Miao Chu

Chapter 273 Favor
Song and Du had only walked a short distance when they saw a carriage parked outside.

Du Haoniang greeted the coachman, who quickly jumped down and waded through the water to open the carriage door for the two of them.

Once in the carriage, Du Haoniang asked Song Miaodao, "Recently, everyone in the capital has been talking about the Liuta River and Huazhou. Everyone is watching the waterways inside and outside the city. The other day when the weather was clear, the river level not only didn't drop, but it actually rose quite a bit. Everyone is guessing that there was a flood upstream, and some are guessing that something bad is happening in Huazhou."

"You just came back from there. Do you know how the dike repair is going? Aren't you worried about flooding? I've heard a couple of rumors outside that they're digging another canal. Is that just hearsay?"

Song Miao said, "This is not a rumor. In addition to building dikes, Huazhou is also digging new rivers."

She briefly explained the matter of rebuilding the Wangjing River, saying, "Since we didn't know if it would be successful, Young Master Han and Mr. Wu didn't publicize it much. They just got approval from above and buried themselves in their work—to avoid giving others something to talk about if the outcome was bad."

He added, “I don’t know much about river affairs, but seeing that Young Master Han and Minister Wu and many others are busy from morning till night, without a moment’s rest, and with the river workers putting in their efforts, and the whole government working together, they have done their best. The rest is up to fate.”

Du Haoniang became anxious and said, "I just hope that God will have mercy—Old Xin is worried about this at home all day long. Everyone says that the Yellow River just breached its banks at Huazhou. Sending Brother Han to that mess is not as good as going to Liutahe. Although people say it's not good anywhere, there are so many officials and laborers there. The court values ​​it highly and has allocated a lot of money and supplies. It still has a certain prestige. Even if something goes wrong, although it's not nice to hear, there has never been a practice of punishing the masses. It won't implicate him!"

He was so angry he wanted to stomp his feet and said, "Alas! We should have kept it a secret. What if it didn't work out? But now so many refugees are heading north, and we can't control their mouths. Han Li's name has spread far and wide, and he's even connected to the Huazhou River incident. I'm sweating bullets listening to this, afraid that something bad might happen!"

Du Haoniang realized her words were inappropriate and quickly changed the subject, saying, "Look at me, I'm just rambling on about this nonsense—I was just about to discuss something with you. I'd like to order some dried meat. No rush, we can take our time and wait in line. You can make it for me whenever you're less busy!"

Song Miao agreed, "Even if you didn't say anything, I would still prepare some gifts for you during the Mid-Autumn Festival!"

Du Haoniang hurriedly said, "It's not a gift, I've been wanting to buy it for a long time!"

He further explained, "Old Xin is always on the go, sometimes he remembers to eat, sometimes he doesn't. Sometimes when he's catching criminals or following cases, he might end up in the mountains or forests. In the past, we could only buy some dry food haphazardly. Last time he came back, he said he ate the dried meat that Brother Han shared, and it was especially delicious and long-lasting. I said I wanted to order some, but then something happened, and that delayed things..."

After she finished speaking, she laughed again and said, "Who knew that this delay would cause such a long queue for the dried meat! It's making it difficult for us locals to buy any—very good, very good!"

Song Miao also laughed and said, "There's no way my sister-in-law won't be able to buy it—we're in a hurry to find a courtyard here!"

Dried meat has been selling very well lately, and it's only getting better.

She had previously given some to Lu Zhongtong and his fellow students who were returning to Yunnan, and later gave some to Han Li. Gradually, the students and officials from the capital city government all came to inquire about it. After it was made and sold properly, even more people came after hearing the news.

Not long after the Xu family martial arts school was purchased, a number of bodyguards came. Then, bodyguards from other escort agencies followed suit. There were also those who went out to trade, study, or serve as attendants to officials, and so on. It was like picking yam beans; once you pull out one, there are all the others behind it. You can't pick them all up.

This product is expensive and time-consuming to produce, and the profit is not much, but the orders are stable and not urgent, making it relatively easy to arrange staff. Once the volume is accumulated, the profits can be quite considerable through high volume and low margin.

Such meager profits are "considerable" and big shops and workshops naturally wouldn't be interested, but some small workshops and stalls saw it and followed suit.

Unfortunately, while making jerky isn't difficult, the seasoning and the dryness of the meat can be off by a hair's breadth. If you make a small mistake, the taste will be wrong, or it will spoil easily. One mistake can affect an entire batch. If you force yourself to sell it, you'll damage your reputation. If you don't sell it, since it's all made of meat, you'll lose a lot of money.

Some people are reluctant to use pure meat and mix in other things to earn more money.

So, as customers came and went, unless they were in a real hurry, once they had tried Song Ji's food and compared it with other places, they would still wait for her to buy from her, even if it was more expensive and the wait was longer.

Song Miao was anxious to find another courtyard, hoping to get this business up and running as soon as possible.

As we were talking, we arrived at our destination. It took about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Today the wind and rain are heavy, so the carriage is moving slowly. But even on a sunny day, it's still a long way to go, as it's just across the street, so there's no limit to how fast it can go.

