The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

At around five o'clock in the evening, some guests came to eat. They were the ones who didn't get to eat the roast chicken last night, so they came early for fear of missing out on it tonight.

Lord Mello arrived just after six o'clock. He came late last night and missed the roast chicken. Although he had made a reservation yesterday, he couldn't come too late.

Lord Mello arrived at the store entrance and looked at the menu preview on the wooden board, which said that the new dish to be launched tomorrow would be squirrel fish, and also suggested coming for lunch.

Lord Mellor's friend asked unexpectedly, "My Lord, why do they suggest eating at noon?"

Lord Mello thought for a moment and said, "Maybe the fish won't be fresh if it's left out at night, so I suggest you eat it at noon."

My friend asked again: "Is the squirrel fish delicious?"

"If you ask me, the dishes that day were all very good. Except for the shrimp which was a bit ordinary, the other dishes, including the main course and dessert, were all unforgettable," said Lord Mello.

"Then let's eat squirrel fish for lunch tomorrow!" My friend was really tempted after hearing this.

Lord Mellor said, "I have something to do tomorrow morning, so you can come by yourselves."

"Forget it. The consumption in this restaurant is quite high and I'm a bit short of money. It seems I can't eat there." The friend said with regret.

Lord Melo was very generous: "Then put it on my account. I'll settle the bill later."

"Ximang, you're so nice! You look so handsome today." The friend flattered him excitedly, "The boss doesn't know me, can you let me pay the bill?"

Lord Melo looked at Yun Ji behind the counter and mustered up the courage to say, "Sir, my friends will come over to eat squirrel fish tomorrow. Can you put their bill in my name and I will settle it later?"

Yun Ji looked up at Lord Melo, and then at the friends beside him. Although they were also wearing formal clothes, their clothes were obviously very old and had been washed countless times. They had faded and deformed a long time ago. They were obviously not from the same world as Lord Melo. Lord Melo had a wide range of friends and was not at all fussy about details.

Yun Ji nodded: "Okay, I'll remember that."

Lord Mello blushed slightly: "Thank you!"

When those friends saw Lord Mello's reaction, they looked at Yun Ji a few more times. Based on their understanding of Mello, they knew that he must have taken a fancy to Yun Ji.

The braised chicken in the evening is still not enough to sell, but Min Xi said that they will not sell braised chicken tomorrow, but squirrel fish instead. If you want to eat braised chicken, please pay attention to the subsequent menu.

Yun Ji said, "Since someone wants to eat, why not agree to their reservation?"

Min Xi smiled and said, "If this is the effect, if I can eat it anytime, I won't want to eat it that much. There will be other new dishes tomorrow, so it's not like there won't be selling points."

Yun Ji shook his head: "I don't understand your idea."

Min Xi just smiled and said nothing, thinking to himself that if you knew about hunger marketing, you would understand what I did.

The main reason is that roast chicken is hard to make and the cost is high. If it is used as a regular dish, it will take a lot of effort to make it. If he only sells three or two pieces a day, it is not enough to pay for the spices. He has to sell them together to reduce costs.

The same goes for roast duck, because it is difficult to start the oven, so it has to be gathered together and sold.

Not to mention Buddha Jumps Over the Wall. Min Xi has no plans to sell it retail. It is better to wait until the private dining reservation is made before making this dish. It is really too much effort, and he is worried that the price will be too high and it will not sell.

After Min Xi washed up, he went to bed. He didn’t take a nap at noon, so he felt a little more tired than usual.

Yun Ji did not go to sleep immediately, but instead came up with a sketch of a galloping horse. With just a few strokes, he outlined the spirit of the galloping horse. This was something he was good at, because he loved horses and had painted many paintings of his own horses. Now he could paint horses with ease.

The next morning, Min Xi went to the seafood market and bought all the sea bass of suitable sizes that he could find. Today he was going to promote squirrel fish, and he even wrote a special letter yesterday suggesting that everyone come to eat it at noon.

Because of the hot weather and no ice to keep warm, Min Xi could only fry all the sea bass at noon and fry them again at night. Although squirrel fish needs to be re-fried, the taste will definitely be compromised after such a long time. Of course, in order to ensure that the fish does not spoil, it is necessary to sacrifice a little taste.

There were many customers who came to eat squirrel fish at noon, including Lord Mello's friends. Yun Ji noticed that there were two more people coming today than the number who came with Lord Mello yesterday.

They ordered three squirrel fish and some other dishes, and the total bill came to nearly 2 reais.

Min Xi was cooking in the kitchen. When she heard the menu, she thought she had misheard and asked him again for confirmation: "Mei Ting ordered three fishes? How many people?"

"Seven people ordered three fish in total, as well as boiled chicken, sweet and sour pork, grilled lamb chops, fish and mutton, garlic lobster, garlic scallops, mushroom clam soup..." Yun Ji reported the names of the dishes expressionlessly. Those people ordered almost everything on today's menu.

Min Xi was busy writing down the menu while wondering, "Can seven people finish this much?" Although the food was paid for by the customers, he still didn't want to waste too much.

Yun Ji said: "What's even funnier is that they don't pay, and all of it is put on Lord Mello's account."

Min Xi turned his head and looked at him: "Why?"

