There are many other dishes like scallion oil noodles that can be made with just staple foods and simple ingredients.
Su Wan's brief enumeration is enough to make people dizzy.
Zuo Zhizhang couldn't help but say, "No wonder, your family is from a white case background, so you know so many uses of rice and flour."
Su Wan was stunned.
Is this explanation okay?
There was no need for her to explain how she knew so much.
“This method should work, right?”
"Of course it's feasible." Deputy West Prime Minister said happily, "But this time it's not just about our West Kitchen, the North and South Kitchens have to be involved. I need to talk to Deputy North Prime Minister."
Although the female official from the Imperial Kitchen did not say it clearly before she left, Deputy Prime Minister West knew his temper and decided it would be better for him to listen to Deputy Prime Minister North in everything.
Of course, Su Wan has nothing to say about this.
But everyone knows that Su Wan’s suggestion is definitely useful.
Anyway, let the officials and palace people have their meals first.
Not long after the Deputy Prime Minister of the West arrived at the West Kitchen, he hurried back to the Shangshenjian and wiped the corners of his mouth after eating noodles with scallion oil.
I was still worried just now, but now all the worries are gone.
Su Wan is really smart. The solution is clearly there, but she is the only one who thought of it.
But this matter must be kept secret for the time being.
First let the people in Zhongcui Palace think that they are not prepared, so that nothing unexpected will happen.
And we can wait and see what other tricks the people in Zhongcui Palace have.
At this time in Zhongcui Palace, several senior palace maids were talking about this matter.
"The Imperial Concubine is really amazing. Let's see if the Imperial Food Bureau dares to act so arrogantly in the future."
"Isn't it better to just listen to the Queen's words? You ask for food and things every day, but you are just a bunch of lowly palace servants. What's the point of eating so well?"
"You really think you are a lady-in-waiting. Aren't you the same as us?"
"They are indeed female officials. They can even attend court meetings during grand court sessions."
"What's wrong with attending court? Do they dare to speak in court? They are just marginal figures."
The female officials of the Imperial Kitchen certainly didn’t know these words.
She was in the palace at this time.
But she had a vague feeling that something was wrong until she received a letter from the Deputy Prime Minister of the Kyoto Imperial Palace early in the morning on June 29th.
I forgot to give Concubine Jiang the warrant.
Only the order from the Ministry of Food was pulled down. Without the order and the card redeemed, more than 6,000 palace servants would be cut off from food.
This made the female official of the Imperial Food Department take a deep breath. Even though she had thought about it a thousand times, she could not have imagined that Concubine Jiang would actually make a fuss about this.
After seeing the letter, the female official immediately went to Concubine Jiang's residence. Unexpectedly, before she reached the palace gate, she was stopped by the guards around the saint.
The Saint had apparently rested at Concubine Jiang's place last night. It was still morning and the Saint had not left yet, so the female official naturally could not go forward.
We waited until morning, and when the emperor finally went to work, news came that Imperial Concubine Jiang was ill and resting, and would not see anyone.
At this point, the female official couldn't understand what was happening.
At this time, Deputy Prime Minister Li of the Miscellaneous Affairs Bureau also arrived, and she had obviously heard the news as well.
Deputy Prime Minister Li has always been casual, but this time he frowned. Although Zaliku does not have to take care of the meals of the palace servants of various departments, this is obviously aimed at the Shangshi Department. Zaliku is naturally a part of the Shangshi Department, so they must come to take a look.
Seeing that Concubine Jiang was nowhere to be seen, the two men already had an idea in their minds.
It seems to be directed at them.
Deputy Prime Minister Li sneered: "Just hide and don't see anyone. Let's go in and see who dares to stop us."
At most, she would be charged with disrespecting the imperial concubine, and then what? Could she be removed?
Making the female officials wait outside the palace for a whole morning was giving her face.
The female official from the Imperial Food Department nodded: "Of course I have to go in."
The two of them were not afraid. Being able to stand at the door for a whole morning was already a great honor.
Anyway, let’s get the warrant first.
According to the Imperial Concubine's thoughts, she would either deliberately accuse them of disrespecting her, or let them have a closure in the Imperial Chef's Office.
