The sun set and the moon hung on the willow branches. The civilians and soldiers pushed cartloads of potatoes and sweet potatoes to the gate of the county government office. They all had smiles on their faces and there was laughter all the way.
The entrance to the county government office has been renovated and a huge white stone square has been built. It is paved entirely with cement and has a lot of flat gravel scattered on it. It has also been painted with some elegant patterns. It is so wide and spacious that it can accommodate thousands of people.
At this moment, the center of the square is filled with potatoes, sweet potatoes, and green vines.
People stood near the edge of the square, rubbing their hands and breathing hard, staring at the gate with anticipation.
The cold wind was blowing, and the autumn night was extremely cold, but the people's hearts were warm.
There is a sentence in my heart.
Thank you, Master, for coming to see us. We have lived up to your expectations!
Many people were discussing how many kilograms to buy to take home, and others were guessing how many centimeters per kilogram the grain would be sold for.
A thin uncle stroked his beard.
"I don't know what's special about these potatoes, but the sweet potatoes are really filling and delicious. I estimate that they are at least one centimeter per pound. I don't know if the centimeters at home can survive the winter."
The young man next to him continued, "My family went to repair the road not long ago, and my wife helped in the canteen. We earned less than 100 centimeters in total. I plan to exchange it all for sweet potatoes, which should be enough to make it to winter. It's a pity that we suffered from not having enough education. Those who are chosen to be teachers are said to be able to gain 10 centimeters after teaching for a day."
Even though Sinan has become good enough, the deep-rooted ideas in the hearts of the people have not changed.
How could the government be so dedicated to the welfare of the people? They must have been trying to make some money from these potatoes and sweet potatoes.
As the people were chatting, they suddenly smelled a strong fragrance coming from not far away.
Everyone was tired after a day's work. Their appetites suddenly grew, their stomachs growled, and they looked in the direction of the scent.
I saw Xie Ling sitting in the front of the carriage, followed by more than ten carriages. Each carriage was packed with people, wearing sleeves and aprons, with tired looks on their faces.
The carriage stopped at the side of White Stone Square, and the cooks sitting on the carriage nimbly moved the things off the carriage.
The two carriages at the back were occupied by Pei Qianniang and others. The kitchen was short of staff, so Xie Ling asked them to help out, and the calculation was still based on the common centimeter system.
Soon, bucket after bucket of meat and vegetables were brought out.
The pig head and chicken rack are braised together, the color is bright red and the aroma is rich, and the whole square is filled with the smell of braised meat.
The potatoes and pork hind legs are cooked together and cooked until they are soft.
The pork belly is sliced into thin slices with the right amount of fat and lean meat, and a dish of dipping sauce is placed next to it.
Large chunks of pork ribs are stewed with corn and radish, the soup is shiny with oil and steaming.
Spicy and sour potato shreds, braised potatoes, dry pot potato chips...
Stir-fried chicken offal, pickled fish, boiled fish...
The variety of dishes dazzled the people's eyes, and they could only swallow their saliva continuously.
Xie Ling said loudly: "Everyone is tired today, let's eat something delicious! It's all free. After dinner, I will tell you how to distribute these potatoes and sweet potatoes. By the way."
Xie Ling pointed to the bucket of potatoes, “These, these, and the vegetables in those, are all potatoes.
In the end, everyone gets something, there is plenty of food, line up one by one. Don’t rush.”
After saying that, Xie Ling joined the group getting food.
Someone had already gone to the county government office to inform Gu Wei, and Gu Wei, along with all his advisers and bailiffs, also went to get his meal.
The people were both surprised and happy. They were surprised that the official actually prepared meals for them personally, and they were happy that they could eat so much meat for free.
You know, natural disasters and man-made disasters happened simultaneously. Other counties probably couldn't even afford brown rice, but they could actually eat meat...
It's like a dream.
Seeing Gu Wei coming to help, Xie Ling called a group of soldiers to follow her to move coal from the carriage.
A batch of coal was delivered from Qilianshan. Due to the slippery road, only a small batch was delivered, but it was enough.
Coal needs firewood to ignite. Xie Ling and his men installed seven or eight round brick frames in the square. After a while, the coal burned, red as agate.
The people ate and chatted around the coal, with a red glow on everyone's face. The flames rose slowly, carrying scattered sparks, brighter than the stars in the sky.
On the other side, Gu Wei took almost an hour to finish his meal.
He had a good physique, but those scholars and advisers looked frail. After being blown by the cold wind for an hour, many of them covered their lips and coughed.
Fortunately, Mrs. Pei was considerate and had prepared ginger water in advance.
After drinking a bowl of ginger water, my whole body feels warm.
The food was already cold at this time, so everyone simply heated it up over coal before starting to eat.
The common people saw this, their eyes became hot and their noses felt a little sore, and they secretly thought that they must bring all their relatives to Sinan.
The counselors couldn't help but sigh when they saw the people enjoying themselves so happily.
“Isn’t this what we are pursuing, a peaceful and prosperous life?”
"If all people in the world can live in such peace, I, Zhang, will have no regrets in my life and will be worthy of the books of sages."
…….
After the meal, the people all washed their bowls consciously, washing them clean and even shining before putting them back.
Xie Ling also gave everyone a sweet potato.
"Put this potato and sweet potato in the fire and roast it, then peel it and eat it."
When the people heard this, their eyes widened in surprise.
This is so real!
You can eat it any way you want!
Some people can’t even wait to peel the skin after it’s cooked, so they just wipe it briefly and take a bite.
In the cold autumn, eating a hot roasted sweet potato, soft, sweet and steaming, while roasting it around the fire with your family is a truly ultimate enjoyment.
Xie Ling was also having a great time.
None of the counselors had tasted this thing before. They sighed after each bite and occasionally composed a few sour poems in praise of it, which made Xie Ling unable to help laughing.
Gu Wei was peeling the skin seriously.
Under the warm yellow firelight, he looked serious, as if doing some important work, and his slender fingers tore off pieces of potato peels.
He had obsessive-compulsive disorder and would not leave even a single piece of skin. He would not peel it off until it was completely clean, then he would hold it in his sleeve and hand it to Xie Ling.
Xie Ling happened to peel a sweet potato for Gu Wei.
They both handed it out at the same time and couldn't help but smile at each other.
When they had almost finished eating, Xie Ling stood up and talked about the topic that everyone was most interested in.
"Now, I will tell you how to buy potatoes and sweet potatoes."
After eating so many dishes made with potatoes and then roasted potatoes, the balance in everyone's hearts has already tilted towards potatoes.
How can there be such a strange food!
It can be crispy, soft and tasty. It tastes good no matter how it is cooked!
People who are used to eating brown rice and coarse grains immediately fall in love with potatoes and sweet potatoes.
I made up my mind that no matter how expensive it was, I would buy it home!
——
Here we eat delicious food and roast fire.
On the other side, beside a stream in the south of the Yangtze River.
Aunt An, Zhou Cisui, Ren Pingsheng and others have not had staple food for two days.
Ren Pingsheng swallowed his saliva and bowed his hands to apologize, "I'm sorry, Madam An and the two Master Ans, it's our incompetence. We will buy enough food when we get out of this forest."
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