Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

After leaving Yue Lao Temple, Jiang Shangxian thought about the second half of the divination that he had not finished hearing, and the fact that her mother had drunk two cups of drink. She was worried that there was something wrong with her and that she would get sick from drinking it, so she was very worried.

On the other hand, Jiang's mother, with her hands on her hips, kept cursing Yan Yin: "What a rotten fortune-teller, you bastard! You're such a bullshit-monger! This place is a scam! If the people from the Dali Temple hadn't come, I would have beaten him up!"

Seeing her so angry, Jiang Shangxian felt relieved and consoled her, "Forget it, he's just a charlatan. It's a good thing I didn't get scammed out of my money today."

Seeing her full of energy and brisk steps, she should be fine.

Jiang's mother bahed, "He still dares to ask for money? He's lucky he didn't get beaten!"

She cursed for a long time, then suddenly changed the subject and started gossiping: "What case do you think the Dali Temple is investigating? What case could a Moon God Temple be involved in? That Shangguan just now looked very handsome. I've never seen anyone that tall. How much food must he eat for this meal..."

Jiang Shangxian didn't dare to speak out her guess. As for that Shangguan, she didn't even look up at him just now. The whole time she saw only a dark crimson official uniform and a pair of black soap boots.

Judging from the size of his black boots, he must be a big man.

The Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice were unsafe places and could easily involve lives. She didn't want to be remembered by this superior, so she kept her head down and faced people with her headscarf that smelled of oil smoke.

Fortunately, the journey was short, and Jiang's mother's chattering was forced to stop the moment they arrived at Lexian Building.

It was already past 15:00 at this time. Jiang Shangxian felt guilty as he stepped into Lexianlou. The guys who were resting at the back had also come out.

"Master Jiang is back."

When Shopkeeper Wang's voice sounded, Jiang Shangxian couldn't help but shudder.

It turns out that the feeling of being caught skipping work by your boss is similar to being caught skipping class by your teacher.

"Manager Wang, I went out for something. I will leave again at the beginning of the evening today..." She felt extremely embarrassed. She was caught skipping work the next day and was so upset.

Shopkeeper Wang chuckled and said magnanimously, "That's fine. There weren't any customers just now anyway. It's just that I wonder when we can try Chef Jiang's new dishes."

As long as there are new dishes, it's not a big deal. He had already asked his nephew last night. Master Jiang taught the skills very seriously and didn't hide anything.

He is an honest person!

"I'm afraid it won't work today. This is a time-consuming dish."

Jiang Shangxian sighed secretly. She had actually forgotten about Buddha Jumps Over the Wall. "Boss, I'll go to the back first."

"it is good."

small kitchen

The eight-meat soup base has been simmering for nearly three hours, and its rich aroma fills the entire yard.

Seeing her come back, Wang Wan hurried over to report: "Master, the food in that pot is all cooked."

"Oh?!" Jiang Shangxian's eyes lit up, and he quickly walked over and lifted the lid of the pot. Thick fragrant white mist and hot air overflowed with the rich aroma.

I scooped it up a few times with a round spoon and found that it was indeed cooked. There was a little resistance when stirring it, which meant that the glue had come out.

He couldn't help but smile with satisfaction: "Bring me a clean clay pot and a clean linen cloth."

"Hey!" Zhou Ying was the smartest one in this area and immediately took it over: "Master, how do we do this?"

"Use a cloth to filter out all the residue and pour the soup into the clay pot. Be careful not to leave any residue. Xiao Wang, bring me the pig's trotters, chicken feet, pig skin, and spareribs left over from this morning."

After Jiang Shangxian finished assigning the tasks, he picked up the rice wine and went to another empty stove: "Xiao Li, come and light the fire!"

The soup base of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall is very greasy. What Zhou Ying is filtering is only the first time, and now it is the second time.

He heated up the oil in a wok, added the blanched meat, and stir-fried it. Then he added the rice wine and continued to stir-fry for a while. "Here, bring another clean pottery jar. Xiao Zhou, are you done?"

"Okay, okay!" Zhou Ying squeezed hard with his hands to squeeze out all the remaining soup.

He had used so much meat to make this pot of soup, and he didn't dare to waste even a drop. He squeezed it with all his might. Wang Wan was afraid that he wouldn't be able to squeeze it clean and waste it, so he took a piece of linen and squeezed the meat again, trying to make sure not a single drop was wasted. "Master, this dish uses so much fish meat, and the soup base isn't even finished yet. How delicious must it be?"

"Bring it here! Where's the bamboo mat? Come on, bring it here!" Jiang Shangxian picked up the pan and fried the rice wine again. The rice wine must be fried to evaporate the alcohol. If not, the stewed soup will be bitter, sour and astringent.

"How can it not be delicious? This dish will definitely become Lexianlou's new signature dish." Jiang Shangxian kept busy as he spoke cheerfully to his disciples, "When it's ready tomorrow, you'll know after trying it."

In this step, all the fried meat, rice wine, and filtered soup are placed in a ceramic pot and stewed for 3 hours. A bamboo mat must be placed in the pot to prevent it from getting burnt.

