The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Baron Fernando raised his hand and hooked the person in charge of the shipyard, pulled him aside, and said in a low voice: "Mr. Nunez, the tall man is the Ming hero who single-handedly took down two ships of the Seven Demons on St. Helena Island. He is our Portuguese hero, and His Majesty the King will summon him to commend him in a few days. You must hurry up and deliver the ship to them before November, otherwise they will encounter a storm on the way back. It's too unfair to our national hero, right?"

When the person in charge, Nunes, heard this, he turned around and looked at Min Xi and Yun Ji, very surprised: "Are they really them?"

"Absolutely genuine!" the baron said firmly.

Nunes looked embarrassed: "But it is indeed difficult. It is difficult to deliver it nearly two months in advance."

"How soon in advance?" asked the Baron.

"It will be delivered by December at the latest," Nunes said.

The Baron turned around and conveyed Nunes's meaning to Min Xi and Yun Ji.

Min Xi frowned and said, "We are willing to pay more. Can we transfer people from other places to help us speed up the work? I hope it can be completed before November."

When Nunes heard that he was willing to pay more, he said, "If you can afford it, we can let the workers work overtime at night with lights on. If we start working overtime now, maybe we can finish the project before November."

"How much extra money do you need?" Min Xi asked.

The baron reminded: "Mr. Nunes, this is our hero, the price must be fair."

Nunes said: "Of course we will. We will only charge workers for overtime. But we have to calculate the exact amount before we can tell you."

"Then when can it be considered ready?" Min Xi asked.

"It will take about two or three days."

"Okay, we'll wait for the results in Setubal in the next few days," said Min Xi.

"Ok."

After coming out of the shipyard, Min Xi discussed with Yun Ji, and then said to the baron: "Pedro, you don't have to wait with us, go back to Lisbon first, and my seventh brother and I will stay and wait for the result."

The baron shook his head: "I'm worried that you might bully the newbies when you talk to them.

Min Xi smiled and said, "I think they will not ask for an exorbitant price for the sake of you and His Majesty the King. If the price is too far from our expectations, we will bargain with them."

"Do you really not need me to stay with you?" the Baron confirmed again.

Min Xi smiled: "You have to believe in my and Brother Qi's abilities. If you stay out for too long, Bella won't recognize you when you return. How can we live with it then?"

Speaking of his daughter, the baron no longer insisted: "Well, you must talk to them properly and don't let them cheat you. I estimate that another 20,000 reais will be the maximum."

"Okay, we got it." Min Xi nodded in agreement.

The baron said goodbye to them and returned to Lisbon first. Min Xi and Yun Ji stayed in Setubal to wait for the results of the shipyard. They were not idle either, visiting the shipyard every day, trying to learn something, and planned to tell the shipbuilders of Daming when they returned.

In addition to visiting, they also chatted with the workers and asked them what usually happens when the ship needs repairs, which parts are most likely to be damaged, etc. Although these can be learned at the supply point, it is obviously more authoritative to inquire from the source, and they can also explain the reasons.

Three days later, the person in charge, Nunes, told them: "After our calculations, you will need to pay an additional 40,000 reais for labor costs plus fuel costs at night."

Min Xi said, "Sir, I know you want to earn more, but please be realistic. We have calculated based on the number of shipbuilders, overtime pay, and overtime hours. Even if the workers work overtime for three hours every night from now until the end of October, the cost will be less than 10,000 reais. Isn't this 40,000 reais offer too exaggerated?"

Nunes chuckled. "Overtime pay must be higher than the usual wages, otherwise no one would be willing to work at night. This is our factory's offer. How much are you willing to pay?"

Min Si said: "We are willing to pay 15,000 reais."

Nunes shook his head: "Fifteen thousand is too little, thirty thousand!"

Min Xi raised the price a little more, and the two sides finally agreed on a price of 20,000 reais, which was similar to what the baron said, and was also the highest price that Min Xi and Yun Ji could accept.

When signing the contract this time, Min Xi specifically determined the final date of delivery. If there is a delay, the delay fee must be compensated.

Nunes assured, "Don't worry, as long as the overtime pay is paid, the workers will be willing to do it."

"Then we look forward to good news. We hope that there will be no cutting of corners when rushing the work, and that no fire will be caused by rushing the work at night." Min Xi reminded.

"Don't worry, we have experience in nighttime rush work, and we have someone in charge of watching for fires, so there won't be any fires."

"That's good."

