There is nothing much to say about the winter festival these days.
Last year, Su Wan, Li Rongrong and others were very nervous about making vegetarian meals. This year, they are still making vegetarian meals, but it feels much easier.
The main thing is that we eat vegetarian food every night, and other meals are normal. And since we are members of the Ministry of Rites, there is no need to be cautious at all.
Everyone just needs to do their own thing.
Li Rongrong also said: "You don't know until you compare. Thanks to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince for eliminating the treacherous people, the people in Tianbei Palace are gone. Otherwise, if it were the same as last year, I would definitely be exhausted to death."
That's true. It's okay if it's just cooking, but the feeling of being constantly finding fault is really frightening.
That being said, they are both very busy.
Mainly at Su Wan's place, many people are waiting to eat egg tarts, and they must eat them hot.
Not to be picky, but the warm egg tarts are definitely a step up in flavor, as are the warm almond cookies.
Anyway, these two items have become a must-have for many officials.
This year, things are much more relaxed everywhere. The saint was ill and caught a cold on the way here. Although he tried his best to perform the sacrifices, he still didn't have enough energy, so he didn't have time to take care of the ministers.
As for the remaining Xie Pei, he is the kind of person who doesn't need you to be respectful as long as you do your job well.
Therefore, the officials feel relaxed mentally and don’t need to be too tense.
But something went wrong. Mainly, when the six departments of Shanchuantan were reporting on this year's situation, the saint was exhausted and fainted. Fortunately, he woke up quickly and continued the report.
I heard that he was forcing himself to listen.
The saint is too hardworking.
In this way, the sacrifices must continue.
In fact, think about it, the saint’s health has never been good. Last summer, he was not in good health. At that time, he had to drink sour plum soup made by Su Wan to cool down so that he could eat more.
The incident at Tianbei Palace this year dealt him a huge blow. He couldn't sleep for many days, always afraid of being laughed at by the people. He was also worried and uncertain about the monk having an affair with his concubine. From then on, his health deteriorated.
It seemed to be fine before, because that was the tonic that the monks in Tianbei Hall gave him. Now that the tonic has stopped, that tonic must have drained his body.
So when winter comes, ordinary older people can't bear it, let alone people like him who are in poor health.
This winter festival basically started with getting up early in the morning and working until the evening, performing rituals and offering sacrifices. The heavy clothes alone required changing into several sets of clothes.
Every time I change clothes, I always sweat a little.
It is not surprising that he fainted on the altar now.
Anyway, the ministers were already prepared.
However, it is not true that the saint's body can't hold on any longer.
Because of this incident, the winter festival became serious again, and people were more careful in caring for the saints.
But other more important matters were left to the prince.
The ceremony of enthroning the crown prince has already taken place, and Xie Pei is now the legitimate crown prince of Tianxiang Kingdom. He has been listed in the family tree, the Golden Book, and has also been announced to the gods of heaven and earth.
As the crown prince, it is legitimate for him to preside over the sacrifice.
Su Wan listened and felt that the saint should be so angry that he vomited blood once more.
The more he fears something, the more Xie Pei will do it. How can he feel at ease? According to the character of a saint, he will definitely not be able to be at ease.
After three days, when the winter solstice came, the saint finally felt much better. He stood up straight and completed all tasks in an orderly manner.
Seeing that the saint was capable, Xie Pei naturally stood properly.
Many people have noticed that after Xie Pei became the crown prince, he behaved very properly.
But it's just a thought. Anyone who looks at him will find that he is still the same Xie Pei, and no one dares to provoke him easily.
Imperial Concubine Jiang, Concubine Chu, and the two princes now seem unusually silent. I don’t know if they have accepted their fate or what, but they look listless anyway.
What can they do? Assassination is useless, poisoning is useless, and political tactics are useless.
They seemed to be at a loss.
Her son treated his son the same way that Queen Ding treated her.
We have to return to Kyoto city in the afternoon of the winter festival.
There is no heavy snow here, and all the wealthy families along the road have set up beautiful colorful tents. There are also many singing and dancing performances in the tents, which are very lively to listen to.
There were also some women of marriageable age from wealthy and aristocratic families looking out from behind the colorful curtains.
