Chapter 48 (Barbecue (Part 1)...)
The incident in the palace on the night of the 13th was not fully revealed until the 16th.
During this period, the official Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the lunar year, with the state banquet scheduled for that day, was also temporarily cancelled because the old emperor was frightened by his son's sudden rebellion and developed a high fever that night.
It was not until the 16th that the old emperor was able to attend court and began to deal with these matters.
The Third Prince's rebellion was far more serious than the dispute between the Emperor and the former Crown Prince, Prince Chang. However, although the old Emperor was old, suspicious, and cruel, he could not bear to kill his son.
In the end, the third prince was imprisoned in the place where Prince Chang's family had been imprisoned for five years.
But before he went in, the Third Prince's wife committed suicide and entrusted her son to Prince Chang before her death. The Third Prince's other concubines were either dismissed or taken back to their natal families. Only the Third Prince was demoted to a commoner and settled there.
The old emperor punished his son, but was still angry, so he began to kill those who had corrupted his son.
When a prince wants to gather strength for a rebellion, he naturally needs followers. When the lists of names of those to be beheaded and whose property will be confiscated were densely posted on the walls of the imperial city, the whole atmosphere in Kyoto became much more serious, and the scholars who used to chat and talk became more restrained.
On the 17th, Mrs. Xiao ordered that no one in the Xiao family be allowed to go out, especially Yan Qiushu and the four children.
It wasn't until three days later that a heavy rain came and washed away everything, and Kyoto returned to normal.
But even so, because so many people died, a shadow of gloom was cast over this world.
However, Mrs. Xiao was in an unusually good mood. Because she was in such a good mood, she took the initiative to suggest going out for a walk.
Spring has arrived.
The rain has just stopped and the weather is warm, it would be a waste not to go for a walk.
Seeing that Madam Xiao had rarely shown any intention of going out in recent years, Xie Qingyun was overjoyed and said, "Why don't we go to the farm? There are a lot of livestock there, and we've never been there to eat. How about having a meal today?"
Madam Xiao's eyes and eyebrows were full of smiles, and her lips, which were tightly pursed in the past, were more relaxed than ever before. Hearing this, she nodded directly: "Okay, you go and invite the third brother and Ah Shu over, and we will all go."
"Okay, I'll go right away." Xie Qingyun was also very happy. Before leaving, she still hugged Madam Xiao affectionately and comforted her, "Mother, you must cheer up. There is no enemy in this world that cannot be defeated."
"...Hmm!" Madam Xiao's eyes were hot. She glanced at the imperial city, a hint of coldness in her eyes.
Hearing that they were going out for an outing, Yan Qiushu was also very surprised and nodded in agreement.
When she went to the farm, she remembered that there were chickens, ducks, fish and meat there.
So when she left, she packed up a lot of things. Since there were so many people, she had to bring more seasonings. In addition to the seasonings, she also had a large rectangular rack.
In this era, everyone gets up early. After packing for half a day, it is still not past the hour of Chen when they set off.
When they arrived at the farm outside the capital and were taken in by Manager Yao, it was only a quarter past four.
It's early and there's a lot to do.
Yan Qiushu skillfully led the four children and waved her hand, like a general leading an army: "Let's go to the kitchen!"
When she gave an order, the children dared not disobey.
Dongdong jumped up and down beside her happily, asking, "Sister Shu, what are we eating today?!"
Yan Qiushu smiled and said, "Let's eat barbecue!"
barbecue?
Dongdong subconsciously thought of the barbecue in the grill and the barbecue on the table, but why is it called barbecue now?
But when they got to the kitchen, they found out.
Yan Qiushu took out a pair of skewers and said, "Your task is to skewer the meat. The more you skewer, the more you will eat today."
Children: “?”
The other people in the kitchen began to prepare ingredients such as chicken, duck, fish and meat. They got whatever they wanted. In order to show his enthusiasm, Manager Yao even sent someone to kill a sheep and deliver the freshest mutton.
Yan Qiushu was very surprised. She only thought of pork, chicken, duck and fish, but she didn't expect that there was mutton in the farm.
Manager Yao smiled and said, "It was the eldest young master who said that since we were all going to raise pigs, we should also raise some sheep. However, these sheep are not big."
But it’s enough to eat.
Yan Qiushu was grateful to Xiao Huaiqi for his foresight, which allowed her to eat mutton now, but she didn't dare to listen to how the sheep was slaughtered, so she didn't ask any more questions. She cut the meat and directed the foodie army to work.
When it comes to barbecue, you don’t have to go to the restaurant directly to eat it, so it requires cooperation.
