Chastity Layman

  Chapter 247 Nepotism

   Night falls.

  The mansion of the Duke of Qi in Qinrenfang was already decorated with lights and festoons. The old housekeeper Fu Bo came in to greet him with a smile on his face, "Ah Lang, the banquet is ready, do you want to pass the dishes and start the banquet?"

  Qin Qiong smiled and said, "Well, let's start the table!"

   Uncle Fu smiled and went down. Today is New Year's Eve, and Saburo comes back to give rewards. Everyone gets rewards, so naturally happy. After Qin Lang separated and went out, he would always come back to spend the holidays together. Every time he came back, he not only brought many gifts to A Lang and Mrs. Cui, but even their servants never lacked rewards.

  This time, the men in the mansion each got a catty of wine and two catties of pork, and they also got 200 yuan plus a piece of cloth.

   There are additional rewards for the stewards who have ministers, such as Uncle Fu, and even a brand new set of winter jackets and boots. I don’t know how heartwarming it is.

  The servants happily started serving the dishes.

  In the hall, the host and guest sit down.

  The dishes are still very rich, and there are relatives from Jia and Cui at the New Year's Eve dinner. The cooks from Pingkangfang's Yiguo Mansion also came to help the cook today. They said they were help cooks, but in fact they were the main force. They have learned a lot of new recipes from Qin Lang this year, and this New Year's Eve dinner is very thoughtful.

  Eight cold dishes are served first, cold preserved eggs, crispy three shreds, beef sauce, boiled chicken, cold seaweed shreds, secret duck tongue, boiled prawns, and fragrant lotus root slices.

  These eight cold dishes are both meat and vegetables, novel in style and beautiful in color, and they are delicately placed on white porcelain plates produced in Hebei Xingyao.

  Brother Laiji used to study hard in the countryside, but he has never seen such a dish, and he has never eaten a single dish.

   "Try it, everyone!"

  Qin Lang entertained everyone with a smile.

  Because today is our own family, so there is no need to shy away from it, and the female relatives are also together.

Cui smiled and said, "The cooks in Sanlang's mansion are really skilled. I heard that Yuxiao has opened Yuelai Restaurant and Zuixian Restaurant in Chang'an City. The business is booming and the reputation is excellent. I saw these cold dishes today. , and you know it’s true.”

  Lai Ji looked at the sauced beef, but couldn't help picking up his chopsticks first. I used to study in the countryside, so where would I have the chance to eat beef? Even if you have money, you can't afford it. It's not as expensive as Qin Qiong and Qin Lang.

  The cold-cut sauced beef is firm, but rich in taste, neither firewood nor tough, and does not have the expected fishy smell.

"tasty."

   Lai Heng was a little curious about the crystal-clear preserved egg. He picked up a piece, but it smelled a bit strange.

   "Try Uncle Shi, it's not bad." Qin Lang saw his hesitation and smiled.

  This preserved egg is mixed with garlic, **** and coriander, and sesame oil, soy sauce, and juice are added. It is still good.

Preserved egg is Qin Lang's exclusive invention. No one in the world has eaten it before, let alone my brothers. Although this product is not as good as stinky tofu, it does have a unique flavor. People who have never eaten it may not like it. People may avoid it, but if they have eaten it, most people will still like it.

   Sure enough, Lai Heng tried to eat some. At first, it smelled of those seasonings, but he found it very fresh and spicy. After eating it again, he could feel the taste of the preserved egg yolk.

  It is indeed different, and it seems to be quite good.

  Over there, Yu Xiwei took the initiative to peel the boiled shrimp for Cui Shi and Yuxiao. She also often ate this shrimp in the Duke Yi's mansion. This kind of shrimp caught in the sea was frozen and shipped to Chang'an, which is also a rare thing.

  The simple boiled method actually fully reveals the umami taste of the prawns.

  Yu Xiwei was skillful in her movements, as if she was juggling with chopsticks, she peeled out a prawn in three or two strokes, and it was very complete.

   Dip it in the prepared balsamic vinegar and soy sauce, and Cui praised it again and again.

  Qin Qiong likes to eat beef in sauce.

   "Can horse meat be so sauced?" Qin Qiong asked a question. On the battlefield, food is precious, and after a war, many horses are often killed or injured. Most of these horses will not be wasted, but will be slaughtered and eaten directly. The method is simple, that is, to cook, but the horse meat cooked in this way is usually hard and sour, which is very unpalatable.

"Of course horse meat can be sauced. In fact, according to doctors, horse meat can restore liver function and prevent anemia. Horse meat is marinated with **** and sweat before cooking, or adding more **** can effectively remove the peculiar smell in horse meat. Horse meat can It can be braised in soy sauce, stewed, or cut into strips, pickled, dried or made with sauce.”

   "Grandpa used to bleed a lot in many battles, and now he still has a little lack of energy and blood. He should eat more meat of cattle, horses, donkeys and mutton to replenish energy and blood."

   Men drink Guogong Shao, young people drink rice wine, women drink wine, and children drink sweet syrup.

  Eating and chatting.

  When the main course was served, the relatives of the Qin family were amazed.

  Braised elbow in braised sauce, Dongpo pork, sea cucumber with scallions, and Buddha jumping over the wall are both beautiful and attractive.

   Immediately afterwards, four fresh fruits, four dried fruits, four candied fruits, and four kango fruits were served.

Eight-treasure pheasant, Kung Pao hare, stir-fried frog, multi-colored beef tenderloin, Huaru duck feet, lychee roast duck, scallion-roasted shark skin, white grilled fish lips, grilled lamb skewers, steamed ham, lotus leaf chicken, heavenly fragrant abalone... ·····

  Eight cold and eighteen hot, plus sixteen fruit plates.

