My name is Chang An, your name is Gu Li

Chapter 266: Chang Lang wants to take a concubine, right?

I watched the servants wrap the mooncakes and put them into the steamer one by one. Just in case, Chang An didn't let them put all of them in, but only half.

Originally, he thought everything was fine and he just needed to wait, but Chang An felt something was not right. He looked at the steamer, and then at the hot water pot underneath it.

But after thinking about it, Chang An realized that something was wrong - his family was using the steaming method, and he didn't know if this method could achieve the desired effect. When Gu Li saw Chang An frowning, he asked:

"What's wrong, Chang Lang? Is there something wrong?"

Chang An nodded and said, "It is indeed a bit wrong. My original idea was to bake it, but now we are steaming it."

Although there is such a thing as steamed mooncakes in later generations, what he made today is baked mooncakes, and the method is basically the same as that of baked mooncakes. I don't know if steamed mooncakes can be made by steaming them like this.

"Does it have to be baked?" Gu Li asked.

"It's not necessary to bake it the same way, but I haven't studied the steamed mooncakes in detail." Chang An walked forward and lifted one layer of the steamer slightly. There was no major change in the mooncakes inside.

He covered the steamer and asked someone to start timing. After about half an incense stick of time, Chang An asked someone to take out all the mooncakes and put them on the plates one by one.

He walked over to check it out, then stretched out his fingers and pressed it. The skin was a little soft. Not knowing how it tasted, he simply picked up a piece, blew on it twice, and then put it in his mouth and took a bite.

The five-nut filling was quite soft and had the flavor of mooncakes. At this time, he looked at Gu Li and found that she was also looking at him with a hint of expectation in her eyes. He then directly brought the mooncake in his hand, which he had taken a bite of, to Gu Li's mouth and let her take a bite.

"how do you feel?"

"Hmm! Delicious." Gu Li nodded, and then a new mooncake was stuffed into his hand.

"This one has egg yolk, Madam Gu, try it too."

Then Chang An looked at the mooncakes on the table, and then looked at the mooncakes that had not yet been made, and ordered:

"Put these newly made mooncakes in a dry place and leave them for three days. Then put them away. Then, put the remaining mooncakes in the pan again without adding oil."

"Yes, Lord Marquis."

Watching the servants start to work, Chang An asked them to turn the noodles over every once in a while. After repeating this two or three times, he stopped asking the servants to turn the noodles over and asked them to cover the pot and wait for a cup of tea.

When Chang An was free, Gu Li asked, "Didn't Chang Lang want the dry roasting method? Why did you change it to pancakes?"

"There are many ways to make mooncakes, and different methods will produce different tastes of mooncakes." Chang An said, "Although I originally planned to make only one type, but now that the steamed ones are already made, I will make two more types."

"Anyway, our family is rich now... but not very rich."

Gu Li smiled and asked, "Is the roasted mooncake easy to make?"

Chang An held his chin, thought for a while, and said, "It should be OK, but it's a bit troublesome to figure out how to bake it."

"Then we won't bother you."

Chang An was stunned for a moment. This was the second time Gu Li had advised Chang An on the same matter. Gu Li continued, "It's troublesome, so don't make it. It's just a snack anyway. If you can't make it, then don't make it. We have steamed and baked ones, why do we need to roast them? Does it taste better?"

“It tastes better… not really.”

"That's it?" Gu Li put his hands on his hips and said, "We are not a particularly wealthy family, why should we eat such good food?"

"I..." Chang An finally reacted. He had become a little rigid and started to have to do whatever he wanted to do for Gu Li.

"Whether it's steamed mooncakes or baked mooncakes, they are only available in our family, and that's enough. And they all taste equally good, so why should we force it?" said Gu Li.

"Chang Lang, just listen to me this time. It's enough for us to have steamed mooncakes and baked mooncakes. No need for roasted mooncakes. With these two kinds, other ladies will envy me enough."

When she said this, Gu Li looked like a little adult, as if Chang An was the younger one. When the other person saw her like this, he came forward and touched Gu Li's head, saying:

"When have I not listened to Mother Gu?" Chang An said with a smile.

After staying in the kitchen for another ten minutes, Chang An walked forward and asked the servant to open the lid of the pot. At this time, the mooncakes had become crispy, and the slightly yellowed crust meant that they were done.

"It's done! Put it away."