Yan Qiushu did not stipulate who should do what, and let them handle it by themselves. She only told them the method. After eating the iron plate barbecue, they lifted the iron plate and put two iron wires on the charcoal fire inside to block it, and it became a charcoal barbecue.
They look similar, but it’s a fresh way to eat them, with a different taste and texture.
The three children were all in high spirits, only Zhou Zhaoheng was relatively calm, but the smile in his eyes was almost overflowing.
Having rarely done this kind of work, they were somewhat at a loss in the face of it. Even with help, they were still clumsy and took a long time to put on the lump of flesh.
Fortunately, they all did it very seriously.
The most serious one was probably Zhou Zhaoheng. He didn't say anything, just did things silently and made mistakes silently. When he made a mistake, he would look at others and then continue doing it.
Dongdong and Wan'er would pull Yan Qiushu aside and ask her what was the right thing to do.
Yan Qiushu noticed the difference and was about to go and help Dongdong after she had just helped him deal with a disobedient lotus root slice.
Xiao Pingsong had already walked around to Zhou Zhaoheng and said enthusiastically, "Look at me. I'll put the meat on the table and then use the skewer to pierce it. Isn't it much easier?"
The lumps of meat are not that big, and children's fingers are short and not very flexible, but if they are placed on the table, they can just pass through the gaps on the table smoothly.
Zhou Zhaoheng took a look and obediently followed his method. After successfully getting a piece of meat, he pursed his lips happily and smiled silently.
At this time, Dongdong came over and said, "Wow, Ah Heng, you are dressed well, you have passed through the middle!"
Zhou Zhaoheng smiled with satisfaction and moved on to the next one.
Yan Qiushu looked at him and saw that the skewer was crooked, but at least it was put on. She praised him, "You are also very good. At least it is put on."
As the children put more and more meat on skewers, Yan Qiushu also lit the grill.
The rectangular box was opened, and inside lay a pile of hot charcoal. If you got a little closer, you could feel the heat hitting you.
It takes quite a long time to grill in the oven. By the time it is thoroughly burned, the skewers are all done.
Yan Qiushu had someone carry the grill from the back kitchen to the front hall.
Madam Xiao and the others had also come back specially because it was time for dinner. They happened to see her busy with her staff. Xiao Huaiqi asked, "Looking at the situation, are they going to make a roasted whole lamb?"
Yan Qiushu shook her head and pointed at the trays of grilled skewers with a smile: "It's barbecue!"
As she spoke, she placed a handful of meat skewers and several chicken wing skewers on the grill. After laying them out, she took a brush in one hand and brushed a layer of oil on them. She turned them over and saw that the side that was originally facing the charcoal stove had been roasted and changed color.
Xie Qingyun looked at it curiously and asked, "Do you want my help? It looks pretty simple."
"Come on." Yan Qiushu moved to the side enthusiastically.
Seeing this, Xie Qingyun rolled up her sleeves and came to Yan Qiushu. She followed her example and took a handful of skewers and placed them on top. Seeing that the fire had not reached her, she anxiously urged people to help her, lest her skewers would not be cooked through.
Mrs. Xiao was also very moved, but unfortunately she was old, so she could only pat her son: "You go too, you'll just be sitting anyway."
Xiao Huaiqi was speechless, but still obediently let someone push his wheelchair over to help.
The grill that Yan Qiushu customized was very long, mainly considering the efficiency of accommodating a large number of people. Three people were not crowded on it, but she was at the very edge, with Xie Qingyun on her left and four children on her right who were staring at the barbecue eagerly.
The first thing she grilled was lamb skewers and chicken wings. The fire in the middle was high, and the lamb skewers were constantly turned over. After being brushed with oil and sprinkled with various spices, a fragrance filled the air.
After a while, the mutton fat was roasted with a "sizzling" sound, and the lean mutton became much firmer, stained with the dark color of the seasoning, and the aroma was fragrant.
Dongdong is always the most inattentive. At this moment, he stared at the skewers of meat on the skewers making sizzling sounds, smelled the rich aroma at the tip of his nose, and swallowed his saliva with a "gulp".
"Puchi!" Wan'er covered her mouth and looked at him with a smile.
Yan Qiushu also laughed. Xiao Pingsong coughed lightly, tilted his head and smiled secretly, afraid of making his brother unhappy.
But Dongdong was thick-skinned and very calm: "I'm greedy, woo woo, Sister Shu, are you ready?"
Yan Qiushu looked at them one by one and nodded, "Well, it's ready to eat. Auntie, this is yours. Come and try it and see how it tastes."
