CH 27.1

The air quieted down

“It’s Big Brother!” Hearing this voice, Cai Yunwei’s eyes lit up, he immediately stood up from the chair and went out to greet the person, shouting in surprise, “Big Brother!”

Everyone looked at the door, and a young man of 18 or 19 years old with handsome looks and bright eyes walked in, followed by a gentle-looking young man.

The young man in front is the eldest son of the prefect, the eldest young master of the Cai family, Cai Chenxi.

When Cai Chenxi saw Cai Yunwei approaching, he touched his brother’s head and said happily, “Wei’er!”

He looked at his younger brother’s face carefully again, and said, “Well, your complexion is quite rosy.”

Cai Yunwei was still only a half-year-old boy. He was very happy to see his elder brother whom he had not seen for a long time, and said, “Fu Bo has recently learned a lot of new food from Big Brother Yu, and I have been eating a lot recently.” He said with an expected look of ‘praise me.’

Cai Chenxi nodded with a smile and said with relief, “That’s good, eat more, take care of your body, and eldest brother will take you out to play in the future!”

Cai Yunwei nodded heavily, “Yeah!” Very happy.

Afterwards, he called the young man behind him, “Brother Tianrui.”

This young man is Cai Chenxi’s childhood friend and also a classmate, Jiang Tianrui.

The two brothers chatted for a while, Cai Chenxi looked into the room, saw there were guests, and said with a smile, “Grandpa, grandma, there are guests at home, hope we’re not interrupting.”

Jiang Tianrui also shouted ‘Grandpa Cai’ and ‘Grandma Cai’.

When old master Cai and his husband saw their eldest grandson, the folds on their faces burst into big smiles.

Old master Cai took his eldest grandson’s hand and said, “Xi’er is back, and Tianrui too, come and sit, just in time for lunch, you are lucky. If you had come back a little later, you won’t be able to eat this delicious food.”

When the two of them were seated, old master Cai introduced them to the guests: “Xi’er, Tianrui, this is boss Yu, Yu Qingze, who gave Fu Bo new recipes for Wei’er. You guys call him Brother Yu. Xiaoyu, this is my eldest grandson, Cai Chenxi, and this is his good brother Jiang Tianrui. He grew up with Xi’er since he was a child. They’re classmates.”

The two looked over to Yu Qingze and greeted him. Cai Chenxi said gratefully, “Thank you, Big Brother Yu. Wei’er has suffered from this since he was a child, and his health has always been bad. Now I finally see hope for a cure.”

Yu Qingze said modestly: “Yu just happens to know a few recipes. The second young master has a good fortune and will definitely recover.”

Afterwards, old master Cai introduced the Chang family to the two, and both sides greeted each other.

Then, they finally started eating!

Old master Cai announced the meal and said to Cai Chenxi and Jiang Tianrui: “Just say you two are lucky, today’s table was made by your brother Yu, and it’s our first time to eat. Everyone uses chopsticks and eats quickly. Don’t be shy.”

The chopsticks began flying across the table.

It was the first time for the Cai family to eat the food made by Yu Qingze. After taking the first bite, both old master Cai, his husband, andCai Yunwei all believed what Mi Ge’er said, and it was indeed much more delicious than the food cooked by Fu Bo.

Old master Cai likes heavy flavors. He enjoyed the spicy shredded chicken and braised eel. He kept nodding. From time to time, he clinked a glass with Grandpa Chang and drank a small cup of wine, which is very pleasant.

And Cai furen preferred to eat eggplant, he ate almost half of the entire fish-flavored eggplant stew, and his eyes were smiling.

Cai Yunwei has a small appetite, but he still drank two small bowls of seafood porridge and ate a lot of dishes, which made old master Cai, his husband, and Cai Chenxi very happy.

As for Cai Chenxi and Jiang Tianrui, although they are scholars, they are young people, and they usually eat a lot. When they tasted the delicious pork with glutinous rice, they couldn’t stop.

Everyone was full of praise, and they were very happy.