Su Wan heard the palace maids beside her say, "I heard that they all came to see His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
"Could it be them?"
"Of course. The prince is already fifteen. Logically, he should be getting married. He is old enough. Even if he doesn't get married, he can at least plan to get engaged."
"Wow, I don't know which girl will be chosen."
Su Wan almost spit out her tea.
Fifteen. Get married?
These two words went around in her mind, and she suddenly remembered that it was normal to get married at this age in ancient times.
Concubine Jiang's son, the eldest prince, has also been discussing marriage recently. He is twenty-two years old this year, which is already very old. Although he has not married a wife, he has a lot of concubines, and these concubines are not girls from humble families. They are all waiting for the eldest prince to become a crown prince or a saint in the future, and then they will directly become palace concubines.
The palace concubines have ranks, and maybe the queen will choose from among these concubines, which is basically considered a marriage.
Now the position of the main wife is kept, and the intention is to wait for a woman from a higher family background to marry into the family.
The marriage of Chu Jieyu's second prince, who is sixteen, has already been arranged. He will officially get married next year. The woman he is going to marry is the daughter of a university scholar, so this must be a marriage of arrangement.
But I don’t know whether the university scholar is still willing to let his daughter continue to marry him now that the situation has changed.
So it was normal for Xie Pei to get engaged and married at the age of fifteen?
After all, that's what people in ancient times did.
Fortunately, she doesn't have to suffer such torture, and she can still be a good maid in the palace.
When she left the Su family and went to the palace to be a maid, firstly, she had no choice, and secondly, it allowed her to stay away from her family and not have her life in the hands of others.
Now think about it, if she had planned not to enter the palace, she might have been arranged to marry.
Su Wan subconsciously shuddered.
No! You can't!
When she left the palace, she was almost eighteen, which was early for her to get married.
Knowing that getting married was a thing in ancient times is one thing, but actually facing it is another.
Poor Xie Pei.
Getting married at such a young age.
Su Wan clicked her tongue a few times and looked at the little girls in the colorful tent. In fact, they were all very pretty.
I don’t know which one will become the Crown Princess.
With Xie Pei's current status, should everyone be vying for the position?
Su Wan was enjoying the play so much that she forgot about the matter when she arrived at the Ministry of Rites.
The winter solstice was over, and the next day she could pack up her things and go back to the Shangshenjian!
But I still have to prepare one last meal before going back, as I said at that time, I want to make baked buns!
Su Wan was leisurely cooking, while Xie Pei had already rejected countless people and said, "It's useless to talk if we're not getting married."
Then at noon I went to the Ministry of Rites to chat with the Minister of Rites.
Minister of Rites: What do you want me to do?
The winter festival is over!
It’s time for everyone to take a break and then celebrate the New Year!
Indeed, when the winter sacrifice in the court is over, it is already the twelfth lunar month, and the next days are spent waiting for the New Year.
It's almost holiday time, so naturally there's nothing to do.
This year is a little more troublesome. Some foreign small countries sent envoys to congratulate Tianxiang on the establishment of the crown prince. Those who came before the New Year are generally small countries and can be looked after by people from the Honglu Temple.
In a word, I'm free now, what are you doing here?
Xie Pei did not explain and just talked about government affairs. Fortunately, they were all trivial matters and everyone had a pleasant chat.
Su Wan was busy from morning until noon before she finally made the hot baked buns.
After all, it was the last meal at the Ministry of Rites headquarters, so it was naturally prepared with great care.
Although she is leaving, this meal must not be sloppy!
The Uyghurs call baked buns Shamusa. Legend has it that this food was made in the wild because it is windy and cold in the wild, so this high-calorie and high-fat food had to be made. Originally, it was baked directly on charcoal, but charcoal produced a lot of ash, so some smart people thought of heating stones and using the temperature of the stones to bake the buns. The buns made were indeed delicious and clean.
Finally, it gradually evolved into the baked buns that we commonly eat today, which is also a delicacy famous both at home and abroad.
The ingredients needed to make baked buns include a heated oven and flour. The dough for the skin needs to be unleavened dough, which is also quick and easy to make.
The filling is made of mutton, and the fat from the mutton itself is not enough. It is best to take some fat from the sheep's tail and add it to the filling. Cumin powder, pepper, onion, and salt are essential.
