Others are fleeing famine, but I am a salted fish

lobby

After receiving the message from Xiao Si and Xiao Wu, Grandpa Lin led the county magistrate from the backyard to the front hall. As soon as they came in, the county magistrate and others felt a cool breeze rushing towards them, and their brains, which were a little swollen and painful due to the scorching heat and the steam of alcohol, suddenly became clear.

Well, it's called the front hall, but actually after they moved in, the original long table, the square table with eight immortals, and the armchairs on both sides were removed. They were replaced with four large round tables, each of which was large enough to seat eight to ten people.

The county magistrate came to visit suddenly, and they had no way to prepare in advance, so they could only lead the county magistrate to the dining hall to sit down and continue chatting while eating.

Of course, no one dared to sit at the same table with the county magistrate and the officials. Only when the county magistrate told them not to stand around and to eat together did they sit at different tables in unison.

As the head of the family, my grandfather was naturally carried to the main table by everyone to dine with the county magistrate.

Grandpa Lin who was roasted on the fire: ...a bunch of unfilial things.

Grandpa Lin squeezed Lin Xiaoyue's eyes hard. He was worried that the county magistrate would ask him questions again at the dinner table, and he would not be able to answer them, which would be embarrassing.

Unfortunately, Lin Xiaoyue turned a blind eye, looking at the sky, the ground, and the air, but not at Grandpa Lin. She was really annoyed by Grandpa Lin's eyes, so she simply buried her head in the bowl and started eating.

County Magistrate Xing's eyes flashed as he watched the interaction between the two. He found it funny but didn't say much.

Most ordinary people are like mice seeing cats when they see officials. He has long been accustomed to it and there is nothing to be fussy about.

However, the county magistrate did not come here to embarrass them. Apart from some technical questions, the rest were just daily inquiries, such as whether everything was going smoothly after settling in Wanbao Town and whether they were adapting to the food and accommodation.

Grandpa Lin had been a village head after all, and he had excellent eloquence. He answered these easy questions fluently and his answers were very logical.

The county magistrate also wanted to get everyone to relax and not be so tense, so he asked everyone a few open-ended questions related to real life, which immediately brought the two sides closer together.

Look, soon everyone started talking at once.

They were grateful to the county magistrate. They had just arrived in a strange place and were very nervous. Fortunately, the county magistrate loved the people like his own children and not only settled them down, but also provided them with a place to live.

Having been a farmer all his life and having lived in remote mountain ravines for most of his life, he suddenly moved into a town and was able to live in such a large farm. In Lin Xiaoyue's words, it was almost like living in a park.

The house was so huge that we were confused at first. I went out to pee in the middle of the night and couldn't even find the door when I came back.

Therefore, the gratitude in everyone's heart towards the county magistrate was like a surging river, endless.

As he was talking, the county magistrate mentioned the ice basin placed in the hall intentionally or unintentionally, and lamented that in this hot summer day, having the ice basin to cool down made his mind more flexible. If it was placed in the county government office, the runners would feel much more comfortable on duty.

The implication of his words revealed his interest in the ice basin.

Grandpa Lin understood the elegant meaning of the music by just listening to the music.

But he didn't dare to agree without hesitation, because this was the idea of ​​the third girl. So, his first reaction was to cast an inquiring gaze at Lin Xiaoyue, and made a secret signal to her with his head.

Lin Xiaoyue: ...Sir, stop making eyes at me. Your wrinkled face can kill a fly. Also, just agree. The method of distilling liquor has been submitted to the county magistrate. What else is missing? The method of making ice with saltpeter?

She could give it to him, but she had to talk to the county magistrate about it. She could give the method of making ice from saltpeter to the county government, but they would make related food in the future. Therefore, she hoped that the county magistrate could keep the method of making ice from saltpeter a secret and not leak it out.

The county magistrate naturally understood what she meant, and even if they really offered him the method of making ice, he would not dare to make it public.

joke.

You should know that the ice cellars here are divided into official cellars and palace cellars. Official cellars are for the royal family, mainly used for royal temple sacrifices, summer food preservation in the palace, dealing with royal tours, and granted to government offices and mausoleums. Palace cellars are set up for princes with outstanding military achievements, managed by the princes, and the nobles in the palaces are self-sufficient in ice.

Ordinary civilians were not allowed to build private ice houses and store ice. Ice merchants who could pass the imperial court's approval and legally sell ice had to pay high taxes to the court every year. As a result, the price of ice in midsummer was high, as expensive as gold and jade, and not everyone could afford it.

In this way, whoever dares to ask for this secret recipe for making ice is not afraid of competing with the imperial court and losing his official position?

But the heat was so unbearable that the county magistrate was reluctant to give up the slightest bit of coolness, so he asked them to provide ice cubes to the county government office, and he really just wanted ice cubes and not a secret recipe.

But he couldn't pay for the ice, and the Lin family wasn't allowed to sell the ice openly, otherwise if they accidentally touched upon the interests of those above them, no one would be able to protect them.

Fortunately, the county magistrate reminded them. If they had not known this, they would have really thought of selling ice cream. Everyone was terrified and stood up and knelt to thank the county magistrate for his advice.

Lin Xiaoyue: ...I really hate this dynasty that always kneels down all the time. It hurts the meniscus.

The county magistrate waved his hand generously to indicate that nothing was wrong and asked everyone to stand up. Since they were not in the county government office, there was no need to perform such a grand ceremony.

Seeing that the county magistrate did not seem to be deliberately making things difficult for them, and after Grandpa Lin returned the favor by saying that he would let the third girl pass on the ice-making method later, Lin Xiaoyue immediately took the opportunity to ask, if since they could not sell ice, could they make corresponding food to sell?

The county magistrate did not expect that the little girl was so quick-witted. He nodded, still smiling, and told her that as long as the sale of ice did not affect the interests of the court, selling food was fine.

Fortunately, when the distilled liquor business is no longer viable, selling seasonal cold drinks and popsicles will also be a source of income.

After getting the promise, Lin Xiaoyue didn't waste any time and took Chunxing to the room to write down the method of making ice.

Don't ask her why she doesn't write it herself. What's the matter? She is just a country girl. The fact that she can come up with all these tricks is the result of God's blessing. She can also write. She hasn't even been to school for half a day, but she suddenly can write. If she is so capable, why don't she go to the sky and stand shoulder to shoulder with the sun?

Over there, Lin Xiaoyue pulled Chun Xing out like a gust of wind, so fast that everyone in the hall was stunned for a moment.

However, soon, the women from the kitchen came up one after another with trays in their hands, on which were bowls of cool noodles.

Before people even put it in their mouths, they could already feel the cool texture, the perfect sour and spicy taste, and the soft and chewy texture.

The county magistrate and others moved their throats, scooped up a piece of food with chopsticks, and put it into their mouths under the expectant gaze of Grandpa Lin and everyone else.