Shopkeeper Wang examined each recipe sheet carefully, and the more he read, the more delighted he became.
Especially when he reached the recipe for stewed chicken with mushrooms, he couldn’t help slapping his thigh.
“Good! This is excellent! A pot of this in autumn or winter would warm both the heart and the stomach!”
He took out a small box from beneath the counter. Inside were ten taels of silver. Pushing it toward Ye Mengyi, he said, “Madam Lu, I’ll pay ten taels for these four recipes. What do you think?”
The moment Ye Mengyi saw the silver, her heartbeat skipped.
Ten taels of silver—enough to cover the family’s expenses for three whole years. They could even stock up on rice and grain and never have to survive on thin porridge every meal again.
She quickly nodded. “Thank you for your generosity, Shopkeeper Wang. It’s just…”
“I understand what you mean,” Wang interrupted with a smile. “Recipes are dead, but people are alive. Even if other restaurants manage to figure them out, they still won’t beat Yue Lai Restaurant’s head start. Don’t worry, I won’t blame you for that.”
“Then I’ll gratefully accept it.”
Ye Mengyi carefully tucked the silver into her clothes and arranged to deliver twenty jin of fresh mushrooms the next day.
Shopkeeper Wang laughed openly. “If Madam Lu comes up with any new dishes in the future, don’t forget my Yue Lai Restaurant.”
“Of course, of course.”
Standing nearby, Lu Qingshan watched Ye Mengyi handle everything calmly and confidently, and the gentleness in his gaze deepened.
Picking up the cloth bag containing the money, he cupped his hands toward Shopkeeper Wang. “Then we’ll head back first. We’ll deliver the mushrooms first thing tomorrow morning.”
“Good. I’ll have someone waiting.”
Shopkeeper Wang personally escorted them to the door. Watching the three figures walk away, he couldn’t help saying to the accountant beside him, “That Lu family’s daughter-in-law is truly capable!”
The noisy chatter inside the dining hall continued, but no one mentioned the “poisonous mushrooms” anymore. All that remained were praises for the new dish.
Not long after leaving Yue Lai Restaurant, Lu Qinghai was still marveling over the ten taels of silver. He scooted closer to Ye Mengyi and said excitedly, “Sister-in-law, just a few recipes earned ten taels! If you come up with more, won’t our family completely turn things around?”
Ye Mengyi laughed at his enthusiasm and slowed her pace slightly.
“It’s not that easy. Food depends on freshness and technique. Once recipes spread around, people can usually figure them out after trying a few times. Besides, there are many good recipes, but not all of them suit our current situation.”
Listening nearby, Lu Qingshan nodded in agreement before turning to Lu Qinghai with a serious expression.
“Your sister-in-law is right. Even if we really had secret recipes worth keeping, with our family’s current circumstances, we wouldn’t be able to protect them. Remember that.”
Lu Qinghai scratched the back of his head, his excitement fading somewhat as he nodded earnestly.
“Brother, Sister-in-law, I understand. I was thinking too simply.”
Seeing that he had taken the lesson to heart, Ye Mengyi smiled and changed the subject.
“Alright, enough about that. Let’s go to the grain shop first. The rice jar at home is probably completely empty by now. We need to buy some rice.”
At those words, both Lu Qingshan and Lu Qinghai immediately agreed. The family’s food supply had been stretched thin for so long that living on watery porridge every day made people dizzy with hunger. Now that they finally had money, the first priority was naturally buying grain.
The grain shop in town wasn’t very large, but it was neat and tidy. A wooden board stood outside the entrance with the prices of various grains written on it in charcoal.
The shopkeeper was a slightly plump middle-aged man. Seeing customers enter, he hurried over with a smile.
“What would the three of you like? We just got fresh rice in stock, and we also have older rice at a fair price.”
Ye Mengyi walked over to a rice barrel, scooped up a handful of fresh rice, and inspected it. The grains were full and carried a faint fragrance.
“How much for the fresh rice?” she asked.
“Thirty wen per dou for fresh rice, twenty wen for old rice,” the shopkeeper replied cheerfully.
