Chapter 582 [Second Update] 582
However, Liu Ju guessed wrong this time.
Liu Che was indeed angry and did want to punish Liu Tan.
But the Embroidered Uniform Envoy actually had always been aware of Liu Tan's whereabouts. After calculating the time, he knew that his son had not had much rest in the past few days and had been on the road all the time. He also knew that he had just returned to the palace and went straight to the kitchen.
Before Liu Tan came in, he wanted to make Liu Tan remember this lesson.
But after Liu Tan knelt down without saying a word, he soon softened his heart again.
Unable to bear reading the memorial in his hand, he had no choice but to look down. He was stunned for a moment and asked Liu Ju, "Ju'er? Didn't you go back to the Crown Prince's Palace?"
Liu Ju immediately said, "Just now, after I left, I suddenly remembered that the position of Grand Herald is now vacant. Seeing that foreign envoys are about to arrive in the capital, the position of Grand Herald cannot be left vacant for long, so I wanted to ask my father how to deal with it."
As soon as Liu Che heard it, he knew that this was an excuse made by Liu Ju. He couldn't help but look at him with understanding. He didn't know how much of his eldest son came here to plead for his younger brother and how much of it was just to satisfy his appetite.
He snorted and said, "I didn't ask you to kneel, why are you kneeling?"
Liu Ju whispered, "Father didn't say who should kneel."
Liu Che put down the pen in his hand and said, "Get up."
Liu Ju was about to stand up immediately, while Liu Tan on the side was a little hesitant. Why did his father dislike sentences with subjects so much recently?
Who do you want to get up?
As a result, when he was hesitating, he suddenly felt Liu Ju pulling him, and Liu Tan subconsciously stood up.
After standing up, he secretly glanced at Liu Che, and found that Liu Che didn't say anything, so he felt relieved. Well, it seems that his father will not punish him.
Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard Liu Che ask, "Do you know you are wrong?"
Liu Tan suddenly realized something and almost knelt down again: "I know I was wrong."
Liu Che's face was expressionless, showing no emotion. He only continued, "Well, what's wrong?"
Liu Tan: ...
This conversation was so familiar to him, it was really... no one could escape this fate.
However, Liu Tan had thought about what to say long before he came back. It was not that he guessed that Liu Che would definitely ask this question, but mainly because he came to admit his mistakes, so of course he had to analyze where he was wrong, and then admit his mistakes. This is just like writing a self-criticism. It must be written carefully and profoundly to be considered sincere, otherwise it will give people a perfunctory feeling.
It’s okay to be perfunctory to your teacher and boss, but to be perfunctory to the emperor... don’t you want to continue in this life anymore?
Liu Tan said seriously and honestly, "I shouldn't have been so willful and disobeyed my father."
Liu Che raised his eyelids and said, "You know it clearly. What if you do it again next time?"
Liu Tan was suddenly stuck, because this was not in the routine he had prepared.
To be honest, this question is actually easier to answer than the previous question of what went wrong, but Liu Tan doesn't want to dig a hole for himself. Given his temper, the possibility of him making the same mistake again... is still quite high.
If he wants to avoid committing the crime, he must never return to Chang'an.
But just thinking about it, you know it's impossible.
Finally, he could only whisper, "Next...next time, I will try to get your approval."
Liu Che was almost laughing because of him!
Liu Ju on the side was shocked. It was the first time he saw someone dare to talk to his father like that.
Liu Che slammed the table and said, "I see you still don't repent. Go back and reflect on your mistakes for three days!"
Oh, three days, that’s nothing.
Liu Tan hesitated for a moment and whispered, "I've asked the kitchen to prepare some food for tomorrow."
There was nothing wrong with him reflecting on his mistakes behind closed doors, but he had the duck marinated... what was he supposed to do? He couldn't marinate it for three days, could he?
Although it can be eaten after being pickled for three days, Liu Tan would definitely not let Liu Che eat this kind of duck.
Liu Tan thought for a moment and said, "How about Father send an order to the kitchen to stop preparing it."
After he said this, Liu Ju's expression instantly became indescribable. He couldn't help but poke his brother's waist and told him to shut up first.
Liu Tan's body shook for a moment after being poked by him. He looked up at Liu Ju, then looked at Liu Che who was sitting there with an expressionless face, and shut his mouth obediently.
Liu Che asked, "How is the King of Wusun injured?"
Liu Tan sighed, "It's not a minor injury. The wound reopened due to the haste of traveling."
Liu Che instantly connected with Lu Xuan's brainwaves and looked at his son warily, "Lu Xuan has arrived. Stay in the palace until you return to the Northern Territory."
Liu Tan immediately said, "But... I still have some unfinished work at Shiheyuan."
Liu Che thought for a moment and said, "Then take the guards I have arranged for you with you when you go out."
Liu Tan: ...
This isn't a guard at all; this is someone sent to monitor him, okay?