Min Xi and Yun Ji handed over the money directly before leaving Setubal and returning to Lisbon.

Now they had basically done what they needed to do, and all that was left was to wait for the ship to be delivered. They had plenty of time, so they planned to go around and look for some goods worth bringing back, since they were going to bring back two ships of goods this time, and the quantity required was not small.

The two went to the yard where the sailors lived and found that the group of people were playing dice gambling out of boredom.

"There's too little land for you to farm, so you play dice to pass the time, right?" Min Xi said to everyone with a smile, but the sailors felt embarrassed.

"Boss, we are just having fun and playing for some small money." A sailor said with a chuckle.

Min Xi said, "Now you are playing with small amounts of money, but when you get more serious, the stakes will also be higher, and you will lose all the money you earned with your life this year to others. When you return, the family will be waiting for you to bring money back to live a good life, but in the end, you will return with nothing, and they will starve with you."

Everyone couldn't help but lower their heads.

The sailor who had spoken before said, "Boss, we are really bored. We don't know what to do. You asked us to farm a small piece of land, and there are many people and little work. We finished the work quickly. We all stared at each other and didn't know what to do."

The little land in the yard was not enough for them to grow crops, so Min Xi suggested to them: "If you are bored, you can go to the city to set up a stall and do some small business."

Everyone's eyes lit up and they became interested: "What kind of small business?"

Min Xi said, "Sell some snacks. What delicious food do you have in your hometown that you can make? People here are not very good at making food. If you make and sell it, you can definitely make some money. That's how I opened the Chinese Restaurant."

"It's good to cook! And I can make money, so I won't be bored!"

This made everyone interested and they all talked about their local snacks, including oyster cakes, fish balls, meat swallows, oyster omelets, fried dough sticks, etc. However, few of them knew how to make them. These sailors could cook simple meals, which they learned on the ship. Some of them were quite talented and their dishes tasted good, but they had never made snacks.

"There are a lot of delicious dishes, but we don't know how to cook them. If we sell them to the locals, will they be willing to spend money?"

Min Xi said, "Seventh Brother and I have nothing else to do recently. I have never made many of the snacks you mentioned. Can you tell me what they are? Or tell me how your mothers and wives make them? We can try to make them. Once we are done, we can set up a stall on the street and learn the Fulangji language at the same time."

Min Xi seemed to have returned to the time when he and Yun Ji first arrived in Lisbon and set up a stall to make money together. He couldn't help but look up at Yun Ji. Yun Ji was looking at him with a smile on his face, and it was obvious that they were thinking the same thing.

Tinkering with food is Min Xi's favorite thing. Although the ingredients here are not so abundant, he can always find a way to replace them.

Everyone worked together to make snacks such as oyster cakes, fish balls, meat dumplings, oyster omelets, malt sugar, etc. Min Xi also made pancakes with crispy fillings. Although the sauce was different from the ones in China, it tasted pretty good.

What they do is different from what Chinese restaurants do, so they don't steal the business from Chinese restaurants.

After Min Xi figured out how to make these delicacies, the group of sailors put in a lot of effort and followed Min Xi to learn how to make snacks. They formed teams of three or two and specialized in one snack. Once they learned how to make it, they set up stalls on the streets.

As for the cooking utensils and stoves for setting up the stalls, Min Xi and Yun Ji went to find a blacksmith shop to have them made. They made several sets according to needs and then gave them to the sailors to set up the stalls.

Min Xi's idea is to keep these sailors from being idle, because too much idleness will cause trouble. The sailors really want to make money. The wages promised by the employer will not be less, and the money earned from selling snacks does not need to be handed over to the employer. It all belongs to them. This is two sources of income, so why not?

Except for those on duty on the boat, everyone went. Those who were not skillful enough or whose food was not tasty enough always had strength to push carts or carry loads. They formed a team and shared the money they earned. This was what Min Xi had agreed on for them. If anyone was not willing, they should not form a team with others and find a way to set up a stall on their own. Of course, Min Xi did not provide them with tools.

As for the vegetables grown in the yard, they set up small stalls to do business. Although they go out early and come back late, they will definitely be back before dark, so they can clean up at dusk.

Diego knew that they were setting up stalls to do business, and he felt itchy and wanted to find something to do.

Min Xi said, "Then why don't you set up a stall too? You can make puffs anyway, but Domit doesn't. You won't steal his business."

Diego thought for a moment and said, "Yeah, I'll try it tomorrow."