“Shall we go visit the brothel?”
Yu Jinnian helped Duke Zhou, who had a bad back, chase butterflies all night. After much effort, he finally caught one and brought it to Duke Zhou. Duke Zhou, smiling, rewarded him. When Yu Jinnian took the small embroidered pouch containing the reward and looked up, he saw Duke Zhou had an exceptionally beautiful face. Blinking at this face, he even pinched Duke Zhou’s cheek, and exclaimed, “Huh… Ji Hong, why is it you?”
Just as he pinched him, “Ji Hong,” who was playing the role of Duke Zhou in the dream, slapped him awake.
He opened his eyes and didn’t see Ji Hong, who usually slept beside him. Instead, he saw a small handful of bright red peanuts by his pillow, dyed in festive colors. Still drowsy, he rubbed his face in a daze, suddenly grabbed the peanuts in surprise, put on his shoes, and ran outside.
“โJi Hong! Ji Hong!”
By this time, it was already broad daylight. The noodle shop had been open for a while. Ji Hong was in the front hall when he suddenly heard Yu Jinnian’s voice from the backyard. Thinking something had happened, he quickly put down the dishes and left the new customers to rush to the back.
Lifting the curtain, he bumped into the scantily clad Yu Jinnian.
The boy hadn’t combed his hair or put on his clothes properly and asked excitedly, “The divine item given to me by Duke Zhou, will it make me immortal if I eat it?”
Ji Hong looked at the item in his hand and his expression darkened slightly. Without much expression, he said, “Nonsense about Duke Zhou.” He then grabbed Yu Jinnian’s hand and pushed him back into the room, opened the wardrobe, and took out a coat. “Put on your clothes.”
Yu Jinnian obediently put his hand into the sleeve and said with a smile, “It wasn’t Duke Zhou who gave it to me, it was you? After I fell asleep yesterday, did you talk to me?”
“No,” Ji Hong replied calmly.
“Hehe,” Yu Jinnian laughed. “Thank you.”
Knowing he had been found out, Ji Hong said no more, only pursed his lips slightly. “Come out and eat something.”
Speaking of eating, Yu Jinnian suddenly remembered he had slept till late morning and had missed the preparation time for the morning meal. He immediately felt regretful; for someone as poor as him, waking up an hour late was a loss!
Yu Jinnian pushed open the door with melancholy, immediately catching a unique fragrance in the air. The front hall was bustling as usual, with the sounds of clinking bowls and chopsticks filling the space. He curiously ran to the front and discovered that there were more people eating breakfast today than usual, each with a bowl of fragrant rice congee in front of them.
“Shopkeeper, the bill,” a woman called out, holding her son in one hand and a few copper coins in the other. Ji Hong lifted the curtain and walked over. The woman handed over the money, and upon seeing Ji Hong, her cheeks turned rosy as she softly asked, “Mr. Ji, why is it you today? Where is young Yu?”
“He’ll be here soon,” Ji Hong replied, counting out six coins and returning one extra to her. “You gave one too many.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” the woman said with a modest smile, her expression demure and graceful as she reached out to take back the coin.
This wasn’t an honest mistakeโit was clearly deliberate!
Yu Jinnian glared at the woman as she left. In a moment, Ji Hong brought out a bowl of congee, releasing the fragrance he had smelled earlier. Curious, Yu Jinnian followed, took a spoonful, and tasted it. Besides the rich aroma of rice, there was a subtle tea flavor, making it smooth and sweet: “What is this?”
“Tea congee,” Ji Hong replied.
Tea congee is made by cooking tea leaves with congee, using Japonica rice as the base, mixed with mung beans, peanuts, and pine nutsโall ingredients that are filling and satisfying. The congee is made by boiling aged tea in water, then adding the rice and nuts to simmer until soft. The result is a blend where water, rice, and beans meld together, creating a fragrant and elegant flavor.
In the past, when Ji Hong couldn’t eat, he would have a servant slowly cook a bowl of tea congee for him, a method he learned from a book. Though he had never personally cooked it before, he didn’t want to wake Yu Jinnian this morning and ended up creating a day where “One Bowl Noodle Shop” had congee instead of noodles.
This bowl of tea congee was perfectly warm, though not quite as thick as ideal, with more water than rice. But for Ji Hong’s first attempt, it was quite impressive. Yu Jinnian quickly finished it and nodded: “This is delicious. We can add it to our deluxe set menu in the future!”
“Deluxe set menu?” Ji Hong was puzzled, but as long as the boy liked it, he was happy.
Yu Jinnian laughed: “You’ll understand later.”
After drinking the congee, he rushed to the kitchen to make noodles. Though Ji Hong had managed breakfast with a bowl of tea congee, the day’s business could not be neglected. “One Bowl Noodle Shop” was known for its noodles because the owner, Aunt Xu, only knew how to make zhajiangmian (noodles with soybean paste). Other dishes were comparable to dark cuisine. However, since Yu Jinnian arrived, the menu had gradually expanded with more dishes. Zhajiangmian could no longer satisfy his ambitions, and his next plan was to expand the shop.
