Chapter 29: Palace Cuisine

Xia Ning’an entered the black market, looking around. The black market was filled with all sorts of things.

There was very little grain in the black market, but there were plenty of other things. The autumn harvest hadn’t ended yet in the countryside, so grain was still very scarce. However, some villagers came here to sell sweet potatoes and potatoes.

There were various mountain goods, such as hazelnuts, chestnuts, and walnuts, as well as snacks like chicken cakes, fried dough twists, baked fruits, and pancakes.

Xia Ning’an picked out some things she hadn’t tried before. The prices were a bit higher than in the supply and marketing cooperative, but it was good that she didn’t need coupons.

Fried dough twists cost 4 cents each in the supply and marketing cooperative, but they cost 6 cents in the black market.

Rock sugar cost 20 cents per jin in the supply and marketing cooperative, but it cost 50 cents per jin here. However, it didn’t require coupons.

Xia Ning’an saw someone selling wild boar meat. She bought a wild boar head for 60 cents per jin. The head meat was delicious when boiled and stir-fried with chili peppers.

Next, Xia Ning’an saw fresh pears. They cost 5 cents per jin. She remembered that a kind of frozen pear eaten in the north during winter was probably this kind. She bought 50 jin of fresh pears to make frozen pears when the weather turned cold.

As she was browsing, she heard a pleasant middle-aged man’s voice, “Comrade, I finally found you.”

Xia Ning’an turned around in confusion and saw the middle-aged man who had sold her the diamond.

“Uncle, are you looking for me?”

“Yes, comrade. I’ve been looking for you for three days.”

“Uh… is there something you need?”

The middle-aged man pulled her aside and whispered to her,

“Comrade, do you still want old objects or palace cuisine recipes?”

Xia Ning’an’s eyes lit up. “Palace cuisine recipes?”

“Yes, do you want them?”

Xia Ning’an nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes.”

With this recipe, her cooking skills would improve significantly. She wouldn’t have to listen to Xiaomiao complain about the lack of variety in her dishes anymore.

“Did you bring the recipe?”

“No, my neighbor sells recipes and old objects. I can take you there. Are you free?”

“Okay, I’ll go with you.”

Xia Ning’an followed the middle-aged man for about 20 minutes. They arrived at the west side of the county. This area used to be inhabited by the poorest people, far from the family compounds of various factories in the county. They stopped in front of a dilapidated small courtyard. The gate was old and rickety, and Xia Ning’an was afraid to push it hard, as if it would fall down with a little force.

The middle-aged man called out at the gate, “Dawei, are you home?”

“Yes, I’m coming.” A man in his 30s opened the gate as he spoke.

The middle-aged man sent her into the courtyard and turned to leave.

As soon as Xia Ning’an entered the courtyard, she smelled a strong medicinal odor. Someone in this family must be sick. Sure enough, she soon heard a woman coughing, a heart-wrenching cough that made her feel uncomfortable. She quickly took out a bottle of pear syrup that Bond had brewed a few days ago from the space. The water used was Farm Spring Water, which should help relieve the cough.

“Uncle, this is pear syrup I brewed. Give Auntie a cup of water with it to relieve her cough.”

The middle-aged man named Dawei hesitated and didn’t take it. He knew that brewing pear syrup required a lot of rock sugar. Rock sugar and pears were good things. How could he accept such a valuable gift from someone for no reason?

“Uncle, hurry up. Auntie is suffering.”

Hearing this, the middle-aged man didn’t think twice. He took it, went inside, and made a cup for his wife.

Soon, the middle-aged man came out with a cloth bag.

“Comrade, do you want these things?”

Xia Ning’an took the cloth bag and opened it. Inside was a pair of jade pendants, worn on the waist. The man’s was called a jade pendant, and the woman’s was called a jade ring. They were a pair. There was also a hairpin with what seemed to be agate embedded in it, a pair of emerald earrings, a palace cuisine recipe, and a small gold bar. The items were all in good condition. They might have been gifts from the imperial palace.

“How are you going to exchange these?”

