Chapter 18: The Third Year of Zhenguan

  The winter in northern Fujian is still very cold, especially during the Tang Dynasty. Firstly, there was no greenhouse effect, and secondly, the buildings were not dense or tall enough to form an urban heat island effect. Overall, the winter of the third year of the Zhenguan era (November) was much colder than in later times. Many trees had already shed their leaves, but still, many trees remained lush and green.

  Li Dabao, who went to find chili peppers, has not returned yet. From Jian'an to Lingnan, taking the route via Yanping and boarding a ship from Fuzhou's Mawei to go to Lingnan, it would take about ten or more days. Calculating that Li Dabao has been gone for almost a year and a half now, could it be that chili peppers have not yet spread to the Tang Dynasty? Or perhaps something unexpected happened on the way? Wang Kuang is somewhat worried. On this cold winter's day, if there were chili peppers, making a pot of hot pot and having everyone gather around to eat would be so cozy.

  The current Fulaiguan Inn has been steadily ranked as the number one inn in Jiangnan for two years, and just by supplying Youfen to other inns and restaurants in neighboring counties, it has made a huge profit. Since announcing the usage of Youfen and starting its supply in September, the inn's income has doubled. However, compared to the large wine house in Yangzhou, Huainan Road, there is still a big gap, not to mention being compared to Chang'an under the emperor's feet. But even so, Fulaiguan Inn has now gained a reputation outside, and occasionally, it can attract one or two foodies from Suzhou and Yangzhou.

  The reputation of Fulaiguesthouse is getting bigger and bigger, Wang Kuang is more and more afraid to introduce new dishes. The target is too big, it's not a good thing. We need to think of ways to divert everyone's attention. Originally, Wang Kuang wanted to help Yao Yue and come up with something, but if that's the case, people with ulterior motives can guess that he is behind it. It's too obvious, he goes to Yao Yue's sheep stall every day, and as a person from Fulaiguesthouse, smart people will suspect him after some thought.

  Sun Mingqian has also been worried lately. In the past year, several new employees were found to have ulterior motives, but fortunately, they were discovered early and chased away. This was mainly thanks to Sun Er's efforts. Sun Er is clever and optimistic about the future, so he is more careful about keeping secrets than Sun Mingqian. The ones with ulterior motives were all discovered by him. After investigation, it was found that some of them were sent by two other inns in Jian'an City, and one even came from Yangzhou. Later, Sun Mingqian went to the other two inns to reason with them. The owner of Tongqu Inn admitted it directly and apologized; while Heji Inn denied it, and Sun Mingqian had no way to deal with it. It was Wang Kuang who came up with an idea - when supplying rice flour, limit the supply to Heji Inn, which is a way to vent their anger.

  Last year, Sun Mingqian gave Wang Kuang 50 taels of silver as the interest for the inn, which is equivalent to 50,000 wen. In fact, since Wang Kuang arrived at the inn, the inn didn't even earn an extra 50 taels. Moreover, Wang Kuang and his brother were still living in the inn, and all their expenses were covered by the inn. However, Sun Mingqian had a keen eye for business and knew that the new food and the rice flour that Wang Kuang brought would be a long-term profitable deal, bringing him immeasurable benefits. So he gave more than necessary. Wang Kuang didn't decline, but accepted it instead. He was in need of saving money to prepare for his future trip to Chang'an. In his later years, after watching many stories about traveling through time and space, the phrase that stuck with him the most was: "It's not easy to live in the capital."

  It's not the right time to go to Chang'an yet. Firstly, I'm still young and can't handle it; secondly, the aftermath of the Crown Prince's rebellion hasn't subsided, and last year Wang Village was massacred because some villagers joined the rebel army. If we went to Chang'an now, with so many powerful people investigating, who knows if our family background would be exposed? We have to wait until the impact of the Crown Prince's disaster has dissipated; thirdly, Wang Kuang plans to save up 5,000 taels of silver before going to Chang'an. Alternatively, if Sun Ming is willing to go to Chang'an, then we can follow him earlier and continue to hide behind the scenes at Fuli Inn.

  To sum it up, Wang Kuang had a very peaceful year. To outsiders, the young master of this wealthy family was just a spoiled brat who didn't attend school and spent his days wandering around or sitting in the inn listening to people bragging, really don't know what the master is thinking? Why spoil this nephew so much? Fortunately, this spoiled brat didn't cause any trouble, and his behavior was still like that of an adult. It's said that he had experienced a dramatic change at home, maybe that's why he grew up so quickly.

  It's actually Wang Xiao, who has been very diligent for over a year. The old master often praises Wang Xiao behind his back, although he can't be considered a genius, but he is clever and most importantly, studies very hard, which is thousands of times better than the two useless kids from the East house. Originally, the old master had lost patience with teaching those two inferior children and was ready to retire, but then Wang Xiao came along, and seeing that he could cultivate a satisfactory disciple in his later years, he continued to teach with peace of mind. Moreover, the food provided by the Fuli Inn is unparalleled, and if he were to return home, he wouldn't even be able to get a taste of it.

