Blissful Days After Widowhood

by Usui Takumii

not mine, word drain.

6. 81 to 100

When Gu Yin arrived at Wen's kitchen the next day, Master Xu was looking at the door.

Seeing her coming, Master Xu said attentively, "You came just in time. I specially reserved the tofu buns for you! It won't taste good when it's cold!"

The day before, Chef Xu learned noodles from Gu Yin's hands, and she didn't hide it from him when she was making dim sum.

Gu Yin looked at him speechlessly while taking off her cotton robe.

Although the old man didn't bother with him about what happened the previous day, if he didn't restrain himself, it would be unreasonable after all.

Chef Xu noticed the look in her eyes, and immediately explained, "I didn't make it for myself, but the second master's wife ordered it. As soon as it was done, she sent someone to say that it was not needed, and replaced it with plain porridge and side dishes. The others have already ordered other breakfasts, so…hehe."

"Chef Xu, you are indeed a smart person, I thought too much."

After speaking, Master Xu put a stack of tofu buns in front of Gu Yin.

The buns were still steaming, and when she took a bite, they had a messy texture mixed with various ingredients such as shiitake mushrooms, dried sea rice, tofu and pork vermicelli.

Judging by Gu Yin's standards, it could only be regarded as mediocre and not delicious.

But that was specially reserved for her by Chef Xu, and Gu Yin still finished the small plate of buns.

The previous day, Old Master Wen said that after getting up, he would think about what to eat in the morning, and asked her to come to Wen's house and wait for his words.

Since the old man's servant didn't come, Gu Yin was free for a while, and asked Chef Xu if he wanted help.

Chef Xu made three meals at the same time, waved his hand and said, "No, the second master is not in the mansion, his wife had already called. The first master and his wife had simple meals. Among the three young masters, only the first young master wakes up early. The other two young masters generally don't need to eat in the morning. It will be fine after I finish these three morning meals. As for my little apprentices, they are cooking for the servants, so I don't need to bother you."

Chef Xu was not particularly proficient, but he was a little bit powerful, that was, he moved fast – anyway, Gu Yin claimed that she was not slow, but she couldn't do what Chef Xu could do. There was not much difference before and after the three meals. He was done in one go.

Gu Yin couldn't help but praise him.

Chef Xu said a little embarrassedly, "I'm ashamed for your praise, I saw it yesterday, you were the one born to eat this bowl of rice. (profession, cook here) I… compared to you, I am faster."

That was also practiced as apprentices everywhere. If they were slow, they would not only be scolded, but may also be beaten.

It was precisely because of it that Chef Xu, who was not particularly skilled in cooking, had firmly established himself as the chef of the Wen family – he could do the work of three people alone. Second Master Wen had become a rooster, and he was willing to keep hiring him because of that. He turned a blind eye to the fact that he ate from the kitchen.

Seeing that Chef Xu was done with his work and it was still dark outside, Gu Yin got up and gave him the chair. He let Gu Yin sit with peace of mind and took a new small bench to sit next to her.

The bench was the size of dried tofu, and Master Mrs. Xu's chubby body sat up on it, and immediately covered the bench tight. From a distance, it looked like he was half-squatting.

But he didn't feel it was too hard, he lowered his voice and asked Gu Yin, "Usually the old man must be up at this moment, and he has not called breakfast until now, isn't he…"

… Trying to make things difficult for you?

In the second half of the sentence, Master Xu didn't say anything, but Gu Yin understood, she bent her lips and smiled, "It's okay, anyway, as long as the old man doesn't force me to study, and would find more obscure food recipes and let me do it. I'm not afraid."

"That's right!" Master Xu had already been convinced by Gu Yin, and he gave a big thumbs up when he said, "To tell the truth, if I had your skills, I wouldn't have to be an apprentice of a few dozen people in the past."

At that time, the days of being an apprentice were not easy. He got scolded and beaten, and had to work for free in the kitchen for his master.

Fom running errands, building walls, cleaning, and even pouring water for the master, there was nothing that Master Xu had not done.

That was why he respected Gu Yin so much for being willing to teach others.

Just as he was talking, Old Master Wen came over in person.

The two stood up immediately, the old man's eyes lit up when he saw Gu Yin, and he said with great interest, "You can do what is in the book, and you would definitely be able to do other existing things. Otherwise, let's do something that I've never heard about today!"

Gu Yin was stunned for a moment, and Chef Xu was even more shocked.

Be nice! He was still the old man who could turn around and toss people in different ways!

Gu Yin came back to her senses but was not panicked, she agreed and said, "Then I'll make a few things for you."

As a modern person, wasn't it easy to come up with a few foods that the ancients didn't know about?

When Gu Yin said that she needed tea, Chef Xu immediately went to the cabinet in the kitchen, but that thing wasn't used much. After searching for a long time, he only found a small bag of coarse tea.

Chef Xu blushed with embarrassment and told his little apprentice to go out to buy tea, but Old Master Wen couldn't wait any longer and said he would go find it.

The old man went back to his study room, but after rummaging, he only found previous year's tea – although it was very good, it was brought from the capital a few months ago, and it was preserved all the way to the present. It was also that the old man didn't usually pay attention to enjoyment, so he drank it all the time.

To say that there must be new tea in the house, it went without saying that it must be with the selfish Second Master Wen.

Second Master Wen also had a study room in the front yard. The old man took the key and went to his second son's study room by himself, and found a pot of new tea with a fragrant smell.

When the old man was looking for tea, Gu Yin found brown sugar and sweet potato flour in the kitchen.

She first boiled brown sugar with water, poured in the sweet potato flour, and stirred while pouring. When it was not hot, she poured out the paste and kneaded it into a smooth dough. After kneading until the surface was smooth, she rolled it into a long strip, cut it into small pieces, and rolled it into a ball.

Gu Yin poured tea leaves into the pot and stir-fried them with sugar. When the sugar was scrambled and the tea leaves turned brown, she poured boiling water and stirred, then added milk, and after boiling, filtered the tea leaves out.

She poured the milk tea, put in the sweet potato balls, and a simple cup of sweet potato bubble tea was ready.

The milk jelly that she made the previous day had a milky smell. Gu Yin thought that the processing method of milk at that time was different from that of modern times, and she already wanted to try adding tea to remove the strong smell.

She was just experimenting with it.

The hot milk tea was in hand, the milk was fresh, and the tea leaves were very good when she smelled it. The milk fragrance was mixed with the tea fragrance. It was fragrant and strong.

Gu Yin presented it to the old man first, and the old man let them all have a taste. Everyone in the kitchen had a share, and Chef Xu also got a big bowl. Then he put the pearls at the bottom of the bowl into his mouth, and chewed it. It was a fragrant thing to eat.

After drinking the milk tea, Gu Yin also squinted her eyes comfortably, and muttered in her heart, "It's a pity that there is no tapioca flour. The pearls made from this sweet potato flour are still a little different. But it's really delicious!"

Old Master Wen sipped it, and when Gu Yin and Chef Xu had finished drinking it, the old man said, "This doesn't count! I've heard of this milk tea, and that's what nomads outside the border drink."

Before Gu Yin could speak, Chef Xu murmured in a low voice, "I've also tried the milk tea outside the border, and it's different from the one made by the little chef."

On the contrary, Gu Yin was not annoyed and said with a smile, "It's okay, then I'll make another one."

She said that she wanted chili, bamboo sticks, cumin powder, fennel, pork belly, chicken, etc.

At that time, although spices such as cumin, pepper, and fennel had been introduced in the middle age, there was no large-scale planting in the country, so the price was high.

When Gu Yin set up a stall, in order to take care of the tastes of different customers, she let customers add vinegar or minced garlic according to their tastes. She could not afford to add things like chili.

Wen's family's bag of chili was given by a friend of Old Master Wen.

"There are people selling spices at the gatherings in the new year, but the price…" Chef Xu looked at Mr. Wen with his small eyes.

Mr. Wen was also generous, and immediately weighed his purse, "Chef Xu, lead the way, let's go buy it now."

The group of three, plus Old Master Wen's servant, immediately left the house.

When they walked to the gate, they met the second housekeeper who was observing the work at the gate.

Across the distance, Gu Yin began to greet him enthusiastically by calling, "Second Housekeeper!"

The second housekeeper was actually very smart, and he had to turn around to check when he heard a noise in the house.

Hearing Gu Yin's shout, he changed his mind, first turned a deaf ear and blocked the road, and then deliberately scolded the servant who was sweeping at the door, "Any cats and dogs can come to the door. Don't look back and be smashed by some cat or dog!"

Gu Yin felt embarrassed when she heard it, but fortunately, it didn't take long for Old Master Wen to raise his leg high and kick the second housekeeper's butt.

The second housekeeper was still wearing those soft satin shoes and staggered and slipped.

That time he didn't fall, but while screaming and hugging the big pillar in front of the house, he looked more ridiculous.

"Okay you little cook!" The second housekeeper gritted his teeth while staring at the snickering servant.

Gu Yin endured a smile and said, "I didn't kick you!"

"That could be…" The second housekeeper turned his head and saw the dark-faced old man.

He was surprised, afraid, and regretful, and his expression in the blink of an eye was brilliant.

"Things that don't have eyes!" Old Master Wen snorted coldly and walked away with his hands behind his back.

Gu Yin smiled and said, "Second Housekeeper, I have already reminded you, but it's not good to be so oblivious to the road. Look, you have fallen twice in just two days. Be more careful next time."

Then, without waiting for the second housekeeper to react, Gu Yin followed the old man briskly.

Chef Xu led the way, and the group of four went to the most lively gathering in town.

Although Mr. Wen was from Hanshan Town, he had been studying at home since he was a child, and he had never joined in this kind of fun. In addition, he hadn't come back all these years, and everything was both familiar and unfamiliar.

As Chef Xu said, the spices that Gu Yin wanted were indeed not cheap.

She was calculating how much spices she would need to make a skewer for Old Master Wen alone, when he waved his hand, "Buy all, buy more!"

Gu Yin quickly persuaded, "A sprinkle of spices is enough, you won't be able to finish it if you buy too much."

"Who said I'll eat it alone? If you don't want to eat it, others won't?" As the old man spoke, he glanced at Chef Xu from the corner of his eye.

Chef Xu blushed and said, "I won't eat it, I really won't eat it!"

Gu Yin also thought so. They could get some of the pastry and milk tea, as the old man was generous. Spice, meat skewers and others were precious things, how dare they have the nerve to eat it?

"Why do you think so much, little girl?" Old Master Wen said very freely.

He was really not bad with money. He had been a high-ranking official for decades. Although he hadn't been engaged in any corruption or bribery, the Beijing officials had given him some as respect – that was the filial piety that the Emperor tacitly approved. There were constant rewards during the New Year and festivals. The old man was not greedy for enjoyment. The silver and money were only stored in the warehouse, and he still lived a simple life. accumulation, he was naturally rich.

The spices cost five taels of silver.

After seeing the snack seller, Old Master Wen's eyes glowed with a little warm light, and said softly, "I couldn't come out when I was a kid. Every New Year, my father would buy some food from the outside and come back. In the blink of an eye, I'm already this old."

"Why don't we buy some to try and see if we can get back the taste of your childhood?"

The old man hummed, "I didn't eat good food when I was a kid. Is it possible that I still think this street food is delicious?" Without waiting for Gu Yin's answer, he said again, "Forget it, let's go. I'm tired, so let's find a place to sit and rest."

After speaking, Old Master Wen asked Chief Xu and the servant to go buy what Gu Yin wanted, and told them to buy more. He and Gu Yin went to a noodle stall on the side of the road.

