The Red Mansions

Chapter 30

Jinling Guild Hall.

In a wing room, the wine and dishes are fragrant.

Xia Baichuan ate the dishes made by Jia Yun, nodded in satisfaction and said, "Brother Yun, the dishes you cooked are even more delicious than I imagined, all right, I agree to what you said."

Jia Yun was overjoyed. Just as she was about to stand up and salute, Xia Baichuan quickly waved her hands and said, "Let me tell you first, I will only teach you for two years, and how much you can learn depends on you!"

It was really because Jia Yun was too old. Although he could read, he hadn't even learned the enlightenment articles. This made Xia Baichuan a headache, so he was not optimistic about how far Jia Yun could go on the road of imperial examinations.

If it weren't for Jia Yun's sincerity and determination to never give up, Xia Baichuan really didn't want to agree to be Jia Yun's husband. Of course, since he was taught to read, wouldn't it be right to include food and lodging?
Jia Yun bowed and saluted happily, and said happily: "Two years is only two years. The younger generation also knows the principle of 'the master leads the door, and the cultivation depends on the individual'. As long as the master is willing to teach, the younger generation will definitely learn it."

Xia Baichuan nodded and said, "Well, that's the deal. I'll go to your house on time on the first day of next month. The accommodation doesn't need to be too good, as long as it's clean and bright. Only meals must be fine."

Jia Yun nodded happily and said, "On the first day of next month, this junior will come to pick up my husband early in the morning."

Certainly not within a month.

Firstly, the home has not been decorated yet, and there is no place for guests to stay. Secondly, when the store opens, he must take Jia to run it for a period of time, so he can only study hard behind closed doors until next month.

After that, the two stopped talking, and Xia Baichuan ate quietly.

The meals Jia Yun cooked were indeed delicious, and what's more, the dishes sent to him this time were all kinds of palace dishes, the ingredients were precious, delicious and delicious, and it was not easy to eat even if they spent money on the market.

Although the amount of ten dishes is not much, it is still a lot when added up. Xia Baichuan ate all of them, and his stomach groaned.

After Jia Yun put away all the dishes and chopsticks, she was about to say goodbye and leave.

Xia Baichuan hurriedly called him to stop, and then wrote a list of books, asking Jia Yun to buy some for preparation.

Then, he warned: "In addition to buying these books, you should also prepare more pens, inks, papers and inkstones. Don't waste time when I pass by."

……

Sister Feng's courtyard.

After a busy day, Jia Lian returned home reeking of alcohol, and Wang Xifeng also sat in front of the dressing table with a tired face, asking Ping'er to help remove her makeup.

"The ten palace dishes on the table today are really made by Jia Yun?" Wang Xifeng asked.

Jia Lian came to the round table, sat down and poured a cup of tea, took a few sips, nodded and said: "He did it, I stood by and watched him do it, not to mention, this kid's craftsmanship is really good. "

Wang Xifeng said with a smile: "Hehe, what do you mean it's okay? I don't think it's worse than Master Lu's craftsmanship, and even a lot better. Even the ancestors said that the cooking of those dishes is just right, and ordinary people can't cook them."

Jia Lian smacked his lips, nodded and said, "That's the reason. No wonder this kid dares to charge ten taels of silver. He does have a few brushes."

After removing her make-up, Wang Xifeng got up and sat down opposite Jia Lian, and asked curiously, "Today, go and test Jia Yun's tone, did you find anything?"

Jia Lian glanced at her, and replied: "Jia Yun said it bluntly, he won't work in a big kitchen. He only wants to follow the imperial examination path, so he won't have much time to cook in the future."

Wang Xifeng frowned, and said: "But Master Lu is so old, there will be a day when he will leave, right? Could it be that he has been procrastinating?"

Jia Lian sighed, and said, "Hey, what if we don't procrastinate? It's just that Master Lu likes to hide it too much, and the disciples he teaches are all worthless!"

"I think, Jia Yun, you have to be more careful. Don't wait for the old lady to pick you up. You will be in a hurry to get good results." Wang Xifeng said.

Jia Lian rubbed his temples, frowned and said, "This is not easy!"

"My ancestor asked me to find a good cook. After I tested Jia Yun's tone earlier, I went to her to answer, and she told me not to force Jia Yun too much, saying that whether Jia Yun came to the house to work or not, it all depended on her. Volunteer."

"But is it so easy to find a good cook? If I can't find one, maybe I have to go to the south to see if I can find a suitable one there."

Wang Xifeng shook his head and said: "Speaking of which, Jia Yun is a member of the third house, and she is about to give out five clothes, so it's not unusual for her to have any ideas."

After a pause, she continued: "It's probably not easy to find a cook in the south. The taste of the food cooked by the cook there is quite different from ours here."