After getting off the carriage, they saw an old woman standing outside the door. Upon seeing Du and Song, she hurriedly stepped forward to greet them—she was the middleman who had come to view the house.

After exchanging a few words, the old woman said, "I've been knocking on the door for ages, and I can vaguely hear some noises inside, but I don't know what's going on. No one has come to answer for half a day!"

Just then, they heard a creak and someone opened the door—it was a cunning man.

The man was skinny and had shifty eyes. Hearing that they were there to look at the house, he was quite enthusiastic and quickly ushered them inside.

Upon entering the house, it was dark and grimy, with a strong smell of filth. Song Miao, a cook, had a more sensitive nose than most people, and was so choked by the smell that she coughed and couldn't help but take two steps back outside.

Even Du Haoniang covered her mouth and nose.

The house, which had two courtyards, was very dilapidated. It had been neglected for years and was clearly flooded during the spring floods. It had not been cleaned and had a strong smell of dead rats and excrement.

But these problems are not considered major.

If you're really sure you want to rent it, then you can sign a long-term lease and put in a lot of effort to clean and tidy it up.

The three of them followed the homeowner to the backyard.

The courtyard was overgrown with weeds and looked desolate, but it had one advantage: it was a very large place. Judging from its orientation, it faced south and should get plenty of sunshine.

Although there is some standing water, it is not too serious. A little repair to the ditch will make it usable.

Song Miao then opened the back gate to look outside. There was a small path that led to the main road.

The homeowner immediately quoted a price, which was surprisingly low, as if he was in a hurry to sell.

Du Haoniang pulled Song Miao aside and whispered, "Don't rush, there are a few more rooms in the back, let's take a look first."

He added, "If you really want it, we can negotiate the price down further."

The three of them then took their leave.

The landlord actually tried to persuade the tenant to stay, and needless to say, he lowered the price again, only requiring the tenant to pay two years' rent upfront.

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

Once outside, Du Haoniang asked the middleman, "Why is he in such a hurry?"

The middle-aged man whispered, "He was gambling and whoring back then. Now that he's out of jail, I heard he still has debts to settle. Several gambling dens in Little Sweetwater Lane have come to collect the debts. He probably wants to get the money to pay them off as soon as possible!"

The three of them then took a car to see the remaining houses, but they were either further away, smaller, or had problems with orientation and drainage. Each had its own drawbacks. Song Miaolian wasn't very satisfied with the first house, let alone the many others.

Seeing that she hadn't found anything she liked, the middleman excused himself and left, saying he had other business to attend to.

After a long day of running around, it's all for nothing.

In recent days, Song Miao and Cheng Erniang have taken time out of their busy schedules to look at almost all the houses in the vicinity. After comparing them, they decided that the first house they saw today was the best.

She thought for a moment and said to the driver, "Please, let's go back to the house on the street. There's no need to go inside again. I just need to calculate the distance."

Originally, it was just to estimate the time, but who knew that before they even reached the door of the house, they would see a crowd of neighbors gathered three or four layers deep outside the door—in the pouring rain, everyone was holding umbrellas, wearing raincoats, and some were even standing under the eaves, all watching the spectacle.

As the carriage approached, the torrential rain couldn't drown out the shouts and curses.

"You little bastard! You coward! You filthy scum! You owe me money and won't pay it back! If you don't open the door, I'll break it down!"

"Open the door or not! Open the door! If I catch you, I'll smash your head in!"

"Pay back your debts! If you don't pay, I'll come knocking on your door every day! I'll beat you every time I see you!"

"Either you take the house as collateral, or you pay back the money honestly!"

Seven or eight vagrant-looking men surrounded the door, banging and banging on it.

Seeing this, Du Haoniang said, "No wonder he's in such a hurry to lower the price. If others saw this, who would dare to rent it!"

He added, "But we're not afraid. If someone takes a liking to it, we can use this as leverage to negotiate a lower price. Once we rent it, we can have the patrolmen come and visit often. After Old Xin finishes his shift, he can sit here more often, and I guarantee no thug will dare to come knocking."

Despite this, Song Miao, who originally had some interest in the house, lost all interest in it after seeing the current situation.

Xin Feng had been a patrol inspector for many years, and with the same temper, even the officials in the yamen avoided him, let alone the hooligans and bandits outside.

With such a husband, Du Haoniang was naturally not afraid of local thugs at all, and she didn't care about such a small debt dispute.

She meant well, feeling that the two families were close and happy to help, but Song Miao understood even better that no matter how familiar they were, they were still two families, and personal favors couldn't be used like that, so she said, "Let's look around some more, and if there really aren't any other rooms available, then we'll talk about it."

He then laughed and said, "My sister-in-law accompanied me out for half a day today. We're just ahead in Suanzao Lane. It's almost lunchtime. Let's have a meal, rest a bit, and then head back. Could you also help me think things over some more?"

Du Haoniang, who had come out to help, readily agreed, saying, "I'd love to learn a thing or two—and see how your cooking is so delicious!"

