Zhu Xiang said: "No, stew mutton soup today and eat mutton steamed buns." Xue, you go to the vestibule to have a look, and if they don't need you to receive them, go and guard the government. I'm worried that no one around Zheng'er will be afraid when she wakes up. ”

Xue quickly washed her hands, lowered her sleeves and hurried away.

Zhu Xiang looked at Xue's eager back and smiled.

The old servant in the kitchen smiled along. On the second day when the little master of the family came, the master father and the master mother protected the little master as if they were eyeballs, and the atmosphere at home seemed to be a lot more nervous because of the arrival of the little master.

Compared to the laid-back atmosphere before, the old servant liked the slightly tense atmosphere now.

Since he used cooking by himself as an excuse, Zhu Xiang had to do everything he could to show that he really wasn't looking for an excuse to slip away.

One is that the materials are not enough, and the other is that Zhu Xiang doesn't want to reveal too many cooking techniques beyond this era, so this time the lamb is still stewed.

It was currently in the period of transition from slavery to feudalism, and if Zhu Xiang showed too good cooking skills, then King Zhao would probably summon him into the palace to cook full-time. If a commoner wants to enter the palace to serve the king, the only way is to become a slave. Maybe King Zhao may also castrate him and make him a temple man who serves the nobles in the palace full-time.

Even Lin Shangqing couldn't keep him, because in this era, it was a gift for commoners to become slaves of the king.

In order to avoid this terrible thing from happening, although the food made by Zhu Xiang was delicious, the ingredients and cooking methods were very ordinary, even if it was spread, it would not arouse the curiosity of other nobles.

The lamb didn't have much smell in the first place, and the snow had already been marinated in water soaked in dried orange peel in advance, and the remaining smell was too faint to eat.

Zhu Xiang only touched the meat of the lamb with refined salt, and did not do much other processing.

At this time, there were large and small shallots, ginger and small garlic, and garlic had not yet been introduced to the Central Plains. Zhu Xiang cut a few sections of green onions, knotted the shallots, put them into the water with ginger slices and garlic, and then put in the cut mutton.

When the water boiled, Zhu Xiang pressed the firewood down, boiled it slowly, and scooped it up and put it aside whenever foam appeared on the water.

The servants in the kitchen all looked greedy.

The mutton fat foam that Zhu Xiang salvaged in order to remove the smell of mutton soup can be enjoyed by them later, and it is very delicious to soak in bean rice.

Being a slave in the homes of wealthy and kind people is the happiness that many people dream of. They cherish such a home.

After scooping up the foam a few times, Zhu Xiang carefully dipped the cloth bag wrapped in peppercorn powder into the broth.

Sichuan pepper is the only spice that Zhu Xiang can get at the moment. The flavor of Sichuan pepper is integrated into the mutton soup, which immediately makes the meaty aroma of the mutton soup rich and a little less greasy.

After boiling for a while, Zhu Xiang scooped up the pepper powder cloth bag and put in the sliced radish slices and soaked mushrooms. When the soup was boiling again, he blanched some leeks with the mutton broth.

"Serve them first, let them eat." Zhu Xiang said, "Continue to marinate the sheep's head and eat it tomorrow." You steam less bean rice today, and I'll give you a white bun on the kang. ”

The old servant immediately said nervously: "How can this be done?" ”

Zhu Xiang said with a smile: "Zheng'er is new to the house, everyone should be happy, this is the food that Zheng'er rewarded everyone." ”

With that, he scooped out some of the lamb bones that had little meat and put them into the crockpot where the broth foamed it.

If a maverick is too good to a servant in this world, not only will he not necessarily be thanked by the servant, but he may also encounter disaster. Proper benefits will make servants grateful, excessive benefits...... Zhu Xiang had already experienced a betrayal of being too kind to his servants, but as a result, he was considered weak and deceitful by the servants, and acted with the robbers.

Over the years, he had figured out how to treat his servants.

There was a reason to accept the gift, and the servants showed a beaming expression of peace of mind.

The old servant led the way to the soup bowl containing the mutton soup, and his steps were brisk as if he was about to fly.

Zhu Xiang sighed in his heart, tightened his sleeves, and began to make steamed buns.

The dough has been kneaded a long time ago, and the kang bun is very fast.

When Zhu Xiang went to the vestibule with the kang white buns, they had just finished drinking the first bowl of mutton soup.

Xue hugged Ying Xiaozheng, who had woken up, and also sat at the table and quietly fed Ying Xiaozheng the broth.

