Tled by Serena Love

Unedited

Chapter 84: Over-Rice Sauces

Since the morning food stall opened, Jiang Shuyao has been idle. Some time ago, she was busy thinking about recipes and adjusting the taste, so she was busy all day. Now that she is free, she doesn't have much to do every day except to give Zhou-shi some pointers.

When she was busy, she didn't care about Xie Xun. Now when she was free, she realized that Xie Xun seems not right.

For example, he can't fall asleep in the middle of the night. Every day he watches her and hesitates to talk. He also doesn't have as much appetite as before.

Of course, the main reason why Jiang Shuyao noticed that something was wrong with him is because of the last point.

Today, he gloomily finished his dinner, put his chopsticks down, and stared at the empty bowl in a daze.

Jiang Shuyao saw him like this for a few days, and he didn't get better. She tentatively asked, "What's wrong with you recently?"

Xie Xun looked up with a very confused expression and asked, "What?"

What else can Jiang Shuyao say? She cannot say, "I think your food intake has decreased in the past few days. Although it is still more than ordinary people, it does not seem quite right."

So she had to say, "I think you have something on your mind."

Xie Xun pondered for a while and was a little confused. "No."

Okay. Jiang Shuyao shut up. Perhaps it's just that he hasn't grown physically recently, so his appetite has also decreased.

In the evening, the two of them were ready to turn off the lights and go to bed after bathing and changing clothes.

The two lay on the bed. Xie Xun stretched out his hand silently, tentatively holding her hand as usual.

Jiang Shuyao thought of his recent depression, so she gently squeezed his fingertips back to comfort him.

It was this action that made Xie Xun impulsively grieved, "I don't want to be separated from you."

Jiang Shuyao was dazed and suddenly woke up, "What?"

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"The emperor is sending the crown prince to thoroughly investigate the corrupt officials and stay in the town to supervise the reinforcement of the river embankment. We will all follow him." Xie Xun said.

Jiang Shuyao was in a daze. It turned out that in the last few days, he was worried about this. Isn't it just leaving Beijing to do business? She was shocked by the word "separation."

She felt soft-hearted and gently rubbed the back of Xie Xun's hand with her fingers to comfort him.

Although he is young, he is already a scholar-official concerned about the country and the people.

"I believe you can do it well." She didn't understand these things, and she would inevitably look pale when she said comforting words. So she was just expressing her support for Xie Xun.

Xie Xun's hand was rubbed, and he squinted in comfort, like a cat with its neck licked. After hearing her words, it took a long time for him to react, "What?" He explained in the mist, " We have been investigating this matter for more than a month, and we have all the evidence. We only need to convict the corrupt officials and imprison them immediately, and then supervise the construction and reinforcement of the river embankment."

Jiang Shuyao was taken aback, "Then why are you so worried these few days?"

Speaking of this, Xie Xun was worried, "I don't know how long this trip will take. According to rough calculation, I am afraid that I will not see you for half a month. It is not appropriate to deal with this kind of official business and bring family members, so you and I will be separated ."

Jiang Shuyao was a little speechless.

"Is this what you worry about these past few days?"

Xie Xun said, "Yes." His voice was a bit wronged, "I used to leave Beijing to work with the prince, and I didn't feel that it was too uncomfortable. Now that I have a wife, my mood has changed." He thought about the days before and sighed, "Nowadays, after eating delicious food every day, if I don't eat well or sleep well over there, I feel uncomfortable."

Jiang Shuyao silently retracted her hand and put it back in his quilt.

Xie Xun stared at the bedsheet and said, "I will leave the day after tomorrow."

Jiang Shuyao let out an "um."

Xie Xun is not the kind of person who knows what to say about love. He doesn't know what to say to Jiang Shuyao.

After a while, when Jiang Shuyao thought he was asleep, he added, "I will be back as soon as possible."

"Alright."

After a while, Xie Xun heard Jiang Shuyao's gentle breathing and was a little discouraged. It turned out that he was the only one who was unwilling to be separated. Maybe she didn't take it to heart.

But if he thinks about it carefully, whether he is here or not does not affect her. She and the second sister-in-law thought about food every day, and then she discussed business with her mother. With him around, she just had to make an extra lunch and dinner.

Thinking this way, Xie Xun was even sadder.

He reached out his hand to tap the pendant hanging on the bed curtain, and the corners of his mouth were lowered. He felt very uncomfortable.

The next day, Xie Xun carried his food box as usual, and when it was time for lunch, he ate restlessly.

This appearance made the colleagues gloat for a while. In the past, Xie Xun had so much appetite, and they could only watch. But now, when they are leaving Beijing for business, everyone has to eat steamed buns together.

Since tomorrow they are about to leave, everyone could finish work early.

Xie Xun hurried back to the house, wanting to stay with Jiang Shuyao for a while, but he smelled a burst of aroma as soon as he entered the yard.

He thought that she is trying something new for the Lin family's market.

Xie Xun stepped into the small kitchen and stood by the door, watching her cooking.

When Jiang Shuyao heard the movement, she turned around and saw Xie Xun standing there. She was a little surprised, "You came back so early today?"

"Yes, I have to come back early to pack up and keep my energy to leave tomorrow."

Jiang Shuyao nodded, "It just so happened that I forgot to ask you yesterday, what do you usually eat there?"

Inspecting the river embankment is a chore, and this matter is of great importance. No one pays attention to food. At most, it is just a ration. If the situation is bad, it is possible to skip meals all day. Usually, they would just carry some buns by themselves or wait for the local officials to send a basket of hot steamed buns. In short, it is impossible to eat well.

"Bread or steamed buns."

Jiang Shuyao nodded and smiled, "I got it right."

