As a result, Taishi Ge, who had a great appetite, destroyed half the pot of fish in a copper pot by himself.
As for the remaining half, Zhang Shou ate more than half, and the two young students from Cangzhou ate the other half. Moreover, compared to Zhang Shou, who always looked as usual, Ge Ge, who was very spicy but ate happily
Yong, the two of them were in tears. Fortunately, there were spicy soup and vegetarian dishes on the side, otherwise they would not have known how to continue.
But the guest who started to comment boldly smelled the unusual fragrance on the nearby table, so he boldly stood up and took a look at the fish in the copper pot on Zhang Shou's table, and then called the shopkeeper over.
He questioned, and when he learned that a spice called chili pepper from overseas was added to the copper pot, he suddenly felt a little dismayed.
But he endured it again and again, and when he saw that Zhang Shou and Ge Yong's dishes were all messed up, and they had obviously finished eating, he thought that the teacher and student were approachable and had no airs, so he mustered up the courage to step forward and bow his hands.
"Master Ge, Dr. Zhang, I dare to ask you what the strange overseas spices in your copper pot are..."
Before Zhang Shou left, he asked Zhu Er and others to plant the peppers as soon as possible. He planned to make some noise on the way back to Beijing, just like asking Xu Ba to sell rice noodles with peppers on the Cangzhou Pier. So, at this time, he saw someone coming.
He didn't find it strange at all when I asked, and of course he was very happy to answer.
"Those are chili peppers from overseas. I got them from an old sea merchant. Although they are rare, they are now being tested. They not only season the peppers, but also remove moisture. They are most suitable for seasoning hot pots."
Hearing what Zhang Shou said, the fast-talking guest immediately showed a more curious expression: "Chili pepper? There is only one word difference with our Sichuan peppercorn pepper. Is it because the taste is similar, that's why they have similar names?"
"There is indeed some similarity." Zhang Shou felt that this person was quite smart because of the association with the word "pepper". He immediately nodded and said, "Pepper is pungent, hot and dry, while Sichuan pepper is warm and dispels cold. Chili pepper dispels cold and stops cold."
They all have their own effects, but the taste is that pepper is mild, Sichuan peppercorns are numbing, and pepper is the real spiciness. And adding it when cooking has a finishing touch."
He said with a smile: "When I was in Cangzhou before, I once asked a rice noodle vendor on the pier to make rice noodles. Although it is just a southern snack, I added a few drops of sesame oil soaked in chili peppers.
The taste is just so different..."
If you ask a foodie to describe delicious food, you are definitely looking for the right person. What's more, Zhang Shou can not only eat it, but also cook it. Not only did he describe the indescribable seasoning effect of peppers, he also mentioned potatoes, peanuts, corn,
Pumpkins, tomatoes... crops that no one knew about before turned into dishes in his mouth. In the end, more than one person was salivating.
Just when the meal turned into Zhang Shou's food promotion meeting - but everyone was listening but not eating, a voice suddenly came from outside again: "Excuse me, where do Master Ge and Dr. Zhang live?"
As soon as he heard this voice, not to mention Zhang Shou's brows slightly frowning, even the shopkeeper immediately darkened his face. Thinking that Mr. Jiangge on the other side of Luheyi was still trying his best to pull his guests over, this
The latest generation head of a century-old shop was very unhappy. However, as the owner of this place, he had to rush to the door like a gust of wind.
However, he had just admitted to people that Zhang Shou and Ge Yong lived in his place, and before he could find an excuse to evade the visitor, he saw the middle-aged man who was coming down immediately pushed him away, and then strode straight in.
He went in. At that moment, he was in a daze. When he came to his senses, he couldn't help but have the urge to shout that there was an assassin.
Who made that reckless guy almost lose his balance and fall to the ground!
Zhang Shou was also startled by the guy who rushed in. Because just from the first impression, he felt that it was definitely impossible to be a servant of the Jiang family. Even if he was from a wealthy family
Servants can also wear silk, but at least the shape is different. And when he was trying to figure out where the visitor came from, Ah Liu had already blocked the visitor with a quick step.
This time, without waiting for Ah Liu to make further moves, the uninvited guest knelt down with a plop: "Master Ge, Dr. Zhang, Quanzi is young and ignorant, and he made a big mistake in a moment of confusion. Please forgive me for not caring about the faults of the villain."
Let’s take this trip!”
What's going on? Where is this all going?
Zhang Shou raised his eyebrows in surprise. The person who came was not the Jiang family, but someone who came to beg them to let their son go. This style of painting was really unexpected. He thought that Mr. Jiang Ge would run away in person with humility and forbearance.
