Rise From the Humble

Not far from the stall that sells shark fin is the stall that sells pork. It is a medium-sized butcher case, and behind it is a 1.67-meter-long shelf fixed with wooden pillars. On the shelf hangs a fan of pork of different sizes. There were two pig heads on the shiny meat table.

A wooden rectangular butcher stall sign hung on the wooden pillar, with the four characters "Zhang Fei Butcher Shop" written on it. The simple and elegant seal script looked like it was written by a famous artist, and it immediately caught Zhu Pingan's attention.

This sign was passed down from his ancestors, and it is now the third generation. It is said that his ancestors got lucky. An official forgot to bring money when buying meat, so he exchanged words for the meat. This sign was written by his ancestors. Shop sign.

"If you are fat or thin, you will be healthy and live longer." "Stir-fry with lean meat, and the love between husband and wife." "Boil soup with bones, and you will be healthy."

There was a shirtless butcher standing behind the meat case. He looked like a standard ancient butcher, with a fat head, big ears and a beard. He had a towel on his shoulders. He held a meat knife in each hand, one for deboning and the other for chopping meat. He has a thick knife, is full of energy to solicit business, and laughs heartily from time to time when answering people.

"Zhang Tu, bring me three kilograms of pork belly, wrapped in lotus leaves. Today is my father-in-law's birthday, and I want to take it back to visit the relatives." A man in his forties came to the meat stall carrying two fish and said to Butcher Zhang said.

It turned out that the owner of Zhang Fei's butcher shop was really named Zhang. Zhu Ping'an couldn't help but smile when he heard this and stopped in front of the butcher shop.

"Haha, okay. Brother Liu often comes to take care of my business. Today, I, Old Zhang, will cut you two more taels as a token of my appreciation." Butcher Zhang replied, while talking to the man named Liu with a smile. While keeping his hands moving, he cut a piece of pork belly with one stroke.

After cutting it, Butcher Zhang used a scale to hook it on the meat. The scale was about three pounds, two ounces, not too much, not too little, which was just right.

Then he skillfully wrapped it in lotus leaves, tied it up with fine hemp rope, and handed it to the man surnamed Liu.

"Then I will thank Zhang Tu on behalf of my father-in-law. I will come to you next time to buy meat." The man surnamed Liu took the meat and thanked him.

"That's a good relationship. Thank you Brother Liu for taking care of the business." Butcher Zhang sent the man named Liu away with a smile.

"This young master, what kind of meat do you want to go to?"

After the man surnamed Liu left, Butcher Zhang enthusiastically recruited Zhu Pingan and his party who were standing in front of the meat stall.

"How to sell pork now?" Zhu Pingan asked.

"Pork belly costs 20 cents per catty, and front and rear leg meat costs 18 cents per catty. If you want more, you can save one or two cents per catty," explained Butcher Zhang.

Well, Zhu Ping'an nodded slightly. He knew about the same thing. A pound of pork belly is about 12 yuan, and the front and rear legs are about 11 yuan. Generally speaking, it is much cheaper than modern prices.

However, the price of pork parts is very different between ancient times and modern times. In modern times, pork belly is cheaper, and front and rear leg meat are more expensive. However, in ancient times, it was reversed. Pork belly is more expensive than front and rear leg meat. More expensive.

In other words, in ancient times, fatty meat was more expensive than lean meat. Whether it was pork, mutton, or beef, fatty meat was more expensive than lean meat.

"Water Margin" recorded such a scene: The three Ruan brothers once invited military advisor Wu Yong to a meal in a tavern. After entering the restaurant, they asked the waiter what he wanted to eat with the wine. The waiter replied: "I have just slaughtered a ox, and I have flower cakes." It looks like good fat meat." After Ruan Xiaoer heard that there was fat meat, he immediately slammed the table with excitement and told the waiter: "Cut it into large pieces and cut it into ten pounds!"

The recipes of the emperor and his concubines recorded in the "Qing Palace Archives" generally include fat chicken, fat lamb, fat duck, fat goose, etc. Basically, the famous imperial dishes on the menu are inseparable from fat meat.

In addition, the "Book of Rites" records the way to treat guests: "The right side is plump in winter, and the right side is flat in summer." What they say is that in winter, when there is a lot of fat in the belly of the fish, the fish belly should be facing the guests; in summer, when there is a lot of fat in the fins, the fish should be facing the guests.

There are many records like this, which all illustrate that the ancients valued fat meat.

This is because the eating habits of ancient people are different from those of modern people. Ancient people liked to eat fat meat and considered fat meat to be more valuable than lean meat. This has a lot to do with the living standards of the ancients. It’s not that the old people didn’t pay attention to health preservation, but because the living standards in ancient times were not high and materials were relatively scarce. Most people struggled to have enough food and clothing, so naturally they didn’t consider health preservation and weight loss. High-level pursuits. From the taste point of view, fatty meat is more fragrant and satiating than lean meat, so the ancients favored fatty meat. From a caloric point of view, fat meat contains more calories than lean meat. Eating a pound of fat meat requires more calories than eating a pound of lean meat, and it can resist hunger better.

Another point is that fat meat can produce meat. The ancients liked to buy fat meat. The market determines the price, so fat meat is naturally more expensive.

"Well, okay, give me four pounds of pork belly and one pound of hind leg meat." Zhu Pingan nodded.

