It was already late at night when we returned to Laojun Temple.
Su Ren and Leng Jun each carried a child from Huo Laosi's family and walked into the gate of Laojun Temple. The two children had fallen asleep long ago, and their clothes were soaked with drool, and their backs were sticky.
Leng Yue was already asleep. This heartless girl, her senior brother and Su Ren went out for two days and didn't come back, yet she could still sleep. Su Ren rushed into Leng Yue's room and punched Leng Yue's butt hard.
I patted him, woke up Leng Yue, and helped Huo Qianshi boil water. After running around all day, I had to take a quick shower before I could sleep peacefully.
After being slapped on the butt by Su Ren, Leng Yue's face turned as red as a monkey's butt. When she saw Su Ren again, she didn't dare to raise her head. Getting married is not a big deal in the Taoist family. According to Su Ren's guess, this Leng Jun, Leng Yue
They might be the children of Chongxu Lao Dao, but their mother didn't know where she was. She might have run away or she might be dead. In short, Leng Jun Leng Yue never mentioned it, and Su Ren didn't ask.
I washed my face comfortably and soaked my feet. Huo Laosi went back to sleep, but Leng Yue did not come out. Su Ren and Leng Jun were the only two people left in the room. Their feet were placed in the steaming wooden basin.
They were all lying on their backs, not to mention how comfortable they felt, except for the two little girls who were pinching their feet.
Leng Jun asked: "Brother Su, can you tell me your true origin now? This month, I feel that I can't see through you more and more. You scare me."
"Afraid? I can't beat you, so what are you afraid of?"
"This is not a question of whether you can survive the fight or not." Leng Jun sat up suddenly: "I'm worried that you will sell me one day, and I will happily help you count the money. This feels very bad."
"Don't worry, I won't betray you! You are my savior."
Su Ren made a few excuses, stood up, wiped his feet, went out with the wooden basin, and never came back.
The next day it was time for them to work. Su Ren was up as usual, not too early. Leng Jun was practicing on the cliff of the back mountain, and Huo Laosi was sweeping the yard with a broom. Leng Yue and Huo Qianshi were in the kitchen.
Breakfast was being prepared in the house, and Huo Laosi's two children were playing in the yard. The two little men were very happy, running around chattering with the noodles they stole from the kitchen.
With a satisfied smile on his face, Huo Laosi saw Su Ren coming out. He quickly put down his broom, went to the well to get a bucket of water, poured it into a wooden basin and put it in front of Su Ren: "Master, get up! Today is a big day.
It's a good day. Hujiagou is a small market today. We can bring salt and sell it there. Our salt is so good that we will not have to worry about sales."
Su Ren said while washing his face: "Don't be in a hurry. Don't rush into business. How can you and I sell salt? Even if we are in a hurry, it won't make a difference. You are familiar with the place here. Think about who else you can pull."
Come in, we have been looking for people for the past half month. What is the most expensive thing in the 21st century is talent!"
Although Huo Laosi didn't understand the last sentence, he still nodded: "Young Master is thoughtful. We do need some manpower. We really need to put this together carefully."
Huo Laosi knows quite a lot of people. According to Huo Laosi’s analysis, if you want to sell salt in Wenshui, you must have at least four people. He, Huo Laosi, counts as one. His territory is in the east of the city, although there are only ten people assigned to him.
In fact, if there is extra salt in this village, it will expand outward a little. He is more familiar with the ground east of the city, so there is no problem on the east side. The other three sides are a bit unfamiliar.
After breakfast, the two of them went straight to Zaojiao Ridge in the north of the city. After walking all morning, they were sweating profusely and finally arrived. Compared to their Laojun Temple, the place was quieter and quieter. In the distance, they could see a huge Zaojiao tree on the mountain ridge.
Standing there. This is a small village with only a dozen or so households. The houses are built on a relatively flat place on the mountain ridge.
Arriving at the door of a house, Huo Laosi hurriedly knocked on the door. This family was someone Huo Laosi thought could be used in the north of the city. This man's surname was Liu Mingping, and he was also the chief of the pavilion here. Who would have thought that the chief of the ten-mile pavilion was also a smuggler?
Salt. Black and white have been mixed together since ancient times, and it seems to be true.
Liu Ping happened to be at home. When he saw Huo Laosi's expression, he immediately changed his expression. He glanced at the road behind Huo Laosi and quickly pulled Huo Laosi and Su Ren closer to the house: "Fourth brother, how dare you come to me?"
Come here?"
Huo Laosi chuckled: "What are you afraid of? This is my young master. I came to you today just to give you a fortune."
Liu Ping looked at Su Ren and sneered: "Don't talk about wealth, the boss has already said that if you dare to sell salt, you will never have a good life."
Su Rendao: "What we sell is official salt. He, a private salt seller, can still handle it." He took out the salt certificate from his sleeve, waved it in front of Liu Ping's eyes twice, and immediately picked it up again: "This is issued by the county magistrate himself.
With the salt, Wenshui today is no longer the era when there was only one official salt store."
"Really?" Liu Ping seemed a little unconvinced. The man in front of him was only sixteen or seventeen years old, and he was still a child in his eyes.
Huo Laosi nodded: "Of course it is true! What my young master said is true. I came here today just to hope that my brother can work with us. My young master said that from now on, his salt will be sold by you in the north of the city, and you will pay for every kilogram."
He only needs three coins, and the rest is yours."
