About 10 days later, the messenger sent by Ying Zheng arrived in Xianyang, and Feng Quji, Zhou Zhi, and I were gathered together in the Prime Minister's Mansion to read out Ying Zheng's reply.
First, the edict was given to Feng Quji and me. It was relatively simple. The general idea was that the Xiongnu affairs were handled well, and we should step up preparations for war.
There are only two sentences to comment on the Hun strategy I proposed, as well as the pulley, the sword, the saddle, and the horseshoe. The former is "not well thought out", and the latter cannot be called one sentence, just one word: "good".
This made me very speechless. If you can't praise me, then don't praise me. It's not necessary. I didn't bring out these things because I wanted you to praise me...
Then Zhou Zhi was called in and read out another edict. The general idea of this edict is that the winter solstice has arrived, and we must hurry up to build water conservancy projects, level the farmland, and other agricultural matters. Around the winter solstice, it is a good time to build water conservancy projects, carry out farmland infrastructure construction, and accumulate fertilizer for fertilizer production, so this habit has been in place since the Qin Dynasty. Zhou Zhi is the order of Taicang, and Shi Geyue is not in Xianyang now to govern Su Nei, so he can only leave it to him for specific implementation.
After the edict was read out, a few of us began to make specific arrangements. Although there were not many things to do, Da Qin was so big that it involved so many water conservancy systems and so many farmlands with different natural conditions. It took a full day of work to complete it and handed it over to Zhou Zhi for distribution to various counties. After saying goodbye, I also returned to the palace.
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Think about it, the day after tomorrow is the winter solstice. In the Qin Dynasty, the winter solstice was already a very important solar term. The Qin Dynasty had the habit of winter solstice sacrifices before. However, after Yingzheng designated October as the beginning of the year, the court's sacrifices were moved to October. , but most people are still accustomed to performing sacrifices on the winter solstice.
I am from the north, and I have the habit of eating dumplings during the winter solstice. However, in the Qin Dynasty, not to mention dumplings, there were no steamed buns, and everything was made from noodles. Fortunately, I was less hungry after eating, so I could accept two meals a day. It has been almost two months since I came here. I cook and cook every day, and now it’s evening again. The more I think about it, the more my mouth wateres.
"Lan'er." I want to try making dumplings.
Lan'er responded: "Your Highness, please give me your instructions."
"Let me ask you, is there fine flour in the palace?" You have to ask about the main material first. Although flour can be ground with wheat, the tools are inefficient at this time. Many places still use pestles and mortars, like pounding flour. Pound the garlic in the same way. It would be better if you have a grinder, but the flour you grind out is still relatively coarse.
"Your Highness, yes, we have a millstone in the palace, but I don't know how fine the flour you want is?" Lan'er replied.
"The finer the better, is it difficult to make three kilograms of flour?" I asked.
Lan'er replied: "It should be no problem, Your Highness. The millstones in the palace are rarely used. They are only used when making some flour cakes. I will inform the family leader Li Shan right now."
"Wait a minute, I'll write a few things. If you have any, I'll have them ready."
Then I wrote down the mutton, clear sauce (soy sauce), vinegar, onions, ginger, radish, etc. and gave them to Lan'er.
After Lan'er took it, she went out to prepare. I suddenly thought that it was already dark, and I was afraid that I would have to ask people to work overtime. I hated working overtime the most, so I quickly told Lan'er to just prepare it tomorrow.
The next day I was reading the reports sent by Feng Quji and Lishan and Afang. Laner walked in with a cloth bag and reported back: "Your Highness, the flour has been ground. Can you think of it?"
I stood up and opened the bag and took a look. Although it was not as fine as the flour ground by the machine, there was no problem in making dumplings. Then he ordered Lan'er to make old noodles with about a kilogram of flour. He explained in detail the production process, the ratio of noodles to water, and the use of filtered water with plant ash. After mixing, let it rest for 5 hours...
Lan'er was stunned for a while after hearing this, and couldn't help but ask: "Your Highness, are you not here to eat?"
I wondered: "What is flour used for if you don't eat it? Why do you say this?"
"But can the flour be eaten after adding ash? Moreover, even though it is winter, it will become sour after being left for 5 hours."
I smiled and said, "If you add plant ash to the water, it won't be sour. Forget it, I'll write it to you and you can just follow it."
Lan'er was still hesitant about the process of my writing, but she didn't say anything more and went out to prepare.
The next day, after reading the report as usual, I went to the restaurant to prepare dumplings.
In the middle, I also met Prince Qing Gong Luzi. As soon as this guy heard that I was going to the kitchen to cook, he quickly ran over to stop me. What kind of gentleman is he who cooks far away? What is unbecoming of a saint? I talked for a long time before letting him go. He allowed me to go in, and only this time.
There is no way, who is the chief steward of the Taiwong Palace? Apart from me, he is the biggest in this courtyard. Moreover, this person is an old scholar and is deeply influenced by Confucian rules. It is not easy to convince him.
After entering the cookhouse, I asked someone to take out some of the fermented old flour, and kept some of the remaining flour for later use. I kneaded the rest into dough and placed it on the table in a pottery basin. He also directed everyone to process the mutton with green onions and ginger to remove the smell, and then cut the auxiliary materials for later use.
But when I saw the green onions, I was still a little speechless. The pitiful few single seedlings were yellow and only the green onions were left. According to Lan'er, it's just the winter solstice. If it's a few days later, these single seedlings will be gone, and if you want to eat them again, you'll have to wait until next spring. There is no way, there are no greenhouses or cold storage in this era, so the function of the cellar is limited.
After working for a long time, the dough is almost done and the fillings are ready. Qin Chao doesn't have any pepper, thirteen spices or anything like that, just salt and soy sauce is fine. Adding some sesame oil, it still smells quite fragrant.
Then I taught everyone step by step how to roll out the dough and how to make dumplings. Everyone was in a hurry, but fortunately it was not very complicated and everyone learned quickly.
Seeing that Lan'er was making dumplings at the same speed as me, I smiled and said, "The dumplings made by Lan'er are pretty good. I'll let you eat a few more."
Lan'er's face turned red: "Thank you for the compliment, Your Highness. I didn't expect these dumplings to smell so delicious before they are cooked."
"That's right, no matter who came up with it." I said proudly. But I thought in my heart, 'This little girl Lan'er is quite fair, and she looks really pretty when she blushes...'
Everyone smiled and complimented: "Your Highness is wise."
The snow outside the house is getting thicker and thicker. Seeing the smiles on the faces of everyone in the house reflected brightly by the firelight in the furnace, I suddenly feel that this kind of life is not bad, but without my family by my side.
Thinking of this, I stood up and said, "Everyone, take care of yourself first. I'll go out and be back in a while."
After washing my hands and tidying up my clothes, I took Meng He out of the Prince's Palace and walked to the Wan'an Palace in the west.
It's been two months since I was able to get out of bed and walk. Fusu's mother has never been to the uterus. It must have something to do with Ying Zheng. I think I should go and see it.
