Chapter 7 Chapter 6 Who Appreciates the Bright Moon at Noon

"Three parts of the world are moonlit nights, and two parts are rascals, Yangzhou." This is a poem by Xu Ning, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, praising the beautiful moonlight in Yangzhou City, which actually occupies two out of three moonlights in the world. Yangzhou City has also won the reputation of "Moon City" because of this famous sentence. It can be seen that since ancient times, Yangzhou has been the best place to enjoy the moon. Today is the eighteenth day of the third month in the lunar calendar, and the full moon has passed, but this half-full moon, in the eyes of many people, has a more regrettable beauty.Therefore, it is not a strange thing that "Yi Dao Xian" said that he would come out to enjoy the moon today.

But it is very, very strange that he chooses the time for viewing the moon at noon. From eight o'clock in the morning to now, Jiang Shan, Shen Fei and Xu Lijie have been sitting in this teahouse on the side of the road for two hours. During these two hours, all they thought about was this strange thing. Two hours have passed, and when this topic was mentioned, Shen Fei still couldn't help but want to laugh: "Admiring the moon at noon? Haha, if you didn't hear it wrong, then someone else is playing with you, hahaha..." Xu Lijie glared at Shen Fei: "Oh, don't laugh, since the old man said that, there must be something deep in it."

"Hmm." Jiang Shan nodded and pondered, "I think this sentence should imply a place, as long as we think of this place, we can find 'one knife fresh' there." Shen Fei leaned back on the chair, shook his head and said, "Then tell me, is there any place where you can enjoy the moon at noon?" Suddenly Xu Lijie's eyes lit up, and she blurted out: "Hey, is this 'one knife fresh' in the United States?" "What?" Jiang Shan and Shen Fei glanced at each other, but they didn't understand why she had such a strange idea. Xu Lijie explained: "Isn't the noon on our side the middle of the night in the United States? It's just right to go out and enjoy the moon."

Shen Fei took a sip of tea in his mouth, held it back for a long time, but couldn't help but spit it out, and said with a smile: "Haha, miss, I really admire your imagination more and more. Watching the moon at noon...haha... To the United States……" Xu Lijie herself felt that this explanation was too far-fetched, and she shrugged her shoulders in a self-deprecating manner like a Westerner. Jiang Shan glanced at his watch and patted his right hand lightly on the table, as if he had made some decision: "We can't waste any more time, let's go and ask for clarification. Waiter, check out!"

The three of them left the teahouse and found Caiyi Lane along the way.As soon as he turned into the dead-end alley, he saw Langlang squatting alone by the flower bed and playing in the distance.Seeing the three of them approaching, Lang Lang threw away the dead branches in his hands and excitedly stepped forward. "Langlang, is your grandfather at home?" Xu Lijie asked while touching his head. "Not here." Langlang answered crisply, then took Shen Fei's hand and asked: "Brother Fei, when will you take me out to play again?" Shen Fei hugged Lang Lang with a smile, and while pinching the little guy with a beard to "giggle", he said, "Hehe, it's not easy to play with you. But you have to answer a few questions for me first."

Langlang tilted his head: "What's the problem?" "Where did your grandpa go?" "Well... I went to watch the moon with my friends." "Good boy." Shen Fei pinched his cheek, "Do you know where to go to enjoy the moon?" "I don't know." Langlang pouted, "I want to follow, but Grandpa won't let me. He also told me to wait for you here, and said that if you can find a place to watch the moon, you can bring me along." The three of them couldn't help laughing when they looked at me and I looked at you.It turned out that the old man had already counted on them coming, not only left early, but also dumped Lang Lang, a tricky naughty bag, to them.

Jiang Shan frowned slightly, and said: "It seems that this old gentleman has indeed played a riddle with us. Where is the place to watch the moon?" "If it's really a moon viewing, of course it's the best under the Wuting Bridge we visited a few days ago. The moon in the sky and the moon's shadow in the water are so beautiful. But you have to go at night. How can you see it at noon? What moon?" Xu Lijie said while looking up at the sky, the sun was shining brightly under the clear blue sky, under this kind of sunlight, it is impossible for the shadow of half the moon to appear.

After hearing Xu Lijie's words, Shen Fei seemed to think of something, and murmured: "Moon shadow in the water? You mean moon shadow in the water?" Xu Lijie looked at him in confusion: "Yeah, what's wrong?" Shen Fei suddenly shouted: "Haha, I got it!" He excitedly threw the waves into the air, then caught them again, and said triumphantly: "Watching the moon at noon, watching the moon at noon, yes, it must be that place !" Jiang Shan and Xu Lijie glanced at each other, both a little puzzled.Xu Lijie couldn't wait to ask: "You know what? Tell me quickly, don't be fooled!"

Shen Fei chuckled: "Just follow me, you will understand when you get there. Langlang, do you want to go too?" "Go!" Langlang replied without hesitation, and he didn't forget to flatter him: "Brother Fei, you are really good, you know everything." Seeing the intimacy between the two, Xu Lijie couldn't help but stare and asked: "Shen Fei, what kind of ecstasy soup did you give the child? Why did you not see each other all night, and your attitude changed 180 degrees?" Lang Lang blinked his eyes strangely: "Hehe, I can't say it, this is our secret."

"Okay, don't talk, don't talk, you good-for-nothing guy, if you have good things, you just want to eat it all by yourself." Shen Fei was joking, while putting Langlang on the ground, "Go by yourself, I don't have the strength to keep going. Hugging you." The group of four chatted and laughed, left the alley, took two rickshaws, and went all the way under the guidance of Shen Fei. The rickshaw walked through the streets and alleys, and after about twenty minutes, it arrived at Xu Ningmen Street in the east of the city.This area is located in the old city, and the surrounding buildings are mainly bungalows and old houses.When they reached the south end of the street, a high-walled compound suddenly appeared in front of everyone. Shen Fei called everyone to get off the car, and walked forward a dozen steps to the gate of this courtyard. There are four vigorous characters on it: Jixiao Villa.

