The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Min Xi knew that the best way to find out the whereabouts of the Shark was to find the other owner of the Shark, but he didn't know who the other owner of the Shark was, so he had to ask the Baron for help.

Min Xi told the Baron about the situation of the Shark. The Baron said, "This is a simple matter. I can ask someone to find out. Such a large ship must have been replenished at a certain port. It is impossible not to find any trace of it. It's just that it has been a long time, so it will take some time to find out. It would be great if we could find out the other owner of the Shark. He should know something about the whereabouts of the Shark."

"Then please, Your Excellency."

"Don't worry, leave it to me."

Min Xi did not tell Diego about his intention to find out the whereabouts of the Shark, for fear of giving him hope which would turn into disappointment. In this situation, no news is good news.

The house in the suburbs did not require much renovation, and the renovation and cleaning process took a week. During this period, Min Xi and Yun Ji not only turned the soil to prepare for planting vegetables, but also asked a carpenter to make some furniture, including beds, cabinets, tables and chairs.

The two of them reorganized the kitchen and made a few stoves, including a stewing oven and a bread oven. They already had a basic set of kitchen utensils, and they needed some more, so they asked a blacksmith shop to make a few more.

There was no tableware, so it needed to be completely customized. I had originally thought that since it was a high-end restaurant, a complete set of silverware would be more upscale. However, considering that silver has good thermal conductivity and Chinese food consists mainly of hot dishes, it is not suitable to be served with silverware. So I made a complete set of wooden tableware, with only plates and knives and forks made of silver.

It took about half a month to clean up the house and get everything ready.

During this period, Min Xi also took the time to go to the Baron's glass greenhouse to plant the crop seeds, preparing to plant them in April.

The baron saw the many pots and pans he had prepared and laughed at him: "You really want to be a farmer."

Min Xi said: "This is called self-reliance and having enough food and clothing."

The night before the move, Min Xi organized a meal for all the store employees and told them: "We will live outside the city from now on, and the two stores here will be handed over to you. We will come back from time to time to check on your work, and you can also come to our place to play during your rest time. You are welcome at any time. If there is anything urgent, you can also come to us directly."

Gail said, "Boss, after you move out, can I continue to live in the attic?"

"Of course, everything here will be handed over to you from now on. But remember, both the dishes and the service must still be of guaranteed quality. If you want to learn what dishes to cook, you can come and ask me during your holidays." Min Xi said.

Everyone nodded in agreement. They were very happy in their hearts because this would give them more freedom.

The only one who felt sad about the boss's move was Diego. He even thought about moving out of the city with Min Xi and Yun Ji. However, the house that Min Xi and Yun Ji rented was in the north of the city, and the store was in the southeast. The distance between them was not very close, and he could not run there by himself.

Although Diego said that he could run and considered it as exercise, Min Xi and Yun Ji disagreed: "There is no need to work so hard. You are still growing and need more sleep. We will prepare a room for you and you can come and stay when you are on vacation."

Diego was finally comforted when he learned that his employer had specially prepared a room for him. He was particularly satisfied with his room. Before he even moved in, he had already put a lot of things in it, including clothes, shoes and other things bought for him by Min Xi and Yun Ji.

They chose a Sunday as the day to move, and both stores were closed. When Min Xi and Yun Ji moved, the store employees also went with them to get to know the store, and moving required a lot of people and a lot of people.

The next morning, Min Xi and Yun Ji packed their things, loaded them onto the carriage, and took them to their newly rented home.

A lot of things had been moved there a few days ago, and what was moved there today were mainly daily necessities for the two of them.

This time they rented a whole house, so there was no reason for the two of them to live in one room, so they each lived in one room.

This courtyard has no second floor, so we can only live on the first floor. Fortunately, the rooms are spacious and bright, which is quite good. The rooms for two people are also next to each other, so we can be called upon at any time if anything happens.

After moving the things, Yun Ji drove Gail and Jasper to buy groceries. Today was a moving party, and barons, lords and others would come, as well as some nobles who often came to the restaurant for dinner. They would be the main guests at the restaurant.

In total, we invited about ten people, and including the shop assistants, there are about twenty guests to entertain, so it will be a very busy day today.

The firewood, rice, oil, salt, etc. were bought two days in advance, and the dough needed to make snacks was also prepared in advance.

After arriving at the new home, the shop assistants rolled up their sleeves and took the initiative to help out, some cleaning, some helping to light the fire and boil water, some killing chickens and ducks, while Diego continued to do his old job, kneading dough and helping to make snacks.

Min Xi made breakfast for everyone. Because they were moving today, they had specifically asked everyone to come here for breakfast. Everyone was still hungry. They would have breakfast in the morning and then go to church. After church, they would come back and continue to help. It would be almost time to prepare lunch.

