The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Diego was immediately excited when he saw Min Xi was going to cook. He hadn't eaten the food cooked by his family for a long time. Since he first returned to Quanzhou, his family had never cooked for him again. Because they had no place to cook, they always ate outside. Although Chinese chefs cook well, he thinks that the food cooked by his family is the best.

"The boss's cooking is the best!" Diego said proudly to the captain.

The captain listened to his strange tone and actually understood: "Is his cooking delicious?"

Diego nodded: "He used to run a restaurant and I was the boss." He then pointed at himself.

The captain of the boat laughed and said, "Brother, have you ever opened a restaurant before?"

Min Xi said without even looking up: "Yes, few Europeans know how to eat. I just can't get used to the food there, so I have to cook for myself. I opened a small restaurant by the way, which is just right for me to earn some living expenses and travel expenses."

The cooking utensils on the boat are simple, but the most basic necessities are guaranteed. There are woks, steamers, and a full range of seasonings.

Min Xi cooked two braised carps, steamed a bream, and stir-fried river shrimps with leeks. There was bacon on the boat, so he stir-fried the bacon with garlic sprouts and bean sprouts. That was all.

The boatmen were pleasantly surprised when they saw the food Min Xi cooked. "Did Brother Min cook this dish today? It's just like in a restaurant, with red and green, and the combination is really beautiful. This is the first time we have eaten such exquisite dishes on a boat."

Min Xi smiled and said, "I haven't made it for a long time. I don't know if it suits your taste. If you are not satisfied with it, please feel free to tell me."

Everyone served themselves rice and started eating the dishes. They were surprised when they ate them: "Young man, your cooking skills are really good! It's even better than what we had in the Beijing restaurant!"

So this bunch of rough guys took their chopsticks and quickly divided up all the dishes as if they were snatching food from the table. If they hadn't been concerned about Min Xi and Diego, they would have picked up the plates and poured the food into their own bowls.

Min Xi and Diego had just served themselves some rice when they turned around and saw that only some braised fish, river shrimps, bacon and bean sprouts were left, which were specially left for them.

It was the first time Diego had seen such a scene. He was so scared that he didn't even dare to move his chopsticks. Even if he did, he probably wouldn't be able to snatch the food. His chopstick skills were only good enough to eat, not to snatch food.

Min Xi picked up some carp belly meat for Diego, and also picked some river shrimp and bacon for him: "Eat it."

Diego had almost never eaten these dishes, because even in Quanzhou, he only ate seafood and rarely ate river fish. Compared with seafood, river fish has a different taste. People who are used to eating seafood think river fish has a fishy smell, but Diego thought it tasted very good. Everything the boss cooked tasted good.

There were twelve people in total on the boat, including Min Xi and Diego. These dishes were a bit too little, so every plate was eaten cleanly.

Everyone praised Min Xi's cooking skills and said that it was no wonder that he could open a restaurant in Fulanji. Even if he opened a restaurant in the capital, business would definitely be booming and customers would flock to him.

After just one meal, Min Xi became friends with the boat workers.

The captain of the boat also felt that he had found a treasure and said, "Brother Min, please take care of our three meals from now on. I will charge less for the boat fare."

Min Xi smiled and said, "Okay! I'll cook from now on." He had to eat anyway, and it was not difficult to cook for more than ten people. He and Diego each paid ten taels of silver for the boat fare, so now they could save ten taels of silver, so why not do it?

So just like that, Min Xi successfully found a job for himself with his skills.

The boats were not always smooth sailing. When the river was shallow, the water was upstream at the intersection, or when passing through locks and dams, they needed trackers to pull the boats. Although it was only April, the trackers were shirtless, with hemp ropes hanging on their shoulders, and they stretched their bodies into a diagonal line, pulling the heavy boats forward step by step.

When Min Xi saw this scene for the first time, he could not help but burst into tears. What the trackers were pulling was not only the heavy canal boats, but also the heavy life.

Every time at this time, when it is possible to get off the boat and walk, Min Xi would take Diego and Little Overlord off the boat and walk a distance to reduce the burden on the trackers.

The boatmen on the boat felt that it was unnecessary and that two more of them would not make much difference, but Min Xi insisted so much that they still cooperated and moored the boat to let them get on board every time after passing shallow or dangerous shoals.

April is a beautiful season. Wherever the spring breeze blows, all things have sprouted. Willow branches with new buds softly brush against the embankment. The paddy fields on both sides of the river are already filled with rainwater from last winter and this spring. The farmers are wearing straw raincoats and hats, wielding hoes, and driving oxen to work in the fields. This scene also makes Min Xi's chest filled with emotion.

This kind of scene existed only in his imagination before, but now seeing the real scene was like a series of ink paintings slowly unfolding before his eyes.

Min Xi never thought of himself as a sentimental person, but at this moment, he was deeply moved by the calmness and diligence of those old farmers, as well as this land that had been cultivated by the Chinese people for generations.