She won't lose anything anyway.
Just as the two were about to go in, other palace servants from the Imperial Food Department came quickly with another letter in their hands.
It was actually sent from Kyoto.
The two of them finished reading the letter at the door of the imperial concubine's palace, and then fell into silence.
Su Wan said that she only needed rice, flour and beans to take care of everyone's food. It didn't matter if there were no beans, she was not picky.
What a big tone.
But it's a very pleasing tone.
Deputy Prime Minister Li couldn't help but say, "Last time at Zhongcui Palace, I felt that she was an extremely clever girl."
The female official of the Imperial Food Department looked at her and asked, "Did you figure it out?"
"Can't you see? She's a little smart." Deputy Prime Minister Li said, "Madam, do we still want to go in?"
The female official put away the letter. Since the Deputy Prime Minister of Beicheng said that this was feasible and that the rice and flour recipe prepared by Su Wan was absolutely fine, then there was nothing to worry about.
However, the food ingredients there cannot be missing for too long, and the warrant still needs to be obtained as soon as possible, but Su Wan's method can help them delay some time.
The female official of the Imperial Food Department said, "There will be a grand court meeting on the first day of July."
The grand court meeting is held outside the Dezheng Hall of the imperial palace, and all civil and military officials must attend. It is different from the internal meeting of the small court meeting.
The female official of the Shangshisi was of the fifth rank, the deputy chancellor Li of the Miscellaneous Treasury was of the sixth rank, and the deputy chancellor Nan who had arrived was also of the sixth rank.
They also had under their command a female official in charge of the Miscellaneous Storehouse and a left official in charge of the Southern Kitchen, all of whom were officials of the sixth rank.
Anyone can attend court.
If the female officials of the Imperial Food Department want to attend the small court meeting, it is also possible.
It’s just that they have always been stable and have never made any mistakes, so they are very low-key.
There is something to talk about at this grand court meeting.
Imperial Concubine Jiang was ill and neglected her duties, resulting in the mishandling of palace affairs. The six thousand palace maids in the imperial palace and the outer palaces in the capital were starving and complaining.
What?
Too exaggerated?
This is just the beginning.
If the female official in charge of the Imperial Food Department were to say, since Imperial Concubine Jiang was not energetic enough, she didn't need to worry too much about the affairs of the outer palaces of the imperial city.
After all, the imperial concubine should only be in charge of the affairs of the harem. They have many departments in the outer palace, which have little to do with the harem.
The Imperial Concubine should not be in charge of the Armoury Bureau, the Treasury Bureau and the Funerary Artifacts Factory in the Outer Palace.
After the female official from the Ministry of Food returned, she picked up her pen and wrote this memorial, which would be submitted to the court on the first day of July.
Deputy Prime Minister Nan and Deputy Prime Minister Li, who were watching from the side, could not help but sigh: "The lady official is so talented and eloquent, she can do well even in the imperial examination."
This is not an exaggeration.
Those who can become a fifth-rank female official must have good writing skills.
Their Shangshenjian was very close to Guanglu Temple, and the temple officials there would often ask the female officials to help them with their writing when they had nothing to do.
This memorial quotes from classics, but its writing is not pretentious and is naturally excellent.
The female official of the Imperial Food Department laughed: "After all, you are still anxious."
Naturally, I’m talking about Concubine Jiang.
In theory, the entire inner city of the palace is under her control, and half of the outer city is also her people.
But I will still be anxious when I need to be anxious.
The Shangshenjian was so steady that she couldn't find any fault with him.
In the past few years, we could still take it step by step.
But this has not been the case in the past two years.
Especially this year.
On the sixth day of the eleventh month of the thirteenth year of Tianze, the Third Prince would be fourteen years old.
The eldest son of Tianxiang State, starting from the generation after Emperor Gaozu, took charge of government affairs at the age of fourteen.
It's almost July now, so she is anxious.
Even though no one in the court paid any attention to the silent Third Prince, she was still anxious, eager to control more things so that her son would have more opportunities.
From the perspective of outsiders, she doesn't need to be impatient.
The Third Prince is now thirteen years old, but has no fame at all. It is said that he did not have a good education since childhood, and he has no network of contacts at all.
