Chapter 223 Li Qi of the Zheng Family
Although he didn't get a glimpse of the whole picture, and only saw about 50% to 60% of the dishes on the table, the aroma that filled the whole room and made him salivate had already made his brows twitch.
If you look around Shezhou City at this time of year, how many ordinary families can afford such a table of dishes?
Then he thought about it and realized that this was indeed Chen Lie. He was already very capable, so other things were fine. It wouldn't be difficult to get some meat as long as he had the time.
But, the aroma of the wine? The aroma of the wine! It was so delicious that even an old wine lover like him couldn't tell what kind of wine it was.
Chu Qichuang almost asked the question without thinking, luckily Shen Lie and Chen Dashan had already come to greet him. He was surprised and delighted. The warm but not overly enthusiastic call of "Sir Chu" brought him back to his senses that had been bewitched by the aroma of wine. He remembered his identity and the purpose of his visit.
Chu Qichang's slightly sideways posture immediately straightened up, his gaze also retracted, and he said to Shen Lie with a warm smile: "I have been traveling to the lower counties for six or seven days on official business, and I just returned at noon. I went to the government office to hand over some matters. I remember that you said before that you would take the entrance examination for the state school, so I asked the chief secretary and found out that both of you brothers passed the state school. So I came to congratulate you before the city gate is closed."
As he spoke, he handed the box in his hand to Chen Lie.
The man arrived and brought gifts. They were not very familiar with each other, so Chen Lie was unwilling to accept them. He had to refuse. Chu Qichang said, "They are not valuable things. They are some paper and ink stored at home. These things are not easy to buy now. Since you two brothers have been admitted to the provincial school, I think you can use them. There is no need to refuse."
Having said that, Shen Liefang thanked him and accepted it, and invited Chu Qichang to come in: "My humble abode is simple, Lord Chu, please don't abandon it."
He also called Xu Wenqing to come in.
This was the first time that Chen Dashan heard Chen Lie speak in such a literary way. He was very curious and raised his eyebrows and glanced at him.
Sang Luo, Zhou Ge, and the other five siblings, Shen An and Shen Ning, had already left the table with Chen Lie and Chen Dashan. Firstly, it would be impolite to have a guest sit down, and secondly, the table could only seat eight people. There were already nine people, and with this guest coming, there would be no room for them no matter how hard they tried.
There was no reason to ask the guests to stand. Family members had to give way first. Even Zhou Ge, who was also a guest today, did not really consider himself a guest, especially since Chu Qichuang was a stranger, a distinguished guest, and a foreign man. Zhou Ge stood up with everyone and stood aside as soon as Shen Lie and Chen Dashan moved their stools away and took a few steps forward. It seemed that he was ready to help Sang Luo change the dishes and chopsticks to entertain the guests at any time.
Sang Luo had already looked at Chu Qichuang calmly when he entered the room. She saw that he was still wearing his official uniform after leaving the yamen, and the hem of his uniform and the black boots on his feet were covered with dust. She knew that what he said about being away for a few days was true. She turned her head and whispered to the Chen An brothers and sisters on the side. The brothers and sisters took their bowls and chopsticks and calmly moved them to the long table next to the stove at the back.
Zhou Ge saw it and hurried after him. Sang Luo did not say anything. Nowadays, when entertaining guests, it does not mean that women must avoid them. If they are familiar with each other, the couple will entertain them together. But if it is an unfamiliar male guest, it is up to the women to avoid him or not.
Chu Qichang was not only a stranger, but also an official in his official uniform. Zhou Ge didn't dare to eat at the same table with him. He quickly took away his bowls and chopsticks along with the Chen An brothers and sisters.
Chu Qichang looked at this scene and realized that he was in a hurry and disturbed the Shen family's celebration banquet. He didn't expect that anyone could hold a celebration banquet at this time. He felt embarrassed. Seeing the two young women inside, he didn't know who one was and what their identities were. He could only say vaguely: "Don't worry, everyone. I just came here to congratulate Brother Shen. I will say a few words and leave. It's rude to come here uninvited and disturb your celebration banquet."
