Perhaps due to the season, or perhaps due to the recent East Market Hot Pot Festival’s popularity, hot pot sales were particularly strong across all branch stores.
Shen Shaoguang struck while the iron was hot, following the model of autumn’s Crab Month to create a “Hot Pot Month,” promoting the slogan “Different Every Day for a Month.” She created a dedicated hot pot menu which, when counted, truly offered more than thirty varieties.
While Shen’s establishment genuinely offered many hot pot bases, there was also an element of showmanship involved.
Previously, Shen’s had seven or eight types of soup bases, including the classic milk soup base, clear broth base, seafood base emphasizing umami flavors, fish head and bone soup base, vegetarian mushroom base, and wolfberry-red date-longan base. This winter, the hot pot family expanded further.
One major category was medicinal hot pots. Tang people placed great emphasis on health preservation, with countless individuals interested in gathering herbs and practicing alchemy. Even ordinary people enjoyed black rice and astragalus porridge.
Black rice, also known as green essence rice, was made by crushing South Candleberry tree leaves to extract juice, soaking glutinous rice in it, and then steaming it—this soaking and steaming process was particular, requiring “nine soakings, nine steamings, and nine sun-dryings.” The resulting rice grains were black and compact, suitable for both cooking and soaking, making it a kind of semi-convenient food. Shen Shaoguang had tried it several times and found the taste unremarkable—but in food therapy, taste wasn’t the primary concern. Hadn’t even the Poetry Sage Du Fu said, “With green essence rice to eat, my complexion shall improve”?
Shen Shaoguang consulted physicians who provided over ten autumn and winter therapeutic recipes suitable for the general public. One recipe included South Candleberry, known for strengthening tendons, benefiting qi, preserving essence, and maintaining a youthful appearance—perfect for winter nourishment. Shen Shaoguang had initially worried that adding South Candleberry would make the soup base too black and affect appetite, but surprisingly, people accepted it well.
One customer even wrote a poem saying, “Milk soup with wolfberry makes jade-like skin, a small pot of green essence glows like cinnabar,” making it sound like a beauty product advertisement.
Besides these medicinal soup bases, as someone who had traversed time from an era where chili peppers dominated half the hot pot world, Shen Shaoguang couldn’t rest easy without creating a spicy soup base.
After five or six attempts with Third Princess Yu, they finally created a palatable spicy soup base.
They used sesame oil and chicken fat to fry Sichuan peppercorns, scallions, and ginger until fragrant, added pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, and other spices, fried briefly, then added plenty of zanthoxylum sauce, along with an appropriate amount of fermented bean paste, rice wine lees, and sugar to stir-fry. As the heat rose, so did an intense, complex spicy aroma that made one’s nose tingle.
A young server who entered the kitchen immediately sneezed and hurried out, while Shen Shaoguang and Third Yu were fully equipped with masks—all sewn by A-Yuan. They added water to the fried base and simmered it, then strained it through a fine sieve, and added boiling Sichuan peppercorn oil, creating something reminiscent of a modern Sichuan-Chongqing style mala hot pot.
Spiciness is truly a magical flavor—upon contact, whether it stimulates the oral cavity or nasal mucosa, it inevitably triggers salivation.
The spiciness of zanthoxylum differs from that of chili peppers—it’s less overwhelming but has its unique fragrance and can eliminate fishy or gamey tastes, making it particularly suitable for hot pot with lamb, fish, and shrimp.
Due to the new hot pot menu, the staff at Shen’s old stores regularly tested hot pots at lunch. Regarding this spicy soup base, some loved it to death, while others who couldn’t handle it rushed to find cold water to rinse their mouths.
Shen Shaoguang, having survived “demon-level spiciness” before, found this level of heat unremarkable and quite enjoyable. Surprisingly, the fastidious Third Princess Yu turned out to be capable of handling spice. Usually reluctant to offer praise, this time she formed a complete sentence: “It’s quite good,” almost moving Shen Shaoguang to tears. A-Yuan maintained her “everything Young Mistress makes is delicious” stance, and though she complained about the spiciness, she ate quite a bit—then spent the afternoon making several trips to the toilet.
