The central courtyard is not conspicuous among the huge palace courtyards, but everyone knows that this is the real heart of the empire.
The people in the courtyard bear the emperor's orders, lead hundreds of officials, direct government affairs, and are in charge of military affairs. Most of the affairs of this huge empire are decided by the words of several important officials in the center.
At noon, Qin Prime Minister Qin Weizhong was sitting in his room. Just as he was about to get up to have lunch, he heard the sound of footsteps. Gao Yi, the personal eunuch of Emperor Chongning, led a group of internal servants into the courtyard and shouted in a high voice: " His Majesty’s decree!”
One by one, the central ministers quickly came out of their respective rooms.
"I am very pleased that you all are working hard on the state affairs. This is Mingyulou's new dish. I like it very much and share it with you."
After saying this, Gao Yi immediately put on a smile and said, "My lords, Your Majesty has specially given me a portion of Zhongjing Roast Duck. Please use it with caution."
Qin Xiang said with a smile, "Thank you, Eunuch Gao."
"You're welcome, Prime Minister Qin. Come on, present it to your lords!"
Behind him, the chamberlains walked into their respective rooms one by one, holding trays.
This time, of course, there was no whole duck for them to see, but the sliced duck was placed on a plate that was also kept warm with crushed charcoal. As for the lotus leaf cake, each person was only given three pieces.
Just kidding, His Majesty only ate three rolls, can he still let you eat more?
After some explanations, several important ministers were a little hesitant, but they still tried it, and their eyes immediately lit up.
It is light, but not bland in taste. At the same time, the duck skin is crispy, the duck meat is tender, and the cucumbers and noodles are easy to digest. It is really suitable for the appetite of old men like them, who are not young at all.
The only bad thing is that I felt a little bit picky, so I just ate three rolls and it was gone.
Qin Xiang sat in the room, chewing slowly, with his eyelids lowered. He didn't know whether he was savoring it carefully or thinking about something else. After a while, he suddenly said: "Go to Mingyu Tower to book a seat for me, and then go and talk to him." Let the other people in the courtyard say something and I'll treat them to dinner tonight."
The attendant was a little puzzled, "Mr. Prime Minister, is this roast duck so delicious?"
Prime Minister Qin smiled lightly, "That's not important."
——
In the imperial dining room, Xia Jingyun and the eunuch in charge of the imperial dining room each sat on a chair and waited leisurely.
After learning Xia Jingyun's identity, the eunuch in charge of the imperial dining room was obviously much closer to him. He smiled and said, "Mr. He has such attainments in the Tao that he can invent such good things."
Xia Jingyun shook his head, "Who said I invented it? The chef of Mingyu Tower invented it."
He picked up the teacup, took a sip, and said with a smile: "Let me tell you the story of the invention of Beijing roast duck. There was a chef in Mingyu Tower who liked to eat duck, but he found that there were roasted chickens and roasted pigs on the market. But there was no roast duck, so I concentrated on developing it, but found that if I followed the method of roasting chicken, the taste of the roast would be too similar to that of roast chicken, and the characteristics of duck meat would be lost. So after repeated experiments, I finally came up with the method of roasting duck in a hanging oven, and roasted it. He made extremely delicious roast duck, served with sauce and noodles, and it was very delicious. When His Majesty and Concubine De found out about it, they invited him into the palace."
He turned to look at the confused eunuch in charge of the imperial kitchen, "What's your name?"
"My name is Cao Jie."
"Yes." Xia Jingyun nodded, "Eunuch Cao Jie, the steward of the imperial kitchen, saw the making process. With his rich experience in serving His Majesty and the concubines in the palace for many years, he advised that some greasy cucumber shreds should be added to it. And shredded green onions, plus sugar for dipping to satisfy the concubines’ taste, this is how we eat Zhongjing roast duck as we see it now.”
He smiled and said, "What do you think of this story, Eunuch Cao?"
Cao Jie was stunned on the spot, but he immediately understood. He turned around and looked around, with tears in his eyes, he cupped his hands and whispered: "Master Xia, as long as I have an order, I will not give up even if I die!"
