Chapter 37 The Lou Family Banquet
After dealing with the old house, a few more days passed. Lou Bancheng sent someone over and invited He Yuzhu to cook a banquet at Lou's house in three days.
This is He Yuzhu's first time cooking at home, and he doesn't know what to pay attention to. It is said that wealthy families have many rules, and it would be bad if they offend the family if they are not careful. I have no choice but to ask my teacher, Fan Dakang.
I rode my bicycle to Fengze Garden and found Master.
"Zhuzi, why are you here this morning?" Fan Dakang asked when he saw He Yuzhu.
"Master, I have something to ask you." He Yuzhu said.
"Tell me what you want from me." Fan Dakang said.
"The Lou family just sent someone to find me and asked me to cook a banquet at the Lou family in three days. It's my first time doing this job, so I don't know what the rules are." He Yuzhu said.
"There are no rules for this now. You are the cook. You only have to cook. Don't care about other things. You only need to remember six words. Don't ask, don't look, and don't tell." Master Fan Dakang taught.
"Okay Master, I remember it." He Yuzhu said.
After consulting the master, He Yuzhu left Fengze Garden.
In a blink of an eye, 3 days passed.
This morning, He Yuzhu delivered the rainwater to his master's house. As soon as he returned home, the Lou family sent a car to pick up He Yuzhu and take him to the Lou family. He Yuzhu took the knife he had prepared and got into the car. He Yuzhu closed his eyes and rested.
Not long after, the car stopped and the Lou family arrived.
After He Yuzhu got off the car, he saw a small western-style building with a large courtyard. As the maid entered the house, she saw luxurious decorations, furniture made of precious wood, and beautiful furnishings, all showing luxury.
After He Yuzhu entered, Mrs. Lou led an eleven or twelve-year-old girl downstairs.
"Mrs. Lou." He Yuzhu greeted.
"Zhuzi, don't call me Mrs. Lou. Didn't I tell you to call you Aunt Tan?" Mrs. Lou was not satisfied with He Yuzhu's title.
"Aunt Tan." He Yuzhu changed his name and called.
"Hey, that's right, sit down quickly." Mrs. Lou agreed with satisfaction.
"This is my daughter, Lou Xiao'e. Xiao'e, this is He Yuzhu, my mother's nephew. You can just call me brother." Mrs. Lou introduced each other to the two.
"Hello, brother." Lou Xiao'e greeted.
"Hello, sister Xiao'e." He Yuzhu replied.
Looking at the little Loli in front of me, I thought about her tragic fate as she gave birth to a son to He Yuzhu in the play. I didn’t know what to say for a moment.
"Zhuzi, why didn't you bring the rainwater with you?" Mrs. Lou asked.
"The rainwater is at my master's house. Besides, I'm here to cook, so it's inconvenient to bring rainwater with me." He Yuzhu said.
"Why is it inconvenient? Just let her play with Xiao'e. Xiao'e doesn't have many friends. I must bring her here next time." Mrs. Lou said.
"Okay, I'll bring rainwater next time." He Yuzhu said.
He Yuzhu chatted with Mrs. Lou for a while, and then Mrs. Lou said: "I picked you up so early today because I want to eat Tan's food. Can we make shark's fin and bird's nest?"
No wonder I picked him up so early. Shark's fin and bird's nest are both gourmet dishes and take a long time.
"No problem, we can do it." He Yuzhu replied.
He Yuzhu is going to make braised shark's fin, bird's nest in clear soup, and add firewood to the duck.
He Yuzhu followed the servant to the kitchen. The Lou family's kitchen was also large and fully equipped with materials and utensils. We also prepared many chickens, ducks, etc.
He Yuzhu began to soak shark's fins, bird's nests and other dry goods, and process chickens and ducks.
Perhaps Lou Xiao'e didn't play with her at home, so she ran to the kitchen to watch He Yuzhu cooking.
After He Yuzhu saw it, he moved a small bench and asked her to sit at the door of the kitchen.