A-Yuan’s experience prompted Shen Shaoguang to specifically note on the menu, “While delicious, this aromatic spicy base stimulates the digestive system. Gentlemen, please choose with caution.”
Unexpectedly, many customers showed signs of “chuunibyou,” treating this warning as an advertisement—if the establishment says such things, they must try it… resulting in grown men with reddened eyes.
Shen’s was very thoughtful, having servers bring rice porridge, not explicitly mentioning relief from embarrassment, but suggesting it would protect the digestive system.
Besides these variations in soup bases, Shen also added pre-stewed options like lamb spine hot pot, pickled cabbage with pork hot pot, chicken hot pot, and pigeon hot pot, where the bones were tender and the meat was falling apart. These could be eaten with dipping sauces or plain. Since stewed dishes were popular in autumn and winter, these stewed hot pots were particularly welcomed by more conservative diners.
To complement the “Different Every Day for a Month” slogan, each branch displayed a cartoon series called “Hot Pot Competition” on their poetry walls—clearly influenced by the crosstalk “The Five Senses Compete for Merit.”
Several hot pots with legs and arms gathered together.
One hot pot wearing a scholar’s robe with “clear eyes and elegant eyebrows” said: “My soup is clear and fresh.”
Another with a long beard wearing a Taoist robe said: “Eating me brings longevity and extends life.”
A round, smiling hot pot said: “Our stewed pots with tender bones and meat are still the best.”
One wearing a pomegranate-red skirt with a hint of allure: “Once you’ve tried my aromatic spicy pot, you’ll never look at the others!”
Though they were pot-shaped, they had beards and eyebrows, with vivid expressions. Tang people had never seen such advertisements before, and everyone who saw them burst into laughter.
The East Market branch especially, with its long and wide poetry wall, had required considerable effort from Shen Shaoguang to paint. The effort wasn’t wasted—many who came in after seeing the paintings would say, “Give me that longevity-extending one!” or “I want that aromatic spicy pot that makes you forget the others.”
Shen Shaoguang occasionally overheard these comments and felt quite pleased.
The East Market tavern had been open for a short time but had heavy and diverse customer traffic, so she spent more time there.
She encountered several old acquaintances there, such as the Imperial Guard captain who had bought the plum drink recipe for twenty taels of silver. He came in with several other large men, and though they were in civilian clothes, their bearing and gait revealed them as Imperial Guards.
Shen Shaoguang went forward to greet them. The captain was startled, then recognized her, and realizing the connection with “Shen’s,” discovered that the young lady who once had a small stall now owned a large tavern in the East Market!
The leader of the Imperial Guards looked at Shen Shaoguang, then at the captain.
The captain softly said, “This is the young lady who sold us the plum drink.”
The leader smiled, “Young lady’s plum drink is excellent. We brothers survived the scorching summers these past two years thanks to it.”
The captain introduced him to her, “This is General Wu.”
Shen Shaoguang quickly gave the general a courteous bow and responded politely. Because of this connection, Shen offered several complimentary dishes, maintaining good relations.
Shen Shaoguang also met Prime Minister Li Yue.
On a rest day with good sunshine, after the main dining hours, the old minister came in with two servants.
Shen Shaoguang was speaking with the manager behind the counter, but upon seeing him, quickly went to greet him, “Many blessings, Prime Minister.”
Li Yue remembered how he had sighed about being old and this young lady had changed to calling him “sir,” and couldn’t help smiling, “No need to look at the Shen’s sign, just seeing the paintings on the outer wall, one can guess it’s the young lady from Chongxian Ward’s Shen’s.”
Shen Shaoguang quickly applauded, “Prime Minister’s insight is remarkable.”
Li Yue gestured at her modestly and smiled.
Li Yue didn’t choose a private room, instead sitting at a high table near the second-floor railing. Shen Shaoguang served him personally, bringing drinks and recommending the ginseng and astragalus pot from the health-preserving selection.
Li Yue nodded, “Very well.”
He accepted all of Shen Shaoguang’s recommendations for the ingredients too, suggesting he was probably a prime minister who could listen to others’ opinions in court.