At this moment, he suddenly missed Yunji very much. He wanted to see such a scroll with him, and then watch him sketch it on rice paper and record it forever. I wonder if he saw such a scroll when he came back. At that time, the spring mud had not yet completely thawed. The season was different, and I am afraid that the scenery he saw would be different.

After crossing the Huai River, the scenery along the way changed again. The sky and the earth were no longer misty, but became dry. The fields were no longer crisscrossed with silver waters, but turned into mottled yellow and green. The yellow was the land, and the green was the wheat that had been dormant for a winter and was growing wildly in the spring breeze.

It is full of vitality and makes people happy.

Diego was amazed all the way. "Boss, your Ming Dynasty is so different from our Portugal. It's so beautiful!"

Min Xi smiled and said, "Really? Actually, this is the first time I've seen it, it's so beautiful! So no matter how good Portugal is, I still love our Ming Dynasty more."

"I like it here too!" said Diego.

The captain joked with them: "Look at how ignorant you two look. Isn't this a common sight?"

Min Xi smiled and said, "Master Lin, you don't know. I grew up in Yingtian Prefecture and have only been to the south. I have never been to the north. It does look strange. My little brother is from Fulangji, and he has never seen it before."

"Hahaha, okay! The world you see is different from the world we see." The captain laughed.

The journey from Zhenjiang to Beijing was extremely smooth. On the ninth day, the captain said, "We will arrive in Beijing this afternoon."

Min Xi was delighted: "So fast?"

"Is this considered fast? It's the dry season now, and the water in the north is shallow, which is not very conducive to sailing. In the summer, it's fast. The fastest time I took was only seven days to get from Zhenjiang to the capital." said the captain.

"Although digging the Grand Canal was labor-intensive and costly, it is indeed a good thing that will benefit future generations." Min Xi sighed. If it were to go by land, it would take at least twenty days, but going by water would save at least half the time.

The captain asked, "Will anyone pick us up when we get to Beijing?"

Min Xi shook his head: "I don't know yet. But he gave us the address, so we can go find it."

"The capital is under the feet of the emperor. There are many dignitaries and rules. You are a newcomer, so you should be more careful. Ignore those who come up to you and recommend places to go, because they are not good places." The captain warned them.

"Thank you, Master Lin, for your guidance!" Min Xi thanked him sincerely. He had been dealing with the canal workers these days and knew that although these people were not well-educated and their behavior was a bit rude, they were extremely honest and generous. They did not like to haggle over trivial matters. Moreover, compared with the sailors on the Fulangji, the canal workers were obviously more polite. This was probably due to the difference in cultural background.

In the afternoon of that day, the boat passed through the Tonghui River, the last section of the Grand Canal, and arrived at the end of the journey - Shichahai.

Min Xi stood at the bow, listening to accents from all over the country, feeling dazed. He had been to Beijing before and visited Shichahai, but he had never imagined that one day he would take a boat from Zhenjiang directly to Shichahai. What a sense of time travel.

When he lived in the era when Shichahai was just a tourist attraction, people went boating in the summer and ice skating in the winter. Now, it is a busy port!

Min Xi carried the luggage, said goodbye to the boat captain and the boat workers, stepped onto the dock, turned around and waved goodbye to the boat captain: "Goodbye, Master Lin!" The boat fare had been paid long ago.

The captain waved at him and said, "See you again! Come take my boat again if you have the chance. The food you cook is delicious!"

"Okay!" Min Xi said with a smile.

Before he turned around, he heard a voice behind him loudly asking, "Excuse me, is this Master Min?"

Min Xi turned around and looked at a young man in a gray robe: "My name is Min."

"Master Min, I was sent by your cousin to pick you up. I've been waiting here for several days. You're finally here." The young man said respectfully and reached out to take the luggage from Min Xi's shoulder.

Min Xi looked at him: "Who is your cousin?" He guessed that Yun Ji must have arranged someone to pick him up, but it was still better to ask clearly.

The man said, "My cousin's name is Yun Ji, you are Master Min Xi, right? My cousin said that you are his sworn brother, is that correct?"

Min Xi smiled: "It's me. Brother Qi asked you to pick us up? What's your name, little brother?"

"I am a servant of my cousin's maternal grandfather. My name is Tao Yan. My great grandfather ordered me to serve my cousin. I will help you carry your things. The carriage is over here. Please come this way." Tao Yan took Min Xi's luggage and walked out. "My cousin said that when he saw someone with a foreigner who looked different from us, it was basically you."

Min Xi smiled and said, "This is the little brother we brought back from Fulangji, his name is Diego. How is your cousin now?"

"It's OK. I can't tell you the details. When we get back, you can ask him in person." Tao Yan put his luggage on a carriage and put down the ladder. "Mr. Min, please get in the carriage."