Chapter 11 Oops, I'm growing hair
The world in dreams is strange, changeable and incomprehensible.
In the previous second, Su Xian was still dreaming about being drowned by countless copper coins, but in the next moment, he actually dreamed of forging iron.
Ding ding dong.
The sound of metal clashing was endless.
A shirtless man, with arms thicker than his legs, was swinging a large hammer and hitting a piece of red-hot iron.
Suddenly, the shirtless man turned his head and looked at Su Xian, laughing sinisterly.
Finally, he swung a big hammer and smashed it on Su Xian's head...
“Fuck!”
Su Xian woke up from a nightmare, sweating profusely.
My hands subconsciously reached for the top of my head.
It turned out to be just a dream...
I glanced out the window. The moonlight was dim. It was already the second half of the night. Even the dog had fallen asleep. The world was at peace.
He turned over.
Holding a big red quilt embroidered with the word "囍", I closed my eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
…
Dawn.
Su Xian got up, washed up simply, went out, and came to Liu Huixiang's house.
Liu Huixiang and Zhang Cuihua were grinding the mill. When they saw Su Xian coming, they invited him to have breakfast together.
After dinner, the three of them went to the second floor.
"Mr. Su, can we have the stinky tofu today?" Liu Huixiang walked in front on the wooden stairs, gently lifting the hem of her skirt with both hands.
"It's hot in the summer, so two days will be enough."
Su Xian lowered his head and stared at the stairs without looking around.
Because Zhang Cuihua was right next to him.
He went on to say, “If it is winter and the weather is cold, it will take four or five days.”
While they were talking, the three of them had already reached the second floor.
Su Xian smiled and said, "Madam Liu, Sister Zhang, the reason why stinky tofu is called stinky tofu is that it really stinks. How about... plug your nostrils with something?"
"Don't be afraid, sir." Liu Huixiang said with a smile.
"It's okay!" Zhang Cuihua waved her hand and pushed open the door.
As the door opened, a fresh, strong stench hit me in the face.
The three of them were shocked and silently endured the baptism of the stench.
Su Xian raised his eyebrows.
Liu Huixiang and Zhang Cuihua both covered their noses with their sleeves and frowned, regretting a little for not listening to Su Xian.
Su Xian smiled, stepped in first, squatted down, and opened a small wooden box nearby to check the situation.
Liu Huixiang followed in, squatted beside Su Xian, and looked over.
I saw that the tofu blocks covered with straw had grown hair!
White fine hairs, about an inch long.
"Oh my, it's growing hair!" Liu Huixiang exclaimed.
"Don't worry, Madam Liu. This is called 'mold'. The growth of this kind of fluff means that the stinky tofu is successful!" Su Xian said with a smile.
Zhang Cuihua also came over, frowned, and said, "Although Master Su said that stinky tofu is very smelly, but this smell... Master Su, is stinky tofu really edible?"
"You're too talkative!" Liu Huixiang glanced at her. "Although stinky tofu smells bad, it is a lost delicacy recorded in ancient books after all, so it must be good."
"Miss, I'm just worried that all the efforts of the past few days and the hundreds of kilograms of tofu will be wasted..."
Before he could finish his words, Liu Huixiang glared back at him.
Su Xian randomly checked a few small wooden boxes, all of which were good. He clapped his hands and stood up, smiling, "Don't worry, Sister Zhang, the stinky tofu is naturally edible. Let's get a few pieces to try now."
A quarter of an hour later.
kitchen.
The fat in the frying pan was already emitting green smoke. The oil used was sesame oil, and the fragrance had spread throughout the kitchen.
Sesame oil was originally very expensive and most people could not afford it.
However, the country was peaceful and the people were prosperous, and the court encouraged the large-scale planting of sesame, which led to the very affordable price of sesame oil on the market and gradually entered the homes of ordinary people.
Liu Huixiang personally took charge of the cooking and, under Su Xian's instructions, put the stinky tofu with the white hair scraped off into the oil pan one by one.
Hiss!
Hiss!
A strong stench spread, even stinkier than before, directly covering the scent of sesame oil.
Zhang Cuihua, who was burning the fire, sneezed several times.
"This...is this really edible?" Zhang Cuihua stood up and glanced at the stinky tofu in the oil pan.
"..." Liu Huixiang didn't say anything this time.
Because it really stinks!
When the stinky tofu was fried in the oil pan, it seemed as if something was stimulated and the smell was simply unbearable.
“Of course you can eat it.”