Originally, Chang Le and the others were a little reserved, thinking that the big family pays attention to not talking while eating, and a bunch of other rules, but it seems that the Cai family doesn’t have so many rules during the meal. In addition to using public chopsticks, they will also talk a few words from time to time while sighing satisfyingly because of the delicious food.

Seeing them like this, Chang Le and the others also slowly relaxed and enjoyed the food.

Chang Hao also recommends to Cai Yunwei who is sitting next to him from time to time: This is delicious, little brother, you can eat this; that is also delicious, little brother, please try it…

Through straw weaving grasshoppers, the two kids established a preliminary friendship. When Chang Hao thought something was delicious, he would not forget to share it with his friend. However, basically every dish on the table was delicious to him.

Cai Yunwei has eaten a lot this way without knowing it.

***

The meal ended satisfactorily, everyone was exhausted, and felt so full.

They left the dining room and moved to the main hall to start drinking tea.

“I have lived for decades, and now I know how to write the word “delicious”!” old master Cai sighed after drinking a sip of hot tea.

Cai furen glared at his husband and said, “It’s a blessing to be able to eat, so you can be content.”

Old master Cai said quickly, “Yes, yes, the husband said the truth.”

Yu Qingze glanced at the two old husbands, then glanced at Jiang Tianrui on the opposite side, his heart moved, and he said with a smile: “Actually, there are various combinations of food, and there are many ways to eat it. Just like noodles, it’s not just that we see it. In this way, as long as we use our imagination, we can create more different methods and make more delicious food. There are only the unexpected, but there is nothing that cannot be done.”

“Yes, yes, we have seen it today.” old master Cai agreed and said, “Speaking of noodles, hey, Tianrui, doesn’t your Yue family own a noodle restaurant?”

Jiang Tianrui nodded and said, “Yes, my father-in-law opened a noodle restaurant on the North Street.”

The Chang family looked at each other and sat in silence, but they began to look at Jiang Tianrui quietly.

Yu Qingze said ‘curiously’: “Oh? Our food stall is located on North Street. I wonder which noodle shop is your father-in-law’s?”

Jiang Tianrui said, “It’s Liu Ji Noodle House.”

Yu Qingze slapped his thigh, “Oh… it turns out to be Liu Ji Noodle House, right across from us. The noodle house is very big, and I heard that the taste is also very good according to the customers.”

Seeing Yu Qingze’s slap on his leg, Chang Hao quickly bit his lip so as not to laugh, he whispered in his heart, “Brother Yu, your reaction is too exaggerated! You’re going to make me die of laughter!”

Seeing that he was hitting his lips, Cai Yunwei hurriedly asked, “What’s the matter with you, Xiaohao? Are you uncomfortable?”

Chang Hao held back hard, shook his head, and said, “I’m still reminiscing about the lunch at noon, it’s so delicious.”

Cai Yunwei:  …

Over there, Jiang Tianrui heard Yu Qingze’s words and replied, “Business has been good in the past. I heard that a new kind of food called cold noodles and Liangpi have recently been launched on North Street, and it has robbed a lot of customers.”

Uh, this is embarrassing…

Both old master Cai’s husband and Cai Yunwei knew about it. When they heard this, they didn’t know what to say.

As for Cai Chenxi, he also knew about it from his brother’s letter before, but he never found a chance to tell Jiang Tianrui that it’s his benefactor who robbed his good friend’s father-in-law’s customers. He just touched his nose and said nothing.

The air quieted down.

Jiang Tianrui found that everyone stopped talking, so he frowned and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Yu Qingze coughed lightly and said, “…That, the food stall that sells cold noodles and Liangpi, I opened it.”

Jiang Tianrui: …

After a while, Jiang Tianrui said: “It turns out that it was opened by Big Brother Yu, so it’s not surprising that all the customers would go to eat at your place. Father-in-law and two brothers-in-law are studying how to make Liangpi, and they all admire Big brother Yu’s craftsmanship and bold ideas.”