When Zhu Xiang brought the white buns and taught them to tear the bread and throw it into the broth to eat, Xun Xiang was surprised: "What is this?" I've never seen it before. ”

Zhu Xiang said: "Cake made of wheat flour." ”

Xun was even more surprised: "The wheat flour is rough, how can you make such a delicious cake?" ”

Although wheat has been planted for a long time, the common people eat wheat by steaming it directly to make "wheat rice". Just imagine how unpalatable this thing is.

At this time, there was actually a stone mill, but the stone mill was precious, and it was something only available to the aristocratic and wealthy families.

The aristocracy ate more millet and yellow rice, and wheat was something eaten by the commoners, so naturally they would not use a stone mill to grind flour. The pasta dishes such as cakes and noodles that appeared in archaeology in this era were basically made of millet and yellow rice.

The earliest recorded cakes made of wheat flour were in the Han Dynasty, but it was recorded in the "Qi Min Yaoshu" in the Wei and Jin dynasties that wheat rice was still the main way to eat wheat among the people. It was not until the middle of the Tang Dynasty that the people who experienced the prosperity of the early Tang Dynasty also had stone mills, and wheat leapfrogged millet and yellow rice to become the first staple food.

That's why Xun Guo was so surprised when he ate a cake made of wheat flour.

After Zhu Xiang described how to hull and grind wheat flour, Xun fell silent.

After a while, he sighed and said, "Go ahead and eat the bread." ”

Lin Zhen, who had a cake in his mouth, looked at Xun Qian, and then looked at Zhu Xiang, who always had a foolish smile on his face, and didn't know why, so he continued to bury his head in eating the cake.

Ying Xiaozheng is also the same as Lin Zhen, looking at Xun for a while, and looking at his uncle for a while.

But although his little head told him that he needed to think at this time, he couldn't think about it, so he had to hang his head and continue to eat the mutton that his aunt had torn with chopsticks.

"Feed less, children are prone to accumulating food at night." Zhu Xiang avoided the topic and reminded Xue.

Xue regretfully put down her chopsticks: "Okay." ”

Zheng'er's expression when she eats meat is too cute, and Xue is a little uncontrollable.

"Go play with your uncle." Xue pushed Ying Xiaozheng, who was still staring at the mutton in the bowl, worried that she would not be ruthless and feed Ying Xiaozheng meat.

Ying Xiaozheng obediently got up from her aunt's arms and sat down next to Zhu Xiang.

His hands and feet were limp, and he knelt for a while before leaning to the side. Zhu Xiang first stopped his nephew who was crooked to the side with one hand, and said apologetically: "Zheng'er is too young to sit unsteadily on his knees, can you let him stretch his legs and sit?" ”

Xun Jing smiled: "Although I am a Confucian, I am not so harsh as to let such a young child abide by etiquette. ”

Lin Xiangru frowned: "He's still young, don't be too strict with him, it will have the opposite effect!" Lin Li is that I was too strict with him when he was a child, and he became so lazy when he grew up! ”

Lin Zhen, who buried his head in eating meat after eating the cake: "??? ”

Zhu Xiang smiled bitterly. Why did he become strict with Zheng'er?

Zhu Xiang did not believe what Lin Xiangru said, "being strict with Lin Zhen". But Lin Xiangru said so, he naturally nodded in response, and then let Ying Xiaozheng stretch his little short legs and lean on himself to play.

Xue asked people to take a tiger doll with crooked sewing, stuffed it into Ying Xiaozheng's arms, and let Ying Xiaozheng play with himself.

Zhu Xiang was curious: "You sewed it?" Sewn in a day? ”

Xue Dao: "The sewing is not good. Zheng'er barely played, and then my aunt sewed you a more beautiful one. ”

Ying Xiaozheng held the little tiger doll, didn't know how to play, and relied on instinct to flatten and tear the doll apart.

Lin Xiangru looked at Ying Xiaozheng who was stupidly pulling the doll, the folds between his eyebrows stretched slightly, and his eyes became a little softer.

Zhu Xiang noticed this, and he was inevitably a little complacent in his heart.

My housekeeper is cute!

The mutton steamed bun is very delicious, and the lamb scalded leeks are also very tender and delicious. Xun Guan accidentally overate a little and pulled Lin Xiangru to accompany him for a walk.

Lin Xiangru had no choice but to sleep at Zhu Xiang's house, but drove Lin Yi home to report safety to his old wife.

Although the city gate has been closed, with Lin Xiang's power, Lin Yi can still return to the city at night.

Cai Ze also said goodbye and went home, saying that he would come back to visit the next day.

After Zhu Xiang asked people to make the bed, he let Xue Dai Ying Xiaozheng sleep, and he followed the two old men who had to travel at night as bodyguards.