Su Xian looked calm and said with a smile: "The uglier it smells, the more delicious it will taste later... It's almost done, Madam Liu, take it out of the pot."
Liu Huixiang covered her nose with one hand and scooped out the stinky tofu with the other hand and put it on a plate.
Su Xian took a pair of chopsticks, picked up a piece, looked at it first, and praised: "It's golden and crispy."
Then he sniffed it carefully and said with a smile: "It smells stinky at first, but after a closer sniff, it has a strong and tempting fragrance! "
Put the last chopstick into your mouth and chew it carefully.
Liu Huixiang and Zhang Cuihua stood nearby , staring at him without blinking.
Liu Huixiang's eyebrows twitched slightly.
Zhang Cuihua twitched the corners of her mouth fiercely...he really ate it.
"How is it?" Liu Huixiang asked.
"Fresh, fragrant and crispy!" Su Xian replied, with a look of aftertaste on his face.
Zhang Cuihua curled her lips and thought to herself, "Pretend!"
This stuff stinks, it's hard to eat.
Liu Huixiang gritted her teeth, took out a pair of chopsticks, and said with a smile: "I want to try a piece too."
"Miss!" Zhang Cuihua quickly stopped her, "How about I try it first?"
"No need, I believe in Mr. Su, and I also believe in the records in ancient books." As she spoke, Liu Huixiang picked up a piece of stinky tofu, and without even looking at it, she took a small bite.
"Huh?"
As she chewed, her slightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed and her eyes brightened.
After swallowing it, he praised: "It really smells bad, but tastes good. The taste is very unique!"
Zhang Cuihua didn't believe it, so she also took out her chopsticks, picked up a piece and put it into her mouth...
"Hiss... This taste is indeed extraordinary."
After eating, Zhang Cuihua was puzzled: "This shouldn't be possible. It smells so bad, but tastes so good! This shouldn't be possible!"
Su Xian smiled and said, "This is the uniqueness of stinky tofu! It seems that the records in ancient books are true!"
…
The stinky tofu was a success.
They decided to set up a "stinky tofu stall" immediately.
Zhang Cuihua was mainly responsible for arranging this matter.
Su Xian and Liu Huixiang sat at a small wooden table against the wall, discussing the specific details of the cooperation.
“…”
"There are two ways, 'buyout' and 'profit sharing'," said Su Xian.
"'Buy out' what?" Liu Huixiang asked.
"The so-called 'buyout' means that I will sell the secret recipe of stinky tofu to Madam once and for all. After that, no matter how Madam treats the secret recipe, I have no right to ask."
"What is 'share' then?"
"The so-called 'sharing' means long-term cooperation. You can give me a small portion of the net profit from the stinky tofu."
Liu Huixiang thought about it carefully, and finally said: "I think the 'divide' method is better."
"Why?"
"You are a scholar, so you should focus on your studies. And your family... has the only stinky tofu in the world, so I think the business must be considerable."
"If we adopt the 'sharing' method, the money will flow over a long period of time and should be able to provide for the young master's food, clothing and other expenses while he studies." After Liu Huixiang finished speaking, she lowered her head, fearing that Su Xian would notice something unusual.
Su Xian sat opposite her, and when he looked up he saw a slight blush on her snow-white cheeks.
However, Su Xian did not delve into it further.
He thought about it carefully and decided that being a scholar was indeed a very promising career in this era, so he decided to pursue this path.
But his family was penniless and making a living was a problem, let alone supporting his studies.
It would really help him if he could have a regular income.
Furthermore, if you adopt the "buyout" method, you can certainly get a large sum of money at one time.
But Su Xian was afraid that he would not be able to control himself, eat and drink lavishly, and spend all the money in a few days...
Now is not the time to "spend time"!
To be on the safe side, Su Xian nodded and said, "Mrs. Liu's words make sense, so let's adopt the 'split' approach ."
"Yeah." Liu Huixiang nodded gently, her heart full of colorful feelings.
Next, the question is what percentage of the net profit Su Xian should get.
Su Xian thought that a 10% net profit would be enough because he "did not put in any effort and did not incur any cost".
Liu Huixiang insisted on giving him 50% of the net profit, believing that "without Su Xian's secret recipe, there would be no stinky tofu. "
After repeated consultations.
Finally, it was agreed that Su Xian would only provide the secret recipe of stinky tofu and take 30% of the net profit. Moreover, as long as Su Xian needed it, he could come to Liu Huixiang every day to get the money.
