NOVEL NEXT Chapter 40 Green Plum Wine
July is approaching autumn, and the township examination is held every three years. In the Lingnan area, all the scholars and supervisors who go to Kaitang County to take the township examination leave from Lihua Town.
Various stores in Lihua Town have begun to sell Zhuangyuan and other dishes, among which the wine from Qingxianglou and the fruits from Ruifenglou are the best sellers.
There are many inns on the cross streets. After some scholars and graduates who are rushing to take exams rest in the inns, they often have a big meal and fine wine at Qingxianglou.
Shopkeeper Hu even named various kinds of fine wines in the store according to their levels: "Zhuangyuanhong, No.2chun, Tanhuaxiang, Gongshizui, Jieyuanzhuo". Restaurant diners, whether they are candidates or not, are willing to have a drink. , to comfort the feelings.
Shopkeeper Liu of Ruifeng Building named the cakes and fruits: "Dingsheng cake, Zhuangyuan cake, Jinshi cake, and red silk cake." The various fruits are bright red and golden in color, with floral and fruity and sweet jujube flavors. Because it means auspiciousness, it is a good gift.
Candidates passing by Ewha Town would buy some to take with them in order to win the prize.
Liuxiang Snacks has been open for more than half a month. Although it does not sell alcohol, it mainly sells home-cooked dishes and late-night snacks. Mao Xi specially added several home-cooked dishes to the menu and gave them auspicious names, including:
"Everything goes as you wish (scrambled eggs with tomatoes), Dapeng spreads its wings (honey-glazed chicken wings), fish leaps over the dragon's gate (chrysanthemum fish), wins the gold medal (braised pig's trotters), champion rice cakes (sugar rice cakes)".
Each portion can be ordered a la carte or as a set meal for 88 pieces.
The sales of the home-cooked dishes in the store have been booming. The price of Shishi Ruyi and Zhuangyuan Ci is affordable, with each portion only 8 yuan. As autumn approaches, they are sold out early every day.
Early in the morning, two scholar-looking customers came to the store and ordered two sets of hot dry noodles, tomato scrambled eggs and soup glutinous rice cakes.
The two seemed to be chatting about some interesting gossip. After serving the food, Lou Laner came to the side to listen to their chat.
After finishing the hot dry noodles, the scholar in blue took another sugar glutinous rice cake and chewed it in his mouth: "Brother Li, did you hear anything when you were studying in the inn last night?"
The scholar in gray took a sip of the sour plum soup and replied: "I didn't hear any noise. Brother Wang, could it be the noise caused by the rats in the inn stealing oil?"
The scholar in blue swallowed the glutinous rice cake in one gulp and took a sip of sour plum juice: "I seemed to hear a woman crying. I was so frightened that I quickly blew out the oil lamp and went to bed early."
"Brother Wang, please don't deceive me. Can that woman talk to you? Didn't you get dizzy from studying?"
"No, no, no, that woman cried sadly, as if she had something to say..."
The scholar in gray clothes interrupted the scholar in blue clothes: "Brother Wang, please stop thinking nonsense. You are crying in the middle of the night. You are still a woman. Could it be a fox demon? Be careful, your soul has been sucked by her to practice."
"I heard that voice very clearly, it didn't sound like a goblin!"
After hearing this, Lou Laner thought there was something interesting, but it turned out that two scholars were fantasizing about female fairies. This was not the story of a scholar and a fox fairy in a picture book. They were probably stupid because of reading!
She sneaked up to Mao Xi and whispered to her the gossip she had just heard.
Mao Xi looked at the two scholars, who were a little thin. She once heard the old man say that in the countryside, auditory and visual hallucinations only occurred when they didn't have enough to eat.
"The scholar said that when he heard the cries of the fox demon, he was probably starving after staying up late studying and was short of iron. Just eat some meat and it will be fine!" Shui Xi said calmly. As a modern person, she didn't believe it. Female seductress, aren’t the stories told in Liaozhai all made up?
"Ah Shu, what is iron deficiency?" Lou Lan'er didn't understand.
"If you usually eat too little meat and are malnourished, you are prone to visual and auditory hallucinations. Lou Lan'er, did they order meat?"
"I ordered scrambled eggs with tomatoes."
"It's okay. I hope they don't get dizzy from reading."
While Mao Xi and Lou Lan'er were talking, a group of people came into the store and opened a private room.
