The First Young Master of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 24

In the blink of an eye, it is New Year’s Eve, which is called Sui Chu in the Tang Dynasty. Like later generations, explosive poles will be set off on this night. At this time, there are no fireworks in the Tang Dynasty, so we can only buy some bamboo, bring them back and ignite them. There was a crackling sound, and I had to stay up all night to watch the year. For the first two years, it was Wang and Xuan Shijing. In the second half of the night, Xuan Shijing couldn't bear it and fell asleep. As a result, the watch became Wang's matter.

Xuan Shijing in the previous life felt that since she grew up, Chinese New Year was not as good as every year, not because of how she lived, but because she lacked the "new year flavor" she had when she was a child. Xuan Shijing, who came to Datang, decided to renew Get back that long-lost feeling, after all, it is still his childhood.

In the study, Xuan Shijing gathered Zhong Zishuo, Long'er, Gao Jun, and several people in charge of the Hou Mansion together, intending to let everyone live a different year.

Xuan Shijing handed a written purchase list to Zhong Zishuo.

"Uncle Zhong, go to the market and buy all the things I have listed. This year's New Year's Eve, gather the people in the house, and let's have a good time."

Zhong Zishuo picked it up, and said hesitantly, "Young Master, let's watch the year together at night. After all, we have different identities, isn't it good..."

Xuan Shijing waved his hand: "Uncle Zhong, I understand what you mean. You see, in the past years, it was my mother and me. I fell asleep before midnight. Two people watch the new year. It's so boring to be alone. Chinese New Year, don’t we just want to celebrate and have fun, Uncle Zhong, you are also from the rivers and lakes, and you like these clichés anytime. What."

Seeing what Xuan Shijing said, Zhong Zishuo had no choice but to follow suit.

"Long'er, let's go to the kitchen in a while. Tonight's banquet, we will do it ourselves. Gao Jun, you can arrange it. The servants and maids in the mansion put down their work before the dinner. Those who celebrate the New Year should also let go." It’s a fake or something, if you have relatives who want to visit relatives, pay more interest, if you don’t leave the house, come together at night, let people clean up the meeting room, and we will hold this banquet there tonight.” Xuan Shijing said.

The meeting room was the place where all the ministers of the Tiance Mansion of the King of Qin used to deal with political affairs. Since the King Qin Mansion was changed into the Hou Mansion, it has been idle there. The meeting room is a very large room, which is one-third larger than the hall of the Hou Mansion. , It couldn't be more suitable for the annual meeting of the Hou Mansion.

"Master Hou, there is nothing in the conference room, it has been vacant for several years." Gao Jun said.

"Then clean it out, put in more charcoal stoves, make the room warmer, and spread blankets on the floor." Xuan Shijing ordered.

"Yes." Gao Jun nodded.

"By the way, have you bought all the explosive sticks?" Xuan Shijing looked at Zhong Zishuo.

"Don't worry, Lord Hou, this was all done years ago." Zhong Zishuo said.

"Well, okay, let's go get ready, Long'er, follow me." Xuan Shijing stood up.

At sunset, the sound of crackling and explosive rods could be heard intermittently in the city of Chang'an, and the Xuanweihou's mansion was also bustling with bustle and bustle. The handymen were busy preparing for the grand dinner tonight.

In the kitchen, Xuan Shijing directed Long'er and a cook to prepare dinner and dinner for the New Year's Eve.

"Young Lord, there isn't much meat on these chicken breast bones, what do you use them for?" Long'er asked while holding a pot of chicken breast bones that had already been packed and chopped open with a knife.

"For this, we need to get some flour, add seasoning and water to stir the flour into a paste, wrap it on these chicken breast bones, fry it in oil, sprinkle spices after frying, and it's ready to eat." Xuan Shijing stepped on the small bench, In his hand, he was skewering mutton with bamboo sticks.

"Oh, okay." Long'er followed Xuan Shijing's words and began to blend the flour.

Xuan Shijing had already skewered a large pot of mutton skewers, and ordered the cook to get them on the rack and roast them until cooked. A rectangular copper utensil with charcoal burned inside makes a simple barbecue grill.

In the afternoon, Zhong Zishuo went to the pharmacy and bought a big bag of some spices listed by Xuan Shijing. At first, Zhong Zishuo didn’t know what cumin was, but Xuan Shijing thought that without cumin, there was no barbecue. Then he took Long'er to the pharmacy again, and asked the shopkeeper to take out all the spices and identify them one by one.

It turns out that cumin here is called resting fennel, and they are all rough processed, far less detailed than the later generations of cumin powder. Xuan Shijing can only buy a pack and process it by himself.

Grinding these spices into powder, Xuan Shijing really spent a lot of money this time. The most expensive thing in the whole meal is the spices, followed by some fruits and vegetables. The cultivation technology of Tang Dynasty has not yet been developed, so they can be eaten in winter Vegetables are literally a handful.

Xuan Shijing looked at the busy Long'er and the cook, and realized that the dishes were not enough at all. He looked at the flour left over the chicken breast bone, and then at the mushrooms in the basket. Well, another dish, fried mushrooms .