Not too many seasonings are used because the freshly slaughtered lamb is already delicious enough as a filling and does not need any other seasonings to add to the flavor.
It goes without saying that Su Wan’s skill in mixing the fillings is superb. She puts such delicious fillings into the prepared thin wrappers and then sticks the buns to the inner wall of the oven.
The buns were baked in just two cups of tea and twenty minutes.
It looks like the same recipe for making steamed buns, but because of the different cooking method, the buns that should have been soft are now golden in color. Because of the baking, the mutton fat inside is almost seeping out. You can tell at a glance that this bun must be delicious.
These buns with beautiful color, thin skin and abundant fillings have a unique flavor.
Su Wan grilled a lot of mutton at once and was not stingy with the mutton at all. Before it was time for dinner, quite a few people had already come.
The last time we ate the hot egg tarts in the kitchen, many people had already tasted the sweetness. Anyway, whoever comes first will definitely be right!
This time the baked buns did not disappoint them!
There is also the mutton soup made by Su Wan, which is perfect to eat on a winter day like this.
Not to mention that the officials below were full of praise for the food, even the Minister of Rites was thinking about how to find an excuse to keep Su Wan.
I didn't even notice that the prince had lunch and then left neatly.
Su Wan, Li Rongrong and others were packing up after lunch.
The cooks who had returned from the funeral have already arrived, and they will not be needed anymore.
However, when the palace maids from the Imperial Kitchen were packing up their things, a group of people outside looked reluctant.
"Why do you want to go back to the Imperial Kitchen? You are still free if you stay in the Ministry of Rites."
"Yes, or else talk to your superiors and stay in the Ministry of Rites. Without the food you cook, we can't even enjoy our meals."
"You guys just stay."
"Yeah yeah."
Su Wan, Li Rongrong and others were at a loss whether to laugh or cry, but they still packed up their things and left.
By the time the Minister of Rites came to look for someone, they were almost at the palace!
It would be fine if other people didn't understand, but Su Wan and Li Rongrong knew something in their hearts. Staying in the Ministry of Rites was not bad, but Li Rongrong was going to be a female official and it was impossible for her to stay in the kitchen of the Ministry of Rites for the rest of her life.
As for Su Wan, she also didn't want to stay in the Ministry of Rites. No matter whether she opened her own shop or worked as a female official in the future, she had to return to the Shangshenjian first. Only here would they have real room for promotion.
It’s not that you can’t be a cook, but there are obviously better options, so why ruin your own future?
The women in the Shangshi Division are all ambitious.
Many people in Shangshisi have discussed the negative example of Jiang Hongye before.
If she hadn't gone to the inner palace, she might have been a fifth-rank female official now, wouldn't that be better than being with Concubine Jiang?
In the past, it was thought that Concubine Jiang’s son might become the crown prince, and it sounded like he had a bright future. But now he is just an ordinary prince, nothing special, and she is just an ordinary cook in the inner palace.
Before this happened, everyone might still hesitate.
Not at all now!
Work hard in the Imperial Food Department. As long as you have the ability, you can stay in the palace and become a female official. Once you leave the palace, wealthy families will fight over you. Isn't that better than entering the inner palace?
When Su Wan returned from the Ministry of Rites, the officer's worried expression had returned to normal.
The main reason was that the prince said that he had no intention of taking a wife or concubines, so everyone should not waste their efforts.
It doesn’t matter for other people, the commander feels much more at ease anyway.
At least in the next few years, Su Wan will not be abducted.
Who knows what will happen in the future?
Su Wan is a smart girl, so she shouldn’t be confused, right?
But no one can say which is better, being a female official or being a favorite concubine.
After Su Wan came back, she rested for a few days before starting to work.
But she obviously felt that the Shangshisi was having a hard time doing things everywhere, or it was because no one was allowed to go out in May in the other palaces except the Shangshisi. It was okay on normal days, but it was always extra busy during the holidays.
Fortunately, in March or April after the Chinese New Year, new palace maids entered the palace.
By this calculation, she has been in the palace for two years.
The Shangshi Division was already busy, but unexpectedly another incident arose. The Chonghua Palace next door, the prince's residence, was being renovated after the news of his enthronement as the prince came out.
