Chang’an Small Restaurant

Chapter 10 Sour Plum Drink’s Value

The loud sounds of thunder followed every lightning strike, the harsh winds caused the window lattices to tremble and creak. Seeing large raindrops falling down into her room, Shen Shaoguang went to close the window. She then moved a small stool by the door, sat down, and watched the rain as she worked hard to roll up glutinous rice balls. In a bit, she’ll pair it with some glutinous rice wine and have it for breakfast.

Shen Shaoguang was a northerner, the first time she tried southern chinese food was when she was in college. In the same dormitory, there was a girl from Jiangnan. She had plump, dewy skin and a soft spoken voice, who loved to tinker with dormitory food. With a single rice cooker, she could come up with dozens of  different dishes, and was at an equal footing when competing with the dormitory auntie.

This specific glutinous rice ball with sweet fermented rice wine pairing was learnt from that dexterous southern girl. Shen Shaoguang didn’t think much of it when she initially tasted it, but gradually, she fell in love with its subtle sweetness. Though different from the heavy and colorful northerns’ diet, it was very soothing to the stomach. It was no better late-night snack to have after a long night of studying.

Shen Shaoguang couldn't help but sigh when she recalled those happy moments; it was hard not to reminisce on rainy days.

It continued to heavily downpour; the water in the yard accumulated more and more, creating puddles all around. Shen Shaoguang looked up, the sky was clearing up, so the rain should be coming to an end soon.

By chance, the rain stopped as the morning drum sounded. It seemed it was too late to set up her breakfast stall.

The Heavens seemed to have woken up since the Dragon Boat Festival and made up for the rain that was owed before. It poured every three days and trickled every two. The strange matter was that the heat didn’t seem to subside after the frequent precipitation, but instead attacked the civilians with an even more unbearable manner– humid heat, or as they called it in the future, ‘sauna days’.

Because of the unforeseen weather, Shen Shaoguang's financial plans to make money by setting up a stall was also delayed. Fortunately, she saved some money from her previous earnings. This included the Dragon Boat Festival at the Qujiang District, which earned her close to a season's worth of profits, so she wasn’t anxious— There was also no point of being anxious, no?

Shen Shaoguang ate her glutinous rice balls and sipped on the glutinous rice wine with candied-osmanthus sweet soup while watching the rain come to a gradual halt. Along with the cessation of rain, came an unsuspected guest.

With broad shoulders, long legs, and a dark, tanned face, his strong physique donned on a round-collar, maroon brown gown. Shen Shaoguang squinted her eyes slightly, and soon remembered this familiar face. It was the officer who bought out all of her sour plum juice that day!

He couldn’t have suffered an upset stomach and is here to settle account, right?...

Jing Ci, the receptionist nun who had led the officer in, looked at Shen Shaoguang with an inquiring expression. Shen Shaoguang didn't mind curiosity and turned to ask the officer with a smile, "For what does General need me for?"

The officer was just an eighth-rank regimental adjutant. Although embarrassed by the girl’s addressment of a title that was ten grades above his, he didn't correct her and smiled, "Your smoke plum beverage from the other day was brewed very well. My colleagues and comrades all have been craving it since. After making countless discreet inquiries, they found out that the seller was currently staying at a nunnery in Chongxian Lane. Since we are passing by, we wanted to see if we could purchase some more."

Jing Ci’s expression immediately changed when she heard that the man was a general. Hearing that he was for sour plum beverage, her sloping eyebrows furrowed inwards. He’s here to give more money to this surnamed Shen!

Unexpectedly, Shen Shaoguang didn’t seem keen to do this business. "General is unaware, but that was specially prepared for the Dragon Boat Festival. I don’t usually sell beverages. If General wants to drink personally, please let me know one day in advance, and I can prepare it. If… it is for the military, please forgive me for not daring to follow orders."

The officer frowned. "Why?"

"From the color of General's uniform that day, I can infer that General is part of the imperial army. The imperial army is to insure the safety of the Son of Heaven (Emperor) and defend the capital, such responsibilities are of eminent importance. The members of the imperial army are to follow a routined diet, as an ordinary civilian, I dare not supersede." Interacting with the imperial army meant treading in deep waters. It was fine to allow them to make a purchase in public occasionally, but she was not ready to court disaster; Shen Shaoguang always cherished her life.