But that’s for the future. For now, the urgent task was to prepare medicinal meals for the He family.
Since He Er Tian had been diagnosed with yin deficiency cough, the treatment required nourishing yin, clearing heat, moistening the lungs, and stopping the cough. Yu Jinnian went out to buy ingredients and then dived into the kitchen. When Ji Hong came in, he found Yu Jinnian fiddling with a bag of persimmon frost cakes.
Mature persimmons are peeled and sun-dried. After a month, they become cakes, and after another month, they develop a white frost. This yields soft and sweet persimmon cakes, with the white frost being persimmon frost. Persimmon frost is cool and sweet in nature, enters the heart, lung, and stomach meridians, and has the effect of clearing heat, moistening dryness, and resolving phlegm.
Yu Jinnian also bought many grapes along the way. After washing them, he handed a plate to Sui Sui. He popped one into his mouth and gave another to Ji Hong, who had just come in. Although the grapes were sweet and sour, they had many seeds. Yu Jinnian, busy with both hands, was wondering where to spit the seeds when Ji Hong extended his hand, “I’ll dispose of them for you.”
Yu Jinnian froze for a moment, lacking the courage to spit the seeds into Ji Hong’s hand. He swallowed the seeds with a gulp and dryly smiled, “It’s okay, they can be eaten too, good for beauty…”
Ji Hong: “…”
Was it an illusion, or did this man’s face show a hint of… disappointment?
Yu Jinnian shook his head, dismissing the strange thought. While washing barley and yam, he shared an interesting story he heard earlier with Ji Hong: “I went to Pingkang Pharmacy to buy herbs today and happened to meet two big maids from the county magistrate’s mansion. They said… hmm, this one is a bit sour, that purple one is better…”
Ji Hong picked another grape and fed it to Yu Jinnian, who chewed it with the skin and seeds, then continued, “I heard that the young master of Duke Li’s family in the capital is seriously ill, even the imperial physicians couldn’t cure him. The Emperor has issued an order to seek folk experts, offering a hundred taels of gold to cure the young master!”
“…Hmm? Really.” Ji Hong looked somewhat strange, lost in thought for a while before coming back to his senses.
“Yes,” Yu Jinnian nodded, “The county magistrate is sending people everywhere to find famous doctors.”
Ji Hong responded with a simple “Hmm,” and that was it.
Feeling a bit deflated, Yu Jinnian lowered his head and mashed the chopped yam and barley together, adding water to cook. Once softened, he added the crushed persimmon frost cake. This was the first medicinal meal, called Pearl and Jade Two-Treasure Congee. The yam and barley nourish the spleen and lungs without being greasy, and the sweet, cool persimmon frost moistens the lungs. Combined, they nourish the lungs and spleen, treating all yin deficiency symptoms.
The second medicinal meal was called “Crystal Peach,” made by steaming a pound of walnut kernels in a rice steamer, then crushing and steaming them with persimmon frost cakes. Once the persimmon frost merged with the walnut kernels, it could be taken out, cooled, and eaten, benefiting the lungs and kidneys.
Yu Jinnian then instructed Ji Hong to put equal amounts of Asparagus tuber and Ophiopogon japonicus into a medicine pot, boil them down, add refined honey, and boil again. Once cooled, the mixture was sealed in a jar and taken by the spoonful. This was the third medicinal dish, “Er Dong Paste.”
After finishing the three medicinal dishes, he fetched pen and ink, asking Ji Hong to write down the recipes for the He family so they could make the dishes themselves in the future. Of course, the “consultation fee” would be charged according to the recipe.
“Er Dong Paste, Pearl and Jade Two-Treasure Congee, Crystal Peach…” Yu Jinnian recited as he watched Ji Hong write. Suddenly, he changed the topic and asked, “Hey, I heard Duke Li is the family of the current concubine. Is it true? What’s the family name of Duke Li?”
Ji Hong’s handwriting was steady, and without looking up, he calmly said, “The surname is Wang. It might be true. I’ve finished writing. Take a look.”
“Even if you let me look…” Yu Jinnian glanced briefly. This person knew he was illiterate!
“Young Master Yu? Young Master Yu!”
At this moment, a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl walked in from the front, wearing a pink silk skirt, charming and cute, with jingling hair ornaments. She stood by the counter, looking around and calling out sweetly, “Young Master Yu?”
“Excuse me, is Young Master Yu here?” She curtsied and asked a man eating noodles nearby. The man, known as an honest bachelor in the county, turned red and almost choked as he caught sight of her delicate chest.
Others began teasing the man, asking when he would marry and have a child, and if they should introduce him to someone. Even the girl giggled, causing the man to wave his hands and blush, asking them to stop.