  For a year, Wang Kuang's own kitchen in the courtyard hadn't lit up many times, mainly because he didn't want to come up with new ideas anymore. Besides, the food made at the inn was quite good, so there was no need for him to take action himself. Sun Mingqian also wanted to create some new dishes, but he understood his current abilities. If Wang Kuang were to be exposed, he wouldn't be able to protect him either. So, he reluctantly instructed Wang Kuang that if he really wanted to make new dishes, don't do it in the inn's kitchen. Just make them yourself and eat them quietly, without making a fuss. However, he specifically instructed that if there were any new dishes, he must be notified so he could come and try them. Yet, for this entire year, Wang Kuang hadn't notified him once, leaving Sun Mingqian with some minor frustration.

  However, there are a few things that Wang Kuang wants to get done before going to Chang'an. One is the famous Jian'ou Guangbing, one is the tofu balls and old tofu from Pucheng, and also the Osmanthus tea. He doesn't want to wait until he gets to Chang'an to do these things, as they are his hometown specialties and should be done in his hometown. It's just that the timing isn't ripe yet, so for now he'll have to endure.

  In fact, Wang Kuang spent this year seemingly idle, but he was actually making preparations and gradually forming a plan in his mind. First of all, he had to find a backer, as the status of merchants was low at that time, and Sun Mingqian didn't have any powerful connections either, so Wang Kuang could only slowly look for one himself. As for waiting for Wang Xue to finish his studies and take the imperial examination to become a jinshi, that would be at least several or even tens of years later. Before that, he still had to find an outsider, let alone whether Wang Xue could pass the exam in the future was unknown, and even if he did pass, it was uncertain whether he could climb to a high enough position, and how many years it would take.

  As for Sun Ming's two sons, they were still mischievous and not interested in studying. They would often sneak out to catch birds' eggs or grab field mice. Old Master Sun had a student like Wang Qian, so he turned a blind eye to their behavior. Sun Jiahan was now 12 years old and showed interest in cooking. He would often visit Wang Kuang, who didn't dare show his true self in front of the young boy, fearing that he might accidentally reveal secrets. Instead, Wang Kuang taught Sun Jiahan some dishes through Wang Shifu and Zhu Si Niangzi. If Sun Jiahan wanted to learn more, he had to wait until later. Sun Jia Ying was a headache for Sun Ming, as he was not interested in studying at the age of 9 but loved martial arts. Fortunately, during the Tang Dynasty, there was no phenomenon of emphasizing literature over martial arts. Therefore, Sun Ming spent the past year searching for skilled martial artists to teach his son, but so far, none had been found. He could only keep the two young boys in school, at least they would have a place to go and someone to discipline them.

  Wang Juan had also met Sun Mingqian's wife, Sun Han Shi, several times. She was a very ordinary woman, but because Sun Mingqian treated Wang Juan with great care and Wang Juan had a sweet tongue, Sun Han Shi also thought highly of Wang Juan. She would often talk about him, saying "Ah, big brother this" and "big brother that", and even complained that Sun Mingqian had left the two Wang brothers at the inn without inviting them to stay at their home. However, she didn't know that Wang Juan preferred staying at the inn because he wanted to be free.

  Although Sun Mingqian had also advised Wang Juan several times to move into their home, Wang Juan had always politely declined. To be honest, Wang Juan was not used to so many formalities and etiquette, although during the Tang dynasty it was not as complicated as in later dynasties like Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing. After calling him several times and seeing that Wang Juan would not move, Sun Mingqian could only go along with his wishes. Because of this, he was often scolded by his wife.

  On this day, Mrs. Sun sent a steward from her household to deliver a new bedding set to the Wang brothers, which was said to be filled with high-quality down feathers from the Hexi Corridor and was very warm, costing nearly ten taels of silver per bedspread. Nowadays, Sun Mingqian had also learned Wang Kuang's skills and would often go around listening to people bragging when he had nothing better to do. This time, before winter even began, he heard that such bedding sets were being sold in Chang'an and sent someone to buy a few back. Mrs. Sun was thinking of the Wang brothers, so she sent one over to them.

  In the twelfth lunar month, after several days of light drizzle, Jian'an welcomed a heavy snowfall. The sky was still dark when the sun rose late, and upon opening the door, the entire courtyard was covered in a thick layer of snow, with over half a foot of accumulation on the ground and rooftops. From the second floor of the inn, the whole city of Jian'an was seen to be wrapped in a silver blanket, with a vast expanse of white stretching out as far as the eye could see. Some poor households had their thatched roofs collapsed under the weight of the snow. Adults were busy clearing the snow, while only children played and frolicked in the snow. The streets were empty, except for someone sweeping the snow at the entrance to the inn - it seemed to be the high school student who came last year.

  How many years has it been since I've seen such a big snow? Wang Kuang thought, only in his childhood and later when he was studying at university in Changchun had he seen such a thing, and he felt a little nostalgic. Just as he was thinking this, Er Sun came up the stairs and saw that Wang Kuang was up, so he asked: "Master Wang, do you want me to sweep the snow in your courtyard? I'll go help you sweep it."

  "No need, let the snow stay there, I have a use for it." Just as Wang Kuang was thinking about his troubles, he heard this and quickly stopped him, thinking to himself that if the snow is swept away by you, where will I build my snowman?

  Division

  Dear book friends, Grey Sparrow still has many wonderful indicators in hand. If there are comments, I will add them to the essentials. The ones that can be voted on will be voted on, even if it's just collecting them is a great encouragement and support for new authors and books.