Transmigrated into an Ancient ABO Fantasy World: A Culinary Comeback - Chapter 11

The Jade Dragon Dynasty was not the sole ruler of the world. As far as Wang Xiaojin knew, to its southeast lay the Jiang Kingdom, and to its southwest, the Xin Kingdom three nations dividing the land equally.

Although the three kingdoms shared a common language, the people of Jiang were generally passionate and outgoing, while those of Xin were more reserved and gentle. The Jade Dragon people fell somewhere in between. With peace reigning for many years, trade and commerce among the three nations flourished.

Of course, for Wang Xiaojin at the moment, foreign lands felt distant. She decided to focus on taking steady steps within the Jade Dragon Kingdom.

If Wang Xiaojin’s culinary skills were placed in modern times, she would have been just another cook in a university cafeteria arriving early each day to prepare meals, with little interaction with others. During breaks, she’d step out of the kitchen for some fresh air and occasionally catch glimpses of vibrant, yet naive, female university students. But it was all just looking nothing more. Life continued on in its mundane way.

In ancient times, however, things were different. Her cooking skills gave her a distinct advantage, almost like a “dimensional downgrade” in competition. More importantly, she now had a reason to resist a mundane life. Whether she succeeded or not, she had to give it a try.

If Wang Xiaojin were to open a shop, or even a chain, the first thing she needed to figure out was, what to sell? Hand-pulled noodles? No, the Jade Dragon Kingdom had highly developed wheat processing techniques, and the noodle market was highly competitive. Where couldn’t commoners find a bowl of noodle soup? It wouldn’t scale well.

Moreover, the braised sauce for hand-pulled noodles might seem complex, but a skilled chef could easily replicate it in no time.

She felt she needed to find a dish that was delicious, not overly competitive, difficult to reverse-engineer, and appealing to the masses. Ideally, it should also pair well with various snacks, making the menu more diverse and innovative.

During the time since Xie Yu’an returned to the capital, Wang Xiaojin had been brainstorming while continuing her daily stall operations.

Luosifen (river snail rice noodles)? Crossed out, she didn’t know how to make sour bamboo shoots. Liangpi (cold skin noodles) and roujiamo (Chinese hamburger)? Crossed out too simple. Rice noodles? There were many varieties that could be paired with snacks, but like noodles, they were nothing new in the Jade Dragon Kingdom. Crossed out.

Malatang (spicy hot pot) and fried skewers? Tentative. Clay pot potato noodles? They hadn’t been invented in the Jade Dragon Kingdom yet, and there were many variations. Tentative.

Wang Xiaojin listed many options but found it hard to make a decision. Still, there was no need to rush. After some inquiries over the past few days, she learned that renting a shop in a bustling area of Dongyang County cost twelve taels of silver for six months, while a less central location cost ten taels. She currently had only ten taels on hand, which clearly wasn’t enough.

After all, if things didn’t work out, she needed to leave herself some leeway. Not to mention the expenses for stoves, equipment, and repaying Old Zhang’s ten taels. So, she needed sufficient savings and had to continue running her stall for a while longer. There was no need to hurry.

Wang Xiaojin’s knowledge of the continent’s situation came from Old Xie, who had taught her.

Before this, she hadn’t read much classical Chinese gave her a headache. She had assumed that, although this world was fictional, it would resemble Earth, with a unified dynasty, threats from northern tribes or Xiongnu, undeveloped maritime exploration, and undiscovered continents.

Reality, however, was vastly different from what she had imagined. This was a mysterious and enigmatic continent. As far as the eye could see, there were only the Jade Dragon Kingdom, the Jiang Kingdom, and the Xin Kingdom. The rest of the land was shrouded in thick mist. Those who mustered the courage to venture into it never returned, so fewer and fewer dared to enter though there were always some who did, for various reasons.

But for such a long time, no one has ever known what lies inside. Nor has anyone dared to deceive the world by falsely claiming to have entered, fabricating sights and stories to mislead others. No one dares to do so, for the reverence it commands surpasses all else.

When this matter was discussed, the two of them were in the newly built Zhongle Pavilion of the Xie residence. The pavilion housed a few books, and beneath it were placed three or two long tables with cushions, along with several bamboo stalks and a few fresh flowers, creating a very serene and elegant atmosphere.

Wang Xiaojin sat on a cushion, watching Old Xie recount the story like a storyteller. She was utterly astonished, what kind of world was this? It was simply unbelievable, filling her with a profound sense of unease.

