After Wei Zhice's introduction, Zhang Cheng found out that the person who came out to greet him was none other than the new shopkeeper of the store, that obscure scholar, Wang Zhaozheng, the nephew of the wife of Yu Shangyou, the imperial censor.
If you look carefully, you will see that this man is also tall and fat. On the surface, he does not look like a scholar at all. He has a big round face that always smiles. He looks quite suitable to be a shopkeeper.
"Are you Wang Xiucai?" Zhang Cheng asked.
"Replying to the general, it is student Wang Zhaozheng who has reserved a seat for you upstairs. Yu Shi left a message and will be there in a moment, saying that he will bring you two friends."
Zhang Cheng was not surprised at all. When he left the capital last time, he left two hundred taels of silver for Yu Shi so that he could make more official friends in the capital and help those officials who were unhappy.
Under the guidance of Wang Zhaozheng, Zhang Cheng and his party went up the stairs to the second floor. He did not enter the private seats directly, but stopped at the railing of the hall on the second floor and looked at the street outside.
The capital city is indeed prosperous. There are many shops of various sizes on both sides of the street. There are also many vendors setting up stalls on the street, or hawking goods along the street with carts or carrying burdens. Pedestrians are constantly coming and going.
Moreover, this area is close to Zuo'anmen. Not only is the public security very good, there are many inns around it, and the people living here are also from well-to-do families. Even the people who come and go on the street are mostly officials and their family members.
He turned around and said, "Zhi Ce, the place you chose is indeed a good one!"
Wei Zhice smiled, and before he could say anything, Wang Zhaozheng came up to him and said, "General, I guess Master Yu and the others are coming soon. You and Brother Wei go into the private room and rest first. I'll make you a cup of fragrant tea." , moisten your throat first."
Next to him, Niu Sheng also said: "General, Mr. Chen, brothers Liu and Li will rest in the hall here first. The food and drinks will be served shortly. You guys are having a good time eating and drinking. I will go to the backyard to see where this accommodation is. Is the room arranged?"
Zhang Cheng and Wei Zhice walked into the private seats facing the street. Chen Zhong and others chose a separate seat facing the street near the private seats in the hall on the second floor and sat around.
After a while, two waiters ran up and made tea for both tables. Wei Zhice sent the waiters away and then said to Zhang Cheng: "General, I have already taken care of the Ministry of War. You can go to the Yamen of the Ministry of War to collect the report tomorrow morning." In body and official uniform, would you like to pay a visit to Mr. Yang Ge?"
Zhang Cheng took a sip of tea and then said slowly: "Mr. Yang Ge has taken good care of us. Although he and Gao Laojian secretly restricted us during the previous reign of King Qin, after all, we still have to look forward. Well."
"Zhi Ce understands. I will prepare a generous gift to Mr. Yang Ge tomorrow morning, and then make an appointment for the general to visit Mr. Ge." Wei Zhice nodded and said, he very much agreed with Zhang Cheng's assessment of the situation.
"Gifts are a must, but they don't have to be too expensive. Just be elegant. By the way, how did Aunt Wu decide?" Zhang Cheng asked.
"Zhi Ce went to visit Mr. Wu's house yesterday evening. Mrs. Wu said that she would go to Mr. Na Ji's house for a walk in the past two days. If it is convenient, see if she can ask Miss Na Ji to come over and give Miss Wu some needlework instructions. techniques.
If Mrs. Ji and Miss Ji agree, they will send a message to us at that time. The general can then go to the Wu Mansion to pay a visit to the Wu family's aunt, and he can also look for an opportunity to meet Miss Ji. "When Wei Zhice said this, he narrowed his eyes and looked at Zhang Cheng with a smile.
Zhang Cheng felt a little uncomfortable when Wei Zhice saw him. Before he could say anything, the voice of the shopkeeper Wang Zhaozheng came from outside the door, and the two of them heard that Yu Shangyou had already arrived.
