"It's snowing! It's snowing!" Xiaobai ran around in the yard happily.
At this latitude of Quyang County, snow is rare.
Especially today, it's snowing heavily. It's not the thin snow that melted when it hit the ground before... The bamboo forest is covered with a layer of white mist, which is crystal clear, and it is a rare ice and snow scenery in the south.
Xiaobai laughed happily and rolled in the snow.
Seeing Xiao Hei grinning slightly in front of Xiong Wuliang's door, he also wanted to go over and play in the snow, but he didn't want to leave his post without permission.
If we are both brothers and sisters, why is there such a big gap between us?
At such a young age, I have endured pressure that I shouldn’t have to bear at this age!
Just at this moment, Xiong Wuliang opened the door and came out.
A gust of cold wind blew by, and Xiong Wuliang shivered.
Xiaoyi also walked out and put a thick brocade robe on Xiong Wuliang with a smile... The chill was relieved.
Xiong Wuliang stretched his waist, wrapped his robe tightly around him, and looked thoughtfully into the courtyard.
It had been two or three years since he came to this world, and this was the first time he had seen such heavy snow.
"Let's all go play." Xiong Wuliang waved his hand cheerfully and said to Xiao Hei, whose eyes were full of desire.
Siyi cheered and went to play in the snow with Xiaobai. Xiaohei struggled with his face. After a while, he couldn't resist the temptation of white snow and rushed into the snowdrift.
Xiong Wuliang turned his head and happened to see Ying Zhuo standing alone in the distance, looking at the snowy scene thoughtfully... There was a hint of sadness in his eyebrows.
It's been so cold this winter...
Even the Chu State in the southeast is snowing. Then the Qin State, which is located in the northwest, is even more freezing at this time.
I don’t know if the Qin State will starve to death this winter.
In the past few years, the Qin State has been really unlucky - last winter, Yingzhuang rebelled, and a civil war severely damaged the Qin State's vitality... This year is another extreme cold that has never been seen in a century...
Half an hour later, Xiong Wuliang, covered in snow, led Xiaohei, Xiaobai and Siyi back to the house.
Everyone was already freezing at this moment.
Xiong Wuliang glanced at Ying Zhuo, who was still frowning, and called a few soldiers to carry the firewood he had prepared early into the house. After a while, the copper stove in the house lit up.
The temperature rose rapidly, and everyone in the room let out a long sigh of relief.
The New Year is coming soon, and Huang Xie has not been home for more than a year. This winter, he asked Xiong Wuliang for a leave and returned to Yingdu - the price was that the three-year appointment became three and a half years.
He is truly an unscrupulous boss - he asked for more than ten days of annual leave, but he actually had to sign a contract for an extra six months.
…
The wind and snow are howling outside, but it's as warm as spring inside.
Xiong Wuliang, Siyi, Ying Zhuo, Xiaohei and Xiaobai were sitting together around the copper stove. There was a kettle on the copper stove, and Xiong Wuliang was boiling water to make tea.
He doesn't have the habit of putting any spices in tea... A pot of tea exudes a faint fragrance.
Four confidants, Qu Yuan, Zhao Hua, Zhong Hua, and Shao Hu, came together. Seeing Xiong Wuliang cooking tea around the stove, Qu Yuan smiled slightly: "My lord, you are really in a good mood."
Xiong Wuliang waved his hand and signaled his soldiers to bring four more tea cups, and then poured steaming tea for the four confidants with his own hands... The four of them thanked each other, picked up the teacups, and drank in small sips, feeling that the coldness in their bodies was gone. .
"This winter has been extremely cold, and it actually snowed heavily that has not been seen in a hundred years..." Qu Yuan raised his hands and said: "I and Zhao Hua took a car to inspect the four counties under our control. We saw that the people had enough food left in their hands and their houses were solid. There is currently no disaster. "
Xiong Wuliang nodded - for the people of this era, wind and snow are not a beautiful sight, but often represent disaster.
Fortunately, the houses in the fief are all made of cement. If they were thatched houses, they would probably collapse under the weight of the heavy snow.
