Chapter Seventy-Five: Golden Tripod Restaurant

Chapter 75: Golden Tripod Pavilion

Lin Qiuran maintained her composure, asking, "Are you going to ask me to look after your parents and Tangyuan?"

Xiao Xun was startled. He wanted to deny it, but those were precisely the words on the tip of his tongue. If he didn't return, these were the only things he could entrust to Lin Qiuran.

Seeing him lower his head like a dejected dog, Lin Qiuran averted her gaze. "I know there are casualties in war. Even if you wish to return alive, it's not guaranteed."

Blades and arrows have no eyes; no one can be certain they won't be the one to fall on the battlefield.

Lin Qiuran continued, "But you've learned to read and are studying military manuals now. Instead of dwelling on what happens if you die in battle, focus on how to survive and return. It wasn't easy for you to escape death last time. You have parents and Tangyuan at home… Entrusting them to me sounds rather convenient for you."

She pressed further, "If you leave without a word, how long should I wait? Half a year? A year? Or three to five years? Only to eventually receive news of your death on the battlefield. If you truly believe you won't return, we might as well get divorced now…"

Xiao Xun's face turned pale. He lifted his head, staring directly into Lin Qiuran's eyes. "I promise you, I will come back alive. We will not divorce."

Lin Qiuran avoided his gaze, simply replying, "Mmhmm."

The heavens had brought her here—a child, in-laws—and initially, she thought it would be better if Xiao Xun died. If he died, she could survive in this era, caring for Sun Shi, Xiao Dashi, and Tangyuan. But unexpectedly, Xiao Xun had returned alive.

If he were cunning, wanting to remarry or mistreat her and Tangyuan, she could always get divorced. But Xiao Xun wasn't that kind of person.

Lin Qiuran recalled New Year's Eve, holding hands with Xiao Xun at the lantern festival, and the time he shared stories of his past injuries while she was in labor. A strange ache welled up in her heart.

Xiao Xun had once gently pressed his forehead against the back of her hand and knelt in the snow, watching her.

If he hadn't meant to come back, he shouldn't have come back at all. Why return only to leave again, getting her hopes up just to disappoint her?

Seeing Lin Qiuran wipe the corner of her eye, Xiao Xun said, "I keep my word. If I say I'll return, I will."

Lin Qiuran still didn't look at him. "And you must come back in one piece—no missing limbs."

Her eyes reddened, and she felt a knot in her chest, neither rising nor falling. She didn't understand why she was like this. She knew Xiao Xun's promises weren't guarantees—the battlefield was unpredictable, and things didn't always go as planned. Yet, she couldn't help but push him for a promise.

Let it be a period of hope for both of them.

Xiao Xun reached out and hugged Lin Qiuran, letting out a long sigh. "Mmhmm, I promise I'll come back whole."

After being held for a moment, Lin Qiuran uncomfortably pushed him away. "Alright, alright. Go wash up and get some sleep. What about your parents… Should we keep them in the dark?"

Lin Qiuran could handle the truth, and life would go on after Xiao Xun left. But Sun Shi and Xiao Dashi were older and had already been devastated by Xiao Xun's previous 'death.' She feared they wouldn't be able to bear the news.

No news was good news, but each day without word would be filled with anxiety.

Xiao Xun had already "died" once. If something really happened, Lin Qiuran worried about how his parents would cope.

Xiao Xun said, "When the war intensifies, the court might conscript more soldiers."

By then, everyone would know about the war in the northwest, and it would be impossible to hide. Lin Qiuran nodded. She still wanted to keep it secret for now and only reveal it when necessary.

Lin Qiuran asked, "Will the war… affect Yu'an?"

Should she stock up on supplies and prepare early?

Coming from a peaceful era, Lin Qiuran had never experienced war. War was meant to protect the majority, but if it reached Yu'an… she would have to think about survival.

Xiao Xun shook his head. "Don't worry. We'll defend the northwest with our lives. But with war, food prices may rise, and things might get chaotic."

Yu'an was in the south. If the war reached there, it would mean the empire was falling.

