After dying early, I traveled to ancient times and became a boy

Feng Jingheng saw Shopkeeper Xu coming out of the private room and went to greet him and asked, "Shopkeeper, my Ah Qing..."

Shopkeeper Xu gave a secretive smile and said, "If you can win the favor of the town magistrate's wife, you can be secretly happy."

Feng Jingheng was very nervous. On the one hand, he hoped that Ah Qing would be appreciated, but on the other hand, he was worried that it would not be a good thing to offend the government.

Seeing her expression, Shopkeeper Xu consoled her, saying, "Don't worry. Your wife is smart. I think the magistrate's wife likes her very much."

Feng Jingheng still had a worried look on his face. Being appreciated by officials was a good thing, but it was also a bad thing. You never knew when you would be disliked, or if you made the officials unhappy one day, your life would be in danger.

In the private room, the town magistrate's wife ordered the maid to pour tea for rinsing the mouth, and then asked them to take away the food, and finally spoke to Ye Xunqing.

"You are a good cook, young man." The town magistrate's wife praised him and then asked, "Do you know why I asked Manager Xu to leave and asked you to stay?"

Ye Xunqing replied respectfully, "My lady has her own reasons, and I will just listen to them."

The town magistrate's wife chuckled and said to Madam Liu, "Sister, you're right. This young man doesn't seem like an ordinary boy. He seems to have seen the world."

Ye Xunqing thought to himself: Are you kidding? I am a food blogger with tens of millions of fans.

Madam Liu nodded. "Yes, Young Boss Ye is a good cook and a steady man. Although he's young, he's neither humble nor overbearing. He's capable of taking on big responsibilities. And if I hadn't personally considered him, how could I have recommended him to my sister-in-law?"

When Ye Xunqing heard her say this, he knew that the town magistrate's wife came to see him not just to have a meal.

Sure enough, the next sentence the town magistrate’s wife said was that she was here to arrange work for Ye Xunqing.

"In ten days' time, it's my father's sixtieth birthday. He's always loved delicious food. But as you know, merchants have their own rules. Dragon liver and phoenix gall are wonderful, but if they're served at the banquet, it's against the rules." The magistrate's wife said, "But if the dishes are mediocre, it would be a disgrace to the old man and a disrespect to his guests."

Ye Xunqing understood that he had to be more cautious. He had to make novel and delicious dishes without using too many expensive ingredients, and the dishes also had to be suitable for entertaining guests.

The best way is to use simple ingredients to make complex dishes. For example, potatoes are different when you stir-fry them and when you make them into potato pancakes. And cucumbers, can you put the same price on smashed cucumbers and shredded cucumbers?

Moreover, people in ancient times depended on the weather for their food, and there were not many good vegetables in this season. There were only some large-leafed vegetables and radishes. Although they were not unpalatable, they were definitely not as abundant as the vegetables in summer.

"I understand." Ye Xunqing bowed and said, "If Madam entrusts me with the preparation of the banquet, I will not let Madam down."

The magistrate's wife said, "I'm very satisfied with the food you cooked, but the final decision is still made by my father. Go back and discuss it with your husband. The palace will send a carriage to pick you up and take you to Yuanzhou City the day after tomorrow. You can cook a table of food for my father. Regardless of whether he chooses you in the end, I won't let you down."

This is a great opportunity for Ye Xunqing. Not only can he make money, but he can also come into contact with people from upper society. One more person means one more way.

But he had to go back and discuss it with Feng Jingheng. "I understand what Madam said, but I have to go back and discuss it with my husband. We can make a decision after we have discussed it."

The town magistrate's wife tilted her head to look at him, "I thought you were the one who made the decisions in your house."

Ye Xunqing smiled, "It's usually like this. But in our family, if we want to do something big, we have to discuss it with the whole family. For me, the lady's invitation is a big deal, so we have to treat it seriously."

"Good!" The town magistrate's wife was very happy. "Cuizhu, reward."

Cuizhu took out a piece of silver, which was smaller than the previous one, but probably worth three or four cents.

Ye Xunqing thanked him: "Thank you, Madam, for the reward."

The town magistrate's wife was about to leave after she finished speaking, but Ye Xunqing said, "Please wait a moment, madam. I will go and discuss it with my family and there will be a result soon."

The town magistrate's wife gave him this face and waited a little longer.

Ye Xunqing came out of the private room and Feng Jingheng immediately came to greet him.

"Ah Qing..." Feng Jingheng looked nervous, "Are you okay?"

Ye Xunqing pressed two pieces of silver into his hand and whispered, "The town magistrate's wife wants us to go to Yuanzhou City to hold a birthday banquet for her father. We'll go the day after tomorrow."

Feng Jingheng was a little surprised, but also felt that it was expected. "Do you want to go?"

"Yes." Ye Xunqing put his hands on Feng Jinghengdao's shoulders, raised his head and said, "How about we go out together to broaden our horizons? Besides, Madam said that no matter whether the old man chooses us to host the birthday banquet or not, she will give us money."

Feng Jingheng grabbed his hand and said, "Okay, let's go together. If something happens, you run first and I'll help you block it."

Ye Xunqing didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Ah Heng, we're going to cook, not to be bandits. Fighting and killing is not good!"

Feng Jingheng said: "A Qing, I will protect you at all times."

Ye Xunqing nodded gently, "I know. Then I'll go and reply."

"Go ahead, I support you." Feng Jingheng patted him on the back.

After receiving a positive reply, the town magistrate's wife left, but Mrs. Liu stayed and talked with Ye Xunqing and others for a while.

"Xunqing? You don't mind me calling you that, right?" Mrs. Liu asked him with a smile.

Ye Xunqing replied: "Madam, you can call me anything."

Mrs. Liu said, "I heard from Manager Liu that you wanted to buy a donkey, but the newborn donkey is too small, so I can't give it to you now."

Ye Xunqing was a little disappointed. "Okay, let's talk about it later."

Mrs. Liu said, "That's not what I meant. What I meant was that if you can do this job well, you can take home whichever donkey on the farm takes your fancy."

Ye Xunqing was very surprised, "Why?"

Madam Liu replied, "The town magistrate's wife is from the Zheng family of Yuanzhou. Although the Zheng family is a merchant family, Mr. Zheng has a very wide network of contacts. The town magistrate's wife's brothers and sisters all married into wealthy families."

Ye Xunqing understood, it was a marriage between big families.

"Lawyer Liu has been here for many years. His wife wants to use this opportunity to get to know some important people and get promoted." Mrs. Liu's expression was a little serious. "Xunqing, if the dishes you cook can please Mr. Zheng, there's no need to worry about Mr. Zheng not finding someone to promote his son-in-law."

Oh, now I understand. The wife of the town magistrate wanted to go back to her parents' home to ask for help and pressure her old father to find someone to transfer her husband to a higher position.

Mr. Zheng loves delicious food, and the town magistrate's wife's move is to cater to his taste.

"Xunqing understands!" Ye Xunqing promised, "I will definitely live up to Madam's trust!"