National Tide 1980

Before Ning Weimin could figure out whether he should change the address on the advertisement, and if so, where should he change it.

The time has come for the Bian family's big day.

These days, due to limited living conditions and old customs.

Red and white events for people in the capital are rarely held in restaurants outside.

Running water seats are still the most important form, so the courtyard often becomes a place for weddings and banquets.

Even though there are many residents in the large courtyard, there are many small houses, and the courtyard is very crowded. It seems that it is quite inconvenient to hold weddings.

But in fact this is not the case.

Because when it comes time for a certain family to hold a wedding, the neighbors in the same courtyard will all think about that family and get busy together.

No one will sit back and watch the excitement, and their dedication is no less than doing things for their own family.

For no other reason than because no one moves around every now and then these days.

Neighbors who go into the hospital every day without looking up or down, have a secret in their hearts that they have to watch each other for the rest of their lives.

If you help others today, you will help yourself tomorrow. How can you not help sincerely?

Even if there are any discords or conflicts that accumulate in daily life, they will often be laughed off and resolved invisibly with the help of days like this.

This was the best opportunity of the year to resolve the estrangement between neighbors.

Such was the case with the wedding held by the Bian family on October 1, 1980, in Courtyard No. 2 of Shan'er Hutong.

As neighbors, the Luo family, Mi family, Kang Shude and Ning Weimin not only gave gifts.

And since the few days before the National Day, I have been busy helping the Bian family.

Everyone is showing off their abilities.

For example, in the Luo family, the eldest grandson they just got has not yet been born.

Maternity leave is very scarce these days. According to regulations, the maximum maternity leave allowed is fifteen days.

The whole family is very busy taking care of the health of the eldest grandson and eldest daughter-in-law.

But considering that there are few relatives in Bian's family, Aunt Bian is in a dilemma.

The eldest daughter-in-law of the Luo family happily agreed to become the "marriage wife" for the Bian family.

Master Luo even took his eldest son to work together, borrowing the factory's oven to bake fifty kilograms of "dragon and phoenix wedding cakes."

As a gift to the Bian family.

This made the entire Bian family very happy, because it not only added joy but was also practical.

It's perfect as a return gift to relatives and friends.

Uncle Bian accepted the gift and said, "Oh, thank you for your hard work. This is something that can no longer be found on the market. I didn't expect my child to be so lucky. With your "Zhengmingzhai" craftsmanship, not only Dignity, morale, and joy are unique in the capital. For your kindness, I would like to thank you on behalf of the two children."

Master Luo laughed and said, "Don't be polite to me. Even though we have been here for so many years, we should deserve our share. As the old saying goes, you know what you are good at. These days, you are the only one who can still appreciate my craftsmanship. You just want to be satisfied, and I’ll be happy doing it. To be honest, if I don’t do this anymore, it’s hard to get enough of it.”

The same goes for the Mi family. Aunt Mi not only helped Aunt Bian sew four bunks and four covers for Bian Jianjun and his wife.

He also took advantage of working in a non-staple food store to help Bian's family collect a series of chicken, duck, fish, meat, rice, noodles, sugar and oil at the most affordable price.

I only bought half a fan of pork. For the time being, these things can be stored in the freezer of the grocery store, which really saves a lot of trouble.

Ning Weimin also made a small sacrifice and freed up his small kitchen.

He and Kang Shude had been quiet for the past two days, and this room was dedicated to the Bian family to store fruits, vegetables and other sundries.

On the day of the banquet, this small room can also be used as a tea stall dedicated to making tea and pouring water.

As for the crucial chef, it was Master Liu, an old friend invited by Kang Shude, who had worked at the "Ruibin Building" in Menzhan Hutong for more than half his life.

Master Liu is sixty-five years old this year. Not only is he retired, but he is also very impressive.

The day before the wedding, Master Liu took his two apprentices to make preparations. People in the old capital called this "settlement."

His two apprentices were both in their thirties or forties. One was carrying two wooden boxes, and the other was carrying a large baggage.

The old man swaggered away in front of him, and the two apprentices followed him step by step.

Once here, open these things and take another look.

The box contained not only pots for cooking, but also bowls, plates, spoons and other utensils, all in a complete set.

Inside the baggage are knives, which are even more particular.

A cutting knife, a lamb's-face knife, and a pocket knife.

The face of the sheep is slanted, which is used to remove the meat.

The knife is used for cutting vegetables and other condiments.

In addition, there is an iron spoon and a fence, both with long handles and jujube wood handles.

The jujube wood handle is hard and has been burned to withstand fire. Due to the influence of years, it has become shiny and red like a burning fire.

These household items look professional at first glance.

Afterwards, the two apprentices began to build stoves and prepare vegetables in the courtyard.

A young master was very skillful in building stoves. In a short time, he built two stoves in the courtyard.

The chef who prepared the dishes was also very agile and started the preparation work, cutting the meat and mincing the stuffing.

Then one of them packed up the fish, chicken and duck, and the other set up the frying pan to fry the meatballs.

What kind of meatballs are over-oiled to 70%, what kind of meatballs are over-oiled to 50%, or 60%.

But during the whole process, Master Liu did not do any of the work. He just sat with Kang Shude in the house drinking tea and smoking.

