Xuanping County Hou Mansion

Under the open window of the study in the small courtyard, Zhang Yan was holding a book and reading.

"Lady," Tu Yu knocked on the door, "Steward Zhang asks to see you." ”

Zhang Yan took a sip of tea, put down the scroll, and said, "Well, let him in." ”

In June of the twelfth year of the Han Dynasty, Zhang Yan returned to Fengyi Xuanping with her father. Princess Lu Yuan was worried about her mother, so she stayed in Chang'an to accompany her mother for another month or two. The Hou Mansion has no master's mother, Xia Ji and Shen Ji both hope to be able to take charge of the inner courtyard on behalf of Lu Yuan, unexpectedly, Zhang Ao was distracted for a while and said, "Let Ah Yan do it." ”

"She wants to marry in the future, and now she learns to get started, and she can save more worry in the future."

"...... this?" The old housekeeper was dumbfounded, "But the eldest lady is still young, and besides, "let the daughter take care of the father's inner courtyard," there is no such rule. ”

"It's not without precedent." Zhang Ao said lightly, "When Empress Lu did not return, Emperor Gao entrusted everything in the palace to the eldest princess. ”

In the room, Zhang Yan asked the housekeeper Zhang Da to sit down, and Fang Xiao asked, "Is there anything wrong with housekeeper Zhang?" ”

"That's right." Zhang Da bowed and said, "Our family has just returned from Chang'an, and I want to ask the eldest lady, how should the monthly allowance of Mrs. Ji be distributed?" ”

"This," Zhang Yan thought for a while, then asked, "What was the old practice?" ”

"In the past, when I was still in Zhao Di, Mrs. Ji's monthly routine was one hundred and eighty. Since the Hou Ye lost his position, they have all dropped by forty percent. Among them, Xia Ji and Shen Ji also have a little young master in the room, so they add 25 yuan each. Zhang Da explained.

"But that's not right, Song Wei." Zhang Yan looked at the former account of the Hou Mansion, "I see, most of the two aunts in Xia Shen's room are more than 100 times, in comparison, the monthly case in Zhao Ji's room is really 110 times, why is this?" ”

"This ......" Zhang Da was embarrassed. In fact, when the main mother, Princess Lu Yuan, was not in the mansion, Hou Ye mostly rested in the room of Xia Shen and the two Mrs. Ji, and the use cases naturally went up. This is a convention, but in the face of this girl who has not yet reached the end of the day, Zhang Dalao's face is red, and he really can't say it.

Zhang Yan is not really a child who doesn't understand the world, seeing his appearance, he figured out the key in the blink of an eye, and he was slightly embarrassed. With a smile, he said, "Well, I used to only use flowers." I didn't ask, what is my monthly schedule? ”

This is a good answer, Zhang Da breathed a sigh of relief, and said neatly, "The lady has a monthly routine of one hundred and fifty times." However, Hou Ye instructed that the lady spent but it was not enough, so she just went to the account room to pay it. ”

She was stunned, but she didn't expect that the monthly number of months since January was more than that of other people's rooms.

Zhang Yan pushed the account slip away. said, "Grandpa Zhang, thank you for your trouble." Everything is still according to the old practice of Chang'an, that is, there is no need to cut, there is nothing to do, please ask the housekeeper to talk to me every two days. ”

"No." Zhang Da responded.

The land price in Xuanping is much cheaper than in Chang'an, and the courtyard where Zhang Yan lives is much larger than when she was in Chang'an before. On the second floor of the main house, the east side room is set up as a bedroom, and the west side room is used as a living room. There is also a small transept. It was left to Tu and the new maid to relieve their worries.

Xie Wei is a local girl in Xuanping, eleven years old this year, slightly older than Zhang Yan, slightly younger than Tu Yu, it is said that there is a younger brother in the family, poverty can not open the pot, parents in order to support the man, they sold their daughter to the Hou Mansion as a slave, signed a death deed.

On that day, Zhang Yan saw her worries for the first time at her father's place, and saw her standing in the hall, about the same height as herself, dressed in cloth, washed white, her hands and feet were not long enough, she had been wearing it for a long time, her body was thin, but she looked smart. I looked at the daylilies in the hall again, my heart moved, and I said with a smile, "I'll give you a new name, it's okay to solve your worries?" ”

The girl was stunned for a moment, pressed her left hand with her right hand, folded her sleeves and bowed, "Thank you for the name." ”

Jie Wei means to relieve people's sorrows, and Jie Worry is really much more clever than Tu Yu, holding a cut pear in, standing aside, staring at himself secretly, Zhang Yan occasionally raised her head and asked curiously, "Jie Worry, what are you looking at?" ”

Xie Wei pursed his lips and smiled, "I'm looking at the branch window made by the lady, and it's really much better than the straight window." I heard that many wealthy people in Xuanping County have recently made this kind of window. ”

Because Zhang Yan loves books, deliberately set up a study room on the watchtower, store all kinds of books, Qin Shi Shi Emperor burned books and pit Confucianism, counting, it was just a matter of decades ago, many heirloom books were buried in this catastrophe, to the Han Dynasty, learned the lessons of the fall of the Qin Dynasty, the law is loose, but except for the three chapters of the law just entered the customs, the book law has not been abolished so far, the books are scarce, most of the books are copied from bamboo slips, cumbersome and unbearable, but a few books, can occupy a full bookshelf.