For breakfast, they had porridge with raw fish slices and fried dough sticks. Min Xi had already cooked the porridge as soon as Yun Ji and the others went to buy vegetables. By the time they came back, the porridge was already boiling. The fish was killed and sliced, and then put into the porridge pot and cooked through, and then it could be served.

At this time, the fried dough sticks were also out of the pot.

This was the first time for everyone to drink fish fillet porridge. Everyone knew how precious this fish fillet porridge was. After all, this was the rice brought back from Spain by the host. The less they ate, the more generous the host was to treat them with such precious rice.

So when everyone drinks fish fillet porridge, they all taste it with great care, take a sip carefully, savor it carefully, and savor it slowly. The aroma of rice accompanied by the freshness of fish is impressive and really delicious. It is incredible that the combination of rice and fish fillet can produce such a good effect. Taking another bite of the crispy fried dough sticks, I just feel that my soul is sublimated.

Min Xi said: "This is our most typical Chinese breakfast, porridge with fried dough sticks. Of course, the most classic is soy milk with fried dough sticks, but we don't have soybeans here. You have learned how to make fried dough sticks, and you can use it with milk in the future."

After breakfast, the shop assistants went to church for worship, while Min Xi and Yun Ji began to prepare lunch.

It was not until after ten o'clock that Baron Fernando brought Alice over.

Min Xi greeted him: "Why are you so late today? Did you go to church?"

Fernando shrugged: "Otherwise."

Min Xi smiled and said, "It's rare that you actually go to church!"

Fernando looked at his wife and said, "I went with Alice. She has just converted and it would be bad if she didn't go. If it were my temper, I wouldn't go."

Alice was a Protestant who married into Catholic Portugal. In order to fit in, she had to convert to Catholicism, which was really difficult for her.

Alice smiled and said, "Thank you dear for going to church with me."

Fernando smiled at his wife and said, "It's not a big deal, just a waste of time."

Alice felt that she was quite lucky. Although she married to a foreign country, her husband was several years older than her and had to change his religion, but at least her husband was not a law-abiding person and had no special requirements for her. He loved to eat and play, and most importantly, he always took her with him. As far as marriage partners were concerned, he was already top-notch.

Fernando sniffed the aroma in the kitchen, sniffed, and opened a stew pot: "What's for lunch? Is this Dongpo pork elbow?"

"Yes, but it's still very early, at least another two hours. The food is not ready yet, you can go to the living room for some tea and snacks." Min Xi said.

"This is fried dough sticks. Can we eat it?" Fernando asked, looking at the fried dough sticks on the chopping board.

"You can eat it, but it was fried this morning and is cold now. I'll make it into a side dish later. If you want to eat it, just eat it," said Min Xi.

"Is it okay if I eat it all?" Fernando said.

"If you don't mind, just eat it."

Fernando picked up the fried dough sticks and called his wife to go outside for tea. It didn't matter if the fried dough sticks were cold, there was still hot tea. Fried dough sticks and tea were also a good snack.

Not long after, the group of shop assistants who had gone to church came back and everyone came to the kitchen to help, some cutting vegetables, setting the table, washing dishes, and greeting guests, just like in a restaurant.

By around twelve o'clock, all the guests had arrived and the dishes had been placed on the table. The guests sat at the big table while the waiters ate at the coffee table in the living room. The two tables were noisy and the house was unusually lively. This old house, which had been abandoned for a long time, finally regained its popularity.

There were two new dishes on the dinner table today that many people had never seen before. In addition to the seafood rice that the Baron had eaten, there was also a dish of steamed pork with rice flour, which was made with rice flour ground from fried rice.

Even chicken, duck, fish and meat are cooked in ways that are rarely used, with the main focus on freshness. This is to let everyone know that the private restaurant still has many private dishes, and everyone enjoys the freshness of the food.

Everyone at the dinner table sighed that Min Xi’s dishes were more delicious, but unfortunately he stopped cooking since June last year, and many old customers still missed his cooking skills.

After the meal, Min Xi announced the prices of the private restaurant: the cheapest table is 3 reais, a set meal for four people with six dishes, 4 reais for a set meal for six people with eight dishes, and 5 reais for a set meal for eight people with ten dishes, none of which include main courses or desserts.

Reservations are required in advance and dishes can be ordered. If you are undecided, Min Xi will make recommendations.

After he quoted the price, the baron said, "How come this price is cheaper than what we said before!"

Min Xi smiled and said, "This is what Yun and I decided after considering it for a long time. We still hope that more regular customers will come to consume."

This price is quite cheap compared to London prices, but it is ridiculously expensive compared to Chinese restaurants in Lisbon.