It was supposed to take at least half a year, but Xie Pei stopped it, saying that as long as it could be used, everything should be kept simple.
This made the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Imperial Household Department all breathe a sigh of relief. The former didn't have to worry about anything, the middle ones didn't have to spend extra money, and the Imperial Household Department saved a lot of trouble.
Especially the Ministry of Revenue. When the New Year comes, the Ministry of Revenue is in a very difficult situation. There is no way because the treasury has no money.
But the situation has been short of money for many years, and the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue is accustomed to living a tight life. He originally thought that he would have to spend a large sum of money again this time, but he did not expect that the expenditure would not be as much as he had imagined.
But after other matters were settled, there was still one thing I had to discuss with the Imperial Chefs.
That means a small kitchen must be built in Chonghua Palace. There are small kitchens in various places in the inner palace, even for nobles.
It is impossible for the prince to have his meals in the southern kitchen. It always seems a bit weird. Whether it is for the prince's face or the ancestral etiquette, other things can be saved, but this one is not allowed.
A small kitchen can be built, and the people inside are basically of two types. If the relationship between the saints is good, then it is the saint’s gift. Now there is no need to think about the father-son relationship.
Another option is for the prince to find someone himself, or to transfer someone from the Imperial Food Bureau.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs now thinks the latter.
This news should have been a trivial matter, but the officer frowned.
One is that the Shangshi Department is already short of staff. If another thirty or forty people are transferred over there, they will not be able to do their work.
What's more.
Wouldn't the prince use this incident to take Su Wan away?
If you think about it carefully, it is actually possible.
There's no better excuse than this.
But it would not be a good idea for her to refuse directly, and the reason was simple. She and the old people living near the West Court had originally followed the prince, and it was impossible for her to refuse just after the prince was enthroned, as if the Shangshi Bureau was going against the prince.
In short, it’s just two words: headache.
It gives me a headache no matter how I think about it.
Fortunately, there are many things to do in Chonghua Palace and there is no rush. Xie Pei also said that we can wait until after the New Year.
Anyway, after a few things happened, the superiors had different ideas, but others gradually discovered the prince's habit, which was to keep everything simple, and he could not be careless when holding court, and other pomp and circumstance were not important.
Some people originally thought that Xie Pei was using the name of the late emperor to make a name for himself.
But after a few things, although it is different from the previous emperor's style of doing things, it vaguely reveals two words, that is, reliable.
The Ministry of Revenue originally stood on Xie Pei's side, and had already taken sides when dealing with the Tianbei Palace before. But now that they are really working under the prince, they feel more and more that their choice was right.
Most people may have two different faces after becoming a prince, but Xie Pei is not like that. Instead, he becomes more low-key.
It was as if everything he did before was just to fight for this position, otherwise he didn't want to be high-profile at all.
But the more Xie Pei did this, the more famous he became.
In the past, the wealthy and prominent families in Kyoto were all waiting and watching, and were very hesitant about marrying off their daughters.
But after looking at it this way, I found out that the prince didn't even have a maid, let alone concubines or maids. Not only did he keep himself clean, he also learned martial arts and was very steady in his work. There was also a secret letter written by the late emperor himself, which ensured his position as prince was stable.
After hearing this news, the families who were originally planning to propose marriage to the second prince immediately turned a deaf ear and dumb, and devoted their attention to the crown prince.
Xie Pei naturally refused directly.
But the more he refuses, the more he appears to be a clean person.
The more families love their daughters, the more they want to be first.
Fortunately, no one dared to get close to him for the time being and just talked about it. It was not until Xie Pei asked the guards to tie up a few talkative people that they stopped talking.
Su Wan was listening to gossip while eating melon seeds, which she had roasted herself.
Anyway, the New Year is coming soon, how can we celebrate the New Year without eating melon seeds!
Wow, it’s only been two years, Xie Pei is amazing.
After listening to the gossip, Su Wan returned to her residence and saw a person sitting in the room with a smile on his face. He had obviously heard the discussion in the yard just now.
The palace maids' quarters were already cramped, and with Xie Pei sitting there, it seemed even more crowded.
Fortunately, Su Wan is not someone who is easily frightened, so she just handed over the melon seed jar: "I just fried them today, do you want some?"