"Sit here, it's dangerous in the kitchen." He Yuzhu said.
Seeing her sitting obediently, He Yuzhu took out a big peach under the cover of the backpack he brought, washed it, and handed it to Lou Xiao'e.
"It's for you, take it and eat it." He Yuzhu said.
"Thank you, brother." Lou Xiao'e saw the fresh peach, took it and said.
After saying that, I took a bite and the juice overflowed. The sweet taste of peaches made her narrow her eyes in satisfaction.
At noon, He Yuzhu had a meal in the kitchen. I made pot-roasted pork, sweet and sour carp, Wensi tofu, and stir-fried two vegetables for Mrs. Lou and Lou Xiao'e. Others don't need He Yuzhu tube.
The afternoon passed while He Yuzhu was busy, and evening came unknowingly.
After being informed by the servant that the guests had arrived and the dishes could be served, He Yuzhu started to get busy. He Yuzhu has been informed that the guests do not eat spicy food and can only eat Shandong and Huaiyang cuisine. First-grade tofu, nine-turn large intestine, braised sea cucumber with green onions, white-robed shrimps, squirrel mandarin fish, stewed crab meat and lion head, soft-double long fish, Dongpo pork, etc., plus the prepared Tanjia cuisine.
The servants brought the delicacies out of the kitchen and onto the dining table in front of them.
The last dish was delivered, and He Yuzhu ended his busy day. Sitting in the kitchen, holding the tea set brought by the servant, drinking tea leisurely.
After a while, Mrs. Lou came.
"Zhu Zhu, thank you very much for today. The workmanship is very good. The customer is also very satisfied." Mrs. Lou said.
"Aunt Tan, as long as you are satisfied." He Yuzhu said.
"Satisfied, very satisfied. It's getting late. Don't you still have to catch the rainwater? Clean up and I'll have someone take you back." Mrs. Lou said.
"I'm leaving, what should I do with the extra dishes for the banquet ahead?" He Yuzhu asked.
"It's okay, the cook at home can handle it." Mrs. Lou said.
"Okay, I'll pack up and leave." He Yuzhu said.
"Pack up the remaining shark fins and bird's nests and bring them back to Yuyu to taste," Mrs. Lou said.
He Yuzhu picked up the remaining dishes and packed one portion.
Mrs. Lou and Lou Xiao'e saw He Yuzhu off to the car. Mrs. Lou gave He Yuzhu another package and said, "Take these dried sea cucumbers and bird's nests with you. It will be your reward tonight."
"This is a bit too expensive." He Yuzhu said.
"There is no shortage of these at home. You can take them back and listen to Aunt Tan." Mrs. Lou said.
"Okay then, thank you Aunt Tan." He Yuzhu said.
"Brother, bring this doll to Sister Yuyu." Lou Xiao'e handed He Yuzhu a doll and said.
"Okay, then I'll thank you, sister, for Yu Yu." He Yuzhu said.
"It's getting late, let's go. Next time we'll bring Rainy Rain to play with us," said Mrs. Lou.
"Okay." He Yuzhu responded.
The driver first drove He Yuzhu to Master's house to collect rainwater. Yuyu was very excited to ride in a car for the first time. He sat in the car and touched here and there. He Yuzhu also made no move to stop the rain.
The driver dropped the brothers and sisters home and left.
He Yuzhu returned home with Yuyu, took out the bird's nest in clear soup that he had packed back, and scooped a small bowl for Yuyu.
"Try and see how the Tan's food my brother cooks is like." He Yuzhu said.
Yu Yu took a spoonful, tasted it, and said, "It's delicious."
"It's delicious. Just eat this bowl. You can eat the rest tomorrow." He Yuzhu said.
"Brother, you eat too." Yuyu said.
"Brother, you've just eaten." He Yuzhu said.
Yu Yu happily ate the bird's nest, while He Yuzhu sent the packaged vegetables to the kitchen and put them in the space for storage.
After a busy day, He Yuzhu was a little tired. After the rain was finished and washed, He Yuzhu went to bed early to rest.
