Chapter 60: Do You Know I Will Achieve Golden List Inscription?

“Sister-in-law, what is this? It smells so good!” Leng Yun returned from gathering grass, placed it in the yard, and trotted into the kitchen following the aroma.

Wen Nuan Nuan thought, isn’t this just like when kids get out of school and the first thing they do is buy skewers or something similar?

The difference was that back in her time, everyone had school to attend, books to read, and plenty to eat and drink, whereas Little Brother and the others had endless work to do every day.

Wen Nuan Nuan felt a pang of heartache for the children, a gentle smile spreading across her face. “We’re having braised dishes today, but they haven’t fully absorbed the flavors yet. They need to simmer a bit longer and will taste even better by dinnertime. If you’re hungry, why not have a meat bun first?”

“No need, Sister-in-law. I’ve already gathered five baskets of grass! I’ll go gather one more basket, and it’ll be just about dinnertime!” Leng Yun’s youthful face beamed with a bright smile.

Now that he ate his fill at every meal, he wasn’t as ravenous as he had been at the beginning, when he couldn’t help but eat as much as possible.

During the early days when Sister-in-law started cooking delicious food, he would still think about a second bowl of rice while eating the first.

Sister-in-law said this was because they now had enough oil and nourishment in their bellies.

He didn’t understand why having enough oil meant he wasn’t as greedy for food, but since he wasn’t as ravenous, there was no need to eat extra.

Well, except that smelling this aroma made him really want to eat.

“Eldest Brother, Sister-in-law, I’m off to gather grass!” Leng Yun, like a little rabbit, hoisted his bamboo basket and headed back toward the back mountain.

Wen Nuan Nuan shook her head with a smile. He was like a gust of wind.

During her first days here, firstly, because the three little ones were too thin and weak and urgently needed nutrition; and secondly, because the storage room that had appeared at that time was very small—only about half the size of a fist—and aside from silver, it couldn’t hold much.

So, she tried to finish all the perishable foods from the refrigerator, like cooked dishes, vegetables, and pastries, as much as possible.

Fortunately, back then, the three little ones had huge appetites, and with the extra portions sent to Leng Xiao, there was basically no waste.

After more than twenty days of nutritious meals, everyone now had enough nourishment in their bellies and weren’t as prone to hunger as they had been at the start.

Moreover, the storage room had grown tremendously in size, so there was no need to worry about wasting uneaten food. She had already adjusted the food arrangements.

Lifting the lid of the pot, Wen Nuan Nuan checked whether the chicken legs were cooked.

Leng Xiao stood up and looked over.

“Why are there so many chicken wingtips and chicken feet?” Leng Xiao asked, puzzled. He remembered her saying that there was only one whole chicken in the treasure, while the other was already chopped and cooked.

“In the past, when stewing an old hen, I used the whole bird. But ever since you and Eldest Brother started going into the mountains, I’ve been breaking it down.

Every day, I chop off the wingtips, mid-wings, feet, and legs, sort them, and store them on the shelves in the storage room. I use the rest to make soup, adding fresh hazel mushrooms. The mushrooms are delicious, and the soup is flavorful. Most importantly, I don’t have to worry about wasting what we can’t finish.” Wen Nuan Nuan was quite proud of herself.

She had taken out some of the stored parts today to make braised dishes. The braising sauce in the packet was something she had prepared based on her preferred taste, combined with recipes from food bloggers.

Back then, she had placed a small packet in the refrigerator, and now she had accumulated more than twenty packets!

Seasonings like these, which are used only occasionally, accumulate quickly.

As for things like salt, which are used frequently, they don’t stockpile easily and need to be used sparingly for pickling vegetables.

At the time, she hadn’t considered pickling vegetables in large batches, so all the seasonings placed in the refrigerator were in small bottles or packets.

But on second thought, if they weren’t small portions, she wouldn’t have been able to store so many varieties.

This small packet of braising sauce was directly related to the quality of her future life~

“Sister-in-law, it smells so good in this pot!” The three little ones crowded around the table, their eyes unwilling to leave the spread.

“This is braised food,” Wen Nuan Nuan explained, seeing the identical puzzled expressions on their faces. She knew they didn’t understand.

Leng Xiao didn’t need to look. Most of the time, his expression was cool and detached, revealing neither joy nor anger, and he rarely showed emotional fluctuations.

So Wen Nuan Nuan only explained to the three little ones: “It’s made by simmering several ingredients with many seasonings. In mine, I used about nine kinds like star anise, cinnamon, bay leaves, and dried tangerine peel. Go wash your hands first, then come eat. After we eat, I have something to discuss.”

The three little ones cheered and ran to the well to wash their hands.

Wen Nuan Nuan sighed inwardly. Interacting with the three little ones was so rewarding.

No matter what she did or how she did it, they were always her most enthusiastic and supportive audience.

They always gave her the warmest and most immediate reactions.

