Chapter 354 - That Nightmare (1/2)
Before the opening of the braised food shop, Little Shitou and his classmates were all taken to the prefectural city by Rongxuan Academy. Why didn’t Yu Xiaocao privately cook for Little Shitou before the college examination? That was because the academy was doing a group training for all the students participating in the exams!
During the day, the teachers arranged intensive pre-examination training for the students. In the evening, Headmaster Yuan called Little Shitou over to his house. He reviewed the readings, pointed out the pros and cons, and explained the methods of improvement. Little Shitou had made great progress in this period of time, and he felt more confident in the college examination.
After he entered the courtyard from the side door, Little Shitou followed the fragrant smell to the kitchen and saw his second sister and oldest paternal aunt busily working inside. Yu Xiaocao was going to test the oven today. She took out a roasted duck with a golden-brown color and an attractive fragrance from the hot oven. The fire shined upon the contented smile on her face, and her eyes were filled with a sense of satisfaction.
“Second Sister, how did you know that I would arrive at the prefectural city today, and even prepare a roasted duck for me?” Little Shitou had been focused on studying in the past half a year and didn’t go home at all during breaks. He didn’t even know that the family was going to open a braised food shop, and thus happily asked under the impression that they were preparing the food for him.
Yu Xiaocao put the roasted duck that was on the hook on a plate. When it cooled down, she tore off a leg for him and said with a smile, “Try it. This is the new oven roasted duck that Sister came up with. How is the taste?”
Little Shitou hurriedly took a bite and carefully savored it. Then he repeatedly nodded his head and said, “Delicious! It’s not inferior to the taste of Zhenxiu Restaurant’s ‘fruit-scented roasted duck’! I’m not worried about Second Sister’s culinary skills at all!! Let’s eat ‘one duck three dishes’ for lunch. I’ve been staying in the academy for half a year, so I'm desperately craving it!!”
Although the food at the academy had gotten better in the past half a year, it was still mostly vegetable dishes. At times, when they provided meat dishes, the food would be snatched up by the wealthier students. During the past half a year, visits from family were forbidden, let alone delivery of food. Even when he went to Headmaster Yuan’s home for tutoring, he would complain endlessly about missing his second sister’s cooking.
As Little Shitou gnawed on the duck leg, he asked, “Did you guys rent out the stores in front? That’s not a bad idea. We can at least get some profits. What kind of business are they doing? The layout looks quite neat and tidy…”
Yu Caifeng, who was cleaning the kitchen, looked at him with a smile and said, “We didn’t rent out the shops in front. We’re going to open a shop ourselves! Didn’t you notice that there are more stoves in the kitchen, as well as an additional oven?”
“Is our family going to sell food? That will definitely make a lot of money. Second Sister has such excellent cooking skills, so if we open a restaurant, there’s no way that Zhenxiu Restaurant can compete with us!” Little Shitou blindly worshiped his second sister and was full of confidence in her.
Yu Xiaocao glared at him with a smile, “Your second sister is only good at cooking a few dishes, so how can I compare with big chefs who had devoted themselves to cooking for decades? Don’t make such comments outside, lest others laugh at your arrogance behind your back!”
After that, she told the little fellow about their collaboration with Oldest Aunt’s family in opening the braised food shop. Making braised food was her specialty. Not only did she have secret recipes, but she also had mystic-stone water as a cheat. There was an absolute guarantee for the taste. Little Shitou was also full of confidence in his family’s braised food shop. He repeatedly asked when it would open so that he could promote it to his classmates who lived in the prefectural city.
“You don’t have to worry about the shop. The exam will be in three days, so your task is to relax your mind and focus on studying!” Yu Caifeng was afraid that her young nephew would be distracted at this important moment, so she solemnly reminded him.
The Yu Family had been farmers for many generations, so they were all looking forward to having a county-level official in the family to bring honor to their ancestors. In the past, the Yu Family had put all their hopes in Shitou’s younger uncle, Yu Bo. Now, they also had Little Shitou and more hope. Thus, they naturally attached great importance to this matter!
Yu Caifeng thought about it and asked Little Shitou, “Shitou, your younger uncle is also participating in this exam, right? Did he come with you? Did he say where he was staying?”
Yu Xiaocao didn’t want to be too involved with Madam Zhang and she also didn’t really like that selfish uncle of hers, so she interjected, “When we came to the prefectural city last time, Younger Uncle stayed at his classmate’s house. There’s no need for us to worry so much. Oldest Aunt, try this roasted duck. Is there anything that needs to be improved?”
Yu Caifeng also wasn’t very close with this younger brother of hers. Madam Zhang accepted the Liu Family’s betrothal gifts of twenty taels, yet she didn’t prepare any dowry for her at all. When she made her utmost efforts to argue for what was right, Madam Zhang told her that the money was used for her younger brother’s tuition in a bold and confident manner.
Since she was young, Madam Zhang had been partial to her youngest son. She and Yu Hai didn’t have enough to eat and warm clothes to wear, while Yu Bo and Yu Caidie could eat an extra egg or fine grain steamed bun every day. They didn’t know that Madam Zhang was secretly cooking a separate meal for her biological children behind their backs. However, they weren’t stupid. These matters would naturally be exposed over time. Yu Caifeng had a lot of complaints about Madam Zhang’s biasness, so she also didn’t really like this younger brother of hers.
In her heart, Yu Hai was her only real brother who was born of the same mother! Hearing her niece's words, Yu Caifeng stopped thinking about Yu Bo’s matters. It was getting closer to the opening time of the shop, and she was also getting increasingly busy. The renovation in front could be completed today, so she needed to go over and clean up everything. Last night, her husband and Yu Hai had gone back, saying that they would slaughter two of the pigs first and deliver them over. It was going to be even more busy tomorrow.
There were also a dozen or so vats of pickled vegetables, which were all made by her and her niece. How exactly did her niece’s brain grow? She actually had so many recipes for pickled food! The salted vegetables should be ready in the next two days. She must taste them carefully and let her little niece know if they’re tasty.
Yu Xiaocao and her aunt were very busy, and Little Shitou wasn’t affected at all. He still studied and rested according to his schedule at the school. During his breaks, he also helped them to the best of his capabilities. He laughed and talked every day with no trace of tension.