Sure enough, after the door of the private seat was pushed open, Wang Zhaozheng appeared at the door. Next to him was Zhang Cheng's old acquaintance Yu Shi Yu Shangyou, and four other people. It was the first time for Zhang Cheng to see them, but they looked very unfamiliar.
After Yu Shangyou entered the private seat, he first said politely: "I feel sorry for General Zhang for waiting for so long."
Zhang Cheng also smiled and said: "Master Yu is willing to come here with honor, not to mention waiting for these times, even if he waits for three days and three nights, Zhang Cheng is also willing to do so."
Everyone laughed, and Yu Shangyou introduced the four people who came with Zhang Cheng, saying: "Come, General Zhang, Yu will introduce these four good friends to the general."
As he spoke, he introduced: "General Zhang, this is Mr. Yuan Pengnian, the head of the Ministry of Rites, Mr. Yuan, these two are Mr. King Diaoding and Mr. Ma Jiazhi, the king of Like, and this is Mr. Si Liangyu, a pedestrian. Lord Ming Liang."
Zhang Cheng cupped his fists slightly and said, "Nice to meet you, ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats."
Yu Shangyou hurriedly said: "This is General Zhang Cheng who shot Dorgon with an arrow and killed Yue Tuo in formation. Now he is the third-rank Wan Quan Si Du commanding the Qianshi and guarding the North Road of Xuanzang Town."
Then he introduced Wei Zhice and said: "This is the general under General Zhang whom Yu often mentioned. Wei Zhice, the commander of the Kaiping Guards."
Wei Zhice also said politely: "Don't dare, don't dare. In front of several adults, how dare Wei call himself an adult."
Everyone was very polite and sat down in order of priority. Naturally, Zhang Cheng sat in the main seat, while Yu Shangyou sat at the head of the guest seat. The others also took their seats respectively.
Wang Zhaozheng was very knowledgeable and interesting. After he ushered Yu Shangyou and others into the dining room, he quietly left. After a while, the waiter came upstairs. First, a plate of mutton fried with green onions and several exquisite side dishes were placed on the table.
Then Wang Zhaozheng personally presented a bowl of three-fresh soup made with sea cucumber, squid and shredded chicken. A waiter next to him also carried the spine and fin of a live carp weighing nearly three kilograms, asking Zhang Cheng and others to see it with their own eyes.
Wang Zhaozheng asked Zhang Cheng with a smile on his face: "General, how do you want to eat this fish? One or two?"
"Master Yu, you are a guest. How do you eat this fish?" Zhang Cheng looked at Yu Shangyou and asked.
Yu Shangyou was a little embarrassed. He smiled and said to Zhang Cheng: "It's up to you, General Zhang."
Zhang Cheng was just being polite just now. Seeing that Yu Shangyou was very wise, he stopped making excuses and turned to Wang Zhaozheng: "Zhaozheng, how do we become so good at Tongchunlou?"
"General, why don't you make a carp and eat it twice? Half with sugar, half fried, half with sugar, and you can use the leftover fish bones to bake some fish bone noodles."
He introduced it warmly and politely, and then he said with a smile: "We have a new chef from Henan in Tongchun House. He makes good Henan cuisine. General, why don't you try something fresh."
Wang Zhaozheng is a man who understands the world very well. He calmly responded to such an occasion without saying a word, and even pretended not to know Yu Shangyou, so as to avoid everyone being embarrassed. Zhang Cheng was quite satisfied with him.
What Zhang Cheng heard was new, and he couldn't help but remember that he had eaten "six bites" of black fish in his previous life, but he hadn't eaten two bites of this carp, so he said, "Okay, do it the way you said. Let’s try something new too!”
Seeing that Zhang Cheng agreed, the waiter hurriedly carried the live carp out of the dining room. He actually followed the rules in Henan restaurants and threw the live carp to the ground. Then he picked up the half-dead carp and walked downstairs with a smile. went.