Shen Fei smiled and asked: "Have you ever been to this place before?" Jiang Shan looked at the door plaque, nodded and said, "Although I have never been to Jixiao Villa, I have heard about it for a long time. This garden was built by He Zhizhou of Yangzhou Daotai in the ninth year of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty, so it is also commonly known as 'Hejia Garden' The word "Ji Xiao" in the name of the garden is taken from Tao Yuanming's "Return to Come" from the meaning of "Leaning on the South Window to Express Pride" and "Climbing Dongfu to Shu Xiao". By the way, it is now a well-known domestic The famous scientist He Zuoxiu is a descendant from this garden." "Oh? He Zuoxiu is a descendant of He Zhizhou. This is the first time I've heard of it." Shen Fei stroked his chin and praised sincerely, "You really are very knowledgeable." Jiang Shan waved his hand apologetically: "I also heard it from a friend by chance, and I remembered it in my heart. Why, is it that 'one knife is fresh' is in this garden?" Shen Fei smiled but did not answer: "Don't ask for now, just go in and have a look before we talk about it." The four of them entered the old back door of the He family, so as soon as they entered the villa, they first came to the back garden.In fact, it is the time when the spring is warm and the flowers are blooming, but seeing the colorful roads and flowing water all the way, it gives people a feeling of beauty.Passing through the back garden, you come to the eastern courtyard. First, there is a welcoming living room with cornices and bucket bases, which is built in the shape of a dry boat.When everyone came closer, they saw the words "boat hall" written on the door plaque of the hall, and a pair of couplets hung on the pillars on both sides: "The moon is the host and the plum is the guest, and the flowers are the four-walled boat and the home." After savoring for a while, Jiang Shan said, "This 'boat hall' is quite uniquely built, and the words on the couplets are also far-reaching. The fly in the ointment is that there is no water around, and the charm is much worse." Shen Fei laughed: "You are wrong about this. Of course, the charm of the 'boat hall' can only be tasted after getting on the boat, not standing on the shore." After speaking, he took two steps forward and came to the hall , and then greeted: "You come here to take a look, do you feel any difference?" Jiang Shan came to Shen Fei's side, and after looking around, he really had a feeling of being in the middle of the clear water.Looking closely, it turns out that this feeling comes from the blue tiles laid on the ground around the boat hall.The tiles are green in color, and they are all inserted vertically into the ground, with only a layer of curved edges exposed, layer upon layer, like rippling blue waves. Langlang suddenly called out cheerfully: "Look, crane." Jiang Shan looked in the direction of the little guy's finger, and saw white pebbles interspersed among layers of green tiles, just forming the shape of a crane, as if drinking and playing in the blue waves. Jiang Shan secretly admired the exquisite ideas of the ancient garden builders in his heart.Xu Lijie also sighed intoxicatedly: "It's so beautiful! When we stood outside the hall just now, we stepped on 'Bibo' under our feet, no wonder we couldn't find the mystery of it." Shen Fei smiled and said: "There are still many unique buildings in this garden, let's enjoy them slowly later, the important thing is to do business first." Jiang Shan and Xu Lijie nodded in agreement, followed Shen Fei out of the boat hall and walked deep into the garden.Langlang found wild ducks, pines and cypresses and other patterns made of cobblestones on the ground. He was very interested for a while. He wanted to play for a while, but he was afraid that he would miss the rare event of "watching the moon at noon". Although he was a little pouting and holding his breath, he had no choice but to follow. Go further down to the former residential area in the garden.Dozens of pavilions and rooms, large and small, are all connected together. The total length of the meandering series of buildings and corridors reaches 400 meters. It circles the garden for a week, forming a picturesque scene of "there are buildings in the garden, and there are gardens in the buildings". beautiful view.The four of them walked through the corridor, the white walls were faint, and the fragrance was floating, as if they had entered a paradise in a busy city. "Speaking of this He family, there was also an original dish, which was well-known among the common people in Yangzhou in the past. I wonder if you have heard of it?" Shen Fei suddenly remembered something, and asked while walking. "The He family's original dish?" Jiang Shan thought for a while, without a clue, and gave up with a smile, "I would like to hear more about it." Three words popped out of Shen Fei's mouth very simply: "Boiled eggs." "You liar! Who knows how to cook eggs?" Langlang shouted impatiently, Jiang Shan and Xu Lijie knew that Shen Fei must have something to say, so they didn't say anything for a moment, but stared at him curiously. Sure enough, Shen Fei went on to say: "Of course anyone can cook eggs, but this egg is very different. At that time, Miss He's family was weak, and the doctor