Gu Yin asked for a bowl of Yangchun noodles, but the old man still said, "Pad your belly." (Eat something appetizing before a meal to raise appetite)

When winter was approaching, Gu Yin wanted to open a stall at Jishang for Chinese New Year, but she gave up after inquiring about the stall fee there.

So even though that noodle stall was small, the noodle soup was made from old hen soup, and the noodles were also hand-rolled, which was very strong. The bowl of noodles was better than the one made in a restaurant.

After eating, the old man said, "It's worth it. The noodles are strong and the soup base is clear. Although I can taste the taste of chicken soup, but I don't know how much water is added, it didn't taste as good."

That was natural. A bowl of noodles was sold for a little silver. If they used rich broth, they would lose money.

Gu Yin smiled apologetically at the boss, but fortunately he was also very kind and didn't care.

After paying the money, they ate yellow peas, pancakes, donkey rolls, and even two strings of candied haws. But these were not what Gu Yin invited him to taste. The old man bought them himself in the name of thinking she wanted to eat.

Until they couldn't eat any more, Chef Xu and the servant also finished shopping and came back.

The group returned home.

The old man was really full, so he told her to cook the food in the afternoon, and he went back to the house to rest for a while.

Gu Yin and Chef Xu went back to the kitchen.

Chef Xu started to cook lunch, while Gu Yin started to process the ingredients and string them together.

By the time he prepared a few lunches, Gu Yin had already put on dozens of strings.

Chef Xu saw that the work was simple, so he let Gu Yin rest and he did it.

Gu Yin really didn't feel tired. She was used to doing chores on a daily basis. She went out for a while in the morning and sat for a while at noon. How could she get tired?

But Chef Xu was really fast, and in less than a quarter of an hour, he finished preparing all the ingredients.

In the afternoon, the kitchen was very idle. Gu Yin sat in the yard and basked in the sun for a while, until Old Master Wen woke up from a nap, and then moved again.

The charcoal basin was ready-made in the house, with a few long iron sticks on it, it was a simple barbecue grill.

Because of the heavy smoke, Gu Yin asked Chef Xu to help move the barbecue to the yard.

Assorted skewers were placed in a basket, Gu Yin was asked to grill ten skewers of beef and ten skewers of mutton according to the old man's taste.

The sizzling sound of the roasted meat, the meat oil dripping on the charcoal fire along the smoke was really fragrant.

When the cumin and chili were sprinkled on top, it was even more incredible.

Soon the skewers that the old man asked for were grilled, and Gu Yin grilled a lot.

At first, Old Master Wen disliked the smoke and was reluctant to approach it. After finishing ten skewers, he didn't dislike the smell, so he ordered a few more skewers. He approached to watch Gu Yin roast. Later, when he saw Chef Xu and his greedy saliva dripping out, the old man asked them to build another charcoal basin and make some for themselves.

In the end, even the eldest son, his wife, and Wen Lang all smelled it. At first, they thought there was a fire in the house. Later, they knew that the old man was tinkering with people to eat, so they ignored it.

But the smell was so appealing. Eldest Master Wen had eaten Gu Yin's oil-splashed noodles, and knew that she was good at cooking. Later, when it was time to eat dim sum, he couldn't eat the light pastry, so he went to the kitchen.

In the courtyard of the large kitchen, Old Master Wen had already taken off his coat and leather hat, wearing only a straight robe, with his sleeves rolled up to his wrists and started to do it himself.

Gu Yin was full after more than a dozen skewers, and pointed to the old man beside her.

Eldest Master Wen rubbed his eyes, unable to believe that this was his always serious old father.

Old Master Wen was very happy to see him, flipping a handful of skewers with one hand, and waving at him with the other, he said, "You came just in time, come and try my skewers!"

Eldest Master Wen swallowed his saliva and was stuffed with a bunch of strings.

Who could resist it?

Not even Eldest Master Wen!

After he finished scooping up the chili, he pointed to the chili next to him and said, "Father, make a spicy one for me!"

Old Master Wen grilled another one. After eating it, Eldest Master Wen's mouth was on fire and he still praised the deliciousness.

At dusk, Wen's barbecue stall was closed.

Gu Yin and Chef Xu only made less than 100 skewers at the beginning, but in the end, the old man cooked as much as he could, making Chef Xu rush to work temporarily to make the skewers again.

They couldn't eat it all. Fortunately, there were many people in the house, so they were sent to the eldest son's household and the second son's household.

Old Master Wen still didn't let Gu Yin stay for longer. It was getting dark early and it was not safe for her to go home.

Gu Yin thanked him, and listened to him again, "Although this grilled skewer with pepper and cumin was fresh, it was written in the Book of Songs that 'there was a rabbit head, and it was grilled. There is also a chapter on the method of roasting, which records the roasting method of more than 20 kinds of ingredients. There are also roasted venison and roasted mutton in the capital… So…"

"So it's still not something that's not in the book, right?"

Old Master Wen nodded.

Gu Yin smiled and said, "Then I'll think about it again tomorrow."

Old Master Wen smiled again, and asked her to take some of the grilled skewers back home.

When the old man left, Chef Xu couldn't help but say, "Why are you smiling? According to the old man's words, the food in the world is nothing more than fried, boiled, stewed, marinated sauce mixed with raw, roasted and steamed… …The twenty-eight kinds. How could there be anything that is not in the book, and the old man doesn't know about it? You are also very good-natured, the old man is clearly…"

It was clearly intentional to embarrass people!

It was not that Gu Yin was good-natured, but she could see that the old man was either embarrassing her, or looking for something to do with her.

Gu Yin had entertained retired cadres like the old man in her previous life.

They had worked hard all their lives, and they felt all kinds of discomfort when they suddenly retired. Like the old man, he just had no appetite and was looking for work. The symptoms ranged from mild to severe depression.

Even though the old man looked fierce, he was actually very lenient. First, he didn't care about their statue, nor did he deal with Chef Xu who stole meat and the second housekeeper who talked nonsense in front of him. He seemed like a good boss.

Like she "played" with the old man for a day, made him happy, and while she received a day's salary, she also ate and drank with the public expense, which was obviously the best.

But it was not easy to say that clearly, so Gu Yin just smiled and said, "It's okay, the old man didn't embarrass me. I'll think about other things tomorrow."

Later, when Gu Yin left Wen's house, the ugly and very angry second housekeeper went to the kitchen.

Both were old people in the house, and because one was in charge of the family's affairs, and the other was in charge of the kitchen, they were considered to have real power in their hands. So they could be considered to be able to talk in daily life.

The second housekeeper first praised that the skewers tasted good, Chef Xu was good at craftsmanship, and then said coldly, "Chef Xu don't know, although this little cook has been here for two days, but she has a lot of skills, and the old man was coaxed by her. If this goes on…"

There would be no place for you in the kitchen!

Chef Xu thought to himself, 'Aren't you talking nonsense? The little master coaxed the old man, but the old man insisted on supervising her, and followed her all the time?'

Seeing that Chef Xu was silent, the second housekeeper leaned forward and lowered his voice, "Does Chef Xu know how much the little chef earns per month?"

Chef Xu shook his head.

"Ten taels! Ten taels! She gets double your months' wages in one month!"

"Unacceptable!"

Chef Xu suddenly stood up from the small bench, and the second housekeeper smiled upon seeing his reaction, "That's right, I think it's too much. Look at how many years you've been in the house. You, one person, can replace three people. But you earn only five taels. She's a small girl, why should she…"

Chef Xu was filled with righteous indignation, "With the little chef's craftsmanship, this cleverness, if she goes to a big restaurant to be a master chef, she could earn 22 taels, or 30 taels, why only give her 10 taels?! The old man and the master are bullying the people together!"

Second Housekeeper: …

This Chef Xu must be seriously ill!

When Gu Yin carried the food box back to Jinyi Alley, her footsteps were very brisk.

Encountering Mrs. Wang who came out of the alley, Gu Yin stepped forward with a smile, "Mom, were you worried? It went well today, and I brought back a lot of meat skewers. We don't have to prepare supper at night."

After she finished speaking, Mrs. Wang seemed to have just seen her and said, "Oh, why did you come back so early?!"

Gu Yin said strangely, "You didn't come out to pick me up, then…"

Mrs. Wang said, "I'm going out to buy some steamed buns and distribute them to the people who work at home."

As she said that, she also laughed. Her eyes were so full of joy that she couldn't see, she lowered her voice and said, "There will be a kang (brick bed/platform with heating) in our house!"

There was no kang in the small courtyard they lived in, but a simple bamboo bed, which was usually fine, but it got cold after winter.

Mrs. Wang had asked to get it made before, but there were many people in that line of work, and the price was also high. In the twelfth lunar month, the price had doubled several times.

Mrs. Wang was heartbroken and did not want to give up the money, so she just put a few more mattresses on each person's bed.

Without waiting for Gu Yin to ask questions, Mrs. Wang took her aside and explained the ins and outs.

It turned out that Officer Caotou came to the house in the morning and asked Mrs. Wang to go to the county office.

She was so frightened that her calf trembled, and she almost knelt down to him, calling that she was wrong, saying that she was a good citizen.

Officer Caotou asked his apprentice to help her up and explained, "You misunderstood, the magistrate heard that you adopted a child on the dock and wanted to reward you. In addition, you have settled in the town, and you have to pay the poll tax."

Speaking of the second half of the sentence, Officer Caotou was also a little embarrassed. He boasted that he had some ability to manage Hanshan Town into a paradise in this troubled world.

However, no one was allowed to interfere with taxation of the imperial court. So even if he knew that the Wang family's life wasn't easy, they had no levy on taxes.

When Mrs. Wang heard it, she exhaled a long breath, and her legs were no longer soft. She got the money and went to the county government office.

The county magistrate was an unassuming, very easy-going middle-aged man.

Mrs. Wang relaxed a little, crying first that it was not easy for her to escape from the famine, and being a widowed mother. Seeing the county magistrate was also embarrassed, she paid the tax for one person of a half tael without hesitation—as for the child, the county magistrate knew that he was a refugee, and he was supposed to be taken care of in the welfare home, but the help of the Wang family in the adoption helped reduce the county's financial expenditure, so he didn't get more.

When it was time for the awards, the county magistrate asked Mrs. Wang what she wanted.

Of course, Mrs. Wang wanted money the most, but she really didn't dare to ask for money from an official. Second, the county magistrate's clothes were half-new and not old, and he even called her over to pay the tax. She knew that they were not well-off.

Mrs. Wang said, "When I got to the town, we knew what a good life was. We have just arrived, and there are still many inconveniences in life, such as sleeping on a bamboo bed at home, and the wind blowing in the winter. It is really not as good as my hometown. That heated kang was comfortable. It's a pity that there is no man in the family, and that…"

The county magistrate was a kind person, and he had a good opinion of Mrs. Wang. Their life was not easy, but she did not argue when paying taxes. Fortunately, she adopted an orphan,so he said, "It's not difficult, the yamen officers are young and strong, but I don't know if they could do it."

Officer Chutou said that he knew, and learned from relatives when he was a child.

Since there was a leading person, there was no shortage of people in the yamen to contribute. The county magistrate nodded, and Officer Caotou led the people to build a Kang in Jinyi Alley.

"A few years ago, when I made it, I paid two taels of silver. For our family of three, I paid half a tael of silver, and still saved the other half!"

Gu Yin was stunned —

Old ginger was spicy. She could at most eat and drink at public expense. Her mother even made Kang at public expense.

—–

Miao: Old ginger is spicy: Old people have more experience

Gu Yin followed Mrs. Wang to buy a dozen steamed buns and returned home. She also took out the meat skewers in the food box to share with everyone.

However, under the leadership of Officer Caotou, everyone refused to accept it, only saying that since they were ordered by the county magistrate, they were performing official duties. It was not right to collect things from the people.

