The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

After the guests left, Min Xi and Yun Ji quickly pulled Diego aside and asked him to tell them in detail about his meeting with Sanvis.

Diego told the story of how he went to inquire about the whereabouts of Sanvis after hearing the news about the Shark. At the end, he said with some self-blame: "I'm sorry, boss, I wasn't in the store this afternoon. I went to see Mr. Sanvis. But I have prepared all the goods, and I have also asked Domit and the others to watch the store."

Min Xi patted his shoulder and said, "It's okay. Why didn't you come back and tell us first so that we can go to see Mr. Sanvis together."

"I know you guys are very busy lately and you must have guests tonight, so I want to go find him myself first and then tell you later."

"I'm glad he's okay. I knew he would be fine." Min Xi breathed a sigh of relief. Sanvis had been kind to them, so they were naturally relieved to know that he had returned safely.

Early the next morning, Yun Ji drove out in a carriage with Min Xi and Diego in it. Diego was going back to the store to work, and he took them to the Melville Hotel to find Sanvis.

It was too early, so they went to the dock and the vegetable market to buy vegetables first, so that they would not forget the time when they started chatting and miss the lunch for the guests. There was no other way, as the guests knew they were leaving soon, so they placed orders frantically during this period for fear of missing a meal.

The one who came most frequently was Lord Mello. He ate here almost every day, so much so that his family of three became regulars here, and he also invited all his friends.

The second is the Baron, who also eats here every other day. Sometimes when he can't order a meal, he comes directly to eat at Min Xi's place. Min Xi certainly won't be stingy with this meal, and lets them come whenever they want to eat. After all, the Baron is their creditor and ship owner, so eating a few meals is nothing.

After buying food, they went to the Melville Hotel, which was also on Lighthouse Street. Sailors returning from overseas basically stayed here. Mr. Sanvis did not have his own house in Lisbon, so he could only stay in a hotel.

When they arrived, Samvis was already up and was surrounded by a group of people in the hotel lobby, listening to him tell about his long and torturous trip to Asia.

Neither Min Xi nor Yun Ji noticed Sanvis, but they heard his voice before they entered the room. His voice was excited and a little angry: "...If it weren't for that damn hurricane, how could we have deviated so far from our course! Who knew there would be a hurricane in the Indian Ocean in October? We can only say that we were unlucky! We encountered it!"

Min Xi then realized what was going on and said that it would be unlikely for a normal voyage to Asia to result in a shortage of fresh fruits and vegetables and a large-scale outbreak of severe scurvy.

The shop owner noticed someone coming in and asked, "Do you want to stay at the shop?"

Min Xi said hurriedly: "No, no, we are here to see Mr. Sanvis. Sanvis, long time no see!"

When Sanvis heard Min Xi's voice, he quickly stood up from the crowd: "Min! Yun! Long time no see! Thank God, I still have the life to come back and see you!"

He walked out of the crowd, hugged Min Xi and Yun Ji in turn, and raised his hand to touch Diego's head: "You have taken good care of little Diego. He is almost catching up with me."

Min Xi said: "Thank God, you are still alive! Diego was most worried about you. He would ask us when you would be back every once in a while. I said you would be fine, and sure enough, you are back safely!"

"Yeah, I, old Sanvis, was lucky. Scurvy didn't kill me, but I lost several teeth. I'm half dead, but I didn't die." Sanvis opened his mouth, and sure enough, at least five or six teeth were missing.

Min Xi looked at the thin and hunched Sanvis and said, "You have lost too much weight. This illness has had a great impact on your health. You need to rest for a while. It's a pity that we are leaving Portugal and returning home soon. Otherwise, you could come to us and I will definitely take good care of your health."

Sanvis looked at them in surprise: "Are you leaving?"

"Yes, next month, but the specific date has not been decided yet," said Min Xi.

"Whose ship is it?"

"Baron Fernando's ship, the Sir."

"Are there any other boats that can go with you?"

"It seems there are two more ships going to Malacca."

"That's a good thing. It's best not to travel alone on such an ocean route. It's too unsafe," said Sanvis.

Yun Ji said, "Sanvis, do you have anything to do today? If not, come to our house for dinner."

Sanvis sighed and said, "I want to go too, but I just got back and I still have a lot of things to do with my partners. The cargo on the ship also needs to be unloaded. I will come to see you when I am done."

Min Xi thought for a moment and said, "How about this? You move to our place now. We have horses and carriages. You can come back to us when you are done. The environment there is quiet, and I can cook delicious food for you to nourish your body. You are too thin. We can fatten you up before we leave Lisbon."

Diego heard this and quickly persuaded him: "Go, Mr. Sanvis, the boss has rented a yard in the suburbs, you can stay in my room when you go there, it's very quiet and beautiful there, I can come to see you when I'm free."

