border cook

When the old man went to Jiangji Antique Soup, it happened that Jiang Yanyi got the news that the young owner of the noodle shop was willing to talk to her about transferring the noodle shop, so she took Yang Xiu out.

When Chu Yangui learned that his sister was out to discuss business, he was afraid that no one would look at the account, so he asked Chu Zhong to move himself to the counter in the front shop, and Chu Zhong acted as a waiter in the hall for Yang Xiu.

The old man's ox cart drove out from the Fengfu, stopped at the door of the store, and yelled inside: "Is the owner here? The ordered wine has been delivered!"

Chu Yangui looked around and found that the driver was an old man with white beard and hair. He didn't know about Jiang Yanyi's purchase of wine, so he said, "Sister has something to go out, the old man comes in and sits in the shop to warm up."

Then he turned his head and ordered Chu Zhong to move all the wine jars on the ox cart to the yard, planning to wait for Jiang Yanyi to come back and inspect the goods before paying for the wine.

After winter, a bamboo curtain was hung at the door of Jiang Yanyi's store to block the wind. Open the bamboo curtain and enter. There are charcoal pots burning under each table inside, and the air is also warm.

It was still early, and there were no customers in the store yet. After entering the store, the old man felt the warmth rushing towards his face, and sighed comfortably.

He was dressed in rags, and the clerk in the store didn't show any contemptuous expression. Instead, he handed him hot tea and invited him to warm up by the big firepit in the kitchen. The old man had a good impression of this store.

He scanned the layout of the store, and when he saw Feng Shuo's Fu, he couldn't help shaking his head and laughing, his eyes stayed on the little man sitting at the counter for a few seconds, but when he saw the book in his hand clearly, His expression fell silent again.

What Chu Yangui held in his hand was "Six Secret Teachings·Mu Zi Zhu".

In the early years, Mu Xuanqing, the eldest son of Marquis Wu, had made great achievements in the art of war, and his annotated "Six Secret Teachings" was also sought after by many counselors.After Mu's family was copied, the major bookstores were afraid of being burned, so they burned all the Shiwen scriptures written by Mu Xuanqing, and even if there were few left, they had to hide them secretly. In [-], it was the first time I saw someone studying the books left by the deceased.

The old man seemed to have no intention of asking: "What books are you reading, Mr. Xiao Lang?"

Chu Yangui saw that although the old man was old, but his eyes were piercing, and his bearing seemed extraordinary, he couldn't help but doubt the identity of the old man.

Beside him is a bamboo basket containing all kinds of poems and essays, which can well conceal the banned books in his hand. Chu Yangui did not show any panic, but said: "Some idle books to pass the time That's all."

His leg doctors all said that he had no hope of standing up in the future, and his career was cut off. Chu Yangui thought that if he wanted to get ahead, he could only become someone else's staff, and the "Six Secret Teachings" that Mu Xuanqing wrote back then was all counselors. They are all respected.

Chu Yangui was favored by Mrs. Jiang in the past, and Jiang Shangshu seldom asked him about his studies. He fought chickens and lackeys with a lot of dudes in the academy, and the ink in his stomach was pitifully low. Most of the time, I let the book boy at home write it for me.

Now it is impossible for him to become a talent in one step. It is very difficult for him to read this annotated collection of military books, but he still forces himself to read it every day. He explained literally, but Chu Zhong and Yang Xiu Bingshao and others had been in the army, so he could vividly describe some things that neither he nor the old scholar knew.

In this way, although the annotated collection of military books is boring, he can gradually understand it.

The old man saw that Chu Yangui's face was calm, and he admired him a little in his heart. Although he is no longer working for others, he is hiding in a corner selling wine, but he still knows a lot about the outside news.

The Chu family left the capital, and the emperor was furious. Now the Chu family has settled in Xizhou. The owner of this antique soup is a young girl surnamed Jiang. The young man has a similar face to that girl. The old man guessed Chu Yangui almost instantly. identity.

