Volume 8: The Sword Points to the Far East Chapter 245: Lion Tribe Specialty Wonderful Juice
Making oyster sauce is not a very tiring job, but it takes a long time. A pot of oyster sauce needs to be boiled for at least five or six hours to produce a thick brown oyster sauce.
But the oyster sauce made in this way is indeed delicious. Whether you are making soup or cooking any other food, adding a few drops of it will make the taste completely different - after all, it is made with hard work, and does not rely on other auxiliary seasonings to enhance the color, nor does it rely on starch water to thicken it.
Of course, in line with the style of teaching people completely, Yang Mao still told them very honestly the method of simplifying the cooking process, which is to add a little sugar, salt or spices (such as thirteen spices), starch water and other auxiliary ingredients to make up the amount.
After spending two days at the seaside and making four barrels of oyster sauce, the two wives happily returned home together.
When the two families were preparing to divide the oyster sauce and continue their daily lives, Primo, who played the role of a qualified profiteer, showed up and made a suggestion with a smile: Why don't the wives of the two families use this as a basis for their fortunes and sell this Lion tribe specialty seasoning that can greatly enhance the taste of food?
The lion tribe that occupies a good piece of land must not be poor. Many families run their own private farms. Of course, the area will not be too large, and only the wives will work there. If the area is too large, they will not be able to handle it.
In an environment where cities are formed and locals are relatively well-off, the lions naturally have a pursuit of food. This kind of seasoning that can enhance the delicious taste of food with just a few drops has a market waiting to be developed.
The Xiu family has only three wives, and usually at least one or two wives must be stationed on the farm. They were a little hesitant when they heard this; but the neighbors were very tempted, because they have five wives in their family, so they can allocate some manpower!
Primo stepped up his pressure and advised, "If you start by selling condiments, you may not be able to sustain your business. You can start by running a delicatessen, cooking the food in the Gourmet Hunter's Travels and adding oyster sauce. Customers who have eaten here once will know how good this condiment is. If you ask them to buy oyster sauce again, they won't be reluctant to spend money. Besides, the Snow Wolf Tribe still has wool on them. They have plenty of experience in opening food stores and can help you customize the delicatessen menu. This kind of opportunity is hard to find!"
Xiu immediately said that she had decided to get the deal!
The travelogue "Food Hunter" is also very popular in Lion City. It is not an exaggeration to say that some of the easier-to-make recipes published in it have changed the eating habits of some lions - for example, vegetables cooked in bone soup, lions used to just wash and eat them raw; for example, the flour stored in every household has basically had most of the bran removed (it is not sifted clean), and the wives would knead it to make pancakes when they have free time~!
The extremely proactive mistress of the house, Xiu, dropped what she was doing and ran out, only returning with a tanned lioness just before dinner started.
"This is Xingguang. She will be a member of our family from now on." In the yard, Xiu brought the black lion to the other two ladies and introduced him.
The two ladies came closer to sniff the scent of the black-skinned lioness, rubbed each other, and then picked up the cub that was playing on the male lion Rex and said, "Call Starlight Mommy."
The two cubs who were being held by the scruff of their necks said in unison: "Starlight Mom."
Xiu watched with satisfaction as his new wife integrated into the family, and waved towards the kitchen: "Yangmao, make one more portion for dinner!"
"Okay!"
Primo & Rosemary, who were squatting on the other side of the yard: "..."
"...Rex has a new partner. Do I need to congratulate him?" Rosemary stared with dead eyes.
"I think so. Look how happily Rex is smiling." Primo said expressionlessly.
Rex, the innocent-looking lion: “???”
If oyster sauce was just a trick used by the wives of the Lion Clan to improve the taste of home-cooked dishes, it would obviously not meet Xiao Yun's expectations.
So how can we get the Lion Tribe to voluntarily increase the production and utilization of oyster sauce?
It’s very simple, just link it to interests!
When the Lions discover that oyster sauce represents business opportunities and means making a fortune, will they abandon the long coastline in the southern part of the Golden Plains and completely ignore it?
