The 30th day of the twelfth lunar month.
There is a lot of smoke in the stove, which has the smell of dry wood and rotten wood, the smell of burning firewood, and the aroma of rice. When mixed together, it is like fireworks in the world.
There is a very small bench in front of the stove. A little girl wearing three-color clothes is sitting on the small bench. She looks very small and is lighting the fire seriously.
The firewood I bought just a few days ago is pine wood from the mountains, and it smells like pine branches when burning.
Wood is easy and labor-saving to burn.
She was seen sitting in front of the stove most of the time, staring intently at the flames burning in the stove. She followed what the Taoist priest told her and carefully felt the charm of the flames, but in fact, her mind was empty. And she likes to find a thin, straight piece of firewood first and use it as her accomplice in burning other firewood. In return, she will use it carefully and burn it at the end.
"Wow..."
The little girl put the stick into the stove hole and carefully fiddled with the firewood inside. When she saw sparks flying around and the flames burning brighter, she felt that she was very powerful.
The Taoist next to him was cutting meat.
It was the bacon I had made before.
The freshly cooked bacon is already warm on the outside, but still very hot on the inside. The kitchen knife is very sharp, and the person using the knife is also skilled. When you cut it with one knife, the bacon will be slightly oily, and it will be a thin slice of meat.
When you twist it, you will see three lines, the lean meat is wide and the fat meat is narrow, the thin line is dark red, and the fat line is crystal clear, like glass, not only eating it, but also feeling beautiful just looking at it.
The Taoist put it back in its original position.
Cut from a whole piece of meat, almost every piece is the same thickness, neatly stacked together. Compared with the previous one, it seemed that there were just countless gaps in the middle.
The Taoist arranged it into a plate of flowers.
"Miss Sanhua."
"Um?"
The little girl immediately raised her head, her fair face flushed red by the firelight.
"I go out for a while."
"oh."
Song You walked out.
The little girl followed his back with her eyes. When he disappeared, she turned her head back and continued to stare at the fire in the stove.
After a while, Song You came back with a side of tofu. When he walked to the stove, he found that the plate of bacon he had just placed was missing two pieces. He couldn't help but look at the little girl:
"How come Sanhua Empress ate it secretly?"
"Miss Sanhua went over to steal some food."
"But I've laid out everything."
"It should be put on the plate itself."
"I mean, I've arranged it like a plate of flowers, and Empress Sanhua ate one piece and messed it up."
"Just don't show off like that."
"..."
Song You thought for a while.
"rational."
So I took the chopsticks and reset them.
The sky gradually darkened.
The neighbor woman arrived as promised.
Song You cut a plate of bacon and beef with soy sauce, took out the only air-dried chicken and steamed it, fried a pot of tofu meatballs, stir-fried a piece of twice-cooked pork with garlic sprouts, made a plate of dry-roasted fish, and put it in the jar. All the remaining kimchi was chopped and used as a topping on the fish. Wu Nuxia bought a roast duck from outside, weighed a pound of mutton, and also brought a jug of wine.
Now there is no shortage of chicken, duck and fish.
There is wine and food, which is quite sumptuous.
The three of them sat down casually.
"I've been in Changjing for three years, and I've finally had a decent year." Wu Nuxia poured wine for them, "When are you leaving?"
"Within the next month."
"Will you return to Changjing?"
"Going back."
"I don't know if I will be there when you come back, but I'll give you a toast first."
"polite."
Song You served wine and the girl served water.
"This bacon is pretty good. The way we cook it in Yizhou is better." Wu Nuxia took a piece of bacon, took a bite, and narrowed her eyes.
"right."
"That's not a compliment. When we came back from Fengzhou, the sponsor paid for us to have a meal at Yunchunlou. The bacon they have is not as good as yours." Wu Nuxia said, "In their store It’s just that the presentation looks good, but it’s actually too fancy and meaningless.”
The Taoist couldn't help turning his head when he heard this.
The little girl held the chopsticks in her hands and turned her head almost at the same time to look at him.
Neither one nor the cat said anything.
"I saw the preserved egg seller you mentioned in Dongcheng a few days ago. They were not expensive, and I bought two." Wu Nuxia said, "I don't think they are as delicious as the ones you make."
"Dongcheng..."
"Um."
"Did it sell well?"
"It's not bad. It's a new thing. Not many people buy it. I guess more people will buy it in the future."
Dongcheng is indeed easier to sell.
Song You nodded and continued eating.
The beef was very dry, and the air-dried chicken was also very dry. The wine had a very light flavor, not much alcohol, but the grape flavor was particularly strong, which went well with the meat on the table.
The most satisfying thing is the dry-roasted whole fish.
The kimchi in the jar includes everything from sour ginger, sour cowpea, sour radish and pickled cabbage, all fried into toppings. The ginger has some spiciness, and when mixed together, it is very similar to the sour and spicy home-cooked fish in the previous life.
"correct--"
Wu Nuxia was eating and said to them casually: "The Jianghu people in Changjing seem to be discussing, saying that they will send people to keep an eye on you, and they will gather around you when you go out of the city next time."
"Just what I wanted."
"Be careful yourself."
After Wu Nuxia finished speaking, she was busy eating.
The sound of Nuo cures the illness, and the wine and lust have ushered in the spring.
I don’t know when there were fireworks outside.
After the banquet was over, after washing the pots and dishes, Song You heated up hot water and took a pleasant bath, even the calico cat. Then he went back to his room and stood in front of the window to watch the fireworks in the night sky in the distance.
Rumbling sounds came one after another.
Year after year.
Song You stood at the window for a long time.
…
The next day, the first day of the Lunar New Year.
Song You held two paintings and walked along the street.