But that's okay. He doesn't plan to do anything before the New Year anyway. He can just wait until after the New Year to talk about everything. This year has been too tiring. Although he has been resting these days, he doesn't know why he always feels like he hasn't recovered.
Seeing that Liu Tan had honestly agreed, Liu Che finally felt relieved and asked, "What did you do in the kitchen just now?"
Liu Tan immediately leaned over and said, "I didn't do anything. I just added a dish to your father's dinner. However, since time was so tight, I made something more convenient. Your father can try it later."
Liu Che glanced at the time and said, "Serve the meal."
After he finished speaking, he glanced at Liu Ju who was standing beside him. He immediately understood why his eldest son had returned. He couldn't help but sneer at him, "It's hard for you to kneel down with Tan'er again. You'll definitely get a bite to eat."
Liu Ju: ...
He found that his father's words were becoming more and more poisonous.
However, after the meal was served, Liu Ju sat there looking at the dish called Yan Du Xian and felt that kneeling was worth it.
When the dish was first served, he smelled an extremely rich aroma, which was hard to describe, with a refreshing flavor and the unique aroma of meat.
After placing the dish on his table and opening the lid, just looking at the bright color of the soup and the visual effect of the yellow, red and white colors inside, you can tell that it must be delicious.
While eating, Liu Tan kept paying attention to the expressions of Liu Che and Liu Ju.
When Liu Che took the first sip of the soup, his brows relaxed and it was obvious that he liked it very much.
Liu Tan felt relieved when he saw his expression. As for tomorrow's roast duck, he shouldn't hate it, right?
At least among the people Liu Tan knows, no matter where they are from, few of them hate Peking duck. At most, they think it is greasy and dare not eat too much.
Liu Tan originally thought that as long as Liu Che didn't dislike the dish, it would be fine, but he never expected that this dish would become the main course of the evening.
If Liu Che hadn't been so proud of his status and there was a piece of meat, a bamboo shoot and a little soup left at the end, he would probably have finished it.
As for Liu Ju... Liu Ju lacked a bit of idol baggage compared to his father, so he just ate it all.
Then the other dishes on the table of these two people were basically untouched, and Liu Tan felt a little sorry for the imperial chef who cooked for them.
After Liu Che had a full meal and a few drinks, he was obviously in a much better mood. He glanced at Liu Tan and said, "You've been busy for several days. Go back and rest. Look at how dark your eyes are."
After hearing this, Liu Tan left happily. He didn't know what house arrest meant!
However, he had originally planned to meet Lu Xuan the next day, but now he couldn't do that. He had to go to the kitchen to clean up his ducks, so he could only send someone to deliver a message to Lu Xuan. After thinking about it, he told him not to eat anything for lunch, and he was going to send a set of roast duck over.
Well, Liu Che shouldn't make things difficult for him on this matter.
In fact, the preparation of roast duck is both difficult and simple.
The difficulty lies in how to make the skin of roast duck crispy.
I remember that Liu Tan once tried to roast the duck at home, but no matter how he roasted it, it didn't turn out well. He also tried countless kinds of crispy skin water and the like, but the roast duck that came out in the end... tasted not bad, but it was not crispy roast duck.
It was not until later that he learned that the crispy roast duck in restaurants usually has the duck embryo inflated to separate the skin and meat.
After arriving there, Liu Tan remembered that in this era... there seemed to be no air pumps.
In the era when there were no air pumps, things had to be blown manually. Liu Tan thought about it and felt that it was not very hygienic. He originally wanted to ask the kitchen manager to wait a moment while he found someone to make an air pump.
As a result, the steward was very worried. This roast duck was to be served as lunch. Although the King of the Northern Territory came down early, it would take a long time to prepare this roast duck.
Without saying a word, he chose a burly cook to blow the roast duck, and at the same time held Liu Tan and refused to let him leave.
Liu Tan's mouth twitched. There was no other way but to do it this way for the time being. At the same time, he prepared to go back and get the air pump. That thing was difficult and simple at the same time.
Blowing air into a duck is not a casual act. You need to blow air into the incision on the duck's neck so that the air fills the duck's entire body.
To be honest, if this thing really relies on manpower to do it, it is definitely a strenuous job, and even people with only strong body may not be able to do it.
The cook was so exhausted from blowing the dough that his face turned red and his eyes were about to roll back before he finally filled the whole duck.
Seeing that it was almost done, Liu Tan quickly asked him to go down first, and then asked someone to start handling the remaining steps.
After blowing, the skin needs to be scalded and colored. Pour boiling malt sugar water on the duck body from top to bottom three to four times, and then pour sugar water on it. The sugar water does not need to be boiling water. After doing this a few times, the skin of the whole duck will become smooth and firm.
After watering, it is time to air-dry the duck, allowing all the moisture on the duck's skin to evaporate.
If it was left to dry naturally, it would definitely not take enough time, so Liu Tan simply asked someone to fan the duck so that it would dry faster.
While the duck is drying, Liu Tan needs to make other things, such as sauce and spring rolls.
Making spring rolls is not difficult, especially now that the palace kitchen has flour.
