Traveling through troubled times to escape famine and cultivate crops as a grain merchant

Zhou Guo opened his folding fan, shook it proudly, and said, "Speaking of which, I have to thank Shopkeeper Yang. If it weren't for the paper, pens and ink you gave me, I wouldn't have practiced so much. These years have taken a lot of effort from me. Every day, no matter how busy I am, I will write two sheets. They say practice makes perfect. The more I practice, the neater it will be."

Shopkeeper Yang exclaimed in amazement, "Your handwriting is not just neater, it's too neat. When you first started, your handwriting was so crooked and ugly that it was unbearable to look at. The smaller ones were even a mess. You must have put in a lot of effort. It's amazing."

Zhou Guo looked at his own handwriting suspiciously, "It's not as beautiful as you said, right?"

She has no talent for handwriting, and her handwriting is just a little better than it was at the beginning. She has used at least one and a half boxes of paper to practice her handwriting over the past few years. She has worked hard, but her handwriting is just so-so.

“Hahaha.” Shopkeeper Yang laughed, “It’s also because your handwriting was too ugly at the beginning, so it shows through.”

Zhou Guo: "...Are you praising me?"

Shopkeeper Yang nodded repeatedly, "It is a compliment, it is a compliment, how can it not be a compliment?"

Zhou Guo sat back and thought, it’s praise if it’s right.

Shopkeeper Yang said happily: "The papers I gave you were not wasted. I am so happy to see your handwriting has improved so much!"

Zhou Guo smiled and said, "If that's the case, how about you give me some more after I use them up?"

Shopkeeper Yang nodded, "No problem, just for your three prescriptions, I am willing to give them to you."

He waved to the waiter and said, "Go and deliver this recipe. Make it now and let Master Zhou give us some advice on the taste."

After that, he turned to Zhou Guo and said, "I'll have to ask you to stay for a while. If the taste is not right, you have to give me some advice."

Zhou Guo said, "I am just a country girl, and I have never eaten anything good, so how can I compare with a chef? Shopkeeper, you think too highly of me."

Shopkeeper Yang said, "Well, how can you say that? The flavor of wild vegetables is not necessarily worse than the food in the restaurant. Besides, we have never cooked this dish before. This is our first time, so of course we need your guidance. Don't leave. You have to stay for a while no matter what."

It’s no wonder that the kitchen is so efficient. In less than an incense stick’s time, all the dishes were served.

Shopkeeper Yang looked at the preserved eggs that were cut into small pieces and arranged into flowers on the plate. In addition to the rich seasonings, there were also green chopped green onions and coriander on top.

Apart from anything else, it looks good and has a good appearance.

The next dish was tofu and preserved eggs.

The last dish is century egg and cucumber soup.

The waiter brought two more sets of bowls and chopsticks.

Shopkeeper Yang tasted everything, and Zhou Guo didn't hesitate.

The cold-mixed preserved eggs have almost all the flavors except spicy. They are delicious, but they don’t have any spicy flavor.

Tofu and preserved eggs are also delicious.

The soup is also delicious.

Shopkeeper Yang nodded as he ate, and after he finished, he asked Zhou Guo, "Mr. Zhou, how do you think it tastes? Does it taste similar to what you make at home?"

Zhou Guo laughed, "Manager Yang, you are joking. What we cook at home is just country food. How can it be compared with the food made in such a big restaurant?"

Shopkeeper Yang laughed, "The ones you sent last year, I just had them stir-fry them, but they were not as delicious as this. I still think the first dish tastes better. Add a few drops of vinegar and it will taste even better. It will be served on the table in the hot summer and let it cool down before serving. I think many people will like it."

Zhou Guo smiled and said, "It would be delicious if there was some juicy and tender tofu mixed in."

Shopkeeper Yang was stunned. "Tender tofu? Tsk, I know tofu, but what kind of tofu is tender tofu?"

Zhou Guo said: "It's tofu that's a little more tender than ordinary tofu. It's soft and juicy and will break into pieces when touched, just like brain flower."

Shopkeeper Yang frowned, "Where can this kind of tofu be made? Can Mr. Zhou's family make it?"

Zhou Guo smiled slightly. After several failures, he finally made it. However, making tofu was hard work. It was a one or two cent business, not as good as selling duck eggs.

Upon seeing this, Shopkeeper Yang said, "Please tell me, if the preserved eggs taste better, they will sell more, which will be of great benefit to Master Yu."

Zhou Guo didn't say anything.

Shopkeeper Yang had no choice but to say, "Then tell me what you want. As long as I have it, I will give it to you."

Zhou Guo said, "What are you saying? If I want your restaurant, can you still give it to me? I don't want anything else. You know, my family loves crabs, but I'm embarrassed to ask you for it every year, right? My family is poor and I can't afford it. Can you give me some crab seedlings? I don't want too much, just enough for my family to eat. Do you think it's okay?"

Shopkeeper Yang's mouth twitched violently. He wanted to exchange his crab seedlings for a few pieces of tender tofu?

How much is a piece of tofu, and how much is a crab?

Seeing his expression, Zhou Guo said, "Shopkeeper Yang, you are not at a disadvantage. Think about it, there are plenty of crabs on the ground that day. Your family has some, and other families have some. And you are the only family that knows how to make my tender tofu.

When the tender tofu is ready, besides mixing it with preserved eggs, you can also make other dishes. Your restaurant will have so many more dishes, and you can make a lot more money every day. You can also use it to honor your customers. On a hot day, you can serve them a bowl of it. If the customers are happy, you will benefit. You will get a great deal in this business!"

Shopkeeper Yang really sighed. He wanted to say something else and felt that what she said made sense, but why did it feel so uncomfortable to ask him to exchange crab fry for tofu?

Did he suffer a loss?

Pointing at Zhou Guo, he said, "You are amazing. I fell into your trap without even noticing it, and I can't get out of it."

Zhou Guo laughed, "It's not that you can't come down, it's that you don't want to come down!"

Shopkeeper Yang shook his head and said, "Okay, send someone to pick it up in ten days."

After thinking about it, he couldn't help but said, "Let me be frank. Crabs are very difficult to raise."

Zhou Guo said: "I know, if it was so easy to raise crabs, they would be everywhere on the streets, and they wouldn't be so precious."

Shopkeeper Yang thought of the fungi in the warehouse and sighed. If others can grow fungi, why can’t they grow crabs?

After saying goodbye to Shopkeeper Yang, the group headed back home.

Zhou Guo sat on the edge of the car, feeling so happy thinking that there would be crab seedlings soon. From then on, their family would have an endless supply of crabs.

Well, let’s raise them in the rice fields first, and then when there are more, we can raise them in ponds. It seems we need to dig a pond.

Li frowned, "Will this work? The crab claws are so big, won't they eat the seedlings? If they pinch off the seedlings one by one, the fields will be bare in the future. What will we harvest in the autumn?"

Everyone has this worry.

Zhou Guo said, "How could that be? Of course we have to feed them, small fish and shrimps, river clam meat, vegetable leaves and tender grass. Why would they eat that if they are full? They are so old, how can they eat?"

"Moreover, these crabs will always excrete what they eat, and the excrement in the field will make them fat. They can also eat insects and weeds and duckweed in the field. This way, not only will the yield not decrease during the autumn harvest, but the grain yield will increase. There are many benefits."