“Comrade, do you have any grain?”

Xia Ning’an had already anticipated that they were short of grain. “Yes.”

The middle-aged man seemed to have made a big decision. “I want to exchange 500 jin of fine grain and 500 jin of coarse grain plus 300 yuan.”

Xia Ning’an knew they were short of money and grain. She thought they would want to exchange for a lot of things, but they only asked for these. The small gold bar could be exchanged for at least 500 yuan in the black market. Even if they wanted 1,000 jin of grain, it would only cost a few dozen yuan. It was just that they couldn’t buy fine grain.

“Okay, I’ll exchange these for you. I can also give you some coupons.”

She said as she took out 300 yuan and some coupons from her pocket: 10-foot cloth coupons, 3 jin cotton coupons, a thermos coupon, 3 jin meat coupons, 2 milk powder coupons, 2 jin sugar coupons, 5 industrial coupons, and 2 soap coupons.

Tong Dawei waved his hands when he saw Xia Ning’an take out so many coupons.

“Comrade, you’re a lifesaver for exchanging grain for us. You don’t need to give us so much.”

Xia Ning’an knew they would refuse when they saw so many coupons, but she knew the value of these things in the future. She was afraid her conscience would be troubled. She was even more impressed by them. Even in such difficult circumstances, they were unwilling to take advantage of others. Moreover, these coupons were very precious to them. This quality made Xia Ning’an admire them even more. An idea formed in her mind.

“Uncle, I saw this recipe of yours. May I ask if you are a descendant of an imperial chef?”

Tong Dawei didn’t answer Xia Ning’an’s question.

Xia Ning’an suddenly realized and asked, “Uncle, are you very good at cooking?”

“Yes, I cook a little better than others.” This time, Tong Dawei answered quickly.

“Then, I’ll consider these coupons as my tuition fees. When I come to the county, I’ll come to your place, and you can teach me a dish. I’ll bring my own ingredients. How about that?”

“Okay.” Tong Dawei agreed happily. This way, he could accept the coupons without feeling burdened. These coupons were exactly what his family needed. Winter was coming soon. With the cloth coupons and cotton coupons, they could make cotton clothes, and winter wouldn’t be so difficult.

“That’s settled then. I’ll go deliver the grain to you now.” She said as she got up and left the courtyard.

Xia Ning’an left the courtyard and went to an empty alley to take out her tricycle. She took out 500 jin of coarse grain and 500 jin of fine grain, covered them with a piece of cloth, and rode to Tong Dawei’s house.

The courtyard gate was open. When she entered, she saw two children in the courtyard. They must have gone out to collect firewood. There were no mountains in the county, so they collected scraps of furniture or branches. The boy looked about eleven or twelve years old, and the girl was four or five. Their faces were a little dirty, and their clothes were patched, but they were clean. The two children were stunned when they saw a beautiful older sister enter.

Xia Ning’an had already taken off her mask and hat, revealing her beautiful face.

She pushed the tricycle into the courtyard and waved to the two children.

She took out a bag of Da Bai Tu milk candy and gave each child a few pieces.

“Where’s Dad?”

The little girl blinked her beautiful eyes, looking at the beautiful older sister. She didn’t take the Da Bai Tu for a moment. Xia Ning’an felt soft inside. She went over and touched the little girl’s cheek. It felt very good. She squatted down and asked the little girl,

“Can you go call your father? Sister has something to talk to him about.”

At that moment, Tong Dawei had just finished feeding his wife a cup of rock sugar pear syrup.

He was stunned when he saw Xia Ning’an without her mask. He didn’t expect the person doing this to be such a beautiful young girl.

“Uncle, here’s the grain. You can put it away quickly. My name is Xia Ning’an.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll move it down right away.”

He said as he moved the grain from the tricycle to the kitchen.

“Xia Tongzhi, my name is Tong Dawei. These are my children, Fengfeng and Tiantian.”

Xia Ning’an greeted the two children and then pushed her tricycle out, bidding farewell to Tong Dawei’s family.