The first thing in the study room is drying, and the second thing is lighting. However, at this time, the windows are all mullions, and when the wind and rain come, they can penetrate directly, and if it is winter, they will be ordered to fill it with soil to keep warm. Zhang Yan remembered the ancient window picking in her memory, so she compared with the craftsman to make a movable window, which was covered with a light-colored tarpaulin, and if the weather was fine, it could be supported by the window, and it could be closed when it rained. Put the case under the window, cook tea and read, if there is a snowy night, it can be elegant. So it became Zhang Yan's favorite place in her spare time.

Zhang Yan smiled and said, "It's just a little gadget, it's nothing." ”

Xie Wei smiled and said, "Although it is a gadget, but just like Rong Shu rice and brassica oil, except for the lady, no one else can think of it." ”

(Note: Soybean is pea, and brassica is rape)

Zhang Yan had no choice but to laugh.

In her previous life, Zhang Yan was picky about the way of eating. In the past, when I was in Chang'an, the palace affairs were changing, dizzying, and in front of everyone, I couldn't move away from the cooking, and the dishes in the palace and the Hou Mansion were delicious enough, so I had to get by, and after all these years.

Now that she has returned to Xuanping, there are no countless eyes on her body, so she ordered someone to open a small kitchen in the south courtyard, and invited the cook, who wanted to study the food with great interest.

The housekeeper carefully selected in the county and brought in a local cook about forty years old, whose husband's surname was Cen, so he called him Cen Niang.

Cen Niang and Ao Zhi were quite immersed together, and on the day they first came, they made a dish of Ao Pheasant, which was served in a food box, and Zhang Yan tasted it luxuriously. Suddenly the taste was mellow, the soup was fresh and thick, and it couldn't go back between the tongues, so I left her down.

The diet of the Han Dynasty was indeed much more advanced than Zhang Yan imagined that it was only boiled, and she had learned to refine animal oil, and animals with horns on their heads such as cows were called fat, and animals without horns on their heads were called paste. With these tallow dog creams, the meat is delicious and delicious, and the vegetable oil of this era is more used for lubrication. For example, tung oil that lubricates axles and edible vegetable oil are still missing. So cook the vegetables, not too greasy. It's just too bland.

On that day, Zhang Yan found the brassica vegetables of this era, squeezed out the vegetable oil, and then used Rongshu to cook, and added millet and rice to put it into the Xuanxuan retort. Steamed with a strong fire, the millet is steamed soft by steaming steam, and then put into the crushed deer breast, and the millet rice made is unexpectedly fresh and refreshing, and the aroma is overflowing, and the maids around them all swallow saliva when they are served.

Suddenly, someone came in curiously at the gate of the courtyard. Hesitantly shouted, "Sister, what are you doing here?" ”

Zhang Yan looked back. But it is his two half-brothers, Zhang Yu and Zhang Shou.

Counting, these two younger brothers are only more than a year apart from their own age, think of this. Zhang Yan couldn't calm down, and because of the admonition of their mothers. Therefore, the three sisters and brothers have not been particularly close.

At this time, smelling the smoky aroma of Rong Shu rice, Zhang Yan was still in a peaceful mood, after returning to Xuanping, maybe the landscape of Xuanping really made people open-minded, Zhang Yan took a breath, beckoned and smiled, "Do you want to taste it, you come here." ”

Zhang extravagant was overjoyed, he was born with a tiger's head and a tiger's brain, and his temperament was straightforward, so he hurriedly came over, relieved his worries and smiled for him to serve food, he used bamboo luxury to eat, and he ate the wind and clouds, and only after a long time did he raise his head and said, "I can't imagine that the millet rice will taste very good." ”

Zhang Yan tasted it with a smile and said, "The millet is slightly sticky, and the corn is sweet and crispy, and it tastes good when put together." ”

She looked at Zhang Shou's eyes and asked, "What, doesn't Ah Shou like this Rong rice?" ”

"Huh?" Zhang Shou's face turned slightly red, and he put down the bamboo luxury and said, "Brother doesn't dare." It's just that my younger brother heard that Sister Ah has set up a special study room here, which contains many books. ”

"Hmm." Zhang Yan bowed, "It's just far worse than Daddy's study." ”

"Uh," Zhang Shou lowered his head sullenly and said softly, "How dare I go into my father's study." Raising his eyes slightly, he looked at Zhang Yan out of the corner of his eyes, looking expectant, with a slightly delicate and gentle expression.

Zhang Yan burst out laughing, "If you can cherish the books in my room," she said with a pretended face, "It's okay to come to me once in a while to have a look." ”

Zhang Shou was overjoyed, got up and said, "Thank you, sister." ”

After a few months, Zhang Ao invited Chun Yu Zhen to come to the mansion.

