Little Ger, Slow Life in Another World

Chapter 25

Tofu Pudding

Translated by Coke
Edited by Athanasia

Different Personal Tastes

Several days after the village meeting, the time for Miao He to deliver vegetables came, and he consequently used the trip to go to town with Yang Dalang to transfer the land deed.

They delivered the boxes of vegetables as planned and then headed to the hospital to pass along the gifts on behalf of Aunt Yang. Doctor Ji loved the tomatoes so much that he could not bear to refuse them. In return, he offered to examine Yang Dalang’s injury. His diagnosis this time was significantly better than before. Thus, menial tasks like chopping wood and hoeing the ground were now doable for him. As for going up to the mountains to hunt, it would be best to wait a little longer. 

Miao He was ecstatic with this piece of good news, and a bit of warmth showed on his face. Thinking of their tumbling on sheets a few days ago, he was glad it did not hurt Yang Dalang. Right after their visit, they went straight to the government office. 

Originally, Miao He had prepared a small embroidered purse with a few cents since he thought the little demon¹ in the office would be a hard nut to crack. But the Liang family awed them with their thoughtfulness. After they took out the title deeds, the district magistrate in charge of the transfer stroked his beard and said, “I was just waiting for you. Landlord Liang already came by to inform me.”

The listeners loosened a sigh of relief. After all, if the people have to fight against government officials, then the civilians could not win at all.

And striving for fame this way was what Miao He felt repulsed to do. Even if he knew a bit of advanced knowledge that could be used as shortcuts, if he wanted to keep his current position, he had not to do such things to maintain it. Otherwise, all the energy he spent would be all for naught. 

He yielded the living soil, so it was absolute that he now lived better than the average person. Thus, he should be content. Moreover, they would have pieces of titled lands! Their simple life would pass on betterment. 

So when the two of them stepped out of the magistrate’s office, the owner of the three pieces of land became infallible to Yang Dalang himself. 

Among the three plots of land, two plots were situated outside the town. When the Liang family delivered the title deed, they had already informed the tenant that they had changed ownership. Thus, stripping Yang Dalang away from any unnecessary troubles. The current tenant farmer would merely hand out the leases, and they’re done. 

As for the area around the mountainous region southwest of Miaojia Village, since no one had occupied it before, Yang Dalang had to provide a good household certificate and a trip to the Miaojia Village’s chief to make a notice. Thus, when they use this land in the future, there will be no qualms and confusion about having no right to use and occupy it.

Therefore, after putting an end to the most uncertain things, Miao He’s concerns finally dropped to the ground. He could not help but want a feast to celebrate. 

“Since the village chief brought up tofu pudding, how about we go to Dahe Restaurant to try it?” Miao He beamed. 

Yang Dalang, of course, had no objection. 

Dahe Restaurant was on the bustling main street of the town’s central district. The decorations hung everywhere were too glorious for the eyes to take it all in. They had maintained the same festive atmosphere that resembled the modern wedding banquet venues almost every day at every hour. In contrast, the Yangshui Teahouse, which Dahe regarded as its rival, was in a more remote location. Not because it could not afford to buy a space in the district but rather because its location boasted a lovely canal view. The scenery was noble, taking the route of beauty in seclusion for elegance. 

When they entered the restaurant, there were scenes of prospering business trading and enthusiastic chatter among distinguished guests. The shop cordially greeted them and politely beckoned them to the seats. Fortunately, there were unoccupied seats because of the time. After Miao He and Yang Dalang sat down, they ordered a bowl of sweet and salty tofu pudding. 

A bowl for this dish equated to not being cheap. The asking price was eight strings, nearly half a chicken’s price. Despite not having any sugar or oil, the restaurant priced it preciously for food that used solely soybeans, not even any bits of pork. 

While waiting for the dishes, Miao He took a shufti around the building. In an instant, Miao He blinked and said, “It seems that tofu puddings are popular. Almost everyone ordered them for their table.”

Yang Dalang glanced at the tables closely. “I see nothing else either.”

Miao He presumed optimistically, “Maybe it’s because it’s past mealtime.”

After a while, the tofu pudding was served. 

They flavored the sweet bowl in sweetened water simmered with ginger ale. While the salty one was seasoned with soy sauce and sesame oil and dressed with chopped scallions. 

Miao He had a tooth for sweets. Thus, he took a sip of the sugary pudding first. The soft cottony texture in the mouth was good, but the soy taste was a little diluted. There’s also a beanie flavor, and they simmered the syrup too thin, which differed from the expectations. Miao He then took a mouthful of Yang Dalang’s bowl. The salty flavor of the dish was pretty mediocre. Also, the condiments caught the eye more than the tofu pudding itself. The only thing deserving of praise, from Miao He’s perspective, was how novel the food tasted. 