Xiao Xun added, "I'll teach Lin Ming some more martial arts. It might be good for you to bring on a couple more hands."

Lin Qiuran nodded. She had been ready to sleep, but now she was no longer sleepy.

She could think about the war later. Since Xiao Xun was leaving soon, she asked, "Didn't you send some medicinal herbs last time? You might need them. Take them with you."

They could always buy more herbs. She could also get some ointment for wounds from the clinic. The herbs Xiao Xun had sent weren't prepared medicines.

Xiao Xun said, "I'll take some blood-staunching herbs. The rest are mostly for colds and building strength. Keep them at home."

The herbs he had sent were mostly for treating colds, boosting energy, and women's ailments—things Xiao Xun wouldn't need.

Lin Qiuran took out the money box from the cabinet and retrieved some silver notes. "Tomorrow morning, go buy some blood-staunching herbs. See if you can find ginseng slices and take some with you."

She also found the clean cotton cloth Xiao Xun had sent previously. "Take this too. It can be used to bandage wounds if you're injured."

Clean fabric reduced the risk of infection. Lin Qiuran didn't know much about medicine beyond that.

Sun Shi had probably made clothes for Xiao Xun. Since he wasn't leaving until the afternoon of the day after tomorrow, they could finish them in time.

Watching Lin Qiuran bustling about the room, Xiao Xun pressed her shoulders and guided her to bed. "Get some sleep. You have to go to the food shop tomorrow. I can pack my things myself."

He was grateful that Lin Qiuran cared, but he could handle these preparations himself. There was no need to trouble her further. Lin Qiuran had worked hard all day and was tired. Xiao Xun could manage on his own.

Lin Qiuran nodded. After a quick cleanup, they lay down in bed. Xiao Xun blew out the lamp, undressed, and got into bed. Lin Qiuran glanced sideways.

It was dark, but she could just make out the shape of his shoulders and waist. When he lay down, she could see the quilt moving with his breathing. Though he promised to return, promises were just promises.

Perhaps this was Xiao Xun's last time coming home.

Lin Qiuran couldn't help but call his name.

In the darkness, the two syllables reverberated like a beating drum, striking Xiao Xun's heart.

Xiao Xun asked, "What is it?"

Lin Qiuran clutched the blanket. The room was quiet. "Why don't you tell me more about marching and fighting? When you're not home, I can tell Tangyuan about it."

Thinking of Tangyuan, she noticed some resemblance to Xiao Xun. He didn't look much like Sun Shi or Xiao Dashi. If Xiao Xun didn't return, she could at least tell Tangyuan what kind of person his father was.

Xiao Xun stirred under the covers. Lin Qiuran felt him turn to face her, and then her hand was clasped in his.

Xiao Xun said, "Let's sleep for now. I'll tell you when I return. By then, Tangyuan might even be talking, and I can tell him myself."

Lin Qiuran whispered, "Okay."

The next morning, the day dawned bright and clear. Lin Qiuran urged Sun Shi to quickly sew the clothes for Xiao Xun, as he was leaving the following afternoon.

Sun Shi said, "So urgent? Can't we send them later?"

Lin Qiuran replied, "Mailing two outfits is troublesome. Let him take them with him this time. Find a new quilt and pack any snacks and food we have at home for him."

Sun Shi didn't think twice about it. "Alright."

Lin Qiuran also asked Lin Chun and Lin Ying if they knew needlework. They had some skill, though not as much as the embroiderers from the former Qian residence.

Lin Qiuran decided to keep them at home. The food shop could do without them for now, so they could focus on making clothes. If the family had more money in the future and needed servants, they could find someone accomplished in needlework so Sun Shi wouldn't have to worry about it.

Xiao Xun left on the afternoon of the ninth, alone on horseback with a large bundle.

Lin Qiuran watched him until he was out of sight. Only then did she return to the Xiao Family Eatery. The eatery was bustling with people; Wan Niang and Lin Dong were chatting as usual, while Shopkeeper Shi and Zhao Xing were joking around. Lin Qiuran took a deep breath.

Time to get to work. If Xiao Xun wasn't coming back, the family would need money even more.

Lin Qiuran sighed softly and continued with the evening business.