When it was getting dark, the work on the kang in the rooms was nearly finished, but it had to be completely cooled, and may take several days before it was ready to sleep on it.

However, it was not difficult for Mrs. Wang. Before the start of construction, she moved her belongings directly to the next door.

Xu Qingchuan was on a short vacation. He helped Mrs. Wang to move things, and went back to the academy immediately in the afternoon.

Mrs. Xu's house had one more room than theirs.

In that room, Gu Yin and the two children slept, while Mrs. Wang went to squeeze in with Mrs. Xu.

Because only the bedroom couldn't be used, and the rest of the house was still used, so it was not particularly troublesome.

After sending off Officer Caotou and others, the two of them had dinner together.

At the dinner table, Mrs. Xu's interest was lacking, and even Gu Yin's hot skewers couldn't make her happy.

After the meal was over, she went back to her room.

Gu Yin followed Mrs. Wang into the kitchen, while she pushed her straight with her elbow, "I don't need you. It's just a few bowls. You've been tired all day, go and rest."

Gu Yin asked tentatively, "Mother, I don't think Aunt Xu is happy. She had no appetite. Are we disturbing the tranquility of her home?"

"Why did she lose her appetite? She has eaten several meat skewers…When I said we can go stay at an inn, it was your Aunt Xu who asked us to just stay at her house. Anyway, Qingchuan only comes back once every ten days."

"That …"

Mrs. Wang turned her head to look around and made sure no one was there, lowered her voice and said, "Aunt Xu is not happy that I asked Officer Caotou to do the work. Didn't I tell you already?!"

Gu Yin then remembered that Mrs. Wang had told her that gossip earlier.

"I thought you just said that casually."

"Am I the kind of person who casually says such things?"

When she was in Batou Village, Mrs. Wang's favorite thing after work was to hang out with the women in the village to gossip. She even came back and told Gu Yin that a family had lost a chicken.

So Gu Yin was silent.

"Well, I like to talk a little bit. But I can't make up such things! I have evidence…"

"Hey, forget it, I won't ask."

Gu Yin made a silent gesture toward Mrs. Wang, telling her to stop gossiping about Mrs. Xu's and Officer Caotou.

Gu Yin took the two children back to the room to wash up, and then stopped mentioning it.

The next day, Gu Yin still went to Wen's house to work.

On that day, she saw that there were a lot of ingredients and spices left over from the previous day, so she was going to make hot pot for Old Master Wen.

The hot pot base was naturally fried-

The clear soup pot was simple to make, she only needed to boil pork bones in water slowly into a milky white soup.

Spicy base was more troublesome. She first put the dried peppers in a pot of boiling water and boiled them for ten minutes, then dried them, and then chopped them.

Then she washed the ready-made beef suet, cut it into pieces, boiled water in a pot, added the butter pieces, and slowly boiled them over medium heat. She stirred them until the water evaporated. When the butter pieces turned golden brown and floated, it was cooked.

She put the filtered butter in the pot, put the shallots, coriander, celery leaves, garlic, etc. and stir-fried them on high heat until it turned fragrant, then took it out. She added the chili peppers and some minced ginger, turned it over and stir-fried evenly. She boiled all the water over medium heat, and finally added the peppercorns and soybean paste, and boiled for a quarter of an hour.

The last step was to soak the spices left over from the previous day in white wine, add butter and stir fry evenly. Finally, she added some sugar and salt, and turned to low heat and simmered for half an hour. The homemade butter hot pot base was complete.

The old man played crazy the previous day and got up late that day.

Gu Yin thought that it was just right, after all, fried peppers were too choking, so it wouldn't choke the old man.

But she didn't expect that even though the doors and windows of the kitchen were open, the chili smell would still to the outside, shrouding the entire Wen family in a strong spiciness.

The old man and the eldest master came directly together.

The old man was woken up by choking, and his oldest son came over with his drooling saliva.

It was also a loss for them to come there early, because the second housekeeper came over while coughing and cursing. If it weren't for the presence of these two giant Buddhas, Gu Yin's hot pot base might not have been cooked.

After the base was cooked, it was time to prepare the side dishes.

The Wen family's beef was made like that by Gu Yin for two days, and the remaining ones were made into beef rolls, which were all used up.

She added the leftovers from the previous day, cabbage, mushrooms, etc., and the side dishes were all done.

Finally, for the sauce, Gu Yin mixed two kinds of sesame sauce and peanut butter- because there was no food processor at that time, thanks to Chef Mrs. Xu's great strength, he brought his two little apprentices to help grind it.

Because that spicy pot tasted too great, it was not suitable for eating out, so they temporarily placed it on a Baxian table in the kitchen.

There were two small red clay stoves on the table, each with a flat-bottomed iron pot, one pot was a milky white bone soup, the other pot was a red and spicy butter soup base, and the table was a variety of sliced meat and dishes.

It was novel just to look at.

Old Master Wen and Eldest Master Wen took their seats first, and the old man asked Gu Yin, who had been busy for half the morning, to also sit.

In front of the three of them was a pair of long chopsticks, and another pair of normal-sized chopsticks.

Old Master Wen looked at his eldest son and said with a smile, "When I was bored in the house, it was not easy for me to see you once. These two days, I see you around every day."

Eldest Master Wen was also a little embarrassed. He claimed to not be a person with a heavy appetite, and usually liked to read, write, and draw in the house.

But after eating the spicy dishes made by Gu Yin, it seemed to have opened a new chapter in life. In the past two days, he had to add spicy food to his daily food, and that day, he was drawn out of the house by this incomparably spicy smell.

The bone broth was light and could best present the deliciousness of the food itself, and then dip it in the sesame sauce and peanut sauce, which made people unable to stop eating; the spicy soup was rich, whether it was sliced meat, vegetables, or mushrooms, no dipping ingredients were needed, the spicy and delicious taste went straight to the head.

After eating the hot pot, all three of them turned red.

The old man was hesitating while holding the teacup—it was to say how Gu Yin did not meet his requirements. The little girl had been busy for two days inside and out, and the food she made was fresh and delicious, and it was too much to do it herself.

But if Gu Yin met the requirements, then he would have no reason to come to the kitchen and become a loner again, right?

Before waiting for the old man to speak, Gu Yin said thoughtfully, "There should also be copper stove mutton in the capital. So my hot pot can't be considered original. It's just that the taste is different and there are some other side dishes. I'll think about something tomorrow.."

The old man laughed immediately, "Hey, good. It tasted good. I will go back and change my clothes to take a rest. There is still some in the pot. I will eat this bone soup hot pot at night, so you don't have to work anymore. Go home, take a shower and come back tomorrow."

As soon as Old Master Wen stood up, Eldest Master Wen, whose mouth was swollen, followed.

When the two masters left, Chef Xu brought his own bowl and the two little apprentices to the table.

Of course, the three of them weren't as particular as Old Master Wen, and they didn't use chopsticks. They picked the remaining untouched meat and vegetables on the plate, added them in the pot, and then put them into the sauce bowl in their hands. As soon as it was dipped in, it was delivered to the mouth while exhaling the heat, and it tasted more atmospheric.

"The little chef is too modest!" Chef Xu said, swallowing the dish, "Why is something so delicious not original? Ugh, it's so spicy!"

Gu Yin said, "Then I'll go back first, you guys eat slowly."

Chef Xu put the bowl down and sent her out of the kitchen, then trotted back quickly—

"You b*stard, save some for Lao Tzu!"

(I, your father)

…

In that state of working for a long time and taking a break for a long time, Gu Yin made a series of fresh things for the old man, such as home-style cola, teppanyaki, pizza, etc. The old man was happy every day, not only was his spirit good, the person got plump.

Until the twenty-fifth of the new year, the taste of the new year became stronger, and Chef Xu and his two young apprentices also began to be busy preparing the food for the guests.

That afternoon, Old Master Wen didn't give Gu Yin a leave, and specially let her stay for a while.

Gu Yin followed the old man to the study room. On the way, she was still thinking that it should be New Year's day soon. Chef Xu was so busy, the old man should also assign other tasks to her. For the monthly money, she only did half a day's work every day, which was indeed a bit too easy.

Unexpectedly, in the study room, the old man did not take out any food recipe for her to prepare in advance.

Instead, he took out a few silver ingots in advance and put them on the table, "This is your salary this month, and the other five taels are the New Year's money for you."

Gu Yin: ?!

Was she dismissed?

It was a part-time job for Wu'an's schooling at the beginning. When she started working, she thought that she would work for two months. Although she had enough money for his schooling, after one month, she would quit that kind of life. But it made her uncomfortable.

"I'll think about other things tomorrow!" Gu Yin said seriously, "I will definitely meet your requirements."

She admitted that she had thought that the old man just wanted to play with someone.

Mrs. Wen was amused by her serious look, and said, "What are you thinking? It's New Year soon. I am just letting you go home early for the New Year's break, and then you can come back after the fifth day of the new year. I would naturally pay this month's wages to you first."

"New Year's break? Isn't it busy at the beginning of the year? When the time comes, you will entertain guests…"

"I don't have any guests!" The old man pouted, "I'm so old, who can be higher in the clan than me? Why do you worry, little girl? If I want you to take a break, just take a break."

Seeing that the old man had made a decision, Gu Yin said, "I will take the money for the month, but I really can't receive the money for this New Year."

The old man didn't force her, just put the five taels of silver in his left hand and put it in a red paper seal, "Since on the Chinese New Year you will not be with me, I'm giving you the New Year's money in advance. You, don't you want to accept the New Year's money given by the elders?"

Gu Yin was mulling a refusal, but the old man didn't give her that chance at all. He shoved the money into her hand, took out two books, wrapped them in paper, and asked Gu Yin to help give them to the Xu family.

Gu Yin was driven to the outside of the study room, and the voice of the old man came from inside, "Don't save all the New Year's money, get something delicious, and take care of yourself. If I see you are still thin and small, and wearing that big black robe again, I'm going to scold you!"

Gu Yin couldn't help laughing. She first thanked the old man and wished him in advance, and then went back to the kitchen to get her robe.

Chef Xu was boasting about stuffing sausages. When he saw Gu Yin coming back, his men kept going, so he asked, "Are you going back today?"

Gu Yin explained that the old man had asked her to leave early.

Chef Mrs. Xu's two little apprentices were so envious that their eyes were flushed red – they all knew that New Year's and festivals were the busiest time for cooks, and being able to rest at this time was the ultimate dream of every cook.

"Go!" Chef Xu drove the two little apprentices aside as if chasing flies, "Do you have the ability? Look not at thieves eating meat, but look at them suffering punishment (No gain without pain)!" After speaking, he said embarrassedly, "I'm a rude person and don't know how to speak with elegance, little master, don't care about it. Anyway, what I mean is that you have worked hard these days, and I have eaten so much food that I have never heard of or seen before, so you deserve a break."

Gu Yin shook her head with a smile, said goodbye to Chef Xu and left Wen's house.

On the street, the usually lively town became more crowded.

There were stores and stalls selling all kinds of New Year's goods on the street.

Gu Yin put the 10 taels aside, carried the 5 taels of New Year's money in her hand, and joined the army of buying New Year's goods.

She went to the ready-to-wear store first and bought a new set of clothes for everyone in the family. Although Mrs. Wang made new clothes for everyone in the winter, they were all gray and stain-resistant, and they didn't look very beautiful, especially the child's one which was made of rags. She had heard Wu'an say the day before that when the two of them went out to play, other children in Jinyi Alley joked that the child was dressed like a beggar.

He didn't understand anything, and played with them. Wu'an was angry when he came back, so he secretly told Gu Yin.