Miao He smacked his lips as he was disappointed. He leaned closer and whispered to Yang Dalang, “I can make it tastier. If I have the opportunity, I can make it for you.” In his previous life, he also disliked the light and raw-colored exterior of the bean curd, so he planted and made his tofu. In the case of brine, the county town’s harbor was connected to the sea at least, so there should be a way to get the required materials for it. 

“En. Wait for you.” Yang Dalang took a mouthful of salty tofu pudding and offered it to Miao He. 

The latter bent his eyes and received it just as the voices from the neighboring wing became louder. 

To say that Miao He sat in the cheapest lobby was nothing compared to them sitting close to the adjacent wing upstairs. They shaped the wing room here like a semi-attic, and you must climb two steps to reach the wing facing the street. These wing rooms required a fixed amount of tea water bill and were reserved for the wealthy. 

Because of this design, people at a slightly higher height — literally and figuratively — would speak louder, making it easier for the guests stuck up in the lobby to hear it — eavesdropping or not. 

“I had the impression that it was delicious, and it has ceased. This soft and rotten thing, it’s not nourishing and boring. How could this be delicious, I wonder?” A young master wearing cyan silk with a piece of jade tied around his waist walked out of the wing in disgust. He had long eyebrows and unwavering spirits and seemed to be around the age of 14 or 15 in appearance, with the temperament of a newborn calf who felt no trepidation for tigers. 

The few people following him seemed to come from good family backgrounds and, despite their status, were flattering to the little boy. One of them hurriedly said, “Young Master Xu’s knowledge is vast indeed — a rare talent. I waited for this novelty before I recommended it to Young Master Xu. If the Young Master does not favor the food here, our town still has a Yangshui Teahouse! Recently, a special prize has appeared, which surely won’t disappoint Youngnasters Xu!”

“I hope so.” The boy addressed as ‘Young Master Xu’ frowned. “Then go quickly.”

“Okay then, Young Master Xu!”

The group of people followed the child’s words—some even pushed one another to pay the bills themselves, and some stood grounded to escort the distinguished young master out. With such large, eye-catching movements, this group of nobility had, the waiter, who worked there for years, did not know what to do. Seeing that everyone was clad in fine clothes, he hurried off to call the shopkeeper to save the show instead. 

“This Young Master, I see you seem to bear some misunderstandings about the food of this humble restaurant. If you, please allow me to explain a few words to you.” Before the distinguished guest stepped outside, Dahe Restaurant’s Shopkeeper Zhang appeared before them with a pleasant countenance. 

The little Young Master Xu kept walking. “No need, I’m leaving.” The food was not tasty, so he was leaving now to change to another family’s restaurant. 

But Shopkeeper Zhang could not let him go just like that. Could he bring justice to the many pairs of eyes in the hall staring at this lofty young man?!

If this group of people’s clothes was ordinary, he would have rebuked them for being up to their standards, only to make trouble. Only these individuals were adorned with gold and jade, and with the highest standards, they should be treated.

Hence, Shopkeeper Zhang had to save face, bowed, and blocked the way.

“This Young Master, I presumed you don’t know something. The tofu pudding you tasted just now is a recipe from ancient books. It is unique in this world! And it is flavored distinctly, unique, light, and timeless. With its silky soft texture, it needs to be tasted consciously. That’s why the seasoning is not like the others. What it needs is this appropriate shade!”

Shopkeeper Zhang explained confidently. The Young Master raised his eyebrows when he heard the words and spoke, so blunt that it could cut someone up, “By saying this, you should have spoken that I am ignorant to the goods. However, if I think something is not delicious, then it’s not. If someone thinks it tastes good, then continue eating it. Even if you block my path, my perception still won’t change. Is it possible that people should still approve that this restaurant’s dishes are magnificent; otherwise, they cannot leave?”

The unfavorable blade-covered words slashed and hit home, making Shopkeeper Zhang sweat and curse inside. “No, no, no. Of course, that’s not what this humble one meant. This little one just hoped that the Young Master would not have any misunderstandings about the waiters and staff of this humble restaurant. Furthermore, this tofu pudding tastes like this and is recorded in ancient books. And certainly, a unique dish you cannot find anywhere else….”

The Young Master could bear it no longer and interrupted, “Should an ancient writing recipe be good? Ask me again why this food is endemic to this place now when it is unpalatable, colorless, and tasteless. Surely, even the ancients won’t eat it! Where’s the novelty, you say? This Young Master only likes to eat what I think is delicious. It’s that simple!” 

Shopkeeper Zhang was dumbfounded and could not come up with an answer at once. “This—you can’t say that….”

The shopkeeper was too absorbed and failed to notice the increase of customers in the restaurant as he looked down at the bowl of bland tofu puffing in front of him with an indiscernible expression. He thought, ‘Spending such a large sum of money for this—did I come to eat the title of this ancient book or delicious food?’

One fellow on the side seemed to be a pampered son of a wealthy family who lived in town and perhaps a frequent visitor too. Upon seeing the commotion, he immediately winked and asked the other people to crowd the little Young Master out of the shop. Then he inclined his head and said a few words to the shopkeeper.