Having said that, I didn't expect Qu Yuan and Zhao Hua to inspect the entire fiefdom in the past few days... It really moved Xiong Wuliang. Not only is the road extremely difficult to walk in this icy and snowy environment, it is also prone to danger.
Shaohu also handed over his hand and reported angrily: "Master, my Quyang new army has been assembled. The camp has adopted the 'fire kang' that the master mentioned. It seems to be very useful so far."
"If a snow disaster occurs, Quyang's new army can be dispatched at any time to rescue the snow disaster."
…
The four confidants finished their tea and stood up to leave.
The snow was getting heavier and heavier, so Xiong Wuliang gave the cook and servants a holiday - after all, the new year was approaching and the snow was falling so heavily, they had to go home early.
As for the food issue in the Hou Mansion... Xiong Wuliang had a plan.
He sent someone to Shi Er to get a special copper pot with three legs on the bottom and a tall tube inside to hold the charcoal fire.
First, burn the charcoal fire, and then pour water into the copper pot.
Put some oil, pepper, ginger, garlic, green onion, and some fermented glutinous rice for seasoning... The Warring States version of the hot pot base is ready.
The cost of making this hot pot meal is not low - peppercorns are a specialty of the Bashu region and are quite expensive spices in Chu State. As for onions and garlic, they are also expensive in winter.
The most critical pepper... is not available now, but it can also be replaced with a spicy plant rhizome.
Not long after, a strong spicy aroma filled the room——
Xiaobai couldn't bear it anymore at first, and squatted behind Xiong Wuliang with his arms folded, watching eagerly as Xiong Wuliang operated.
Siyi also gathered around, gearing up.
My son seldom cooks on weekdays, but when he occasionally goes to the kitchen, he can often cook unforgettable food.
Although Ying Zhuo was still sitting where he was, his eyes glanced in Xiong Wuliang's direction from time to time - obviously he was also interested.
Xiong Wuliang smiled and asked for various ingredients.
There are sliced meats, some fish and shrimps, and various vegetables (it is not easy to eat vegetables in winter).
"Come here, everyone." Xiong Wuliang greeted cheerfully.
"Smells!" Si Yi's eyes immediately lit up as she swallowed a mouthful of hot, oily meat with two pepper seeds.
"Spicy!" Xiaobai's eyes were watery, but he couldn't stop eating.
Ying Zhuo ate the mutton slices in small bites, his eyes bright.
Xiong Wuliang looked at Ying Zhuo and said with concern: "Your shoulder injury...can you eat spicy food?"
Ying Zhuo glanced at Xiong Wuliang and didn't answer, which made Xiong Wuliang furious.
Siyi and Xiaobai both smiled, feeling like they were in a mirror.
…
The heavy snow suddenly came, and Wei Ranke suffered from the old nose.
Wei Ran, the Prime Minister of the Qin Dynasty, was ordered by the Empress Dowager to send an envoy to the State of Chu to ask for Xiong Wuliang.
The convoy trudged hard through the snow. For miles around, only the howling wind and snow could be seen, and not a single living person could be seen.
Wei Ran rubbed his nose - even though he had tried his best to wrap the car tightly, the cold wind still couldn't stop coming in.
"Sneeze!" Wei Ran wrapped the quilt tightly around him.
Wei Ran in the car could still hold on, but the knights of the Qin army escorting outside the car couldn't stand it anymore... The armor on his body was covered with a thick layer of frost, and everyone's eyebrows and noses were covered with ice. It was really... Embarrassed.
This embarrassing convoy was just wandering around... walking out of Wuguan, crossing the border between Qin and Chu, and heading straight to the capital of Chu Kingdom Ying...
…
————
(Yimi: I was sick two days ago, and I haven’t seen much. I know that you miss me very much, love me, care about me, and miss me. Today I will resume normal updates, hehe. Yimi will continue to strictly demand myself and maintain high quality. , don’t worry, everyone, this book will definitely not be unfinished or eunuch.)