Come over and give up the house, ask him and Ge Yong to come back and live there, and then establish a good image of the glorious and tall Zhishi Pavilion to the outside world!
At this moment, he glanced at Ge Yong inexplicably and decided happily that the teacher was here and he would just pretend to be mute.
Ge Yong, who was called by someone, was completely upset. He stared at the person for a long time, and then said in a deep voice: "Ah Liu, help the person up, I hate people who kneel on the ground for nothing! This
Who are they? He just ran in and didn’t even tell me his name, but asked me to spare his son... Who knows who his son is!"
Hearing Ge Yong's words, Ah Liu immediately stepped forward without thinking and pulled up the middle-aged man who was lying on the ground. But the middle-aged man struggled to free himself twice, so he hurriedly said loudly: "I'm here, official."
Huang Xian, the magistrate of Hejian, was ignorant and arrogant. He first offended the daughter of the Duke of Zhao, and then caused trouble in Cangzhou, collaborating to cause trouble. All of these were caused by his failure to discipline him, and he deserves death!"
Only then did Zhang Shou remember that Mr. Huang and Mr. Bi were sent directly to the capital in two carriages by Zhu Tingfang, and he couldn't help but thoughtfully look at the middle-aged man in front of him who claimed to be the prefect of Hejian.
It has to be said that because he raised such a stupid son, and because the stupid son also claimed to have eight thousand yuan in money, his first impression of the Hejian magistrate was that of a corrupt official who had no way of educating his son.
And such corrupt officials are generally shameless and have the temperament of abandoning soldiers to save cars. In his opinion, he first blames everything on his son and then claims that he has no way to teach his son. That is the way he should behave.
Even the son's crimes should be avoided, but at this time Huang Xian, the prefect of Hejian, readily admitted his son's two biggest crimes and came to beg them to spare them.
Therefore, he hesitated for a moment and finally decided to remain silent. With the teacher here, how could he say that he would never be lenient or to be tolerant?
Sure enough, Ge Yong sneered and said: "Since you know that your son has violated the national law, why are you still making trouble? Do you think that asking for mercy can save him from punishment? You know what bastard things he did in Cangzhou! Actually
You also sent that Master Bi to lobby the big merchants and get them to band together to falsely accuse the imperial envoy? You are not incapable of discipline, you are a compulsive person who broke the law!"
"I don't dare. I just asked him to travel. I didn't expect him to be so arrogant and bold. He was spoiled by me and his mother!" Huang Kuan, the prefect of Hejian, was talking with tears streaming down his face.
"His mother has doted on him since he was a child. I was busy with official duties and didn't control him much. As a result, he was neither good at literature nor military, but he thought he was right..."
The dignified fourth-grade magistrate was fighting for the ground with his head, crying unbelievably sadly.
"Xiaguan has been poor since he was a child, and his wife was just the daughter of a poor scholar. Therefore, after we had a son, we recalled the difficult years in the past, and my wife said that we must not let our children endure such hardships, so we had two sons and one daughter.
From the time they became sensible, the officials and concubines have all tried their best to give them the best and have worked hard to raise them rich."
Faced with such an explanation, Ge Yong, a typical person who let go of his children and grandchildren, was suddenly surprised, while Zhang Shou... had a sense of seeing the wealthy parents of later generations! This time, Ge Yong did not speak.
He asked calmly: "How dare I ask Huang Fuzun, your young son is rich when he goes out to travel, is it given by your parents?"
And the answer he heard once again overturned his understanding of the Hejian magistrate as just a corrupt official - this guy is indeed a bit greedy, but it has to be said that even if a person is really a bit greedy, his behavior is a bit different from ordinary corrupt officials.
"Yes, to be honest with you two, my subordinates and my wife were afraid of poverty, so they tried every means to make money after becoming officials."
Magistrate Huang took out a handkerchief and wiped his eyes and nose with all his strength, and said pitifully: "Xiaguan passed the top three Jinshi examinations. After studying in the imperial court, he was released as a county magistrate. It was a major grain-producing county, and he couldn't defeat his wife.
Desperate for money, and with the local grain merchants having a good year and suppressing grain prices, my wife sent people to take over a grain store that was about to close down, and every time the harvest came, she would pay an extra five cents per bushel to collect the grain."
"Because children are innocent... In fact, the main reason is that the price is a little higher, and with the support of my parents and officials, this food store finally gained a firm foothold. Later..." He hesitated a little as he spoke, and it took a while before he seemed to have some trouble.
He said with a guilty conscience, "Later, other big households and grain companies couldn't stand it anymore and they all started to fight back, so my wife... my wife's methods became much more ruthless..."