Beside her, Lu Qingshan silently calculated. Ten taels equaled ten strings of cash, and one string was a thousand wen. With both young and old mouths to feed at home, they needed to save as much as possible.
Ye Mengyi turned to look at him. Their eyes met, and they immediately understood each other.
“Five dou of old rice first, and two dou of fresh rice,” Ye Mengyi said. “The fresh rice can be kept for the elderly and children. The old rice can be used for porridge or mixed into coarse grain cakes.”
The shopkeeper’s eyes lit up. This was no small purchase.
“Alright! Five dou of old rice and two dou of fresh rice! Hurry and weigh them out!” he called to his assistant.
Ye Mengyi’s gaze then shifted toward the flour sacks nearby.
“How much are your dark flour, mixed-grain flour, and white flour?”
The shopkeeper’s smile widened further.
“White flour is twenty-five wen per dou, dark flour is fifteen, and mixed-grain flour is ten. They’re all freshly milled. Just smell them and you’ll know.”
Ye Mengyi leaned closer and indeed caught the fresh scent of grain. She turned toward Lu Qingshan and Lu Qinghai questioningly.
In this era, white flour was a luxury usually reserved for holidays and special occasions.
Lu Qinghai scratched his head and grinned foolishly. “Sister-in-law, you decide. Whatever you say we buy, we’ll buy. I’ll just carry the bags.”
Lu Qingshan nodded as well, his voice gentle.
“You know best what the family lacks. Buy whatever you want. There’s no need to scrimp.”
With their support, Ye Mengyi smiled brightly.
“Then we’ll also take two dou of white flour, five dou of dark flour, and five dou of mixed-grain flour.”
The shopkeeper’s eyes immediately shone like lanterns. The rice alone had already been a fine sale, and now with all this flour added on, business today was truly booming.
He hurriedly shouted toward the back room, “Zhuzi! Come out quickly! Measure out two dou of white flour, five dou of dark flour, and five dou of mixed-grain flour for this lady. Use the best quality!”
A young assistant answered and ran out, skillfully filling cloth sacks with flour using measuring scoops and scales.
The white flour was fine and snow-white. The dark flour was rough with bran mixed in, while the mixed-grain flour contained several different grains, each grain distinct and visible.
Every measure was packed to the brim, and when weighing them, the shopkeeper even added an extra half scoop each time.
“A little extra for you, a little extra! Be sure to come again next time!”
Lu Qingshan and Lu Qinghai each picked up several heavy sacks. Feeling the solid weight, they exchanged glances and nodded toward Ye Mengyi.
Meanwhile, Ye Mengyi calculated silently in her mind:
The precious white flour would be saved to make steamed buns and stuffed buns for Grandma and the children.
The chewy dark flour could be mixed with coarse grains to make corn buns that were filling.
The mixed-grain flour was the cheapest and best suited for daily meals. Adding some wild vegetables to make gruel would still fill their stomachs.
With this much grain and flour, the family would have enough food for quite a while.
The shopkeeper tapped away on his abacus, the beads clacking rapidly.
“Five dou of old rice is one hundred wen, two dou of fresh rice sixty wen, two dou of white flour fifty wen, five dou of dark flour seventy-five wen, and five dou of mixed-grain flour fifty wen. Altogether that comes to… three hundred thirty-five wen! Just give me three hundred thirty.”
Ye Mengyi took out one tael of broken silver from her clothes. The shopkeeper carefully weighed it, then counted out six hundred seventy wen in copper coins as change and handed them back with a broad smile.
“Madam, you’re truly straightforward! Here’s your change. Come back anytime you need anything—I’ll reserve the best goods for you!”
“Thank you, Shopkeeper.”
After thanking him, Ye Mengyi stored the change away carefully.
Lu Qingshan carried two large sacks of rice over his shoulder, Lu Qinghai held several bags of flour, and Ye Mengyi carried the remaining smaller bags as the three of them headed out.
Though the heavy grain weighed down their shoulders, their hearts felt light, as if the wind itself carried their steps forward.