Lin Xiangru glanced at Zhu Xiang with disgust: "You are our guard?" If you really meet a gangster, you can only hide behind me and Xun Qing and shout for help. ”

Zhu Xiang said cheekily: "I'm young, my legs and feet are convenient, I can run on my back!" ”

Lin Xiangru wanted to ask Zhu Xiang how to carry him and Xun Jing, but for Zhu Xiang's sake, he gave Zhu Xiang a little face and asked Zhu Xiang to walk with him.

But Xun refused and did not allow Zhu Xiang to follow.

Zhu Xiang, who was worried about the two old men, had no choice but to carry a lantern and follow behind the two from a distance.

The two idle old men didn't go far, and they circled around Zhu Xiang's house.

They were silent for a while, and Xun Xiang was the first to speak: "Zhu Xiang needs to defect to a male lord." ”

Lin Xiangru frowned: "You've been thinking about this all the time?" ”

Xun said: "Zhu Xiang's talent lies in farming and diet, which are both powerful tools for living people. He had to be a good man. ”

Lin Xiangru said: "I will help him out!" ”

Xun said: "Will you help?" How can you help? The Zhou royal family is in decline and is about to fall. And no matter which country replaces the Zhou royal family, if Zhu Xiang can be reused, he will definitely be able to live countless people! King Zhao Xian is kind to you, you can tie yourself and your family to death in Zhao Kingdom, this is your little righteousness; But you can't let Li Min lose the chance to live in order to repay your kindness, this is against the general righteousness! “

Xun Qian's spit Xingzi almost spewed on his face: "People have knowledge and righteousness, and animals have knowledge but no righteousness!! ”

Lin Xiangru's face was dark: "If you have something to say, why do you suddenly scold people?" ”

Xun said: "I tell the truth that the beasts know no righteousness, what do you have to do with it? What do you call swearing? ”

Lin Xiangru resisted the urge to knock Xun Kuang's head with a cane, gritted his teeth and said, "I'll try again." If not, I will not stop him from leaving. ”

Xun Jing said with disdain: "You yourself are scolding King Zhao, don't you know that King Zhao is not a male lord who can use Zhu Xiang well?" ”

Xun Kuang's eyes were vicious, and after only following Zhu Xiang for one day, he saw clearly the dilemma of Zhu Xiang's ambitions.

Zhu Xiang wanted to teach more people to transform the barren soil into fertile land, one or two wells were not enough, and the government had to dig ditches and build water conservancy and irrigation facilities;

Zhu Xiang wanted to teach more people to grow wheat that was more productive than millet and yellow rice, and it was not enough for him to make wheat cakes at home alone, but he had to build communal stone mills in towns and villages at official expense, and promote edible flour among the nobles who owned the most fields;

Zhu Xiang must have more skills, but these skills will all affect the interests of the nobles and the rich - the life of the common people has become better, and the gap between the lives of the nobles and the nobles has become smaller, which also affects the interests of the nobles and the rich. In order to exert all his abilities, he must have a male lord who has both foresight and can suppress the court to be his backing.

"How much Li Min Zhu Xiang can live depends on how much ability the male lord behind him has and how much trust he trusts." Xun was categorical, "King Zhao can't do it!" ”

Lin Xiangru's face immediately turned pale: "You say so, then which king do you say?!" Could it be the King of Qin?? Have you forgotten the martyrdom of Qin Mugong's Sanliang! ”

Xun was silent.

The state of Qin did not always have a bad reputation among scholars.

During the Spring and Autumn Period of Qin Mugong, Qin Mugong cherished talents, loved the people, and paid tribute to ordinary soldiers, even if he ruined the goodness of Qin and Jin that he had single-handedly concluded, many people praised his benevolence during his reign.

Qin Mu openly created the guest secretary system of the Qin Dynasty, and at that time, talents from all over the world flocked to the city and were willing to serve Qin Mugong.

Who would have thought that when Qin Mugong died, he would let more than 170 people "pass to death", including the three good ministers of Dying, Zhongxing, and Needle Tiger.

In the Western Zhou Dynasty, people were already excluded from martyrdom, but this rejection of human martyrdom was only the use of people as sacrifices, and another kind of "human martyrdom" has always existed, that is, "from death".

The so-called "from death" means that wives and concubines, domestic servants, courtiers, etc. "voluntarily accompany the burial" and accompany the tomb owner to the nine springs and continue to serve the tomb owner.

The difference between the two is that the former treats the martyred as sacrifices such as cattle, sheep, pigs, and dogs; The latter admits that it was people who were martyred, even those they favored.

However, this kind of "voluntary" is not really "voluntary" for everyone to know. Therefore, the princes and nobles were more restrained when choosing the people to be martyred.