Yu Qingze laughed awkwardly and said, “Hahaha, yes, this is just a snack. In fact, there are many different ways to make noodles. I heard that your father-in-law has been making noodles for decades, and he must have a lot of experience. I would like to ask him to teach me a thing or two.”

Jiang Tianrui heard the words, thought for a moment, and said, “My father-in-law always pays attention to craftsmanship, and he admires those who have capability and real ability. If he knows that Big Brother Yu has this idea, he will be very happy.”

When old master Cai heard the words, he said: “Tianrui, you be the middle man and let them get to know each other, learn from each other, and then the people of Tongshan City can also eat more delicious noodles. Xiaoyu what do you think?”

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “I have this idea.”

Jiang Tianrui nodded in agreement and said, “Okay, I’ll tell my father-in-law when I get home from work in the afternoon.”

When Yu Qingze heard Jiang Tianrui’s description of his father-in-law, he felt a little relieved. Generally, people who focus on their own craftsmanship always have their own cuteness, and they are much easier to get along with than those who only focus on playing tricks to deal with their opponents.

He thanked the other party, “Then, a big thank you.”

“Brother Yu is very polite.”

Old master Cai said again: “By the way, what are you doing here this time? Isn’t it about time for an exam?”

Cai Chenxi replied, “Master Yuan, who taught us when we were young, passed away, and we came here to express our condolences.”

Old master Cai sighed and said, “Let the housekeeper prepare the necessities, you can go quickly.”

Cai Chenxi responded and went out with Jiang Tianrui.

***

At noon, the sun was blazing. Yu Qingze and the Chang family did not go back immediately. The Cai residence arranged a place for them to take their lunch break.

After the break, Yu Qingze went to the kitchen to talk to Fu Bi and the others for a long time, and Chang Le also followed along to study. They didn’t go home until the sun was not so strong in the afternoon.

On the way back, Yu Qingze said to Grandpa Chang, “Grandpa, I want to find a helper.”

Grandpa Chang didn’t even think about it, nodded and said, “I’ll look for someone, you can relax.”

Yu Qingze asked, “Are there any good candidates in the village? It’s better to be diligent, tight-lipped, and smart, as long as they can greet guests.”

Grandpa Chang thought about it and asked, “you want to find someone from the village?”

Yu Qingze nodded and said: “We know the character of the people in the village. They need to be honest and hardworking, and don’t mess around with our secret recipes. They only need to go with us every day and greet the customers, as well as set up the stall. We three will still make noodles and jelly by ourselves.”

“Well, let me think about it,” Grandpa Chang thought for a while, and then asked, “Do you want a man or a ger?”

“It’s better to be a ger, the one who loves to laugh.” The waiter’s smile showing eight teeth is would be the best. Yu Qingze thought about it, suddenly remembered something, and said, “What do the villagers think of gers coming out to work?”

Grandpa Chang said: “Not many gers go out to work, but there are some, don’t be worried, it’s good for a poor family to make money. I think the next door’s brother Chang is okay, with a lively temperament and a very well-mannered person. His relationship with Xiao Le is also good.”

Yu Qingze thought about it, this brother Chang visited Chang Le a few times, but he didn’t really remember what he looked like. “Grandpa, how are Brother Chang’s father and Ama?”

(T/N: instead of using the word mother/aunt, I’ll be using the term “Ama” from now on to indicate a ger who is a mother.)

Grandpa Chang said, “they’re both honest and reliable people.”

“Is Brother Chang married?”

“Not yet, the matchmaker came to him several times, but he didn’t agree. This child is also a person of ideas. He has to like the person, or he won’t marry. His father and Ama can’t do anything about him. Just go along with his will.”

Yu Qingze smiled, “That’s good. Getting married is a lifetime event, so it should be like this, it can’t be done.”

“Ah, it’s not easy to find the right one.”

Yu Qingze didn’t answer this question, and asked again: “Grandpa, can you ask him at night? You also need to ask his father and his Ama’s consent.”

“Okay, I’ll go later.” Grandpa Chang agreed.

“If they all agree, ask him to come home at night, I want to see him.”