Upon hearing this, Yang Haiyan was first surprised that Lord Du had already arrived. To be honest, she was really surprised. Then she was a little nervous. Whether facing the hero or the heroine, or Wei Ting, she had never been nervous. The hero and the heroine were still young boys and girls at that time. To put it bluntly, she was not nervous at all, or even didn't take it seriously. Of course, this kind of "not taking it seriously" did not mean contempt, but meant that she, a 28-year-old aunt, would not be afraid of young people under 20 years old, and she still knew the situation of the plot.
When facing Wei Ting and Manager Chi, she really understood how power existed. However, this was different from facing Du Ke. This is an old fox who has been in power for half his life in the novel. Her little thoughts are not enough to be seen in front of him.
So, how can Yang Haiyan not be nervous.
Speaking of it, in addition to being nervous, there are also some expectations. Du Ke can be said to be a celebrity effect for Yang Haiyan. Just like if she traveled to the Song Dynasty and derived novels, she would look forward to seeing Bao Zheng. If she traveled to the Tang Dynasty and derived novels, she would look forward to seeing Di Renjie.
Although Du Ke has different personalities from Bao Zheng and Di Renjie, they are indeed similar to Qiguo. In other words, Du Ke is closer to Di Renjie. Du Ke is a very outstanding politician and military strategist.
In this way, how can Yang Haiyan not be afraid and expectant?
"I know, I will make arrangements. You go and report to the general and ask him to rest assured." Yang Haiyan knew what Qin Fang meant, and specifically told her that Lord Du had not eaten yet, which meant that she should prepare the meal quickly.
Qin Fang valued Du Ke, starting from the military camp. In the military camp, they discussed the matter of the centurion in private. Du Ke proposed Wei Wu, and Qin Fang proposed Han Zhen. Qin Fang was also nervous at that time, fearing that Du Ke would disagree. But Du Ke did not, and listened to his analysis. At that time, Du Ke felt that this lord was different from those senior officials.
Later, when he came to Huanshui County, Du Ke was a court official. Qin Fang accompanied Du Ke and watched him solve the problems of the common people. At that time, he believed that Du Ke was a good official.
Later, Du Ke's reply was full of earnest teachings and careful instructions. Qin Fang naturally felt Du Ke's intentions. As smart as Qin Fang is, his feelings towards Du Ke have changed from a high-ranking official, a good official, to the expectation of having a good teacher and helpful friend.
What Qin Fang is most happy about is that Du Ke's letter this time talked about accepting apprentices. In ancient times, a teacher was like a father, like a reborn parent. Qin Fang was born in a poor family, and his grandparents and parents could give him very little education and guidance, almost nothing. In his life of only 22 years old, and even in most of his life, the one who can give him guidance must be his future teacher, that is, Du Ke. Therefore, Qin Fang respects him very much, like a father.
Yang Haiyan understands the relationship between Qin Fang and Du Ke, so she will treat Du Ke well. However, she is also curious and looking forward to Du Ke.
Nanny Lian said, "Now that Lord Du is here, we have to entertain him well. How should we entertain him, Lord Xiang?"
The Minister of War is a third-rank official. The Minister of War is a second-rank official.
Although Yang Haiyan is also a third-rank official, this third-rank official is completely different from Du Ke's third-rank official. One is a title, which is just a nice word, and the other is real power.
Let alone comparing Yang Haiyan, even if they are both third-rank officials in the capital, there are differences. Even if they are all third-rank ministers in the six ministries, there are differences.
Now that the emperor has just ascended the throne, all kinds of power are being consolidated. Among the six ministries, the Ministry of War is the most important.
Yang Haiyan said, "Don't be nervous, Ma'am. Lord Du is from the capital and comes from a noble family. What good things has he not seen? What grand banquets has he not participated in? I'm afraid there is nothing in the palace that he doesn't know. So, we just need to be calm."
Ma'am Lian was also very anxious, but she felt relieved when she heard that Yang Haiyan knew what was going on. "Does the Lord have a plan?"
Yang Haiyan smiled and shook her head: "What plan do I have? I think, instead of spending all our time on this and that, we might as well do something practical. I dare not guess what Lord Du is thinking, but I think Lord Du must want to see the real us."
Nanny Lian also had no plan, so she could only say: "Listen to the Lord."
