Chapter 1186 Postscript Forty-Two The Sword of Tangxi
Chapter 1186 Postscript 42·The Sword of Tangxi
The eldest princess was in a cheerful mood. She took Xie Yan on a tour of the gardens and even acted as a guest tour guide:
"This house was built in the pre-Song Dynasty. It initially occupied an entire square, about 400 acres. It was later confiscated by the government, and by the end of the Song Dynasty it was abandoned. Daily maintenance cost a large sum of money. At the prefectural and county levels,
The government is not willing to pay."
"After the Ming Dynasty moved its capital to Luoyang, Emperor Taizong demolished about fifty acres and sold it to merchants to build street shops. The remaining house was divided into two, and after being renovated, it was given to the two founding princes."
"The descendants of Prince Zhang demolished several shops. They also occupied the backyards of several shops, leaving only a front shop for others. They gradually expanded the property to two hundred acres."
"The garden has also been renovated."
"The gardens of the former Song Dynasty were too simple and not as exquisite as they are now. The essence lies in the form, the word "yi", if it is a pavilion, it will be a pavilion, and if it is a pavilion, it will be a pavilion. It may as well be off the track and place it in a gentle way. As the saying goes, "the garden is refined and appropriate, and the body is appropriate." The skill lies in
Because, borrow two words, follow the trend..."
Xie Yan listened carefully, he really understood.
The eldest princess was talking about garden design. Xie Yan understood it after listening to it only once. But understanding is one thing, and practicing it is another.
Just like those senior fans, they can speak eloquently when watching the game. But if these fans are allowed to be coaches and direct the players on how to play, one of them will be blinded.
"This waterside pavilion used to be called Lotus Viewing Terrace, but I changed its name to Li Xue Pavilion. Viewing lotuses in summer is certainly pleasing to the eye, but standing in snow in winter is even more interesting."
"The hill in front is built artificially. I often read and play the piano in the pavilion above. Maple trees are planted around the pavilion, which makes it really beautiful in autumn. So the pavilion is called Hanqiu Pavilion."
"This small bridge is called Suoyue Bridge. When the moon is extremely bright in the sky, it can be reflected under the bridge hole, as if it is locked by the water of the small bridge..."
Xie Yan lacked vocabulary in his mind, and only six words came over and over in his mind: good-looking, good-sounding, awesome.
After walking for a while, the eldest princess felt a little tired, so she chose a covered bridge to sit down.
The eldest princess asked: "Besides reading, what else does Liulang like to do?"
Xie Yan couldn't say that he loved playing video games, so he just left it there and continued to hide his stupidity: "My family is strict in discipline, and my parents only let me study seriously. Apart from that, I only play chess. I don't know anything about music, horse riding, or gardening.
, I will have to ask Sister Princess to teach me in the future."
What a simple young man.
The eldest princess became more and more satisfied: "It is also a good thing to concentrate on studying. Those casual things can be mastered after being exposed to them a few times, and they are not something worth boasting about. There are many dandies in the homes of the powerful in the capital, so it is difficult for those who can concentrate on their studies.
try to find."
After chatting for a while, Xie Yan asked: "I have known her for many days, but I still don't know the name of the princess sister."
"What do you want to do here?" the eldest princess said with a smile.
Xie Yan said: "Princess sister is so beautiful, her name must be very beautiful too."
The eldest princess's smile became brighter: "My name is not beautiful, but very fierce. It is the name of a sword."
"Which sword?" Xie Yan was very curious.
The eldest princess said: "Tangxi, the first of the nine swords in the world. Have you heard of the other eight swords?"
Xie Yan was very uncertain and said: "General Mo Xie?"
The eldest princess said: "Those are the last two. The ones in front of them are Longquan and Tai'a."
"Sister, this name is both powerful and nice." Xie Yan praised sincerely.
"Hold the Tang River to pruning the bushes, hold the stem to cut the flesh," the eldest princess read "Nine Sighs" from "Songs of the Chu". "These two sentences were originally Qu Yuan's lament that they were not reused, but his father transformed them into other words.
When I was born, my father was in the process of reorganizing the army, and he regarded those young soldiers in the army as small as fluffy grass. With the sword of Tangxi, all the fluffy grass could be eradicated with a wave of his hand."
Xie Yan said with emotion: "The late emperor was truly a hero of his generation."
The eldest princess... will be called Zhu Tangxi from now on.
Zhu Tangxi shook his head gently: "It would be very sad not to talk about this. You said you would cook something delicious for me today."
Although Xie Yan didn't understand "Chu Ci", he knew how to cook a few dishes. He immediately stood up and said, "Then let's go to the kitchen."
Zhu Tangxi said: "If it doesn't taste good, I will punish you."
Xie Yan asked: "What is my sister planning to punish me for?"
Zhu Tangxi thought seriously: "If your cooking is not delicious, you must do something for me. I haven't figured out what to do specifically yet."
"Don't say one thing, as long as my sister tells me, I will do a hundred things without frowning." Xie Yan has already entered the state, treating this as a love game, and his words are becoming more and more eloquent.
Zhu Tangxi was indeed coaxed so happily: "I have written down these words, and I will not regret it."
Xie Yan continued to pretend: "If I go back on my word, I will be a puppy."
Zhu Tangxi laughed out loud with joy: "You are also a Bachelor of Furong after all, so how can you be a puppy? If word spread, you would think I was treating you badly."
Xie Yan patted his chest: "It doesn't matter whether I am a puppy or not, but for the sake of my sister's reputation, I will never regret it."
Zhu Tangxi's smile became even brighter, and his steps became much brisker.