After Old Xie finished speaking, he noticed her pale expression and asked curiously, “Xiaojin, what’s wrong?”

He then chuckled, “You’re not scared, are you? Isn’t this the kind of thing that only frightens three-year-old children in our country? Are you still not used to it?”

Wang Xiaojin quickly waved her hands, “No, no, of course not!”

Old Xie reassured her, “It’s fine. We’ve lived like this for thousands of years, and nothing has ever happened, right?”

She looked up at the sun and said, “I see it’s already noon. Since this is the last chapter of human mythology, and I’m a bit hungry, let’s have a meal.” The elderly man made the suggestion casually.

Wang Xiaojin had already regained her composure and smiled, “Alright.”

Though she still had her doubts, life had to go on. As Shakespeare said, eat when it’s time to eat, drink when it’s time to drink isn’t living what it’s all about?

However, at that moment, she couldn’t help but think of how it would be if Xie Yu’an were by her side.

Old Xie, despite his age, was still full of vigor and had a good appetite, able to eat anything. After Xie Yu’an left, perhaps out of loneliness or a craving for good food, he would occasionally call Wang Xiaojin over to give her lessons and have her cook for them.

Old Xie also frequently went to the countryside, dragging her along. When they got hungry along the way, they would either prepare in advance or make do with whatever they could find. They could wander around the countryside all day, leaving Wang Xiaojin utterly exhausted while the old man remained energetic.

Still, Wang Xiaojin didn’t neglect her business. After all, Fan Xi was unemployed, so having him mind the stall allowed her to earn some money.

This morning was spent on storytelling, and in the afternoon, they were heading to the countryside again this time to a neighboring county. The activity level was just too high, so Wang Xiaojin had to prepare something delicious and satisfying to replenish her energy.

Thus, she decided to make maocai. In fact, she had already decided to make it the day before, as she had prepared and stored the necessary ingredients thanks to the ice available at the Xie residence, she had almost everything ready: the maocai base, chili oil, seasoning oil, broth, and so on.

As for the meats, such as the spicy beef, she had prepared it early that morning. She sliced the beef into thick pieces for a more satisfying bite, rinsed it in clean water to remove the blood, then marinated it with seasonings and added a bit of water to make it tender. For the spiciness, she added ground Sichuan pepper, chili powder, and chili oil. After all this, the beef took on a vibrant red hue, looking incredibly appetizing. Other items like ribs and wingtips had also been marinated in advance.

Entering the spacious kitchen of the Xie residence, she found that by this time, the ingredients should have absorbed enough flavor, making her task much easier. She chopped some scallions and cilantro, along with various vegetables she liked, such as lettuce and cabbage, to have them ready. She then simmered the broth and base to create a red soup not overly red, but with a slight soy sauce hue and prepared another pot of clear broth with a subtle base flavor.

Red broth for dipping meat, clear broth for dipping vegetables with both meat and veggies ready, the final step was to pour the prepared spicy, bubbling hot pot broth over everything. Topped with a sprinkle of scallions, cilantro, and other garnishes, the vibrant red was dotted with specks of green. A huge, steaming bowl, fragrant and irresistible, was served over rice, three bowls wouldn’t feel like enough.

With both meat and vegetables on the table, Wang Xiaojin also prepared crispy fried pork bites, stir-fried greens, and a mixed vegetable egg drop soup, bringing them all into the dining area.

He called over Elder Xie, who had been practicing swordplay. Though Elder Xie was a Kunze, not only was she full of energy, but she also loved martial arts so much so that she could hardly stop. Wang Xiaojin felt she was quite skilled in combat.

Neither of them stood on ceremony. They helped themselves to pieces of meat, beef balls, and vegetables, ladled a spoonful of the red broth over their rice, and took big, satisfying mouthfuls. The flavors were numbing and spicy, with the rich, mellow aroma unique to a well-made broth. The meat was tender and flavorful, the beef balls burst with juice at the first bite, and the vegetables, already infused with the base flavors, still retained their natural sweetness when chewed.

The crispy fried pork in the wooden basket was also deliciously crunchy. If they felt too full, a bowl of the refreshing mixed vegetable egg drop soup helped balance it out.

Once both had eaten their fill, they rested briefly at noon before setting off with Elder Xie to the neighboring county. Even though they had eaten so much for lunch, a whole afternoon of running around would burn it all off. Wang Xiaojin didn’t know exactly why Elder Xie was heading to the countryside asking questions as they went but since she said to follow, he simply followed along.

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