prescribed a prescription to nourish ginseng. But with Miss's constitution, taking ginseng directly It was too strong and unbearable. Later, the chef of the He family thought of a way, first chopped ginseng and mixed it with rice, and let the old hen eat it. Then the lady cooked an egg laid by the hen every day, so that the medicinal properties After being buffered, it enters the lady's body along with the eggs, and the strength is just right." "It turned out to be boiled eggs like this." Jiang Shan laughed dumbly, "However, the luxurious life of the rich in Yangzhou in the past can be seen from it." While talking and joking, a group of people had passed through the building, and saw a small garden entrance appeared in front of them, with the words "Pianshishanfang" written on the door plaque.Shen Fei turned to look at Jiang Shan, and asked, "Do you know the origin of this place?" Jiang Shan smiled slightly and said, "You can't fail me. The 'Pianshi Shanfang' was the study room of Bada Shanren in the late Ming Dynasty. The original 'Jixiao Shanzhuang' was expanded based on this garden." "Ah? These Badashan people are all studying in one place?" Langlang raised his neck, looking a little strange. Shen Fei laughed loudly: "You little idiot, these Bada Shanren are nicknames of the famous painter Monk Shi Tao in Ming Dynasty, not the eight people." Langlang let out a "hmm", but he didn't know if he heard it in his heart.He jumped up and down and rushed into the garden, and then cheered excitedly. Xu Lijie was about to follow up, but she saw Shen Fei suddenly stop and concentrate on observing a copybook hanging on the door wall.While looking at it, he shook his head and read: "As for the distribution of beginners, strive for fairness. If you can be fair, you must pursue danger. If you can be dangerous, return to fairness. When you return, you will be old." "This is a passage in "Book Book" written by Sun Guoting, a calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty." Jiang Shan explained, "It means that people who practice calligraphy must be honest and neat at the beginning. Only then can we pursue some singularity in the brushwork, and finally the singularity reaches the extreme, but we will return to the plain and neat artistic conception, and this is the highest state in calligraphy." "Oh." Shen Fei seemed to have suddenly realized, and looked at Jiang Shan and applauded, "Interesting! Makes sense!" Xu Lijie's heart moved even more, and she lowered her head and muttered to herself: "If you can survive the danger, you can return to normal, and when you return, you will be old?" She seemed to have realized something, but she couldn't understand it. "We are not here today to study calligraphy." Jiang Shan urged, "Let's go to the garden!" The three of them entered the garden and saw a small study at the south foot of the garden.The study is not big, and the doors and windows are closed at this time.Facing the study room is a pool of ten feet square, and in the pool stands a rockery five or six feet high, with a very strange shape.The naughty Langlang immediately ran forward, walked through the rock cave for two laps, and then began to climb to the top of the mountain. The garden is not big, and after a glance, there is no other exit. Jiang Shan looked up at the sky, and said with a little worry: "It will be noon soon." Shen Fei took a few steps along the edge of the pool in a leisurely manner, then found a place to stand still, and waved to Jiang Shan and Xu Lijie: "Come here, look over there." The two came to Shen Fei's side, looked in the direction of Shen Fei's finger, and then said "ah" at the same time, with both surprise and joy in their tone - in the emerald green pool water, there really was a round of reflection of the bright moon ! The moon shadow is located at the foot of the rockery. It is not only white and bright, but also round and big. When the breeze blows, it will sway slightly with the rippling water in the pool. He bent down and held it in his hands. Xu Lijie glanced at the sky, it was a bright and sunny day, where is there any shadow of the moon?She was very curious and asked, "What's going on?" Jiang Shan also looked at Shen Fei with questioning eyes. Shen Fei stroked his chin, looking a little proud: "This Shi Tao is a master at stacking rocks, and he made this rockery out of the best Taihu Lake stones. The 'artificial moon' in the pool can be called The best stroke of genius in his rock-stacking career." "Artificial moon?" Jiang Shan and Xu Lijie glanced at each other, but they still didn't seem to understand. "Well, you guys come with me and take a closer look, and you'll understand." Shen Fei walked around behind the rockery as he said, and Jiang Shan and the two quickly followed. The rockery on this side is built close to the pool.Shen Fei stopped not far from the moon, and pointed to the top of his head with his finger: "Look there." Jiang Shan and Xu Lijie looked up, and saw a jagged Taihu stone above it. Different from other stones, there was a natural circular hole in the middle of this Taihu stone. At this time, the sun was just vertically above the hole. A blinding ray of sunlight shines directly into the pool through the hole. The two suddenly realized that the "moon shadow" was actually the projection of sunlight on the water