At dusk, the wheat field lit up bonfires again, and the crowds were bustling and lively. The villagers, who had been busy all day, put their own bowls and chopsticks in their arms, chose a place to rest, put down stools, and gathered in groups of three or five to chat about gossip.
One said how much money his family could earn this year, and the other said that he would save a few taels of silver next spring, and planned to build a house and marry a wife. When the lady looked around, she saw her own naughty boy and shouted, "You son of a bitch, you bastard, where are you rolling around in the dust again? Come back to me!"
Chef Fang showed off his skills in the newly built open-air kitchen with ten apprentices. Qiao Xin specially cleared a new piece of land next to the wheat field, put up a bright roof, and built ten stoves in a row. Each iron pot is big enough for two or three people to hug.
Now all the big iron pots were on fire, the steamers on two iron pots were stacked nearly as high as a person, and there were two stoves steaming fresh rice. The remaining pots each had a different aroma.
There were several long rows of tables on the threshing floor, with a dozen large basins placed on them. All the prepared meals were poured into them, waiting to be distributed.
As time passed, the overbearing aroma from the iron pot wafted freely, enticing everyone. The people chatting no longer had the heart to talk, and stretched their necks to look towards the big stove.
It smells so good. I'm afraid the food today is even more sumptuous than during the Chinese New Year. Didn't you see that there's a pig missing from the wooden rack? Now it's all in the pot. I heard there are stewed ribs, roasted pork elbows, stir-fried dishes and crispy meat!
There are so many different ways to eat it, I've never heard of them before.
In addition, the old lady also specifically asked Shu Niang to take a few people who were good at swimming to the river to cast a net of fish, and stew them for everyone.
You can pick whatever you want from the cowpeas, pumpkins and green vegetables in the field. Chef Fang has the final say. These days, the fat Chef Fang has become the most popular kid in everyone's eyes.
Nowadays, everyone is looking forward to Chef Fang’s call of “Dinner is ready”!
Xu Can, who was sitting in the courtyard, hooked his arm around the eighth prince's neck and boasted, "Well, I didn't lie to you, it's much more comfortable here than in the capital. Those ignorant guys thought we were banished to a remote place! They looked down on us. Wait, they will regret it!"
The Eighth Prince pursed his lips and said nothing.
A few days ago, when his father sent someone to tell him that he was going to be sent out of the palace to study, he thought he had become an abandoned child and no longer had the qualifications to live in the palace.
Now that I know that I really want to study in Qingyang Academy, and this is where my father and uncle studied when they were young, and the Qiao family is not a family that flatters the rich and bullies the weak, maybe it will be a good thing.
When the Eighth Prince thought about it, his young heart suddenly felt much more comfortable. At least his father still cared about him.
Well, my mother is gone, there is no one in my uncle's family, and I have no one to rely on in the palace except Your Majesty. Instead of living in a place where people are eaten without leaving any bones, it is better to leave the palace early and live a free and easy life outside.
There's nothing wrong with being a rich and virtuous king like the emperor's uncle in this life!
Xu Can touched his stomach after breakfast and walked out muttering, "No, I have to go out and see what I made today. Why does it smell so good?"
As he did so, the Eighth Prince and Guan Jianze beside him also stood up. The three of them hurriedly walked out the door and all of them met Qiao Yunting and the Qiao family children coming into the house. After greeting each other, Qiao Yunting asked where the others had gone.
Xu Can said with a wronged look on his face: "Where else can we go? I'm just greedy! General, when is dinner ready?"
Qiao Yunting laughed and led them to the backyard: "Don't go. There are too many people over there. You kids shouldn't join in the fun. There's not enough light at night. It would be bad if something happened. There's some in the wheat field. Chef Fang is in the kitchen and he's personally made some for you. Dalang, take them over there!"
"I understand, Uncle San!"
As soon as Qiao Yunting left, Xu Can resumed his unruly self, and pulled the Eighth Prince to the fields to introduce him: "Come, come, meet him, this is our cousin, he will study with us in the future, you brothers have to help me protect him in the future."
Qiao Xiaolang and his friends came forward to greet him, and then said, "I see. Aren't you hungry? Let's go eat first!"
Qiao Yunting is so beautiful that it can deceive people. When these little guys went to the back kitchen restaurant, they found that the food inside was even richer, with fruits, wine, rice, steamed buns and pastries.
But what if there are no bowls and chopsticks, and no servants to serve?
Seeing that he was looking around but not doing anything, Qiao Dalang took the initiative to step forward and demonstrate, saying to him, "Don't look, no one is here to serve us, just take what you want to eat. Just don't waste it."
After saying that, he picked up a strange-looking square plate next to him and chose his favorite food.
Others followed suit, and soon they were all together!
"This is a novel way of eating. I will make it at home someday!"
"What are you doing? Your ancestors would be the first to say that this is against the rules. We really can't spare anyone to do the work, and there is no distinction between us. But your family has such strict rules, how could you agree to do this?"
"So this is the only way to eat it at your house?"
Qiao Dalang shook his head and said, "That's not the case. From now on, everyone will eat in this way when they enter the academy. Take as much as you can eat, and don't waste anything. This is also to prevent others from making things difficult for students with food."
"If you eat like this, how much does it cost? I thought the food at Yu Mancang was pretty good, but look at the braised pork, sweet and sour fish, stewed spareribs... they are all dishes we have never seen before. Just for the food, I'm leaving this academy, and no one can take me away."
Qiao Erlang joked, "Xu Shizi, Guan Guanze, this is made of pork, don't you mind?"
Xu Can said disapprovingly: "It's so delicious, who would care what kind of meat it is?"
Guanjianze also chimed in: "That's right, you underestimate us. We are tired of eating mutton, it would be great to change our appetite!"
Only the eighth prince kept silent and ate his food. He was not active during the meal and there must be something wrong with his thinking.
Don't think that he eats well just because he is a prince. A prince like him who has no backing and can't see the emperor for ten days or half a month is like a nobody. Sometimes he lives worse than the eunuchs in the palace.
Except for major festivals, there was nothing good to eat on weekdays. The Xuanbai steamed buns and the chewy and delicious fish balls were not something she could eat every day.
The Qiao family had one more thing to recommend them! Staying here might not be a bad thing! He admitted that for a bite of food, his resistance wavered!
When Emperor Wu left, the Eighth Prince did not show any reluctance, as if he had really accepted his fate. A trace of tenderness emerged in Emperor Wu's cold heart.
He repeatedly asked Qiao Yunting to take good care of his cousin, and only let him go after King Qi urged him repeatedly.
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