The officer did not expect Shen Shaoguang to be so cautious, so he couldn't help but look at her a few times.

Shen Shaoguang smiled and allowed him to scrutinize her.

"Since you are unwilling then I won't force it. Goodbye!" The officer put on his bamboo hat and turned to leave.

"Actually, it's not completely impossible—" Shen Shaoguang laughed.

The officer frowned and turned to look at her.

"Whether the plum beverage is brewed in my pot or in the pot of the Imperial Army's public kitchen, the finished product would remain the same, so why not let the public kitchen do it?"

Of course because it tasted completely different! It's not like their kitchen hadn't made it in the past.

Suddenly, the officer realized. "Perhaps you want to—"

Shen Shaoguang narrowed her eyes and smiled. "I would like to offer this smoked plum beverage recipe. When the time comes, the public kitchen can brew it whenever and however much they want. That way, it’ll be guaranteed to be clean and safe, and General wouldn’t have to shoulder any responsibility. How wonderful is that?" To surmount retail and wholesale sales to directly conduct a recipe buyout.

The officer nodded slowly. Now that he had detected the shrewdness of the young girl in front of him, he didn't dare to assume that she was really just ‘offering’, so he asked, "How much are you asking?"

Shen Shaoguang pondered for a moment. "How about twenty taels of silver?"

Shen Shaoguang believed this was not an over-the-top request. Twenty taels of silver was about a year's worth of living expenses for a commoner, but for a rich man, it was the same price of two bolts of medium quality silk fabric. Every government establishment’s public kitchen had specially allocated budgets for food expenses. However, these establishments also used these fundings to generate even more profits, so there was no need for food expenses; the officials often divided the food expense budgets amongst themselves. As an army directly under the royal family, they must be allocated a generous amount of funding, so what’s there to care about twenty taels of silver?

The officer was in his thirties and was only an eighth-rank official with a monthly salary of only a dozen taels a month. He frowned when he heard Shen Shaoguang asking for twenty taels, but when he recalled about the service charge of the public kitchen and the extravagance of his superiors, maybe this was a tolerable amount for those people?

Since she was well aware that he was but a minor official and may not be able to make such a decision, Shen Shaoguang smiled and suggested, "Although the matter is no means big, it involves the entirety of the imperial army. General might as well consider it carefully."

The officer nodded to Shen Shaoguang, put on the bamboo hat, and walked out with the woven rush raincoat in his hand.

Jing Ci, who had been spectating on the side, looked at Shen Shaoguang with widened eyes, as if the door to a new world had been opened in front of her.

To Shen Shaoguang, sour plum drink was not a rare commodity; it made no difference in profit if she monopolized it. Besides, she was really short of money now— Setting up a stall to sell food was not feasible, the weather dictated her work days and was often unpredictable. The location near the entrance of the Lane was also limited, she couldn’t even set up a sitting area for her customers. Stuck flipping crepes on a small stove every day, will she ever make enough to retire? Therefore, it was better to set up a small shop.

In the afternoon of the second day, when she saw the officer's figure, Shen Shaoguang instantly discerned that the matter was settled.

The officer was not the talkative type. Since his superiors approved it, he directly gave Shen Shaoguang twenty taels of silver, and ordered to the man wearing a servant outfit behind him, "You will learn to brew sour plum beverage from this young miss."

Shen Shaoguang took out the necessary ingredients and taught them wholeheartedly. Before the evening drum striked, a small pot of sour plum juice was finally completed. After cooling it in the well in the backyard of the nunnery, she poured out two cups, for the officer and servant to taste.

The officer nodded. "It's this flavor." Then he asked the servant, "Have you learned it?"

The servant was quite young, about twenty-years-old, and had a pair of clever smiling eyes. At the officer’s inquiry, he quickly smiled and replied, "Don't worry, Regimental Adjutant, this servant has committed it to memory."

Shen Shaoguang originally wanted to write down the recipe and hand it over. This way, the business would be settled once and for all, but on a second thought, out of the paranoia that she might be falsely prosecuted, Shen Shaoguang didn't write it in the end. So she smiled and said, "If there’s anything you are unsure of, feel free to come ask me."

The officer nodded and left with the servant. Shen Shaoguang weighed the twenty taels of silver and went back to her room happily.