Then we look at the things in the kitchen with the host and figure out what kind of noodles to make.

He didn't even look at the two disciples in the courtyard who were so busy that their foreheads were sweating.

When they were leaving, the old couple from the Bian family respectfully presented it to Master Liu.

Then he turned around and bowed to Kang Shude again to say thank you.

Just in this scene, I can see that all these young people in the courtyard are suffering from mysterious symptoms.

No one knows how capable this old man is, and he is worthy of such a nod and bow from the Bian family.

Even Ning Weimin and Bian Jiangong were talking quietly when they got together.

"As for that, the chef of Ruibin House? No matter how good he is, he can't just cook rags and pans. Why does he seem to be as good as the emperor's cook?"

"Yeah, how talented is this guy to be able to act like this? I don't believe that he can make elbows taste like dragon meat? Those two apprentices really serve him like this. What age is this? ?Why is the feudal consciousness still so strong..."

Unexpectedly, Master Luo heard it, rewarded each of them with a piece of brain, and then started to squeeze them both.

"You two know nothing, and you don't know what's good. Don't talk about anything else. Let's take a look at the market outside. The educated youths who have returned now are all getting married together. It's hard to hire a chef. Just like this. It’s even harder to find a good chef. Master Liu has retired. If it weren’t for your uncle Kang’s sake, he wouldn’t be working.”

"Besides, what's wrong with the burning of the trousers? Don't look down on it. Is that an ordinary food? It's a food unique to Kouzi Kitchen. If you search all over the capital, only the Ruibinlou family knows how to do this. Why? Just because This Ruibin House is the only one to open a restaurant, breaking the thousand-year-old rule of not opening a restaurant."

"What is a kouzi chef? Don't you know? Let me tell you two, they are chefs in the capital who only cook banquets in greenhouses and specialize in weddings and weddings. Since liberation, the city has emphasized changing customs and keeping weddings and weddings simple, but there is no such thing This is the place for the Kouzi Kitchen. So now it is the Ruibin House that can take the real responsibility for weddings and weddings. It is Master Liu who knows how to arrange banquets."

Bian Jiangong was still a little unconvinced.

"Master Luo, I don't understand what you are saying. Ah, the chefs who co-operate with other restaurants are not chefs. They have to be in this lineage. Then why don't they just go to the Great Hall of the People for a state banquet? I don't believe it, they Are you really so enlightened that you can’t go to court and serve the people willingly?”

"Hey, you kid, are you sincerely making excuses?"

Master Luo bared his teeth and began to teach him a lesson.

"Don't mention it. There may be chefs in other restaurants who are better at cooking than Master Liu. I admit that. But hosting a private banquet is different from a state banquet. Those who can host a state banquet really can't host this wedding banquet. Why? We are short of money."

"The level of the national banquet is high, and the materials are all specially provided. Have you ever heard of a shortage of materials? But this is Master Liu's skill. I have experienced the skill of the Kouzi Chef once in the past. Twelve dishes, this There is nothing in the twelve dishes, except pork and cabbage. Each dish has the same taste. Can I be a cook for this state banquet? "

"The most important thing is also the most popular thing about Kouzi Kitchen. That is their trustworthiness, their ability to consider customers, considerateness, and never betray anyone. Not only do the dishes they make make good use of ingredients, they are always richer and more affordable than originally ordered. They will never Cutting corners. For people who are not well-off, they can also decide on the price agreed in advance and find ways to save face and complete the seemingly impossible task."

“When negotiating for a job at Kouzi Kitchen, we must discuss the style of the banquet in person, whether it will be fish, shrimp and sea cucumber, chicken, duck and fish, or rice noodles with meat, lion’s head, braised pork elbow, etc. In particular, it must be explained whether it is for food, good looks, or saving money, so as to decide on the specific method.”

"Common banquet noodles include "eight big bowls and one sea", "eight big bowls and two seas", "eight big bowls and one pot", "flower nine pieces", "four bottoms" and so on. But no matter how frugal it is, it will mainly focus on meat stir-fry. Well, there must be some meatballs."

"But what should we do if we meet people who can't even afford this money? For example, if there are ten people at a table, each person only has the money to eat a plate of fried pancakes or a bowl of beef noodles in the restaurant. But also Can we reserve a seat? In this case, the host often blushes and is embarrassed to speak out.

"I also tell you that as long as there are enough people, you can name a specific amount of money. Kouzi Kitchen will do it, and it can also make such a banquet beautiful. Or four large plates of meat stir-fry and two bowls of stew. , a large bowl of soup, rice, steamed buns and flower rolls. Or four large plates of stir-fried meat, a bowl of diced pork with fried sauce, a bowl of sliced ​​meat and eggs marinated, and enough noodles to run through the water."

"To put it bluntly, Kouzi Chef's money is all based on his craftsmanship, and he never wastes raw materials to save money. The principle of doing things is always 'no one should lose money to anyone, hello to me, hello to everyone', so as to attract repeat customers. For this reason, ordinary people in the capital never look for restaurants when doing business, but only look for openings. If I were a chef in a restaurant, you think it would be fine..."

With these words, Ning Weimin and Bian Jiangong were completely silenced.

Especially Bian Jiangong, when he thought about it, what he said just now was really a bit cheap.