The four decent ready-to-wear clothes cost almost two taels, and Gu Yin bought some dried fruit snacks that the family was reluctant to eat, some meat, and spent another couple of taels.

With one or two left, she thought for a while and went to the jewelry store.

She still remembered that when she first transmigrated, Mrs. Wang had a small silver hairpin on her head, and her name was vaguely engraved on it. It was just that Gu Yin's day by day medicine cost a lot, and she didn't know when the hairpin on her head was gone and replaced with the wooden hairpin.

At dusk, Gu Yin returned to Jinyi Alley with large and small bags.

Mrs. Wang and the two children in a row were waiting at the entrance of the alley.

Seeing Gu Yin, they went up to greet her.

"I was still wondering why you are so late today, did you go shopping?" Mrs. Wang took the things in her hand and left nothing for her, "You gave me the key to the money cabinet before, didn't you? Where did you get the money?"

Gu Yin squatted down and untied the rope on the hands of the two children, holding one in each hand, and followed Mrs. Wang's footsteps.

"It was the old man who let me rest for the year, and gave me the monthly wage and some silver taels for the New Year, so I went to buy new clothes and food."

When she got home, Mrs. Wang saw everything.

Seeing the four clothes, she frowned and said, "You can just buy it for yourself… You can also buy for the two children, but why did you buy clothes for me?"

Gu Yin chose green clothes for herself and Mrs. Wang, but hers was lighter in color.

"Your clothes are all gray. This is for the New Year. Let's wear bright clothes."

Mrs. Wang said, "Hey, I don't like this color. Where did you buy it? Should I change it?"

Gu Yin reported the address of the ready-to-wear shop, and then let the two little guys try on the new clothes.

Xiao Wu'an was given a lake-blue cotton jacket and cotton trousers.

Not only were the colors bright, but they were also well-cut.

It was a little bigger, but it was still a lot more suitable than the one his mother made that could be worn for three years.

His skin was naturally dark, but he looked a lot more energetic.

Wu'an changed it immediately after trying it on, and folded it up squarely, saying that he would wear it during the Chinese New Year.

It was the child's turn. His jacket and trousers were a bit smaller than Wu'an's. Gu Yin originally wanted the two children to wear the same color and the same style, but after thinking about it, she bought him an indigo one- the child was so smart, he could climb trees, and drill dog holes. There was nothing he couldn't do.

A slightly darker color was better, at least it could be guaranteed to be worn all day before changing and washing.

His dark skin was acquired from the sun, and after being at home for more than half a month, he retained some of the fairness.

When the indigo blue jacket and trousers were put on him, he looked like a young master from a rich family.

He also followed suit, and changed it after trying it on.

The two children returned to the room with their clothes as if they were holding treasures, and Gu Yin was also ready to try her own.

As a result, when she looked around, her clothes were gone.

She went through it again, whether it was because the clothing store's work at that time missed her, or she was careless and didn't find it when she was buying other things.

Mrs. Wang came back with a small bag.

Inside the bag was a goose-yellow blouse and a skirt.

"Mother, this is…"

Mrs. Wang smiled and said, "Hey, I didn't like anything there. I accidentally brought the one you bought for yourself, so I just replaced the two with this one. Try it now. "

As she said that, she pushed Gu Yin back to the room to try on the clothes.

Gu Yin's fair skin looked more lustrous, and the collar of the blouse was also set with a circle of rabbit fur, surrounding her sharp point chin, and the palm-sized face became smaller.

"It's so beautiful!" Mrs. Wang complimented sincerely, "You should dress up well at your age. Wear this for the New Year. I'm happy to see it!"

"Then your clothes…"

"Ha, I didn't like those, and it's not convenient to wear them for work. What's wrong with the clothes I sewed? Do you think I don't look good?"

Gu Yin naturally couldn't say that Mrs. Wang's craftsmanship was not good, she just whispered, "I just wanted to see you look younger."

Mrs. Wang waved her hand, and then went to deal with other things, "You didn't buy me anything, did you?"

Gu Yin hurriedly went up and picked up the smallest bag, which had been kept close to her body, "No, the old man wanted me to deliver the books to the Xu family, saying that it was a thank you gift for Aunt Xu for helping find him a doctor last time. We will send it next door."

…

That night, Mrs. Wang was about to rest after washing up.

Wu'an suddenly ran into the house and smiled happily, "Mother! Look at what I found!"

Mrs. Wang's eyes were fixed on the youngest son who was holding a thin silver hairpin in his hand. Although the hairpin was thin, the head of the hairpin had a lifelike plum blossom.

"Where did you pick it up?" Mrs. Wang took it in surprise, took out the handkerchief and wiped the soil on the hairpin.

Wu'an paused for a while, and then said, "Actually, it wasn't me who picked it up, it was the kid in our family who picked it up. So I don't know where it came from."

"I lived so long but I could only pick up a copper plate with my luck. He could still find a hairpin, or is it silver?"

While the mother and son were talking, Gu Yin pushed the door open and came in, "Oh, I heard Wu'an's words outside. It's really good luck to go out and see money. It's a good thing! Mother, put it on and see if it fits."

Mrs. Wang didn't move, and said suspiciously, "This is not a thief, right? I heard that many thieves have stolen things and dare not sell them directly. They deliberately bury them in desolate places. Don't cause trouble!"

Gu Yin immediately said, "Certainly not! Wu'an and the kid didn't run far today, did they?"

Wu'an immediately nodded frantically like a chicken pecking at rice.

Gu Yin then continued, "So this should have been picked up near our house, and Officer Caotou lives next to us. How could a thief dare to bury the stolen goods near our house?"

"That's even more impossible. If it's near our house, isn't it your Aunt Xu's? She seems to like this plum-blossom-style jewelry, so I'll give it to her!" Mrs. Wang slapped her thigh, "If it wasn't hers, I'll give it to Officer Caotou. Such a good hairpin, if I lose it, I'll feel so distressed. I'd better let the people in the yamen put it in the lost and found place."

She is about to leave the house.

"Mother, don't!" Gu Yin and Wu'an said in unison, then pulled Mrs. Wang.

After the two of them shouted, they didn't know what to say, and they kept fighting—

"Sister-in-law, speak up!"

"I just made up so much, I can't lie!"

They looked at each other, one big and one small, no one could find a reason.

With her back to them, Mrs. Wang's body began to shake, and then the amplitude became bigger, and finally she laughed.

"The big fool is leading the little fool to lie and deceive people! He even picked it up near the house, and knew how to sprinkle dirt on it! Hahahaha…"

"Mother knows?" Gu Yin felt ashamed, and she let go of Mrs. Wang's hand.

"Wu'an said that he picked up something, and you came to congratulate him. Even a fool will know that you two have colluded!"

"I was afraid that you wouldn't want it."

Mrs. Wang reached out and twisted her cheek, "Why not? We'll take turns wearing it. You don't have good jewelry. After the new year, you wear it to work at Wen's house. It was said that the servants of the big families are the best at watching people's embarrassment, but we can't let people look down on you."

After the trouble, Gu Yin and Wu'an went back to the house holding hands, and Wu'an was still saying when they went out, "Sister-in-law, you really don't seem to be able to make up nonsense, otherwise I'll make it up next time, you follow what I say."

Gu Yin's face became more red, "There is no next time, lying is a bad thing after all."

That night, Mrs. Wang slept extraordinarily sweetly while rubbing the small silver hairpin.

Just laughing and making trouble, Gu Yin ushered in the first New Year's day after transmigration.

On the twenty-sixth, Mrs. Wang and Gu Yin went to buy the New Year's goods for the last time.

On the twenty-seventh, Mrs. Wang slaughtered the chicken she bought, Gu Yin cooked, and the whole family ate a delicious chicken meal.

On the twenty-eighth, they made steamed buns, pasted decorations on the window grilles. Mrs. Wang took the red paper and went to invite Xu Qingchuan to write a couple of Spring Festival couplets and a few words "Fu" 福 (Good fortune, happiness) and put them on the door of the house.

On the twenty-ninth, Mrs. Wang was rather sullen.

She came back from worshiping her parents early that morning. Gu Yin asked her if she was uncomfortable, but she refused to say more.

Wu'an quietly told Gu Yin, "Mother didn't sleep last night, the lights in the room were on for a long time."

Gu Yin first looked at Mrs. Wang, and then felt wrong, "You slept with me last night, how do you know that mother slept late at night?"

Wu'an choked when he heard her words, and said, "Yes… it's the child! He heard firecrackers set off in the middle of the night, so he had to go out to see it."

The child was called, so with a blank look on his face, he spread his hands, indicating that he did not.

"Okay, you are the most naughty in our house, it's obviously you," Wu'an angrily blushed and chased after him.

The child grinned and ran around the house in circles.

Gu Yin didn't care about them anymore, she sat next to Mrs. Wang and said, "Mother, why didn't you sleep well last night, do you want me to invite the old doctor?"

Mrs. Wang immediately shook her head and said, "No, no, I don't feel any discomfort, it's just…"

She let out a long sigh.

In fact, where was the discomfort?

It was because she had been busy with family work, busy with the affairs of the previous year, so she had no time to think of her husband and eldest son.

In addition, it was the New Year, the family reunion day, but the two missing people in the family would never come back.

In a few years, it seemed that they didn't exist anymore.

Mrs. Wang didn't say these kind of sad words, but said, "We came out in a hurry to worship our ancestors during the New Year. But we didn't set up a grave for your father and Qingyi. I don't know where to go to worship."

(Worship the grave: To remember and honor their grave sites by sweeping the tombs and offering food, tea, wine, chopsticks to eat the food with.)

Gu Yin took Mrs. Wang's hand, "When the world is at peace, we would definitely go back to Batou Village and set up a tomb for them."

They heard that there was another war outside. There was a fierce general under the throne of righteousness, with a red scar on his face, who looked like an Asura evil spirit, and could tear apart living people.

The army of the imperial court was frightened by the wind, and they were beaten to the point of retreat, losing another city within a month.

There were rumors among the people that the year was the last stable year, and there would be a fierce battle between the imperial court and the rebel army in the coming spring.

Mrs. Wang looked at her daughter-in-law with tender eyes, wiped away her tears, and said, "Yes, we are living in this world and can live better than before, what am I not satisfied with? I don't want to discuss those things now! Let's go to visit your aunt."

Gu Yin was dragged to the next house by her, only to know that Mrs. Wang was going to name the child.

She was not knowledgeable. Gu Yin and Wu Qingyi were all given names by others, but she named her child Wu'an. At that time, she was looking forward to the safe return of her husband and eldest son. The little boy had a good name.

If asked, when Mrs. Wang saw the child, she thought of the way he looked like a wild cat when she first saw him, and the way he and Wu'an were tied together on a daily basis, at most she would call him Xiao Miao (Kitten).

Xu Qingchuan and Mrs. Xu were pasting Spring Festival couplets at home. Mrs. Xu said when Mrs. Wang arrived, "Aren't the couplets already written for your family! Why are you here again?"

Everyone in the neighborhood knew that Xu Qingchuan was talented and famous. Since he returned home from the annual leave, there had been an endless stream of people asking for Spring Festival couplets.

She didn't want to curse on the Chinese New Year. Mrs. Wang glanced at her and smiled at Xu Qingchuan, "Are you tired, dear boy? Would you like something to eat?"

The two families were already familiar with each other, so Xu Qingchuan curved his lips and said, "Auntie, don't be polite, just tell me directly. I don't have anything to do now."

Mrs. Wang didn't go around in circles, and directly asked him to help name the child.

Xu Qingchuan said cautiously, "Names follow people for a lifetime. I have never helped people with names. If you can trust me, let me think about it for two days."

"You are a scholar, I can trust you. Think about it slowly, don't worry."