   It was really full.

  Brothers Laiji and Laiheng have been dumbfounded for a long time. They thought that the eight cold dishes served at the beginning were the main table for today.

  Finally, the main dishes are spring pancakes, ramen noodles, pan-fried buns, dumplings, and carved rice...

   "Isn't this too luxurious?"

  Eating vigorously, until the end of the meal, Lai Heng felt that eating like this was too rich.

   "It's also Chinese New Year, and this year happens to have guests, otherwise it wouldn't be so grand." Qin Lang explained with a smile. This meal is indeed quite luxurious. Originally, he only intended to cook a simple meal. There are chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, and sheep at home, which is enough.

  But Cui's face is good, and he has to talk about ostentation, especially this year, his brother's family is here, and Qin Qiong's original partner's father and brothers are also here.

   "These dishes are actually the signature dishes of the restaurant at home!"

   I have to say that not only the taste is good, but the style is also good-looking, and the color, fragrance and taste are complete.

  Everyone is very happy to eat.

  Qin Qiong was quite satisfied when she saw that the guests were happy, but she still said to Qin Lang, "Don't be so extravagant in the future, there are still many people in the world who don't have enough to eat."

   "Grandpa's lesson is that my son will definitely pay attention in the future."

  Satisfied with wine and food, and a few more pots of tea.

  Remove the banquet, put on snacks and fruits, and continue chatting.

   This joyful scene is really rare.

Qin Lang also enjoys this kind of warmth very much, although he also knows that under this superficial harmony, there are actually conditions. If it weren't for the current power status of his father and son, the Lingdun ceremony of Boling Cui's son might be as he just The same as when he came here, he looked down on them at all, and even wanted to be the head of his Qin family everywhere.

   This also made him vigilant in his heart. Today's beautiful flowers are actually based on power. If he, the father and son of the Qin family, were not sure enough to be thrown down, then such days would be nothing more than one.

   "Uncle, what plans do you have when you return to Beijing to report on your work?"

Qin Lang asked Jia Runfu, who was younger than Qin Qiong. When Qin Qiong was under Zhang Xutuo's command in the early years, Jia Wu was originally Zhang Xutuo's deputy general, and Jia Runfu was also a lieutenant colonel. After entering the Tang Dynasty, Li Mi wanted to rebel again. The Jia family and his son tried hard to persuade him, and they were almost killed. Later, after Li Mi was punished, the court was very satisfied with the Jia family and his son, so they did not implicate them, but instead gave them important positions.

  In fact, Jia Wuben and his son voted for the Tang Dynasty earlier than Qin Qiong. Later, Qin Qiong came from Wang Shichong to vote for the Tang Dynasty.

  Now Jia Wuben is serving as the governor in Jiangnan, and his son is also the Sima of any state.

  This time, both of them returned to Beijing to report on their work after their term of office expired, and then waited for a new job.

   "Naturally, it is under the arrangement of the Ministry of Officials!" Jia Runfu said.

   "Uncle, have you ever thought about returning to Beijing to work?"

   "It's good to go back to Beijing, but it's not easy to transfer back to Beijing."

  Beijing officials are definitely stronger than local officials in all aspects, but Beijing officials have limited positions.

   "If Uncle has this intention, I can arrange it. There is still a shortage of people in the transshipment department."

   This is not Qin Lang's temporary idea, but it is indeed a long-awaited plan. Although Xu Jingzong is slippery, he is right in saying that Qin Lang now needs to lead the transshipment department well and make meritorious deeds, but it is not easy, especially when it comes to local areas. As a Changping division, these Changping envoys need to have both skills and loyalty to lead the specific affairs, which is not easy.

  Although Qin Lang is in a high position now, there are few people who are truly confidantes. He can barely maintain the capital transfer department.

  Qin Qiong does have a lot of contacts, but his connections are in the military, and the transshipment department is engaged in finance and taxation. People from the military are actually not very suitable.

  Jia’s father and son are actually from the military, but they also spent a lot of time as local officials. They have accumulated a lot of experience in civil affairs. I heard that the scores in this assessment are not bad.

   "They are all from my own family."

After hearing Qin Lang's plan, Jia Wuben only said one sentence, expressing his willingness to fully support Qin Lang. Although he opposed Qin Lang's removal of Buddha before, this matter can't be changed now, so there is nothing to do Talk more.

After some discussions, Qin Lang planned to recommend to the emperor Jia Wuben as Changping envoy of Henan Province, Jia Runfu as Changping envoy of Shannan Province, Xu Jingzong as Changping Secretary of Shannan Province, Qin Lang himself concurrently as Changping envoy of Guannei Province, and Ma Zhou He also served as Changping envoy of Hedong Road.

   Master the most important ones first.

  Jia Wuben had some opinions on this arrangement, thinking that since Qin Lang planned to use this Xu Jingzong, he should simply reuse it. It is better to let Xu Jingzong be the Changping envoy and Jia Runfu be the long history.

   "Actually, it's not that I don't want to reuse him, it's that he is hated by His Majesty now."

   "What about Hebei and Huainan, these two places are also the most important." Qin Qiong reminded his son.

   "I would like to recommend two famous ministers, and let Brother Yong and Brother Yong serve as their deputies."

   "Will this be called nepotism?"

   "I will make it clear to His Majesty that when it is critical, the employer does not avoid relatives."

  Although the Transshipment Department has a lot of power, after all, it mainly manages financial power. Compared with military power and administrative power, it is not so sensitive.

  (end of this chapter)