Yang Haiyan said: "Nanny, let's go to the small kitchen. Lord Du will say it immediately. It is too late to prepare a sumptuous meal at this time. Let's stew an egg custard to warm Lord Du's stomach, and then serve a portion of cold skin. By the way, go and ask Niu Da, how many good watermelons can he pick out, even if they are half-cooked, it doesn't matter, let him pick out a few." Half-cooked watermelons can be squeezed into juice, or cut into pieces and added with some sugar, which tastes good.
Nanny Lian said, "I'll go now."
Yang Haiyan thought for a moment and said, "Please tell the grandpa and grandma, and also tell the children at home, so that they don't bump into Lord Du and Lord Shen who came with him."
Nanny Lian said, "Yes, I understand."
Yang Haiyan asked again, "Is there enough ice in the ice house?"
Nanny Lian said, "There is plenty, and it is replenished every day."
Yang Haiyan thought of ice, and the iced green bean soup inside, and thought of milk shaved ice, which tasted amazing. Unfortunately, milk shaved ice is not easy to make. Whether it is stone mill or manual labor, it can't produce the silky feeling of modern milk shaved ice.
Nanny Lian went to the orchard to find Niu Da, and Yang Haiyan started to make egg custard. Steaming egg custard is very fast, only a quarter of an hour. When the egg custard was cooked and nested in the pot, Nanny Lian had not come back yet. When Yang Haiyan was about to go and take a look, there was a commotion outside. Aunt Yu said at the door: "My lord, the general has brought Lord Du to the outer courtyard and sent someone to inform you."
Yang Haiyan hurriedly said: "I know, I'll change my clothes, you go to the fruit garden to call Nanny Lian."
Aunt Yu: "Yes..."
Nanny Lian said at the same time: "My lord, I'm back, and Niu Da has selected a few watermelons and brought them with him."
Yang Haiyan didn't bother to change her clothes and looked at the watermelons that Niu Da had selected and put them in a small basket. There were eight in total. Yang Haiyan said, "Choose four, wash them, and then put them on ice. Oh, by the way, Aunt Lian, come with me to the outer courtyard."
Aunt Lian: "Yes."
Yang Haiyan changed her clothes, washed her face, and then went to the outer courtyard with Aunt Lian.
Outer courtyard
Qin Fang, Du Ke, and Shen Lixian were resting in the hall. They were not only hungry but also tired after the journey. Fortunately, there was ice in the hall to cool down, so they could take a breath. If it was normal, there would be no one in the hall, so where would they prepare ice? That is, now that saltpeter has been produced to make ice, and saltpeter can be reused, Yang Haiyan does not feel bad about using ice.
Du Ke said, "This former Prince Liang's Mansion has lost its luxury and splendor after twenty years." Apart from the size visible to the naked eye, who can tell that this was once a prince's mansion?
Shen Lixian followed up, "General Qin was frugal, so it didn't cost much money to renovate the General's Mansion." Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the General's Mansion had hardly been renovated. Probably, some things that didn't fit the general's mansion were removed, and the leaking places were repaired.
Qin Fang said, "Lord Shen, you are too kind. This general's mansion is large and spacious. I have never lived in such a good place in my life. This mansion is large, and it is very troublesome to renovate it. However, many idle courtyards have been demolished and converted into fruit gardens and vegetable gardens by Zhuo Jing. The vegetables eaten in the mansion in the past were all picked from the vegetable garden, which is very convenient. Zhuo Jing also said that it was a good thing that the mansion was large, otherwise it would not be enough for her to renovate it."
Du Ke laughed after hearing this: "The lady of the county is a wonderful person."
Shen Lixian was also curious about her. From an ordinary girl, Yang Haiyan became the wife of a general and then the lady of the county. Her life was full of miracles.
"Thank you for your compliment, I am not worthy of it, but I have been lazy in the past. Thank you for not minding me, sir." Yang Haiyan said as she walked in.
In the middle of summer, the woman in a goose yellow skirt looked very young. Of course, she was only eighteen years old, and she was young. For example, like those ladies or women with titles in the capital, she dressed more neatly and refreshingly, and looked lively.
Yang Haiyan came in and made a senior salute to the middle-aged man in the first place: "Qin Yang Haiyan greets you, sir." They were both third-rank officials, and Du Ke was Qin Fang's teacher. Although the apprenticeship ceremony had not been held yet, it was appropriate for Yang Haiyan to make a senior salute.