Xie Pei actually took it and said, "The Shangshi Division is too idle."
This is obviously irony.
The Shangshisi has been extremely busy lately.
This statement was obviously referring to Su Wan's gossip about eating melon seeds.
The most gossip is about Xie Pei's marriage.
Su Wan didn't answer, but just smiled and said, "Just chatting."
But there was obvious mockery in his eyes.
Seeing her so frank, Xie Pei was unable to say the rest of the words and changed the subject abruptly: "After the New Year, the palace will select palace maids in advance, and basically they will be selected by the end of February."
"By then, Chonghua Palace will have a small kitchen."
Speaking of this, Su Wan was slightly surprised.
Xie Pei wants her to pass?
Su Wan paused holding the melon seeds, and heard Xie Pei say, "I don't plan to let you go. It's better to stay in the Shangshisi than in the palace's small kitchen."
"I'm just telling you in advance, if I don't choose you, don't think that we are strangers."
Su Wan breathed a sigh of relief.
She definitely didn't want to go. After hearing what Xie Pei said, the thought in her mind was how to refuse!
It’s okay now, no need to refuse.
Su Wan nodded: "What's the big deal? You choose your person. I don't mind."
Now that I know that he didn't choose her in order to avoid hindering his future, I don't care even more.
There are probably not many people in the world who can care about their friends like this.
Xie Pei looked at Su Wan, and finally nodded, saying, "I will be quite busy recently. Do you want to go skiing at Bi Guang Mountain in the eastern suburbs during the Chinese New Year? There are also winter snow-covered Cuju games there, and everyone is there."
Skiing at Biguang Mountain?
Playing Cuju on the snow in winter?
Are you guys good at having fun in winter?
Xie Pei added: "It will only take two days, then I can take you out of the palace."
Needless to say, he was still a prince last year and could go out to eat Japanese hotpot. This year he has become the crown prince, so it should be okay for him to go out for two days, right?
Su Wan was a little moved.
I know it’s not good, but it’s skiing!
You can also watch Cuju!
Isn’t it better than eating melon seeds in the palace?
"Okay, what about the commander?" Su Wan asked. No matter who she was hiding it from, she probably couldn't hide it from her commander.
Although she doesn't have to be on duty every day this year, she still needs approval from her superiors to leave the palace.
"Don't worry, I'll tell them." Xie Pei smiled, "I'll teach you how to ski later."
Skiing is great!
Although skiing is easy to fall, the more you do it, the more addictive it becomes.
After Xie Pei left, Su Wan felt a little bit more looking forward to the New Year. She immediately prepared clothes for skiing and would definitely wear thick clothes when the time comes, otherwise she would get frostbite.
When she was about to wash up and rest, she discovered that there was a small pile of peeled melon seeds in the small cup on the table where Xie Pei had just sat.
It’s amazing, you peeled so many in such a short time.
As expected, when Xie Pei went to talk to him, the superior naturally agreed. However, Su Wan always felt that the superior was in a bad mood today, seeing as he was sighing all the time.
When he knew that Su Wan would not go to the small kitchen of Chonghua Palace, his brows relaxed.
In the following period of time, no one had time to think about anything else.
All departments are busy before the New Year, especially the Shangshi Department, where everyone wants to split the work into pieces.
Xie Pei said almost the same thing as he did. He was rarely seen, but he often sent people to deliver things. Over time, many people knew that Su Wan had a good relationship with the guards from the Lingtai Division.
Every time the guards who delivered things heard this, they wanted to laugh. What Lingtai Division? It's obviously Chonghua Palace!
However, the prince has had a lot of things going on recently.
The most important thing is money.
This year, many things in the palace were distributed in advance as requested by the saint, but this caused the national treasury to be in financial difficulty again.
This was originally something that the Saint and Concubine Jiang had to consider, and when they returned from the winter festival, they threw it directly to Xie Pei.
Not many people knew about this matter, and even if they knew, they thought it was a good opportunity for the prince to gain experience.
Only those who understand the situation of the national treasury know what is going on.
The treasury was in a tight spot and money was needed everywhere, including part of the imperial palace.