Sang Luo said with a smile: "The distinguished guest has come to our humble home, why bother you? The banquet has just begun. If you don't mind our humble food and tea, please take a seat. You men can chat, and I will take the children to another table."
Chu Qichang was stunned. He had thought that Shen Lie was studying, but today he found out that both brothers were studying. He entered the Shen family, and then found out that there was another one hidden in the Shen family? Moreover, the knowledge and demeanor revealed in just two or three sentences were even better than Shen Lie.
If Chu Qichang had not seen the Shen family's household registration with his own eyes, which clearly showed that they were from Shili Village in Qiyang County, he would have doubted the family's origins.
The humble home is filled with glory.
Chu Qichuang chewed over these four words in his mind again, raised his eyes and looked at Sang Luo, his eyes had changed slightly.
What a glorious place this is!
He has little knowledge, not as much as the Zheng family and the Lin family, but he can still appreciate things. Is this really not a woman who was brought up in a scholarly family? Where did such a person come from in a small mountain village?
Not to mention, seeing Sang Luo looking at him with a smile, Chu Qichuang already had doubts about the authenticity of the Shen family's hometown at that moment.
Such demeanor and bearing make people dare not look down on him, or even look up to him, even if they are standing in this simple rammed earth thatched house.
Chu Qichang was originally from Shezhou. In terms of family background, he was not as good as the Zheng family; in terms of knowledge, he was not as good as the Lin family; in terms of wealth, he was not even a finger away from the Wang family.
He was mediocre in everything, but he was able to get a job as a military officer in the new dynasty. Of course, there were people more capable than him, such as Zheng Jiaguan, who disdained to take such a small official of the eighth rank in the court, but his own ability should not be underestimated.
Only then did he begin to doubt, and in an instant he realized that the young woman was not hiding anything and was not afraid of his investigation.
This at least proves one thing, the Shen family has no shameful secrets.
He glanced at the delicious food on the table that no one had tasted yet, and noticed an ingredient he didn't recognize. He then saw the red wine in the two bowls that had not been cleared away, and thought about being called over by the governor today. He smiled and bowed to Sang Luo, "In that case, I am shameless to bother you."
Sang Luo smiled and turned sideways to the seat of honor, "Master Chu, please."
…
Chen Dashan was stunned.
Shen Lie handed the basket in his hand to Shen An and gently nudged Chen Dashan who was in a daze. Chen Dashan finally reacted and barely closed his slightly open mouth.
Chen Dashan came back to his senses when he saw Sang Luo bringing over two sets of bowls and chopsticks.
Is this a scholar?
He used to hear Chen Lie mumbling something that made him dizzy. At first, he even asked him to read along, but he didn't understand what was so good about it. Now he realized that people who have read books can actually speak so beautifully.
I can’t really say why it sounds so good, but it just sounds good.
I didn't know what was different about reading books before, but today I really saw it. It's not that there is no difference, but I don't need to talk to them in that way. When talking to Chu Qichang, Shen Lie is different, and Sang Luo is like a completely different person from what he knew before.
Obviously the person is still the same person, even the clothes and hair accessories have not changed, but the way he speaks is different, the expression is different, the posture and demeanor are slightly different. He is simply different.
Chen Lie is far inferior to him.
That is, the person who was eating at the table before, whoosh, all the worldly air on him disappeared, and he was filled with... a whole body of... fairy air? No, no, no, it's not that description, it's calm air?
Is there such a thing as calmness?
Chen Dashan didn’t know, but his calmness and composure were quite impressive.
This was the first time that Xu Wenqing saw Sang Luo. She didn't do anything, just said a few words. Really, she was different from the master's wife they were used to seeing before. No, she was very different.