surface after passing through the hole.Due to the rising and setting of the sun, and the different angles of sunlight projection, the "moon shadow" will also change in waxing and waning. Just at noon every day, the effect of "full moon" can appear. "So that's the case." Jiang Shan shook his head in admiration, "Although the principle is simple, it has unique ingenuity, which is really amazing." "Is this the place where you can watch the moon in 'Yi Dao Xian'?" Before Xu Lijie finished speaking, she suddenly heard the waves on the rockery shout happily: "Grandpa!" Then an old voice said: "When did you arrive? Did Shen Fei and the others bring you here?" Shen Fei and the others quickly walked out from behind the rockery, only to see the old man appear in front of the study door at some point, Langlang ran down from the rockery, plunged into his arms, blinked and said mischievously: "Grandpa, don't you Me, I can come too." Jiang Shan stepped forward, saluted the old man, and said humbly, "Old man, I have come here at my appointment. Where is 'Yi Dao Xian', please introduce me." The old man glanced at the three of them a few times, but didn't make a sound, just pointed lightly at the door of the study with his hand. The three of Jiang Shan looked in the direction of the old man's finger at the same time. Although the door of the study room was closed, it seemed that it was only a cover and it was not locked. Jiang Shan walked to the door, and was about to reach out to push it open, when he suddenly heard a voice from inside the room: "You guys have disturbed my mood, do you want to come in again without invitation?" The voice was raspy and hoarse , which sounds uncomfortable. Jiang Shan looked back at Shen Fei and Xu Lijie, and the three of them stopped. After hesitating for a moment, Jiang Shan said to the room through the door: "Mr. The person in the room said "hmm": "I heard that you have been looking for me these days, what's the matter?" Jiang Shan replied: "My name is Jiang Shan, and I come from Beijing. My ancestors used to be the chief chef of the palace during the Qianlong period." After hearing his words, the people in the room were silent for a moment before they spoke: "That person I met in Beijing eight years ago..." Jiang Shan said bluntly: "That is my father." The people in the room didn't seem surprised, he asked lightly: "You came to Yangzhou this time, are you going to try cooking with me?" "I don't dare to say it in the competition. But I have studied Huaiyang cuisine for eight years, and I think I have some experience. I want to ask my seniors to give me some pointers." Although Jiang Shan's words are respectful, there is a hidden edge in the words and sentences. The people in the room laughed "hehe" in a hoarse voice: "It seems that you are very confident, much stronger than your father." "Don't dare. Compared with the demeanor of my predecessors in Beijing, then I am far behind." The people in the room hummed, and said arrogantly: "How much do you know about my time in Beijing?" Facing the other party's aggressive words, Jiang Shan was not stage-frightened, and replied neither humble nor overbearing: "My father often mentioned to me the various deeds of my predecessors as a motivation to motivate me to study cooking hard." "Okay, okay, it seems that you have already made up your mind to compete with me." The people in the room paused and changed the topic, "In this case, you still know the rules of our two families for hundreds of years ?" Jiang Shan naturally knew the "rules" mentioned by the people in the room.More than 200 years ago, when the ancestors of the Jiang family challenged "Yidaoxian" for the first time, "Yidaoxian" asked a culinary question, intending to make the other party retreat.The ancestors of the Jiang family completed that question, and only then did the competition between the two of them happen.Since then, it has become a customary rule in the battle between the two families that the challenged ask the challenger a question. The challenger must complete the question and use it as a "respect ceremony" before the opponent can enter the battle. But Jiang Shan raised his eyebrows and asked, "What kind of greeting ceremony do you want, senior?" The people in the room asked, "What was the greeting I gave to your father back then?" "You made a 'five-grade chrysanthemum and radish soup', and once you made it, it shook the capital." "That's right. It took me a whole night and a thousand knives to finish that 'chrysanthemum radish soup', but I didn't expect, hehe, the competition between me and your father will be decided with one knife." Seeing the other party mentioning his father's embarrassing past, Jiang Shan couldn't help being slightly moved, only to hear the person in the room say again: "You go back today, and come see me next time with the 'Five-Rank Chrysanthemum and Radish Soup'." "Okay!" Jiang Shan's tone was firm and confident, "I will definitely come again!" The people in the room seemed to have finished speaking, and they remained silent and did not speak again. Xu Lijie looked at Jiang Shan, feeling a little disappointed in her heart, and asked in a low voice, "Then aren't we going in today?" Jiang Shan gave an "um" as an answer, then turned to look at the old man beside him and said, "Old man, thank you for your