little late, it didn't cause any major delay! The kid just admitted his mistake, why are you still holding onto it!"

As they were talking, the mule cart reached the corner.

The driver immediately tightened the reins and jumped off the mule cart.

Dabing froze, then quickly opened the front door of the carriage and asked, "Master Xu, what are you doing?"

Before he could finish speaking, the other person turned his back to the outside, found a wall, and loosened his trousers...

Looking at the pancake made me feel uncomfortable all over.

He followed Song Miao for more than two months, especially when they were in Huazhou. Whenever a group of laundry women or aunties came, he would teach them the fifty-two rules many times, the most important of which was "cleanliness".

Over time, he could no longer tolerate such behavior and finally couldn't help but say, "Master Xu, why don't you turn back and do it at our restaurant instead..."

Master Xu had already returned, pulling up his pants. Hearing this, he scoffed and said, "You little brat, you're only a few years old, not even fully grown yet, and you're already acting so pretentious! Sometimes there's not even a wall to lean against when we're out here. I can just turn my back, find an open space, and take care of it. Instead of following your example and looking for a toilet everywhere, you might as well die of holding it in!"

But this is someone else's wall! Why didn't you just turn your back and do it in front of your own house?
While Dabing was seething with anger, Madam He, who had just returned home on Junyi Bridge Street, was overjoyed.

She summoned her personal maid and called out the names of six or seven people, saying, "Send invitations to all of them, saying that I am hosting a banquet to appreciate the flowers, and invite them to come!"

The maid wrote down all the names before saying, "After this meal, I'm afraid Song's restaurant will have several more customers!"

Madam He said, "Whether she can get more or not is not up to us; it all depends on her own ability!"

The maid then said, "I can tell now, not only our young lady, but also you, Madam, like that young lady very much, don't you?"

Old Master He smiled and said, "She's a clever person—well, I don't know why, but I felt quite close to her as soon as we met. It's very comfortable to sit and talk with her."

The maid said, "Not to mention the old lady, I think she's a wonderful person. With that young lady's skills and temperament, that shop will be successful sooner or later. And she herself will definitely be a very successful person in the future!"

She sighed again, "I really admire her. When I inquired about her last time, I learned that her family had encountered some trouble and she was carrying a debt all by herself. It's amazing that she managed to pull through and now she has gathered several people together. If only I were half as capable as her..."

Madam He replied, "You are very good too."

"You've taken care of me for seven or eight years. You're thoughtful and hardworking. You care about everything I do and know how to care for me. I see it all!" Old Madam He smiled. "You're sixteen in the blink of an eye. You know my temperament. I never beat around the bush. You can choose from all over the mansion. If there's someone suitable, I'll act as a matchmaker for you. If there isn't, you can choose someone outside. Or, if you trust someone and state your conditions, I'll be your matchmaker."

The maid was taken aback, her face flushed, and after a long while, she said, "This servant...this servant will leave everything to the old lady to decide!"

He added, "If it could be someone who reads and writes..."

Madam He said, "Tell me the truth. If you see someone you like, don't hide it from me. This is a major life event."

"No! Absolutely none!" the maid hurriedly replied. "I just thought that we probably don't have any suitable ones in our household. However, the eldest son of the He family is well-educated and capable. If he has any servants, they are most likely literate and of good character..."

As she spoke, she became increasingly embarrassed, and her voice grew softer and softer.

　Thank you so much, Mia ...
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　　(End of this chapter)