The streets were really busy.
There were people beating gongs and drums, people dancing dragons and lions, vendors selling their goods all over the street, children running around, and the sound of firecrackers occasionally disturbing someone's honor guard.
Happy New Year! Happy New Year. The nobles are on the streets, the rich are also on the streets. All the poor people who can afford the New Year money are also trying their best to have a good New Year. People living on the streets are also on the streets. Even Most of the emperor's relatives would also go out and walk around. At this time, the streets of Changjing were filled with dignitaries and civil servants, talented people and beauties, ordinary merchants, homeless people and beggars. If it were painted into a painting, it would be a picture of everything.
The Taoist held two paintings and walked through them.
If we say the busiest thing today, it has to be the Chenghuang Temple.
Today’s City God’s Temple is not what it used to be—
Who from Changjing doesn’t know? At the beginning of last year, the evil spirit that caused the capital to be in an uproar and panic, and even His Majesty personally ordered a curfew, was rectified by the Master of the City God's Temple! The wolf corpse as big as a horse was placed in the courtyard of the Chenghuang Temple! From then on, the priests in the temple often patrolled at night to hunt down evil spirits and ghosts. They often appeared and acted like a good and responsible city god!
When I walked to the Chenghuang Temple and took a look, it was indeed true.
Not to mention how crowded the temple was, the foot of the mountain was already full of people. People from inside or outside Changjing City were crowding up the mountain with incense in hand.
It's hard to go up, and it's hard to come down.
The incense in the temple is like clouds, and the smoke goes straight into the sky and can be seen far away.
"Meow!"
The voice of a calico cat came from beside me.
"yes."
There are indeed too many people.
Song You looked forward.
However, not long after, an old man in rich clothes walked from the side street. When he walked in front of them, he immediately bowed to them and saluted: "The little god has met Mr. Sanhua Empress."
"I've met Lord Cheng Huang."
"Meow~"
"The little god congratulates Mr. Sanhua Empress on the New Year and wishes them good luck in the New Year."
"Lord City God is also auspicious." Song You looked at him. This City God seemed to be getting more powerful. "Lord City God is becoming more and more powerful. I have already noticed it when I walked in front of the temple."
"How can I be called capable in front of my husband? Besides, it's all thanks to my husband."
Lord Cheng Huang seemed calm, but in fact he was nervous inside.
This should be the time to "come again next time" as my husband said last spring. I don't know how I will be evaluated after all the hard work this year.
"Lord City God has been working diligently for the past year, patrolling day and night, searching for monsters and catching ghosts. Only in this way can he gain the trust and respect of the people of Changjing. In exchange for the current prosperity, where is the blessing from me?" Song You was very calm. He looked at the god in front of him and said, "It's time to congratulate the Lord City God. Now that I have secured my position in this position."
"The little god is ashamed of himself, I don't dare, I don't dare."
"Today I want to go out for a walk and see Changjing for the New Year. I also want to visit Lord Cheng Huang again and say goodbye to him." Song You said to him, "By the way, I have something to ask you."
"Sir, are you leaving Changjing?"
"I'll be leaving this month."
"I wonder where sir is going?"
"Probably north."
"I wonder if you have any other orders, sir?"
"In the past year, I got two paintings one after another, and I like them both very much. However, it will take more than ten years for me to return to the mountain after my trip. I want to bring these two paintings with me, but I find it very inconvenient." Song You said He lowered his head and glanced at the two scrolls he was holding, "Especially when I go to the north this time, I heard that there are countless monsters and ghosts in the north, and there are often big monsters and ghosts that are rarely seen in the south. I'm afraid of accidentally hurting them, but I'm growing up. Most of the friends I know in Beijing are also unstable, so after much thought, I had no choice but to come to see Lord Cheng Huang, hoping to temporarily store these two paintings with Lord Cheng Huang, and then come back to retrieve them later. Is it convenient for Lord Cheng Huang?"
"oops……"
The city god's eyes widened for a moment.
He took a deep breath and then said: "Sir, you trust the little god and can entrust your beloved things to the little god. The little god should take good care of it!"
"Changjing is the number one city in the world. The City God is the city god of Changjing, and he should be the number one city god in the world. I think these two paintings will be foolproof if placed here with the city god."
"Little God guarantees! There will be no loss!"
"Thank you, Lord Chenghuang!"
Song You handed over the two paintings in his hand.
"Thank you sir!"
Lord Cheng Huang took it with both hands.
"Master Cheng Huang is very busy today, so I won't delay you much." Song You said, "I'll take my leave now."
"Sir, walk slowly."
Song You saluted again, then turned and left.
The cat next to me imitated others and stood up, flexed its front paws, and then left, taking particularly cheerful little steps.
The City God held the two paintings in his arms and looked down at them carefully.
At this time, I was still happy and surprised.
The husband had said before that he would bring three sticks of incense for him the next time he saw him, but after meeting today, he did not see him in his hands, and he was still a little uneasy.
However, I got two paintings.
Mr. Cai said just now that he has firmly secured his position as the City God of Changjing. In fact, it has only been a short year. Even if he wins the hearts of the people in Changjing City, it will not be deep in the end. How can he say that he has secured his position? If an order is issued in the palace or a decree is issued by the heavenly palace, how can the little incense I have accumulated resist?
But with these two paintings, not all of them are good.
This shows that this immortal master from Fulongguan will definitely return to Changjing and visit the Chenghuang Temple again in the future. If he does not do well then, he may not be able to pass the test so easily.
This is like the sentence at the beginning of the year...
"..."
The City God took a deep breath and looked solemn. He only held these two paintings and walked along the street. As he walked, he disappeared.
…
Asking for a monthly ticket!
