The general was questioned by the inspecting adults,
I think we can't just let the general suffer for us!
I set the recipe, so I have to accept the blame and take responsibility for the work.
I was about to get up when someone pushed me down.
It's Jin Suo. I don't know when he will come back. This person is always mysterious today.
He said, "You, just rest up there! It's none of your business!"
At this moment, someone seemed to speak again in the big tent.
This man had a rough voice. He first said some polite words and then went straight to the point.
"My lords, you don't know something. Our general pays special attention to your inspection. We have invited the best chefs and the best ingredients in the border area for this dinner. You should understand."
I can recognize this man's voice, it's Deputy General Wang Qiang.
I heard Wang Qiang say again,
"To be honest, the food standard that our generals eat now is the same as that of ordinary soldiers. The food distributed to each unit has also been reduced according to a certain proportion, and unnecessary expenses of each department have been reduced. .”
In the kitchen, of course I could not know that Wang Qiang did not stand up to talk to the adults from the court at this time.
Instead, he used the body language of sitting firmly to express resistance and contempt for the work group, or a provocation.
But as a general's lieutenant, at least someone who has experienced hundreds of battles, he should be more experienced than us cooks.
How can you talk like this?
He is your superior!
When your superiors come down to inspect you, regardless of whether what they say is right or wrong, as the unit being inspected, you have to take action first.
On such an occasion, it would be fine not to show respect to a high-ranking member of the court, but it would be disrespectful to the court and even more disrespectful to the king.
Moreover, it is really inappropriate to talk about reasons and rhetoric there, and it may cause new problems.
Unexpectedly, deputy general Wang Qiang added this sentence at this time,
"Today, you are the most distinguished guests of our border defense. Since you are our most distinguished guests, we cannot use the simple meals of our soldiers to receive distinguished guests. That would also be against the etiquette of our countrymen. So, please, don't It’s time to make a fuss out of a molehill. Because this is a logistics responsibility. The responsibility lies with me, not the general. Please forgive me!"
As soon as the deputy general finished speaking, the sound of "Gaba" came from the big tent. This was the sound the general made when he twisted his neck. Jinsuo told me several times the two habits of the general when he was proud. , one makes a crisp sound when twisting his neck, and the other likes to hit his heart with his fist, which will also produce a "bang bang" sound.
Seeing this, I could only smile bitterly.
I think the general may have used this way to express his approval of the lieutenant and also to express his dissatisfaction with Lord Luan and the others.
well!
This is so inconsistent with the general's logic. Why did I admire the general's conduct just now? Why is it so unable to withstand the test now?
No matter what the other party is, he is still the imperial envoy of the Dayan Kingdom. How can Wang Qiang let go of his words?
As expected, the silent atmosphere inside didn't last long.
A familiar voice finally came out. This voice came from the thin-voiced Master Luan.
"Well, I said General Xiu, I really didn't expect that you really have talents under your command. Then I have to ask, what is the intention of your general who is as stable as a mountain and talks eloquently? What are you doing with these words? Are you practicing as a general to express your merits, or do you have other intentions? If it is to express your merits, I won’t say anything, otherwise I will ask more questions!”
Master Luan's voice was obviously made by pressing the base of his neck and leaning back intentionally.
He said,
"I said General Xiu, you and I are officials in the same court, you!"
Master Luan now made the word "you" very long and pointed, pointed directly at the general with his long fingers and said,
"As the highest military general of our Da Yan Kingdom, here you are leading thousands of troops on behalf of the King. Do you know that your words and deeds reflect the will of our King! Don't deny this. Bar?"
Just as the general was about to answer, Lord Luan rushed to say,
"Then, the execution of the king's will should be carried out to the letter, and should not be changed at will, right?"
"But for the scene in front of me, can I think this way? Today, someone like me, Luan, is here. You can change the king's will and waste it. Then tomorrow, someone else will come. Can you still Change it once and waste it again?”
The general didn't answer.
Master Luan took advantage of the situation and continued.
"So I have to ask, does this mean that you are carrying out the King's will to the letter? No?"
"Let me see, what is this called? Say one thing, do another, reveal another, hide another. This is a typical two-faced person. Is this what I am talking about? General Xiu, come on answer me!"
It seems that Mr. Luan’s accusation is really hard to answer.
I have to say that you are usually very economical, but no one sees it now.
You say it is extravagant and wasteful. You are obviously resisting the decree, and the evidence is right in front of you.
If we were to withdraw and serve a standard soldier's meal again, maybe this group of people would have new and more intense rhetoric.
When the general was in a dilemma, a familiar woman's voice came out unexpectedly.
This sound is still like trickling water, as gentle as yarn.
"Hey, everyone, let me tell you, Mr. Luan! Why bother? Just listen to what I have to say!"
"What you both said is reasonable, but in my opinion, the general's kindness to us should be continued if possible."
"As for the waste, let's talk about it after the meal, until we're full, okay?"
Jinsuo and I relaxed a little when we heard someone on the other side speaking for the general.