Xia Jingyun smiled and patted his hand, "I'm serious. You and I are both loyal and patriotic, and we should act in the same way."
He looked at the Mingyulou cook who was coming back from a distance, "Okay, it's time for me to leave the palace. Eunuch Cao, we'll see you later."
Cao Jie saluted respectfully and said, "Best farewell to Mr. Xia."
After Xia Jingyun and the three cooks left with all their things, an imperial cook from the imperial dining room came over and said with disdain: "Master Steward, what kind of virtue are these guys? They are just ducks and they are secretive. Don’t let others see them, who cares? From my perspective, I should give them some trouble, otherwise they will really think that our imperial kitchen is easy to bully!"
Cao Jie turned to look at him, rounded his hand and slapped the man, staggering him, and said sternly: "Your Majesty's arrangement allows you to make trouble here! How many heads!"
On the way out, Xia Jingyun invited the other three people into his carriage, and together they listened to the one who went to see the saint happily recounting the experience.
After talking for a while, the man suddenly came to his senses and quickly calmed down his expression and said: "Thank you Mr. Xia for teaching us. Without your guidance, we would never have had such an opportunity."
The other two people also echoed, but Xia Jingyun waved his hand, "When I go back, I will ask your boss to post the ins and outs of Zhongjing Roast Duck. The inventors are the three of you."
The expressions of the three of them suddenly changed, "Master Xia, you can't do it! This is enough to be passed down to the world. How can we be so virtuous and capable?"
Xia Jingyun raised his hand to stop him, "What's wrong? I just mentioned it in the "Master's Statement" I wrote a few days ago. There are specialties in the arts. You are master chefs, and your attainments in cooking skills are completely sufficient. There is no need to think about anything. In addition, when things are going well in the future and you gain fame and fortune, don’t forget to accumulate virtue and do good deeds, and just stick to your duties.”
The three of them looked at each other and saluted Xia Jingyun with clasped fists, "Mr.
Xia Jingyun smiled, "You're serious, I'm serious."
After everyone returned to Mingyu Tower, Xia Jingyun found Qin Li and told him what happened. Qin Li was naturally overjoyed. As soon as the two discussed it, they started making relevant preparations.
Xia Jingyun asked Qin Li to find a wooden sign, put red paper on it, and then hung the gold medal given by the emperor on it. He wrote the story of the invention of Zhongjing Roast Duck next to it in his own handwriting.
Qin Li was a little confused, but Xia Jingyun smiled and said, "With a story, there will be a foundation and a basis for dissemination."
After that, Qin Li had already figured out most of the roast duck banquet menu. With Xia Jingyun's optimization suggestions, he finally settled on a menu of one hundred and fifty taels. He wrote it in black characters on a red background and pasted it on the wooden sign.
Two wooden signs were hung up and placed in front of the gate of Mingyu Tower. Two guards were assigned to guard them, and a restaurant steward was assigned to explain.
In the evening, Wei Yuanzhi, Wang Ruoshui, Gongsun Jing and others who had arranged early took the guests they had gathered and walked into Mingyu Tower one after another, and ordered the roast duck banquet by name.
The other guests who came also gave it a try on the recommendation of the waiter at Mingyulou.
And when Prime Minister Qin led the central ministers to arrive, the campaign reached its peak.
As tonight's guests returned to their homes, the name of Zhongjing Roast Duck spread throughout the upper circles of Zhongjing City overnight.
The night was getting darker, and the lights of Mingyu Tower were about to slowly extinguish after their ultimate splendor. Suddenly, people rushed to Mingyu Tower one after another, waving their banknotes to make reservations for tomorrow's meal.
Most of them are businessmen, but there are also some small officials and small dignitaries who are quick to see opportunities. They want to seize this opportunity and find a reason that cannot be refused for the big shots they want to entertain.
Therefore, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and tonight only, the reservations are scheduled for five days later. I don’t know how big this battle will be during the day tomorrow.
Looking at the book full of entries, the manager of Mingyu Tower knew that the Zhongjing Roast Duck was completely popular.
No one can stop you!
No one can stop it!
(End of chapter)
