Dongdong looked at both dishes and chose shrimp.
The shrimps, which were not cooked for a long time, were actually very tender. The shrimp shells were a little crispy because they were drizzled with hot oil, but the shrimp meat was extremely tender. When he took a bite, the spicy flavor blended with the oil immediately stimulated the tip of his tongue, making his tongue tremble and he swallowed his saliva.
Then taste the food in your mouth.
The shrimp meat itself is not spicy, and the spiciness is more close to the skin. After being marinated, the shrimp meat has a salty taste, and it has its own salty taste. Coupled with the taste, Dongdong "crunches" a few times and eats the shrimp shell directly.
Xiao Pingsong prefers fish, so he took the lead and picked up a piece of fish.
Compared to shrimp, the taste of fish is a little stronger. Without the obstruction of shrimp shell, the spicy taste is all over the fish. The fish slices are thin but not loose. Shake off the seasoning on it, and the taste in your mouth is spicy, salty and fragrant!
Very flavorful!
What follows is the feeling of the tender fish meat rubbing between your lips and teeth, tender, smooth and fresh!
No step is perfect!
Zhou Zhaoheng followed Dongdong and got used to the strong flavors. He adapted to it very well and even ate so much that he didn't even want to look up.
In fact, I am quite happy in the Xiao family.
At least now, when he ate, he temporarily forgot the pain of parting with his parents.
So delicious!
The only one who ate slowly was Wan'er. After two bites, she couldn't adapt to the spicy taste. She has always had a light taste. The third lady of the Xiao family has become more and more dull in temperament over the years, and she has been raised to be introverted. She has rarely tried new things, and being able to taste a few bites is already her limit.
Seeing this, Yan Qiushu pulled out her favorite mung bean sprouts in winter from the bottom of the bowl.
Most of these dishes use soybean sprouts, but it’s just a matter of taste. She always feels that soybean sprouts are too old, while mung bean sprouts are tender and lack the hard texture of soybeans, so when she makes them herself, she will choose mung bean sprouts.
The mung bean sprouts at the bottom of the bowl have been soaked in delicious fish soup and have absorbed the soup. At this time, because they are at the bottom of the bowl, they are also exposed to the spicy and numb chili peppers, but the flavor they carry is obviously much less than that of fish and shrimp.
Mung bean sprouts were placed on a small plate in front of Wan'er.
The little girl first politely thanked Yan Qiushu, and then carefully picked up two pieces and put them in her mouth.
She chewed them carefully, taking small bites. After finishing two, they were not as salty and spicy as before, but still had some flavor, just within her acceptable range. The mung bean sprouts were crispy and refreshing, and she could taste a sweetness as she ate them.
The little girl finished two and picked up two more. She looked at Yan Qiushu with sparkling eyes, pursed her lips into a beautiful arc, and said in a sweet voice, "It's delicious!"
Yan Qiushu smiled like an auntie and quickly picked up some more mung bean sprouts and handed them over: "If you like it, eat more."
Wan'er nodded obediently and ate in small bites.
Yan Qiushu also started eating. The fish fillets were tender and soft, the shrimp meat was refreshing and tender, and the spicy taste was so satisfying and delicious that her appetite was immediately whetted!
The food there is delicious.
The scene in the prince's residence was quite different.
Whenever it rains, even though the weather is much warmer now, there are still many charcoal stoves in the house, which make people so hot that they sweat on their backs even when wearing thin clothes.
Prince Chang was just about to ask someone to move the charcoal stove away.
Princess Chang's eyes reddened, and she whispered, "No! We couldn't use this before, and you were in so much pain. Now we can use it. It's okay to warm it up for a while, otherwise your leg will be in great pain again."
Prince Chang quickly shut up, holding his wife's hand without saying a word.
The injuries on his body were caused by offending the emperor and being beaten. He injured his waist and legs. They did not dare to let him die at that time, so some people came to treat him, but they were not dedicated. Although the imperial physician who was loyal to him came later, he was delayed at that time. The weather was cold and wet when he was injured, and it rained continuously. The place he lived in was not good, so he was soaked in moisture. After he recovered, he felt unbearable pain in such weather.
The two of them lay flat on the bed, staring at the darkness above their heads in silence.
Every time it rains, I never forget the pain.
Now King Chang is also waiting, waiting for the pain to come.
But this time I waited and waited until I fell asleep.
It should have come earlier, but he didn't feel uncomfortable until three o'clock in the morning. At that time, he was still asleep, vaguely feeling the soreness in his waist and legs, but he didn't want to get up.
He didn't wake up until the pain became more and more severe. The temperature in the room was still as high as before. He was sweating due to the heat and pain, but he didn't roll on the ground in pain like he did in the past.
Prince Chang pulled the corners of his lips and gave a bitter smile, but he didn't say a word, so that no one around him knew he was in pain.
It wasn't until the sky gradually brightened, the rain had long stopped, and the humidity in the air became less and less that his pain began to ease.