After a bit of teasing, someone recognized the girl and said, “Hey, isn’t this Qing Huan from Yicui Pavilion? What brings you here? Missing me?”
Qing Huan shot him a flirtatious glance and scolded, “Nonsense, I’m here for Young Master Yu.”
Yu Jinnian, hearing the commotion, came forward. Recognizing the girl as Qing Huan from the playful banter, he understood the situation.
In Xinan County, “little lady” referred to young girls in brothels who hadn’t yet officially debuted. They followed experienced courtesans to learn arts and bedroom skills, eventually stepping out to entertain guests. Locals called them “little ladies” due to their youth.
But why was a little lady from Yicui Pavilion looking for him?
“Excuse me, miss, are you looking for me?”
Yu Jinnian, with his sleeves rolled up from work, exposed a fair arm. Qing Huan scrutinized him like evaluating a sprout, but quickly smiled sweetly, “Greetings, young sir.”
“Hello, miss. What brings you here?”
Qing Huan smiled and said, “Young sir’s reputation precedes you. My mistress, Xue Qiao, heard about your skills and wants to try them. The day after tomorrow is the Mid-Autumn Festival. Could you prepare some lotus paste mooncakes and a few refreshing side dishes to be delivered to Yicui Pavilion tomorrow?”
Yu Jinnian: “Lotus seed paste mooncakes?”
“Yes!” Qing Huan’s eyes had a touch of red sand, and her smile was charmingly coquettish.
This wasn’t difficult. Even if Qing Huan hadn’t come to ask, he would have made some mooncakes to sell anyway. These young ladies, though residing in a brothel, were still in the prime of their youth and beauty, merely wishing to eat mooncakes on this night of reunion. How could Yu Jinnian bear to refuse them? It was just an extra trip to Yicui Pavilion, nothing really troublesome.
He agreed, but as he took longer to return, Ji Hong came out to look for him.
Just as Qing Huan was about to take out some silver from her sleeve, she caught sight of Ji Hong, changed her mind, and instead pulled a silver hairpin from her hair. With a coquettish smile, she stepped forward and tucked it into the fold of Ji Hong’s chest, shyly asking, “Youโre truly a distinguished gentleman, making Qing Huan very happy. Do you have a wife at home? Would you like to come to Yicui Pavilion for some fun?”
“No!”
“No need.”
Both answered in unison.
Qing Huan was taken aback, then giggled like a silver bell, covering her mouth as she teased, “This young lad is also quite handsome. Why not come to Yicui Pavilion for good wine, good tea, fine songs, and beautiful dances? We have it all.”
Yu Jinnian turned his head and pulled the hairpin from Ji Hong’s chest, returning it to Qing Huan: “Sorry, our noodle shop only accepts cash!”
Ji Hong said nothing, only squinted at the young man beside him.
“You two are really interesting,” Qing Huan chuckled, putting the hairpin back in her hair and handing some silver to Yu Jinnian, “Just kidding, don’t take it to heart, Brother Nian.”
After arranging the mooncakes, Qing Huan threw a flirty glance at Ji Hong: “Gentleman, Qing Huan will be waiting for you at Yicui Pavilion!” Then she gracefully exited the shop.
Yu Jinnian clutched the silver, watching as Ji Hong stared unwaveringly at Qing Huanโs departing figure. He felt an urge to hurl the silver pieces back at Qing Huan’s face. So many people came to the shop every day pretending to eat noodles just to sneak a look at Ji Hong, but she was the boldest, outright inviting him to visit the brothel!
Back in the kitchen, Yu Jinnian kneaded the dough, occasionally glancing at Ji Hong to see what he was up to. Come to think of it, Qing Huan was indeed quite pretty. In two more years, she’d certainly be a beauty. He noticed Ji Hong seemed distracted too, perhaps thinking about that Qing Huan girl? Eventually, he couldnโt help but speak: “About thatโฆ”
“Hmm?” Ji Hong looked up.
Yu Jinnian rubbed his nose and said, “Your health isn’t great, so… those kinds of activities, um, shouldn’t be too frequent…”
Ji Hong was puzzled for a moment, then suddenly realized. He picked a grape and fed it to Yu Jinnian, his eyes darkening slightly, “No one is going.”
Yu Jinnian chewed the grape.
“But if you want to go, we can go together,” Ji Hong said, seriously considering it.
“Cough, cough…” Yu Jinnian nearly choked. What was he saying? Go visit a brothel together?
Ji Hong quickly patted Yu Jinnian’s back to help him breathe. The boy’s back was straight and slender, and even through his worn-out clothes, Ji Hong could feel the warmth of his skin. He let his hand rest on the back of Yu Jinnian’s neck, gently squeezing it, and with a barely perceptible smile, he said, “Just kidding.”
Yu Jinnian: “…”
Oh no, the ice block has come to life and learned to tease people!