Li Yue leaned on the railing, watching two performers act below with great interest.
One complained about being unable to write good poetry and essays, and the other said: “Erlang, have you heard of ‘like supplements like’?”
“I know this—for instance, if one’s legs are injured, eat lamb legs or pork trotters to nourish the tendons and bones.”
“Exactly so, if you lack ink in your chest, you can supplement similarly.”
That “Erlang” acted shocked: “How can one eat ink?”
“Go to Shen’s tavern and eat their South Candleberry hot pot! It’s black as ink, fragrant and nourishing. Who knows, if you eat it daily, you might pass this year’s examination!”
Li Yue laughed, and the diners below also erupted in laughter, with some calling to the servers, “If I pass this year’s examination, I’ll come back here to give thanks.”
After the New Year would be the Ministry of Rites examination, followed by the Ministry of Personnel selection, with scholars gathering in the capital, many staying in the adjacent Chongren Ward. Those making the commotion were likely candidates for this year’s examination.
Such timely and amusing entertainment was rare, and Li Yue suspected these lines were written by that mischievous young lady.
Shen Shaoguang led servers bringing the hot pot and dishes, personally helping to light the stove.
“Young lady’s establishment has excellent performances. The last time I saw such good ones was at His Majesty’s Summer Solstice banquet last year.”
Shen Shaoguang smiled with curved eyebrows, “Our humble shop is just playing around, how dare we compare with the palace?”
Seeing her insincere manner and slightly proud girlish demeanor, Li Yue laughed even more.
After discussing the performances a bit more, Shen Shaoguang helped warm the wine before withdrawing.
Li Yue felt somewhat lost, suddenly remembering his daughter who died young. If A-Chang had lived, she would be older than the young lady before him and could have shared a drink with her old father…
Regarding when and how to tell Prime Minister Li about her background, Shen Shaoguang was quite hesitant and somewhat embarrassed—Prime Minister Li was her father’s good friend, and since she was marrying Lin Yan and would be mixing in the capital’s official and gentry circles, it wouldn’t be appropriate not to acknowledge their connection, but she hadn’t said anything before…
When she next saw Lin Yan, Shen Shaoguang discussed it with him. Lin Yan smiled and stroked her head, casually removing the hairpin from her bun, causing all her black hair to cascade down.
Shen Shaoguang made a fierce expression: “That day when I was drunk, was it you who loosened my hair?”
Lin Yan smiled and said: “Prime Minister Li is an open-minded and unrestrained person, how could he mind your small concealment? When you saw him that day, he had just returned from the Shannan West Circuit and only rested for half a day before becoming busy again. He has to oversee the New Year’s Grand Court Assembly. Let’s visit his home during the New Year. If you’re uncomfortable bringing it up, I’ll speak for you.”
Shen Shaoguang thought for a moment, “Never mind, I should say it myself.”
Lin Yan considered this and nodded, “That’s good too.”
Lin Yan reached up to touch the hair at her temple again. A-Ji’s hair was truly beautiful, smooth as silk.
Leaning across the small table, Shen Shaoguang moved closer to him, “Hey, Young Magistrate Lin, why don’t you try our South Candleberry hot pot later?”
Lin Yan smiled, “What? You think I lack ink in my chest?”
Shen Shaoguang lay on the small table with a mischievous expression: “You only know that South Candleberry hot pot can supplement ink, don’t you know it has other uses?”
Lin Yan’s ears grew warm—medical books said South Candleberry could “enter the kidneys and supplement essence”… Looking at her red lips so close to his eyes, Lin Yan pressed his lips together.
“I meant you’ve been too busy lately and look unwell, you should eat some supplements to improve your complexion,” Shen Shaoguang sat up straight, smiling suggestively, “What were you thinking about, Young Magistrate?”
Author’s Notes:
I’ve never actually eaten zanthoxylum, the cooking process is referenced from online Sichuan-Chongqing chili hot pot preparation methods, just read it for fun, don’t take it too seriously.
I’ve also never eaten green essence rice, the effects of South Candleberry (black rice tree) come from the Baidu Encyclopedia.