Qingluan and several maids followed behind, listening to the conversation between the two. They were stunned at this moment: Xie Liulang is really good at it. The princess's smile never disappeared after being coaxed! In the past six or seven years,
, the princess’s time to laugh may not be as much as today’s in total.
The emotional value is full.
Xie Yan was also secretly proud. I turned out to be a master of love. Why didn't I use my talent in my previous life? I have been a straight man for so many years. It's too unfair!
Zhu Tangxi gradually arrived at the kitchen with a smile on her face.
The cooks in the princess's home are mainly from Beijing and Henan, and they also specially hired two cooks from Guangzhou and Hangzhou.
Guangzhou cuisine at this time is particularly heavy, especially with a lot of spices. Although some spices have been grown locally, many spices come from overseas. Guangzhou has a good port and spices are cheap.
Especially the coolies at Guangzhou docks need heavy oil and salt to replenish their physical strength. With all kinds of spices added, what's not delicious?
The diet of Guangzhou coolies decades ago is now liked by even some powerful people.
"What ingredients are available today?" Xie Yan asked.
The head chef turned out to be a middle-aged woman. She stepped forward and replied: "His Royal Highness said that Bachelor Xie is coming today, so I have prepared more ingredients. A sheep and a pig have been slaughtered and processed, and there is also a chicken and some fish ready."
Slaughtering. There are also many seasonal fruits and vegetables.”
Xie Yan went to look at various spices. Most of the common spices in later generations were already available in this kitchen.
Seeing dried chili peppers hanging on the wall in the corner, Xie Yan asked, "Does the princess also eat chili peppers?"
The sound of "Princess Sister" made all the cooks look over.
Zhu Tangxi felt everyone's eyes on her. Not only was she not angry, but she felt sweet in her heart: "It's a little spicy."
The cook said: "There are three kinds of chili peppers in Beijing, and this one is the least spicy."
During the evolution of chili peppers in the United States, the spiciness was high in places with a lot of rainfall. The spiciness was low in places with little rainfall.
This is caused by the natural environment.
For plants, producing capsaicin interferes with their ability to retain water and reduces the number of seeds they produce in dry weather. It also consumes some energy, preventing them from producing enough wood in their seed coats, making them more susceptible to insects.
Food.
It is also related to fungi. In environments with high rainfall, fungi grow more vigorously, and peppers need to produce more capsaicin to resist it.
Over time, different varieties were formed.
"Is the one I haven't killed yet a rooster or a hen?" Xie Yan asked.
The cook replied: "It's a sacrificial chicken (capon)."
"Alright."
Xie Yan began to give instructions: "Kill the chickens. Wash the pot and light a small fire."
Xie Yan picked out some spices and asked the cooks to wash them.
When the pot is heated over low heat, pour various spices into the pot to dry out the water from the previous cleaning. Then pour in the chili peppers and bake them until they are dry and crispy.
Xie Yan picked out the spices that needed to be powdered: "Crush these into powder."
While the cooks were busy, Xie Yan started cooking vegetable oil again.
He put various spices into a basin. When the temperature of the oil gradually increased, he scooped up the hot oil and poured it into the spices.
Spicy!
A strong aroma hit her nostrils, and even the princess took a deep breath, while the cooks looked even more surprised.
There are a lot of customers ordering Sichuan food from takeout. This food is not easy to overturn, and no matter how bad it tastes, it doesn't taste bad, so both stores and customers like it.
While Xie Yan was waiting for the meal to be served, he saw that the chef cooked the most Sichuan food.
Xie Yan found that there was only sesame oil here, but no ready-made scallion oil and peppercorn oil, so he continued to refine these two.
When he heard that the chicken was ready, he asked the cook to throw it into the pot and cook it, and added many spices to it.
Then let the cooks chop green onions and minced ginger and garlic.
Zhu Tangxi was watching intently when Qingluan came to her side: "I never thought Xie Liulang was really good at cooking."
"After all, it's a small road, and a gentleman stays far away from the kitchen." When Zhu Tangxi said this, there was still a faint smile on his face, and you could tell at a glance that he didn't mean what he said.
Seeing Xie Yan continuing to work, Zhu Tangxi called the cook over: "Have you seen these things before?"
The cook said: "I know how to make scallion oil and pepper oil, but this is the first time I have seen adding many spices to make chili oil. This method does not require tasting, just smelling it will increase your appetite."
Qingluan smiled and said: "If Bachelor Xie doesn't study knowledge, he will become a famous chef instead."
Xie Yan asked: "Does my sister have any ice cubes at home?"
Zhu Tangxi said: "Yes."
Xie Yan ordered his servants to go to the ice cellar to get ice, and asked the cooks to prepare some cold water: "Sister, let's go out first, this chicken will be cooked for a while."
As soon as they left, the cooks got busy again. They couldn't just eat this one dish.
After waiting for a long time, the chicken is almost cooked.
Xie Yan came back and pierced it with chopsticks, picked up the chicken and threw it into ice water to make the meat firmer and more chewy.
After it had probably cooled down, Xie Yan said to the cook: "Tear the chicken into long shreds. Just the chicken legs, and you can eat the rest."
A plate of spicy shredded chicken was quickly mixed.
Xie Yan took it out very elegantly: "Sister, please taste the delicious food."
Zhu Tangxi picked up a piece, raised his sleeves to cover his mouth, and his eyes lit up as soon as he put it in his mouth.
"How does it taste?" Xie Yan asked.
Zhu Tangxi said: "You don't have to be a puppy anymore."
Xie Yan also picked up a pair of chopsticks and ate happily.
Now that we’ve made the spicy shredded chicken, it’s time to discuss the joint venture of a cement factory.