He asked: "In the Battle of Huaixi, the Marquis of Huai'an fled in front of the battle. In order to buy time for the people of Huaixi to evacuate, the prince of Marquis Wu tied a broom to the tail of the livestock and led two thousand soldiers to drive the livestock to meet the enemy. From a distance, the army looked like an elite army, but afterward, the sky was filled with dust, and there seemed to be tens of thousands of horses, and finally they retreated without fighting. Is this plan clever?"

This is Mu Xuan's famous battle when he was young, and many military strategists use it as an allusion.

Although Chu Yangui was ignorant and inexperienced before, but the capital is such a big place, how could he not have heard a few words about the illustrious military exploits of the young hero, the son of Marquis Wu.

When Mu Xuanqing marked this book of war, in some places, he also cited many wars in this dynasty or the previous dynasty as examples, and the battle the old man mentioned was also among them.

Chu Yangui didn't know why the old man suddenly asked these questions, but looking at the old man's old but sharp eyes, somehow, he expressed his truest thoughts: "It's naturally subtle, but I think it's a bit risky , if the enemy general is a belligerent, this battle will undoubtedly be lost."

The old man seduced him slowly: "Then what do you think the battle situation should be?"

Chu Yangui couldn't take his eyes off, as if he was captured by the eyes of the old man, "Block the main road of Huaixi River, and when the enemy is lured to cross the river, then dredge the stream to discharge the flood."

The old man's eyes became sharp and harsh: "The enemy's army was submerged in the flood, and all the good farms and houses in Huaixi survived?"

Even though he knew that the old man's reprimand came out of nowhere, Chu Yangui was still inexplicably shocked, as if a thunderbolt rang in his ears, shaking him to pieces.

Chu Yangui met the old man's gaze, which was guarded and stubborn.

After Chu Zhong moved the wine jar, he saw an old man and a young man at the counter with subtle expressions.

He stepped forward and said, "Old man, go inside and warm yourself up by the fire."

The majesty of the old man disappeared without a trace in an instant, and he seemed to have turned back into that kind and greedy wine seller all of a sudden.

He turned to Chu Zhong and said, "Cook me a mutton pot, I want to eat something to warm my stomach after roasting."

When the old man went to the back yard, Chu Yangui's hands on the counter trembled slightly, and he secretly put the book of war under the counter.

After he said the answer, the old man's look made him inexplicably afraid, several times more than when he was caught playing truant by his master back then.

He couldn't help wondering, is this really just an ordinary wine seller?

Before Chu Yangui could think about it, Chi Qing also came into the store. Chu Yangui didn't recognize him, but Chu Zhong did.

Chu Yangui saw that Chu Zhong was quite respectful to Chi Qing, and when Chu Zhong arrived at the counter, he asked in a low voice, "Who is the young master who just entered the store?"

Chu Zhong lowered his voice and whispered: "It's a military advisor under the King of Liaonan."

The celebrity in front of the King of Liaonan was someone that the rich and powerful in the entire Xizhou had to rush to curry favor with.

Chu Yangui nodded calmly, and picked up a collection of poems from the book basket beside him to read.

After a while, the old man came over from the courtyard, sat at a table with Chi Qing and ate boiled mutton, and also ordered a portion of Chef Yao's signature dishes in the shop.

Chu Yangui sat at the counter, his face was calm, but his heart was already full of turmoil. Are this old man and Chi Qing acquaintances?

Although there have been rumors that the emperor and the King of Liaonan are at odds, the King of Liaonan has not raised any issue so far. He has read the forbidden book. If the two of them make trouble, what should they do if they cause trouble to Auntie?

For a moment Chu Yangui felt a little regretful, how did he know that the old man could tell what book he was reading at a glance?

When he was feeling uneasy, the old man and Chi Qing were enjoying the mutton soup pot by the side.

The old man asked Chi Qing: "What do you think of the young man at the door?"

