Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

"Today, the three of you will follow me to do some preparations..."

Jiang Shangxian looked at his three newly-appointed disciples, some fat, some lean, and some strong. If they were paired with a donkey, it would feel like the four-member pilgrim group on the journey to the West.

Hey, Master Xuanzang, the walking activist and the second person to have seen the world on foot, should have been searching on the Silk Road for ten years now, right?

I don’t know whether the Silk Road is fun or not. When I save enough money, I can go out and see the Earth in the seventh century. It is absolutely impossible for me to travel on a budget. She is allergic to the word "poor" and feels uncomfortable all over when she thinks about it.

Jiang Shangxian's thoughts were somewhat scattered, and he stared blankly at the void in front of him, causing his three disciples to look at each other in bewilderment, none of them daring to speak first.

Fortunately, she quickly came to her senses, looked around at where she was, and instantly returned to reality. This was the small kitchen of Lexianlou, which was rarely used. It was only used during festivals and when business was extremely busy.

This was also what Jiang Shangxian had just specifically asked Manager Wang for. Originally, she felt that cooking was something that didn't need to be hidden. Anyone who was curious and wanted to learn could just watch. After all, someone like her, let alone watching, could even go out to eat, and if she liked something, she could go home and cook it about 80% of the way.

But the way those apprentices looked down on her just now irritated Jiang Shangxian's young mind. Humph, you look down on people? I won't give you any shits to eat!

So the stingy Jiang Shangxian righteously asked for a small kitchen, and Shopkeeper Wang had no objection. His nephew was the eldest disciple! With family around, it was natural that the fewer people who knew the craft, the better!

In the first class, Jiang Shangxian's course content was how to make delicious tomato sauce, how to obtain white starch, the wonders of rose fermented bean curd, and how to teach his tough apprentices how to make mozzarella cheese.

But for such a simple job, among the three apprentices, only the chubby Wang Wan did it well. Zhou Ying was weak and almost died of exhaustion just grinding the potatoes. When he used gauze to knead the potato paste, he was even worse.

Li Meng is strong, but he is too impatient. He is very cruel when making mozzarella cheese.

Jiang Shangxian gave Wang Wan instructions many times, and finally decided to let him fulfill his duties as the eldest senior brother: "Xiao Wang, I'll leave the two junior brothers to you."

It was definitely not that she wanted to be lazy. It was lunchtime, customers started to arrive, and Shopkeeper Wang had already started placing orders, so she had to start cooking.

The squirrel mandarin fish is limited to ten portions, but the other two dishes are unlimited. Jiang Shangxian was sweating all over in the small kitchen. While cooking, she was thinking that these three dishes alone might not be enough to complete the task. She had to come up with something exaggerated to shock the Chang'an catering industry.

In the guest area of ​​Lexianlou, the shopkeeper Wang's mustache trembled and his eyes narrowed as he smiled. He stroked his mustache and happily counted the waiters as they brought squirrel mandarin fish into the private room one plate at a time.

To a certain extent, Shopkeeper Wang and Jiang Shangxian had the same idea. What he was thinking about now was that the tomatoes on the squirrel mandarin fish had a low yield at the moment and would be gone after the season. Although he had asked Jiang Shangxian if he could find a way to preserve this thing for a long time, and Jiang Shangxian had given a satisfactory answer, the current yield was still too small and could only support daily needs.

When it comes to cooking, after a long time, people who know the art will eat it a few times and think of ways to make something similar, so you still have to seize the time to make the first wave of money.

As for the fermented bean curd lamb chops, as long as the fermented bean curd cooking method is not known to others, they can last for quite a while. Lamb chops are also a daily ingredient, so there is no need to worry too much.

As for the lychee trees, they are only eaten for fun. Most of the people who come to Lexianlou to eat are men, so it will not be a rarity after a while, and they won't sell very well.

Therefore, he was also thinking about when Jiang Shangxian would come up with a dish that would catch the eye. After all, although the three dishes he had now tasted great, the ingredients were too ordinary.

