Chapter 112: In Name Only
Translator: 549690339
“And this.” Fang I lai continued the introduction for Emperor Yongan. He took a palm-sized, lake blue bowl from the food box. The bowl contained rich soybean paste, knowing the emperor’s preference for cane sugar, he proactively added some, “This is soymilk, in which dried soybeans are soaked and then ground on a stone mill into a paste, then it’s boiled. This is how soymilk is made.” Content originally comes from novelꜰire.net
Emperor Yongan was somewhat surprised, “So many variations?”
“Indeed, the people in the Imperial Kitchen say that this food is no worse than cold jelly noodles.” Fang Hai put the bowl in front of Emperor Yongan.
Upon hearing this, a slight smile touched the corner of the emperor’s mouth. “The prime ministers are so considerate.”
Creating more variations from two inexpensive ingredients like soybeans and sweet potato, which couldn’t be used as staple food, was also a kind of contribution.
“Has it been popularized?” He asked.
“Your Highness, the cold jelly noodles are exclusive to Jimei’s restaurant, only sold for five coins per serving. The price is not high. The tofu pudding, also known as ‘white jade flower’, is a bit more expensive and is currently only sold at the Zuixian Building and the Jimei restaurant in Bailu Town.”
“Oh?” Emperor Yongan raised an eyebrow.
Fang Hai laughed, gently explaining the whole sequence of events.
When the right prime minister offered the recipe for the jelly noodles, he just mentioned that he had obtained this delicious food and thought of Emperor Yongan and his retired father, so he offered it up.
The recipe was indeed good, developing an alternative way to eat sweet potatoes, which was also suitable for his retired father, so he received a reward.
Now the left prime minister presented the tofu recipe, disclosed everything about the origin, current status, and when Emperor Yongan asked, he told everything he knew.
Emperor Yongan was quite surprised, “Did all this come from a little country girl?”
“Yes.” Fang Hai replied.
“Not bad, clever and skillful.” Emperor Yongan praised, “However, it seems like Jimei’s restaurant has taken advantage of her?”
Fifty taels, that was really too little.
If Qiao Xiaomai offered this recipe directly to him, he would have rewarded her with hundreds of acres of land.
Fang Hai laughed softly and didn’t reply.
“Never mind, the girl has made her fortune with this recipe. Keep an eye on her in the future and make sure she is not bullied.”
Including the hundred and fifty acres of farmland from Jimei’s restaurant, the Qiao family now had a total of three hundred acres of land. In Bailu Town where land was scarce, they were now considered middle-class landowners. In the future, they could live fairly comfortably just on the rent.
And so the matter was settled, leaving only the faint noise of Emperor Yongan eating his meal in the Diligent Rule Palace Hall.
Unaware that she, Qiao Xiaomai, had been brought up in a conversation with the Daqi Emperor over these two recipes, she traveled to the town with her family on a shaky donkey cart after half an hour’s journey.
There was nothing they could do. It had been raining for three days; the roads were muddy, causing the donkey cart to travel at a very slow pace.
Once they reached the town, they first went to the Zuixian Building.
The shopkeeper of the Zuixian Building, Mr. Zhou, greeted her with a warm smile, “Miss Qiao is here, come in please, we’ve been keeping these chicken feet for you these past few days.”
“Eh?” Qiao Xiaomai was surprised. Given the weather, how long could they keep the cut-off chicken feet?
Seeing her doubts, Shopkeeper Zhou explained, “We’ve been freezing them.”
Of course, a place like the Zuixian Building would have ice cellars to store winter ice for an entire year. Freezing chicken feet for Qiao Xiaomai was nothing.
Qiao Xiaomai was thrilled, thanking him hurriedly, “Thank you very much, shopkeeper!”
The moment she mentioned the word, several kinds of food came to mind.