Wang Ruohai and Lu Qing were walking on the streets of Xinye, watching the streets become more prosperous day by day, which gave them an indescribable feeling. Here in Xinye, many things are different from other places and are things I have never seen before. Many things may seem impossible at first sight. But it happens that it can be done here, and it is full of vitality.
Walking to a shop, Lu Qing said: "I walked here the day before yesterday, but I didn't see this shop yet. I don't know what it sells. Nothing happened, so let's go in for a glass of wine and chat. I've been living here in Xinye for seven or eight days, every day Nothing happens, I’m really tired of it.”
Wang Ruohai nodded. Went into the shop with Lu Qing.
I chose a seat by the window and sat down, and a boy came over quickly. "Two distinguished guests, what are you going to eat? What kind of wine are you using?"
Lu Qing said: "Your shop is newly opened, I don't know what it has. Bring the menu over here and let's take a look."
The waiter pointed to a bamboo stand next to him and said with a smile: "Isn't this the menu? Sir, our daily dishes are on this."
Lu Qing took a look and saw ten or twenty signs hanging on the bamboo stand, each with the name of the dish written on it. This is the first time I have seen such a menu, which is a bit novel. Looking at the dishes above, there are seven or eight cold dishes, fifteen or sixteen hot dishes, and three to five soups. Except for chicken, duck and fish, the dishes are all seasonal vegetables, which are clearly stir-fried. Stir-frying is rare in this era, but it is the most commonly used technique here.
Lu Qing ordered a few dishes and ordered a pot of wine.
The boy said: "We have two kinds of wine here. One is common rice wine, and the other is strong wine. Which one do you want?"
Lu Qing said: "No strong liquor. Choose your limited wine and have a pot with it, and put the soup in it to heat it up."
The boy agreed and hurried away.
Lu Qing said: "From Ruzhou to Xiangyang Prefecture, and then to Xinye, I see that under Wang Xiaolie's rule, there are quite a few restaurants opened by the government."
Wang Ruohai said: "Look, here in Xinye, he has over 10,000 soldiers. How can it be easy to raise them? It is easiest to make money by opening restaurants. Of course, the more he opens, the better. This is a serious way to make money. Compared with other places, , it’s already rare.”
Lu Qing nodded: "Yes. But judging from his appearance now, I'm afraid he doesn't have much money. When we lived here, we had wine and meat every day, but they were all ordinary dishes. And the food eaten in the army, I heard To say that one meal of meat only lasts five days is considered shabby."
Wang Ruohai nodded. On the first day when they entered the military camp, the two of them had a meal in the cafeteria and were really shocked by how rich it looked. But when I thought about it carefully, I realized that except for the meat in the buns, everything else was meatless. After living there for a long time, I realized that it was rare to see meat for lunch and dinner in the military camp. However, there is a lot of tofu and a lot of oil used in cooking, but the nutrition of the soldiers is still sufficient.
Oil was very cheap at this time, and it was cost-effective for the army to consume more oil. In general, soybeans and corn are basically the same price in the market, which is much cheaper than japonica rice and wheat. After pressing the oil, the remaining soybean meal is good feed, and soybeans are very good food in the army.
After a while, the food arrived. Lu Qing was stunned for a moment and said, "This store is a bit interesting. They cook it quickly like this, which is not found in other places."
Stir-frying techniques are extremely suitable for vegetables, and vegetables are cheap. Most of the dishes in this shop are stir-fried with meat. It looks good, tastes delicious, and is not expensive. In fact, Wang Xiaolie has a certain positioning when opening a store. There are high-end restaurants, noodle restaurants for poor people, and mid-range wine shops like this. Although they overlap with each other, their positioning is clear.