"Three coins?" Liu Ping had some hesitation on his face and pulled Huo Laosi's arm. The two turned their backs to Su Ren and began to mutter. Su Ren didn't care and turned to look at Liu Ping's house and Huo Laosi's house.
The difference is not big, except that there are a few more bags for food. This may be the benefit of the pavilion chief.
The two murmured for a long time, and Huo Laosi showed Liu Ping the salt they brought, and then Liu Ping agreed.
After Liu Ping was settled, he went to Chengxi and Chengnan to find people who were familiar with them. They were both private salt dealers in the past. Under the strong temptation of interests, the negotiations were settled smoothly. Of these two people, one was from Chengxi.
Cui Jiu, a tenant farmer, and Peng You, a farmer in the south of the city.
After running around for a day, I returned to Laojun Temple just in time for dinner. The round table made by Leng Jun was already placed in the back room of Laojun Temple. On the table, Leng Jun caught a hare at noon and got a plate of wild vegetables. Leng Yue
I steamed a pot of steamed buns with Huo Qian, and each shared a bowl of thick rice porridge. Although it was simple, it was quite hearty with both meat and vegetables.
Su Ren took a bite of rabbit meat and found it tasted bad: "You have ruined a good thing. This is not meat, it is just pig food."
He picked up the plate and returned to the kitchen. After rummaging for a long time, he didn't find any seasonings. After thinking about it carefully, he went into Chongxu Laodao's medicine room and rummaged for a long time. He found some star anise, cinnamon, fennel and other spicy medicines, and then started again.
Return rabbit meat to pot.
Lengyue and Huo Qianshi didn't know what Su Ren was going to do, how to make rabbit meat, and they had to go to the pharmacy to find something. Su Ren called the two of them into the kitchen and said to them while cooking: "This meat has a strong smell, so you must use these
Spicy things are used as seasonings, but unfortunately there are not many seasonings. For the time being, these are the only ones, so let’s make do.”
The aniseed ingredients were not crushed, but were wrapped in a piece of clean linen cloth, thrown into the pot, and started to stew. Under the surprised gazes of the two people, Su Ren simmered over low heat. Soon, the aroma wafted in the kitchen:
"Learn it, and it will become a craft in the future. It won't be difficult to open a restaurant. At least you won't starve to death."
After waiting for the incense stick to burn, Su Ren opened the lid of the pot. After the strong aroma of meat mixed with the smell of various spices, it indeed smelled much more pleasant than before.
Su Ren took out a piece, tasted it, and shook his head: "Hey! It still tastes wrong. There are too many missing things, so I can finally make do with it." Onions and garlic sprouts are not something the big man has, and a little bit of ginger is hard to find.
The flavor of the meat is evoked, which is far from what I imagined.
Lengyue and Huo Qianshi have been enchanted by the fragrance. As women, they have been cooking for so many years, but they have never smelled such a fragrant smell.
Leng Yue looked at Su Ren: "You can actually be such a cheap servant?"
"What's so mean about this? If you want to eat, you have to do it. Is it possible that you won't do it even if you starve to death?"
Leng Yue shook her head: "But you are much better at cooking than us. I guess the cooks in the county don't have this skill either."
"They definitely don't have this skill." Su Ren was very proud. No one had ever praised him so much when he was at home. Today he finally felt proud: "It's a pity that there are not enough seasonings. If peppers, potatoes, and carrots are stewed together, this stew will be better."
Rabbit would be perfect.”
Seeing Su Ren going out with rabbit meat, Huo Qianshi and Leng Yue looked at each other. Huo Qianshi shook her head and said: "Sister-in-law, you have to be careful in the future. Our young master is a tricky person. If he doesn't serve you well, he will
It's possible for you to divorce me."
Leng Yue nodded. Suddenly she understood, and her face immediately turned red: "Who said I was going to marry him? What a beautiful idea."
Huo Qianshi laughed.
During the meal, Su Ren, Leng Jun, and Leng Yue sat at the table. Huo Laosi and Huo Qianshi did not come. The two children lay beside the door and took a look, and were immediately pulled out by Huo Laosi.
I slapped the two little guys hard on their butts several times.
Su Ren shouted: "Whatever you are doing to beat the child, come in!"
Huo Laosi came in with a bowl: "Master, we are servants and according to the rules we cannot serve."
"Bullshit, you are a servant and a master. Go and call your wife and children. Isn't it just for dinner? It's so refreshing when the whole family sits together. I have the final say on whether you behave according to the rules or not. From today on, my words are
rule."
"But Master, this is against etiquette!"
"Are you going? If not, get out now and follow me. My words are the rules and etiquette!"
Huo Laosi hurriedly went out and brought in Mr. Huo Qian and the two children. He threw down his rice bowl and kowtowed on the ground. Then he sat down at the table tremblingly. It was the first time he used the table and he felt comfortable.
Su Ren picked out two large pieces of rabbit meat, put a piece in each child's bowl, told a few jokes with the two children, and then started eating.
This small gesture seemed nothing to Su Ren, but Huo Laosi was already in tears. For no other reason than that the master he recognized had no airs and did not think of himself as a slave. It was already burning incense.
.Now he is allowed to serve himself on the table, and he is also serving meat to his children. Such a master is worth dying for. Huo Laosi secretly made up his mind that he will follow this master for the rest of his life.
Leng Jun murmured in his heart, this guy's ability to win over people's hearts is really incredible. This Huo Laosi has already given up on him. (To be continued)