Unlike Leng Xiao—she had no idea what was going on behind that cold, aloof expression of his, as pristine as the snow-capped peaks of a high mountain!

“Sister-in-law, Eldest Brother, can we eat now?” Leng Yun asked eagerly.

Upon hearing this, Leng Xiao picked up his chopsticks and selected a chicken drumstick.

He placed it in Wen Nuan Nuan’s bowl.

Wen Nuan Nuan: …Well done, but please don’t do it again.

At that moment, she deeply understood the feeling of wanting to cry but having no tears. She wanted to eat things like chicken wingtips, chicken feet, lotus root slices, kelp knots, and dried tofu—foods that wouldn’t fill her up too much.

That way, she could try more varieties and eat more of them!

“You don’t like it?”

“I do, I do!” Fine, it was a great honor for a future powerful official to serve her food. What right did she have to be picky!

Out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly noticed the three little ones picking up chicken drumsticks, about to place them in her bowl. Wen Nuan Nuan immediately reached out to stop them: “No, no, I’ll serve myself. Eldest Brother, you all don’t need to be so polite!”

She narrowly prevented their kind gesture!

Heavens, thank goodness she was sharp-eyed and noticed in time. If she had eaten four large chicken drumsticks, would she have had room for anything else?

No, she couldn’t even finish four large chicken drumsticks!

Sorry, future big shots. Even though she knew it was an honor to be served by them, she was like a wild boar that can’t eat fine grain—she couldn’t handle such good fortune.

Leng Tian: Sister-in-law really loves Eldest Brother deeply. She only eats what he serves her!

Leng Chen: Ever since Eldest Brother returned, Sister-in-law has been different. Before, she would accept the chicken drumsticks we served her.

Leng Yun: Big chicken drumstick, come to my tummy…

All their little thoughts and schemes vanished without a trace in the face of delicious food.

Chicken wingtips, mid-joint wings, drumsticks, chicken feet, thinly sliced pork belly and beef, eggs, dried tofu, tofu puffs, kelp, lotus root slices…

A full pot of braised food, both meat and vegetables, paired with rice and steamed buns, was completely devoured!

Wow, their appetite was truly impressive!

Wen Nuan Nuan also ate quite a bit, after all, it was her favorite flavor she had prepared.

“What do you think of this braised food?” This time, Wen Nuan Nuan directly asked Leng Xiao.

Her eyes sparkled as she watched his expression.

Asking the three little ones would definitely yield a response of “delicious.” Only by asking Leng Xiao would she get a meaningful answer.

“Very good, very unique,” Leng Xiao replied. As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the tense little face before him break into a bright, radiant smile.

“What do you think about selling this in Jingcheng? Would it sell?”

Leng Tian and Leng Yun nodded eagerly.

Leng Xiao and Leng Chen remained silent.

“You two think it wouldn’t sell?” Wen Nuan Nuan asked, puzzled. That shouldn’t be the case—didn’t he just say it was very good?

She pressed on: “Are you worried the price would be too high, or that the nobles in Jingcheng wouldn’t be accustomed to the taste?”

“They would like this flavor, not only could it sell, but it could sell very well. However, we cannot protect it.” Leng Xiao’s eyes turned cold, but he quickly concealed it.

Leng Chen lowered his head in agreement.

“Why can’t we protect it?” Leng Tian didn’t quite understand and asked in confusion.

Wen Nuan Nuan understood. “We cannot protect it now, not just in Jingcheng, but even in Tongcheng, we cannot.”

That’s why she never considered making money through food from the start. Even if she had the silver to open a shop, she didn’t think about it.

In modern times, running a small food business rarely involved local bullies demanding protection money, and the relevant institutions were already well-established, unlikely to deliberately cause trouble.

But here, it was certainly different. Local bullies, street thugs, and scoundrels, as well as yamen runners, constables, and other officials—even if not many—would come by every few days to eat for free or collect fees. A restaurant or tavern wouldn’t survive.

Those who could open restaurants or taverns had connections. Street food vendors either had to be ruthless or endure, or both.

After careful consideration, she realized she couldn’t do it.

“So I thought of starting in Jingcheng, but not selling right away. Instead, we’ll wait until you achieve the Golden List Inscription and have a foundation before beginning.”

That way, with Leng Xiao as their backing, local bullies wouldn’t dare cause trouble—the constables would handle it!

If street thugs, scoundrels, or troublemakers came to stir up trouble, the constables would arrest them!

And for the yamen runners, constables, and officials, gifts would be sent uniformly at mid-year and year-end.

Doing business without spending money to smooth things over wouldn’t work. Even with Leng Xiao as their support, they had to give those handling matters some benefits, so they wouldn’t pretend compliance while secretly opposing, and they’d put in their best effort.

“Agreed!” This time, the three little ones nodded vigorously in unison.

Only Leng Xiao raised his deep, phoenix-like eyes and looked over. “You know I will achieve the Golden List Inscription?”