Chapter 154 Chapter 154 Update.
Maocai and Maoming hurried in, opened the bed curtains, and saw a thin figure inside. They knelt and said:
"We can't do anything about it. You haven't been eating much lately. She's the one Madam hired to cook for the young master. Her nickname is 'One Gold Lady', so it's hard to get her out."
"You are becoming more and more disobedient. You dare to use your wife to pressure me."
After saying that, he threw everything he could get his hands on, such as jade pendants and jade hooks, at them.
"Go tell your wife that she has forgotten her status and invites all kinds of low-class people into her home. If she likes, just ask her to cook for her. Don't pollute my place! I won't eat food cooked by such people."
Maocai had no choice but to reply. Maoming was a step behind him and picked up the jade pendants and hooks scattered on the ground. He stayed to help him get dressed and stand up. He pushed the wheelchair and was about to lift him up when he saw Ji Xu still standing there. Li Quanye said:
"Are you still not going away?"
Ji Xu refused to leave. "I promised Madam Yu that I would come here to cook for you and take good care of you. Madam Yu treats me very kindly. If I do a good job, she will definitely give me a lot of gold. I can't bear to leave."
She put the porridge and the jade table back on the bronze table, and even groped to the window to open the thick brocade curtains.
"You're truly a mercenary scoundrel... Who allowed you to let the light in? Put it down!"
He saw the light coming in through the window. He hadn't seen the sun for who knows how long. His skin was a sickly pale blue, his blood vessels were bulging, and he cried out strangely.
Ji Xu did this because he saw that he could not see the road clearly after getting up. Now he hurriedly pulled down the curtain again, and the room was pitch black again.
"Where's Maocai? Why don't you come in and answer me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Maocai, who had delivered the message, returned, accompanied by the old maid who served Yu Shi personally. She bowed and said:
"Madam, Miss Yijin is good at cooking. For the sake of his health, the young master should eat more. Instead, he is throwing a tantrum and trying to kick her out. This is not right."
Ji Xu was relieved. After all, it was Yu who hired her, and Li Quanye couldn't drive her away.
"Master Li, please eat something. If you don't want to see a despicable person like me, eat the food and heal your body. Gradually, I won't come here anymore. Even if you want to see me, you can't." Ji Xu advised.
Li Quanye had been silent since the old woman's reply, and now he suddenly said:
"Set the table."
Maocai and Maoming got busy. They first lit the seven lamps beside them. There were as many lamps as flower trees, but Maocai only lit one. There was a faint light in the room, and people could see things, but it was still dark.
Then, Maocai knelt in front of him, holding the food tray above his head. The bowl of porridge was on the tray, and the height was just right for Li Quanye to eat while sitting in a wheelchair.
Maoming held a basin, tea and a towel and stood by to serve.
When Ji Xu saw this, he finally understood why Maocai and Maoming called him the Demon King. It must be tiring to serve him like this. No wonder he looked old after all these years.
Li Quanye touched the porridge, put down the silver spoon and said:
"It's cold, I won't eat it, make it again.
The porridge had inevitably become cold after being left out for too long, so Ji Xu went to the stove to get a new bowl. In order to prevent him from saying it was too hot again, he touched the bowl and made sure it was warm before handing it over.
This time, after taking a bite, he said:
"It's faded, redo it."
Fortunately, there was still porridge in the pot. After taking it out bowl by bowl, there was still some left. Ji Xu added some salt and took some more. He took a bite and said:
“It’s so salty.”
Ji Xu knew that he was deliberately trying to annoy him, so he patiently accompanied him. However, there was no porridge left on the stove, so he made another half pot, which took him half an hour to cook.
This time, as soon as I brought it in, I heard him cursing harshly in the dark:
"Where have you been? Did you ask me to plant japonica rice or go to the mountains to hunt sparrows? You took me so long to come, you bastard. If you want to die, you should choose a good day!"
It’s okay, it’s okay, Ji Xu’s ears were stuffed with cotton and he said:
"Cooking porridge takes a lot of time. I dare not neglect what Master Li wants to eat. I must make it carefully and attentively."
"Since you are so attentive, I don't need the other two brothers to wait on me. Just kneel down and hold the plate like Maocai. If I am in a good mood, maybe I will eat it."
But Ji Xu brought the two bronze lampstands over again, and the two held the food table on both sides.
"I've been wanting to say this for a long time. Isn't this just right? It's also more stable than lifting it manually. Why bother with that?"
"It is your blessing to serve the master, let alone a lowly person like you, kneel down at the table."
He insisted.
"You can't stand anymore, so you have to make others kneel in front of you to make you feel better?"
The words at this moment should be those spoken by Ji Xu of later generations. Without the shackles of the four classes of scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans, she is not a lowly person for making a living as a cook, and she is bolder, at least at this moment. She just stared at Li Quanye's broken leg directly.