Xu Qingchuan immediately went into the study room to read the classics.

"There are those on the streets, the scholars who help with names for ten silver," Mrs. Xu murmured in a low voice.

"Could that be the same?" Wang said, "Our Da Ya (Gu Yin's old name) was named by someone, as the scholar said, 'The plum tree is full of flowers, and the orchid's grass is full of flowers'. I still thought it was very beautiful. Whenever anyone asked about it, they would tell the source of our girl's name, and only later did I know that this grass is a small grass that has grown like weed!"

Mrs. Xu replied, "What do you know? It's probably because the scholar looked at your girl and wanted her to grow up like spring grass!"

The two of them were going to fight again.

Wu'an and the child ran over, Wu'an chased him for several laps, but could not catch up. That child was too cunning. Whenever Wu'an felt that he couldn't catch up and wanted to give up, he deliberately slowed down, and when Wu'an was about to touch the hem of his clothes, he would accelerate again.

It was also due to Wu'an's good personality that he was fooled by him like that.

The two ran to Mrs. Xu's house and were held by Gu Yin one by one, "It's okay to be naughty at your own house, it's not good when outside."

Mrs. Wang reached out to poke Wu'an, but was stopped by Gu Yin. Wu'an felt a little wronged, pulled Mrs. Wang's clothes and explained in a low voice, "Mother, he teased me first."

"You're stupid too, can you run past him?" Mrs. Wang looked at her stupid son and rubbed his head helplessly, "Why do you look wronged? When we go back, I'll give you fried oil cakes."

Wu'an's eyes suddenly lit up, "Let my sister-in-law fry it, she makes it delicious!"

The child could speak several words, and because he spent the most time with Wu'an, he liked to learn how to speak.

And he seemed to think that calling "Mother" would give him something to eat, so he immediately pulled up Gu Yin's skirt and shouted, "Mother, I'll eat!"

Gu Yin rubbed their head, then held the other in one hand, and said with a crooked smile, "Let's go, we will go back and fry cakes, and eat everything."

The two little guys jumped and followed. Mrs. Wang couldn't help laughing and scolded, "You can eat one or two!"

Someone came to Mrs. Xu's house to ask for Spring Festival couplets, and the woman saw the excitement and laughed out loud, "This naming of the child, only Mrs. Wu can think about it. When you give him a name, you would have feelings. You will be reluctant to send him off."

"Why send him off? He's so small, and he doesn't eat as much as a kitten. Although our family is poor, can we still not have enough to feed him?" Mrs. Wang remembered that the woman had chewed her own tongue, naturally had a bad face at her, and snorted, "The county magistrate has rewarded our family because of this. Some people didn't catch up with good things because they are jealous, so they talk sour?"

"There are men in our family who do the heavy work, why do we have to invite others to do it?" The woman blushed at Mrs. Wang's words, and then suddenly thought of something, and said coolly, "Yes, your eldest son died at a young age. In our tradition, a son must burn incense to father otherwise he would be uneasy on the road to next life and the people in the grave would laugh at no successor. Isn't it good to have this wild child?"

Without waiting for Mrs. Wang to scold back, Mrs. Xu put her hands on her hips and said, "Bah! I didn't call you during the Chinese New Year, right? You are so bitter and mean, no wonder your food business is not doing well. Your men don't help either! Get out of our house, you want Festival couplets, you want sh*t!"

Like Mrs. Wang, Mrs. Xu had a strong temperament and had lived as a widow for many years. When Xu Qingchuan was still young, her reputation was also very loud. That was to say, later the son was admitted to the title, and Mrs. Xu felt that as a scholar's mother she had to be more cautious, so she restrained his temper.

When the woman was scolded by her, she immediately went out and said, "What's so great? Your son is just a poor scholar, and not a high-ranking scholar in the exam."

Seeing the other party walk away in despair, Mrs. Xu also put away her anger and pulled Mrs. Wang and said, "Don't pay attention to her, she is jealous. She also does a food business. Your family has earned more than hers in the first few months than she did for many years. She was jealous of your family. But it's not worth it for the Chinese New Year to get spoiled because of her."

That woman didn't set up a stall at the dock, but did a food business near Jinyi Alley. She didn't know from where she heard that Gu Yin and the others were doing very good business not long after they opened the stall, so she came to the door to get some advice.

Originally, they were from the neighborhood, so Gu Yin did not hesitate to give a few words.

But after chatting once, she realized that something was wrong. That family was not the kind who really wanted to cook good food, but just wanted to make money. Of course, that was understandable, but in order to earn the unconscionable money, she also told Gu Yin that she knew which restaurant would sell kitchen waste, pretending to be mysterious and authentic, "Those things are not bad to eat, but they are not very fresh. After you add more seasoning, no one can guess it. With this savings, you can make more money!"

She wanted to use that method in exchange for Gu Yin's careful guidance, but she didn't expect to touch Gu Yin's bottom line. She immediately said that she had no ability to give guidance to her, and invited her out of the house.

The woman was still entangled, and Mrs. Wang slammed her out of the house.

Because of that, the woman completely hated Gu Yin and Mrs. Wang.

However, there was an officer in the alley, and she didn't dare to make a fuss, so she could only say some sour words. But in general, she couldn't quarrel with Mrs. Wang, so she suddenly thought of Mrs. Wang's situation, and deliberately said such words to provoke her.

Mrs. Wang was silent, and after a while, she said, "It's okay, I'm too lazy to care about her in general, so I'm going back."

After returning, Gu Yin fried rice cakes for the two children. The rice cakes were browned and crispy, and they were full of rice fragrance.

Wu'an took the small bowl and brought it to Mrs. Wang, "Mother, come eat."

The child followed his example and handed the bowl to Gu Yin, "Mother, eat!"

Gu Yin took a closer look. The child's bowl of rice cakes had already been eaten by him, and there were only a few grains of rice left. What did he want her to eat?

"You just know how to copy!" She rubbed the child helplessly, put another piece on his plate, and then told the two children, "Don't you know, it's not good to have conflicts on New Year."

The two little guys were making a fuss a while ago, but now they were good after their meal, and they went outside hand in hand to watch other people set off firecrackers.

After feeding the two children, Gu Yin returned to the main room and saw Mrs. Wang frowning again.

"Mother, do you want to eat something? I'll make it for you."

"I'm not like Wu'an and the other child, so can you coax me with food?" Mrs. Wang's face relaxed, "I'm just thinking about it. Tell me this child… should he be adopted in my name, or in your name?"

"You are worried about that?" Gu Yin also relaxed and sat down next to her, "He always copies Wu'an to call mother, and he calls me that every time. He should be adopted in my name, but if you don't want to… "

Although the child was the closest to Gu Yin, she was busy all the time and had little experience.

"It's not that I don't want to." Mrs. Wang frowned again, "But if we adopt him in your name, you will be his mother. I don't know… sigh, when you go to another house later, with such a boy, it's not good!"

Without waiting for Gu Yin to speak, Mrs Wang called Wu'an to bring the child in.

"You have to call me mother later, okay?" Mrs. Wang looked at the child seriously.

The child was a little afraid of her. Seeing her serious expression, he instinctively took two steps back.

"Mother, you are scaring him," Wu'an took a half step forward and blocked the child behind him.

"Don't worry about it." Mrs. Wang pulled Wu'an away and grabbed the child's hand, "Will you call me mother?"

The child was so frightened that his eyes widened, he looked at Gu Yin helplessly, and called out "mother" weakly.

"Why is this child so stubborn? If you don't obey me, I will send you away at the beginning of the new year," Mrs. Wang subconsciously used the wrong way.

Gu Yin immediately pulled the child to her side, "You don't have to scare the child."

Mrs. Wang also realised that she was too much, and wanted to soften her voice but then she heard a "waaah", the child threw himself into Gu Yin's arms and began to cry.

For the first time, he snorted and said a long sentence—

"Mother, I, I'll be good! Don't leave me… don't send me away!"

Gu Yin's heart softened, and her nose also became sour, tightly hugging his thin body.

"My mouth!" Mrs. Wang slapped herself on the mouth, "Bad mouth!"

Gu Yin coaxed the child for a while, and then let him and Wu'an go out to play.

Mrs. Wang said, "I was just in a hurry, I really didn't think about sending him away."

Gu Yin nodded, "You are soft-hearted, no one knows better than me. Just adopt the child in my name. Besides, what you said about going to someone else's house. It doesn't matter. Isn't this my house? Why will I go to someone else's house?"

"You know what I mean…"

"Let me tell you again, I really don't have that kind of thought. Of course, we can't be sure of the future of decades, but in three or five years, I definitely don't want to."

Seeing that Mrs. Wang wanted to persuade her again, Gu Yin hid in the kitchen on the pretext of going to eat something.

Mrs. Wang did chase after her, but instead of forcing her at this time, she said, "If that's the case, I'll let you name the child."

Gu Yin laughed, "Actually, I don't think the name had to be particularly nice. You gave Wu'an his name, it's very good. The child grows up safely. The meaning is very good. Didn't you always talk about him being a wild cat, so let's use the word 'wild (Ye)'. I hope he is as tough as weeds, which just echoes the Yin of my name."

"Not bad, you are right. We didn't need to be too particular about the name. There were people with cheap names in the countryside, but they could make a living."

Gu Yin whispered, "Wu Ye, very good."

Mrs. Wang said, "His name is Gu Ye! With your surname, everyone will know that this child is only related to you and has nothing to do with our Wu family!"

Yes, that was to make her remarry in the future.

However, the child was the closest to her, so his surname was also very good, so Gu Yin responded with a smile.

"Wu'an, Gu Ye, come and eat sugar cakes!"

The child finally had his own name and became an official member of the family.

And Wu'an was the happiest, because he suddenly became Gu Ye's little uncle, and said old-fashionedly, "You have to listen to me, I'm your little uncle."

The New Year's day was filled with firecrackers, and the dinner was cooked by Mrs. Wang and Gu Yin together.

The population of the Xu family next door was simpler than them, and Officer Caotou only had an apprentice.

Mrs. Wang simply invited the two families to their house for dinner.

In that way, Officer Caotou, Li Zhutou, and Xu Qingchuan sat at one table, and Mrs. Xu, Mrs. Wang and Gu Yin sat at one table with their two children.

The common people didn't pay much attention to the social norms. Although they shared the table, they didn't divide the room, and they ate together in the main room.

Stewed elbows, fried meatballs, steamed fish, salted chicken and duck, bacon sausages, and dumplings filled with hot cabbage and pork were all good things that ordinary people were reluctant to eat.

Everyone had a good meal, and Officer Caotou also took out his wine, and shared it with Li Chutou and Xu Qingchuan.

After the wine and vegetables were all eaten, everyone gathered together to talk and nibble on melon seeds.

When an hour passed, everyone dispersed and went to the door to set off firecrackers.

Amid the crackling of firecrackers and the laughter of children, everyone wished each other an auspicious New Year.

Gu Yin didn't like the smell of firecrackers smoke, and was about to go back to the house, but was stopped by Xu Qingchuan.

He drank some wine, so his white face was red. He took out the books that were sent to him, and said, "The books that Old Master Wen gave are too valuable, I have already copied them. I originally wanted to return them to the original owner. But when I visited there several times, people from the Wen family said that the old man is not in good health and it is inconvenient to see guests. I just wanted to ask you to help deliver them."

The old man gave him a copy of Analects of Confucius and Doctrine of the Mean, which were very common Four Books and Five Classics.

But what was precious was that it was full of notes that the old man made.

When he was talking, the sound of firecrackers sounded again, and Gu Yin had to read his lips carefully, and then replied, "Okay, then I will hand them over to the old man when I go to his house later."

