Flowers in full bloom

Chapter 234 Sour Beans

Sure enough, Kong Xiaoya, who was originally a little depressed because of her pregnancy, became much more energetic because of the new pregnant woman. She was smiling every day and even counted the chickens and ducks much faster. As a result, the fish pond managed by Wu Sansi also ran much more smoothly, and Hualei was relieved.

Soon, it was mid-August. On that day, Hua Lei was in the study at Yuanying Manor, checking the income and expenditure of the manor. Uncle Fu came over and said that the Sixth Master Bai Yunhe and Butler Bai from the Dingxi Marquis' Mansion wanted to see her. Hua Lei hurriedly invited them into the study and served them tea.

Hua Lei looked at Bai Yunhe, who was wearing a light-colored robe that was loosely draped over his body. The fine fabric showed his owner's luxury. Even the bun on his head was loosely tied with a jade crown. He looked relaxed and casual, holding a sandalwood scented fan in his hand, which he fanned from time to time, showing his owner's unruly nature.

"Mr. Bai, today is not a day off, why didn't you go to the Imperial College?" Hua Lei was curious. Except for the time when Rong Jin injured his foot, he rarely took leave at other times. Even Rong Jue and Xiao Yuan from Class D never took leave.

Why did Bai Yunhe show up at Yuanying Manor when it wasn't his day off? Even if Butler Bai had something to do at Yuanying Manor, there would be no need for you, Bai Yunhe, to take leave and come to Yuanying Manor, right?

"Miss Hua, are you not welcoming me? Don't you want to see me?" Bai Yunhe shook his fan and asked with a smile, looking hurt.

“Uh, that’s not the case…” Hualei paused.

"That means Miss Hua welcomes me very much and wants to meet me, right?" Bai Yunhe interrupted Hua Lei before she could finish her words, with a smug look on his face.

Hualei looked at him and closed her mouth.

During the Chinese New Year, because the Dingxi Marquis Mansion held an impromptu banquet, Bai Yunhe and Butler Bai went to Yuanying Manor to place a large group purchase order. At that time, Bai Yunhe was also sitting here, asking Hua Lei some questions that he could not answer, such as "Don't make things difficult for you? Okay?"

So Hua Lei shut up tactfully, turned to look at Butler Bai, and asked with a smile, "Butler Bai, do you need anything this time?"

Butler Bai quickly put down the teacup in his hand and said to Hua Lei with a smile, "Miss Hua, I'm sorry for the intrusion. The truth is, our Marquis heard that Miss Hua has salted duck eggs for sale, so we want to purchase a batch. I wonder if Miss Hua has any in stock?"

Salted duck eggs? Stock? A batch? Because I just signed an agreement with Mingxiang Pavilion a few days ago, I have to make egg yolk pastries every day, so Hualei is relatively sensitive to salted duck eggs, stocks, and a batch. Could it be that Dingxi Houfu wants to buy all his stocks and cut off his business with Mingxiang Pavilion? Does he want to make egg yolk pastries by himself?

It shouldn't be possible. I have asked around. The situation in Dingxi Marquis Mansion doesn't seem like the kind of people who would do such a thing. Hua Lei's mind was churning, but she remained calm as she asked, "I wonder how much Butler Bai wants? When do you want it?"

"Two hundred jars, required in ten days." Butler Bai stated his request.

Two hundred jars, one jar weighs five kilograms, that's one thousand kilograms of salted duck eggs. "So many, I wonder what Steward Bai is going to do with all these salted duck eggs. Although salted duck eggs don't spoil easily, they will spoil over time if they are not eaten up." Hua Lei looked at Steward Bai and said.

Butler Bai smiled. This was his second time to come to Yuanying Manor. He had discussed business with Hualei before, so he knew that Hualei was different from other businessmen. He was not the type who only cared about making money, as the more customers bought, the better. When placing orders for pork, chicken and duck during the New Year holidays, he reported more in order to have more in stock. Hualei also reminded him that he didn't need to prepare too much to avoid waste.

So he did not hide it at this time and said, "It's like this. We are going to send this batch of salted duck eggs to our general. You may not know that our general is stationed in the Western Frontier, where the environment is relatively harsh. The soil in the area near the Western Frontier is seriously desertified, and there is less rain. There are very few varieties of vegetables that can be grown. Even if there are vegetables that can be grown, the yield is very low due to lack of irrigation. Therefore, even if there is silver, it is difficult to purchase enough vegetables nearby, resulting in very poor food in the army. I heard that Miss Hua's salted duck eggs can be preserved for a long time, so our Lord wants to purchase a batch here and send it to our general."

So that's how it is. They're not trying to steal the egg yolk pastry business from me. That's good. Hua Lei secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Butler Bai, two hundred jars of salted duck eggs. I guess there aren't that many on the farm right now. But it should take more than twenty days to get to General Bai's Western Frontier, right? I can help Butler Bai make them now. By the time they reach General Bai in Western Frontier, the salted duck eggs will have been marinated for about the same amount of time and can be eaten.

I just don't know how Butler Bai will transport them. If they are transported by horse-drawn carriages, I can use straw to separate the eggs when I pickle them and put them in jars, so that the eggs don't collide with each other and get damaged on the road."

When Butler Bai heard this, he said happily, "It would be great if Miss Hua could help us do this. Then let's make a deal. Ten days later, we'll give you two hundred jars of salted duck eggs. This is a silver note of one thousand taels as a deposit. We'll refund you when the amount exceeds the limit and make up for the shortfall. Let's make a deal, shall we?"

Hua Lei nodded and asked Uncle Fu to call Brother Xiao Kong over. She poured another cup of tea for Bai Yunhe and Butler Bai, and casually said, "Butler Bai, you just said that there are few vegetables in Western Xinjiang and the food in the army is very poor. My farm pickled a lot of sour beans two days ago. Butler Bai, do you have any ideas? It should be good to send these to the army. The kitchen can add some minced meat and more oil. If you stir-fry it over high heat, the taste will be very good. Do you want to try it?"

"Sour beans? What is this? Is it made of beans?" asked Butler Bai.

Hualei nodded and asked Qingqiu outside the door to call Zhao, the second cousin who was busy in the kitchen, over. She told her to go to the kitchen and fry a pot of sour beans and minced meat. Soon, Zhao came in with a pot of freshly fried sour beans and minced meat, and Uncle Fu also put a jar of pickled raw sour beans on the table.

Butler Bai was looking at the sour beans with minced meat on the table and drooling. It was not because he was greedy, but because the smell of the sour beans was too strong. Butler Bai picked up the chopsticks at the side, picked up a piece and put it in his mouth. Suddenly, the sour beans were slightly spicy, and the minced meat was greasy. It tasted so good. If there was no rice, Butler Bai could eat three bowls of rice immediately. He nodded involuntarily.

Bai Yunhe next to him also picked up the chopsticks and tried it. The taste was indeed very special. People who like sour food should like it very much.