advice today, we will visit again some other day." The old man nodded slightly: "Okay. My friend and I still have a few words to say, so we'll see you off soon. Langlang, do you want to stay with grandpa, or go with your uncle and aunt?" Langlang's big eyes rolled around twice: "I want to play with Brother Fei." The old man chuckled: "Shen Fei, this little guy has made you worry." During the conversation between Jiang Shan and the people in the house, Shen Fei kept staring at the half-hidden door, with a curious and astonished expression on his face, as if he wished to open the door and go in immediately, to see this famous "one-knife fresh" What does it look like.When the old man spoke to him, he was stunned for a moment before he came back to his senses and said with a smile: "It's okay, now Langlang is doing well in front of me." After speaking, he picked up Langlang and looked at him. Looking at Jiang Shan and Xu Lijie: "Shall we go?" After the three of them bid farewell to the old man, they left together without further words.With his hands behind his back, the old man watched their backs disappear before gently opening the door and walking into the study. The people in the room were sitting in front of the desk. On the table was a cup of high-quality green tea, which looked like it had just been brewed not long ago, and it was still steaming. After looking at him for a while, the old man sighed softly and said, "You can't help him like this, he can definitely do it." The person in the room picked up the cup of clear tea, carefully blown away the tea leaves floating in the mouth of the cup, and took a shallow sip with his eyes closed. After a fresh fragrance flowed from the tip of his tongue to his heart, he opened his eyes and spit out three teas slowly. One word: "I know." I don't know if it was because the fragrant tea moistened his throat, his voice sounded much more melodious than before. Although the weather was fine today, Shen Fei always felt a little uncomfortable.He knew it himself, and the reason for this was simple: he hadn't fried stinky tofu for a whole day. So after coming out of "Send Xiao Shanzhuang", Shen Fei immediately stretched his waist leisurely, and said: "Okay, now that 'One Knife Fresh' has been found, my task is completed, you can let me go back to fry stinky tofu Bar?" But Jiang Shan didn't seem to want to let him go so soon: "I still want to ask you a favor." "What? Tell me." Shen Fei scratched his scalp and looked at Jiang Shan. "I needed to find a place where I could cook and I didn't want to be bothered by other people." Shen Fei stared at Jiang Shan with wide eyes: "Don't you mean that you want to go to my house, and then I can't stay at home by myself?" Jiang Shan laughed happily: "Brother Fei is really understanding, but you don't have to worry too much, I only need one day." Shen Fei smiled wryly: "You just want to use it for a month, what can I do? Who made me greedy and made such a troublesome friend like you?" "Then where do you live?" Xu Lijie gloated at Shen Fei. "Make a living in the store." As soon as Shen Fei finished speaking, Jiang Shan turned his attention to Xu Lijie and Lang Lang again: "I still have a favor, you two have to help me too." Lang Lang stuck out his tongue: "What? Grandpa and I have no other place to live." "No need, this job is very simple." Jiang Shan smiled slightly, "I need radishes, a lot of radishes." Shen Fei's home is not far from "Yixiaotian" restaurant, it is an ordinary one-bedroom apartment.Because it is on the ground floor, there is a small courtyard with a single family outside the house. More than half of the courtyard is built as a flower bed. In the middle of the flower bed is a magnolia tree as tall as a person, surrounded by a circle of small flowers and plants of various colors. , colorful, and gorgeous in bloom. However, when the four of them came to the yard, they had no time to appreciate the spring scenery of the garden. They all rushed straight to the kitchen, busy unloading the radishes they were carrying, so as to relax their hands that had already been aching from strangulation. . Four people, eight bags full of big white radishes, not even idle.These radishes piled up into a hill in the kitchen, enough for Shen Fei to eat for a month. Xu Lijie rubbed her palms and looked at Jiang Shan: "We have helped you so much, and now everyone hasn't eaten yet. Shouldn't it be your turn to serve?" "That's good, how about a 'radish feast' with local materials?" Jiang Shan joked, and opened the refrigerator next to him. There were meat, eggs, and some vegetables in it. More than enough for a light meal for four. After Lang Lang knew that he was coming to Shen Fei's house, he was very excited all the way, at this moment he even tugged at the corner of Shen Fei's clothes, and said loudly: "Brother Fei, I still want to eat yesterday's food." Xu Lijie looked at the two of them in surprise, and joked, "What can he eat? Stinky tofu?" Langlang didn't care about answering, he dragged Shen Fei to the yard.Shen Fei looked back at Xu Lijie, and said with a smile: "You will know when you come and take a look." Xu Lijie thought that after Shen Fei took Langlang out to play last night, Langlang became very close to him, probably because he was bribed by this mysterious "thing".Curious in her