Each person has a stick and it is distributed.
Madam Xiao was stunned for a moment when she received a skewer. Even though she had been on the battlefield before, she couldn't understand it for a moment. Just eat it like this? Without a table?
Especially the second young master's wife Song Mingdai and the third young lady Xiao Huaiyu, these two people are more introverted and more law-abiding.
Yan Qiushu nodded in affirmation to their doubts: "Yes, just eat it directly like this. We can eat it while it is grilling. There is no need to serve it on the table. There is no one else around. It doesn't matter. Just eat it."
After that, she gave a demonstration.
Because they make their own skewers, the meat on them is extra generous, and each skewer is quite large. Eating the hot grilled skewers gives you an extremely satisfying feeling.
Yan Qiushu was afraid of burning her mouth, so she just tried her best to expose her teeth and bite a piece of meat. With a force, the meat was pulled off. There were a lot of seasonings sprinkled on it during the barbecue, and it tasted salty, fragrant and slightly spicy when she put it in her mouth. This alone was surprising, but the real surprise came when she ate it.
The mutton is so tender because it is fresh mutton, killed right away. When you bite it, it seems as if juice is spreading between your lips and teeth. The tender meat is accompanied by the flavors of cumin, pepper powder, and pepper salt fried by Yan Qiushu. There is no smell of mutton at all.
I took another bite, this time with some mutton fat, and this time it was really juicy, but the mutton fat was covered by the seasoning, so I couldn't taste the greasiness at all, only the aroma of meat.
Seeing her like this, and looking at the other children who were all very adaptable, even Xiao Pingsong who had just returned was eating calmly. The others hesitated for a moment and then opened their mouths tentatively.
Once I opened my mouth, I no longer had the mind to worry about anything else.
I even felt that this way of eating was quite heroic, as if I was at the border and eating meat with the soldiers.
Dongdong was fanning his mouth with one hand while eating. He ate too fast and the hot mutton got into his mouth, burning his tongue so much that it danced in his mouth.
Seeing him like this, Xiao Pingsong offered him a sip of water, and because he couldn't free his hands, he brought it to his mouth: "Drink some water, it's burning your tongue."
Dongdong lowered his head and drank it. His mouth calmed down. He ate a piece of meat in a few bites and showed a cute smile to his attentive brother.
Yan Qiushu couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth as she watched. She turned her head to look at the little boy beside her, who was also immersed in the food. He was not as anxious as Dongdong, and was not even that enthusiastic at the beginning. But when he ate the meat, his attitude changed.
The nature that he had tried so hard to suppress was secretly revealed at this moment. He pouted and kept cooling the lamb skewers. When it was almost done, he took a big bite, not caring that his cheeks were dirty because of the skewers.
As he ate the hot mutton, bite after bite, the light in his eyes seemed to grow brighter and brighter.
So delicious!
It seems that he was the one who skewered the meat, because one time he used too much force and the head of the skewer was poked crooked when the last piece of meat was put on.
The more delicious the food Zhou Zhaoheng ate, the more surprise appeared in his eyes. He couldn't believe that he could make such delicious food!
Of course, this was all thanks to Sister Shu's processing, but he was also particularly satisfied and happy, and the anxiety he had been feeling for a long time was relieved a lot.
She had finished her roast lamb, and Xie Qingyun cheered, "Mine is ready, come and eat!"
Yan Qiushu also quickly took one. The pork was not as tender, but it was chewier. The seasoning Xie Qingyun gave was not as heavy as hers, but pork didn't need it, so it still tasted salty, fragrant and delicious.
She reminded: "Young Madam, you can roast some pork belly. It tastes super delicious when roasted!"
"Hmm!" Xie Qingyun was completely interested.
She wasn't good at cooking, but grilling was simple. She just needed to control the heat. She felt a sense of accomplishment and was reluctant to stop. She turned around and saw her husband eating with gusto. She smiled even more happily: "What else do you want to eat?"
Yan Qiushu thought she was asking her a question and was about to answer, but when she saw her looking at the man on the other side, she quickly shut up.
Xiao Huaiqi smiled and said, "It's all fine. Everything you bake tastes good."
"You just try to make me happy." Xie Qingyun scolded him, but she was undeniably happy. She picked a handful of corn. Her husband was in poor health and couldn't eat anything too heavy, so they just had some vegetarian dishes.
Yan Qiushu clicked her tongue and shook her head. She had never thought that she could eat dog food while having a barbecue. She immediately took a big bite of the meat. At this time, Wan'er exclaimed, "Sister Shu, the chicken wings are burnt!"
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