Sang Luo brought one of the bowls and chopsticks to Chu Qichang. Seeing Xu Wenqing still standing there in a daze, she smiled and reminded him, "Wenqing, sit down."
Xu Wenqing said, "Okay, thank you, Master's wife."
She smiled and handed over the bowl and chopsticks. Xu Wenqing hurriedly stood up to take them: "Master's wife, I'll do it myself."
Chen Lie had glanced at Sang Luo when she was talking, and had probably guessed something. Now he was helping Chu Qichang and Xu Wenqing pour wine. It was such a coincidence that he couldn't hide the thing anymore, so it was better to be open and honest.
Chu Qichang just heard Xu Wenqing calling Sang Luo "Master's Wife" and remembered that many of the mountain people brought out by Chen Lie called him "Master Shen". He guessed that Sang Luo was Chen Lie's wife. He was about to ask if Chen Lie and Xu Wenqing were master and apprentice? But he saw Chen Lie pouring him some wine and his attention was immediately diverted.
"Is this wine? Why is it red?"
Chen Lie smiled and said, "I don't know. I helped someone before and he gave me a jar of wine as a thank you gift. He said it was red wine and it had been buried behind his house. I just dug it up and brought it here. Today is a happy occasion, so I opened it and tried it. I just took a sip and it's really good. You came at the right time, Mr. Chu."
The response was so smooth that Sang Luo, who had just handed the bowl and chopsticks to Xu Wenqing, couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth.
Seeing how he responded, he had nothing to worry about, so he asked Shen Lie to entertain him well, said hello to Chu Qichang, and then turned to go to the cupboard.
Chu Qichuang arrived suddenly, and the guest Zhou Ge and a few children didn't even get to eat a single bite of the delicious food on the table. It was impossible to prepare a whole table as time did not allow, and she didn't want to be too tired. But she couldn't ask everyone to go home for dinner, and she couldn't just make do with it, so she had to prepare some things.
Fortunately, more than ten pounds of cold rabbit were cooked today. Because the weather was extremely cold, a lot of vegetarian tripe was also mixed in, in preparation for tomorrow. Sang Luo served a large plate to Chen Ning and brought it to her room. She called Chen Ning to get some simple and easy-to-fry dishes, measured some rice, and went to Xiao Jin's house next door. There happened to be a kitchen and a large table there, so it would be nice for the seven of them to get together at one table and they could start eating in less than fifteen minutes.
Seeing Chen Tie unhappy, Sang Luo said with a smile: "Sister-in-law will make you a big plate of raisin rice cake tomorrow, and you can eat as much as you want."
Shen Yin and Shen Tie became lively when they heard this. When they saw a large plate of cold rabbit and a large plate of vegetarian tripe, they were extremely happy. It didn't matter if there was no fish and chicken, there was cold rabbit and vegetarian tripe! My sister-in-law would make him raisin rice cake tomorrow!
The disappointment of not having a bite of food just now disappeared in an instant. The two brothers happily helped to carry the bowls, carrying their own bowls and also helping to carry their eldest sister-in-law's bowl, because the bowl was filled with red wine and honey water.
Zhou Ge also helped Shen Ning carry a lot of things. When they were a little away from Shen's house, he dared to breathe a sigh of relief and said, "A Luo, you are so bold to speak. I didn't even dare to breathe heavily when I saw the official uniform. I was scared to death."
Sang Luo laughed: "Can a man in that official uniform eat people?"
It's not that she dares to say it, but she has to say it.
Chu Qichuang arrived at too good a time. The red wine that had already been poured out and the aroma of wine that filled the room had no place to hide. She didn't know what kind of person Chu Qichuang was, so she could only throw out some specious things vaguely, at least to shock him first. Fortunately, Chen Lie cooperated very well. What would happen next would have to wait and see.
Of course, she thought Chu Qichang was a smart man but not a bad one, so he should be fine.