On the contrary, Concubine Jiang’s son, the eldest prince, has many followers. It is said that a mother’s status is determined by her son, but who knows that a son can also be determined by his mother.
Even though Concubine Jiang has not yet become the queen, she is truly the woman with the highest status in Tianxiang Kingdom.
Everyone in the harem is inferior to her.
This is also the compensation given to her by the saint.
But she was still anxious.
So I have been taking action frequently recently.
The memorial was temporarily put aside and not sent out. The female official from the Imperial Food Department straightened her official uniform and took Deputy Prime Minister Li and Deputy Prime Minister Nan to wait in front of the palace gate of Concubine Jiang.
The three of them smiled at each other, and they all understood the meaning.
Just wait anyway.
They looked anxious, but in reality, the three of them knew what was going on.
Since the capital can handle it, there is no need to force our way in. Instead, we can take this opportunity to ask for something.
While walking on the road, Deputy Prime Minister Li couldn't help but say, "Su Wan is like a little lucky star."
She was the one who broke through at several critical moments.
To put it bluntly, they can cope with the situation without Su Wan, but it will definitely come at a price.
But with Su Wan, not only can we deal with it directly, but we can also fight back.
The female official of the Imperial Food Department laughed: "Yes, I didn't expect that I was wrong."
When she was assigning people, she assigned the young Su Wan to the west kitchen, which was full of younger people with no skills.
Who would have thought that she would be given such a big surprise.
"It's not that the lady official made a mistake, it's just that Su Wan is different from others."
Deputy Prime Minister Nan also nodded silently, but she thought of her niece Rongrong who only knew how to cook. She originally thought that Rongrong was the best among this group of palace maids, but she didn't expect it to be Su Wan.
In the palace of the imperial concubine.
Concubine Jiang asked, "Are they here again?"
"Yes, he originally went back to the palace kitchen, but now he is here again, and he still wants to see the queen."
"I thought they had some other solution, and now they are coming to ask me for help." Concubine Jiang smiled gently, "They also said that I was ill and couldn't see anyone. The Saint also knew that I was ill, so he was not lying to them."
Concubine Jiang was still worried.
How could she feel at ease seeing that guy growing up day by day and being able to survive so many attacks?
He was almost fourteen.
How is this possible?
She must firmly control the entire palace, otherwise how can she pave the way for her children.
Although he didn't die, he was so thin that his bones were visible in the past few months. He was probably like his mother, a sickly person.
Even more damnable.
Concubine Jiang's face was still as gentle as ever, but her fingers were secretly pinching her palms.
This time she is going to give it a try. It would be best if there is more trouble in the Shangshi Division. Then she will have a reason to clear people out.
There doesn't need to be too much of a mess.
A day or two is enough to allow her to do a lot of things.
Now she just had to hold him off.
Do these people from Shangshisi still think that the ingredients can be delayed until the fifth day of July?
I'm dreaming.
A hundred miles away from the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
On June 29th, the food that was saved yesterday has been placed in the ice cellar. Fortunately, the people in Zaliku are our own, so there will be no shortage of ice. Fortunately, Tianxiang Country can make its own ice, otherwise the food will be difficult to preserve.
The weather is hot nowadays and food is difficult to preserve.
Early in the morning, the right manager of the West Kitchen took people to the Imperial Household Department to get food. The Imperial Household Department was located in the middle of several kitchens, and waited for the right manager of the West Kitchen to arrive.
The right supervisor of the Southern Kitchen was arguing with someone from the Imperial Household Department.
Su Wan, who was following, also heard it clearly.
"What's missing? We have redeemed our cards and received the food for today and tomorrow. Is there anything wrong with that? June isn't over yet, right?"
The right manager of the South Kitchen was usually a kind person, and this was the first time he saw her so angry.
The people from the Ministry of Internal Affairs made him even more furious: "Let me explain again, your allotments were all collected yesterday. You should know that your Southern Kitchen was originally responsible for 4,200 palace servants. What about now? If I remember correctly, 1,000 people went to the temporary palace. Did you deduct the food expenses for these 1,000 people?"
"Isn't the food allowance for nearly a month for these 1,000 people enough to make up for today and tomorrow?"