After being away for half a day, when I returned to Suanzao Lane, the water level on the ground had risen by three centimeters, and two more layers of sandbags had been piled up at the entrance of the lane.

Summer floods, unlike spring floods, often arrive faster, are more intense, and cause greater damage.

Seeing the rain and the water level, people along the way were pointing and sighing under the eaves.

Upon returning home, Cheng Erniang immediately came to greet her. After exchanging pleasantries, she said to Song Miao, "As you instructed, Madam, I told Si Niang and the others to go back first, in case the rain gets too heavy and the roads flood."

Song Miao asked a few more questions and learned that everything went smoothly in the morning and that she had already informed everyone that orders would be suspended for one day tomorrow. She was relieved and turned to Du Haoniang with a smile: "I was expecting my sister-in-law to come, so I asked Second Sister to help me buy some seasonal vegetables. Take a look and tell me what you want to eat!"

He added regretfully, "I was thinking of taking this opportunity to roast pigeon, but unfortunately the rain is too heavy and it's inconvenient, so I'll have to postpone it to another day."

When Du Haoniang heard that she had to choose for herself, she waved her hand repeatedly and said, "I usually hate choosing things. Last time I took the two little ones to eat at a restaurant, there were only ten dishes in total, and I couldn't choose even after drinking a cup of tea. Just pick something convenient to make, don't make it too complicated. It's just us kids!"

Hearing Du Haoniang say this, Song Miao didn't bother with the polite formalities. She first looked through the vegetables Cheng Erniang had bought and, out of curiosity, asked with a smile, "Where did you get the water chestnuts?"

Cheng Erniang was also a little smug, saying, "It's just that Madam Du is so lucky! The stall owner said that they usually order from restaurants and shops, but today it's raining so hard that they don't dare to take too much, so they have some left over—it was just transported from Jiangning last night. Although it was delayed on the way and is a bit old, it's still a rare seasonal delicacy!"

Du Haoniang leaned over to take a look and said, "I have indeed eaten this before. When I lived in Pantao Lane, which was next to the dock, I once helped someone out, and she sent me a basket of it, saying it was called 'water bamboo shoots'. I didn't find it to taste as good as bamboo shoots, although it was a bit sweet. But it was too old, and when I chewed it, it was all fibrous, and I couldn't taste anything."

Song Miao said, "This is a southern ingredient, which is very perishable. When it is fresh, it is tender and sweet, and has a special fragrance. It is a pity that the Grand Canal is not smooth now, and it takes too long to send it to the capital, so people cannot taste its goodness."

As she spoke, she thought for a moment and said, "It looks like a lot, but the outer layers are all old and tough. You can only bite into a mouthful of crumbs. There's only a little bit left to eat. I'll take the tender core and stir-fry it with five kinds of shredded vegetables for my sister-in-law."

The so-called stir-fried five-shredded vegetables, also known as Shaoxing-style stir-fry, can be made by combining different ingredients depending on the season. The number "five" is just a figure of speech and can vary.

This time, Song Miao's stir-fried "five shreds" consisted of six ingredients: water bamboo shoots, carrots, pickled mustard greens, dried tofu, leek sprouts, and pork, all shredded and stir-fried together.

She used two kinds of meat: pork belly and tenderloin. She added the pork belly first and stir-fried it until the oil was rendered before adding the tenderloin shreds, followed by water bamboo shoots, carrot shreds, and so on. Before taking it off the heat, she added the chives last, stir-frying them until they were only five or six tenths cooked, letting the residual heat finish cooking them.

Besides salt and a tiny pinch of sugar, the seasoning also includes Shaoxing soy sauce and Shaoxing rice wine, which are drizzled around the edge of the pot.

Du Haoniang had originally said she would learn it seriously, but before she could even blink a few times, Song Miao had already cooked a dish.

Soon, the second dish appeared—a stir-fry of dried lettuce and cured pork slices. The dried lettuce was soaked in advance to absorb enough water, and then stir-fried with boiled, sliced, and sautéed cured pork.

The third dish was also a seasonal delicacy: stir-fried lotus root tips.

The fourth dish was cooked on a separate stove, taking the longest to cook from start to finish, and it was also the most fragrant when it came out of the pan—it was stir-fried pork ribs. The whole process was done over high heat, without blanching, half pan-frying and half stir-frying, with soy sauce added to the pan, until it was dry and fragrant.

There were four people, three adults and one child, and the meal consisted of four dishes and a soup. The soup was very simple, just a home-style, refreshing cabbage and minced meat soup. Even so, it still smelled delicious.

The main dishes include rice and freshly made pancakes.

From the moment she entered the room, to the arrival of several dishes—including time-consuming meat dishes like spare ribs—and then to her sitting down at the table and picking up her chopsticks, the entire process took only a little over half an hour. The time interval was so short that even Du Haoniang couldn't quite process it all.

However, while her mind was slow, her hands were quick—hearing Song Miao's call, her right hand had already instinctively picked up a sizzling, oily stir-fried pork rib and put it straight into her mouth...

(End of this chapter)