The cook also neatly packed the mooncakes and placed them in front of Chang An and Gu Li. Chang An took a chopstick and poked it gently, and the surface of the mooncake became concave and cracked.

Seeing this, Chang An nodded with satisfaction, then picked up the mooncake and put it close to Gu Li's mouth. Gu Li also took a bite, and the salted egg yolk inside was a little runny.

“This is delicious too!”

"As long as it tastes good." Chang An smiled and stretched out his hand to wipe the crumbs from the corner of Gu Li's mouth, then stuffed the remaining half of the mooncake into Gu Li's hand.

He picked up another piece and took a bite - it tasted really good, crispy and soft. He nodded, feeling very satisfied.

Then Chang An looked at the mooncakes and said, "You can divide these crispy mooncakes among you, and leave the steamed mooncakes here to recover the oil first. Just remember to make mooncakes a few days before the Mid-Autumn Festival."

"Yes, Lord Marquis."

In this way, the mooncakes were completely researched, and Gu Li took Chang An back to the room.

......

After returning to the room, Gu Li seemed to remember something and ran to her dressing table. She took out a box, placed it in front of Chang An, and asked:

"Chang Lang, what is this?"

Gu Li opened the box, and Zhang Aiyu's flower card appeared. Gu Li said, "This card was given to me by Zhen'er, who said that Chang Lang passed it on to me."

"Yes." Chang An nodded, not intending to hide it, and explained: "This is the flower card that Madam Zhang used when she was the Oiran."

Gu Li picked up the card, somewhat puzzled, and asked, "Flower card? What is a flower card?"

Chang An explained: "This is a symbol of status in Pingkangfang. Every lady in Pingkangfang has a flower plaque like this. The more precious the flowers on it, the higher the status of the lady."

"Mrs. Zhang was one of the two most popular courtesans in Pingkangfang at the time, so her flower was the peony."

"Then why give it to Chang Lang?" Gu Li asked again.

"Mrs. Zhang gave us this sign to tell us that we are very grateful to her and she will never forget it." Chang An said, "Mrs. Gu, just keep it safe."

Gu Li nodded, put the cards back into the box, and then said suddenly: "Chang Lang, you don't have to hide it from me. I know what flower cards are and what they are used for."

Chang An was stunned for a moment, and then Gu Li continued: "This flower card is the proof of the ladies in Pingkangfang, but it is also equivalent to a contract of sale. Having this card is like having the contract of sale of Madam Zhang."

"Mother Gu...you know everything..." Chang An scratched his head awkwardly, not knowing what Gu Li was thinking at the moment.

"Does Chang Lang want to take a concubine?" Gu Li once again gave Chang An a heavy blow.

"I..." Chang An suddenly became more nervous and a little flustered.

"If Changlang wants to take a concubine, I will agree as long as he likes it. Because I already have Xiaoguai, and I know that Changlang will feel uncomfortable being alone." Gu Li said seriously.

"But Chang Lang, you can't not tell me about this. If Chang An really plans to take a concubine, I'm not really stopping you from doing so. But Chang Lang has to discuss it with me. Although Madam Zhang is very beautiful and has a good temper, she now has a young man. How can this be appropriate?"

When Gu Li got the sign in the morning, she immediately started to think wildly. Because she had learned about the existence of flower cards from Su Meng before, her first thought after seeing the sign was that Chang An wanted to take a concubine, and to take Zhang Niangzi as a concubine.

Although she was extremely unwilling, and Chang An had told her that he had no intention of taking a concubine, but given her current situation, she felt that it was unlikely that Chang An had no other intentions.

"Mrs. Gu! I don't want to take a concubine." Chang An explained anxiously, "This sign doesn't mean I want to take a concubine. It was just sent to me by Mrs. Zhang this morning. She wanted to give it to me for no apparent reason."

"I didn't plan to use this card for anything, so I gave it to Gu Niang. Although Madam Zhang gave us her flower card and said she was going to put it under my name, if we don't use this card, then Madam Zhang will be no different from a free person."

"This... I... forget it, I'll let Huaiqin return the sign."

When Chang An finished speaking, he closed the box and prepared to get up and call for help, but Gu Li held him back.

"Wait a minute Chang Lang!"

"uh-huh?"

"Chang Lang really doesn't plan to take a concubine?" Gu Li asked again.