Tadanari Sakai opened the door and window, and was greeted by a commotion, and immediately his nose was filled with rouge and gouache.
"Ayawn——"
After sneezing, he unconsciously waved the air with his hands, as if he could fan it away.
Taking a closer look, there was a layer of frost on the windowsill.
He stretched out his hand, and a little rainwater drifted onto his palm, which was ice-cold and told the end of autumn and the arrival of winter.
"It's only the beginning of October, and winter is about to begin."
With a sigh, Tadashi Sakai closed the window.
In the room, the fire kang is not burning, revealing a shiny black earth color. The most eye-catching thing is a tatami. On it is a gray and white thin quilt, pressed by a wooden table, and there are several Four Books and Five Classics, as well as
Essays.
"It's time to burn the kang."
He took off his clogs and put on his stockings unaccustomedly. Only then did he realize that he had a hole in his thumb and was wearing a toe hook: "I have to change my socks."
He put on the thick-soled cloth shoes, weighed them a few times, took them off again, and put on a new pair of cloth boots, which were patched with a layer of wool, which was quite warm.
He took the trousers from the hanger and put on his long robe and sweatshirt. If he hadn't been a little shorter, who would have known that he was Japanese?
After the Ming Emperor consecrated the shogun as the king of Japan and formulated three major regulations: trade, tribute, and military support (sharing half of the military expenses of the Ryukyu Navy), Japan felt ashamed.
Although the national policy of seclusion has not wavered, the idea of sending Tang envoys to the Ming Dynasty has become more and more important.
Last year, about thirty people including him came to study at the Imperial Academy of the Ming Dynasty with all their relatives and vassals.
The Ming Dynasty was indispensable, and the Imperial College also welcomed him.
Therefore, students like him who are also supervisors are qualified to take part in the examination.
Sakai Tadashi was the grandson of Sakai Tadakatsu. After there was no possibility of inheriting the Kawagoe Domain, it was better to come to Beijing than to guard a few hundred stone fiefdom.
If you pass the Jinshi examination and stay in the Ming Dynasty, you will have a bright official career, and once you return to China, you can expect to become a senior citizen.
Likewise, he couldn't stand the poverty in the Imperial College, so he rented a courtyard outside, with two personal attendants following him, and he lived a decent life.
Since it was near the Imperial College, there were naturally many brothels, and the smell of rouge in the air could not be removed no matter what.
At this time, a waiter rolled up his sleeves and carried two large boxes of lunch boxes on his shoulders. They were eight stories high and three feet high.
It was wrapped in a circle of cotton cloth, and only a little bit of the face was revealed. I knew it was a lunch box, but those who didn't know it thought it was a big lantern!
"Sir, the meal you ordered has arrived."
"Sir, breakfast is ready."
At this time, a short man walked out of the yard and hurriedly bowed and said: "Thank you for your hard work."
"You're too polite." The waiter was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly and said, "You seem so young and ignorant."
The man took the lunch box and saw a bowl of lean meat porridge, a big bun, a bowl of soy milk, and four gray-black steamed buns next to it.
"No matter what, you are really amazing."
"No, this is how we eat."
As he spoke, the man arranged a row of copper coins, and finally counted out one copper round and added five more copper coins.
"That's enough. Please go back quickly to avoid getting cold. I'll pick up the lunch box later."
The man smiled and nodded, shouldered the heavy burden again, and left in three steps and two steps.
The man picked up the lunch box, took out four fist-sized steamed buns, stuffed two into his chest, then walked to the room and gave the two steamed buns to the two who were busy settling accounts.
Here, as soon as Tadashi Sakai changed his clothes, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in--"
The man wearing a servant's uniform walked in with a dinner plate.
Tadashi Sakai took a look and saw the same thing:
Yellow and white meat buns, soy milk, white rice porridge.
A small dish of pickles, radish and beans.
"In Japan, I'm afraid the feudal lord can only do this!"
Tadanari Sakai sighed.
He picked up the soy milk and took a sip. The sweetness poured into his mouth, making people drink it up unconsciously, leaving endless aftertaste.
Licking the remaining soy milk on his lips, Tadashi Sakai asked: "Why did you add sugar?"
The young man said: "Sir, sugar has become cheaper recently. It used to cost three pennies to add sugar, but now it only costs two pennies."
"You have been studying hard day and night and have exhausted your energy. It would be better to add some sugar to replenish your energy."
"I see."
Tadashi Sakai agreed with his opinion, then picked up the bun with a taiko, took a big bite, finished the meat filling, then put the skin into the porridge, stirred it and ate it.
Every now and then I would say, "It's delicious."
"Zhao's steamed buns are really good, and the soy milk is also good."
Tadanari Sakai patted his belly and said with a smile: "You can't go wrong when you go to buy from him."