Prince Chang was able to relax and unwind, closing his eyes and intending to continue sleeping. However, this time, as soon as he closed his eyes, he suddenly opened them again, and he realized something -
The pain level is much lower than the last time I was imprisoned!
The only difference was that he drank the medicine this time, but in fact, he had drunk it before, but he only drank part of it each time. But this time, his son was present, so he drank it all in one gulp.
Could it be that the imperial physician is quite capable? !
That prescription is so effective?
Princess Chang beside her suddenly woke up. She looked at the dim light outside the window, then at the man who hadn't moved at all. She hesitated and said, "My Lord, are you okay?"
"That medicine might be useful. It's still within the tolerable range this time." King Chang replied, feeling a little weak, but far from being as tortured as before.
Princess Chang was so happy that she sat up and said, "That's good. You go to sleep first. I'll go call the imperial physician to ask him about it!"
"It's still early..." Prince Chang also sat up subconsciously.
But he was quickly pressed down by his wife, who smiled and said, "It's okay. I can't sleep now anyway. You can take a nap when the pain stops..."
King Chang smiled helplessly and lay down again in cooperation.
When I woke up again, it was already Si time.
His wife was embroidering on the couch. When she saw him get up, she looked strange: "The imperial physician said that it might be because we used too much charcoal in the stove. His medicine is for conditioning and can relieve the symptoms, but it shouldn't be that effective..."
Prince Chang's eyelids twitched, and he was even more puzzled.
Could it be because... this medicine was made by my son?
That’s not right. Someone sent medicine here before. My son has been sensible since he was young and would take the initiative to help boil the medicine. He has never encountered such a situation.
Prince Chang was completely baffled. The only thing he could think of was that this time he was using poison to fight poison, which made his body too weak, so the effects of these drugs on him were more obvious?
But whether it is true or not, no one can know.
But on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, when the New Year festival was coming to an end, the Uta Kingdom on the border of the Great Zhou finally launched an offensive after five years of peace.
When the battle report came, the people of the Great Zhou were shocked. The old emperor, who was already upset because of his son's affairs, was so angry that he trembled all over. He sent Xiao Huaiting as the commander-in-chief to lead the troops to fight.
Xiao Huaiting seemed to have known about it for a long time, and even told his family a day in advance.
Therefore, Yan Qiushu also knew it.
Before she knew this, she had run into Xiao Huaiting in the mansion, and he had said with a smile, "Pingyu is returning to the Shen family, and Miss Shu brought him so much food. I wonder if Miss Shu could make some snacks to see him off, as I'm about to go on a long journey?"
Yan Qiushu didn't know what was going on, but Xiao Huaiting was the benefactor who brought her to the Xiao Mansion, so she agreed immediately: "Of course."
Normally, the chefs in the mansion learned her cooking methods, so she didn't have to worry about it, but now that she was going on a long journey, she still had to show her appreciation.
So she thought of making pork jerky.
The pork stew is not difficult to make. It mainly involves chopping the pork tenderloin and marinating it with various seasonings. Because Xiao Huaiting has a stronger taste, Yan Qiushu gave him more seasonings, including a lot of ground Sichuan peppercorns.
When the marinating is finished, crush it into thin slices through clean gauze and put it in the oven.
She had done nothing else these past two days but repeat this step. Fortunately, Shui Yu, Nanny Xu and other people in the mansion could help, so it was quite easy for her to do it.
It wasn't until the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, when she heard the news, that she realized, this is what happened?!
The Kingdom of Uta was the country that defeated the second young master and two sons-in-law of the Xiao family five years ago. The two sides had been hostile to each other for decades. More than ten years ago, Xiao Huaiting's father beat them so hard that they dared not come out. But after the great defeat ten years ago, Xiao Huaiting's father and elder brother got into trouble, and the Kingdom of Uta frequently offended again. There was no major war, but small disturbances continued.
Until the second young master of the Xiao family led his troops there, although the Great Zhou was defeated five years ago, due to the strong advantages accumulated in the early stage, the Uta Kingdom had to retreat for many years to recuperate.
That battle also caused a lot of discussion. Although we had a clear advantage in the early stages, we suddenly made a wrong decision. Some people said that the enemy spies ambushed us and obtained the marching map, while others said that it was leaked by our army.
But after a while of commotion, nothing was caught, so the matter was dropped, and the original owner just treated it as a joke.
It was just that the combination of these two things made Yan Qiushu, who had read countless novels and similar historical events, feel that something was wrong.
After all, the ones who died were not their own. In order to gain power, there would always be people in the royal family who had no bottom line and did many extremely cruel things.
Plus, Xiao Huaiting can now predict this battle...
Yan Qiushu smelled the more pleasant aroma of pork jerky, frowned, and came to a conclusion that the reason why so many members of the Xiao family died was probably because of the emperor?
So the prince who was on good terms with the Xiao family was deposed and imprisoned because he knew something, which made the emperor furious and humiliated, and it was impossible for him to be emperor again, nor could he be allowed to go out and shake the people's hearts?
