Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

Suddenly, the trend of sausage-making swept through the country, creating a joyful and harmonious atmosphere.

Shen Qing was happy to see this happen, as it meant that diners could enjoy three different kinds of grilled sausages without her having to put in much effort.

"I'd like one starch sausage, no need to cut it, thank you."

Just then, a boy dressed in a blue cloth robe and carrying a large basket on his back stood at the front.

Shen Qing asked with some surprise, "Aren't you going to cut it?"

"I won't cut it anymore. I've already eaten the pure meat sausage from the day before yesterday and the starch sausage from yesterday," the young man said humbly and politely.

This young man is really lucky; he's been queuing for three days in a row.

Shen Qing nodded, quickly flipped the sausage, sprinkled in the seasoning, and the aroma slowly rose, wafting into people's noses.

The boy couldn't help but swallow, his eyes fixed intently on the starch sausage on the hot plate.

Golden and glistening with oil, a layer of sauce is brushed on, then a layer of chili powder is sprinkled on top; it looks delicious.

goo-dong-

The sound of swallowing saliva rang out again.

Shen Qing was already used to it. She handed the grilled sausage to the boy: "Your starch sausage."

"Wrap it up for me." Unexpectedly, the boy didn't take it, but instead shook his head.

"Aren't you going to eat it now? It won't taste good if it gets soggy."

Shen Qing was taken aback; she clearly heard the boy swallow several times.

"I'm not eating this. I bought it for someone else. Thank you for reminding me, Madam Shen. I will take good care of this sausage and make sure it doesn't get soggy!"

Bought it for someone else?

She only allows one sausage per customer per day, and this is the first time she's selling starch sausage.

Shen Qing was even a little curious, but she didn't ask any more questions. She simply wrapped the sausage carefully and left a small opening to prevent it from getting soggy.

She handed the wrapped sausage to the boy, saying, "He must be someone very important to you. I hope he enjoys it."

"Thank you!" The boy took the sausage, carefully counted out one hundred coins and handed them to Shen Qing, then ran off into the distance.

After turning several corners, he finally stopped, panting heavily.

In front of me was a wall that wasn't short, with a row of bricks piled up beside it.

He skillfully stacked the bricks, carefully wrapped the sausage, and put the oil paper package into his pocket.

Then, he stepped onto a brick, grabbed the top of the wall with both hands, and with a push, sat down on the top of the wall.

"Little medicine man, why are you so late today? What good stuff did you bring this time? Did you have any of yesterday's sausages?"

A sweet, charming voice rang out. It belonged to a girl of about fifteen or sixteen years old, with rosy lips and white teeth, a radiant smile, and bright, sparkling almond-shaped eyes filled with anticipation and joy.

"Miss Xiao," the young man said, a faint blush rising to his ears, "we have some new starch sausage on the menu today, made by Madam Shen."

He took out a paper package from his pocket, opened it, and then held the skewer at the bottom of the sausage, handing the sausage to Xiao Mo.

"There were even more people at Zhiwei Restaurant today, and the wait time was a bit longer."

Xiao Mo stepped onto the stool, took the golden starch sausage, examined it curiously, and then gently smelled it.

"It smells wonderful, completely different from yesterday. This Madam Shen is truly remarkable; a woman like her has managed to open a restaurant all by herself." Her tone was filled with admiration and longing.

The Xiao family is a scholarly family with strict rules. The elders in the family never allowed her to go out. Let alone doing something unconventional like opening a restaurant, she was not even allowed to go out for a stroll.

On ordinary days, they can only go out on legitimate occasions such as offering incense to Buddha or praying at temple fairs, and they are always accompanied by a large group of servants.

Of course, she also knew that her family meant well and wanted her to marry into a good family. After all, unmarried women are expected to stay at home and not leave their homes.

But she longed for the outside world, imagining herself like those ordinary, poor girls in the city, strolling and playing on the streets, setting up stalls and doing odd jobs.

But her family wouldn't allow it, so she couldn't go out.

Fortunately, she met Chen Jie, a young herbalist, by chance.

They agreed on a time, and Chen Jie would climb over the wall every day to deliver things to her and tell her interesting stories from outside.

At first, it was wood carvings, clay figurines, chicken feathers, shadow puppets, and so on. Later, it started to include food, such as stinky tofu, instant noodles, and Four Delicacies Soup.

Everything was incredibly delicious.

"Quick, try it and see if it's good." Chen Jie sat on the wall, staring intently at Xiao Mo, his eyes shining.

Xiao Mo took a bite of the starch sausage in her hand, and the next moment, she jumped up.

"It's so delicious! It tastes completely different from before!"

"It has a slight meaty flavor, but not too strong. It's soft and chewy with a bit of springiness, and the spiciness is just right!"

As she spoke, Xiao Mo took another big bite.

Chen Jie scratched his head: "I'm glad you like it. Let me tell you, there are so many people lining up to buy grilled sausages today."

"Some of them even came from the capital. I heard someone shout that they'd skip the morning court session just for a bite to eat!"

"Really?" Xiao Mo's eyes lit up. "People in the capital like grilled sausages too?"

Chen Jie couldn't help but swallow hard: "Of course, this is Madam Shen's food. She has to queue up before dawn every day..."

"Do you want some too?" Xiao Mo raised her hand and handed the half-eaten sausage to Chen Jie. "Here, you can eat it from the back."

"I, I, I, I've already eaten!"

"I've already eaten three or four, you can have them," Chen Jie said, waving his hands repeatedly.

There's only so much meat on a single sausage; Xiao Mo must have been looking forward to it for a long time.

Moreover, how could he dare to eat half of Miss Xiao's food?

He was just a humble herbalist who made a living by collecting herbs.

The money was all given by Miss Xiao. If he hadn't met Miss Xiao, his mother might have died from illness because she couldn't afford expensive medicine.

This can be considered his way of repaying a debt of gratitude.

Of course, it can only be to repay a debt of gratitude.

A flash of inferiority crossed Chen Jie's eyes. When he looked up again, he saw Xiao Mo's lips drooping, as if she was unhappy.

"Little medicine doctor, are you disgusted with me?"

"No, of course not, I've already eaten several, I'm full. It's just that even when I'm full, I still drool over Madam Shen's food."

"Really?" Xiao Mo looked up, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly again.

"Of course it's true."

"Hurry up and eat. Let me tell you some interesting stories about the place in front of Zhiwei Restaurant. You wouldn't believe it, the diners there are quite amusing."

Chen Jie slowly began to recount: "Those diners, in order to try all kinds of grilled sausages, actually came up with the bizarre method of combining sausages."

"Pairing sausages? What does that mean?"

"Someone wanted a one-third pure meat sausage, a one-third cartilage sausage, and a one-third starch sausage, but Madam Shen refused. Just then, three very clever people..."

As Chen Jie spoke, he gestured wildly, nearly falling off the wall several times.

Xiao Mo listened with great interest, occasionally letting out a silvery laugh.

......