Courtyard House: He Yuzhu started in 1948

"Haha, I knew you were after my son."

He Daqing shook his head, looking as if he had seen through Yi Zhonghai long ago: "Zhuzi is not a good man. He is very preoccupied with his own thoughts now. I don't know what he is thinking. I think the kids outside are quite nice. Xiulan and her sister-in-law are taking care of Yushui. They can get to know each other better and if they are suitable, there is no harm in accepting them."

He Daqing and Yi Zhonghai were quite close. At first, he joked about Yi Zhonghai, but in the end, he spoke from the heart.

Yi Zhonghai understood, but he also hesitated.

With his mind full of thoughts, Yi Zhonghai went to work. He Daqing also took He Yuzhu to Chongwenmen Market to buy supplies. Wang Xiulan took He Yushui to sunbathe in the yard. Hu Zi, Mei He, and Jiao Zi played with He Yushui. They had a clear division of labor: Mei He and Jiao Zi jumped around to make He Yushui happy, while Hu Zi went to chop firewood.

Before long, Tian Zao called Li Xiulan-Lanzi, who was taking care of He Yushui, to the yard to play with Yushui. Jiaozi went to the side to help gather firewood and then put the firewood together.

Although Wang Xiulan was taking care of Yushui, her gaze often lingered on Hu Zi and the other two, observing their actions.

The more I look at them, the more I realize that these kids are all great.

……

He Yuzhu didn't want to go to the market, but He Daqing insisted on taking him, clearly having something to ask, so he had no choice but to come.

Today, there are two large vegetable markets in Beiping: Dongdan Vegetable Market and Xidan Vegetable Market. These will be two of the four major vegetable markets in Yanjing in the future. The other two have not yet been established.

Slaughterhouses and vegetable markets were located in similar areas. The place where live pigs were traded has been used since the Ming Dynasty. It was called "Pig Market" outside Qianmen, but was later renamed "Zhushikou" because of its vulgar name. During the Qing Dynasty, live pigs were purchased by pig dealers in the suburbs of Beijing and herded into the city in groups. They stayed in pig shops and were sold in the two major pig markets in the East and West of the city.

The place He Daqing went to this time was the East City Pig Market, located in Doufu Lane west of Dongsi Archway. Pigs were slaughtered in the East City Pig Market during the day, while in the West City at night. This practice has been going on for a long time, and people do not know the reason for it. It has just been passed down for hundreds of years, and no one cares about why there is such a rule.

They found the butcher, who was butchering a pig. He Daqing didn't say anything, but quietly watched with He Yuzhu by his side.

With a sharp weapon in hand, I fear I might say something that could lead to disaster.

This is a rule passed down from the older generation. Before this rule was established, someone was probably killed by a butcher's knife for talking too much.

The pig was being slaughtered routinely, including bleeding, inflating, removing hair, and gutting. He Yuzhu watched with wide eyes, finding the food increasingly delicious.

Oh my, the blood in that basin, if it were made into sausage or a dish of stewed pig, combined with He Daqing's cooking skills, it would definitely be incredibly delicious.

After the butcher finished his work, He Daqing went up to him and handed him the money. In addition to his fixed salary, the butcher also received some of the pig's offal. By giving the money to the butcher, He Daqing meant that he wanted the pig's offal.

He Daqing used to be the head chef at Fengzeyuan Restaurant. He knew many people in the vegetable market and slaughterhouse. However, He Daqing used to only buy pork shoulder, so it was rare for him to buy offal.

He Daqing gave a vague explanation, and seeing that He Daqing was unwilling to talk, the other party did not ask any further questions, took the money, and continued to slaughter pigs.

Then, He Daqing discussed with the butcher what to buy: fatty meat, large bones, and offal such as heart, liver, and lungs.

These days, because people have little oil in their diet, they usually buy fatty meat because it tastes better that way.

Although He Yuzhu was a time traveler from the future and wasn't particularly fond of fatty meat, He Daqing's cooking skills produced meat that was fatty but not greasy, and He Yuzhu could eat three large pieces.

Because He Daqing was a big customer, the meat he bought was delivered to his home. After paying, He Daqing led He Yuzhu out to the vegetable market in front.

"I'm having you come along so you can learn about seasonings."

It was at the vegetable market that He Daqing revealed the real reason he had brought He Yuzhu there: "Ever since I called you stupid and called you 'Silly Zhu,' your mind has changed. I don't understand what you want to do, but you still need to learn how to cook. No matter how chaotic the world is, with this skill, you won't starve anywhere."

He Daqing's requirements for He Yuzhu were so simple and unpretentious: as long as he didn't starve to death.

Then, He Daqing began to talk about seasonings and side dishes.

The ingredients included top-quality ingredients such as Tongliao mushrooms, Zhangqiu scallions, Xinhui dried tangerine peel, Wutaishan shiitake mushrooms, Changbaishan black fungus, Quxian dried daylily, Tengxian Gulong star anise, Fengxian Sichuan peppercorns, Nujiang cardamom, and Jinhua ham. However, He Daqing's secret recipe almost went awry because of these ingredients.

He Daqing taught He Yuzhu how to distinguish between real and fake seasonings. He Yuzhu used to be dim-witted and couldn't learn after being taught once, but now He Yuzhu's memory has become very good. He Yuzhu can remember most of what He Daqing says after just one explanation. This makes He Daqing very gratified. His silly son has finally figured it out!

Oh dear, she's almost a perfect match for Tian Zao.

Cooking requires a certain spirit.

Despite all that talk, He Daqing categorized his purchases carefully, buying more of some seasonings and less of others. The quantity he bought depended mainly on the freshness of the seasonings, estimating when the new seasonings would arrive.

He purchased enough seasonings to last about a month, and then went to buy vermicelli. Instead of buying vermicelli from Hebei or Henan, He Daqing chose Hebao vermicelli from Sichuan. According to He Daqing, Hebao vermicelli uses a special local sweet potato, which makes the vermicelli that doesn't fall apart even after long cooking.

He Yuzhu had heard of this kind of vermicelli, but later Hebao did not belong to Sichuan, but to Chongqing. It was in the RC District that became popular during the May Day holiday in 25 that the production process of Hebao vermicelli became a municipal-level intangible cultural heritage, and it became a hit.

The chili peppers used are from Jinxiang, Shandong, and are suitable for deep-frying.

He Daqing is a head chef, so he is quite famous in the market. In addition, he used to work at Fengzeyuan and was Lou Bancheng's "personal" chef. He has a regular place to buy things, so the quality is naturally excellent.

According to He Yuzhu's idea, he only makes common people's food and doesn't need to be so particular. Not using evaporated milk is already a matter of conscience. But He Daqing is meticulous and even more strict.

After He Daqing finished shopping, he had He Yuzhu carry the food home. Other ingredients would be delivered. On the way, He Daqing casually said to He Yuzhu, "Kid, remember this: doing simple things is anything but simple. Why is it that only homemade noodles in Beiping are the best?"

He Yuzhu quickly realized: "It's easy to make money off the rich because they have money, but it's hard to make money off ordinary people because they don't have much money to begin with."

"...Ahem!"

He Daqing was taken aback by He Yuzhu's words and slapped him on the head in annoyance: "Nonsense, don't be so blunt! Um, how did you and Tian Zao meet? You trust her with so many steamed buns?"

"rest assured."

He Yuzhu nodded, and then told He Daqing about how Tian Zao had helped him recover the money he had been scammed out of: "Tian Zao helped me get back the money I was scammed out of that day, and even a lot more. I didn't take it; I'll remember this lesson for the rest of my life!"