How can we settle accounts like this?!
When the allocation was made, the inner palace knew that there were a total of 8,800 people in the Imperial Food Department, and 2,400 of them would go to the temporary palace.
Therefore, the inner palace must know that these portions are for the remaining 6,400 people.
But now you say that is the share for 8,800 people, so you gave too much every day before.
Now we have to make up for it.
The examples for the 29th and 30th will not be sent out because they have been given out before.
Have you already received all the money? I gave you too much before, so isn't it just right if I don't give you any more now?
This makes people grit their teeth in anger.
Who doesn't understand now?
No wonder there is an abundance of food in June and meat can be found at every meal.
In fact, he had already thought of an excuse in secret.
He clearly knew that he had received a share of 8,800 yuan before, but he deliberately didn't tell anyone and waited until the end of the month before saying that he would make up for the previous amount.
Even if this matter gets blown up, people will accuse the Imperial Kitchen of greedily taking the ingredients. Otherwise, with so many ingredients, they can't just make delicious food for the palace servants, right?
Let the people from the various palaces answer if they are not fed well.
The Shangshi Division is finished.
If I say I'm eating well, it's much better than before.
Then Shangshisi would have a reputation for uneven distribution of ingredients.
how?
I give you 30 kilograms of rice per month, and you eat it all up in the first half of the month, so you don't survive the second half?
Since you are in charge of the kitchen, how come you can't even manage the ingredients?
If this happened under normal circumstances, it would be fine.
There are only two days left this month, so I can still handle it.
You can start receiving it again next month.
But it’s different now. The entire Shangshi Division knows that there are no redemption cards for next month’s warrants. Not only can they not get them again next month, they also have to use this month’s quota.
The ingredients for June 27th and 28th had already been reduced. I originally thought that the food would be better if the 29th and 30th were added.
At least until July 5th.
Su Wan looked at the expressions of the people from the Imperial Household Department and realized that it was useless to say anything today. The Imperial Household Department did have something, but it would not give it to them.
As for the reason, it goes without saying.
He must be colluding with Concubine Jiang and wants to completely shut down the Shangshi Division.
A good cook cannot cook without rice.
That's absolutely true.
At this time, not only people from the South Kitchen and the West Kitchen came, but also the North Kitchen and the Miscellaneous Storehouse.
There were also people from other palaces coming to claim their belongings.
Seeing this scene, I felt a little nervous.
Those who don't understand naturally blame the Shangshi Division for not knowing how to prepare the ingredients. How come things became so messy after their female officials were away for a month?
Those who understand know that it is a fight between the two sides, but they also think that these concubines in the harem belong to the imperial concubine, so why shouldn't they obey?
If you were obedient, you wouldn't have so much trouble.
Some who truly understood knew that if the Imperial Food Bureau failed, the food in the palace would not be much better in the future.
Nowadays, the Imperial Food Department is trying to make delicious food and even supports the Western Kitchen. Isn't it all for the sake of ensuring that the people in the palace can eat well?
But unfortunately, there are too few people who truly understand.
Fortunately, the general managers of various departments were quite perceptive and told the palace servants in various places not to talk nonsense. Only a few departments that were truly loyal to the imperial concubine began to publicize it.
What's the matter with the Shangshi Restaurant that withheld our ingredients and sold them to enrich itself?
Also, the food distribution of Shangshisi was unreasonable, so I had no food to eat for the past two days.
In the end, there was no food in July because the Imperial Kitchen did not hand in the order. It was not the Imperial Concubine's fault, it was their own fault.
When there are a lot of people, even black can be said to be white.
The slackness in June turned out to be an illusion, and everything was waiting for them.
Su Wan was at the door of the Ministry of Internal Affairs at this time, still listening to the people in the Ministry of Internal Affairs deliberately fanning the flames: "Hey, I've already told you that the food has been collected in the past two days, why don't you listen?"
"All expenditures in the palace must have a reason. You ladies-in-waiting cannot rely on your own power and come here to find fault."
"It is because the noble lady in the inner palace is not here, so you are allowed to do whatever you want. When the noble concubine comes back, she will definitely be able to tidy up the palace."