Xuan Shijing can be regarded as bringing fried food to Datang in advance. Since it is deep-fried, there are many things that can be made. First, deep-fry the radish balls in a large pot. This thing can be stored for a long time in winter. It won't be bad after five or six days. Eggplant, which should be called Kunlun purple melon now, should be fried with some eggplant boxes.

Once you figure out a way, as long as you have the ingredients, you can do everything you can.

Xuan Shijing must not be able to do it himself, so he can only peel a few heads of garlic and mash some garlic. The fried mushrooms dipped in the garlic is simply delicious.

There are mutton kebabs, beef kebabs, and garlic clove meat. Cows cannot be easily slaughtered in the Tang Dynasty, but it does not mean that they cannot eat beef. Since the Turks were maimed by the Tang Dynasty, there have been a large number of cattle on the grassland. After entering the Tang Dynasty, these cattle, which could not be domesticated and unable to cultivate land, became food for frontier soldiers and wealthy families.Xuan Shijing started to skewer the meat after finishing the garlic sauce, and then remembered that this simple barbecue grill can be moved to the meeting room.

"Wang Er, don't grill the mutton skewers. Hurry up and turn off the charcoal fire in the oven. After a while, let someone move the oven directly. The meat skewers can be roasted and eaten immediately." Xuan Shijing hurriedly stopped the cook. Kebab: "Go and wash the mushrooms, tear them into strips, wrap them in the remaining noodles in the pot, and fry them."

"Okay." Wang Er responded, removed all the mutton skewers that were not fully cooked from the oven, and began to fry mushrooms.

Long'er had already fried the chicken breast bone and poured it into a wooden tray. According to Xuan Shijing's instructions, sprinkled pepper and cumin powder. In an instant, the fragrance permeated the entire kitchen.

"Young Master, it smells so good." Long'er couldn't help swallowing.

Xuan Shijing smiled, if beer could be brewed now, it would be perfect.

Meat skewers. .How can you eat barbecue without peanuts and edamame?

"Long'er, are there any peanuts and edamame in the house?" Xuan Shijing asked.

"Young Master, what are peanuts and edamame?" Long'er was puzzled.

Didn't Tang Dynasty have peanuts?By the way, peanuts are native to North America, and Columbus hasn't discovered the New World yet.

"I don't have peanuts, but there should be edamame, which are immature soybeans with skin on." Xuan Shijing knew that Datang grew soybeans, otherwise there wouldn't be soybean sprouts soaking in the pots in the kitchen.

"Master Hou, these soybeans are immature. What do you do with picking them? They are still growing in the field, and every farmer will plant a crop of soybeans after harvesting the farmer in autumn. The adults of the Agricultural Supervisor said that planting soybeans can nourish the land. "

"Find someone right away, go out and pick some back, or go to the dealer's house to buy some, it doesn't matter if it's more expensive." Xuan Shijing said.

"Oh..." Long'er nodded foolishly, walked out of the kitchen, pulled a handyman, and ordered this matter down.

The kitchen was in full swing, and in the meeting room, Gao Jun also directed the handymen to organize the meeting room in an orderly manner. According to Xuan Shijing, the whole room was moved out and cleaned thoroughly. Thick blankets were put on, and a long low wooden table urgently ordered in the afternoon was placed in the center of the whole room. The wooden table was made very large. There were not many people in the Hou Mansion. There were more than 20 people up and down, enough to sit on.

In the four corners of the room, the charcoal fire in the huge charcoal basin is booming, the whole room is warm, and I feel extremely comfortable when I come in. In order not to leave any carbon gas in the room, Xuan Shijing also specially ordered Gao Jun to find a few thick moso bamboos , The bamboo joints were opened, and the charcoal basin was placed on the upper room, and the window led to the outside of the house.

Xuan Shijing and the servants of the Hou Mansion were busy, while Wang Shi was in the room, with her personal maid, preparing the red envelopes that would be distributed to the people in the mansion at night. Xuan Shijing taught the word "red envelopes" Wang’s, as early as the middle of the twelfth lunar month, the mansion bought some red silk when buying new year’s goods, and Wang made some kits out of red silk. At this time, these kits were placed on the table, and they were piled up in a mess beside them. With some copper coins.

"I didn't expect Jing'er's Shanpinfang to really bring a lot of benefits to the Hou Mansion. Now the honorable people in Chang'an will send people to Shanpinfang to buy some preserved eggs every now and then." Wang said with emotion. Said.

"That's right, Ma'am, I want my slaves to tell me that good people are rewarded with good rewards. Our Hou Mansion treats farmers kindly on weekdays. You see, no, Master Hou came up with this recipe for making preserved eggs when he went out." Xiaoji, Wang's servant girl, was packing up the kit and said, "The red envelopes distributed by our Marquis Mansion this year are much thicker than in previous years."

Mrs. Wang smiled brightly: "Yes, at the end of this year, the Hou's mansion will be rich, and the people in the mansion should follow suit." Then, Mrs. Wang began to stuff copper coins into these red kits, and then put them on the bed. In a red cloth tray.

(End of this chapter)