The young man said helplessly: "Sir, Zhao's steamed buns are good, but each one costs three cents, which is one cent more expensive than ordinary people."
"It's delicious, no matter what you do."
Tadanari Sakai waved his hands and said.
At this time, another young man came over with an abacus and account book in one hand and a steamed bun in his mouth: "Sir, if you spend so much, we may not be able to stay for a few days."
"I brought 300 taels of gold, which is equivalent to 3,000 silver dollars. How could it not be enough?"
Tadanari Sakai did not doubt that the two of them were stealing, but he felt that they were deliberately trying to save themselves.
"Sir, you rent the yard. Since it's close to the Imperial College, it's only twenty yuan a year. We're not good at Tang food, so you buy food every now and then."
"In just one and a half years, I spent two thousand yuan on books, wine, poetry gatherings, and food."
"There's no rush." Tadashi Sakai heard that there was still one thousand yuan left, and he immediately breathed a sigh of relief: "Next April, it's spring, and a certain high school student will be named on the gold list."
Xiao Xing hesitated for a while: "What if..."
"If you fail the test, then take the test again."
Sakai Tadanari gritted his teeth and said: "Ask my father to send another three hundred taels of gold..."
The two little surnames almost broke through.
After breakfast, Tadanari Sakai walked out slowly.
Xiao Xing followed behind, carrying a basket containing a change of clothes.
Even though I have been in Daming for more than a year, I am still not used to the bustling streets.
They were selling candied haws, pruning and sharpening their kitchen knives, and there were countless peddlers and lackeys.
The shops facing the street are packed with goods and a dazzling array of goods, making people immersed in them unconsciously and unable to extricate themselves.
Tadashi Sakai stopped in a clothing store: "Winter is coming, so I have to make a custom-made cotton coat."
Step inside.
Pieces of clothes, from the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter, men, women, old and young, seven kinds of red, white, blue, green, flowers, gray and black, all kinds of different, dazzling to see.
The tailor asked if it was a winter coat, so he picked up a ruler and measured it.
After tossing it up and down, he said: "There are three types of cotton in the store, low-grade ordinary black cotton, and ordinary cotton, which is bulkier but still warm. Three pieces of clothing, trousers, and hat only cost five silver cents."
"The medium is snow-white silk cotton, fine Songjiang cotton, Tianjin cloth, and two silver coins."
"The top quality is also Songjiang cotton, with Suzhou silk satin and Su embroidery on the surface, but there is an extra layer of wool inside, which is very warm. It only costs three silver coins."
Sakai Tadanari naturally knew the quality of Suzhou silk and satin, so he immediately put down a deposit and asked it to be finished and delivered to his residence.
Later, I passed by a mutton restaurant and put pieces of mutton into the hot pot. I was salivating. I had just filled my stomach and suddenly felt hungry.
"Man, I'll send you two pounds of mutton at noon..."
After shouting, Tadanari Sakai walked away with lazy steps.
Turn left and right and come to an alley.
Here, there are more people from all walks of life.
After walking straight for thirty or fifty steps, a cover pierced my eyes:
bath.
It's almost half a man long and is particularly eye-catching.
This is a bath house. Beijing is a densely populated city and some people cannot live within three feet of each other. Bathing is a problem for ordinary people.
Therefore, a large number of bathhouses, also called huntang, and body wash rooms came into being.
"Walk!"
Tadanari Sakai stepped in directly, and Xiao Xing followed quickly.
Stepping into the bathhouse, a wave of heat hits your face, blinding your eyes.
At the entrance, there is a large square grid made of white stone, divided into several grids.
The water in the big grid is hotter, and there are the most people there. The gray and black figures are densely packed, and most of them are ordinary people from the lower class, who only have one article at a time.
The heat was boiling, and there were waiters on the side who were heating the soup from time to time, which seemed to be able to scald a person's skin, which was the ultimate relief.
The medium grid is second, suitable for scholars and teenagers; the small grid is warmer, suitable for children.
However, Sakai Tadanari didn't want to take a mixed bath here, so he turned a corner and climbed up the stairs.
Sure enough, if you lift the curtain, you will find bathrooms one after another.
On the room, there are wooden signs hanging one after another: peony, chrysanthemum, jasmine, autumn orchid, deer onion, tuberose, water wood, plain sound, red banana, etc., to name but a few.
Although the bathing pools are not big, they are separated by several feet, just like small houses, providing great privacy.
Naturally, the sound insulation effect is just that.
This kind of business is done by scholars and small business owners who pay attention to privacy and cleanliness.
"Sir, what do you want from my various flower baths?"
The waiter wore a single coat, opened his heart, and was extremely respectful.
"Chrysanthemum!"
Sakai Nakage thought for a moment and then made a decision.
The young man had no choice but to take out a silver coin from his arms, feeling heartbroken.