The right head of the southern kitchen sneered, "You lackey, why didn't you realize before that your legs are so bent that you can't even stand up."
"Today's incident was caused by the Imperial Concubine's negligence. If she brings back the warrant, will it cause trouble for Qiyue's food?"
"If you can't hold power, don't hold it."
"When the late queen was here, the six palaces were stable and everyone in the palace praised them. Why is it that something has gone wrong now?"
"I'm not saying that the Imperial Concubine is not good at managing, she's just not as good as the late Empress."
Su Wan subconsciously looked at the warrior.
The right-hand man of the southern kitchen was of sturdy build, but his features were gentle, but every word he said was heart-wrenching.
I guess when these words reached Concubine Jiang's ears, she would be filled with resentment again.
But she had to say it in public. Could she still punish the Right Chief of the Southern Kitchen? If she punished him, it would mean that she was more powerful than the late queen. Would she dare to do that?
The Right Supervisor of the Western Kitchen, that is, the Right Supervisor of Su Wan's kitchen, whispered to her, "The Right Supervisor of the Southern Kitchen is from a military family. She entered the palace to become a female official just because she likes to cook."
"If I don't become a food lady, I will probably become a training lady in the army."
Instructing female officer?
Teaching soldiers martial arts?
So awesome.
No wonder the Imperial Household Department didn’t dare to say a word.
Moreover, this person is obviously not afraid of Concubine Jiang, as her family is a military general and she is a female official.
However, it was also the first time that Su Wan faced the power of the female officials.
Anyway, I got rice, flour, and beans from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They were all what Su Wan said she needed.
It is so!
But their reaction speed is indeed fast.
Knowing that he would not be able to get the ingredients today, he immediately changed his mind.
And there won’t be too many obstacles in getting these staple foods.
After all, the Imperial Household Department did not dare to really starve 6,400 palace servants. At most, they thought that the Imperial Food Department should prepare simple meals. They could not guarantee that they would be delicious, but it was enough as long as they would not starve to death.
It's better to let them eat plain noodles and tasteless rice.
That's interesting.
But after receiving the things, everyone looked unhappy, and they also had to go to the Shangshenjian to discuss it.
The female officials asked everyone to take their things back, and they went to the Shangshenjian. Just as Su Wan was about to follow them, the right chief patted her on the shoulder and said, "Come with me to the Shangshenjian."
Naturally, others have no objection.
It was the first time for Su Wan to attend an internal meeting of female officials!
Although not all the people were there, I was still a little nervous.
Who would have known that after going to the Shangshenjian, the first thing to do was to collect things. Many pickled vegetables and all kinds of sauces had been found in the miscellaneous storehouse.
There are also various pickled meats, salted fish, bacon, sun-dried beans and so on.
They usually make some in winter and spring and wait to eat them all year round, but now they are all taken out.
Su Wan looked at the various pickles and swallowed subconsciously.
These are all good things. Their Shangshisi is indeed wealthy!
It is worthy of being a miscellaneous library where hidden dragons and crouching tigers are hidden. It usually does not show off much, but now it can produce so many things.
But these things can only provide people with food to eat, but it is not certain whether they taste good or not.
But Su Wan thought about the taste of sauerkraut noodles and the taste of salted fish rice.
Eat salted fish with rice and scrape the bottom of the pot!
In other words, what they have now are rice, flour, beans, pickles, bacon and pickled fish.
But if pickled vegetables, bacon, and pickled fish were cooked into dishes, they would only be enough for so many palace servants to eat for three days.
Everything has to be done economically.
We don’t have to touch these things today and tomorrow. The things we have now are barely enough.
On the first day of July, the palace maids in the outer palace would eat rice with pickled vegetables.
If you eat it at home, you can also say that you are recalling the past and thinking of the present.
But for so many palace servants to eat together, it was truly shabby.
But the sudden changes in the Imperial Household Department left them with no choice but to do this. It was already very good to have such a response to such a sudden change.
And they have a secret weapon that they haven't revealed yet.
When the ladies-in-waiting focused their attention on Su Wan, she still felt a little uncomfortable.
The female officials present were the Deputy Prime Minister of the North, the Deputy Prime Minister of the West, and the four right directors of the North, South and West Miscellaneous Storehouses.
