Early the next morning, Luo Qingqing cooked some millet porridge and steamed a few coarse buns. After eating a little to fill her stomach, she left the rest warming in the large pot. Carrying the dried balloon flower roots and ten taels of silver, she set off toward the town. It was only about two li away, not far at all.
She first went to the pharmacy to sell the balloon flower roots. Since they had already been processed, five jin earned fifteen copper coins. The shopkeeper said he would continue buying herbs from her in the future at a fair price, and Luo Qingqing agreed with a smile.
As she stepped out of the pharmacy, she noticed a fabric shop across the street. Gu Jing’an’s clothes seemed somewhat worn. This was a perfect chance to curry favor.
Step three of Luo’s Survival Guide: buy things for him, spend money on him, and showcase financial power.
“Miss, what would you like to choose? We have fabrics, ready-made clothes, trousers, and shoes,” the shop assistant greeted her as soon as she entered.
Luo Qingqing looked around. “How much is that dark blue robe?”
“Miss, you have a good eye. This fabric comes all the way from Jiangnan. Six hundred copper coins.”
A dou of rice only cost six coins, so six hundred was indeed expensive. But she could not bear to part with the child if she wanted to catch the wolf. Her life mattered more, money could always be earned again.
She picked out another bean-green robe for Gu Jing’an, along with a black and a white pair of trousers. The two children could not be forgotten either, so she bought each of them two sets of school clothes and one set for everyday wear. Shen Huaiyu also needed a set, as he was sturdier than Gu Jing’an, and tight clothes might aggravate his wounds. Since she had already saved him, spending a little more on clothes did not matter.
In total, she spent two taels of silver. The shopkeeper rounded off the price, so Luo Qingqing did not bother bargaining. Since she still had other things to buy, she left the clothes at the shop for the time being.
She really needed to find a way to make money soon, but she had not yet figured out exactly how. After wandering through half the town, she still had no clear plan.
“Waaah, Mother, I feel awful, my mouth hurts so much.” A little boy’s crying caught her attention.
Her eyes lit up instantly. Chili peppers. They were actually chili peppers. With chili peppers, there were so many dishes she could make. The Gu family courtyard had none, so she had assumed they had not yet been introduced in this era.
“What kind of thing is this that you’re selling? Look at my child now. What are you going to do about it?” A woman shouted at the elderly lady selling the peppers.
“Ma’am, your child has just been overwhelmed by the spiciness. Quickly take him to a tea stall and give him some water,” Luo Qingqing said, handing the woman two copper coins.
The woman took the money and dragged the child away.
Luo Qingqing gave the coins partly out of goodwill. If she had not heard the boy’s cries, she would not have noticed the peppers. Moreover, even if she had not paid, the woman would likely have forced the old lady to compensate her, perhaps demanding even more.
“Miss, these red fruits aren’t poisonous, they just numb the mouth,” the old lady explained anxiously.
“Grandmother, did you grow these yourself?”
“No, my husband found them in the back mountain. We had never seen them before.”
Luo Qingqing immediately thought of a way to make money. She could find a struggling restaurant and teach them how to make hot pot and spicy mixed dishes.
She decided to buy the basket of chili peppers first to try things out. “Grandmother, I’ll take all of these. Please weigh them for me.”
“Oh, miss, you are truly kind. We did not put much effort into growing these, just give me one copper coin.”
In the end, Luo Qingqing gave her three coins. The old lady mentioned she usually set up her stall here, selling eggs and vegetables from home.
Luo Qingqing planned to return to her once she had finalized her arrangement with a restaurant.
She visited several places but found none satisfactory. After searching for quite some time, she came across two restaurants facing each other in the busiest part of the street. She turned into the one that had no customers.
The interior was decent. After looking around, she said, “Shopkeeper, may I borrow your kitchen?”
The shopkeeper nodded and gestured for a waiter to take her there. He had already been planning to close the restaurant and transfer it soon.
The kitchen was well-stocked. Luo Qingqing had already purchased the necessary ingredients for the hot pot on her way here.
She heated a large pot, added sesame oil, Sichuan peppercorns, chili peppers, minced garlic, scallion whites, star anise, bay leaves, and more, stir-frying them evenly. Once the aroma was released, she added water and brought it to a boil. Beef, duck feet, enoki mushrooms, potato slices, and leafy greens were prepared.
By this time, the shopkeeper and the waiter were already standing at the kitchen entrance. When the pot was ready, Luo Qingqing beckoned them to come and eat. They did not stand during the ceremony. After handing her the bowls and chopsticks, they eagerly dug in.
As expected, no one could resist the charm of hot pot.
By the end, nothing edible remained in the pot. The shopkeeper wiped his mouth and awkwardly set down his chopsticks.
“Miss, I have never seen such a dish before. What is it called?”
“This is called hot pot. Shopkeeper, how do you think it would sell?”
His expression turned excited. “It would surely be a booming success.”
“What if I wanted to cooperate with you? I provide the recipe, you provide the venue. After deducting costs, we split the profit fifty-fifty.”
The shopkeeper looked puzzled. “With your skills, you could easily start your own business.”
Luo Qingqing understood this well, but she lacked the money to acquire a restaurant. Moreover, she was naturally laid-back and did not enjoy managing people. Most importantly, according to the story, Gu Jing’an had already passed the provincial exam and would head to the capital next spring for the metropolitan and palace examinations, after which he would remain there as an official. She did not want to invest too much effort here.
“My husband is studying, and I still have younger siblings to take care of. I don’t have much time, whereas you already have the place and staff.”
“To be honest, before you came, I was planning to sell this place. The chef had already been poached by the restaurant across the street, and business had collapsed. Since you trust me, I have no reason to refuse. In fact, I’m the one benefiting more.”
Just like that, they reached an agreement. They signed a simple private contract with thumbprints and planned to register it officially the next day. Luo Qingqing also left behind the recipe for spicy mixed dishes so they could test the results.
Remembering she still had many things to buy, Luo Qingqing took her leave.
She bought malt sugar, hawthorn slices, mung bean cakes, and osmanthus cakes from a food shop.
At a cosmetics store, she purchased face cream, jasmine-scented hair oil, and a nice shade of lip balm. She also bought several pretty hair ties for Xuanning.
Finally, she went to the market and selected a rack of pork ribs, a chicken, some onions, and two dou of rice. Remembering the clothes still waiting at the fabric shop, she decided not to buy anything more and headed back.
On the way back, she took an ox cart to the village entrance for one copper coin. Thankfully there was a cart, otherwise carrying so many things would have left her hands trembling.
As she approached the house, she thought she heard Xuanning crying. Luo Qingqing quickened her pace.