"You can make it cheaper." Liu Dadao then said to Butcher Zhang, "We will be big customers in the future. If you can afford it, we will often come to take care of your business."

"Okay. I'll give you 1 cent cheaper per catty for pork belly, and 2 cents cheaper for hind legs?" Butcher Zhang responded cheerfully.

"Just so-so." Liu Dadao said casually.

"One pound of pork belly is 19 Wen, four pounds is 80 minus four, which is 76 Wen, and one pound of hind leg meat is 16 Wen, which adds up to 92 Wen. This is the first time you have taken care of my business, so I will wipe off the change for you. I'll charge you 90 cents." Butcher Zhang was a little slower in calculating the accounts, but he was very accurate. After the calculation, he added a fraction of two cents.

Hearing that another two cents had been wiped out, Liu Dadao was very satisfied and said to Butcher Zhang, "We will take care of your business from now on."

Zhu Pingan also smiled and nodded.

"Thank you." Butcher Zhang thanked him with a smile, then turned around and cut off a large piece of pork belly and a piece of lean meat on the hanging meat fan.

After cutting the meat, he weighed it and turned the scale beam towards Zhu Ping'an and the others. After confirming that it was correct, Butcher Zhang skillfully wrapped it up in lotus leaves. Zhu Pingan was about to take it over when Liu Dao and Liu Dachui on the side took it over without any hesitation. They smiled and said that they would just leave the rough work to them.

There was no one else at the meat stall at this time, and chatting would not delay the business. Liu Dadao praised Butcher Zhang's knife skills. Butcher Zhang smiled proudly and said that he had practiced cutting meat for twenty years. .

While Liu Dadao and the others were chatting with Butcher Zhang, Zhu Pingan observed Butcher Zhang's meat stall. There was a pile of large bones piled on one side of the meat stall table, and the meat on them was very clean. On the discarded lotus leaves on the ground below the meat stall , a bunch of pigs were spread out into the water, apparently thrown down casually.

"How do you sell these big bones?" Zhu Pingan asked, pointing to the big bones on the meat table.

"It's not worth a lot of money. I originally used these bones as a side dish. There is no meat on them, so I can make soup. The young master bought so much meat from me. If you like these bones, you can get a few more." That is, we will never accept money." Butcher Zhang shook his head and said cheerfully.

A few are not enough, the soup made with big bones also tastes great. In the future, big bone soup will be used more in fast food restaurants.

"I want a lot, and I will come here often in the future. I can't take advantage of you." Zhu Pingan shook his head slightly.

"Young Master, do you think this is a good idea? If the young master comes to my old Zhang to sell meat in the future, as long as you pay ten cents for these big bones, all the big bones on my stall will be yours. Do you think so?" Zhang The butcher said again.

Well, that's okay. Zhu Pingan was very satisfied with Butcher Zhang's proposal. Ten cents can buy all the big bones at Butcher Zhang's stall, which is a great deal. It would definitely be much more expensive than this if purchased normally.

Of course, Butcher Zhang also gained a small profit, and the bones originally used to make the head were sold for ten cents. Although it's not much, it's long-lasting, and over time, it's also an income.

"Repay ten cents, it would be cheaper." Liu Dadao interjected from the side.

Zhu Ping'an was very satisfied with Butcher Zhang's proposal, but he was not in a hurry to express his opinion. He pretended that he had accidentally seen the pigs in the butcher Zhang's meat case, and asked casually, "How do you sell the pigs in the butcher's case?"

"Well, let's do it like this. You can give me fifteen cents for a pig's sewer. In addition, all the big bones in my butcher shop will be given to you for free. To be honest, pork liver and pig heart are better. On weekdays, too. I can sell some, but the pig intestines are too difficult to clean. No matter how clean they are, there will still be a smell of pig, and almost no one wants them. Generally, if they can't be sold, they will be thrown away." Butcher Zhang thought for a while and said.

"Zhang Tu, you are not serious. Your pig offal is selling as much as pig hind leg meat. What is the taste of pig offal? Pork liver and pig heart have no taste. As for the smell of pig intestine, who eats it? ." Liu Dadao shook his head.

"Look at what you said, brother, let's do this. I'll charge you 10 cents for a pig's dirty work. How about I give you all the big bones in my stall for free?" Butcher Zhang smiled sheepishly, and then said.

Liu Dadao still wanted to negotiate the price, but Zhu Pingan on the side was already very satisfied, which was beyond expectations.

Almost all for free.

This ten cents alone can basically cover the fast food of meat and vegetables.

If you have money, everyone can make it, and Zhu Ping'an has a good impression of Butcher Zhang, and he will be a partner for long-term cooperation in the future.

"That's it." Zhu Pingan nodded.

With a smile on his face, Butcher Zhang tied up the big bones with ropes for Zhu Pingan and the others, wrapped the divided pigs in lotus leaves and put them in the water, tied them with ropes again, and handed them to Zhu Pingan and the others.

To prevent accidents, Zhu Ping'an also proposed to make a pledge contract in the presence of the clerk at the door of the market. Butcher Zhang was happy to cooperate, because this was a guarantee of his power and could guarantee that he would sell pigs that he could not sell in the past.

Therefore, under the witness of the clerk, the two parties made an agreement to pay 10 cents for a pig's water and give away all the big bones for free. The contract also specifically stipulated Zhu Ping'an's right of first refusal.

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