The head of the Red Mansion

Chapter 35 Roast Duck
Watching Jia Zhu leave, Shen Ning remained silent for a long time.

She actually wanted to have a deep conversation with Jia Zhu about the future of the Jia family, and to tell him that Yuan Chun's presence in the palace did more harm than good.

But no matter how many times she tried to say it, she couldn't bring herself to say it.

Those who are too clear-headed are the most pitiful!
Many children in modern times are powerless to resist their parents, let alone children today.

Just like Jia Jing back then, Jia Zhu has already taken the Jia family on his shoulders.

But when Jia Jing took on the responsibility, the Jia family was thriving, and all he needed to do was excel.

But now...

He has to bear the burdens of a stubborn and self-righteous grandmother, incompetent, foolish, selfish and ignorant parents, a sister struggling against the abyss, and a large but decaying family.

He studied hard, trying to memorize the material, but it was clear he was about to collapse under the pressure.

Tell him that he cannot defy his grandmother and parents, and will only fall into greater suffering.

Shen Ning didn't want to be the last straw that broke the camel's back.

She sighed softly.

"grandmother!"

Jia Rong finally finished his training for the day and came to find his grandmother, but he didn't expect her to be so melancholy. "What are you looking at?"

"Uh, nothing."

Shen Ning turned to her grandson. After a period of training, Jia Rong had become much darker, and the lines on his face looked stronger, making him less of a pretty boy.

A smile involuntarily crept into her eyes. "You've come here to have dinner with Grandma?"

"Yes!"

Jia Rong grinned and said, "Today I want to eat Dongpo pork, squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, four-happiness meatballs, and fried quail."

He still had a lot he wanted to eat, but his grandmother said that people should cherish what they have, and nowadays, each person in the family can only order a maximum of four dishes.

My grandmother set an example, so my father's meals had to be reduced accordingly.

In order to eat two more dishes, I heard that he often goes to his stepmother's house, and the two of them together can make eight dishes.

Jia Rong thought this method was excellent, and whenever he was home, he would run to his grandmother's place.

"It's done!"

Shen Ning pretended not to know his ulterior motives.

As a teenager, Jia Rong was known for his extravagant eating habits, which, combined with the physical demands of martial arts training, resulted in a noticeably larger appetite for him.

When we eat together, she can eat half a bowl more.

Shen Ning smiled and instructed Qing Ping, "Tell the kitchen to make all my dishes vegetarian today."

"grandmother……"

Jia Rong thought he could get a couple more good dishes today, and upon hearing this, he couldn't help but tug at her sleeve.

"A balanced diet of meat and vegetables, a balanced diet of meat and vegetables."

Shen Ning pointed a finger at his forehead and said, "How many times have I told you? Even if you don't like vegetarian food, you still have to order one vegetarian dish out of the four dishes."

"Grandmother, isn't it because of you?" Jia Rong said pitifully, "Besides, I'm going back to school tomorrow for a 'bitter-sweet meal' to remember the past."

"As if she's making herself sound so pitiful."

Shen Ning chuckled, "Do you think I don't know? Your so-called 'bitter memories and sweet taste' meals are nothing compared to what the old man ate back then. They're just the everyday meals of some poor families today, steamed buns made from half wheat bran and half coarse flour."

Moreover, other places don't necessarily provide enough food, but at the school, as long as you don't waste food, you can eat as much as you want.

Inspired by the school, Shen Ning specifically instructed the Mantou Nunnery to add a certain proportion of cornmeal or buckwheat flour to the steamed buns they would distribute in the future.

This reduced costs while keeping the daily expenses the same, allowing the steamed buns to naturally become larger.

For ordinary people, it is more filling and chewier, so it is naturally more popular.

"Grandma, you haven't mentioned wild vegetables yet."

Jia Rong loathed those dark, sour, bitter, and astringent wild vegetables.

If he wasn't forced to eat it, he really would have preferred to just eat plain steamed buns.

"Hmm, I almost forgot if you hadn't mentioned it."

