nycdaug Chapter 86 Liu Xuewen Enters the Village
Chapter 86 Liu Xuewen Enters the Village
Just as Xu Fang finished settling things off with Xu Da, she came out to find Song Jiaojiao.
Song Jiaojiao came to the kitchen and saw that the hourglass was almost empty. She quickly told Xu Fang to turn off the fire so that the lid could be lifted once the sand had run out.
Five minutes later, Song Jiaojiao lifted the lid of the pot and a fragrant aroma wafted out, a mixture of wheat and egg. Song Jiaojiao removed the gauze and thankfully, only the small bowls hadn't risen; the other bowls hadn't collapsed.
This is already a good result for the first attempt. I took a clean plate, turned the cake upside down to cool, and then spread the jam on it.
Xu Fang saw the fresh, orange-yellow food, which looked very soft and resembled pastries.
"Madam, is this what you just made? What is it?" Curious, she asked. Song Jiaojiao was very approachable to her servants. As long as they did their job well, she would patiently answer any questions they had.
“Yes, look, it’s not collapsed at all, except for the one in the small bowl. This is called a cake.” Song Jiaojiao poured out the one in the small bowl, cut it into pieces, and gave one to Xu Fang to try. “Try it and see if it’s too sweet. This piece collapsed and isn’t as soft, but the taste should be about the same.”
As she spoke, Song Jiaojiao took a piece to try herself. It was indeed firm, somewhat like eating a wet lump of dough, and a bit dry.
Xu Fang thought it was alright; it wasn't soft enough, but it wasn't too dry either. Back in the days of that wealthy family, she would receive such pastries as a reward. Those pastries were the ones that made people feel choked; you needed a pot of tea to smooth out a single piece.
"Madam, the sweetness is just right. It tastes great even like this. I imagine it would taste even better if it hadn't collapsed," Xu Fang said with some delight. No chef doesn't love a new recipe.
"It seems okay. It's cooled down enough now. Go get me a jar of apricot jam." Song Jiaojiao felt the temperature with her hand. It was warm enough to handle. It bounced back quickly when pressed down, which was pretty good. It was a pity that the cow hadn't produced milk yet, otherwise the cake with milk would taste even better.
Place the cake on a clean cutting board and divide it into three pieces. Since there was no cream, it had to be made into a molten filling cake, which meant it wouldn't look as pretty when eaten. Song Jiaojiao made two filled cakes and one plain cake, just waiting to serve it when it was time to eat.
It's almost noon now, so Song Jiaojiao has handed over the rest of the work to Xu Fang.
She went to the dried fruit shop and saw that they had dried quite a few apricots in five days. The aunties were making the last batch, and no one was delivering apricots today, so it seemed there were no more.
The last batch of dried fruit is estimated to weigh around 300 jin (150 catties).
……
Clatter, clatter, a horse-drawn carriage arrived in the village. At first, everyone thought it belonged to Song Jiaojiao's family, until a servant came down to inquire where Song Jiaojiao's family lived and they realized it wasn't her carriage.
"Brother, I'd like to ask about someone. Does anyone know where Song Jiaojiao, the wife of Song, lives?" A villager passing by asked hurriedly. Huichuntang had never been to Qingshui Village, but Sifanglou often came to pick up goods, though they never came by horse-drawn carriage, mostly by oxcart.
"What do you want with Song Jiaojiao?" the villagers asked warily. Song Jiaojiao was their village's lucky charm, and they couldn't bring unknown people with them.
The coachman hadn't expected such caution from someone asking for directions. "Well, we're from Huichuntang in town. We're going there today because of a business deal that Madam Song made with our boss some time ago."
It turned out she was doing business. Song Jiaojiao had been doing it all along. The villagers didn't ask any more questions after hearing her explanation, and just pointed her in a direction.
The driver gave the villager a coin as thanks and then headed in the direction the villager had indicated.
Upon arriving at the foot of the mountain, the first thing that catches the eye is a row of workshops, with two households on top of them, but it's unclear which one they are.
Song Jiaojiao had just come out of the fruit shop when she saw a carriage parked by the roadside. Basically, anyone who came here was looking for her.
Just then, Manager Liu got out of the car, and Liu Xuewen followed him out.
"Boss Liu, Manager Liu, what brings you here?" Song Jiaojiao was somewhat surprised that they had come.
"It seems that Madam Song, being such a busy person, must have forgotten about me, so I have no choice but to swallow my pride and bother you." Liu Xuewen said with a smile, but his words sounded somewhat aggrieved.
……
Song Jiaojiao did feel like she had forgotten something, and only when she saw Liu Xuewen arrive did she realize, "Look at me, it's almost noon. Mr. Liu, why don't you have a simple meal at my humble abode? Today happens to be my eldest daughter's birthday, you've come at just the right time."
"Then I'll gladly accept your offer. Wang Zhu, take the gifts I bought with you." Liu Xuewen instructed and followed Song Jiaojiao upstairs.
When they arrived home, Xu Fang had just finished preparing the dishes and was about to eat.
The table was laden with dishes, including fish and meat. While it couldn't compare to the refined cuisine of a wealthy family, it was still a meal that rural families could only afford during the Lunar New Year. The strangest thing was the yellow pastries in the center of the table, and another that looked like it was spread with jam.
Although Liu Xuewen didn't understand, he didn't talk much when he went to someone's house for a meal.
When Song Jiaojiao saw Mu Qing and Mu Xue arrive, she introduced them to each other, "Eldest sister, second sister, this is Manager Liu, you've met him before. Next to him is his boss, you can call him Uncle."
"Uncle Liu," the two said in unison.
“Mr. Liu, these are my eldest daughter, Queen Muqing, and my youngest daughter, Queen Muxue,” Song Jiaojiao said, pointing to the two sisters.
Liu Xuewen took out two five-tael silver ingots from his purse and handed them to the two sisters, saying, "Uncle came in a hurry this time and didn't prepare a gift. Uncle will make it up to you next time."
The two looked at Song Jiaojiao, seemingly at a loss. Song Jiaojiao smiled and said, "Take it, and quickly thank Uncle Liu."
The two accepted the money only after receiving permission, saying, "Thank you, Uncle Liu."
After the introductions, Song Jiaojiao invited everyone to eat. Liu Xuewen ate absentmindedly, his eyes fixed on the cake the whole time.
When everyone had almost finished eating, Song Jiaojiao asked them to remove the dishes, leaving only the cake in the middle.
"Come, come, it's Muqing's birthday today. Mom made you something nice. Here it is," Song Jiaojiao said, walking behind Muqing and pointing to the big cake on the table.
"This is a birthday cake that your mother specially made for you. It's only for birthdays. I hope that Mu Qing will have a safe and smooth life in the future." Song Jiaojiao handed the kitchen knife to Mu Qing and held her hand to start cutting the cake.
"This first cut needs to be made by our birthday celebrant."
Mu Qing followed Song Jiaojiao's instructions step by step, but her slightly flushed cheeks betrayed her nervous and uneasy feelings. This was her first birthday since her father passed away.
After Mu Qing made the first cut, Song Jiaojiao asked Xu Fang to divide the rest equally among the people present.
Looking at the egg-yolk yellow pastry in front of him, paired with the orange-red apricot jam, it didn't seem so jarring. The rich aroma of jam mixed with the sweet scent of wheat made him feel hungry again, even though he had just finished eating.