"The Ninth Son of Heaven went to cover the dust, and the willow was ruthless and still spring.

Now it's not about the concubines, and I don't know how to live up to Ma Weiren. ”

Wei Zhuang "The Beginning of Spring"

- I'm the dividing line -

According to the customs of this era, the breakfast after getting up again in the New Year is Wuxin plate, paired with Tusu wine, and glue tooth dumplings.

Wuxin plate is a cold dish of five kinds of spicy vegetables, "Wuxin so send five visceral gas, that is, onions, garlic, leeks, brassica, coriander is also", that is, the present: onions, garlic, leeks, mustard greens, coriander. Su (Shi) foodie once had a cloud: I felt that the east wind was cold, and Artemisia annua and yellow leeks tried the spring plate.

Tusu wine is said to be the invention of Hua Tuo, a famous doctor at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and is made by dipping traditional Chinese medicine such as rhubarb, atractylodes, cinnamon branches, parsnip, pepper, aconite, and aconite. So, with a platter of five kinds of spicy vegetables, the taste is really touching.

Soon the last remaining bits of sleepiness and drowsiness were gone. In contrast, the more normal thing is the glue tooth. The so-called "glutton" is the syrup that has been filtered through malt steaming juice and then boiled and concentrated. Except for being a little turbid, it is no different from the maltose that is common in later generations for the Chinese New Year.

This is also the only time that most ordinary people can taste a little sweet taste throughout the year. Although gum tooth food is a popular food, it will still play corresponding tricks above the qualified solid people;

For example, it is heated and poured on a pile of dried fruits such as roasted green beans, melon seeds, raw kernels, almonds, walnuts, and hazelnuts, and then frozen outside to form different flavors of "Aoshan". Then eat it with a small hammer.

Or take it and boil it with chyle (coarse cream) and tea powder to make green paste porridge. Or it is spread on freshly baked steamed cakes or cooking cakes, sprinkled with a layer of chopped fruits and cheese, and sandwiched to eat.

In the Tang Dynasty of this era, although Wang Xuance had already beaten the Brahmin "overlord" Alonashun of the Northern Tianzhu and Middle Tianzhu, and tied the people back to the temple to offer the Taimiao, the local "stone honey" (soil cane sugar) production method and craftsmen brought with him.

However, it is also limited to the areas around Lingnan and Jiannan that are suitable for growing sugarcane, and has been used as a rare and valuable tribute and specialty for hundreds of years. Now, under the rule of the Taiping Army, it is finally expanding the planting, and it has been promoted to Annan, Hunan, Jingnan, Jiangxi and other places, and has become a major fist product for foreign profit.

Although there is no way to sell it all over the streets like the later generations, at least it can be treated as a soldier of the army and his dependents; In wartime and high-intensity service, one or two pick-ups and hunger were distributed every day; During the New Year's holidays, three or five catties of benefits will be given.

At the same time, of course, on the other side of the world, on the European continent, which was in the early dark age of the Middle Ages, most of the village farmers and territorial serfs did not know what sweetness was. Because the natural honey that is only produced in the forest is still a luxury exclusive to nobles and high priests.

Fortunately, after eating these symbolic appetizers, the gastrointestinal and gustatory functions were finally completely awakened, and then the belated noon meal was also put on the table.

First of all, it is a copper hot pot like a nine-palace kettle. Different grids contain chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, fish, shrimp, crabs, mussels, pigs, cattle, sheep and deer, and other different ingredients are used to make the soup. In the middle of the churning large circle is a white soup made of various dried mushrooms and sea vegetables, which is used to purify and wash the taste.

Then there are crispy honey moxibustion (pork, beef and sheep) three tendons, egg whites and shrimp dumplings, bamboo shoots, shiitake mushrooms and meat puree boiled meatballs; steamed pork rolls with egg puree; Stir-fried eel with silver silk, mud snails, and dried sugar crab。。。。。

The staple food that comes out at the end is a sweet steamed soup made from pumpkin bean puree and chestnut noodles. There are a lot of crushed nuts and candied fruit sprinkled on it, and it looks very delicious just by looking at it.

It's a pity that Zhou Huai'an can only be used by himself here. Because the other women were not sleepy and tired, and could not even lift a little finger; It was during last night's New Year's Eve that I played pitching pots, puffs (throwing dice), shuanglu, guessing poems, playing money (guessing noodles), and shooting ducks like crazy, and I am still making up for sleep.

The chief of Yu Hou on duty, with a group of responsible persons of the corresponding Yu Hou, the army, the counselor, and the staff group, walked in and reported the routine official affairs and the summary of the military and local situation one after another according to the degree of importance.

And now Zhou Huai'an, who can basically consume stored energy and a small amount of adrenaline to keep thinking and responding synchronously, even has the leisure to notice that the upper limit of the energy bar in his field of vision that has not been moved for a long time has increased a little. The energy reserves and overall body activity of the appendages have decreased.

"It's easy to be degraded by comfort."

He couldn't help but sigh that he had signed his more and more cursive handwriting on an execution warrant.

This is the last large-scale mountain shed stronghold that has been found and broken in the Funiu Mountains separated from the Nanyang Basin and the East Henan Plain - Lingbaoqi. Therefore, there was a lot of captivity and booty.

There are not only the remnants of Ding Zhuang who escaped from the mountain sheds, villages, and cottages, but also a lot of remnants from the background of wealthy and powerful families who converged with them on the plains, and even caught more than a dozen court officials from Henan with different missions or feudal towns.