Entering the chrysanthemum bath, the room is not big, just a small square made of white stone, with a wooden stopper blocking the end to prevent water from flowing out.
There is a lounge chair and a bench next to it.
Soon, two guys came carrying two large buckets of water, and the heat wave rolled in.
The water quickly filled halfway.
At this time, he brought two more small buckets, one with hot water and one with cold water, and also added a pot of chrysanthemum petals, which could be sprinkled directly into the bath.
The waiter asked respectfully: "Do you want to eat? I have osmanthus cake, water chestnut cake, kidney bean rolls, fried chestnuts, cut cake..."
"No, I just finished eating."
"What about picking out the ears and trimming the armor?"
"Let's get a set!"
"okay."
Half an hour passed in a blink of an eye, and Tadanari Sakai, who felt comfortable all over, shook his head and said, "Although the hot springs are good, they are not as good as our hot springs."
"However, the Ming Dynasty is so good that it makes people forget about Shu. I really hope I can pass the Jinshi examination and stay in the capital."
Xiao Xing fell silent.
As soon as he left the alley, Tadashi Sakai's nose was filled with the smell of mutton.
"Okay, my nose has suffered again."
He felt helpless, and when he took a closer look, he saw a group of Tatars wearing Mongolian robes, exuding a strong smell of sheep mutton and stinky sweat, coming forward in a gurgling manner.
At a rough count, there were two to three hundred of them, crowding the alley.
There are actually not many Tatars in Beijing.
Every year in Suiyuan and Chahar, an unknown number of Mongolian nobles went to the capital to pay homage to the emperor and receive rewards.
Those great nobles were even given mansions and allowed to stay in the capital for a long time.
But it is rare for people to come to the bathing room with such great fanfare and crowds.
He couldn't help but stand outside, a few steps away, and stayed there to watch the excitement.
The poor bathers in the lobby immediately covered their noses, extremely dissatisfied, and absolutely did not want to take a bath with the Tatars.
The steward of the bathhouse came out, covered his nose and said, "Although all the people coming and going are customers, the shop is small and full of customers. You should look for somewhere else!"
Before the Mongolian man could say anything, a man in his thirties walked out. He was wearing a sapphire blue satin and deerskin boots. As soon as he stood up, he intimidated the steward.
With such a noble air exuding, the steward immediately knew that he couldn't afford to offend him, so he hurriedly bent over and said, "I wonder what you have done for me?"
"I am a clerk in the palace of the King of Liao. These big men are the distinguished guests of the King of Liao, so they are here to freshen up."
Before the steward could say anything, the man took out his money bag and directly poured out ten silver coins:
"I know you are a wealthy person, so I've taken care of it now. I'll let these big men scrub and take care of you!"
"Yes, yes!" The steward trembled all over and hurriedly responded.
When the unmarried men heard that it was the King of Liao, they hurriedly wiped it clean, picked up their clothes and ran away.
In the blink of an eye, the huge bathhouse was empty.
These Mongolians all rushed into the bathhouse, taking off their clothes and washing them, regardless of how dirty they were.
The steward hurriedly greeted me, asked people to change the water and soup, and was busy.
Sakai Tadanari was stunned: "Why did the King of Liao recruit so many Tatars?"
He knew very well about the King of Liao.
The fourth son of the emperor was granted the title of Western Region.
Because he likes to hang out in the streets, brothels and restaurants, he has gained a huge reputation and is even more famous than the Crown Prince among the people of Beijing.
Here, the King of Liao settled this group of Mongolians and couldn't wait to get acquainted with them before heading to the palace.
Mid-September is the annual Naadam Conference in Chahar, known as the Mongolian imperial examination, so naturally he cannot miss it.
"Your Highness——"
When Liu Afu saw the King of Liao, he showed a slight smile: "Come quickly, slave, your Majesty is waiting for you!"
"Father, are you waiting for me?"
The King of Liao was stunned and walked faster.
When he arrived, he saw the emperor waiting for him.
While eating hotpot mutton, petting the dog, I was waiting for him.
"sit."
The emperor rubbed the dog's head and said casually: "This dog is the smartest among the fifth generation."
The King of Liao took a closer look and saw that the dog had yellow hair and bright eyes. It was sitting on the ground and allowed the emperor to stroke its head. It was very well-behaved.
He knew that the dog's grandfather was an old dog that accompanied the emperor when he was in Xi'an. When the emperor established the shogunate in Huguang, he did not forget to give it a harem, with more than twenty bitches serving it.
Although he died in the eighth year of Shaowu, his descendants continue to work in the imperial city for generations and become part of the bodyguard department.
Beautiful clothes and fine food.
It vividly explains what it means for chickens and dogs to ascend to heaven, and I don’t know how many people want to replace it with their own lives.
"By the way, you went to Chahar this time. How did you feel?"