The spring menu featured many new dishes, though it also depended on the season. A few bamboo shoot-based dishes had recently been taken off the menu, as had the steamed dumplings with cabbage filling. Shepherd's purse greens were no longer available, but other dishes had taken their place.

There was tender tofu with Chinese toon shoots, and tender tofu with century eggs.

Though the cabbage dumplings were gone, there were chive dumplings instead. Lin Qiuran was busy mixing fillings. She made two kinds: one with chives, eggs, and dried shrimp—a fresh, savory combination with translucent wrappers and a vibrant green-and-gold filling, with chewy dried shrimp adding texture and a taste of spring.

The other filling was chive and pork, using a ratio of three parts fat to seven parts lean meat. Lin Qiuran now prepared broth daily and added some to the filling.

Customers often asked why their homemade dumplings never tasted like the ones at the eatery—why the wrappers here were chewy, the fillings plump, juicy, and flavorful without being too oily or filling.

Lin Qiuran knew the secret lay in the kitchen ingredients and the daily broth. She also added tapioca starch to the flour, which made all the difference.

Spring wasn't just fresh for vegetables—fish and shrimp were particularly fresh.

Lin Qiuran added garlic-seasoned crucian carp and steamed perch to the menu, both selling very well. This season also brought knifefish and reeves shad, which could be steamed or braised, but these were expensive and hard to come by. Transporting them here drove the price up even more, so availability was limited, and they were mostly served to upstairs customers.

The eatery stayed open until the 24th, then closed for a few days due to renovations. The courtyard needed to be expanded, and with all the dust, cooking was impossible.

They decided to take a break and reopen as the Golden Tripod Restaurant. Lin Qiuran could also take a break—she'd been there for a month since she arrived in mid-February.

Tang Yuan was now over two months old, could hold his head up well and almost roll over—he could manage it with effort but couldn't roll back yet.

Lin Qiuran warned everyone to keep a close eye on him. There was no telling when he might suddenly figure it out, and if he was on a big bed unsupervised, he could fall off. A child this young, with a still-soft skull, could be seriously hurt by a fall.

Lin Qiuran kept an eye on him when she could, but most of her time was spent on the shop.

Even though they weren't open, she still had to feed the workers. She had Lin Dong and Lin Chun handle the cooking, with Lin Ming supervising, while she and Shopkeeper Shi checked on progress and handled accounts.

A deposit of twenty taels had been paid for the renovations, and the remaining cost was estimated at twenty-five taels.

They had been open for 23 days this month. Shopkeeper Shi calculated the profits on the second floor, where there had been a steady flow of customers—more early in the month, fewer in the middle, but even on slow days, there were three or four parties.

Since spring began, many new dishes had been added, all selling well. Except for a few rainy days, business on the first floor had been good. Shopkeeper Shi went through the accounts and calculated, "This month's gross revenue was 178 taels."

Lin Qiuran wasn't too surprised. High revenue didn't always mean high profit—they made thin margins on alcohol, with prices ranging from a dozen to dozens of cash per jug, and the eatery's profit was only a few cash.

Shopkeeper Shi continued calculating, subtracting costs for meat, vegetables, seasonings, table and chair repairs, and staff wages… What remained was the month's profit.

And, of course, the renovation costs.

Lin Qiuran now paid Sun Shi and Xiao Dashi's monthly wages herself. Sun Shi no longer worked at the eatery, and Xiao Dashi only helped occasionally. Their combined monthly pay was two taels—more than Shopkeeper Shi's—so it didn't seem right to take it from the eatery's funds.

Besides, Shopkeeper Shi's share of the profits was small—most of the earnings went to Lin Qiuran. While it didn't make much difference to either side, Shopkeeper Shi was still an outsider, so she handled it herself.

Lin Qiuran asked, "How much is the profit?"

Shopkeeper Shi replied, "Not in a hurry, almost done. Need to deduct last month's twenty taels…"

The renovation deposit had been fronted by Lin Qiuran and needed to be repaid. The abacus stopped, and Shopkeeper Shi said, "Fifty-nine taels left, but the final renovation payment hasn't been settled, so we'll need to subtract a bit more."

