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Chen Aman listened attentively and nodded obediently. Despite being only a few months younger than Chen Jue, she was much more sensible.
Chen Shi was aware of the special treatment given to Chen Feng by the old monk and was amazed at how capable she had become after her illness. He exclaimed, “A’Feng is blessed, and Second Brother and Sister-in-law will have a good life in the future.”
After putting their things away, the group gathered in the courtyard to chat. Whenever someone came to buy something, Chen Shi would return to the shop. After finishing, he would return to the backyard to continue the conversation.
They talked about Chen Yu and Chen Tang. Chen Yu didn’t have a talent for studying and couldn’t make progress. Chen Shi’s plan was for him to finish his studies this year and then join him in the family business. Chen Yu would be fifteen next year and would be ready for marriage. They were currently saving money, and if the marriage proposal went well, he might be getting married in the year after next year. Chen Aman was also twelve and had some marriage proposals, although the conditions weren’t good…
As the sun gradually set in the west, the noise of children playing could be heard. Mrs. Zhang mentioned that the children in the Zeng School was getting out.
Their house was directly opposite the back gate of the Zeng School. Mrs. Zhang proudly stated that their youngest son, Chen Tang, was studying there. The Zeng School was well-known, and many children, not just from the Zeng family but from other families as well, aspired to study there. Children from outside families had to know the person in charge of the school and pass an entrance examination, and the tuition was also more expensive.
Chen Feng had heard that Chen Tang, like Chen Ming, was good at studying and had some talent.
She asked, “It’s so noisy. Are there many students at the school?”
Chen Shi replied, “Yes, there are over a hundred students.” He then told Mrs. Zhang, “Go, it’s time to prepare dinner.”
Mrs. Zhang got up and, together with Chen Aman, went into the kitchen. Mrs. Wang and Chen Feng wanted to help but were pushed out by Mrs. Zhang, who said, “You’ve been on the road for so long, take a rest.”
Not long after, Chen Tang returned home. He was a year younger than Lu, fair-skinned, and shared more features with Mrs. Zhang. After cheerfully greeting everyone, he began to play with Lu, Dabao, Qiqi, and Gray.
Soon after, Chen Yu also returned. The private school he attended was a bit further away, about two streets from there. He resembled Chen Shi more and was a handsome young man. After greeting everyone, he took the money given by Chen Shi and bought some braised snacks from the nearby street.
It was evident that Chen Shi’s children were well-educated.
In the evening, with no outsiders present, both families sat at the large Eight Immortals table in the main hall to eat. The vegetables were brought by the main branch, and they also fried a plate of peanuts and bought half a pound of braised pig’s head meat and a small portion of salted duck.
Chen Shi kept serving Lu and Dabao braised meat and duck, while Mrs. Zhang constantly served Ms. Wang and Chen Feng these two items. Chen Tang looked at the food and swallowed saliva but didn’t serve himself much, instead eating more peanuts as a side dish.
Mrs. Wang and Chen Feng kept offering some of their meat to Chen Tang and Chen Aman from their own bowls. The two children dared to eat only after observing their father’s expression.
Although there wasn’t much food on the table, there was plenty of laughter and conversation.
Chen Feng said to Chen Shi, “Uncle, your house is next to the school, you can make money from the students.” In the past, houses near schools were not only expensive, but there were also many shops and vendors dedicated to making money from the students.
Chen Shi replied, “Starting a school requires a lot of money, and my family doesn’t have that much capital.”
Chen Feng smiled and said, “You don’t have to sell brushes and inkstones, you can sell small snacks.”
Mrs. Zhang shook her head and said, “The students all come in through the front gate, and the street in front is much bigger, with two candy and snack shops. Besides, your Uncle and Aunt don’t know how to make any tasty snacks that would attract them.”
Chen Feng smiled and said, “The snacks I’m talking about are different from what they sell.” Seeing the somewhat hesitant expressions of Chen Shi and his wife, she added, “Don’t worry, it won’t require much money for a small-scale business. Besides, you already have the necessary items, you just need to buy some ingredients. While you run the miscellaneous business, you can also manage this.”
Chen Feng genuinely wanted to help them.
Chen Shi thought to himself, “Once A’Feng’s illness is cured, life will be better for second Brother’s family. She’s definitely capable.”
He then smiled at Mrs. Zhang and said, “Let’s listen to A’Feng.”
Chen Feng continued, “Tomorrow, we’ll just try it out and start small. If Uncle thinks it works, we’ll continue, and if not, we’ll drop it.” She then explained what she wanted Chen Shi’s family to make.
Chen Shi and the others were quite intrigued and thought it could be profitable.
After the meal, Chen Feng asked Chen Shi to fetch more wooden sticks or bamboo to be fashioned into thin, long skewers. Both Chen Shi and Chen Yu had to endure the laborious task of skewer-making, working until midnight.
The next morning, Mrs. Wang accompanied Mrs. Zhang to the market to buy the braising ingredients, while Chen Feng asked them to go to the herbal shop to purchase some grass fruit and tangerine peel. By adding these two items, the flavor would be distinguishable from other braised dishes. It would also differ from the Nine-Spice Braised Dish served at the Xile Restaurant and would not violate any agreements. She specifically instructed Chen Shi and his wife not to disclose these two ingredients, as it was a secret recipe.
They also bought some affordable pig skin, lean meat, pig liver, pig intestines, quail eggs, and some dried tofu, bean curd, yam, and kelp.
Unfortunately, potatoes were not available in this era.
Once they brought the items back, everyone busied themselves with preparations. Except for the large intestines, which required longer cooking time and had to be pre-cooked, the rest of the ingredients would be braised directly in the afternoon.
After lunch, Chen Feng asked Chen Shi to bring the small stove from the side room and place it near the shop’s entrance. She had already prepared the braising ingredients in the kitchen and poured them into a pot of water. She then took the large iron pot outside to continue simmering, allowing the aroma of the braising sauce to permeate the air.
To prevent others from seeing the braising ingredients, she covered them with a white cloth. Around the hour of the rabbit (5-7 pm), she started adding the meat, peanuts, tofu products, vegetables, and quail eggs into the pot for braising.
The aroma became even more intense.
They took a large basin and a chopping board outside, and once the ingredients were cooked, they were cut into small pieces. Meat, pig liver, and intestines were cut into smaller pieces, while vegetables were cut into larger ones and skewered. Chen Feng was in charge of cutting, and the others, including Dabao, participated in skewering. Peanuts couldn’t be skewered, so they were placed in a dish.
Chen Feng named these skewers “braised skewers.” Barbecuing in the past was more complex, so she started with something simpler.
After trying a skewer each, both Chen Aman and Dabao exclaimed, “It smells so good!”
While they were cutting and skewering, the enticing aroma attracted many passersby and neighbors. What surprised them even more was that even vegetarian items could be braised.
Meat skewers were priced at four wen per skewer, or seven wen for two. Vegetarian skewers were two wen each, or three wen for two. The prices were not high, and a couple of skewers could satisfy one’s appetite, while several could quell hunger.
In this neighborhood, where living conditions were not particularly affluent, people were delighted with the flavorful braised skewers. Soon, they attracted several buyers, some purchasing one skewer, and others buying two. Within a short period, they had repeat customers, and gradually, more people started showing up. Some adults who were unwilling to eat themselves bought skewers for their children, who were clamoring for them.
Some people enjoyed the taste so much that they purchased several skewers and even used a scale to weigh them.