Chi Qing scooped up a piece of mutton and put it in his mouth: "He's pretty handsome, but he's a bit inferior to my young master."

The old man said: "In the battle of Huaixi, he said that we should use the water of Huaixi to attack the enemy."

Chi Qing paused with his chopsticks, and looked back at Chu Yangui, just as Chu Yangui was also looking at this side, their eyes met, and they both looked away quickly.

Chi Qing pawed at the fish soup on the plate with chopsticks, and said nonchalantly, "It's pretty tough."

There is an unwritten rule for all those who use soldiers, as long as they can use softer means to solve problems, they will not go too far.

In the previous dynasties, there were also battles that massacred the city, but they have always been condemned by later generations, so in the art of war in the present world, they all pay attention to the word "benevolence and martial arts".

In the Battle of Huaixi, it was Mu Xuanqing and the Marquis of Huai'an who suppressed the rebels together. When the rebels attacked the city, in order to win the hearts and minds of the people, they used the banner of not letting the people in the city stay after they captured the city. The offensive harmed the interests of the people, and naturally it would also lose the hearts of the people.

Chu Yangui said that the method is good and can defeat the enemy army, but the people will complain, and even if they win, a lot of mess will be left behind.

Feng Shuo was too resolute and used a lot of extreme methods in the war, so he got a reputation of cruelty.

The old man looked at Chi Qing, with some sadness in his eyes: "You were only as old as your brother when he left."

Chi Qing picked up the soup cup and drank the soup, perhaps because it was too hot, he grinned, as if smiling, but his eyes were slightly red: "If brother is more ruthless, it won't end like that."

Mu Xuanqing, the eldest son of Marquis Wu, was born with a beautiful personality. He is the ideal husband that many ladies in the capital would want to marry in their dreams.

In the last battle of his life, it was because he was too benevolent and a gentleman that he fell into the way of others, and almost caused Feng Shuo to die there too.

Hearing what the old man said, Chi Qing roughly guessed what Feng Shuo had explained to the old man. He said: "Old man, you can accept apprentices if you want, why are you talking to me? Can I still make things difficult for him behind my back?"

The old man said: "I heard that he hasn't even finished the four books, so naturally I have to leave it to you to take the early stage."

Chi Qing choked a mouthful of meat in his throat and almost suffocated to death. He glared angrily: "You take care of the job yourself, don't try to push it to me."

When he picked up the cup and poured tea into his mouth, the old man said softly, "Xie's girl has written again."

"puff--"

Chi Qing spewed out most of the water, but was still choked, he wiped his face with a handkerchief in embarrassment: "I can't teach you, don't reply to the capital."

Chu Yangui didn't know what the two of them were talking about, but he just looked at them and looked at himself from time to time, feeling a little uneasy in his heart.

If...they really want to embarrass sister, there are Bing Shao and Chu Zhong in the store, both of them are good at fighting skills, so they can take them down, but how to deal with the aftermath is beyond Chu Yangui's ability, he will know soon I still can't think of it.

***

When Jiang Yanyi came back, Chi Qing and the two hadn't left yet.

Entering the store, she saw Chu Yangui at the counter with a gloomy expression, and she immediately asked, "Didn't I let you rest in your room, why did you come to the store?"

Chu Yangui didn't say that he wanted to help her with the accounts, but said with a smile: "I'm so bored in the room, come out to get some air. An old man who delivered wine came to the store and was having dinner with acquaintances. Sister is back, business Did the talk go well?"

Jiang Yanyi glanced at the ledger on the counter, and seeing that it was clearly calculated, he knew that Chu Yan came here to help him.

They are all siblings, and she knew that Chu Yangui said this because she was afraid that she would not let him work hard, so she replied: "It's going well, and work will start soon."

The owner of the noodle shop owed a lot of debts, and the gambling shop lowered the price of the noodle shop at an extremely low price, and wanted to pay off the debt with the noodle shop. Without arguing with Jiang Yanyi, the deal was settled at 350 taels of silver.

