Great Imperial Merchant

With the first bowl, there will naturally be a second bowl, because you can eat a bowl of free noodles today, and the soup pot placed on the street keeps bubbling with tempting aromas. The small noodle shop is packed with people.

Yang Zhongyuan has more than ten years of experience in working in the imperial dining room, so as long as someone comes in, he can remember the order of the guests by raising his head and taking a serious look.

Although there are many customers and they eat for free, Yang Zhongyuan still cooks bowls of noodles one by one, and will not get confused because of the large number of people, and cook many bowls in one go.

He opened today, and Cheng Weizhe naturally wanted to take good care of him, so he kept busy helping him clean the table. The two of them worked hard to get up early in the morning, and then reluctantly sent the first wave of early guests away.

When he was finally free, Yang Zhongyuan took the whole bowl and went to the backyard to wash it.

Cheng Weizhe stood beside him, wanting to help, but was rejected by Yang Zhongyuan: "You can't do this dishwashing job, you definitely can't wash it clean, go to the front and help me look after the shop."

"If you don't ask me to try, how do you know I can't do it? Didn't you just do it anyway?" Cheng Weizhe muttered while staring at the movement of the shop ahead.

Yang Zhongyuan's hands were full of foam, he just smiled and pushed his back with his shoulder: "Okay, go quickly, and help me wipe the table by the way."

Cheng Weizhe was reluctant to go to the front. He knew Yang Zhongyuan's temper, and the things he refused, even if others said it was broken, would not work.

Yang Zhongyuan was left alone squatting under the sun, washing the dishes with sweat like rain. He washed the dishes very carefully. It's clean.

Zhou Quanxu waited for him to finish washing before coming out of the room.To be honest, the sight of his son squatting there working alone made him feel very sad. He didn't dare to go out, so he could only hide behind the crack of the window by himself, his eyes turning red while watching.

Since Yang Zhongyuan returned home, no matter what he does, he is in good order. He knows how to wash vegetables, cook, wash clothes, fetch water, but he doesn't even look at the books that he held in his hand every day when he was young.

He remembered that when he was a child, Zhou Quanxu asked him what he wanted to do in the future.He was only six or seven years old at that time. Although he was often naughty and troublesome, he was also a very filial and good boy. He tilted his head and thought about it for a long time, but replied: "Ah Zhe said he wants to be a big boy." If he is an official, then I will study hard and become an official with him to benefit the people of Liming."

A little child, how could he know what benefited the people of Liming, but the teacher often said it, and they remembered it in their hearts.

Zhou Quanxu thought that although he often quarreled with Cheng Weizhe when he was a child, he always followed behind him, no matter what he played together, even Cheng Weizhe had a share of his childhood dreams.

Now that he is back and can be a neighbor with Xiao Zhe, although he doesn't say anything, he is probably very happy in his heart.

Seeing that his son had finished washing the dishes, Zhou Quanxu wiped the corners of his eyes, and walked out of the room with a smile: "Xiao Yuan, there are many customers who get up early, why don't you ask Xiao Cheng to help wash the dishes? You can call me."

Even though he asked this question, he also knew that his son would definitely not ask him to do this favor. He was talking about it just to make him relax.

Yang Zhongyuan piled the cleaned bowls into a pile, and said in a low voice: "Father, you are not in good health, just rest more, I can do it."

After he finished speaking, he stood up steadily, holding a long row of bowls and putting them on the counter in the backyard, and then he breathed a sigh of relief: "Alkaline water burns hands, where can I let him touch it, I can wash it alone."

Zhou Quanxu felt better when he heard the last sentence, but when it came to the second sentence, for some reason, his heart skipped a beat.

"Then don't wash it with alkaline water, the noodle bowl is not dirty, just use hot water to scald it well." After thinking for a long time, Zhou Quanxu only replied this sentence.

Yang Zhongyuan smiled, stood by the counter and wiped his sweat, then raised the stack of bowls: "I'm used to it, it doesn't matter. We make a living by eating, so how can we do it if we don't wash it, Dad, the sun is shining outside, you Let's go back and have a rest first. I'll make dinner later, and let's eat before the guests come."

After he finished speaking, he turned around and entered the front shop, but as soon as he entered, he saw Cheng Weizhe staring at him in a daze, Yang Zhongyuan raised his eyebrows and asked him: "What's wrong with you? Hurry up and take the bowl for me." .”

"Oh, just come." Cheng Weizhe was called out, quickly regained his composure, took the bowl with his hand, and put it neatly into the cupboard.

When doing this action, he turned his back to Yang Zhongyuan, not letting him see his expression.

Sometimes, some things don't need to be stated clearly.

Yang Zhongyuan got up early in the morning. He was a young man in his twenties. He was not hungry at all from the bowl of noodles in the morning. He sat behind the stove and looked up at the sky outside.

"It's still early, it looks like we can be free for a while." Yang Zhongyuan said so, but his hands were not idle at all.

He took out a lotus root and two carrots from under the desk, put them in a basin and washed them carefully. After washing them, he soaked them in clean well water for later use. .

Cheng Weizhe put the bowl away, turned around to see that he was busy with work again, and couldn't help sighing: "Xiao Yuan, aren't you tired after working all morning? What are you going to do again? Why don't you take a break."

Yang Zhongyuan got up and pushed him to the backyard: "Go, fetch a bowl of rice and a bowl of lotus seeds."