These six people have different temperaments, but now they are all smiling at Su Wan.
And they didn't just let Su Wan make the recipes herself, everyone had some skills.
Inspired by Su Wan, everyone tried their best to think of delicious food that could be made with rice and flour. Originally, they just wanted to get by and wait for the female official to send the warrant.
But now think about it, if they can still accomplish this despite such difficulties, wouldn’t it be better?
The female officials were all people who refused to admit defeat, and when they gathered together at the moment, they naturally had thousands of ideas.
Anyway, when Su Wan returned to the west kitchen, many small objects were stuffed into her hands. They were all given to her by the female officials to express their love for her.
Everything else is fine, but what's the matter with that little silver lock?
She's twelve! Not two!
With Su Wan's suggestion, the North and South Kitchens were also thinking about their own rice and flour cooking methods.
The west kitchen will naturally be handed over to Su Wan.
Although she is young, her cooking skills are no worse than those of other powerful female officials in the north and south. She even wants to compete with Su Wan when she thinks that everyone has to make rice and noodles.
Everyone started to feel stressed!
But when Su Wan returned to the west kitchen, she did not start cooking directly, nor did she prepare a simple menu after July.
But prepare to do something else.
baking soda.
When making honey lemon water before, Su Wan thought about making baking soda, and then she could make sparkling water, which is perfect for the hot summer.
It’s just the hassle of making baking soda, so I thought I’d leave it for later.
But in this situation, with baking soda, even steamed white flour buns will taste delicious.
Because there is baking soda, and acid can be added as a leavening agent, her cooking may be crude, but many pasta dishes will become twice as delicious once baking soda or leavening agents are added.
The soft and fluffy pasta, with the tiny bubbles and air inside when you take a bite, can make the pasta taste even better.
It was already evening when Su Wan returned to the small kitchen. She pushed open the door and saw Yan Pei waiting inside, bringing what she wanted.
Su Wan originally planned to ask Wei Jun and Zhuo Hui for help, but when she mentioned it to Yan Pei during the meal, he said he could find things faster himself.
What was said in the morning was delivered in the evening.
The action is indeed swift.
Although Yan Pei didn't know what Su Wan wanted these things for, he still found them all.
They are pure alkali, limestone, pig bladder, and a high-quality jade bottle that is not easily corroded.
According to Yan Pei, this was the vessel used by his master in the Taoist temple to make elixirs, so it was easy for him to know.
Indeed, refining the elixir is similar to what she is doing now?
Look at things like pure alkali, they are indeed what is needed for alchemy!
Su Wan fiddled with it for a while, then subconsciously looked up at Yan Pei: "Your Taoist temple master made the elixir, but you didn't eat it, did you?"
Alchemy and the like will definitely result in excessive heavy metal content!
"I'm telling you, many emperors died from eating this, so you must not eat it carelessly."
Yan Pei smiled and said, "I don't like this kind of thing."
"That's good. An elixir that doesn't have any experimental standards is obviously a poison." Su Wan felt guilty just after she finished speaking.
She is now making baking soda manually. Is there an experimental standard?
I'm just messing around based on my memory.
Su Wan coughed lightly out of embarrassment, but didn't notice that Yan Pei was looking at those so-called alchemy tools thoughtfully.
Su Wan had already cleaned the platform, put on a homemade mask, and also prepared one for Yan Pei.
Tonight is the time to witness a miracle!
With baking soda, her fried dough sticks will be more delicious and the buns will be softer. French bread, cheese crepes, donuts, small cakes, and cookies of various flavors will also be very good if you add a little bit of baking soda.
She will be buried in sweets forever!
No one can pull it up!
Yan Pei found her expression funny, but the next second he saw Su Wan put the limestone into the jade bottle, poured some vinegar into it, and then quickly wrapped the mouth of the bottle with pig urine.
Soon the pig's bladder was filled with smoke, but Su Wan's hand was unsteady and all her efforts were wasted.
If Su Wan were to say, this was the carbon dioxide gas she made!
This kind of wild experiment is really difficult!
But when she thinks about those delicious foods, she feels okay again!
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