BXBX NOVEL Chapter 170 - 170: Honored Guest
After being busy all afternoon, Qiao Xiaomai had stewed all the thousand plus chicken feet. Just as she had predicted, they tasted even better than before.
The soy milk that Qiao Changshun boiled before making tofu skin also tasted better. And she tried making some tofu pudding, which turned out to be smoother than the previous batch.
The following day was the Tomb-Sweeping Festival. The weather was gloomy, so Qiao Dami stayed at home while Qiao Changshun and Qiao Xiaomai went to town to deliver the chicken feet.
Over a thousand chicken feet earned them more than two strings of cash.
As they were leaving Zuixian Building and about to drive the Donkey Cart home, Yuan Ding appeared in front of the cart, his round face beaming with a friendly smile, “Miss Qiao, Uncle Qiao, our Shopkeeper invites you.”
“What’s the matter?” Qiao Xiaomai asked.
“You’ll know when you get there, it’s good news.”
Qiao Xiaomai frowned. The weather was gloomy and could rain at any moment, but this Shopkeeper He was certainly playing games with them!
Still, she didn’t want to put Yuan Ding in a difficult position, so she signaled Qiao Changshun to drive the cart towards Extreme Taste Residence.
Once they entered Extreme Taste Residence, Shopkeeper He greeted them with a hearty laugh, “Miss Qiao, Brother Qiao, please, please come in.”
“Shopkeeper He, just spill the beans quickly. It’s about to rain and my father and I need to get home ASAP.” Qiao Xiaomai said directly, driving the cart in the rain was definitely not an enjoyable experience.
Shopkeeper He clicked his tongue a couple of times, letting out a silent sigh.
He didn’t know exactly what had offended Qiao Xiaomai, as she had always been lukewarm towards him.
However, Tong Sanlang had instructed him to build a closer relationship with Qiao Xiaomai, so he had no choice but to keep trying to cozy up to her, even if she seemed distant.
Still smiling widely, he said, “Well, the thing is, a distinguished guest has visited Extreme Taste Residence, who is very curious about your cooking skills. So, I’d like to invite you to cook a meal for the guest. Of course, you won’t be working for free. I’ll pay you with silver.”
“How about ten taels for a meal?”
Qiao Xiaomai gently raised her eyebrows. For Shopkeeper He to readily offer ten taels of silver to invite her to cook, the guest must be very distinguished indeed.
Seeing that Qiao Xiaomai didn’t seem overly surprised, Shopkeeper He gritted his teeth and said, “Twenty taels, and if you can satisfy our guest, 1’11 add ten more taels after.”
Qiao Xiaomai chuckled. She hadn’t hesitated earlier, but had been surprised.
This distinguished guest must be someone that Extreme Taste Residence wanted to build a good relationship with.
However, she was planning to make money with the Spiritual Spring water and the thirty taels of silver weren’t going anywhere!
“Let’s go to the kitchen. What does the guest like to eat?” she asked.
Shopkeeper He let out a sigh of relief, “Your choice, just make it delicious. The guest found out that the cold jelly noodles and tofu pudding were your creations and is interested in tasting your skills.”
Qiao Xiaomai nodded to show her understanding.
She asked Qiao Changshun to rest in Shopkeeper He’s room, and then followed Shopkeeper He to the kitchen.
The kitchen of Extreme Taste Residence was quite large, and the ingredients were plentiful. Qiao Xiaomai took a look around and spotted lobster and sea cucumber, and her mouth started to water.
But since the original owner of the body considered lobster and sea cucumber to be luxury items that she had never dealt with, she decided to make simple home-cooked dishes instead.
Under the pretense of not wanting others to steal her techniques, she asked everyone to leave the kitchen, leaving only Shopkeeper He to tend to the fire.
She wanted to replace the regular water with the Spiritual Spring water secretly!
After nearly two hours, she made eight dishes and a soup: Braised Pork with Stewed Bean Thread, Braised Pork Knuckle, Minced Meat Tofu, Sweet and Sour Ribs, Toffee Sweet Potato, Stir-fried Mustard Greens, Cold Marinated Wood Ear Mushroom, Garlic Flesh Pork, and Tofu Vegetable Soup.
Once the dishes were done, Shopkeeper He, while controlling his drooling, ordered his servants to pack them into food boxes to be sent to the Academy.
The distinguished guest was residing temporarily in Bailu Academy.
Before heading to the Academy, Shopkeeper He gave Qiao Xiaomai twenty taels of silver, asking her to wait at Extreme Taste Residence, in case the guest wanted to meet her afterwards..