Xu Qingchuan thanked her again, but Gu Yin really couldn't hear what he said, so she waved her hand to say no thanks, and went back to the room.

…

On the first day of the new year, Mrs. Wang took Gu Yin and the two children to the next door to pay New Year's greetings.

Mrs. Xu and Officer Caotou had long thought about giving money to Mrs. Wang, but she. refused to accept it, so they sealed thick red envelopes and gave them to the two children.

When she got home, Mrs. Wang put away the red envelopes, and then distributed ten silver to each of them, letting them spend it themselves, saying she would help them save the rest.

When the two children walked out the door happily hand in hand, Mrs. Wang turned around and gave Gu Yin the two red envelopes.

On the second day of the new year, married women returned to their parents' house. Mrs. Wang naturally wouldn't do it — not to mention that the relationship had already been bad, but she had only two children, and her two brothers had several grandchildren, so going back was equivalent to giving money away.

On the third and fourth day, the stage in the town was set up again.

Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Xu led their children and could listen outside all day.

Gu Yin didn't like listening to plays, and since she had also had a solid rest, she was a little restless and wanted to think about doing something else.

First, she had to go back to Wen's house to work after the New Year, but if the old man asked her if she had come up with anything else recently, it would be embarrassing if she said that she was only eating, drinking, and having fun during the new year. Also, of course, it was still for her own small business.

The previous year, her business boomed, so the main reason for the delicious food was the freshness. Just like when an ordinary store first opened, customers would want to try it when they saw it.

Her dishes had been out for a few months, and it was time for a change.

Gu Yin remembered that she didn't see preserved eggs during the Chinese New Year.

It was reasonable to say that during the New Year, every household would make cold dishes with preserved eggs. Was it not in that era, or was it just that Hanshan Town did not have that custom?

When Mrs. Wang came back from the play, Gu Yin asked her if she had eaten preserved eggs.

"What preserved egg, I only heard of the leather hat and collar, what is this preserved egg?" Mrs. Wang shook her head.

"Hmm, or century egg?" (Another name for preserved egg)

Mrs. Wang even went to ask Mrs. Xu, but she also didn't know.

Both of them were from big families, especially the Xu family, who had lived in a big place like the state capital for many years, and had a lot of knowledge.

Gu Yin started to make preserved eggs.

First, she made a bowl of strong tea for later use, then washed the fresh duck eggs and let them air dry.

Then filtered out the tea leaves, added salt and clay, and then put the quicklime left over from the last kang. After stirring evenly, she put them in the ash and stirred again. When a pile of mud was obtained, she put the dried duck eggs in and rolled them on a layer. Then finally, she put it in the rice husk pile and rolled it again, so a thick layer was formed on it.

Mrs. Wang was very convinced of her daughter-in-law's craftsmanship, but she hesitated when she saw that thing, "This way of putting clay, ash and husk over egg,… can really make duck eggs taste better?"

Gu Yin made fifty preserved eggs in one go, and said with a smile, "It should be marinated for another half a month, it must be delicious!"

Mrs. Wang was still skeptical.

On the fifth day, Gu Yin reported to Wen's house, helped Xu Qingchuan return the books, and gave the old man a new year greeting. At the same time, she told him that she had made something new, but he had to wait another ten days before he could eat it.

After a year, the old man had also seen a lot, no longer entangled in old things, so there was no need to "embarrass" Gu Yin to pass his time.

So he didn't ask more, just looked Gu Yin up and down and smiled with satisfaction, "Yes, you look energetic in this way, you're not the 'big bear' of last year!"

Gu Yin turned around again and showed the plum blossom hairpin on her head to the old man – it was specially put on by Mrs. Wang that day.

"You said that I have to take care of myself."

The old man smiled and said, "You're still thin. You have to learn from Chef Xu. He gained weight again in the past few days."

"Okay, then I'll go to the kitchen and steal his secret in a while!"

The two talked for a while, and the old man asked Gu Yin to make some pastries, and let her go to the kitchen.

As the old man said, Chef Xu followed his masters to eat meat during the Chinese New Year, and he gained a lot of weight. After greeting each other for the New Year, they each started to do their own work.

In the middle of the first month, the weather started to get warmer. Before Gu Yin left, her preserved eggs were finally ready.

Mrs. Wang was stunned and didn't dare to say anything, but Gu Yin made a vinegar salad later.

Gu Yin presented the preserved egg to Mr. Wen who could appreciate new things.

Old Master Wen didn't dare to move when he saw the dark preserved egg. Only when Gu Yin reassured him that he could eat it, he picked up chopsticks and tasted it.

"Not bad," the old man praised her with a wrinkled face.

Gu Yin wasn't a fool and could see his reluctance. He was not used to it, and couldn't appreciate it like Mrs. Wang.

However, when the preserved egg was first eaten, it was indeed difficult to accept.

Gu Yin changed to make preserved egg lean meat porridge and spring onion mixed with tofu.

That was what the old man could accept. He especially liked preserved eggs and lean meat porridge. He said that the taste was mellow, coupled with Gu Yin's craftsmanship, it was simply the best porridge in the world.

For ten days in a row, the old man's morning meal was porridge with preserved eggs and lean meat.

When Gu Yin went to collect the bowl and chopsticks that day, she couldn't help laughing, "People like you like it so much, so I can rest assured. If I sell this in a few days, it will definitely make the business more prosperous."

The old man was stunned for a while after hearing that, and then he said strangely, "You still want to set up a stall?"

Gu Yin said, "I wanted to do this job for two months. The weather is getting warmer."

In modern times, only after the spring festival, did the weather get warm. There was no global warming in that era, and the winter in Hanshan Town was extremely cold, so it was not until the first month of the year that it was the season of spring festival.

The old man hesitated, "How hard is it to set up a stall, is it bad to be a cook in my house? Or is the wage…"

"No!" Gu Yin said immediately, "The wage you gave is already very good."

The salary was indeed good, but Gu Yin didn't just want to make money. She wanted to sell food to more people. She liked to watch others eat her food, and she couldn't help but have a happy smile on her face.

"Oh, don't worry about me. I still have some skills. It's a little harder to set up a stall in the wind and the sun, but when I save up, I'll set up a store, then the days will always get better!"

The old man liked her optimistic, open-minded and energetic appearance. He was able to come out of the slump so quickly, and was also slowly influenced by Gu Yin during the time.

When Gu Yin put away the bowl and chopsticks and left, the old man couldn't help sighing– He already had children and grandchildren in the family, why didn't he have a daughter or granddaughter?

Then he thought that the eldest was a nerd, and the second was a money-lover, so the daughter born to one of them would not be too likable.

It was at this time that Second Master Wen, who was the money-lover, came over.

He was scolded by the old man for coveting the dowry store of his deceased mother.

He consciously lost face, and was afraid that the old man would continue to blame him, so he hid outside until the end of the year before returning home.

When he saw that the old man was in a much better mood than before, his mind became alive again.

He entered the room and said with a smile, "Father, have you already eaten? It's unfortunate that I came late, otherwise I could've tried the porridge that you like recently."

The old man lifted his eyelids to look at him, then lowered his eyes again.

Second Master Wen rubbed his hands together and smiled, "It's the first month of the year, isn't the mother's dowry store still vacant? Such a good store, the market is good, and it's close to our house. An empty day is a loss of rent for a day, you see…"

That store was indeed good like Second Master Wen said. The reason why it was still empty was very simple. He specially operated it and did not lease it to the outside world.

He thought that the old man would just scold him, but he didn't expect that it would bring a smile to his face.

Yes, there was still an empty store!

Seeing the old man's smiling face, Second Master Wen thought that there was an opportunity, and immediately said more attentively, "Father, rest assured, I will definitely manage it well. As you said, this is what my mother left to the future granddaughter-in-law, and I will manage it for a few years. Later, when the children of the family marry, I will definitely return it to them."

He wasn't lying either. As for whether it was for his own daughter-in-law or his brother's daughter-in-law, wouldn't it be him who was in charge?

The little abacus in Second Master Wen's heart was beating loudly, but the old man suddenly changed his face and scolded, "You are dreaming! Why can't the store be rented out? You are lying to your father, considering me a fool? Let me say this again. For this store, don't come to me again!"

"Father, how…"

Mrs. Wen said with a sullen face, "I told your brother not to fight about the family's ancestral property with you, and he didn't. We all know that Hanlin Academy was very difficult, and all the family's property had been in your hands in the past few years, no? Even now that he had been dismissed and returned home, he had not said that he wanted to compete with you for the family property. Don't you know how much of the profits you have got from the stores? What about you? What are your thoughts? Let me tell you straight? If you are dissatisfied, why don't you two separate your family while I'm still here, and I'll just follow your elder brother?"

"No!" Second Master Wen immediately refused.

If the family was divided, the family's property would be divided into two, then he had to give out some things in his hand, right?

And they all knew that the old man had a lot of private assets. He was still strong, and he would definitely not share the private assets. If he let him follow the big brother, wouldn't the old man leave it all to big brother after?!

"If you can't, put away your little thoughts!"

Second Master Wen said, "Don't just scold me, my older brother is not as good as you think. I lost a can of good tea kept in my study room some time ago! That's 10 taels of silver!"

The more he talked, the more reasonable he felt, and his voice gradually became louder.

It was a new tea that he himself was not willing to drink. When he went out, hiding for a while, he found that even the tea jar had been taken away.

His study room was locked every day, and no one could get in, and no one had the guts.

And his eldest brother's study room was next to him, and there was a corner door that was connected.

Second Master Wen immediately suspected his brother, and was waiting for the opportunity to stab that matter in front of the old man.

Old Master Wen suddenly became quiet, and no longer pointed at his nose and scolded him, but his face became more stern.

The two interconnected study rooms were specially built by the old man in the past, so that the two brothers could get along more, communicate more, and be respectful to each other. It was just that he didn't expect that it would become the reason for the younger brother to suspect that the older brother took his own things.

If he thought it was his brother who took it, he should talk to his brother directly and ask, and there would be no such misunderstanding. And what was a pot of tea worth fighting over? Even if the brother took it, there was no need to come to him specially to talk about it.

The means of suing brothers and making small talk was no longer unworthy of the table, but disgusting.

"I took the tea. You should report the money to the accountant. If you don't get it from the center, I will pay you back from the private treasury."

Old Master Wen waved his hand in a low mood. He didn't bother to explain that he used it to make milk tea with Gu Yin at the time, and Second Master Wen went home after a few days, so he forgot to inform him after taking it.

Second Master Wen just didn't dare to say anything else, and immediately went out.

…

On Gu Yin's side, after talking with the old man, she returned to the kitchen.

However, she saw Chef Xu and his two little apprentices tinkering with something mysteriously before the pot.

However, Chef Mrs. Xu's body, like a mountain of flesh, was blocking it, so Gu Yin couldn't see anything.

She didn't go to investigate. She walked to the sink on her own, and washed the dishes and chopsticks that the old man had finished eating.

When Chef Xu heard the sound, he immediately stood up and said, "How can I let you do this kind of thing? Just let my little apprentice do it."

Gu Yin said it was all right, "I'll finish washing the dishes."

After she finished washing the dishes and wiped her hands, Chef Xu led Gu Yin to the table.

There were various kinds of food on it. Dried meat, celery, dried longan, lotus seeds, red dates, and red beans were packed in six white porcelain high-floor chassis, all piled up in the shape of hills, and tied with red ribbons, and there was a jug of wine next to it, obviously carefully prepared.

A blush appeared on Chef Xu's pale face, "I prepared this for you. Don't worry, I prepared it with my own wage, not the master's!"

For the past two months, Gu Yin did not guard from Chef Xu when she was cooking fresh food, and she often gave him advice on a daily basis.