The first time Du Ke saw Yang Haiyan, she was different from the smart woman he had imagined. This Bingyun Township Lady is certainly smart, but her eyes are clear and calm. She looks at him with curiosity and nervousness, not at all like someone who advocated the military land policy and the method of making ice with saltpeter. Du Ke originally thought that a woman who could advocate the military land policy and discover the method of making ice with saltpeter was a smart woman, just like the generous woman he had seen in the past.
But the young woman in front of him was not like that. She was just like... an ordinary girl. No wonder a man like Qin Fang often talks about her. Speaking of which, this girl has a sense of agility.
Du Ke said, "We are all family, no need to be polite."
Yang Haiyan stood up with a smile: "Thank you, sir." Then Yang Haiyan gave Shen Lixian a polite lady's salute, "Hello, Lord Shen."
Shen Lixian raised his eyebrows: "Does the county lord recognize me?" This question was somewhat tentative. Logically, this Bingyun county lord had never seen him since he came here for the first time. So this seemed to be asking if Lord Du had known something in advance.
Yang Haiyan smiled and said, "I used to be a maid next to Mingzhu of the Yang Mansion. When I was with Miss Yang, I met Lord Shen once." This was really meaningless, because Yang Haiyan's words were indeed impeccable.
Shen Lixian said, "I see."
Qin Fang said, "Yan Yan, the teacher and Lord Shen have been waiting for me at the foot of the Beast Mountain for two hours. They haven't eaten yet. Do you have any food at home?"
Yang Haiyan said, "We started preparing when my husband sent someone to tell us, and it's ready now. However, today is an auspicious day. It seems that the teacher and Lord Shen chose today to come." As she spoke, she said to the outside, "Someone, bring in the food."
Nanny Lian came in with lunch boxes.
Du Ke was quite curious and asked, "Why is it an auspicious day when Lixian and I come?" Who doesn't like to hear good words? Especially when being praised by a clever little girl, just like being praised by his daughter, Du Ke felt a bit like a loving father.
Not to mention Du Ke, even Shen Lixian was curious.
Yang Haiyan said, "Because half an hour ago, I discovered a kind of crop. It is a vegetable and can also be eaten as a fruit. It only takes two months from sowing to harvesting, and it is very easy to grow."
Du Ke was delighted when he heard it, "Is it really such a coincidence? This is indeed a happy event."
Yang Haiyan said, "I have prepared the food. Please have a taste, teacher and Lord Shen."
Nanny Lian and the servants took out the steamed eggs and jellyfish from the lunch boxes.
Yang Haiyan said, "Time is tight, so I only made two kinds of food. Please forgive me, teacher and Lord Shen. The steamed egg has cooled down, so you can ease your stomach first. The plate contains cold noodles made with sweet potato flour. The green shredded vegetables added to the cold noodles are the crops I mentioned that can be used as both vegetables and fruits, called cucumbers."
The steamed egg not only smells fragrant, but is also topped with shrimps, which makes people's appetites open. And because the steamed egg has cooled down a lot, it is not as hot as when it was just out of the pot, so eating it with cold noodles will not make your stomach upset due to the cold or hot. Although it is a home-cooked food and a very common steamed egg, it is indeed more appetizing than big fish and meat. Who said that this summer is hot, which makes people's appetites much worse.
Du Ke took a mouthful of egg custard, and the warm taste went from his mouth to his stomach. Moreover, this egg custard was not only delicious, but also bright in color, soft and elastic. It was not that he had never eaten steamed eggs before, but the ones he had eaten at home were not as good as the ones in front of him, no matter in color, aroma or taste.
Du Ke ate several mouthfuls of egg custard in a row, and then picked up chopsticks to eat cold noodles. After a mouthful of cold noodles entered his mouth, Du Ke's eyes widened: "This tastes special and makes people very hungry." More importantly, it is cool, making people feel comfortable all over.
Shen Lixian agreed: "It's still sour, did you add vinegar?"
Yang Haiyan said: "Sir Shen is right, vinegar is indeed added. In summer, no one has an appetite, and acetic acid can stimulate the appetite."
Shen Lixian: "The county lord must be very knowledgeable about food, General Qin is really lucky."
The lucky General Qin said sourly at this time: "At this moment, Zhuo Jing only has guests in his eyes and has forgotten me." He also wants to eat.