The rice noodle bag was helped by Cheng Weizhe to resist entering the empty house, so he naturally knew where to put it.But when did you buy lotus seeds?

"How many ingredients did you buy and keep at home, and how can you finish them?" Cheng Weizhe looked at Yang Zhongyuan helplessly, no matter how much he pushed, he would not move.

Yang Zhongyuan curled his lips, seeing that he didn't move and didn't bother to pay attention to him, he turned around and took out the lotus root, picked up the kitchen knife and waved it up and down, and within a moment, neatly diced lotus root the size of a grape was cut out: "Azhe, although everyone eats rice Eat, but how to eat well, how to eat well, how to eat comfortably and properly, that is what matters, do you understand?"

Seeing that he was making a tirade, Cheng Weizhe hurriedly waved his hands, and ran to the backyard as if fleeing: "Okay, okay, you are wonderful, you are wonderful? It's not that I don't want you to spend so much effort."

Behind him, Yang Zhongyuan cut the crispy carrots again, but the smile on his face could not be concealed at all.

After Cheng Weizhe washed the rice under Yang Zhongyuan's instructions, added water and boiled it in a pot, he was talking about peeling the lotus seeds and taking the cores. It's not very good, it's better to keep the soaked water to drink.

"Xiao Yuan, it takes a lot of effort to be so particular about eating." Cheng Weizhe complained persistently while peeling the lotus seeds.

In fact, he didn't say this to argue with Yang Zhongyuan, but just because he was so tired after seeing him busy every day.To be honest, even if he is in a bad situation in the Cheng family, he is still the eldest son and grandson. He doesn't need to touch the family affairs. When he is busy, he himself will not wash the dishes and clean the table himself.

But when it comes to Yang Zhongyuan, he can do everything, and he can do everything well.

It has to be said that Yang Zhongyuan is much better than him in this aspect.He was ashamed of himself.

"I've been away from home for many years, and I haven't been filial to my father. Now I have the opportunity, so I naturally have to change my way to be filial to him. It's the best I can do so far, making the food more delicate and delicious. Of course it's important. Come with good intentions."

"Oh, you're right, you're just working hard." Cheng Weizhe peeled the lotus seeds, washed them himself, and sat on the side to watch him busy.

The rice was cooked in a brick-red clay pot, which Yang Zhongyuan bought from a grocery store across the street. It didn't look very pretty, but the steamed rice was delicious.

He put the small pot for cooking noodles aside and stared intently at the clay pot for cooking rice. When the water in the pot boiled, he quickly threw in diced lotus root, carrot and lotus seeds, and stirred it with chopsticks. Just cover the lid and press the fire.

Cheng Weizhe had a good nose, and after a while, he smelled the sweet and glutinous rice fragrance: "Can rice still be cooked like this? It smells so good."

Hearing his praise, Yang Zhongyuan lowered his head and laughed, his thick eyelashes were like a small fan, protecting the soft light in his eyes: "This is called Yujing rice."

"Yujing?" Hearing what he said, Cheng Weizhe raised his eyebrows and asked, "But the Yujing lotus at the head of Taihua Peak, the flowers bloom ten feet like a boat"?"

Yang Zhongyuan didn't expect that he knew this poem, so he couldn't help sighing: "Azhe, I didn't expect you to be so knowledgeable, and you hit the mark with one hit, and you said it right."

Cheng Weizhe was still pondering over that poem, and upon hearing the words, he said, "Replacing the word 'lotus root' with Yujing, the name is really wonderful."

That's right, it doesn't matter who named it, it was my master!Yang Zhongyuan was proud of himself, but he didn't miss a single word: "Danluo is hot in summer, and my father is prone to get angry after taking medicine. Lotus root clears away heat and invigorates the spleen, carrot nourishes qi and calms the five internal organs, and lotus seeds nourishes the lungs and heart. Good ingredients, when cooked together, not only can the aroma be brought out by the japonica rice, but also the taste of the ingredients is more mellow, which is the best."

As he was speaking, the Yujing rice in the clay pot was emitting a faint fragrance, as if he had accepted his words. The fragrance contained the thickness of rice, the fragrance of lotus root and lotus seeds, and the sweetness of carrots.It's rare that a simple can of rice can contain so many delicious flavors.

"It smells really good, and it must taste sweeter than honey. What's commendable is that it can warm and nourish the body, Xiao Yuan, you put your heart into it." Cheng Weizhe couldn't help but sigh.

After hearing this, Yang Zhongyuan smiled and said: "That's my own father, I don't care, who will care?"

"Yes, filial son Yang, what else do you need to order me? Quickly order! The guests will come again later, and my father will have no food to eat."

The lunch at noon was actually very simple. When the rice was cooked, Yang Zhongyuan asked Cheng Weizhe to put it in the yard to dry, then changed the frying pan and put it on the small iron stove, and quickly cooked a dish of slightly spicy and hot pepper strips of meat, a dish of salty and fragrant Eggplant with minced meat.In the end, he used Cheng Weizhe's very handsome knife skills to make a salad with three silks.

While there were no guests, a group of three sat in the front shop to eat.

While eating, Cheng Weizhe added a chopstick to mix with three shreds of salad and sighed: "Xiao Yuan, your potato shreds are cut like hair, it's just amazing."

Yang Zhongyuan patted him, raised the corner of his mouth and said: "Eat your meal, so much nonsense, don't forget that you eat for free!"