The tens of thousands of people in the imperial palace are almost a heavy tail. These are only the inner and outer palaces and the internal departments. There are also another 10,000 or 20,000 people in the external departments, and they have almost all become a burden.
But this cannot be said.
Because it was the late emperor who originally proposed preferential treatment for the palace ladies and treated them well.
The late emperor had good intentions, but he never expected that over the next decade or so, a few thousand people would grow into tens of thousands. The food and drink treatment for tens of thousands of people was no small amount of money.
It would be fine if they all did their job, but there were many who enriched themselves. Many people just took the money but did not do their job, and the money did not even reach the hands of ordinary palace servants.
At first, all the palace servants in the West Outer Palace could not eat properly and had to eat outside the palace. The menu outside the palace was controlled by the people in the palace. It was just a microcosm of the palace servants in all the departments of the entire imperial palace.
It can be said that if you understand it carefully, you will admire the Shangshisi even more. If they were not the ones to stabilize the palace, the palace would not be more peaceful than it is now.
Therefore, the Grand Secretary of Zhongji Palace was willing to speak up and help the Shangshi Division get out of trouble.
Now all this matter has been handed over to Xie Pei. It seems like he is delegating power, but in fact he wants to see how he will do it.
If he forcefully cuts down on palace expenses, it will indeed have an immediate effect, but don't forget that he was able to ascend to the throne of crown prince with the help of a secret letter from the late emperor.
If the first thing he did after becoming the crown prince was to cut spending, wouldn't that be going against the late emperor?
Will those old ministers agree?
If it continues to operate as it is, how long can the current warehouse last? Since this task has been given to Xie Pei, are there any hidden bombs in it?
He must have hidden it, just waiting for Xie Pei to do nothing, and then he can say it was Xie Pei's fault.
When the prince's first task was done in a muddle, what about the rest?
There is a saying that a dog that bites doesn't bark.
The same principle applies to this incident. Although those incidents in the past seemed to be very serious, they were not as vicious as this incident.
It looks silent, but it is actually the most vicious.
This was the first difficulty Xie Pei encountered as the crown prince.
It depends on whether he lays off people or does nothing.
It's not that easy to do nothing, because they have even advanced the time for selecting palace maids for next year.
It seems that the Shangshi Department requires more than a hundred people, but what about the other twenty or so departments?
It is another extremely heavy burden.
Only the saint on his sickbed could think of such an approach.
This is exactly what Xie Pei has been busy with recently.
Before taking any action, you must understand the situation of the various departments in the palace, otherwise it will be difficult to take action.
With so many complicated issues, Chonghua Palace was basically completely lit up. Fortunately, the prince was calm and so was everyone else.
I know this is a trap, but I still have to take it.
The things we have to deal with in the future will be a million times more complicated than this, and everyone knows that.
Su Wan knew something about it, but there were already enough things to do in the Shangshi Department. In addition to the Shangshi Department's affairs, there was another matter that was also quite troublesome.
When she was at the Ministry of Rites, she made a lot of egg tarts and almond cakes, with the purpose of letting everyone eat them on the way, and she said she could make some more when she came back.
I originally thought that there wouldn't be many people, but there was an endless stream of people coming to visit.
But Su Wan still underestimated the charm of egg tarts.
If it was before, I could give the recipe of the puffs to the dessert department, just like making profiteroles, and they would naturally prepare them, but it was the busy New Year holidays, so I naturally couldn’t push it to them.
So I can only work overtime at night to make a batch, and forget about the rest.
If you want to eat, you have to wait for her time.
Many people returned disappointed, which is understandable, after all, there have been a lot of things happening in the palace recently.
Gradually, people outside the palace also knew about this. They heard that the palace had created a new snack called egg tart, which was extremely delicious. Just in time for the New Year, many snack shops began to imitate it.
But most people don’t know what egg tarts look like, so how can they make them?
Among the imitators was Mr. Su, Su Wan’s original father.
Mr. Su has also been having a headache recently.
He has been making old-fashioned snacks for more than a year using the baking soda given by Su Wan, and now he has gained a good reputation in Beijing.
Actually, life is pretty good.
But the owner of Qingfeng Tower always encouraged him to make some fresh food, and said that if he succeeded, he would give him two hundred taels of silver as a reward.
Two hundred taels!
Enough for him to eat and drink for a long time!