After hearing this, Sanvis thought about it and felt that this was not a bad idea. He lived here and had three meals in the restaurant. Even if he paid extra money, the food would not be much better and could not be compared with Min Xi's cooking skills.

"Okay, I'll move to your place. I hope it won't disturb you?" said Sanvis.

"Of course not! Where is your luggage? We'll go and help you pack it. We'll be there now." Min Xi is a decisive person.

"now?"

"Yes, go get familiar with the place now, and come over after you have breakfast at my house," said Min Xi.

Sanvis thought this was a good idea, so he packed his luggage, checked out, and got on the carriage. Diego ran back to the store to work, his chest was full, as if something was about to jump out. It was great that Mr. Sanvis returned safely and moved to his employer's house. From today on, he would go back every night so that he could see the three people closest to him.

Along the way, Sanvis talked about his hellish voyage. He was blown off course by a hurricane and it took a lot of effort to return to the original route, but there was no place to get supplies. He arrived at an island and wanted to get supplies, but he had a conflict with the local natives. Not only did he not get the supplies, but his navigator was also seriously injured. After escaping from the island, the crew members began to show symptoms of scurvy. By the time they finally arrived at Ceylon and were rescued, one third of the people on the ship had died.

"Those days were as torturous as hell!" Sanvis couldn't help wiping away tears when talking about his painful experience.

Min Xi raised his hand and patted his shoulder to comfort him: "It's all over, it's all over."

Sanvis wiped his nose and said, "I think I haven't been out to sea for too long and I'm not familiar with the conditions at sea. As a result, this time I went out, so many people lost their lives. I feel sorry for everyone."

Min Xi continued to comfort him: "Sanvis, this is none of your business. This is a hurricane, a natural disaster, it's not something you can decide. I can only say that you were unlucky this time."

Sanvis shook his head silently. It seemed that he would not be able to get out of this shadow for a while.

Reunion should have been a happy thing, but Sanvis's experience was too tragic. He could not show his true emotions in front of strangers. Now, in front of Min Xi and Yun Ji, he mentioned that experience again, and he couldn't stop his true feelings from flowing out.

Min Xi remembered something: "Sanvis, did you deliver the letter we asked you to bring for us?"

Sanvis came back to his senses: "Oh, last year in Malacca, I gave the letter to a Chinese captain, and he said he would help take it to China."

Yun Ji and Min Xi both breathed a sigh of relief when they heard this, as this way the letter would have a greater chance of being delivered to their home.

After arriving home, Min Xi hurried to cook and made a delicious seafood rice for Sanvis. Sanvis burst into tears while eating.

Min Xi and Yun Ji looked at each other, and it was Min Xi who spoke up: "Sanvis, what's wrong?"

Sanvis swallowed a mouthful of rice and said, "I think it's great to be alive!"

Min Xi said, "Yes, you are lucky to be able to come back alive. You can stay here with us. After a while, after we leave, you can still live here. We rent the house and the lease will expire in March next year. It is up to you whether you continue to live here or move out. I rent this house for 20 reais per year because I rent it to open a restaurant, so the rent is a little higher. You can bargain with the landlord."

Sanvis said, "I'm not sure yet. I'll tell you later."

After dinner, Sanvis drove the carriage to the dock. The Shark had just arrived in Lisbon, and the cargo on the ship had to be unloaded. The loss of personnel on this trip to Asia was already very heavy, but the goods that should be purchased still had to be purchased, otherwise the loss would be even greater. Those dead crew members still had to be compensated.

After Sanvis left, Min Xi and Yun Ji prepared lunch in the kitchen.

Min Xi said: "I have been wanting to ask him just now who are the ones who are gone. But I just couldn't bring myself to ask because I was afraid that he would be sad, and we would be sad too." After all, most of the sailors on the Shark were familiar to them, and he was really afraid that he would find out that those sailors with whom he had a good relationship were gone.

Yun Ji said, "Then don't ask for now, we'll talk about it later."

"Yeah." Min Xi's mood couldn't help but drop.

After a while, Min Xi said again: "Given Samvis's current condition, I'm really worried about leaving him alone. Why don't we ask Diego if he is willing to stay?" Originally, Diego wanted to go with them because there was nothing worth worrying about in Lisbon. Now that Samvis is back, I wonder if he is willing to stay with him.

Yun Ji thought for a moment and said, "Alright, let's ask him alone later. I don't think it's a bad idea for him to stay. If he still wants to follow us to Ming Dynasty, we can take him away the next time we come back."

"Yes, that's fine. But we should still respect his own ideas. We are just asking, not making any arrangements for him," said Min Xi.