Shen Ning laughed, "It seems like I have a plate of dandelions today."

what?
Jia Rong's face turned green.

This made Shen Ning burst into laughter.

However, his greenness completely changed when he saw the bright green dandelions.

"Is this that wild vegetable called dandelion?"

This is completely different from what they eat at school! If his grandmother hadn't eaten several bites in a row, Jia Rong would never have taken a single bite. "Grandmother, did Aunt Chen from the kitchen lie to you?"

"Pfft!" Shen Ning was amused by him. "Haven't you seen dandelions before?"

Now that spring is here and flowers are in bloom, the dandelions in the fields are fresh and tender.

"Look, doesn't it look like it?"

Jia Rong: "..."

Very similar.

Today, while practicing standing meditation, he also saw a dandelion in the corner of the wall.

"It is very similar, but what we eat at school..."

"First of all, we use refined salt at home."

Shen Ning said, "When you ate the 'bitter memories and sweet taste' meal, the school used the worst coarse salt for you. Because of the different salt fields, some of that salt not only contained sand, but also had a slightly bitter and astringent taste."

That depends on luck when you buy it.

She had tasted the school's "bitter memories and sweet tastes" meal twice.

At the time, I was also puzzled as to why it tasted so bad.

Later, when she learned that the main problem was with the salt, she specifically asked the kitchen to buy several kinds of salt, and she checked each one.

The salt consumed in the manor was refined salt from the best salt fields, which had undergone several processes. Although it could not completely meet the standards of later generations, it was not far off.

There are many types of coarse salt available to ordinary people, and the prices vary depending on the salt field and quality.

The school specially bought the worst quality food because of a story about remembering past hardships.

This results in dishes meant to evoke bitter memories and savor sweetness being extremely unpalatable.

"Don't worry, I've already told your dad that once we finish the salt we bought this time, we'll use the regular salt you eat from now on."

That's more or less.

Jia Rong picked up another dandelion with his chopsticks, finding it not only refreshing but also very fragrant.

It has a unique flavor when paired with braised pork.

No wonder Grandma liked to eat it.

"I have to rinse all the food at school with water before I can eat it."

He rewarded himself with a Four Happiness Meatball, "because there really was sand inside."

"Hmm~"

Shen Ning wasn't particularly moved by what she heard.

The children of the Jia family, whether rich or poor, are spoiled and pampered. They deserve to taste the bitterness their ancestors suffered.

"Didn't you hear Jiao Da say how miserable they were when they had no salt to eat and their bodies were swollen?"

She does have some methods for turning inferior salt into better-tasting refined salt, but she needs to find a reasonable excuse to take it out.

"You only get it once every seven days now, so stop complaining."

"I wasn't complaining, I was just saying."

Jia Rong ate heartily, "No one in the school dared to complain, but they must have told everyone when they got home."

"..."

Shen Ning placed a fried quail on his plate. "They've finally learned their lesson; no one has come looking for your dad yet."

"Haha, they wouldn't dare!"

His dad is getting more and more amazing.

Jia Rong smiled and said, "Grandmother, I think the schools now are much better than before."

In addition to the two gentlemen who took turns managing them, there were also guards on duty.

With one person from each of the thirty prefectures and guards in the school every day, no one dared to cause trouble.

"No one dares to bully anyone anymore. Everyone is working hard and wants to be in the top ten of the monthly exam."

The top ten will receive a reward, and Jia Rong is working hard for that reward.

"If I get a good ranking in this monthly exam, Grandma, I'll go to the newly opened Tianxiang restaurant in the West Market to buy you a roast duck. I've heard their roast duck is especially delicious, and there's a line of people buying it every day."

OK!

Shen Ning smiled so wide her eyes disappeared.

She and Madam You opened a new shop together, which they named Tianxianghe.

Thank you so much to my readers, My Favorite Manbao, Butterfly Hudie, and I Am Sister, for your generous donations! Thank you!!!
Thank you all for your continued support, love you all ε(><)з
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(End of this chapter)