From the next day, Yang Mao, the amateur chef of the Snow Wolf tribe, devotedly taught the wives of the two families how to quickly and efficiently cook simple fast food that could be quickly eaten by guests who came to the house throughout the day:
First, there is the pork bone noodle soup.
Well, it’s actually slicing noodles… It takes too long to learn how to make ramen noodles, so slicing noodles that only require effort to knead the dough are easier and can be eaten anytime. (Selling vermicelli is the most convenient, but the Fire Department is not in a position to challenge the sea route dominated by Lamia for the time being, so vermicelli cannot be shipped in large quantities)
As for the technique for making soup, it is also easy: no matter whether it is cow bones, sheep bones, or wild boar or deer bones caught by the Lion City Patrol, let the lion smash the bones violently, wrap them tightly with gauze and make soup. It will be easy to bring out the flavor and the bone residue will not come out!
Next, there are the square dumplings that can be wrapped ahead of time, steamed, and then cooled.
The lion can help with kneading dough, chopping meat and making dumplings. When guests come, the square dumplings are fried in a frying pan with water and oil until the skin is golden brown, then served on a plate with dip in the sauce.
Needless to say, vegetable soup/seaweed soup.
The finale of the "treasure of the store" is... the pancake that most of the wives of the lion tribe can make.
Of course, it is different from what we usually cook at home. In order to make this, the wives of both families worked together to make a clay oven similar to that used for roasting duck.
The kneaded and flattened dough is put into the oven to bake, with a ball of meat filling wrapped inside. After it comes out of the oven, it is brushed with a layer of thirteen-spice chili sauce with oyster sauce. The baked pancakes can be eaten directly, wrapped/sandwiched with meat slices and lettuce, and add pickled radish and cabbage as side dishes. The Snow Wolf Tribe has never gotten tired of eating it!
The Snow Wolf tribe's way of making sauerkraut requires vinegar. Primo also brought two jars of this stuff and divided them between the wives of the two families. After that, all they have to do is recycle it - when it is old enough and becomes old sour soup, the pickled cabbage will be more fragrant~!
When Yang Mao customized the delicatessen menu, he did not forget to take into account the labor of the two lions. When the wives worked together to open up the yards of the two houses and prepare tables, chairs, benches and counters, the lions of the two families chopped the meat until they doubted their lives...
On the eighth day that Primo and his two companions visited Xiu's home, the first delicatessen in Lion City, jointly run by Xiu's family and their neighbors, officially opened.
On the opening day, there were few customers in the morning.
At noon, some people living in the same neighborhood who were too lazy to cook lunch came over to try it.
In the afternoon, the two ladies wanted to close the shops early like other shops, but Primo and Yangmao strongly dissuaded them.
An hour before dinner, people from this block and the next block came one after another... They ate until it was completely dark, and the ladies of the two families became impatient with hunger and took the initiative to send the guests away.
On the second day of the opening, Rex the lion and his neighbor were picked up by the wives and chopped into minced meat before dawn. When they were crying, the newly installed store door was slammed hard and they were asked to eat breakfast...
"Stop shouting! How can the door be open so early? It's not even ready yet!" Xiu came out of the kitchen, opened the door and started yelling outside.
"Hurry up and make more pancakes. We need to take them to the farm." The dozen or so lionesses surrounding the door urged as they squeezed in. "Hey, your Rex is helping?"
Xiu said unhappily, "How can we handle this if they don't help?"
"That's right." The guests nodded one after another, and then urged, "Harder, Rex!"
"Work hard, we're waiting to eat!"
Rex & the Neighbor's Lion: "..."
These lionesses from the same block and the next block did not regard themselves as outsiders at all. They sat casually in the lobby waiting for the store to prepare the goods. Some of them rushed back to the kitchen and shouted to the wives who were busy, "Xiu, how did you make your Rex so hardworking?"
Rosemary, who took the initiative to help, almost burst into tears. You call this hard work? !
"If you don't work, you won't get to eat pancakes, dumplings, noodles or soup. You'll only get bread." Xiu replied casually.
Guests: “!!”
Guests: “What a great idea!”