Chun Yu Zhen was originally a palace doctor, superb medical skills, several times to the first emperor to resign, the first emperor was reluctant to his medical skills, always allowed, after the first emperor died, the new emperor took pity on him lonely, and allowed him to say goodbye. At this time, he had been away from his hometown for decades, and he was afraid that he would go back and see the defeat of his relatives in the clan, so he extinguished his thoughts of returning home. The wife who died in middle age was from Xuanping, and she planned to go to his wife's hometown to have a look and reflect on his wife's feelings. Then he walked with Zhang Ao, the Marquis of Xuanping. and picked a house near the Hou Mansion to live in.

"Mrs. Zhang's head still hurts now?" Chun Yuzhen touched his beard and asked.

"I haven't hurt in a long time." She unconsciously touched her forehead, and her heart palpitated.

"That's good," Chun Yuzhen said, "You kid is always eccentric, I'll prescribe a prescription, you eat it for another half a month, it's good for your body." When a woman is young, she must be nourished, otherwise she will suffer in the future. ”

"Thank you, Doctor."

"I heard," Chun Yuzhen smiled, and suddenly said, "That brassica oil is Zhang Niangzi's idea?" ”

"Yes."

"Hehe, that's a good thing. When used in moderation in cooking, it can reconcile the yin and yang of food, which is beneficial to people. The old man is here to thank Mrs. Zhang for the people of the world. ”

Zhang Yan asked curiously, "Doctor Chun Yu is also involved in food?" ”

"Naturally, diet therapy is also a kind of one."

"Then," Zhang Yan said, "Please also ask Dr. Chun Yu to teach me esophagus." ”

Chun Yuzhen asked curiously, "You are the concubine of the Hou Mansion, and your status is precious, why do you want to learn this esophagus?" ”

"Because," Zhang Yan thought for a while, "I hope that he can do his best and be down-to-earth in front of his bed." ”

The esophagus is broad and profound, and it has been implicated since ancient times. "Zhou Li" has a saying: "All food looks at spring, soup looks at summer, sauce looks at autumn, and drink looks at winter." It means that the staple food should be warm, the soup should be hot, the sauce should be cold, and the drink should be cold. In addition, when mixing and eating, we should pay attention to its flavor and prepare it in combination with the characteristics of the climate of the four seasons. In spring, the liver is tonified with acid, the heart is replenished with bitterness in summer, the lungs are replenished with bitterness in autumn, the kidney is tonified with saltiness in winter, and the slippery and sweet products are used to adjust them, which can nourish the spleen and stomach.

The food has its own yin and yang characteristics, such as the Rong Shu she used to steam millet rice, which is sweet in taste, flat in nature, and returns to the spleen and stomach meridians. Eating is beneficial to qi, facilitates urination and eliminates carbuncle swelling, and is mainly used to treat beriberi, spleen and stomach discomfort. Its stems and leaves are cool and relieve heat.

If you drink too much food of one nature, it will lead to disease. In terms of the cooling and hot characteristics of food, greasy and fried foods, spicy, oily plants, such as fatty hemp (sesame), and brassica belong to the hot nature, while most water-containing plants and shellfish belong to the cool nature. For example, eating too many cold and cold things can damage the spleen and stomach yang, resulting in cold and dampness, abdominal pain, and diarrhea; If you eat more fried and roasted, fat, sweet and flavorful things, you will be prone to gastrointestinal fever, thirst, abdominal distension and pain, and carbuncles.

When the heat is scorching, wandering in a variety of foods, you can calm down and not feel the heat.

Do you prefer rough seas or long streams?

The turbulent waves have the excitement of the turbulent waves, and the fine water has the peace of the fine water.

Xuanping's time passed so smoothly, Zhang Yan occasionally took care of the housekeeper, occasionally cooked, and occasionally played wild with her two younger brothers in the entire Xuanping County, without heart or lungs.

In the past, when I was in Chang'an, I knew that I had to dress up as a boy, but Xuanping was far away from the emperor and no one was in charge, so I simply didn't even want this face. Obviously, there is no one at the main gate to stop it, but I want to turn out of the wall, a strand of hair tied into a loose peony bun, the sideburns slowly scatter down, and I have also walked on the ridge with my feet upside down, the soil is stained on the face, and I am ridiculed as a flower cat, the laughter is crisp and hearty, and the image of a lady is not left at the bottom of the box.

The so-called lady has always pretended.

No matter how dignified and virtuous a woman is, there is also a kind of madness in her bones, yearning for the freehand nature of stretching her limbs and lying flat on top of the golden wheat grass. The difference is only that you can't find time and space.

Everything, the old family was worried about mentioning it to Xuanping Hou, in the study, Zhang Ao just smiled faintly and said, "It was difficult for this child a while ago, and this is not Chang'an, so let her be." ”

The afterglow of the evening sunset is obliquely illuminated, and the shadow is stretched long, reflected on the shadow wall, and the slight yellow color is cast into a vast silhouette.

**********

This chapter, in fact, is considered an excessive chapter

Farsighted. Fist clenched, I want to cheer up as soon as possible and throw Ah Yan back to Chang'an. (To be continued, if you want to know what will happen next, please log in, more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!) )