“The son of Xu in this town simply spoke frankly, reasonably. I’d say Shopkeeper Zhang needn’t be so keyed up. As the Young Master Xu said, some people love sweets, and others like salty. Don’t we all have different personal tastes? This is not such a big deal. It’s simply inevitable.”

The words were spoken gently, but the meaning did not change! Shopkeeper Zhang smiled uglily at him. 

People have unique personal tastes, and that’s a fact. Could he force everyone to say it was delicious? With the loss of it being disliked by the public, Shopkeeper Zhang could only swallow his anger and loss. Upset, he failed to notice the eccentric atmosphere inside the restaurant. 

Witnessing the scene from the beginning to the end, Miao He was not without a sigh. Whether the quality of the thing was immaculate, be it the ancient or modern world, someone could step up and point something out. 

According to Miao Jue’s statement at the recent village meeting, they held the recipe alone. In other words, the village workshop for that dish only sold tofu pudding per se. Miao He just hoped that the workshop could maintain the quality to keep their patrons for a long time. 

This matter, however, was none of Miao He’s business. Under such circumstances, and while he still harbored grievances against Miao Yuan’s family, he refused to join hands with the village’s plan to sell soybeans to Miao Yuan’s family. Thus, Miao He threw the matter at the back of his mind. 

Afterward, he dragged Yang Dalang into the seed shop again, purchasing grain foods such as rice, wheat, and maize seeds. Since he now had more living soil, the rice noodles they usually ate could now be grown by themselves, which became cheaper and healthier too!

While the couple smiled as they rounded and bought in town, the little Young Master loomed grumpily. 

Soon after leaving Dahe Restaurant—because his belly had been churning from having nothing to digest—the group of pampered sons from wealthy families accompanying him pulled him to the nearby Yangshui Teahouse to eat. News that Yangshui Teahouse was devising a new strategy to counter the famous tofu pudding of Dahe Restaurant traveled fast. A winning lottery!

The jackpot was not gold or anything precious. Instead, it was complimentary side dishes. The winning random words were beautiful and delicious, as plain and uninviting as the jackpot sounded. Such as stir-fried three vegetables, meat-stuffed baoqi, or the most popular of all, plum pickled tomatoes!

According to Yangshui Teahouse, because the exquisite quality of such dishes was uncommon and the limited supply could not satisfy the demands, the teahouse sincerely made it into a lottery. As long as the food eaten on that day exceeded three taels of silver, you could draw lots. However, you had to be picked before you could eat it! 

Through this small prize, the winning guest—undoubtedly—would have thoughts of nothing compared to luck and surprise. While the tofu pudding of Dahe Restaurant rushed full of novelty, the side dishes of Yangshui Restaurant were spelled with luck! Strategy vs. strategy. It could be said that Yangshui Teahouse had gradually recovered to its usual performance. 

When the Young Master heard of this, he could not get interested in something that seemed like a fraud. “Why is this kind of trick again? Can’t you find something real?” If the Young Master lived in modern times, he could be regarded as a picky-eater foodie. 

Several of his friends flocked to both his sides to persuade him. “No, no, no. This time I will not disappoint Young Master Xu! Moreover, Yangshui Teahouse’s dishes are originally the best in town!”

“Forget it. My stomach is starving. Just do whatever you want.” Their group went out for fun today, and it’s already way past lunch. A few hours before dinner, to be exact. 

Seeing that Young Master Xu was nonchalant, one of his companions winked at another person. The man nodded and tacitly went to the back of the teahouse to find Shopkeeper Jin.

“Shopkeeper Jin, don’t say I didn’t remind the teahouse. Otherwise, if our table is not lucky today, you know that the opportunity will solely be reserved for the people of Huigan! Understand?”

Shopkeeper Jin’s eyes shone, and he nodded again and again. If the situation called for it, there was indeed room for manipulation. 

So after ordering enough dishes worth a couple of silvers, a box full of “red bamboo labels” was drawn at once! No doubt Young Master Xu was fortunate today, and he won a dish of plum pickled tomatoes everyone coveted!

When the sweet and sour plum-scented tomatoes slipped down his throat, it opened a new sight to his mind—the fresh and full plump and the refreshing abundance of its juices. The Young Master Xu finally opened his eyes, patted the table, and said, “Good! Seriously delicious! Next time my eldest brother travels south, I’ll ask to come to this teahouse to try!”

The young men in the same group were also in great spirits!

What did this mean? On behalf of the Xu family, who had the qualifications as imperial merchants, the eldest brother could easily walk in and out of Miaoshui Town in the future! So long as he will take a trip, was Shopkeeper Jin afraid he would not have a chance to sell his key products?!

Footnotes:
[1] 小鬼 xiăo guĭ – little demon (term of endearment for a child); mischievous child; imp