Rex & the Neighbor's Lion: "..."
"Such delicious food that costs money should not be given to people who don't work."
"Yes, it's good enough to give me some bread to eat."
"That bastard in our family should really learn from Rex!"
Several wives left immediately, ready to kick their own lions awake, and then drag them over to show them Rex and his brothers who were working hard.
The lions on both sides stared at each other silently, and the emotions in their eyes were enough to express hundreds of words...
The most popular item is pancakes, which are easy to carry and can be taken away in a bag of leaves. They can be eaten even when they are cold and the taste is not much different. Even if the lionesses who have to work in the fields do not eat in the store, they will stop by to buy a few to take away.
The most popular ones are the square dumplings. With rich fillings, golden crispy skin fried in water and oil, and extremely delicious dipping sauce, any lioness can eat a whole plate in one go.
The deli was okay in the morning, but by noon, it was completely overwhelmed... people from several blocks away and even single people from other cities came to try the new food!
It is said that human potential and ideas are forced out. A group of hungry guys who didn't know what politeness and leaving a way out for the lion were were making a lot of noise in the lobby. Xiu didn't need Primo's hint or Yangmao's reminder, so he and the neighbor's mistress... caught all the kids from the two families who had run out to play.
The eight little kids were forced to hold their heads down and wash their paws, then they were pulled to the chopping board to help make dumplings...
So, following the male lion, the cubs of the two families also began their happy days of crying and being forced to work...
After finally getting through the lunch rush, Primo found the exhausted Xiu and the neighbor's wife, and said worriedly, "I walked around outside, and many people are discussing our delicatessen. During dinner time, there may be more customers than at noon, so we have to be prepared."
The wives of the two families: "..."
"My sister and her best friend haven't started a family yet, I'll go and get them over here." The neighbor's wife wiped her face, forced herself to get up and go out to help her husband expand his harem.
"Xingguang, are your sisters married yet?" Xiu shouted to his new wife.
"No, they are not yet adults and are still living in their mothers' homes," replied the black lioness Starlight.
There is no such thing as a parasite among the lion tribe. Adult children will be driven out to start their own families.
Lions do not need retirement care, as they can still have the strength to work in the fields even if they live to their full lifespan.
When the wives die of old age, the head wife will replace them with new lionesses, and the family property will be passed down from wife to wife. (The advantage of polygamous matriarchal clans is that families that have established themselves will not easily be cut off or disappear.)
As for the male lions, after enjoying their old age in the family, there will be young male lions to take over their positions - this is the difference between intelligent creatures and instinctive creatures. Old and frail male lions will not be left without a place to stay, as long as they do not offend all the wives at once, it will not be a problem for them to eat gigolos until they die.
Hearing that he was not yet an adult, Xiu hesitated...
But as the saying goes, when pushed to a certain level, everyone's moral bottom line will slide down. Although Xiu felt a little embarrassed, he still said shamelessly: "Even if they are not yet adults, come to our house first. They are not much older anyway, right?"
Starlight: “This…”
"It's okay. Our family doesn't lack a few mouths to feed, but we are in need of manpower..." Xiu stood up, put his arm around Xingguang's shoulders, and forcefully pulled her out.
Rosemary, who was helping to wash the dishes, said: "..."
"Rex, you're going to have more partners." Rosemary turned to look at the lion lying in the corner of the yard.
Rex, who could barely lift his arms, didn't even glance at Rosemary.
Fortunately, the two wives in charge did not hesitate to bring back several wives (fiancées), otherwise the delicatessen would not have had a good dinner that day - the Lion Patrol, all those who were not on their turn to patrol outside the city came!
With a permanent population of 100,000, Lion City (and 100,000 more in rural towns), there are still thousands of male lions who are not so inactive that people will despair. These male lions who are not too inactive, whether they have families or not, are taken into the patrol team by the elders of Lion City .
The patrol team does not manage the city. They take turns to patrol the entire Golden Plains, driving away large groups of wild beasts that may damage crops and eliminating monsters and monsters. The commercial taxes and tolls collected in the Lion City are mainly used to support this team.