heart, she followed the two out. There are a few small flower shovels for weeding placed beside the flower bed in the yard, Shen Fei picked up two by himself, and handed one of them to Lang Lang, who took it with a smile, like a soldier leading him for the first time. Like a new gun. Then the two walked out of the yard.In front of the building is a green area with many lush and large pagoda trees. The two squatted down in front of a tree and began to dig the soil under the tree. "Are they digging for peanuts or potatoes?" Xu Lijie secretly guessed in her heart, but she quickly denied her point of view.Because although those two things were born in the soil, there were also stems, leaves and branches on the ground, but the place where the two people shoveled was empty, and there were no plants. Suddenly, Langlang cried happily: "Haha, I found one!" At the same time, his little hand reached into the excavated surface, brushed off the soil, and picked up something from it.The thing was stained with mud, and the brownish-yellow color of the inside could be vaguely seen. In terms of shape and size, it really looked like a big peanut. "What is this?" Xu Lijie leaned behind the two of them, asking, while stretching her neck to see what happened. Langlang rolled his eyes and handed the thing to Xu Lijie.Just as Xu Lijie was looking intently, he suddenly squeezed hard with two fingers, and the thing was stressed, and the floating soil on the top was loosened, and two small sickle-like claws protruded from it, waving right under Xu Lijie's eyes. Xu Lijie screamed "ah", and jumped back a step: "What? Why is it still alive?" Lang Lang looked at Xu Lijie's flustered appearance, and kept laughing "giggle", Shen Fei waved his hand and slapped Xu Lijie half jokingly and half seriously on the buttocks: "You bastard, you're making trouble again, aren't you?" "Haha, Aunt Xu is really cowardly, isn't she just an idiot? There's nothing to be afraid of." Langlang blinked nonchalantly, and put the thing in his hand on the ground.The thing crawled slowly twice, and the floating dirt on its body gradually fell off, revealing its original appearance. It has a small head but a pair of big black eyes. Its whole body is covered with a layer of yellow-brown armor. Apart from the two big claws on the head, there are three pairs of thin feet on the chest and abdomen. , very clumsy when crawling. "This is the shell that hasn't shed yet, you know?" Xu Lijie recognized it. In the early summer, there are often many shells on the trunks of flowers and trees, which are exactly the same as this guy in front of her in appearance. "That's right. We call it 'meat cicada'." Shen Fei also dug out one at this time, "Fry this thing in oil, hehe, it's delicious!" Xu Lijie shook her head: "I'm not interested in why you all like to eat weird things." Although the meat cicada couldn't arouse Xu Lijie's appetite, but the process of Shen Fei and the two catching cicadas made her feel quite interesting.She watched for a while, and the two of them already had more than ten trophies. "Well, it's almost here, let's change to another place." After Shen Fei finished speaking, he came to another tree with waves. "Does it have to be dug under a tree?" Xu Lijie asked curiously. "Of course, this thing lives by sucking the sap from the roots of trees. If it leaves the tree, it will starve to death." Shen Fei said while waving the flower shovel in his hand with a smile, and asked Xu Lijie: "How about it? Come and try?" "Okay!" Xu Lijie's hands were really itchy, she squatted over, took the shovel, and tried to dig.A few shovels went down, and the soil was dug up a lot, but there was no trace of the meat cicada.Shen Fei pointed at the side and said, "Look to the left." Xu Lijie dug twice as she said, and a round hole appeared in the soil, about the size of a penny.Shen Fei stretched his right index finger into the hole and probed, then said with a smile: "Yes. Let's dig along the hole, and pay attention to the shovel gently." Sure enough, before digging too far down the hole, a fat meat cicada showed its head.Xu Lijie stretched out her hand and gently grabbed it out of its comfort zone.Seeing the prey in her hand waving its front paws in vain, she felt that it was both fun and a sense of accomplishment, and she was unwilling to let go with the shovel. Lang Lang on the side was also full of energy, digging in full swing.Shen Fei lost his tools, and simply folded his arms, leaning leisurely on the locust tree, only opening his mouth to point out from time to time. The three talked and laughed, half hunting and half entertaining.After digging for about half an hour, the meat cicadas caught were already half full of plastic bags.Shen Fei reckoned that Jiang Shan's lunch should be almost done, so he told the two to stop working and returned to the house. The room was filled with fragrance, and Jiang Shan had already cooked several side dishes.After Xu Lijie washed her hands, she went to the living room to help set up the table and set the chopsticks, while Shen Fei took the meat cicadas he caught to the kitchen to fry them, and Lang Lang naturally followed behind him like a follower. There was a small table in the living room, with some sundries piled on it, Xu Lijie asked loudly while tidying up: "Shen Fei, do you all live