In the end, the month's profit would be around thirty taels.

Shopkeeper Shi had thought it would all be spent. Thirty taels meant he could take an extra three mace (a mace is 1/10 of a tael), plus his monthly wage of one and a half taels—one tael and eight mace total. Not bad at all.

If not for the renovation costs, he could have taken eight mace this month, totaling over two taels. And if you included the value of his daily meals, his earnings were quite substantial.

If it weren't for leftover food, the shop wouldn't eat meat every day. On days with little left, each person could still get a piece of braised pork.

Lin Qiuran said, "We'll settle after the work is done. Keep a close eye on things, Shopkeeper. I think Zhao Xing is doing well—efficient and clever. Lin Ming can also handle serving tables, but we still need to hire another dishwasher."

Zhao Xing made good tea and was sharp—he'd gotten tips twice this month. They didn't need more serving staff yet, but another dishwasher was necessary.

No matter how business fared at the Golden Tripod Restaurant in the future, they'd doubled their space, and Auntie Liu couldn't handle all the dishwashing alone.

Shopkeeper Shi nodded, "That's easy to find. So when are we opening?"

The renovations had taken almost a month. With experience from last time, the work had progressed faster, even though there was more to do.

Lin Qiuran said, "If everything's ready, we'll open on the first. If not, then the third. For the first three days, each table gets a pot of rice wine, and all meals are 10% off."

Lin Qiuran was very pleased with the purchase of the place next door. Its backyard was also large—besides a bigger kitchen, there were two storage rooms.

Not huge, but enough for rice, flour, and grains. One could even be used for storing alcohol. Before, extra supplies had to be stored at home, but now that wasn't necessary. Lin Qiuran had specifically asked the foreman to seal the walls tightly to keep out rats.

Shopkeeper Shi: "Done."

With the spring warmth, Lin Qiuran took the money and went home. She first checked how Lin Chun and Lin Ying were doing with the cooking—both knew how to cook, were obedient, and easier to teach than Lin Dong.

From the 24th to the end of the month, besides overseeing the eatery, Lin Qiuran prepared seasonings and alcohol and had Shopkeeper Shi negotiate with the meat stall and wine shop owners. As regular customers, they could hopefully lower costs.

During the final stages of renovation, Sun Shi and Xiao Dashi also came.

Sun Shi, who had never visited before, was amazed at how the eatery had transformed. It used to be a simple restaurant like most on the street—wooden doors and windows with a signboard. Now, it was even more impressive than the neighboring Golden Ruyi.

There were relief carvings, elegant pillar eaves, cloud-shaped brackets, and corbels… There were poetic couplets on the pillars, though Sun Shi couldn't read them—but she thought they looked magnificent.

Though it was two shops combined, the exterior design was unified. Two signs reading "Golden Tripod Restaurant" hung on either side, glowing gold in the sunset.

Sun Shi held Tang Yuan and exclaimed, "Beautiful, so beautiful. Qiu Ran, you've done wonderfully."

Lin Qiuran: "We'll also install a statue of the God of Wealth on the counter."

The interior wasn't finished yet—still dirty and dusty—so she didn't take Sun Shi inside.

Thinking back to when it was just a small stall, now they had such a large restaurant. Lin Qiuran felt indescribable emotions.

She pinched Tang Yuan's cheek and said, "Tang Yuan, look at this shop—it's called the Golden Tripod Restaurant. Isn't it big?"

Tang Yuan laughed twice, staring intently at the building.

Lin Qiuran said to Sun Shi, "When we open, bring Tang Yuan along to see it. Just be careful with the crowd."

Whatever happened, they mustn't let the child get lost.

Sun Shi smiled and nodded, "Of course. Tang Yuan is really fortunate—born into a big house, and before he's even grown up, the family has a large shop."

Sun Shi could hardly believe it—their family owning such a place. She remembered when they first came to the county town, too intimidated to even enter a large restaurant. And now, they had one of their own.