Yes, Liu Tan finally saw the flour and was so moved that tears filled his eyes.
This flour was brought in through the Silk Road. If Liu Tan had not settled the Silk Road, flour would probably not have reached the Han Dynasty until now.
After all, compared to other more popular things, flour seems too inconspicuous.
However, the main reason why people from West Asia transport flour here is because they want to expand the variety of goods they sell.
Originally, the colored glaze they made was very popular in Dahan, but unexpectedly, Liu Tan suddenly appeared and directly produced glass.
We already have transparent glass, so what else can we do without?
Although the cost of firing is high, the price of glass is not low, but the problem is that the glass shipped from West Asia is even more expensive.
If those people take into account the cost, the losses along the way, the shipping costs and so on, the price will be sky-high compared to the products of the Northern Country.
After people in West Asia discovered that Liuli was not working, they began to look for other things to replace it, and wheat was one of them.
However, wheat has not yet been cultivated on a large scale. Liu Tan plans to study it and rice in detail after returning to the Northern Border.
With flour, making spring rolls is no longer a problem.
However, it is very difficult to make spring rolls well, because a truly good spring roll should be as thin as a cicada's wing.
This one is difficult for many people. In fact, Liu Tan didn't do it very well back then.
But it doesn’t matter, he has the theoretical basis and the people in the kitchen have the skills.
He doesn't need to do it himself, he just needs to give orders.
The water used to make spring rolls and dough must be hot water, which is the legendary method of boiling the dough with hot water. This method has never been tried by anyone in the kitchen before.
Liu Tan couldn't help but ask, "How do you eat this flour?"
The kitchen steward smiled softly and said, "I haven't used it yet. Mainly because I don't know how to prepare it for Your Majesty."
In fact, it’s not that there are no recipes, but they all think that the eating habits in West Asia are too barbaric, or they have tried making some themselves and found that it doesn’t taste good.
Liu Tan also said helplessly: "I'll give you a few prescriptions later."
After a slight hesitation, the kitchen steward said, "Your Highness...this thing...can't be made too delicious."
Liu Tan was surprised: "What?"
The kitchen manager sighed and said, "This thing is only produced in the west. It's too far away, and there's not much shipped here. If Your Majesty wants to eat it every day... I'm afraid we'd have to hang ourselves."
Liu Tan: ...
He never expected that there was such a reason.
The kitchen manager also told him the truth. Of course, it was mainly because Liu Tan had always had a good reputation. No matter how people outside said he was cruel and murderous, everyone in the palace felt that the King of the North was a rare and amiable person, and most importantly, he was reasonable.
If it weren't for Liu Tan's reasonableness, he probably wouldn't have said these words to Liu Tan.
Liu Tan also felt that this was not an easy task and couldn't help but ask, "Haven't you ever thought about planting?"
The kitchen manager smiled bitterly and said, "Why haven't I thought about it? But... I still haven't figured out how to grow this thing."
Liu Tan was about to ask why he didn't ask the businessmen how to grow the crops. Don't say that the businessmen won't tell you. As long as you pay enough, these businessmen will definitely tell you.
However, he had already figured it out before he asked - the climate in West Asia was different from that in Han Dynasty. Even if the merchant told him to plant it in Han Dynasty in that way, he would not be able to grow it.
Liu Tan patted the kitchen steward on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, if Father likes it, I will tell him."
When the time comes, let Liu Che find someone to study it, and it would be a good opportunity to study how to grow rice at the same time.
Let professionals do professional things.
Well, Liu Tan didn't want to admit that when he searched for things related to crop planting in his mind just now, his mind was basically blank.
Okay, the things he had done in the past were more or less things he had learned or researched, but this thing... he really had never come across before, but he could give some suggestions.
The key to making spring rolls is to let the dough rest, which takes at least half an hour. During this half hour, Liu Tan started having people prepare the green onions, sauce, and the indispensable cucumber.
When Liu Tan was asking someone to cut cucumbers, he couldn't help but thank Zhang Qian. Without the cucumbers, the roast duck would feel like it was missing something.
After all these things are prepared, the duck is basically dried and ready to be put into the oven.
The duck's anus needs to be blocked and then filled to 80% with boiling water, and then the duck is put into the oven.
Originally, the temperature of the roast duck was the most critical thing, but Liu Tan didn't need to worry about it, because this stove was originally used to make roast suckling pig. The people responsible for roasting duck were very good at roasting suckling pig, and their control over the temperature was simply superb.
A while before the roast duck came out of the oven, Liu Tan had someone brush a layer of honey on it, and then brushed a layer of sesame oil on it after it came out of the oven.
While the duck was being roasted, the spring rolls had already been steamed.
After finishing all this, Liu Tan looked at the time and saw that it was almost time for the meal.
He directly asked someone to bring a whole roast duck over. When they arrived, Liu Che looked at the bright red duck and laughed, "It smells good. How do you eat it?"
Liu Tan picked up a dagger from the side and said, "I will come in person."
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