alone?" "Yeah." Shen Fei agreed in the kitchen, "Both parents are in the country." As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of "cracking, crackling, crackling" oil exploded, and then a strange fragrance wafted into the living room. It was Shen Fei who had put those meat cicadas into the oil pan. Suddenly, Xu Lijie's eyes lit up, as if she had noticed something. There was a delicate photo frame in the corner of the small table, with a group photo of the two in the middle.Xu Lijie held the photo frame in her hand, and saw that the man in the photo was Shen Fei, but he was much younger than now, and looked energetic and vigorous.Nestled beside him was a girl in her twenties, with a beautiful and refined appearance, and a happy and sweet smile on her face. This girl is Xiao Qiong mentioned by Ling Yongsheng, right?Xu Lijie thought to herself, she was really beautiful and cute, no wonder Shen Fei fell in love with her at first sight. Jiang Shan was arranging dishes at the side. Seeing Xu Lijie's rapt attention, he couldn't help being curious, poked his head and asked, "What are you looking at?" "Oh, a photo." Just as Xu Lijie was about to show it to Jiang Shan, Langlang suddenly jumped out from nowhere, tiptoed and snatched the photo frame. After taking a look, he yelled playfully: "Brother Fei, Fei Brother, is this your girlfriend?" Shen Fei walked into the living room with the fried meat cicada, and glared at him angrily and amusedly: "What are you talking about, return it to me quickly." Lang Lang smiled and handed the photo frame to Shen Fei's hands, and said in a big way: "Brother Fei's girlfriend is prettier than Aunt Xu." Shen Fei burst into a "thump" on his forehead: "You are the only one who talks a lot, so you are not afraid that Aunt Xu will be angry when you say that?" Xu Lijie smiled generously: "It's okay, she is indeed beautiful." Shen Fei looked at the girl in the photo, as if he was remembering something, but soon he got rid of that emotion, and greeted: "Let's not talk about this, come, let's have dinner, Jiang Yuchu's craftsmanship is not easy to taste "He said as he walked into the bedroom, put the photo frame on the bedside, and then returned to the living room. "Some home-cooked dishes are nothing. This deep-fried meat cicada is a rare thing." Jiang Shan picked up a meat cicada and looked at it with interest, not in a hurry to import it. Langlang was not polite, and after eating two in one sitting, he sneaked a glance at Xu Lijie: "Aunt Xu, don't you want to eat?" Xu Lijie hesitated for a moment. She had never touched this kind of thing before, but today she participated in the capture process with her own hands. If she didn't taste it, she would feel a fly in the ointment. At this time, Jiang Shan also put the meat cicada into his mouth. After chewing for a while, he praised: "The fragrance is incomparable. Compared with the centipede I ate yesterday, it has a different flavor." "It's a pity that some people dare to catch but dare not eat, and this good fortune was wasted." Shen Fei stretched out his hand directly, pinched a meat cicada, and at the same time did not forget to tease Xu Lijie. "Just eat it, what are you afraid of." Shen Fei's words aroused Xu Lijie's competitive spirit, she also picked up one, but she didn't dare to put the whole one into her mouth like the others, and just took a small bite first. The meat cicada is deep-fried, the color is golden, the outer layer is crispy and fragrant, and the inside is fresh and tender cicada meat.Although Xu Lijie took a small bite, the wonderful taste immediately filled her entire mouth. Shen Fei looked at her with a smile: "How's the taste?" "Not bad, it's a good thing." Xu Lijie gave a thumbs up, finished the remaining cicada meat in one bite, and said to Shen Fei with a smile: "It seems that you can only make fried stinky tofu, why?" Shen Fei fried meat cicadas well, and Jiang Shan's home-cooked stir-fries are naturally not bad.Although the meal was simple, the four of them ate it full of fragrance, and the atmosphere during the meal was even more joyful. After the stomach was full, there were more topics among the people.有一个问题在徐丽婕心中已经憋了好久，此时终于忍不住开了口：“姜山，有一件事情我实在好奇，希望说了你不要介意。当年你父亲和'一刀鲜'之间的那场比试究竟是怎样的？'一刀鲜'再厉害，怎么会只出一刀就获得胜利了呢？” 姜山释然一笑：“愿赌服输，这也没什么不能说的。当时'一刀鲜'虽然只是挥了一下厨刀，但这一刀却完成了一道菜的烹制。” “一刀完成一道菜？”徐丽婕仿佛在听天书一般，“那是什么菜呀？” 姜山缓缓吐出三个字：“刀切蛋！” “刀切蛋？”沈飞嘿嘿一笑，“这名字听起来倒有点意思。” 姜山沉默不语，似是在追忆往事，片刻后，才继续说道：“那天的比试以鸡蛋为题。这本是我父亲提出的。因为鸡蛋虽然普通，但相关的烹饪方法复杂多样，极能考验一个人的厨艺功底。而我父亲对此非常擅长，在京城一度有'鸡蛋王'的美誉。'一刀鲜'明知其中厉害，但却是一副满不在乎的模样，随随便便地说道：'那我今天就做个刀切蛋好了。' 他此言一出，在场的北京名厨们全都愣住了。他们见多识广，可却从来没听说过用刀切鸡蛋的。当下就有人忍不住问：'刀切蛋？不知你切的是生蛋呢，还是熟蛋？ ' '一刀鲜'干笑两声，似乎这问题问得愚蠢无比：'若是熟蛋，还用得着切吗？要切，自然是切生鸡蛋，而且一刀下去，那蛋液不能滴出半分。 ' 这一下举座哗然，大家都觉得'一刀鲜'的说法未免太过离谱。如果有一把好刀，运刀速度够快，把一只生鸡蛋切成两半倒也不是没有可能，但说到半点蛋液不漏，那却近乎天方夜谭了。 我父亲也和大家想得一样，当即便表示决不相信世间会有这样的刀法，如果对方能够做到，那他便立刻弃刀认输。 '一刀鲜'不再多言，叫人拿来一只鸡蛋放在案板上，然后从随身的包袱中抽出了一把厨刀。那厨刀寒光闪闪，看起来非常锋利，但也并不是什么了不起的宝物。 '一刀鲜'握刀在手，却不急着挥出，而是先打着了灶火，将刀身在火苗上炙烤起来。大家一时间都不明白他此举的用意，只见他把火力调至最大，大约十分钟之后，厨刀的刀刃已经泛起了红光。 就在此时，忽见刀光一闪，'一刀鲜'已对准案板上的鸡蛋劈出了一刀。只听'嗤'的一声轻响，厨刀从鸡蛋中部拦腰切进，直没至底。不过此时鸡蛋却并没有分开，停顿片刻后，'一刀鲜'手腕轻抖，刀面分撞两侧，那只鸡蛋这才齐齐地分成两半，各自倒在一边。 众人看着那切开的鸡蛋，确实没有一滴蛋液漏出，不禁全都噤若寒蝉。 " “这怎么可能呢？”徐丽婕还不太明白，“那蛋液应该会沿着刀刃流出的呀？” “你忘了那刀是被烧红了的。”姜山解释道，“刀口处的蛋液与刀面接触后，立刻被烘熟凝固，在切口处形成一层'盖子'，把内层的蛋液也封住了。这一刀不仅又快又准又狠，而且想法极其巧妙，的确做到了一刀切开生鸡蛋，而蛋液半点不漏。” “原来是这样。”徐丽婕叹服地说，“这个'一刀鲜'可真够厉害的。