Baozi Xishi's Struggle

Chapter 276 Miss Shen, can you come to my house and cook a dish for my old lady?

The finished candied haws come in various flavors, including red hawthorn and apple, white yam and autumn pear, yellow citrus, and brown walnut.

The fruit is wrapped in a layer of transparent sugar shell, shining with an attractive light. Although it is not like the ones sold outside, there is a large piece of thin sugar icing on the edge.

But since it was his first time, Shen Yu was already very satisfied with the result.

After putting the candied haws away, Shen Yu went to get the hawthorn cake.

After finishing all these, there were more customers in the shop, so Shen Yu went to work in the shop.

Unexpectedly, there were so many customers today that we were busy until closing time before we could finally sit down and relax.

Li sat down and pounded her aching lower back while saying, "What happened today? There are 20% more customers than usual, and we're going to close the store soon. Let's sit down and take a break before we clean up."

Jiang and the others also felt that today was busier than usual, so they didn't rush to close the door and sweep the floor, but sat down to rest for a while.

Shen Yu thought of the prepared candied haws and said with a smile: "Everyone is tired now, so it's just right to eat a bunch of candied haws to refresh themselves. I'll go get it now."

Shen Yu waved to Yu Tao: "Come with me, there is also a plate of hawthorn cake, I think it should be ready."

Li and the others knew that Shen Yu had made candied haws today, but the shop was busy and they ate lunch in a hurry, so they had no time to think about this.

When Shen Yu mentioned it, he thought of the sour and sweet taste and became excited and looked forward to it.

Shen Yu carefully carried the tray and placed it on the table.

Yutao followed in, holding a square plate of solidified hawthorn cake.

Li and his friends came over and looked at the candied haws made with various fruits. Some were made with a single kind of fruit, while others were made with various fruits strung together in fancy patterns. They didn't know which one to take for a moment.

Li said happily, "I have always thought that only hawthorn berries can be used to make candied haws. I even asked Yutao to buy more hawthorn berries."

"I didn't expect that citrus fruits could be used to make candied haws. I can't tell what this white one is made of."

Shen Yu introduced them one by one, and everyone picked up a bunch of fruits according to their favorite ones.

Shen Yu used another square plate to turn the hawthorn cake upside down, cut it into small pieces with a knife, took a porcelain plate to put half of it, poured osmanthus honey on it, and placed bamboo sticks next to it.

"Well, this walnut is coated with sugar and then covered with white sesame seeds. It tastes crispy on the outside and very sweet."

“I didn’t expect that citrus fruits could be eaten like this. They taste sour and sweet.”

"I still like hawthorn berries the most. The hawthorn berries from Uncle Yang's shop are really big, and they are crunchy inside when you bite them. They are really delicious."

Shen Yu likes the fancy candied haws the most. There is a piece of different fruits on a string. They taste different and have rich flavors.

Everyone was eating and commenting on the food, talking to each other, just like little children, enjoying the meal and talking lively.

Suddenly a middle-aged woman came in and asked, "Excuse me, is Miss Shen here?"

After saying that, she looked at the people in the room, who were happily eating a string of candied haws in each hand. She didn't react at first and thought she had walked into the wrong store.

Without waiting for Li and the others to greet him, he hurriedly retreated, looked at the sign, and said to himself, "I'm not wrong. This is the street restaurant that Aunt Qiu was talking about."

Having said that, he walked in again.

When everyone saw the guests coming, they stood up quickly. Zheng Sanniang and Yutao quickly took the candied haws and hawthorn cakes on the middle table and moved them to the table at the edge.

Shen Yu was still holding a piece of unfinished candied haws in his hand, and he came over with a smile: "My lady, how are you? May I ask what you can do for me?"

The woman looked to be about fifty years old, and was dressed like a maid, but the fabric was fine, and there were faint patterns of near-color embroidered on the cuffs.

Her hair was neatly combed into a bun with a golden hairpin stuck in it. Her face was stern and expressionless, like the housekeeper of a wealthy family.

When the woman saw that the person who answered her was a little girl who looked no more than fifteen or sixteen years old and was holding a candied haws in her hand, she looked Shen Yu up and down suspiciously and did not speak for a long time.

Li, who was standing nearby, hurriedly handed the unfinished candied haws in her hand to Jiang, stepped forward to pay her respects, and asked with a smile, "Madam, how are you? I am Yuzhi's mother. I wonder what you want to talk to my Yuzhi about."

The woman nodded slightly in return, then turned to Shen Yu and said in a flat voice: "I am Madam Feng from the old lady of the Song Mansion in the west of the city."

"A few days ago, my fourth daughter brought a portion of pickled fish from you back to the second wife. The wife enjoyed it very much."

"Today, the old lady kept saying she wanted to eat fish, but she complained that the cook in the mansion didn't cook it well. The second lady thought of the fish that the fourth lady brought back, so she mentioned Miss Shen to the old lady."

"The old lady heard that the young lady cooked fish well, and her name sounds the same as my fourth young lady's, so she asked me to come and see her and ask Miss Shen if she could come to her house and cook fish for the old lady."

Mrs. Feng spoke in a flat tone but at a fast speed.

Shen Yu was a little dizzy after hearing the long conversation in which she called him both Miss and Madam.

It was not until I heard the visitor mention that the name sounded the same that I sorted out my thoughts. I remembered Miss Song Yuzhi in red and then I matched the visitor with what she said.

Shen Yu thought about it and declined politely: "Old Madam, I should be happy to accept your offer."

"But how can my cooking skills compare to the master chef in the mansion? I just came up with the recipes randomly, and the dishes are just new. How can I show off my skills in front of an expert?"

Mother Feng originally didn't want to make this trip. She thought what fresh and delicious food could be found in a snack shop at the entrance of the market. If the Second Madam and the Fourth Miss had not agreed, the Old Madam would not have sent her here specially.

Mrs. Feng originally thought that she would come over to take a look, ask a few questions, and then go back to report. Unexpectedly, when Miss Shen heard that the Song family asked her to cook, she was not flattered or agreed immediately. Instead, she refused.

Mother Feng looked at the girl who was standing in front of her with a neither humble nor arrogant attitude and a smile on her face, and she actually had a better impression of her.

Mother Feng's face warmed up a little, and she said gently, "Don't be afraid, girl."

"The chef in the mansion has been cooking for the old lady for many years. No matter how delicious the food is, he will get tired of it. But he just wants a new taste and will not be picky about your cooking skills."

"I see that although the young lady's restaurant is small, it is kept clean and tidy. My fourth young lady rarely praises the food she eats, but she keeps praising the food made by the young lady, so it must be right."

"Miss, just go ahead and do it. If you need any ingredients, just tell me and I'll have them prepare them. Of course, you'll also get a reward."

"If I don't go, it will not look good for the Second Madam and the Fourth Miss."