The food tray in front of her fell over, and the bowl of porridge shattered into pieces. Li Quanye swung his sleeves and scolded her:
"Get out! Get out! Don't let me see you again!"
"It's getting late, I should go back. I'll cook something different for Master Li tomorrow."
Ji Xu cleaned up the things in front of him and rode back to Anling before dark.
I came again the next day, and this time I made steamed pigeon with safflower. Safflower can invigorate blood circulation and relieve dryness. I had consulted the doctor about the use of this medicine a long time ago, and it was delivered to Li Quanye's room at lunch time.
The breakfast was still there, untouched on the table, completely cold. The room was still pitch black, and the bed curtains were drawn.
According to the two brothers Maocai, the devil was lazy today and did not order them around. He had not eaten or drunk anything until now, so they were worried that he had fainted in the tent, but they did not dare to call him.
Ji Xu put down the steamed pigeon with safflower and a few side dishes, and half-opened the curtain to let in the light. The person in the tent immediately cursed:
"Who told you to move the curtain?"
Knowing that he could still breathe, Ji Xu covered his face again, put down the aphrodisiac lunch in his hand, and said:
"Today I'm making steamed pigeon with safflower. Master Li, try it when you've calmed down. I passed a plum grove on my way here, and the plum blossoms there are still in bloom. I picked a few branches to show you. They're all in bud. Your room is warm, so they should all be in bloom tonight."
"roll."
"Then I'll leave and come back tomorrow."
On the third day, Ji Xu came again and placed the medicinal food on the table. Li Quanye did not nitpick about the saltiness or taste of the food as he did on the first day. Instead, he fell asleep in the tent without saying anything.
Maocai was looking forward to her coming and said:
"The safflower steamed pigeon you made was delicious. Last night, the devil told me to pour it into the slop bucket. I felt it was a pity, so I heated it up on the stove and ate it. It tasted like nothing I've ever tasted before, and I feel stronger now. This proves that your medicinal food is effective. I asked the doctor at the mansion, and he said it's okay to eat even if you're not sick, as a way to maintain your health."
He said the last few words quietly, not daring to let the people inside hear them, otherwise he would have to drive Ji Xu away.
"As long as you eat well, it's not in vain."
Ji Xu said.
On the fourth day, she took away the withered red plum blossoms in the house and replaced them with freshly picked ones to put in the vase. She still placed the lunch on the table and gave a few words of advice to the accountant.
"roll."
He is still the same.
She went there for ten days in a row, except for the first day when Li Quanye ate a few bites of salty and bland food in order to pick on her. Later, he didn't eat a single bite of the lunch she made. He left it all out at night for Maocai and Maoming to eat.
The good thing is that they both look better, no longer as worn out and dull as before.
"Madam means that you don't have to come every day in the future. Perhaps you are hired from outside and come from outside the Great Wall. The young master won't eat your lunch, but he can eat a little for breakfast and dinner. Maybe if the original cook cooks lunch again, he will eat a little instead of refusing to eat anything like he has been doing recently.
Come back in two days. Young Master Yu would be even better. If he is willing to eat lunch these past two days, but refuses to eat your food in two days, then that's fine. You don't have to come again in the future."
The maid conveyed the message on behalf of Yu and Ji Xu.
This was because she refused to eat. Ji Xu suddenly regretted that he had spoken frankly that day. He should have been more tactful and flattering to people like them from Wuling.
After ten days of hard work, she still couldn't get anything done. There was only one chance left, which was in two days, and she was very nervous.
But as the monk rings the bell day by day, she still wants to give it a try.
These two days at home, I saw her still reading "The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine" in the house. This is an old book she bought a long time ago and has been reading it in her spare time. When she read a sentence, she took out the doctor's prescription and looked at it.
Later, I bought a bull whip and a piece of mutton to make soup. Needless to say, I also took some of the tonics in the prescription home.
Except for the peacock kernel and glutinous rice porridge on the first day, all the medicinal foods made by the Li family these days have been tested at home first.
After all, this was her first time trying dishes with medicine. She didn't want to be criticized, so she had to try it first to make sure she could make it perfect.
The bull whip and mutton soup fills the house with fragrance. The bull whip is properly processed and no longer has a fishy smell.
When it was soft and tender, she served a bowl of it to drink. It had no noticeable medicinal taste, the soup was rich, and the saltiness was just right. Two days later, she made it for the demon king to eat, and the taste must have been impeccable.
The only difficulty is how to get him to eat it.
I heard a noise outside. It was Tian who was closing up her stall and her sisters who had taken over the elementary school came back.