There are also thick stacks of letters of appointment and injunctions of various generals, miscellaneous generals, assassins, soldiers and horses, and suppression envoys. There are also valuable money and goods, as well as old and new goods that have been accumulated over the generations.

But what is surprising is that there is also a soothing envoy from the Guanzhong Daqi court. It's a bit bizarre, but it's not surprising. For a long time, under the rule of the rebel army, the more the merrier, the better the better.

Of the last 2,000 captives, a small half were judged to be of no merit for subsequent reformation and needed to be executed. The reason is simple, because they need to be responsible for the old and weak women and children who are quickly disappearing in the walled city.

Although it is said that many of them cried and shouted, willing to use their past experience and skills to continue to contribute to the Taiping army in order to seek redemption; But now under the rule of the Taiping Army, there are more good families with relatively good loyalty and reliability, and there is no need for them to lead beasts and cannibals.

Compared with the batch execution order on the first day of the new year, which only means cold numbers, the news from Henan from Luyang Pass has made people feel better.

First of all, Zhu Zhen, the messenger sent by Zhu Laosan to greet him, had arrived in Xiangzhou before the New Year's Pass; He also brought with him a large number of captures and booty during the winter battles in Henan, including more than 1,000 war horses from the north, all of which were obtained from the fighting Wei Bo army, including Yanshan horses from Youzhou.

After repelling Wei Bo's army in Huazhou, he now also owns two large (Chenzhou and Huazhou) and a small (Heyang Nanguan), and initially has a firm foothold in Henan.

Then, now that Cao Xiang's contact with the Tianping Army was left behind, a special channel was also opened up a year ago; Starting from Yunzhou Yuncheng in Lisuo, it went south to Juye County, followed the traditional transportation route of the Wuzhang River, passed westward through the territory of Caozhou, which had just been recovered, and arrived at the territory of Chenzhou, which was controlled by Zhu Lao Sanxin;

Then take the overland route to Wenchengzha in Xuzhou, which is also under the control of the rebels, and you can reach the territory of Ciqiu County, Tangzhou, which is on the edge of the Taiping Army's power. An idle hand arranged in the early years, with the subsequent promotion and investment, has now greatly improved the surrounding situation of the Taiping Army.

Although the Tianping Town owned by Cao Xiang seemed to be weaker than the emerging Zhu Laosan, after defeating Wei Bo's army and recovering most of the Tianping Jiedu envoy system, he still sent corresponding thank-you gifts and trading goods through this channel, including the frame and honor guard that he personally seized from Wei Bojiedu envoy Han Jian.

But more importantly, as long as these two relatively friendly forces with a certain degree of mutual benefit and dependence can continue to be maintained in Henan/Kanto; In a short period of time, the Taiping army will not be free from military pressure and threats from the Kwantung region.

In this way, as long as the Taiping army exports some aid materials and equipment, it can concentrate resources to continue to sort out the internal and silent gathering forces, and only maintain the three fronts of Yuzhou, Yangzhou and Runzhou, and the east and west fronts.

Then came the news sent by Wang Xingkong from Wuguan, and the variety and quality of the reciprocal goods transiting from Shangluo Road had undergone great changes. The population of the people who fled south in the Guannai seems to have been obstructed and intercepted by the local rebel army, and the number of people who fled to the south has dropped sharply; It is even said that in Chang'an City, the outflow of scholars and craftsmen has been restricted.

Does this mean that there have been any changes and contradictions and differences within the Great Qi court led by Huang Chao, and even affected the attitude towards the Taiping Army? It's a pity that Gao Yu's operation and layout in Chang'an City are too short and he has not been able to obtain something deeper.

- I'm the dividing line -

In Chang'an City, Gao Yu, the plenipotentiary representative of the Taiping Governor, also embarked on the road to the banquet in the chariots and horses. However, under his indulgent expression, there was some uncertain anxiety and doubt.

Because during this period of time, he suddenly found that he was under strict surveillance and disguised restrictive measures, and the original atmosphere and environment where the top and bottom were like a fish in water also seemed to be tightened all of a sudden.

These people who are responsible for monitoring and restricting him even appear in front of him without scrutiny and swagger. And in the shadows, there are several groups of people from different origins who are acting at the same time.

As a result, he could scarcely send out people to secretly communicate and do much more than the public events of regular greetings, table offerings, and meetings. He thought about it like this and arrived at the Huiyuan Building on the bank of the Qujiang River.

At this time, a group of unkempt beggars swarmed from the bare flowers and trees on the left, and at once surrounded the white copper-trimmed vermilion carriage that Gao Yu had stood on, and tried to beat the wall of the box to beg for it.

Although they were soon dispersed by the escorting sergeant, they still left many indecent black handprints on the carriage around; And Gao Yu could only wave his sleeves with resentment and helplessness, and climbed the brightly lit high-rise building, but he was secretly relieved in his heart.

And then, among the beggars who dispersed as birds and beasts, Pan Xiaodi, a former member of the boy boy camp from Shannan, also tightly pinched the newly extra paper ball in his dirty palm. Soon after, he appeared in front of a ditch near a city wall.

He walked cautiously along the dry and frozen channel. Soon after, one of the three or five groups of scavengers dragged ropes from the frozen drainage ditch and finally pulled out a mud-stained bamboo knot.

After another day, the secret note hidden in the bamboo knot was confirmed by Wang Xingkong in the martial pass, and then handed it to a messenger on a fast horse. However, with the departure of the front foot and the back foot, it was a group of envoys of the imperial court of Daqi.