普通人即使想到同样的方法，要想切开鸡蛋却不损坏蛋壳，也是不容易的吧？” 姜山点点头：“那是当然。他这一刀首先要势大速疾，才能使刀口处的蛋壳不致大面积崩裂，可在接近案板时，刀势又要能及时准确地收住，这样底部的蛋壳尚有些许相连，所以两片鸡蛋能够贴在刀面上，等停留片刻，确信刀口处蛋液已凝固后，他才手腕发力，把两片鸡蛋分开，彻底完成这一刀。所以虽然只是一刀定胜负，但这一刀却让包括我父亲在内的所有人心服口服。” 徐丽婕想象着“一刀鲜”当时一刀镇群雄的气概，不禁有些心驰神往：“不知你们俩之间的比试又会出现怎样的结果，我简直都有些等不及了。” “我现在并不去考虑这个。”姜山却显得很平静，“对我来说，现在最重要的事情就是完成一道'五品萝卜菊花羹'。” 今天的天气实在是很好，阳光媚而不骄，酥酥暖暖地照在身上，像要把人的骨头都融化了一般。 姜山把自己关在了屋里，浪浪回家了，酒楼也不营业，沈飞感到一种说不出的自由和轻松。下午，他早早便来到了巷口，支起了自己心爱的炸豆腐摊。 还没到食客们光顾的时候，沈飞怡然自得地仰在一张躺椅上，看着头顶清澈蔚蓝的天空。那天空如此高远，如此辽阔，沈飞感到自己正在它的怀抱里，甚至产生了一种飞翔飘浮的错觉。他微笑着眯起眼睛，一脸陶醉其中的表情。 “你很喜欢这样看着天空吗？”一个声音在他耳边柔柔地说道，不用看他也知道，肯定是徐丽婕来了。 “嗯。晴空万里，多美。”沈飞似乎连脖子也不愿动一下，懒懒地笑道，“那么开阔，那么纯净，没有一点阴影，也没有一点烦恼，我喜欢这样的感觉。” “可这并不是最美丽的天空，当绚丽的彩虹和晚霞出现的时候，那才真的让人心醉呢。” 沈飞不置可否地摇着头。徐丽婕耸了耸肩膀，有些奇怪地问道：“你不同意我的观点吗？” “要看见彩虹，首先得经历风雨；而看见晚霞呢，又意味着黑夜即将来临。我还是喜欢这样的晴空，虽然平淡，但却能让人始终保持着快乐的心情。”沈飞淡淡地说着。 此刻他的心灵，是否也像这天空一样开朗纯净呢？ “我发现你的话语中，有时还真能包涵一些哲理。”徐丽婕仰头看着那片蓝天，若有所思地说道，“你的这种心态，应该和你以前的经历有关吧？” “我的经历？你指什么？”沈飞瞪大眼睛看着徐丽婕。 “那个照片上的女孩，她就是小琼吧？” “哦？看来你知道了一些事情。一定是小凌子和你说的。”沈飞一下子就猜出了其中原委。 徐丽婕点了点头。 “嗨！什么经历、哲理，我是个很现实的人，只知道自己的感觉。”沈飞嘻嘻一笑，似乎有意想岔开话题，“比如说，现在这么悠闲，我们为什么不削个萝卜吃呢？” 说话间，他的双手中已变戏法似地多了一柄菜刀和一只大白萝卜，菜刀普普通通，是准备用来切豆腐干和佐菜的，大白萝卜自然是刚才顺手牵羊，取自自家的厨房。 菜刀是用来切剁的，用它来削皮，那就太过笨重了。可这一把笨重的菜刀，到了沈飞手中，却显得灵巧轻盈，一阵旋转翻飞中，一缕细细的萝卜皮悬挂下来，在摇摇摆摆越拉越长。 徐丽婕见沈飞不想提及往事，也就不便追问。看着对方手中的萝卜，她倒想起另一件事来：“这'五品菊花萝卜羹'到底是个什么东西啊？姜山那么郑重其事，要把自己关起来？” 沈飞举着萝卜，一边说一边比划：“你看这个萝卜，从这里先横着切一百刀，再竖着切一百刀，每一刀都不切到底，这个部分的萝卜呢，就变成了长在主体上的一万根萝卜丝，用它煮成汤羹，萝卜丝四散漂在羹中，是不是像一朵盛开的菊花？” “嗯，那一定是很漂亮的。”徐丽婕在脑子里想象着。 沈飞点点头，继续说道：“很多厨师都以自己能做出一份'萝卜菊花羹'为荣，不过这样做出的，只是'一品萝卜菊花羹'。一个萝卜分成前、后、左、右、上、下六个面，除了下面作为底托之外，每个面都这样横竖各切一百刀，在一只萝卜上切出五朵菊花来。这才叫做'五品萝卜菊花羹'。” “啊？”徐丽婕咂咂舌头，“那就是说，总共要切一千刀？” “是啊，这一千刀中，只要有一刀稍稍偏了，断了一根萝卜丝，那就得前功尽弃，从头开始。所以做这个菜，要求的不仅仅是刀法的细腻，更是对一个厨师耐心和毅力的最大考验。”沈飞说完这些，右手中的菜刀突然平平挥出，去势又快又疾，一片薄薄的萝卜被削了下来，稳稳地贴在菜刀的上壁。 沈飞把菜刀递到徐丽婕面前：“来一片吗，萝卜可是好东西。降火清肺，美容养颜。” 徐丽婕笑了笑：“谢谢。不用了，你自己来吧。” 沈飞也不客气，一抖手腕，萝卜片从刀面上弹了起来，准确地掉进了他的嘴里。 “啊，很帅嘛。”徐丽婕拍着手，“再来一次。” “你以为看戏哪？”沈飞白了她一眼，放下菜刀，双手捧起萝卜，张开大嘴一口啃了下去。 “五品萝卜菊花羹”，五朵菊花，一千刀。 只要是沾过厨刀的人，都知道这意味着什么。针对其所要求的工作量和精细程度来说，这一千刀已经不能叫做“切”，而应该叫做“雕”。 经过这一千刀后雕出的萝卜，显然也已经超越了烹饪的范畴，你几乎可以把它看作是一件艺术品。 姜山自然很清楚这项工作的难度。从午饭后开始，他就把自己关在了沈飞的那间一居室中，开始不停地挥刀。 在此之前，他甚至把客厅中的电话都掐断了。因为在他聚精会神工作的时候，哪怕有一丝外界的干扰，都会对他落刀的精度和连贯性造成影响，从而出现偏刀乃至断丝的现象。即使这时你已经准确地雕出了九百九十九刀，这个“萝卜菊花”也只能是白废了。 正如沈飞所言，这道菜比的不是刀功，而是耐心和毅力。 奥运会是世界上水平最高的竞技大会，射击无疑是其中对精度要求最高的一个项目。对于一个射击冠军来说，他也许能够打出好几次十点九的满环，但要想几百发子弹全都打出十环以上的成绩，却是千难万难。事实上，最优秀的选手也会有一两枪发挥失常，打出九环、八环甚至更差的成绩。 这一千刀也是同样的道理。 有专家做过研究，当一个人的精神高度集中的时候，如果他能坚持十分钟以上，那他便是一个意志力非常强大的人了。 而雕完一个五品的“萝卜菊花”，最快也得要一个多小时。 第一个萝卜，姜山雕了二十五分钟，三百七十二刀，断丝。 第二个萝卜，三十四分钟，四百一十九刀。 第三个萝卜，四十七分钟，五百三十一刀。 ... 晚饭前，姜山一共雕坏了七个萝卜。 七个萝卜，总计挥出了约五千刀，其中失误了七刀。这七刀让五千刀的工作全都失去了意义。 但姜山却很满意。因为到目前为止，他的心还是很平静，没有一丝烦乱的迹象，而他握刀的手已经越来越稳，下刀的感觉也渐入佳境。在雕第七个萝卜时，他已经成功地切了八百六十六刀，其实，如果当时不是肚子不争气地叫了起来，分散了自己的注意力，也许那一次他便可以完成工作了。 吃了个简单的晚饭后，姜山又看了会电视。肚子饱了，精神也足够放松和愉快，他这才重新回到了厨房。 第八个萝卜，一小时十一分钟，七百七十一刀。 第九个萝卜，一小时二十七分钟，九百二十三刀。 第十个萝卜，一小时三十五分钟，一千刀！ 五朵绚丽的菊花终于在姜山的手掌中盛开。他很高兴，紧崩的神经松弛之后，一股难以抗拒的倦意袭了过来。 他决定去好好地睡上一觉，然后，便该好好考虑如何与“一刀鲜”进行那最后一战了。 沈飞卧室中的床不算大，但却非常松软，是姜山非常喜欢的感觉。他惬意地躺在床上，带着一种大功告成的悠闲心情四下打量着。 忽然，他似乎发现了什么，目光被牢牢地抓了过去。 吸引他的是一个相框，姜山想起这是中午吃饭时沈飞从客厅拿到卧室里的。他把相框拿在手中，端详着照片上和沈飞合影的那个女孩，脸上露出了奇怪的表情。 他皱着眉头，似乎遇见了什么难以理解的事情。 当他的眉头渐渐松开的时候，他笑了，那神情像是一个刚刚发现了糖果的孩子。 晨曦初上，天色明媚。看起来，今天又会是一个阳光灿烂的日子。 姜山一早就来到了“寄啸山庄”中的“片石山房”。现在，他正背手站在书房门外，静静等待着屋中人的反应。与昨天想比，他的眉目中更增添了几分自信。似乎一切都已在自己的掌控之中。 屋门仍是虚掩。屋中人和彩衣巷中的老者相对而座，目光都紧盯着书桌上的那只砂锅。 老者轻轻揭开砂锅的盖子。锅中是一片盛开的菊花，素雅的书房中立刻平添了几分秋色。 “五品萝卜菊花羹，货真价实。”老者沉着声音说道，语气中既有叹服，又包含着几分无奈。 坐在他对面的人缓缓站起身，踱到后窗前，在窗外晨曦的映衬下，他的背影多少显得有些落寞。 “那，我就和他比这最后一场吧。” 老者离座，走出书房，随手又把门轻轻地掩上。 “明晚七点，西园酒店的红楼宴厅见。”看着门外的姜山，他只是淡淡地说了这么一句。 姜山的回答也很简洁：“不见不散。”两百多年来的家族恩怨，似乎都已浓缩在这四个字中。 这一代人的最新对决呼之欲出，一个是传说中的人物，一个是叱咤风云的厨界新贵，谁能够最终获胜？那“烟花三月”的秘密，是否也会随之解开呢？ 看起来，明晚就是所有答案揭晓的时候，不过，姜山知道，在这一章序幕开始之前，他还需要去见两个人。 姜山要见的第一个人，便是徐丽婕。上午九点，他们相约来到了冶春茶社。 冶春茶社是扬州城内字号最老的茶社之一，它毗邻秀丽的玉带河而建，茶厅均是清一色古色古香的木制水榭。对于食客们来说，临窗而座，一边看着脚下潺潺而过的流水，一边品尝精巧细致的点心，无疑是一种令人难以抗拒的享受。 “这地方不错，景色真漂亮。”徐丽婕刚坐下，便融入了这醉人的气氛中，她用手支着下巴，由衷地赞叹着。 姜山也微笑着说道：“扬州真是个美丽的城市，我都快被她迷住了。不过这美景得和美食搭配起来，才能双双品出最佳滋味。” 桌上一壶绿茶，一碟淆肉，一盘烫干丝，蒸饺和蟹黄汤包都是刚刚出炉，热腾腾地散发着香气。 “这几样都是扬州茶社中最经典的小菜和点心。尝尝看吧。”姜山一边说，一边做了个请的手势。 徐丽婕夹起一片淆肉，但见那肉片上半部晶莹如水晶，下半部鲜红如玛瑙，煞是好看。送入口中细细品味，只觉肉质细腻坚韧，酥香怡口而不腻，确实是佐茶的上上之选。 一片淆肉下肚，徐丽婕首先挑起了话题：“姜先生今天单独约我，就是吃早茶这么简单吗？” 姜山呵呵一笑，说：“嗯，首先我有个消息要告诉你。明天晚上我就要和'一刀鲜'比试厨艺了。” “真的？”徐丽婕兴奋地睁大眼睛，“这么说，你已经成功地做出了那个'五品菊花萝卜羹'？可惜没能让我开开眼界。” “你如果真的想看，我想以后还会有很多机会的。” “希望如此。”客套话说完后，徐丽婕用探询的目关看着姜山：“不知道现在你对明天的比试有几分获胜的把握呢？” 姜山没有正面回答，只是淡淡地说道：“不管结果如何，明天比完之后，我都可以心无遗憾地离开扬州了。” “嗯。”徐丽婕点了点头，“无论谁胜谁败，明天的比试都会成为一场传奇性的巅峰对决。不管结果如何，希望你在离开扬州的时候，能有一个好的心情。来，我以茶代酒，敬你一杯。” 姜山端起茶杯和徐丽婕碰了碰，然后呷了一口：“这趟扬州之行，我已经很开心了，至少我交了一帮好朋友，有你，有沈飞，这就已经足够了。” “我们一定会互相想念的，是吗？”想到即将到来的离别，徐丽婕不禁隐隐有些伤感。 “那当然。”姜山郑重地点了点头，“其实，我还有一个很唐突的想法。” "what?" 姜山专注地看着徐丽婕的眼睛：“我想邀请你去北京。” “哦？”徐丽婕略微有些吃惊，她眨眨眼睛，然后狡黠地一笑：“这是一个什么样的邀请呢？” 姜山低头转着手中的茶杯，略作思索后说道：“你可以把它想得很复杂，也可以把它想得很简单。我知道你是学酒店管理的，北京能给你提供很多发展的机会，在这方面我们可以互相帮助。坦白说，也许我的目的还不仅于此，其实我对你的个性和能力都非常欣赏，相信我们在很多方面都会非常协调的。” “是吗？”徐丽婕大大方方地一笑，“我对你同样欣赏，而且，你的建议听起来的确不错。” 姜山眉角一挑：“这算是你的答案吗？” 徐丽婕却摇了摇头：“不算。我还得考虑考虑。” “没关系，反正我的意思已经说到。你只要在我走之前，给我一个答复就可以。”姜山翩翩有礼地说完，然后指指桌上的汤包，很自然地把话题一转：“来，这个得趁热吃。” 那汤包有巴掌般大小，皮极薄，几乎可以看到里面包裹的汤汁。徐丽婕用筷子试着夹了夹，可汤包却软软地吃不上力，因为害怕把皮夹破，她又不敢使太大的劲，一时间有些踌躇。 “这汤包得这么吃。”姜山给徐丽婕做起了示范，“用筷子夹住汤包的嘴部，轻轻提起来，放在碟子里。然后在顶部稍稍咬开一个小口，先喝完里面的鲜汤后，再把包子吃完。” 徐丽婕依言而行，那热腾腾的鲜汤美味无穷，自不必多说。只是她想到了一个疑问：“这汤包在制作的时候，这些鲜汤是怎么被包进去的呢？” 姜山笑着说道：“很多外国人在吃汤包的时候，都会问同样的问题呢。这些鲜汤其实是极浓稠的肉汁，在低温时会凝成胶体状态，所以能够和蟹黄等馅料包裹在一块。上锅一蒸，肉汁溶化，和馅料相烹相融，便制出了这样的美味。” 徐丽婕一边听，一边若有所悟地点着头。这烹饪中的许多技巧说出来简单，但其构思上的巧妙之处，却常常令人赞叹。 姜山要见的第二个人，自然就是沈飞。不过他们并没有相约，因为姜山知道，要想找到沈飞，那实在是一件再容易不过的事情。 下午，在那熟悉的小巷口，当那股独特的气味飘散开来的时候，周围的人们就像是中了某种魔力，三三两两地聚在了沈飞的摊点前。姜山便很随意地夹杂在他们中