There were others who came with them, four young men from Wuling, dressed in brocade and jade pendants, and surrounded by flowers. They all got off the carriage at the door. Tian led them into the courtyard and said with a smile:
"Come in, you are Xiaozhu's classmates. I will give you some fruit."
This group of idiots came in, stopping and starting. The leader, Li Fuye, bowed and said:
"Excuse me."
The four of them, along with Jizhu, were chosen to sing "The Great Wind Song" during the Spring Festival. They all sang very well individually, but their chorus performance was not up to par.
Teacher Fan ordered them to practice at a place after school today. He drew lots for them to choose from, and those who drew the lots would practice at Jizhu's house. Now, they are all here.
There are horse-drawn carriages from various families parked at the door, which makes this alley very special.
"It's all Master Fan's fault. He insisted on drawing lots and coming to my house. Even if we practice in the side yard, it's better than being crowded here."
They had never seen such a small yard before. They could see the end at a glance. Now that they took off their shoes, the bamboo couch creaked when they stepped on it.
While sitting on the mat, Wang Chang whispered to Li Fuye.
Li Fuye was quite well-behaved, unlike the unruly boy he was in the elementary school built by the Li family. He knew how to observe etiquette when he went out, and would not bring shame to the Li family.
Moreover, his heart had changed. He felt that this place was pretty good. There was a swing in the yard. Although the house was small, it was warm. There was also a charcoal stove, and Ji Zhu knew how to stir the charcoal.
Li Fuye pointed at the spinning wheel on the table and asked, "What is this?"
"It's a spinning wheel, used for spinning thread." Ji Zhu said.
Li Fuye turned them around with interest. "What are these? They're quite interesting."
Li Fuye said again.
"My sister made the wool felt. She's very skillful with her hands."
There was a small animal lying on each corner of the mat, like a guardian of the mat, which was very vivid. Wang Chang paid special attention to it when he heard about it. Seeing that the elder of the family had arrived, everyone knelt and sat down.
"These are what Feng and Zhu love to eat. I also sell these in Huai City. When you come to my house, you can try them too."
There were some transparent cakes, round and cute, filled with diced dried fruits such as grapes, red dates, and peach preserves. Some of them were filled with round black beads whose names I couldn't remember. Each one was pierced with a bamboo stick and served on a plate.
Because winter is not suitable for making lotus root starch dumplings to relieve summer heat,
“This is called bowl cake.”
Tian said that her daughter taught her how to make it, and now she knows how to make it. She has been steaming this and selling it since the beginning of winter. It is very popular. Some children in elementary school like to eat it very much. The old-fashioned plum blossom cake is still on sale, and it is also sold in groceries.
The little girl was shy and it was her first time bringing her classmates home. Tian naturally treated her well, bringing them food and not disturbing them, saying:
"Just practice in peace."
Li Fuye's little boy brought over a musical instrument called a "zhu." The four of them stood in a line, with Li Fuye playing the zhu beside them. They sang several times with great concentration:
"The wind rises and the clouds fly, my power spreads across the country and I return to my hometown. How can I find brave men to guard the four directions..."
Tian, Jixu, Jifeng, and Jindou were all in the kitchen, and they all said the singing was beautiful. Tian said:
"I think those Wuling disciples are quite well-behaved. They used to catch spiders and earthworms to scare Xiaozhu, but I don't think they are among them anymore."
Ji Feng wanted to drink the bullwhip and mutton soup, which was so delicious that she kept drooling. However, Ji Xu stopped her, fearing that it would be too strong for a child like her. Ji Feng then took the bowl cake and ate it, saying:
"That Li Fuye in the yellow silk and the one next to him called Wang Chang, those two. I used to argue with them because of their doggerel, but lately they've been more collected and haven't been making poetry for fun anymore."
After finishing the practice in the main hall, the food and fruits on the table remained untouched. Firstly, it was the rule of their big family that they could not eat food from outside, as they were afraid it might be unclean; secondly, these young men from Wuling did not want to lose their status by eating these things.
"Don't you want to eat it? It's delicious." Ji Zhu asked.
Li Fuye ignored the child's advice and took a piece of transparent bowl cake to eat, just to avoid rejecting the hospitality. As soon as he took a bite, he found that it tasted like nothing he had ever tasted before, sweet and fragrant. He nodded and said:
"It's delicious, Wang Chang, you guys eat it too."
Seeing this, the children also ate it and actually fell in love with it. However, they were concerned about their status and did not take a second piece. They said goodbye to Tian and left.
When Tian learned that these young men had composed poems for fun and called her daughters "people from outside the Great Wall", she lost her original enthusiasm. However, considering that her daughters were classmates and the children had to get along with each other, she said a few polite words.
Li Fuye was about to leave when he saw a black cat coming out of the kitchen. He said excitedly:
"Wutuan'er!"
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