Although there was no need, when the other party took the initiative to return, it was still very moving.

Gu Yin's heart was slightly warm, "You have a heart. These things aren't cheap, right? We haven't known each other for a long time. You even prepared a farewell gift for me."

The smile on Chef Mrs. Xu's face disappeared, "Farewell? What farewell? The little master is leaving?"

"Yeah, when I came to work, I told Shopkeeper Wen that I will only be working for two months. The old man also knew… No, I didn't seem to have told you. You didn't know I was leaving, did you?"

Chef Xu frowned and said, "This is an apprentice ceremony! Little master, don't you know the ceremony of apprenticeship?"

Gu Yin really didn't know as she had never been a master in that era.

"Then you are leaving, where are you going?"

"I'm going back to do my own little business."

Chef Xu's eyes lit up and said, "Then I'm not going to do this anymore, I'll go do business with you!"

Gu Yin said helplessly, "You can't do my business."

"Why can't I do it?" Chef Xu was anxious, "I know I'm not good at anything, but I'm willing to learn! No one took me to learn in the past few decades, and I've followed you for the past two months, I have also improved a lot! Of course, my craftsmanship cannot be compared with a master like you, but I am fast, as you know, I can handle three people's jobs by myself, and my little apprentices are like me, one person can do two people's work with absolutely no problem!"

"Hey, that's not it." Gu Yin explained, "It's because my temple is small, it's really small. I set up a stall at the dock. My mother and I are enough to work at the small stall."

(Temple is small for God like you: idiom, can't afford/ accommodate)

Chef Xu's face was full of disbelief, and after a while, he said, "Small, small stall?"

Gu Yin touched her nose and said, "Yes, there was no one on the pier in winter, that's why I came out to find work and got here."

"Then when are you going to expand?" Chef Xu frowned as if he was about to cry.

Gu Yin said sternly, "I have inquired about it. The price of goods in the area of the wharf is low, and the rent is also low. For a better store in the market, the annual rent is about twelve taels, and it should be about the same for a few more months."

Only then did Chef Xu feel a little more happy, and nodded, "Okay, then when you open the shop, I will follow you!"

Although Gu Yin also had big ambitions, she didn't dare to agree, she only said, "If there is a chance, I would also like to cooperate with you."

"Then about our apprenticeship…"

Gu Yin never thought about accepting apprentices, after all, apprentices in that era were not as casual as later generations.

The Lord of Heaven and Earth was a Master, and his rank was second only to a father.

Master and apprentice were like father and son – if she accepted Chef Xu, it would be equivalent to a mother-son relationship.

She actually had a good impression of Chef Xu. He really liked cooking, and he could bear her temperament to learn how to cook. Not to mention, when Gu Yin was making hot pot dips, she had to grind sesame sauce and peanut butter. She felt a little irritable when she thought that there were no cooking machines in that era.

But he brought the two little apprentices to grind it with him. Later, when he tasted the sauce, he said it was worth it without saying a complaint of hard work.

"It doesn't seem suitable. You are a little bit older," Gu Yin considered her words.

"Yes, I thought at first that if I were ten years younger, I would have taken you as my master right away. But actually, what does age mean when you think about it? What do you say?" Chef Xu looked at the two young apprentices.

He specially asked someone to help him with what he should say before, but he couldn't remember it, so he only let the younger apprentice remember it.

The little apprentice immediately said, "There is neither noble nor lowly, neither big nor small, where Dao exists, Master exists."

Chef Xu immediately said: "Yes, yes, no big no small! Although I am a few years older than the little master, but…"

"How old are you?" Gu Yin looked at Chef Xu suspiciously.

He was like a steamed bun, and his neck was almost gone after the New Year.

His face was fairly clean, without beards and folds, but no matter how she looked at him, he was a middle aged man.

Chef Xu scratched the back of his head and said, "I'm only twenty-eight, and I haven't married yet."

Gu Yin: !

"Really, I'm fat now. When I wasn't so fat before, I looked younger. Do you guys think so?"

The two little apprentices were the two orphans that Chef Xu rescued when he was traveling south and north, and they nodded their heads when they heard the words.

"Really, he wasn't even eighteen when he saved me, so he was young at that time," the eldest apprentice said.

"Yeah, when the master rescued me, he was in his twenties, and he was in full bloom!" The second apprentice helped.

Chef Xu was no older than her in previous life, and he was only eight years older than her in this life. She also called him respectfully because she thought about his age.

Gu Yin changed her mind after a while, "Then why did you say that you have been learning to cook for decades?"

"It's true, I was also parentless and adopted by a group of refugees. When I was five years old, they ignored me and threw me into a restaurant as an apprentice. Later, I changed places and learned. Isn't it more than 20 years old now? And I also know that I look mature. I said that so that my value can rise."

Afraid that Gu Yin would not respond, Chef Xu was about to kneel while supporting the table.

Gu Yin stretched out her hand to pull, but did not, she called out his two little apprentices to pull up Chef Xu, who was half-kneeling.

"Can I think about it?"

Accepting an apprentice was a big thing. When Chef Xu saw that she didn't refuse, he immediately smiled and said, "Yes! You can take as long as you want to think about it, I will wait for you!"

Gu Yin looked at his simple and honest appearance, but for a while it was still difficult for her to accept the fact that he was twenty-eight years old.

That day, the old man said that his body was a little uncomfortable and he wanted to rest. He let Gu Yin off work just after lunch.

When she returned to Jinyi Alley, Mrs. Wang was washing the clothes. Seeing Gu Yin coming back early, she said, "You can rest when you're done, and I'll do the washing myself."

Gu Yin still rolled up her sleeves, twisted the towel, and helped Mrs. Wang work together.

Seeing that she was a little bored these days, Mrs Wang kept asking her, "What's the matter? What happened?"

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had been living with each other for the past six months, and had become accustomed to discussing with each other in advance.

Gu Yin told Mrs. Wang about Chef Xu's apprenticeship.

Mrs. Wang couldn't help laughing and said, "I thought it was something worrying. Isn't this a good thing? It means that the person is convinced of your ability and respects you from the bottom of his heart, so he wants to worship you as a Master. Or you don't like him becoming your apprentice?"

Gu Yin said no, "As far as I know, he is the best person to learn, and the person who likes to study cooking the most. Except for being greedy for food, there is nothing wrong with him, and he is a good person."

"That's fine, I think he's a very good person. You gave him some advice during this time. He appreciates you. Also he didn't take advantage of you in vain. He prepared the ceremony to recognize you as a master."

"He also said he wanted to work with me, but I also told him that I don't need more people in this small stall. He said that when I open a store…"

"Didn't you always want to open a store?"

"Yeah, that's my plan but it's a castle in the sky at the moment! And his salary in Wen's house is not low. I can't take the name of Master and lower his salary. He has two younger apprentices, and if he comes over, they will follow."

Mrs. Wang stopped her work and looked at her strangely, "Why do you think so much? You swore before me that the next ten or fifteen taels would not be a problem, right? Why are you suddenly timid at this moment?"

Gu Yin smiled, "Maybe it feels like I'm carrying someone else's life all of a sudden, so I'm a little embarrassed."

Mrs. Wang reached out and patted her on the back, "Then don't go that far! He admires your craftsmanship, and you also admire his eagerness to learn, then it's done! Let's open a store without any shadows. Let him work at Wen's house. When he wants to learn, you can just find a place to teach him. When it comes to the store, it will open up!"

Mrs. Wang was a person with wisdom in life, and what made Gu Yin embarrassed for half the morning was nothing to her.

Gu Yin laughed lightly, "Mother, you're right, if he wants to learn, I will teach him. We can think about this stuff later. Our family is going to open a restaurant, so why can't we bring an apprentice?"

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were chatting and laughing, and they washed everything that had been put on hold because of winter.

The next day, Gu Yin went to work at Wen's house and recognized Chef Xu as an apprentice. Chef Xu wanted to give her a Master's ceremony. She only said that she was about to leave Wen's house to open a stall. She was very busy, and didn't have much energy to do it in a short time.

Mrs. Wang was in charge of buying the ingredients, but that time, she bought less vegetables, because the family was going to sell preserved egg and lean meat porridge, and the price became two silver for a bowl. However, in the past few months, her family built a small reputation on the pier. During the past few days, she had encountered regular customers who urged her to go back to set up a stall quickly.

At the end of the first month, everything at home was ready, and Gu Yin also said goodbye to the old man.

The old man had already prepared her second month's payment.

He had been thinking about other things these days. Gu Yin was a bit stubborn. He only gave her five taels of silver for the New Year. She refused to accept it at first, but he took out his identity as an elder and forced her to accept it on the grounds of New Year's money. When she returned to work after the first year, he wanted to give her another red envelope for starting work, but Gu Yin refused to accept it.

Old Master Wen liked such a person, but if he wanted to give her something, she would be embarrassed again.

He couldn't directly say that he had a good store. The second son deliberately released stuff to prevent people from renting it, so that store was empty and he didn't want to give it to him.

Gu Yin would definitely not accept it.

The old man thought about it, and said, "I heard you say that you want to open a store in the future. It happens that I have a vacant store here. You can see if you want to rent it. We have some friendship. This store will be rented at the market price for twenty-five taels a year. If you want to rent it, I will give you a discount."

That was a very suitable price calculated by the old man for her. Twenty taels happened to be Gu Yin's salary for two months. She seemed to be a diligent and thrifty housekeeper, not someone who would spend money indiscriminately.

If she didn't have enough then instead of paying the rent on an annual basis as in the market, she could pay only half a year in advance.

Gu Yin said, "Thank you for your kindness. I do have plans to open a store this year, but I just want to open it in the area of the wharf, where the rent is cheap. To tell you the truth, if I put all my money into a store, I won't even have a dozen taels."

She saved sixty taels before and paid tax. Later, when she bought things for the New Year, she had to use five taels from the old man and saved some of the money. There were forty taels left of that part of the money. But Mrs. Wang had already bought rice and noodles, prepared for the stall, and spent some of it. The rest couldn't be moved, since doing business definitely required liquidity.

As for Gu Yin's wages for the past two months, it was naturally untouched. Fifteen taels had to be used for schooling, and the remaining five taels could be saved.

So she did not have enough money to open a store in the area of the wharf, let alone the old man's prosperous store.

Gu Yin told the old man in detail, showing that she was really powerless for the time being, rather than deliberately rejecting his good intentions.

The old man said, "Did he want to charge your family fifteen taels for schooling?"

"It's a master surnamed Wu. I heard that he was very impressive, but he didn't continue the exam because he didn't want to be an official. Moreover, Master Wu doesn't accept many students, so the charges are a little more expensive."

"Isn't this bullsh*t?! If you don't want to be an official, why take the imperial examination? He didn't pass to be a jinshi, so that's why he says so." Seeing that Gu Yin was silent, the old man became anxious and said, "You read my house plaque and after so long you don't know my identity?"

Gu Yin said, "Of course I know."

In fact, it was not very clear at first, but there was Chef Xu in the kitchen. He had already told Gu Yin about the Wen family.

At that time, he said admirably, "When the county magistrate entered the imperial examination, our old man happened to be the current examiner and the county ruler's teacher. Even if the old man retired now, the county magistrate would panic when he sees him. Don't talk about the people in our house, there is no one who isn't afraid of his old man, only you are not afraid of the old man!"

Gu Yin really wasn't very afraid of him. It was naturally during this period of time that she came into contact with him. She knew that the old man was a good person. She accompanied him to eat, drink, play, and unconsciously regarded him as an ordinary elder. Second, it may also be related to the first impression. Everyone else knew the identity of the old man first, and then thought about him. Naturally, they dared not underestimate him.