The experienced noodle makers in the noodle shop are all domestic slaves, and the deed of prostitution was given to Jiang Yanyi. Jiang Yanyi and the owner of the noodle shop went to the government to transfer their household registration. Now the land of the noodle shop and the people in the noodle shop belong to Jiang Yanyi.

Although he spent all the money he had saved, Jiang Yanyi was still happy. As long as the instant noodles started to be produced on a large scale, it wouldn't take long for him to make money back.

When she came back, she remembered the duck necks that she had been craving for several days, so she bought a few ducks and prepared them for the celebration banquet.

Yang Xiu carried a few ducks into the backyard.

There were already more customers in the shop at this time, Jiang Yan suggested that the old man and Chi Qing sat together for a meal, thinking that the old man knew Feng Shuo well, so it was not surprising that he recognized Chi Qing.

Carrying the teapot, she went up to refill them with some tea, and greeted them with a smile: "Mr. Chi, old man."

Chi Qing nodded in greeting, while the old man smiled and replied to Jiang Yanyi: "Your store is well decorated, and the pot is also well made."

Jiang Yanyi said: "You are absurd, I didn't know that you brought wine today, and I kept you waiting."

The old man waved his hand: "It's okay, it's okay, this is not eating."

Jiang Yanyi said: "Then you eat first, and when you're done, we'll pay for the wine and settle the bill."

The old man nodded and said yes.

When Jiang Yanyi entered the back kitchen, Chi Qing glanced at Chu Yangui at the counter, and asked the old man with a half-smile, "Guess what the little bastard at the door was thinking with a sullen face?"

The old man didn't talk to him while eating the meat.

Chi Qing said: "I'm afraid he is thinking about how to let the two practitioners in the store tie you and me up."

The old man coughed twice: "Isn't this quite ambitious and strategic? You should train him first."

This time it was Chi Qing who drank the soup and remained silent.

The old man obviously planned to teach Chu Yangui himself at first, but he changed his mind after asking that question.

Chi Qing is known as the smiling tiger in the army, except for a white face, everything from the heart to the intestines is black.Although Chu Yangui is still young, but there is a ruthless spirit in his bones, if these two meet in the future, it's hard to say.

Naturally, the old man didn't want the disciples he taught to kill each other. In the early stage, Chi Qing taught Chu Yan to return and grind each other's tempers. No matter what situation the two of them are in in the future, there will be this brotherly friendship in it. It will not be a confrontation, death or injury.

***

Jiang Yanyi rubbed his hands and stewed sour radish and old duck soup in the kitchen. This weather is suitable for drinking some sour and warm soup, which is nourishing and appetizing.

She chopped the cleaned duck into pieces, boiled water in a pot, added cooking wine and ginger slices, blanched the duck meat to remove the fishy smell, scooped it up and washed off the blood foam, then put it in a casserole and added broth to stew.

Cut the sour radish into pieces and put them in a casserole, arrange them with onion, ginger, cinnamon, and star anise, and cook slowly for an hour to make a clear and bright old duck soup.

She kept the duck necks that were cut off as useless, and planned to make stewed duck necks with the duck necks she bought.

There is no way to sell duck necks alone, but duck necks have less meat and more bones, and no matter whether they are poor or rich, they don't like it. Jiang Yanyi is willing to sell duck necks to others for money. The butcher killed the duck by the way, then cut off the duck's neck and sold it to Jiang Yanyi.

Yang Xiu didn't quite understand Jiang Yanyi's actions, and once thought Jiang Yanyi was being silly about being happy about it.

The advantage of changing to a bigger yard is that when Jiang Yan wants to cook something delicious, he doesn't have to compete with Chef Yao for the kitchen anymore.

The kitchen in Xikuanyuan is more than double the size of her original small kitchen.

Jiang Yanyi boiled the processed duck neck under cold water. After fully boiling the blood foam inside the duck bone, he pulled the duck neck up to drain.