The leading man ordered a No. 1 pick set meal, and the other three people were flirting with him.
"Brother Lu is so generous, I really spent a lot of money on you today."
"Brother Lu, I'll take tea instead of wine and wish you win the exam this year!"
"Brother Lu, I respect you too!"
Lu Chengzu's bright clothes and hairpins in his ears made him look like a dandy. He looked at the two commoner scholars outside and said with disdain, "Anyone can come to this restaurant. They are poor and unlucky!"
"Brother Lu, don't be angry, they only deserve hot dry noodles and glutinous rice cakes." After speaking, one person put a piece of pig's trotters into Lu Chengzu's bowl.
Several people took turns to flatter him, and Lu Chengzu took advantage of it. He took a bite of the fish and recited a poem: "Good fish, good meat, delicious in pieces, good tea, good soup."
"What a poem!" The three people on the side applauded.
"This is also considered poetry, haha!" The scholar in blue and gray cloth who was eating outside couldn't help laughing when he heard Lu Chengzu's limerick.
Hearing that someone was laughing at him, Lu Chengzu was a little angry. He came outside and shouted at the two scholars: "Just... you two are only worthy of eating vegetables, so what right do you have to laugh at me!"
"What qualifications do you have that your two lines of doggerel can also be paired with a good poem? Don't come out and embarrass yourself!"
No one would ever say something bad in front of him. Lu Chengzu stepped forward, knocked over the dishes on the table of the two civilian scholars, and shouted: "You dare to say that I am not worthy? My family has four generations of ancestors, but two of them were born." Jinshi, when they entered the court and became officials, your ancestors were still growing vegetables in the mud! I am a member of the Jinshi family, how can I be compared to an ant like you?"
"Who do you think is an ant?" Li Xiucai was enraged and started fighting with Lu Xiucai.
Even before Mao Xi finished serving the dishes, she saw someone fighting in the inner and outer rooms, so she and Lu Da stepped forward to stop them.
"We are all talented people. Can you all be gentlemen and don't do anything?" Shui Xi and Lou Lan'er tried to persuade them while clearing away the dishes on the floor.
Lu Da was not so polite. He carried Lu and Li to the door of the food shop and shouted: "We have to fight at the door. Don't affect our business." After saying this, he glared at the other people who wanted to take action.
Wang Xiucai apologized to Mao Xi: "I will apologize to your store on behalf of Brother Li. This is the money for the broken bowl. We will leave now." After that, he called Li Xiucai over, apologized together, and left in a hurry.
Lu Xiucai scoffed at Li and Wang who ran away, "Ignorant young man, how dare you mess with me!" After that, he left Liuxiang Snacks with his friends.
"Hey! You have to pay for the bowl you broke!" Lou Laner shouted to Lu Xiucai.
"It's just a few bowls of money, here you go, no need to change!" Lu Xiucai threw half of the money to Lou Lan'er and walked away.
Mao Xi shook her head and couldn't help but sigh. How could there be such a big gap between the two groups of scholars she met in Liujiacun, Zhang Xiucai, and the two groups of people who were motivated today?
Just after clearing the table, Mi Yuan and Su Ziguan came to the store together.
"Little girl, are there any new dishes?" Su Ziguan looked at the menu in the store.
"Xuetuo, the newly added dishes are all home-cooked dishes with some clever names." Shui Xi said modestly. She did not dare to show off her literary talent in front of Su Xuetuo.
"Don't Liuxiang Snacks sell alcohol yet?" Master Mi Yuan was happy without alcohol.
"Master Mi, the wine shop has just been registered. All the home-brewed rice wine in the spring is supplied to Qingxianglou, and there is only a small amount of green plum fruit wine. I wonder if you like it, Master?"
"Green plum wine, bring it to me and try it!"
Mao Xi brought a small pot of green plum wine to Mi Yuan, and Su Ziguan ordered the Dapeng Wings and the Golden List to serve Mi Yuan with the wine.
Mi Yuan and Su Ziguan drank together: "Brother Ziguan, this wine tastes better than the Bamboo Leaf Green you brew!
Su Ziguan: "Hahaha... It's really good. Girl Mianxi, does this wine have a name?"
"Not yet, please give me a name from the scholar."
“When talking about heroes when cooking green plum wine, let’s call it “green wine”! "