When she saw the old man for the first time, the old man was climbing on the stage and arguing with others. Later, Mrs. Xu and Mrs. Wang picked him together, leaving the two legs in the air. He couldn't get himself to the ground.

Such a first meeting was funny in retrospect, and naturally she wouldn't be afraid of him.

Mr. Wen looked at Gu Yin like looking at a fool, "Since you know, you still invite someone else to be a teacher? Do you know how many students want to take me as a teacher? I just refused to see so many during the New Year. Yes, there are hundreds! Hundreds, do you know?"

It turned out that the old man didn't see guests during New Year because he was hiding from them. Gu Yin saw the old man make a louder sound, his face flushed, and she quickly handed him hot tea, "Don't get mad, take a breath."

Mr. Wen took a sip of the hot tea and calmed down, "What do you think? Tell me carefully."

Gu Yin said, "You must be more knowledgeable than Master Wu. If Wu'an was not six years old, but sixteen years old, then I definitely would wish to win a chance for him. But he is still at the age of six and only reads some characters. How could I have the nerve to let him be your student at this level?"

Could college teachers teach elementary school students? Of course, they could, but the thinking of college teachers and children's thinking was definitely different. Which was why many parents in modern times, even if they had a high degree of education, when they helped their children who had just started school with their homework, they would also feel powerless and repeatedly collapse.

The old man thought about it too. He had been a scholar all his life. He was so old. Now thinking of himself repeating "Disciple's Rules", "Young Learning Qionglin", and "Enlightenment of Sound Rhythm", he himself felt bored, not to mention boosting the motivation of the students being taught. In the matter of reading, famous teachers were important, but children's self-motivation was equally important. If one didn't let their child want to study at the beginning, it would be difficult to study later.

The most important thing was that it was difficult to see because of old age. In recent years, his vision had become more bad, and everything he saw had a shadow. Reading and practicing itself was exhausting.

The old man pouted and kept silent, and it was just right then that his oldest son came over to greet him.

He knew that it was the last day of Gu Yin's work at Wen's house, so he wanted to ask the old man if he could lend him the cook for a while, so that she could cook two more spicy dishes to relieve his addiction.

The old man laughed when he saw him, and waved in a hurry, "Come in, I have something I need your help with!"

Eldest Master Wen panicked when he saw his old father smiling.

The old man used to look like that when he schemed against the political enemies in the court.

But what if he was in panic? That was his own father, so he couldn't turn around and leave.

Eldest Master Wen walked into the room with heavy steps, and saluted the old man slowly.

The old man still smiled, and asked him enthusiastically, "Have you eaten lunch? I remember that you like spicy food recently. It's Gu Yin's last day at our house. Would you like her to make something for you?"

That was the purpose of going there, but when Old Master Wen really asked that, he didn't dare to agree.

"I've eaten, I've eaten!" Eldest Master Wen said hesitantly, "Father please be direct, I'll listen to you."

"Hey, you kid, it's like I care about you because I want to use you." Old Master Wen looked at him kindly, "It's a good thing that would help you, didn't you say you're bored at home and want to accept students?"

Eldest Master Wen: When did I?

"Hey, it just so happens that the girl's family has a child. I heard that he is very smart and a good seedling that is rare in a hundred years. Do you think…"

Although Gu Yin also thought that Wu'an was really talented in reading, his memory that was great was something that many people couldn't keep up with in a lifetime. But she hadn't mentioned that to the old lady yet! Why was he talking about it?

The old man said and looked at Gu Yin again, "Although my eldest son had a low official position in Beijing, he is also a serious two-rank jinshi. He was the candidate who came third in the Han-lin examination. When it comes to being a scholar and a gentleman, he is really better than me."

The old man read books to become an official. After entering the office, his mind was no longer on learning.

Eldest Master Wen was different. He was not as talented as his father, but he really liked reading books. Not only the Four Books and Five Classics, but there were other books he liked to read. Two days ago, the old man saw that he was reading a book like "Children's enlightenment stories (Qionglin)", and asked him why he read such a book. He said that he suddenly remembered that he hadn't read it for a long time. Although that book was for children, it was fun to read.

Was there anything more suitable to be a teacher than someone who liked to read, was young, and had plenty of time?

The old man's two-way sales couldn't be described as unsuccessful. Anyway, Gu Yin was moved, and immediately smiled, "Then do you have time to teach the child here? I just don't know when you will be free tomorrow."

Eldest Master Wen was at that time an idler in the family. Although the old man had assigned a few stores to them, he did not know how to do chores, and was not interested in those. He handed over the management of several stores to Wen Lang and Wen Peifeng.

He said, "Father, when will I be free?"

Now! The old man thought to himself but in front of Gu Yin, he didn't say that, only said, "It's better to start early. If you have to choose a day, it's better to do it today. If you don't have anything to do in the morning, bring the child here."

Gu Yin naturally agreed. Regardless of whether Wu'an could be selected by Eldest Master Wen, she still thanked the old man and the master for giving him such an opportunity.

After thanking him, Gu Yin left the house and went back to Jinyi Alley.

When Gu Yin left, Eldest Master Wen said worriedly, "Father, why am I going to accept a student? During the Chinese New Year, you said that you were sick, so I helped you meet and see hundreds of students!"

Although Eldest Master Wen was middle-aged, he had been studying for many years. After entering the officialdom, he only worked in places like the Hanlin Academy. There were some literati in the Hanlin Academy. But he had an old man, the head of the civil service, sitting in the court, and of course no one would touch him. Therefore, Eldest Master Wen's heart of a child had not faded, and he was still serious in front of people, but in private he had a youthful heart.

Old Master Wen said, "You have helped me with hundreds of them, what's wrong with seeing one more?"

"Actually, it doesn't matter." Eldest Master Wen lowered his voice, "But that kid…is he really as smart as you said?"

Eldest Master Wen did not think about accepting students before, but during the Chinese New Year, he saw so many students who were eager for knowledge, and he actually had the idea of accepting a student.

However, in the past few years, although the father and son were officials in the same dynasty, the life of the old man was even more legendary. Eldest Master Wen, who had spent half his life in the Hanlin Academy, seemed a little worse. Therefore, the vast majority of those students were still coming for Old Master Wen.

Second, it was also Eldest Master Wen who had high vision. Although he didn't expect to accept a student as talented as the old man, it couldn't be worse than him, right?

Two factors combined, hundreds of students were rejected by Eldest Master Wen.

So when he had been instructed by the old man to really consider accepting a student, Eldest Master Wen had to ask carefully about the child's aptitude and learning progress.

He really liked Gu Yin's craftsmanship – although she always said that her skills in the spicy dishes were poor, and the old man also praised her for doing better in the porridge, her hands could change many dishes easily with the spices. Even the master chef of the Beijing restaurant couldn't compare to her. It was really eye-opening.

If he didn't accept the child, he was afraid their relationship would turn bad.

So it was best if the child was really talented. That way, he could also receive a satisfactory student, and everyone would be happy.

The old man coughed unnaturally, and said after a while, "The girl looks so smart, the child would definitely not be worse than her."

"The little lady looks so young and already has a child?"

The old man said no, "The child's name is Wu'an, and Wu should be her husband's surname."

Eldest Master Wen shouted, "Can her husband's brother's intelligence be the same as hers?"

The old man scratched his ears and said, "Why are you yelling? Your father is not deaf! I didn't force you to accept him, just give the child a chance. You followed me to eat and drink, right? The girl was here to serve me alone. As a cook, it stands to reason that she only needed to take care of my food. She still cooked so much for you, and she didn't charge you more, why can't you give the child a chance?"

Eldest Master Wen lowered his voice again, "Alright then."

Before noon that day, Gu Yin brought Wu'an and Gu Ye over together.

Originally, she only wanted to bring Wu'an there, but these two children were used to going together, and they were inseparable.

After she took Wu'an away, Gu Ye followed them from a distance.

She couldn't leave him, so she had to bring him together.

"Both are your children?"

Gu Yin said no, and introduced, "The older one is my brother-in-law, named Wu'an, and he will be six years old in less than two months. The younger one is Gu Ye, with my surname, and he is my child. Two children are inseparable at home, so I had to bring them together."

When the old man heard the words, he was thinking that even if the older one wasn't accepted, the little one looked clever, so he would definitely be able to inherit his mother's smartness, right?

It was a pity that the old man was disappointed that although Gu Ye was born fair and delicate, his eyes were very bright, and he had no stage fright when he was looked at from head to toe by the old man, it was a pity that when he asked something, he found that he couldn't even answer the basics.

Afraid of hurting the child's self-esteem, the old man brought Gu Yin to him, lowered his voice and asked her what was going on. Such an old child should be able to speak.

Gu Yin explained Xiao Gu Ye's origin to the old man in a soft voice.

The old man nodded and said, "It turns out that it was like this, so there is no rush. This child looks clever. After some time, he could learn well."

Then it was Wu'an turn. He was shy, and was suddenly taken to an unfamiliar environment. When he saw a stranger again, he subconsciously wanted to hide behind Gu Yin.

Gu Yin squatted down and said to him, "Don't be afraid, this old man is very nice, and I have been working in his house. During the Chinese New Year, this grandfather gave me a big red envelope (money), and I bought new clothes for you, remember?"

Wu'an naturally remembered it. He wore the new clothes with love for the whole New Year. Unfortunately, the weather turned hot these two days. His mother said that it was not suitable for wearing jackets.

Moreover, Wu'an still remembered that during that time, his sister-in-law would bring all kinds of delicious food home after work every day, all of which were given by the owner, that was, the old grandfather in front of him.

Sure enough, he wasn't so scared anymore. He let go of Gu Yin's skirt, wringed his hands, and stepped forward to greet the old lady.

"The child is a little shy. After all, there was only my mother and me in the family, so forgive him," Gu Yin apologized.

The old man waved his hand dismissively, saying that it was fine.

After all, although there was an old saying that three-year-olds fix eighty, in fact, things like personality were the most changeable.

Just like the second son of the Wen family. When he was a child, he grew up under his grandparents' knees (living with them). Although he had no talent for reading, he was also smart and sensible.

Afterward, the second elder of the Wen family, who was still alive at the time, felt there was no one under his knees (no child), and wrote a letter to ask him to send his grandsons to live with him for a while.

The old man sent both his sons there. The result was that although the eldest son was the eldest grandson, he was too dull, so he would always stay with a book in his hands. Although the second child was a few years younger, he was witty. He was always under his grandfather's knee, making him love him so much.

A few months later, Old Master Wen brought back the two children. His oldest son was fortunate to finally be able to come back and study hard. He said that after a few months, the books he brought back had been read long ago. The second child was sullen. After he came back, he became more uneasy about reading. He couldn't finish a page of the book in three days. The angry old man beat him up. Turning his head, he wrote to his grandfather and grandmother, saying that he still wanted to go back to Hanshan Town.

The second elder of the Wen family sent a letter again. First, he said that he was reluctant to stay apart from his second grandson. He also said that although the family's property was nothing in the capital, it was something passed down from generation to generation, and someone had to inherit it. Since his second grandson couldn't study, but was smart, wouldn't it be good to let him go back to inherit his ancestral property?

Of course, the old man and the madam were reluctant to leave their child, but the old man was an official outside the county and his parents were unwilling to leave their hometown, so they couldn't help but send a child back to fulfill their filial piety on their behalf.

The second child was also willing, so the couple sent him.

In the beginning, he was asked to live in Hanshan Town and the capital for half a year each year. But after half a year, he was unwilling to go back.

Later, when Old Master Wen discovered that his second son was crooked, it was too late to correct it.

—–

Miao: Three-years-olds fix eighty" (三歲定八十) means roughly: From the character and personality traits revealed by a three year old, one could infer that he would have similar traits as an eighty year old.)