Shen Jin was not thinking about eating. He waited for a break between Zhou Ge and his sister-in-law's conversation before asking, "Sister-in-law, is it great to be admitted to the provincial school? Is the official coming to congratulate you too?"
Before Sang Luo could say anything, Chen An had already shaken his head: "It's just an exam to be allowed to study, right?"
He didn't think it was that great.
Sang Luo nodded: "That's right, he can only study, and passing the provincial exam is not enough for an official to come to congratulate him. This Lord Chu must have something else to ask your eldest brother, and congratulations are just a side note."
Shezhou is short of people. Sang Luo thought of the mud on the hem of Chu Qichang's blue official robe. The situation in the counties under Shezhou is probably much worse than that in Shezhou.
…
In the Shen family's kitchen.
Chu Qichuang looked at the wine in the candlelight. Its color was like the ruby from Zhenbaozhai. Now that he had the wine bowl in his hand and brought it closer, the aroma of the wine became stronger. He couldn't help but take a sip. When he drank it... he closed his eyes slightly. The taste of wine and astringency intertwined in his mouth to form a wonderful balance, which was extremely sweet.
“Good wine!”
"Good wine!" The last voice came from Xu Wenqing. Although he was only seventeen and only fifteen when he went into the mountains, he had tasted wine before, but he had never drunk such a strange wine. He looked at Chen Lie with shining eyes and said, "Master, why didn't you ask where to buy this wine? There is only this jar of such good wine. Where can I find it after I finish it?"
Despite his young age, he has the potential to become an alcoholic.
Chen Lie smiled and said, "How old was I when I got this wine? How could I drink, let alone ask about it? Okay, if you have the chance, just try it. Nowadays, many people can't even afford food, so why would they still think about wine?"
Chu Qichang glanced at Chen Lie and just smiled. He didn't ask any further questions. Instead, he picked up a piece of dried bean curd with chopsticks and asked Chen Lie, "What is this?"
Chen Lie: "Dried bean curd, we have it for sale at the market in Qiyang County."
Chu Qichang: "...In this case, Qiyang is better than Shezhou. I have never seen this in Shezhou."
Chen Dashan smiled and said, "Really? It's not bad. It's not expensive in Qiyang. You can fry a plate for a few coins."
But Qi Yang is gone, where did you buy it?
Chu Qichang didn't say anything, but picked up another piece of yam and squinted his eyes at it for a long time: "Is this the yam used in Dongfulou's medicinal food?"
No wonder he looked at it for a while, this thing from Dongfulou is used for making soup.
Xu Wenqing smiled: "We dig them in the mountains, but we also grow them now."
This sentence made Chu Qichang's back straighten up: "Can this thing be grown by yourself?"
Picking up the vegetarian tripe, well, it was someone he didn't recognize again. Chu Qichuang felt something was wrong, as if something was wrong. Among the people at this table, he looked more like the one who came out of the mountains.
When Chu Qichang saw Li Qi, the Zheng family's most proud person, in the pot of fish soup, Li Qi who was always present at every banquet and one of the symbols of the Zheng family in Shezhou, he didn't know what to say. When he looked at Chen Lie again, his expression was not right.
He recalled that when he came back today to report on the situation in the counties, the governor specifically asked about the situation in Daxingzhuang. He answered so fluently at that time, without even looking up the household registration, and said: Except for the Xu and Wei families, the rest of the families are villagers of Shili Village, Qiyang County.
Chu Qichang wanted to cry but had no tears: "Brother Shen, tell me the truth, are you really from Shili Village? Shili Village in Qiyang County?"
We are all brothers now.
Chen Dashan held a mouthful of wine in his mouth and almost choked.
The author has something to say:
① The phrase "Pengbi Shenghui" comes from "Cutting Hair to Welcome Guests" by Qin Jianfu of the Yuan Dynasty. It can be understood that this phrase did not exist in the fictional timeline, so Chu Qichang would have such a reaction.
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