In fact, Master Su also knew that the owner of Qingfeng Tower just wanted her to ask Su Wan to see if she could dig out some delicious food from the palace.
There have been a lot of popular palace delicacies in Kyoto in the past two years. He was jealous just by looking at them, let alone the owner of Qingfeng Tower.
As long as they can make a palace delicacy, it will be a great thing for Qingfeng Tower.
For example, the recent egg tarts, many people have never seen them, but those who have tasted them praise them highly and say they wish they could eat them every day.
Who wouldn't be tempted in this situation?
But thinking about Su Wan now, Mr. Su decided to do nothing.
He is a person who lives for the day. His current life is good enough and he doesn't force anything.
The marriages of their children were also taken care of by their biological mother, and they only needed to take fifteen taels of silver a month to cover their daily food and drink.
What if I make Su Wan angry again and she stops giving me baking soda?
Mr. Su has always been of this kind of character. If he had known how to make progress, he would not have squandered so much of his family fortune.
Anyway, life is fine now, so I won’t bother.
The main reason is that he is a little afraid of Su Wan. She is the youngest daughter in the family, but he always feels that she is different from others, especially after entering the palace. She is actually a little scary?
At this time, the last batch of egg tarts that everyone was talking about was finally finished. If the old man in the library didn’t want to eat them, she wouldn’t have made them.
I was busy until December 29th, when it was time for vacation.
Su Wan was not asked to be on duty this year, but several other palace maids were arranged to do so, because Su Wan was in the palace during the Chinese New Year last year.
Moreover, both her monthly salary and clothing are on the same level as those of the senior palace maids. She is also a member of the Imperial Kitchen Supervisor, and this year she can go home for the New Year. Although it is only for one night, it is already a special treatment.
This is the difference between the Shangshenjian.
The Su family is still the same as before. Mr. Su did think about the egg tarts while eating, but he still didn't ask. Can't he just live a good life? Why make trouble?
After the Su family finished their meal, Su Wan and her aunt returned to the courtyard early.
Looking at Jing Ju next to her, Su Wan naturally gave her a red envelope to celebrate the New Year.
Jing Ju is now loyal to the Third Aunt and the Fourth Miss Su Wan. Only by following them can she make money and have a good life.
She and the gatekeeper knew it very well.
After Jing Ju left, Su Wan and the third aunt started to speak sweet words to each other.
Their shop is open until the morning of the 29th, and then reopens on the 6th, so they can take a good rest during the Chinese New Year.
My aunt had been working outside for a long time, and she was less timid. She took out a sheepskin hand guard from the box. After using the hand warmer, she would put on the sheepskin hand guard to keep her hands warmer.
Looking at the delicate leather of the sheepskin, you can tell it is worth a lot of money.
"I originally wanted to ask someone to send it, but I didn't expect to be able to come back during the Chinese New Year, so it's just right for you." Auntie smiled and said, "I will save money now, and when you come out of the palace, Auntie will prepare more dowry for you, and your life will be better."
This is what Aunt Gui is thinking now. She wants to make a lot of money to earn a dowry for Su Wan.
Su Wan did not answer. In fact, she should have as much money as her aunt. Although she would not use her aunt's money, it was a good thing to have a goal, so she did not refute and said with a smile: "You don't have to save money. Just buy whatever you like."
After that, he mentioned the Su family again.
It would be fine if we were sure that the Su family only thought that the aunt and Jing Ju were there to do the work.
The Su family members didn't like to go to their store either, probably because they felt it was embarrassing. After all, the concubines and maids in the family were all out working, so they usually didn't allow them to reveal their identities.
Aunt Gui and Jing Ju rarely went out before, and few people knew them, so no one would recognize them unless their identities were revealed.
So this family had no idea about the situation in the store.
This is actually a good thing.
After New Year’s Eve, Su Wan would pack up and return to the palace.
He said he was packing up to go back to the palace, but actually he was packing up to go look for Xie Pei.
Go skiing with Xie Pei!
The two of them had made an appointment early on.
They went directly to Bi Guang Mountain in the eastern suburbs, but the journey by carriage would take an hour. It would be fine if Su Wan could ride a horse, but unfortunately, when she was in the Mountain Resort, she only learned how to ride a horse, and she couldn't run fast, so she could only take the carriage.