Xie Xun didn't understand why she was smiling, and he was puzzled.

Jiang Shuyao explained, "I think you can only deal with food casually over there. If it is only a few days, it will be okay. But if it's ten days and a half months, I am afraid it will be difficult."

Hearing what she cared about him, Xie Xun immediately felt relieved. The corners of his mouth curled up, "No, it's just a little uncomfortable. I used to leave Beijing to work with the prince, and I spent more than a month eating dry bread."

Jiang Shuyao smiled and hooked her finger at him, Xie Xun didn't quite understand, but he still leaned in.

She raised her hand and patted him on the shoulder, "You are my husband. How can I make you suffer in eating."

Her words made Xie Xun's ears hot, and his heart warm, but he still declined her kindness, "We have to pack light for this trip. We can't bring too many things. I don't need food containers, and besides, the time is long. It will spoil before I could eat it."

"Of course I understand, so I don't plan to pack you a food box." Jiang Shuyao pointed to the small tubes placed on the desk. "Although over-rice sauce is not delicious compared to the usual meals, but at least you can bring it and eat it with steamed buns. You can bring a few bamboo tubes filled with sauce. When you eat steamed buns, you can spread it with sauce."

This is the first time Xie Xun has heard this word, "Over-rice?"

Jiang Shuyao explained, "It is the sauce that can be used for rice and noodles. This is mayonnaise, this is crab roe sauce, and this is mushroom sauce. Now we are going to boil minced meat sauce."

While she was talking, she opened the saucepan, which was filled with brown-red thick sauce.

A strong scent of sauce came out. Jiang Shuyao poured the freshly fried minced meat into the saucepan, constantly stirring with a spatula.

The sauce is extremely thick and shiny, and it takes a little effort to stir it evenly. In order to prevent the pot from sticking, she was constantly stirring. The sauce becomes thicker and thicker, making a sloppy thick sound.

The whole room was filled with a strong scent of sauce, fresh and salty. Since the spice powders such as grass fruit, angelica dahurica, ginger, cinnamon, etc. are added when the sauce is boiled, it also has a rich medicinal and herbal aroma.

Finally, she poured in the red oil. The bright and translucent red oil is mixed with the brown-red minced meat sauce to give it a bright color and a hint of redness in the sauce.

Jiang Shuyao took a spoon and gave Xie Xun a little to taste it, "Try it. Just a little bit, it's quite salty."

Xie Xun took the spoon and tasted a little minced meat sauce with the tip of his tongue.

It's not salty at all. The first taste on the tip of his tongue is delicious, and then a strong sauce scent spreads in his mouth. Various spices make the sauce lingering and rich, with a hint of hot and spicy aroma. After that, only the sweetness that blended with the sauce was left.

He put all the sauce in the spoon into his mouth. The minced meat sauce is still hot, and the fragrant and spicy taste is even greater. The minced meat is finely chopped, and it is fat and thin. It has a plump, soft and tender taste with lean meat. It has a really chewy texture. No wonder it is called over-rice sauce. If it is dressing a bowl of hot rice or noodles, you won't get tired of eating a large bowl.

Xie Xun's gaze fell on the tubes on the desk, and Jiang Shuyao saw it and said, "Do you want to try?"

Xie Xun shook his head quickly, "No. I will try again tomorrow." If he tried everything in one breath, there is no sense of surprise.

After Jiang Shuyao cleaned up, looking at her hourglass, the time was almost up. She went to the yard to take out the bread baked in the earthen kiln.

As soon as she uncovered the outer wooden board cover, a rich milky scent emerged. The bread is square, and a delicate brown skin is baked on the outside, which looks soft and sweet.

Jiang Shuyao said to Xie Xun, "I'll prepare some sandwiches for you. You can eat them on the road. They are not as dry as steamed buns. But they tend to dry out quickly, so you'd better finish them tomorrow."

Xie Xun didn't expect that she would prepare so much food for him. He was a little at a loss, so he felt even more reluctant to leave.

Before dawn the next day, Xie Xun got up early to set off.

He woke up lightly to change clothes. He didn't expect Jiang Shuyao to wake up as well. She looked at the darkness outside and sighed, "Are you leaving so early?"

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Xie Xun saw her waking up and feeling a little guilty. He said, "Yes, go back to sleep. It's still early."

Jiang Shuyao looked at him like this and finally felt a little bit reluctant about him leaving. Her heart surged. She lifted the quilt and said, "I can't sleep anymore. I'll send you out of the house."

Xie Xun coaxed her to sleep, but Jiang Shuyao was uncomfortable and got up to freshen up and dress herself.

She meant to send him out of the mansion, but Jiang Shuyao still reluctantly sent him to the palace gate after leaving the mansion.

Xie Xun couldn't say anything and could only follow her wish. Fortunately, he got up early today, and there was some time to ride in a carriage.

But the carriage is still slower than a horse. After arriving at the gate of the palace, his colleagues were already at odds and ends.

Seeing Xie Xun leaning out of the carriage with only a small package, everyone was inexplicably relieved. They felt that Xie Xun's wife could take care of Xie Xun's food even in this situation. But fortunately, they are thinking too much.

After taking a nostalgic look into the carriage, Xie Xun ordered the coachman to drive the carriage back home and prepare to get off the carriage.

The coachman was waiting to swing the whip, but the curtain was lifted, and Jiang Shuyao leaned out half of her body and grabbed Xie Xun.

Everyone looked over curiously.

What is happening early in the morning? So sour.

She whispered, "Remember to take care of yourself and eat well. Don't get too busy and starve yourself."

"I know, don't worry." Xie Xun nodded, "I have the over-rice sauces and sandwiches you prepared for me."

Everyone: ...It seems that the conclusion just now was too early, oooooo.

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