When facing war, these more than a thousand lion patrols are ready-made officers. They can recruit young and strong lions and lionesses to fill them, and within three days at most they can mobilize an army of tens of thousands of people - the pulling power of a beast lioness can defeat eight strong human men, and the fighting power of a lion lionette is N times higher than that of a beast lionesses. Don't look at their smaller size than male lions, they are all fierce generals when thrown into the battlefield.
Otherwise, why is it that no one comes to compete with the lion tribe for such a good place as the Golden Plains...
Hundreds of big-bellied men with appetites similar to those of the Snow Wolves rushed in to ask for food. It is easy to imagine how much pressure the store was under.
The next morning, Xiu and the neighboring lady went out again, trying to expand their husband's "harem" - as for whether the two male lions appreciated it or not, that was not for outsiders to know.
On the third day of opening, all members of the Lion City Presbyterian Church showed up in the delicatessen in an orderly manner.
On the same day, the other half of the patrol team who had just returned from patrol came to try the new food, while the other half who were preparing to go out on patrol asked the delicatessen to prepare enough thirteen-spice pancakes so that they could pack up enough for five days at once.
Xiu was sweating profusely as he discussed with the neighbor's wife for a while, and the two of them went to knock on the door of the household to the left of Xiu's house...
No matter how much you expand your harem, there is no reason to expand it endlessly! It is better to invite more people to cooperate!
On the fifth day of opening, the delicatessen put oyster sauce on the shelves, and the owner Xiu "earnestly" requested those who have people to cook to cook by themselves as much as possible, and not to bring the whole family to occupy the table...
Uh... at that time, Xiu was standing at the gate, jumping up and down and cursing. The people in line had been pulled to the end of the street. Wouldn't he be allowed to close the door and take a break?
As for the flagship product, oyster sauce, it was not named so directly that people could discover the secret at the first hearing. Instead, it was renamed according to the name suggested by Xiao Yun when Primo set out with the woolly rosemary:
Wonderful fresh juice.
On the eighth day after the delicatessen opened, a bear from the city gritted his teeth and bought a small can, then rode a two-legged ground dragon back to the bear territory for his fellow bears to taste.
On the tenth day of opening, the elders of Lion City who had used the Wonderful Juice and found it to be miraculous came to find Xiu. After a deep conversation with the head lady, Xiu, who had a unique vision and was quite strong, joined the Council of Elders as the youngest elder. He organized the lionesses and lions in the city and marched to the beach in a mighty manner, closing off a long section of the coastline and officially starting the production of the Wonderful Juice of the Lion Clan...
The lions who were kicked out by countless families to pick oysters held hands with Xiu's husband Rex, who was the first to fall into the pit, and looked at each other with tears in their eyes...
During this period, Primo was always trying to give advice to the new elder, such as how the Snow Wolf tribe built its factory, what the management principles were, how to calculate the factory's efficiency and workers' wages, and how to arrange dividend incentives reasonably...
When the elder Xiu, who still had some integrity, showed hesitation, Primo advised: "Why not learn from the existing experience of the Snow Wolf Tribe? Besides, the Snow Wolf people don't mind this! Right, wool?"
Yangmao doesn't have much acting skills, but she can tell the truth. She said frankly: "Xiu, didn't you say that your Lion Clan welcomes our Snow Wolf Clan to be your guests? Since the Lion Clan is willing to treat the Snow Wolf Clan as friends, then we Snow Wolf Clan are also willing to share our experiences with our friends."
Xiu was moved and sighed as he held Yangmao's hand. After a long pause, he finally said, "Do you Snow Wolf people really not consider intermarriage with other tribes?"
wool:"……"
This is not going to work, right?!
If you want to make friends with someone, build relationships with them, you can't just give, you also need to ask for something in return.
Xiao Yun didn't need to teach this principle, as the old man Primo knew it clearly - just because he didn't like to fight with others when he was a nominal branch director in the Adventurer's Association, it didn't mean that he didn't know the twists and turns involved.