The carriage that came to pick up Su Wan seemed to be heading towards the palace, but in fact it stopped at the gate of the palace. Xie Pei also got into the carriage, which went directly to the eastern suburbs. If they arrived earlier, they could catch lunch in the eastern suburbs.
Su Wan hadn't seen him for a few days, and she knew that Xie Pei had been busy understanding the various departments of the imperial palace, so as soon as he came up, she asked, "Are you really free? Aren't you busy?"
"On New Year's Day, we always have to take a day off."
Xie Pei smiled, and seeing that Su Wan was obviously looking forward to skiing, he said, "If you find it interesting, we can stay a few more days."
"Forget it, let's try something new." Su Wan looked outside and saw the carriage was moving very fast, so she lowered the curtain.
Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year, and many people have come out to pay New Year's greetings. The streets look lively, but the further east you go, the fewer people there are.
There are quite tall mountains over there, with snow halfway up the mountain. A lot of the land on the mountains belongs to other people, making it even more difficult to get through.
Seeing that Xie Pei's carriage was moving smoothly, Su Wan knew that this must be his manor.
How much did the Ding family leave for him?
But think about it, with the great achievements of General Ding, a few Zhuangzi mountains are nothing. If the late emperor had not passed away early, he would have deserved the title of "guardian of the country".
After Xie Pei got on the carriage, he did not chat, but looked over the official letter in his hand again, pinched his nose slightly, and then sent the letter out.
Su Wan took a glance and saw that it should be the accounts of various departments.
But he turned his head away immediately after he saw it. Seeing this, Xie Pei didn't give it away, but handed it to Su Wan instead: "Do you want to take a look?"
The guards outside who did not receive the official documents sighed in their hearts, but were sensible enough not to ask what was going on.
Su Wan definitely didn't read it in the carriage, but the document was stuffed into her hand. Xie Pei also said, "The carriage should go slower."
The speed of the carriage, which was originally galloping, slowed down, allowing her to watch carefully.
Since it was like this, Su Wan had no choice but to take a few more glances. This was obviously the true situation that Xie Pei had collected himself.
"The Elephant House reported that there were 180 palace servants. Thirty were cut during the May layoffs. Now there are 150 on the books."
"There are actually only fifty people?!"
Su Wan was simply shocked.
Next is the Eagle Room. Su Wan and Xie Pei have visited the Eagle Room before. Last year, when she had a few days off, Xie Pei took her for a walk in the deserted areas of the West Outer Palace.
Among the places he visited was the Eagle Room, which was sparsely populated at the time, with almost no palace servants. However, the accounts reported a hundred palace servants?
How is this possible!
Some people also said that the palace maids in the Imperial Kitchen should know the situation clearly, after all, they all go to their respective kitchens to eat.
But this is also different. Not every department in the imperial palace has meals there, for example, the Armory, the Falconry, the Elephant Room, and many other places.
Those were gifts from the previous emperor, so they have their own small kitchen.
So the Shangshi Division definitely doesn’t know.
Even if you dine at the Shangshisi, if you don't go to eat, can the Shangshisi call everyone one by one?
At first, many people didn't go to the west kitchen to eat, which was normal.
Therefore, the Imperial Food Department only estimated the approximate number of people coming to dine, and the number of people in each palace and each department was only nominal.
When we look at the accounts, we find that eighty percent of them have problems.
Some people also said that the accounts reported 150 people, but there were actually 50. Was there anything wrong with this?
Definitely not.
Take monthly wages for example. The palace pays monthly wages according to the accounts. If one hundred and fifty people are paid two taels of silver each, that would be three hundred taels of silver.
The three hundred taels were given to the manager of the elephant room, who was asked to distribute them. However, he only needed to distribute them to fifty people, so the expenditure was one hundred taels.
Where did the other two hundred taels go?
The monthly salary is just an example. If the account shows that he is a eunuch, he will get ten taels of silver a month.
There is also ice water in the summer, charcoal fire in the winter, clothes, shoes and socks to change into, and daily necessities distributed.
Where did the food and drink expenses for the one hundred people on this account go?
An elephant room, or deliberately said that he cut an elephant room for thirty people,
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