Drain the underwater oil in the pot, wait for the oil temperature to come up, put bay leaf, cinnamon, star anise, pepper, dogwood and other spices in the oil pan and fry until fragrant, then put the duck neck and stir-fry to taste, if you want the color to look good , You can add some soy sauce, Jiang Yanyi also added a teaspoon of sugar to enhance the freshness.

After stirring evenly, pour boiling water that has not covered the neck of the duck, and dark brown bubbles are gurgling in the pot.

Jiang Yanyi covered the pot, simmered on high heat for a while, then turned to low heat and simmered to collect the juice, turned off the heat when the marinade was almost dry, opened the pot cover, it was fragrant and fragrant, the marinated duck neck was reddish brown, and the meat on the skin Because a part of it falls off during stir-frying, it is very tempting.

Jiang Yanyi found a few plates and divided the duck necks, took them to the small kitchen outside, shared them with Chef Yao, Aunt Guo, and the others, and then brought a plate to Chu Yangui alone.

Because there are not many duck necks and the portion is limited, everyone can't get enough of it.

When the old man entered the yard to check the number of drinks with Jiang Yanyi, Jiang Yanyi invited him to eat the duck neck together, and Chi Qing followed as if he had eyes on the back of his head.

When it comes to eating, he has never had any principles to talk about.

After the old man asked Jiang Yanyi how to make the duck neck, he thought for a while and asked, "Can chicken neck be eaten like this?"

Jiang Yanyi thought of the dozens of chickens in the old man's yard, and suddenly became worried about them. She smiled awkwardly but politely: "This...it shouldn't be possible."

After paying for the wine, Jiang Yan realized that the old man had traveled all the way to bring her wine, and he also gave the old man a large soup cup of sour radish and old duck soup.

The old man was holding the soup cup, his heart was shaken for a while, and he murmured to Chi Qing when he went out: "Xiaochi, if you are too embarrassed, I don't blame you as a teacher, as a teacher, I just teach..."

"It's not embarrassing, it's not embarrassing." Chi Qing stepped out of the store while nibbling on the duck's neck, with a rather annoyed expression.

Obviously he felt that there was still meat on the bone, but he just couldn't chew it off, and he couldn't bear to spit it out, it was too exhausting!

***

When Chi Qing returned to Feng Mansion to return to his mission, the food box on Feng Shuo's table had not been taken away, and Chi Qing saw the unfinished dumplings inside at a glance.

He gloated and said, "I told you there are carrots in it, don't you believe me, take the rest back for supper!"

He reached out to grab the food box, but he didn't move it. When he took a closer look, Feng Shuo put one hand on the top of the food box, and said sadly, "Can I keep it for supper?"

Chi Qing pursed her mouth and showed off on purpose: "I went to her shop and not only ate mutton soup pot, I also ate duck neck."

Feng Shuo: "...Oh."

Chi Qing continued: "The old man said that the Jiang family boy has not finished studying the Four Books and Five Classics, so let me take it with him for a while. Would you like to make arrangements for me to live in the palace directly, or in the West Wing of her house?"

Feng Shuo's eyebrows were wrinkled enough to kill a fly: "Live in the palace."

This was already within Chi Qing's expectation, he didn't know why he owed a beating and said: "By the way, the palace doesn't have to prepare three meals a day for me. I think Jiang Ji can provide meals."

Feng Shuo took out a stack of notebooks from the case: "...Suddenly it occurred to me that you must be very busy recently, you should take care of these things, and if you don't have time to teach others, don't force yourself. I just have to teach in my free time." .”

Chi Qing:! ! !

Wouldn't it be useless to eat and drink over there in the future!

He changed his words in an instant: "Wangfu's rice is so delicious, I like to eat the food made by the chef of Wangfu."

Feng Shuo glanced at him quietly, Chi Qing hurriedly smiled ingratiatingly, and then put the folder back to its original place.