"Not to mention anything else, just sister-in-law Liu in our small kitchen, most of the dishes she cooks are from the south, so she has never been able to get on the table. After all, in the capital city, Shandong and Beijing dishes are the main dishes. "

Jia Lian nodded and said, "It would be great if Sister-in-law Liu's culinary skills were even better. She is a home-born child, so no matter how she is assigned, it will be easy to handle."

"Hehe, sister-in-law Liu's craftsmanship can't be said. You can say that she is poor, but the food she cooks is also delicious. You can say that, the key is that she doesn't know how to cook some luxurious, delicate and dignified dishes. The flaws are too big. !” Wang Xifeng sneered.

Jia Lian sighed, "So she can only cook for the young masters and ladies in the small kitchen."

……

The next morning, Jia Yun came to the shop.

"Brother Yun is here?" Jia, who was cleaning up, greeted with a smile.

Jia Long, who was making a stove next to him, got up and asked, "Brother Yun, how many holes should you make?"

Jia Yun nodded to Jia first, then came to Jia Long and replied, "Didn't Uncle Wei tell you? Make three stove holes."

There are three stove holes, two for iron pans, and one for frying pans (ào).

Jia Lun nodded and said with a smile, "He asked me to come over and ask you. He didn't elaborate. By the way, I see that the floor of the store is full of bumps. Do you want to lay a layer of bricks?"

Jia Yun shook her head and said, "Don't lay bricks, just lay bluestone slabs, just like the ones used in my yard."

"Okay, after I finish the stove, I'll pull the materials and come back to lay the floor. It won't delay your opening." Jia Long nodded.

Jia Yun smiled and said, "I'll take care of you when you're doing something. By the way, did he arrange for someone to do the desks and benches I told Uncle Wei?"

"I'm working on it, because you are in a hurry, so I called more people to rush to work. At the most tomorrow, I can finish everything and move here." Jia Long replied.

While talking, Jia Dailing came in with two [-] or [-]-year-old girls in ragged clothes.

The two girls, Jia Yun, knew each other. One was Cuihong, the daughter of Aunt Jiang's daughter in the alley next door.

Aunt Jiang's husband has been dead for six or seven years. Like Mrs. Bu, he has been doing needlework all year round and has grown Cuihong.

Until the year before last, after Aunt Jiang got sick, she was bedridden. If it wasn't for the help from the clan these years, the mother and daughter would have starved to death early in the morning.

The other is Xiu'e, who is similar to Cuihong's family, and is also very poor.

When Jia Yun saw Cuihong and Xiu'e, she knew Jia Dailing's intentions.

All three people in the store came over to salute Jia Dailing. After Jia Dailing nodded slightly to the three of them, he said, "Brother Long and Brother, you are busy, I will talk to Brother Yun about something."

The store was dusty, Jia Yun and Jia Dailing came to the street, Cuihong and Xiu'e followed behind, feeling uneasy.

Jia Dailing said: "Brother Yun, yesterday I heard from my brother that your shop wants to invite two waiters, is there such a thing?"

Jia Yun nodded and said, "There is such a thing. Did the old ancestor want Cuihong and Xiu'e to come to work with me?"

"Well, that's what it means. Brother Yun, you know the situation of their two families. If there is no one in the clan to help them, it is estimated that their families will be ruined." Jia Dailing replied.

After a pause, he glanced at Jia Yun, and then said, "But brother Yun, don't force yourself. Although I have never done business, I know that there are considerable risks in it."

"You think that Cuihong and Xiu'e's coming to do things won't affect your business, so you can help the clansmen by the way. If it's inconvenient, just say so, and no one will blame you."

Jia Yun hesitated and said, "Old Ancestor, I don't have any objections to coming to my place to work. The key is that they are not too young. If they come out to show their faces, will it affect their future marriage?"

Jia Dailing looked back at the two of them, sighed and said, "How can you control so much? People are going to starve to death, save your life first and then think about other things!"

Jia Yun pondered for a moment, nodded and said: "Okay, they can come to help tomorrow, and I will give them three hundred dollars a month, old ancestor, do you think it is okay?"

Three hundred yuan is actually not bad. Nowadays, many people's monthly income is only two to three hundred yuan. Whether they are farming, chopping firewood, or punting, their income is not high.

This standard monthly money may not be comparable to those of the maids in Jia's mansion, but it is more than Pu's usual needlework for others. Now a penny can buy more than half a catty of rice in the market.

In other words, the two of them working here will not only fill the family with food, but even have some leftovers. By the end of the year, they may also be able to pull a few feet of cloth to make new clothes.

Of course, if there are patients in the family who need to take medicine, there is no other way. At most, Jia Yun can only give them this job, but she can't help much with other things.

(End of this chapter)