Had two glasses of wine. Wang Ruohai said: "Now that Miao and Liu are rebelling, the world will inevitably be in chaos. Looking at Wang Xiaolie now, we can roughly infer the thoughts of people with soldiers and horses in the world. Look at Wang Xiaolie's style, although he respects the court, but things He makes his own decisions, regardless of the imperial court's will. How can other people who have soldiers and horses occupy the place not do the same? This chaos must be settled quickly. "
Lu Qing sighed: "Yeah, things like this make people feel anxious. But I think Miao and Liu don't have many soldiers. After the rebellion, soldiers and horses from all sides will inevitably attack, and they won't be able to last long."
Wang Ruohai nodded, not knowing what to say for a moment. With the Miao and Liu troops, there is really no need to worry too much. It's just that the emperor is in their hands, adding countless variables. Thinking of this, I feel very upset.
After finishing the wine and meat, the two of them left the wine shop and entered the Xinye Yamen.
Wang Xiaolie was coming out of the official hall. When he saw the two of them, he hurriedly summoned them and invited them into the official hall.
Several people sat down. Wang Xiaolie said: "I have just received news that Xianggong Lu and Xianggong Zhang are in charge of Pingjiang, and a large army has gathered. It is said that there are three generals, Liu Taiwei, Zhang Taiwei and Han Taiwei, each with more than 10,000 troops, who are crusading against the rebels. .”
Wang Ruohai said: "We are far away from each other. Is the news accurate?"
Wang Xiaolie nodded: "This is an official document sent by other state armies. I think it's not fake. In my opinion, Miao Fu and Liu Zhengyan don't have many soldiers and horses, and the courtiers are disobedient. They can't stabilize the court situation." Yes. Now that the army has gathered, we probably won’t be able to sustain it for long.”
Wang Ruohai said: "The troublesome thing now is that they control the life and death of the Holy One, and it is inevitable that people will take advantage of them. If not, what is there to worry about? The surrounding armies will swarm up, and they will be put down quickly."
Wang Xiaolie said: "Prison Court, it's been so long, and I haven't heard that Miao and Liu want to become a saint? In my opinion, there is no need to worry too much about this matter. I think Miao and Liu made it temporarily, and there was no intention. What long-term plans?”
Wang Ruohai thought for a while and nodded. Indeed, the behavior of Miao Fu and Liu Zhengyan after the rebellion gave the impression that they were a grassroots team, doing things completely disorganized. In this situation, facing the surrounding ministers and generals of the Song Dynasty, there was no hope of victory.
Wang Xiaolie said: "Yesterday, Ji Sheren sent a letter saying that considering the current situation, it is not suitable to stay in Xiangyang. I want you two to go to Xiangyang Mansion, and you will decide to stay after discussing it together. From this point of view, Ji Sheren is Want to leave."
Lu Qing said: "It's not a bad idea to leave. But where are we going? To Yangzhou? Or Hangzhou?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "It's better than this. You take a boat from Xiangyang, enter the Yangtze River first, and then go downstream along the Yangtze River. It won't be long before there will be news from the court. How about deciding where to go at that time?"
Lu Qing smiled bitterly: "Hundreds of soldiers and horses are going nowhere. How can there be such a truth in the world?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "I heard that Chen Xianggong, the deputy envoy to the west of Beijing, is in Ezhou. The people in Jishe want to get there first and then decide where to go."
After hearing this, Wang Ruohai and Lu Qing were shocked. Seeing that Wang Xiaolie's expression remained as usual, he calmed down.
After Wang Xiaolie occupied Xiangyang, the imperial court appointed Chen Qiudao as the deputy transit envoy of South Beijing Road. However, Wang Xiaolie ignored this, and Chen Qiudao felt that he had no soldiers at his disposal, so he stayed in Ezhou and refused to come. There was no result in this matter, so the Miao and Liu mutiny took place.
In the eyes of outsiders, Chen Qiudao's failure to take office was the result of Wang Xiaolie's obstruction. In fact, Wang Xiaolie just ignored it. Chen Qiudao came, just to let him idle and do nothing.
At this time, having soldiers in hand is the most important thing. Without soldiers, no officers are of any use. Many people in the court still haven't changed. Thinking of controlling the place by appointing a few officials is nothing more than a daydream.