She also remembered how overjoyed she and Xiao Dashi were when they learned Lin Qiuran was pregnant. But since Xiao Xun was adopted, keeping the bloodline was uncertain. If they passed away and Lin Qiuran remarried, the child might suffer.

But Lin Qiuran had promised to raise the child and had built such a prosperous life.

Xiao Dashi didn't say much; he wasn't afraid of getting dirty and went inside to look around. It was quite nice, just a bit dusty and in need of cleaning.

The three of them looked around for a while before heading home.

They needed to clean up quickly so they could open on the first day of the third lunar month. Lin Qiuran also sent Zhao Xing to nearby villages to inquire if there were any donkeys or cattle that had died of old age available for purchase.

If there were, they could buy them to prepare for the shop's opening. Last year, they sold beef for a few days, and it sold quite well—customers really enjoyed it. Now that the shop was larger, there would surely be more customers. Even though it wasn't winter and the meat wouldn't keep as long, they could sell it quickly.

Zhao Xing spent a few days going around the villages and finally managed to buy a donkey that had died of old age from Lin Family Village.

The imperial court didn't forbid slaughtering donkeys, but since donkeys were expensive to buy, selling only the meat would be a loss. So, most people waited until the donkey died of old age before selling it.

With the opening set for the next day, Lin Qiuran prepared the donkey meat, aiming to sell it all in one day.

The donkey weighed about 300 jin (around 400 pounds) in total, which was nothing compared to the cow they had before. Lin Qiuran planned to make braised donkey cheek meat, roasted leg meat, and use the rest to make steamed dumplings mixed with scallions.

The dumplings would still be six wen apiece, twice as expensive as the three-wen leek dumplings.

But as the saying goes, "Dragon meat in the sky, donkey meat on earth." Based on past experience, donkey meat dumplings were even more delicious than beef ones.

The only thing was that Lin Qiuran didn't know how to make huoshao (a type of baked flatbread), otherwise, those would sell well too.

On the first day of the third lunar month, the Golden Tripod Restaurant's sign was covered with a red silk cloth, and flower baskets were placed in front of the shop. Some were sent by the proprietor of Golden Ruyi. In the past, Golden Ruyi had brought customers to the eatery—after buying jewelry there, they would come directly here for a meal. If the food was good, they'd return.

Now, it was the eatery's thriving business that was helping boost business at Golden Ruyi. Sending a flower basket was a gesture to strengthen ties between the two businesses.

There were also flower baskets from the Xu family, congratulating Golden Tripod Restaurant on its grand opening.

Aunt Yu and her family also came to show their support. Da Hu was already engaged and had recently bought a house in the south of the city for over sixty taels of silver. Although it was close to their old home, it was larger than the one the Xiao family used to live in.

After all, with more people in the family, their old place was too cramped.

Next on the agenda was Da Hu's wedding, and after saving up a bit more, they planned to lease a shopfront to earn extra income.

Shopkeeper Shi, who had recognized the family before, told Lu Fan and Zhao Xing not to charge them when they left.

As noon approached, regular customers of the eatery and the Xiao family's friends and relatives gathered in front of Golden Tripod Restaurant.

Xiao Dashi lit six strings of firecrackers, for good luck—six symbolizing smoothness in all things. Sun Shi, afraid the noise would scare Tangyuan, stayed in the back. But Tangyuan was brave, craning forward to see what was happening.

Once the firecrackers died down, Sun Shi carried Tangyuan to the front. Shopkeeper Shi and Xiao Dashi used bamboo poles to lift the red silk cloths on both sides of the sign.

As the red silk fluttered to the ground, Shopkeeper Shi cupped his hands in a salute and addressed the crowd, "Today marks the grand opening of Golden Tripod Restaurant! To thank both new and returning customers, the owner has prepared a special donkey meat menu. Everyone dining here today will enjoy 10% off all food (drinks excluded), and each table will receive a free pot of rice wine. Eat, drink, and enjoy—we appreciate your support!"

Shopkeeper Shi added, "Although our shop has had a makeover, the prices of our original dishes haven't increased. Come inside and see for yourselves!"

Those who had been hesitant, worried that the changes might mean higher prices, were reassured and entered the shop without hesitation.