Although Manager Wang said it was okay, the most important thing for a person is to be sensible. Therefore, Jiang Shangxian still asked his three apprentices to keep an eye on the furnace after a quarter past Youshi before leaving get off work.

Seeing her like this, Shopkeeper Wang was very satisfied.

Although it was still bright outside, the sun was already setting. It would take half an hour to get home from Lexian Tower. She had to be home before the beginning of the evening, otherwise the gate would be closed when the curfew arrived.

The gate of the block is closed, and there are only two ways to enter.

The formal way is to walk into the market with a pass, and the informal way is to climb over the wall secretly. The walls of the market in the south of Chang'an City are not very high, only about one meter and less than two meters.

She had never climbed a wall before, so she couldn't guarantee that she could successfully climb over the wall and return to the neighborhood. Of course, she couldn't guarantee that she would be able to climb over the wall with agility and not be caught by the patrolling Jinwu Guards. Therefore, she walked faster than usual.

When returning from Anxingfang to Yong'anfang, you will pass Jingfengmen, Anshangmen, and Zhuquemen. Turn at Zhuquemen and enter Zhuque Street.

There are guards on duty at these three gates, giving people a strong sense of security.

After crossing Zhuque Avenue, she arrived in Chang'an County. Thinking of what happened at Yue Lao Temple today, she did not take the usual route, but walked along the more crowded and wider Zhuque Avenue, going south to Yongdafang before turning.

At this time, it is past Youzheng.

Even though Zhuque Street was bustling during the day, there were few pedestrians. Jiang Shangxian couldn't help but slow down his pace.

I could only stand while cooking in the kitchen during the day, and then went to Yue Lao Temple in the afternoon. Now I have been walking briskly for such a long time, and the amount of exercise is indeed excessive.

The soles of her feet were already aching and her legs were sore. If she had a mobile phone, she guaranteed that her WeChat step count today would be far ahead of everyone else.

She breathed a sigh of relief only after turning into Yongdafang. She had been feeling uneasy along the way, fearing that someone was following her. Yan Yin's strange smile flashed through her mind from time to time. She looked back several times but found nothing. She just thought she was timid and was scared by the people from the Dali Temple.

After passing this archway, Xuanyi Archway is in front, where there is a Qingming Canal.

In Chang'an, wherever there is a canal, there will be many people fishing, irrigating, washing, and chatting.

It can be said to be a multifunctional gossip distribution center, which is much more professional than the old men and women who gather under a big tree in modern communities to say bad things about young people.

At this time, there were not many people in residential areas like Yongdafang. Most people were in their own houses doing the final work before nightfall.

She calmed herself down, her palms sweating from the knife she had been holding all the way. Just as she was about to change hands, she heard someone calling her, "Young lady, young lady!"

"who!"

She looked up warily, but saw a thin old woman with gray hair, wearing a headscarf, coarse clothes, and a hunched body. She was holding a bucket of water in her hand. Most of the water had spilled, soaking her skirt. The old woman was leaning against the wall to wipe the sweat off her face, looking very strenuous.

"What does grandma want you to do?"

Although Jiang Shangxian stopped, she did not come closer. As mentioned before, she was a liberal arts student, and memorizing was a must. Although her level of memorization was average, she had a good memory for things that were not related to studying.

She was sure she had never seen this old woman before.

"Young lady, I live in Yongdafang, just around the corner. Could you help me bring the water to the door?" The old woman was obviously very tired. She spoke incoherently and gasped for breath.

"Grandma, why don't you ask your family to help? I...it's getting late and I'm anxious to go home." Jiang Shangxian looked around calmly, and no one was paying attention to the situation here.

"I lost my husband at a young age, and raised my son alone. A few years ago, when Your Majesty conquered the eighteen tribes on the grassland, my son also went. He never came back. Now, there is no one left at home..."

The old woman spoke pitifully, with tears welling up in her eyes.

Jiang Shangxian pursed his lips, tightened his grip on the knife in his hand, thought for a moment, stepped forward and took the bucket with his left hand: "Grandma, you lead the way, I will help you."

"Ah!" The old woman sighed, pounding her waist as she slowly walked in front of her, turning her head to talk to her: "Thank you very much, young lady. If it weren't for your kindness, I'm afraid I wouldn't even be able to drink water tonight..."

Jiang Shangxian followed her for a while, but suddenly became alert. It was dark, and not every household in Yongdafang had lanterns hanging outside, so she didn't see carefully at first.

Now that they were closer, and the old woman kept turning her head to talk to her, she noticed something unusual.

"Grandma...how old are you this year?" she asked casually.

The old woman answered smoothly: "I'm sixty-three, just counting the days."

"I heard that many people in Yongdafang grow flowers and plants at home and sell them. I wonder if grandma has any flowers at home?"

"At my age, I can't do that kind of work anymore, but I have planted a pot of lotus at home, and it is in full bloom now. If you like, you can pick a few to play with later..."

Before she finished her words, there was a loud bang, and the wooden barrel fell to the ground, splashing water.

"My dear, what's going on..."

Jiang Shangxian threw down the barrel and turned to run. There were a few empty sounds behind him, and a light laugh sounded in her ears: "Young lady, why are you doing this?"