After spending some effort to get Xiu, the new Lion Clan elder, to accept the friendship of the Snow Wolf Clan, Primo made a timely request that would not embarrass the other party but would not be easy to agree to: "In fact, Yangmao came with me this time because he wanted to find the Fox Clan, the former friendly tribe of the Snow Wolf Clan. The Snow Wolf Clan's sage Ayun had some friendship with the Fox Clan's White Fox Elder at the Frank Feast in the Ice and Snow King City four years ago. They hope to continue this friendship."
As the head of the family and recognized by the elders, Xiu's intelligence was naturally not a problem. She immediately understood: "I see, you need to cross the bear tribe's territory to get to the fox tribe's territory. It would be unsafe for Yang Mao to walk in between."
"Yes, this is exactly what I've been worried about." Primo nodded. "Although the direct conflict between the Snow Wolf Tribe and the Bear Tribe happened more than 200 years ago, who knows if the Bear Tribe will mind this?"
Xiu thought for a moment, and said to Yang Mao sincerely: "I can't make a promise to you right now. Give me some time. I have to seek the opinions of other elders."
After saying that, Xiu left in a hurry...
People who pat their chests on the spot are unreliable, because the other party either has not considered how difficult it will be to implement your commission, or has no intention of helping at all. Xiu's reaction undoubtedly shows that he really cares about the difficulties faced by Yangmao.
That night, Xiu brought two elders and several lions from the patrol team back to see Primo and Yangmao.
If the Wonderful Juice can become the lion tribe's flagship product, the benefits to the entire lion tribe are self-evident. Although the Snow Wolf tribe did not boast about their achievements, the big cats with good manners were obviously not prepared to "default" - two experienced elders said on the spot that they would send a patrol team of 20 people from Lion City to escort Primo and the other two to the fox tribe's territory to ensure that the wool of the Snow Wolf tribe could travel back and forth safely.
Yang Mao quickly expressed his gratitude.
Then, several patrol officers who came with him vied with each other to promote their teams to Yangmao. Their attitudes were so enthusiastic that Yangmao had never seen these big cats in his twenty days in Lion City.
wool:"?!"
Xiu smiled calmly, hiding her achievements and fame... In fact, she didn't do anything. She just told the patrol team that all the Snow Wolf tribe had the talent to be top-notch chefs~!
When Primo and his two companions left Lion City, they not only took away twenty brave and powerful Lion warriors, but also gave Wool a cloak embroidered with the Lion emblem - this kind of racial emblem is usually used on military flags. Giving Wool such a cloak with the emblem was tantamount to announcing to the orcs in the Far East: This is a distinguished guest of the Lion Clan, you can do whatever you want with him.
These big cats are second only to the tiger clan (in their prime) in terms of fighting power. Although they are lazy and content with their small fortune, they are not ambitious, but they are domineering!
After leaving the lion tribe's territory, one has to cross a large canyon to enter the tea bear territory of the bear tribe.
When spending the night in the Grand Canyon and cooking food with Yang Mao, the twenty lion patrol members who were not too inexperienced helped enthusiastically, and if they could not help, they would squat by and watch.
Rosemary, who had been ignored by the lions from the beginning to the end, cast a contemptuous look at the ignorant big cats. While digging at the bonfire, she casually said to Primo: "Didn't Ayun ask us to persuade the Far Eastern orcs to develop agricultural machinery as much as possible? Why didn't you tell the Lion City elders anything this time?"
"It's not time yet." Primo was too old to sit on the ground like the orcs. He moved a small stool out and sat down to drink canned juice. He said calmly, "People are poor and think of change. The lion tribe is not poor. If I advise them to develop agricultural machinery at this time, they may not take it seriously."
"Hmm? If we teach them to make juice to make money, won't the Lion Tribe be even less capable of making agricultural machinery?" Rosemary frowned.
Primo chuckled, "It's not that hard to make the wonderful juice, but it will consume a certain amount of manpower. Originally, the lionesses were the only ones working in the fields. Now that there are fewer people working in the fields and the manpower is tight, will they think of changing their ways?"
"You are not poor only if you are poor in your pocket, young man!"