Anxingfang, Yue Lao Temple.

"Mr. Cui, the thief shouldn't be here, right?" As soon as Jinghai's left foot stepped into the gate of Anxingfang, he began to hesitate.

Cui Bianxu was walking slowly at this time. He was not wearing official uniform, but a bamboo green round-necked robe with a bamboo green belt around his waist. He was fanning a black folding fan in his hand. He looked like a noble young man from a wealthy family with his whole demeanor, which attracted many people who had passed by to look back at him.

"Call me Cui Jiulang."

Cong Jinghai choked, then readily explained, "Cui Jiulang, this is what I think. This Anxingfang is inhabited by high-ranking nobles. Most of the Buddhist and Taoist temples in Chang'an are also located here. Not only do those nobles have guards in their homes, but even those temples have warrior monks. Which villain would be so bold as to commit a crime here?"

Cui Bianxu smiled politely at the young lady who was passing by and flirting with him, and said in a low voice: "The nobles cannot see the common people, and the gods and Buddhas cannot see the ants. They are all blind. A place like this is just right."

A drop of cold sweat trickled down Jinghai's right temple to his neck, but he didn't dare look around, fearing that others would think he was shifty and guilty. "Cui Jiulang, be careful with your words!"

This ancestor, how many people did he offend with just one sentence? Fortunately, he was kind-hearted. If someone else spread this, Cui Jiulang would probably be criticized as well.

Besides, what kind of talk is that? Could it be that after being away from home for so long, he'd forgotten he was from the Qinghe Cui family? He cursed others and even cursed himself?

Cui Bianxu, however, ignored this kind reminder and continued on his own, dressed in all the right clothes and acting like a suave and charming man. Cong Jinghai couldn't help but feel once again that he might have misjudged Cui Shaoqing during the past two months of working with him.

This unbridled and ostentatious look perfectly fits the world's imagination of the little trash who just lives a life of idleness among the aristocracy. Not only does it fit, it goes beyond that!

He shook his head, and the usually serious Cui Shaoqing flashed through his mind. He was so shocked that he came to his senses in an instant and followed him.

"Cui Jiulang, there are too many people in this Yue Lao Temple!"

"Go in first."

This was also Cui Bianxu's first time coming to this place. There weren't so many people on the street just now, but now all the people coming in and out were young ladies, or young ladies, middle-aged ladies, or old ladies together.

The young lady was quite reserved, at most her eyes glued to him, but the middle-aged and old ladies were more serious. They came up to him and asked, "Who are you from, young man? Are you married?"

As a married man with children and a huge family pressure, Cong Jinghai glanced at the Temple of the God of Wealth across the street, then hurriedly turned around and followed, helping Cui Bianxu, who was surrounded and trying hard to maintain his composure, to drive them away: "It's a marriage, it's a marriage. My husband has a fierce wife, everyone stay away!"

After finally getting rid of the enthusiastic ladies, Cui Bianxu reached out and brushed the hem of his skirt without haste, and whispered in a low voice: "When did I get married? Nonsense!"

Cong Jinghai was not going to pamper him: "If Jiulang is reluctant to give up his good marriage, I can just go out and shout, what's the difficulty?"

As he said this, he made a move to walk out. Cui Bianxu grabbed his sleeve and coughed awkwardly: "There's no need to be so considerate. Let's walk around this temple first."

He showed some resilience, quickly changing the subject from Jinghai's cowardice. "This Yue Lao Temple is so crowded! How come there's no one at the God of Wealth Temple across the street? Why are these people so obsessed with love? Isn't money important? When I came here, there weren't so many people here."

Cui Bianxu glanced at him and said, "Do you still believe this?"

What you said is true. Who doesn't indulge in some feudal superstitions when they are in love? Just as Zong Jinghai was about to say a few words to defend himself, a string of chuckles rang out.

"who!?"