Yun Ji said, "They are friends of Lord Mello. Lord Mello brought them here to eat braised chicken yesterday. When they saw today's preview menu, they wanted to eat squirrel fish. Lord Mello didn't have time to come, so he said they came and put it on his account."

Min Xi's first reaction was: "Do you think Melo is a fool?"

Yun Ji smiled and said, "I don't know."

Min Xi shook his head helplessly: "Okay, I understand."

The dishes were finally served to the group. Min Xi had underestimated their appetite. More than a dozen dishes were cooked for them, and the table was a mess. Fortunately, no food was wasted. When the group left, they even packed a portion of egg tarts and a portion of baked buns for each person, without any psychological burden.

Min Xi looked at the bill for that table and said with a sigh, "Mello's friends are really rude. They ate and took without mercy."

Yun Ji said: "Those people are not his friends in the aristocratic circle. They are dressed very ordinary, just like what you usually call ordinary middle class, or even worse."

"They can't be a group of friends who are here to take advantage of others!" Min Xi said with a smile.

Yun Ji said, "Let him do it. The Lord doesn't need the money anyway."

Squirrel fish was sold out at 168 riels each. Sea bass was very cheap, and with other ingredients, the cost of one was about 20 riels. The cost of this fish was the labor. It was unique in Europe to cut the fish like this, and it took a lot of time. Min Xi started killing and cutting the fish after buying vegetables in the morning. Yun Ji also came to help for a while, and Min Xi finally had time to cook.

Therefore, the number of squirrel fish was not large, with less than 20 in total prepared. It is not as convenient to make as roast chicken.

When he went upstairs for a nap at noon, Min Xi saw Yun Ji's sketch of a galloping horse on the table and exclaimed in amazement: "Seventh Brother, although your horse only has a few strokes, it seems to be running out of the paper. It's amazing."

Yun Ji smiled and said, "Ninth brother, you are too kind."

Min Xi waved his hand: "I'm not talking nonsense, this is the truth. Draw it quickly, I can't wait."

Yun Ji said, "Go to sleep first, and you will be able to see it when you wake up."

Min Xi fell asleep full of expectations. When he woke up, he saw Yun Ji sitting at the table with his back to him. Even when sitting, his manners were still very good, and he showed his good upbringing everywhere.

When Min Xi saw his back, he couldn't help but think of Lord Mello. That guy always maintained his elegance, but it always made people feel that he was a little deliberate and too pretentious.

Min Xi got up and walked behind Yun Ji. He saw that he was not painting, but carving wood with a carving knife. He held the wood in one hand and the knife in the other. He moved the knife up and down steadily and quickly. As he moved, pieces of wood fell to the ground.

Min Xi stood and watched for a while. Yun Ji's movements remained unchanged. Min Xi sat down next to him, picked up the half-folded rice paper that was pressed by a piece of wood, and opened it. He was immediately stunned: "Seventh Brother, is this the horse you painted?"

A black horse with four snow-white hooves is running towards the outside of the picture. Its four hooves are in the air, and its mane and tail are fluttering in the wind. Although there are only two colors, black and white, it makes people feel the horse's strength and majesty.

Yun Ji stopped what he was doing and asked, "How is it?"

"It's amazing! I feel like it's alive and it's going to jump out of the paper and hit me in the next second." said Min Xi.

Yun Ji smiled and said, "Hearing you say that, I feel relieved. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to draw like the original because I haven't drawn for a long time and I'm not good at it."

Min Xi said, "No, it's really very like the picture. It's very beautiful! Is this your horse? I remember you said there was a red horse with four hooves stepping on the snow. What's its name?"

Yun Ji said, "Chasing clouds."

Min Xi smiled and said, "That sounds good! Are you carving a seal now?"

"Well, carve a seal for myself and then stamp it on the signature." Yun Ji said.

"What is a casual seal?" Min Xi asked curiously.

"It's not a formal seal, nor a name seal, nor a pen name seal or studio seal. It's usually a casual seal to express emotions. I don't have a pen name, and I feel embarrassed to use my own name, so I'll just use a casual seal. It's very common to use casual seals on calligraphy and painting works." Yun Ji explained.

Min Xi thought for a moment and asked, "What did you carve?"

Yun Ji said: "Overseas travel clouds."

When Min Xi heard this, he knew that he was homesick: "That's very appropriate."

Yun Ji nodded: "Yes, that's exactly our current situation."

"Yes." Min Xi suddenly sighed, "Seventh Brother, you must have had a hard time when you were a child."

"What do you mean?" Yun Ji turned to look at him.

Min Xi counted on his fingers: "Look, you have to learn painting, calligraphy, seal carving, martial arts, horse riding, reading, musical instruments and chess, right?"

Yun Ji nodded: "I have been learning since I was young. My chess skills are OK, but I don't know much about music theory. But I learned these because I like them. I never planned to take the imperial examinations, so it was easy for me to learn them for fun. In fact, I only know the basics, not the essence."

"In my opinion, Seventh Brother is truly a child prodigy. He can master anything he learns!" Min Xi admired him sincerely.

"Ninth brother, you are too kind. In terms of talent, my ninth brother is probably better than me, but it's a pity that he was delayed." Yun Ji's face was full of regret.

Min Xi realized that he had gotten himself into trouble again, and quickly jumped up: "Seventh brother is the only one who thinks so. You continue with your work, I'll go down and take a look."