Perhaps because he knew that he would not be able to become a magistrate and would most likely be convicted; perhaps because he wanted to explain where the eight thousand yuan notes his son was carrying came from, although Magistrate Huang was a little hesitant
Yu, but still explained clearly the history of his family's fortune.
It's nothing more than that whatever he does as an official, he does whatever he can with his wife's business - every time he is in office, he wins over one faction and suppresses the other. Before leaving office, he never forgets to build a good relationship with the person who takes over. Some of them are attached to it.
A certain amount of benefits were given as gifts, and some direct properties were half sold and half given away. Although it cannot be said that one has earned a fortune after being an official for more than ten years, he has actually earned a wealth that is far better than a well-off one.
The Huang family, which was once impoverished, now has a farm, a shop, and a working capital of thirty to fifty thousand guan. The money placed in the bank these days should be regarded as working capital in Zhang Shou's opinion. So, for the first time in his younger son's life,
When they went on a trip, Mrs. Huang, who was used to doting on her son, let go of her hand and gave her youngest son a wad of money.
As for Magistrate Huang, when he learned about this situation, his youngest son had been gone for more than a month! When he questioned his wife, she even said something to him plausibly - the child has no money, so he has to learn
bad!
When Zhang Shou heard this argument, his first reaction was that the parents of Xiong, who pampered their children to the point of ignorance, put a wad of money in their hands when they were letting their children go on a long journey, and then taught them earnestly that there is money in their pockets.
Who am I to be afraid of? When trouble comes, I rely on money to clear the way. So, the naughty child really thinks that I am the richest in the world, and goes all the way arrogantly.
The biggest problem is that Mr. Huang's age... he really can't be considered a child!
After finishing a lot of long words, Magistrate Huang wiped his tears and said: "Now that the evil son has caused such a big disaster, the official has already apologized to the court and is now going to the capital to await punishment. The official knows that he used to be in office
It is inevitable that someone will turn over old accounts, so rather than hiding them, it is better to be honest and frank."
"The taxes that should be collected by the subordinates were not one penny less than that of the imperial court, nor were they collected by one penny more. The subordinate officials were diligent in the punishments and prisons that were deducted. The subordinate officials dared to swear to the sky and handed over the accounts to their subordinates.
Everything is clean and clear. There has never been an unjust case while I am in office. This can withstand investigation. If there is even the slightest bit of falsehood, I am willing to be punished by the national law!"
"Besides, building roads, building bridges and ditches, caring for the elderly, helping the poor, caring for the orphans and the disabled, really everything a lower official should do. A lower official should never use his position to do business and make money, and pamper his son to the point of being...
...No, I pampered him to the point of being lawless and daring. I will plead guilty for him. I just ask Taishi Ge and Dr. Zhang to take a little lenient sentence for the sake of his youth and ignorance."
He didn't seem to care at all about the onlookers, as well as the shopkeeper and waiters who were already stunned. He kowtowed heavily, and then said with a sudden change of heart: "It doesn't matter if I beat him with dozens of sticks or banish him for thousands of miles.
Please spare his life!"
It wasn't until this moment that Zhang Shoufang felt a ridiculous emotion. He winked at Ah Liu, and when he saw the young man immediately stepped forward and dragged Magistrate Huang up, he asked with a subtle expression:
"Who said your son would die?"
Magistrate Huang was pulled up from the ground by Ah Liu with a dazed expression on his face. He subconsciously opened his mouth and said, "Didn't even Changlu County Magistrate Xu Cheng be beheaded?"
Listening to what this guy said just now, he has been an official for many years and his political achievements are not bad, so why is he so stupid? Zhang Shou was almost dumbfounded because Xu Cheng, the magistrate of Changlu County, was cut off, so he felt that he was a troublemaker.
The youngest son who caused a huge disaster will also be beheaded? This idea is too far-fetched, right?
However, maybe the other party felt that Zhu Tingfang dared to kill even the imperial officials, and that Mr. Huang who offended Zhu Ying and then plotted against his husband and uncle would definitely not let go?
Ge Yong, who was also enjoying the taste, finally couldn't help but smile and said: "The state has national laws and the family has family rules. If your son deserves to die, no one can save him. If your son doesn't die, he won't die because of it."
Other people's likes and dislikes are life-threatening. It's quite interesting that you exposed such a lot in public and are not afraid of spreading the word."
"But I'm curious, how did you find this?"
Faced with Taishi Ge's question, Magistrate Huang hesitated for a moment, and then whispered: "Everyone in Tongzhou knows that Mr. Jiangge has occupied the entire courtyard of Luheyi, leaving you and Dr. Zhang without a place to live.