As a result, the crown prince died, and the remaining sons were equally powerful, but they died one after another during the fight, and Zhou Zejing, the prince of Jin, took advantage of the situation?
ridiculous.
Yan Qiushu was amused by this speculation, and she felt more and more that life was too difficult for the lower class people in ancient times.
"What funny thing did you think of?" A clear young voice interrupted her thoughts.
Yan Qiushu looked up at the young man in front of her. His handsome eyebrows and eyes were like stars, and the corners of his lips were slightly raised. His tall figure made him walk with extra big strides, and the four little kids behind him had to jog to keep up with him.
He walked closer little by little, a faint smile on his lips, inexplicably charming.
Yan Qiushu felt very sympathetic. Such a good young man would die in just over a year, which made the old emperor seem even more hateful. However, now was not the time to think about this. She smiled broadly and said crisply, "I wonder if these pork jerky I made will be enough for General Xiao to eat?"
Xiao Huaiting paused in his relentless pace, tilted his face slightly, and covered his lips as he asked, "What if it's not enough?"
"Then I'll make some more for you?" Yan Qiushu said with a smile.
Xiao Huaiting also smiled.
Dongdong and others also came over and shouted, "Sister Ah Shu!"
"Aunt Yan..."
Dongdong finished shouting, glanced around with his big eyes, and said lazily, "Is it pork jerky again today?"
Shui Yu had just taken out the pork jerky, each portion wrapped in a stack of oil paper, weighing about two pounds. In the past few days, Yan Qiushu had used all the ovens in other yards and made more than twenty pounds. The portion that had just come out of the oven had not been packaged yet and was still hot.
Yan Qiushu listened and didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "You don't like it so much? I didn't see you eat less!"
Dongdong said confidently, "It's delicious. I like it too. I just don't want to eat this all the time. I want to eat something fresh. I want to eat boiling shrimp and boiling fish fillets..."
This kid has completely become a lover of heavy flavors!
Yan Qiushu rubbed his little head, looked at Xiao Huaiting and explained, "This is brushed with a layer of honey. The temperature is not high recently, so it can be kept for another month. But you still have to eat it as soon as possible. Try this first."
She pushed the freshly made pork jerky towards the other person.
Everyone else in the mansion had already eaten, but Xiao Huaiting had just returned because he was mobilizing troops and preparing to set off, so he had not yet eaten the pork jerky.
"Thank you for your hard work." Xiao Huaiting looked at the many pork jerky placed on the stone table, which could not hold anything else, and felt a little apologetic. He didn't expect that his casual remark would make her take it so seriously.
Yan Qiushu smiled and said, "It's not bad. Shui Yu and the others made it together, so it's not too hard. Come and try it. How does it taste?"
Xiao Huaiting nodded and looked at the only piece of pork jerky that had not been packaged. It was a thin slice with a maroon color. It was translucent when picked up. It looked a bit hard, but when it entered his mouth, it was not as hard as he had imagined.
It tasted slightly sweet at first, but was immediately overwhelmed by the slightly spicy and salty taste. The spicy taste stimulated his lips and tongue, and temporarily dissipated the fatigue from staying up all night, making him feel much more energetic.
This meat does not have any fascia that is difficult to chew. It has a chewy texture but is not difficult to chew. It becomes soft and rotten in the mouth after just a few chews. It is just right to eat while passing the time on the march or when you are hungry.
At the end of the meal, he swallowed it and subconsciously licked his lips.
The light sweetness he had tasted at first reappeared. Xiao Huaiting looked up at the woman in front of him and said seriously, "It tastes very good. It's delicious, and... quite sweet."
Yan Qiushu blinked blankly: "Huh?"
In order to suit Xiao Huaiting's appetite, she deliberately did not add sweet things like honey to the seasoning of the pork jerky. There was only a little sugar, and the rest was pepper powder and so on.
The only thing I did during baking was to save time and brush a layer of honey on it.
Isn't it too sweet?
She also picked up a piece and tasted it. No? It’s still delicious!
She was about to ask what was going on when the young man in front of her suddenly said, "By the way, I'm going to pass through a lot of places this time, and I'll also pass by Wucheng. Is there anything you want to take with you?"
Yan Qiushu shook her head subconsciously. Wucheng had a lot of aquatic products, but they were difficult to transport. It was spring now, and by the time he returned, it might be summer. How could she bring them? She could only shake her head, a little amused: "Why do you act like you're going on a trip?"
Xiao Huaiting smiled noncommittally: "Really?"
Seeing him so relaxed, Yan Qiushu suddenly had an idea: "Well, there's something. If you come across it, help me take a look and I'll draw it for you..."
Then she used the painting skills she had learned in elementary school for three years and drew peppers, and also drew potatoes and sweet potatoes. Although she didn't know whether these things were on this continent now, what if they were? After all, this was a world of traveling through books.
However, her painting skills were ridiculed by everyone, including the youngest Dongdong: "Hahaha! Sister Shu, your painting is so ugly..."
Yan Qiushu...covered her face silently.
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