Jinsuo said close to my ear,
"Do you know who this woman is? Do you know why she helped our general?"
I shook my head.
"This woman's name is Yan Ji. She is the wife of the second prince of our Da Yan Kingdom. At the same time, she is also our general's childhood sweetheart."
My eyes widened.
Jinsuo continued,
"Yan Ji came here this time. In fact, she wanted to see our general...
My heart felt inexplicably sour.
Since the general's lover and the second wife of the Da Yan Kingdom stood up to speak for the general, it stands to reason that Master Luan should give her enough face.
But the short fat man's response was unexpected.
"Madam, you don't know something. The reason we are here this time is to check their economy in accordance with the Second Prince's instructions. You have seen how well they have done!"
"If we give up like this, we won't be able to explain to the second prince after we go back!"
What Master Luan said was straightforward and indeed what he really meant.
Yan Ji was also well aware of the entanglement between the second prince and the eldest prince.
Knowing that the ultimate goal of Master Luan and his entourage is to take the opportunity to make trouble with General Xiucheng, they make a fuss, get on the line, and cut off his military power. Cutting off General Xiucheng's military power is equivalent to cutting off the eldest prince's party power in the Ming Dynasty. , creating opportunities and conditions for the second prince to ascend to the throne.
Even if I say good things for the general now, it won't be effective. I can only go wherever I go! Otherwise, this slave will never take himself seriously.
At this moment, there was a "click" and a "crash" in the tent, and the sounds of falling objects came out.
"Okay, okay, you Fatty Luan, you ungrateful villain, it seems you have forgotten who brought you to this position!"
"You didn't even listen to what I said today. I think you are tired of living! Okay, I'm full of anger. You can eat! Just wait and see!"
After saying that, I heard another commotion inside.
"Madam! Madam! Don't be angry!"
It seems that Yan Jinu's words have no effect.
I knew it was time for me to play.
If you go on stage yourself, you will plead guilty for the general, and you will die.
My life is not worth anything anyway.
It's important to keep the general! Let’s go up first and then talk!
So, I came outside the general's tent, opened the curtain, and carefully pushed the small wooden cart that had been prepared in advance into the tent...
Although the atmosphere in the big tent was tense at this time, the aroma was lingering, the steam was steaming, and the torches were bright, which was very dazzling.
I saw the expressions on everyone's faces, and they all looked stiff and tense.
In the tent, there was neither General Xiucheng nor the woman who just spoke.
I saw some broken cups on the ground and someone was cleaning them.
Behind the general's seat, Jinsuo was standing there holding a sword.
Seeing me lift the curtain and come in, everyone focused their attention on me.
I calmed down, took a few steps forward, and bravely said,
"My lords, good evening. I, I am Liu Bancheng, the cook tonight. It was my idea to serve you such a big dish tonight. The blame lies entirely on me and has nothing to do with the general. What about me? , I am willing to accept any punishment from you, and I will be responsible for the beheading."
Without waiting for everyone to speak, he continued, "This is the food I prepared in advance."
"Well, there is an old saying that goes like this, it's better to be satisfied than to be delicious. Before you accuse me, I would like to ask you to try a dish. This dish took me a day to make and is waiting for you. Taste it. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter if I don’t taste it. It’s my regret as a cook that everyone didn’t taste it.”
As he said that, he pushed the wooden cart directly to the middle of the big tent. On a dozen wooden trays were placed flat plates of hot, so-called main dishes.
At this time, the general had hurriedly returned to the tent and sat down in front of Jinsuo.
I noticed that the corners of his mouth were pulled down, with a gloomy look on his face.
Jin Suo is looking at me with strange eyes.
I started to say to Mr. Luan who was sitting in the middle on the right side, who was so hot just now,
"My distinguished lord, the name of this dish is White Braised Bear's Paw. If I guess correctly, you should be an expert in this field. Please taste it and give me your valuable opinions!"
Master Luan turned his face to General Xiucheng, but pointed his finger at me.
"Who is this? How dare you talk to me like this?"
The general replied,
"He is my cook. He planned and built the memorial hall that you just visited."
Ouch! General, where are you following this? I'm here to save you. Let's talk about it in one place.
I didn’t expect you to talk about the memorial hall again at this time, and also say that I planned and built the memorial hall. It was so sudden for me to say this.
How could I, a cook, a mason, and a person with little education, build a memorial hall?
But the general was right.
Jin Suo also told me before that when they first discovered me, this is what I told the general,
I said that I can cook, sculpt, and carve stone, so the memorial hall arranged for me to organize people to build it, but I don’t know yet.
Maybe in a dream, maybe sleepwalking.
This may be the reason why I can occupy a place in General Xiucheng's heart.
Now, Mr. Luan is holding on to the general's pigtails, but the general has taken up the idea of building a memorial hall and thrown the conflict to me.
Master Luan's anger was transferred to me, which put me in a dilemma as a cook. I didn't know how to deal with it!