Everyone couldn't help laughing when they heard it. Even the taste is so natural, only General Qin in the court.
When Yang Haiyan heard this, she really forgot Qin Fang, and immediately said: "Husband, wait a moment, I will prepare yours now." After saying that, she saluted to Du Ke and Shen Lixian and withdrew.
After Yang Haiyan left, Du Ke praised, "My student is indeed lucky to have married a good wife."
Shen Lixian smiled, but did not agree. He was different from Du Ke. Du Ke was an elder, so it was nothing for him to praise the county lady. But he and Qin Fang were of the same generation, so it was not appropriate for him to praise a married woman.
Qin Fang liked others to praise his wife, and he was happier than when they praised him. When he was praised, he would be humble, but when he praised his wife, he was not humble at all. So Qin Fang said, "My wife is very good."
Yang Haiyan returned to the inner courtyard and first asked someone to send a bowl of cold noodles to Qin Fang, but there was no steamed egg. Then she asked Nanny Lian to bring the iced watermelon.
Yang Haiyan cut a watermelon first, and only one-third of the whole watermelon was red. She dug out the red side, and then cut a second one. The second one was the same, one-third was also red, but the third one was better, it was all red.
Yang Haiyan crushed the flesh of the three watermelons, squeezed out three bowls of watermelon juice, and then asked someone to send it.
At this time, the three people in the hall had already solved the problem of cold skin. In fact, for Du Ke and Shen Lixian, who had been hungry for so long, a bowl of egg custard and a bowl of cold skin noodles were not enough to fill their stomachs, not to mention that men have big appetites.
So when they saw the servants carrying three bowls of red tea, they were really shocked.
Du Ke asked curiously, "What kind of tea is this?"
Qin Fang's eyes lit up when he saw the watermelon juice: "Are the watermelons ripe?"
The servant said, "Not yet. The county lord prepared three watermelons to make this juice."
Qin Fang nodded, let the servant go, and then explained to Du Ke and Shen Lixian, "This is watermelon juice. Watermelon is a kind of fruit. Last year when I was at the border, I bought a lot of fruit seeds from the peddlers, and watermelon is one of them. This watermelon tastes really good. Teacher and Lord Shen will know after tasting it."
Du Ke and Shen Lixian looked at the slightly cool, red water in the bowl. Juice? They have never drunk this kind of thing. They know about fruits, but no one in the capital city crushes fruits to make juice. They cut fruits into pieces to eat.
However, only after tasting it did they realize that this fruit called watermelon was indeed delicious. Suddenly, the two looked at Qin Fang with some envy. Compared with Qin Fang's life, their previous life was not really a life. The main reason was that the country gentleman was too good at making food.
After drinking the watermelon juice, Qin Fang took them to rest. After rushing for several days, everyone could see the fatigue on their faces.
Shen Lixian's courtyard was the one where Manager Chi lived that day, and Du Ke's courtyard was on the other side. Because Wei Ting was still in Yunxiang County, no one was arranged to live in the courtyard that had hosted Wei Ting that day, in case Wei Ting came and stayed overnight.
Qin Fang sent Shen Lixian to the courtyard first, and then sent Du Ke. "Teacher, you take a rest here first, and the students will have a good gathering with you in the evening."
Du Ke nodded: "Well, you go and get busy."
Qin Fang respectfully withdrew.
Du Ke watched Qin Fang retreat, and did not rest immediately after turning back. He took a bath first, and sat in the bathtub, thinking about what to do after arriving in Yunxiang County.
But the one who thought the most was Yang Haiyan. Thinking carefully, from the military camp fields, saltpeter ice making, to potato flour and sweet potato flour, to today's watermelon, this girl is not as simple as she seems.
His old father said that Qin Fang is a lucky man. In Du Ke's opinion, perhaps the really lucky person is the county lady.
Watermelon, cucumber.
Du Ke knew something about the Hu people. He had heard of a small tribe that migrated during his wanderings in the past, but it was not worth his attention. Today, when the county lord talked about the Hu people and cucumbers, Du Ke suddenly had an idea. Many small tribes are not even a small force, so they are easily ignored. But in fact, these small tribes also have precious things.
For example, the cucumbers of the Hu people. This kind of crop that is easy to grow and takes a short time to grow is a treasure for ordinary people.
Look at the watermelon that the county lord took out today. The seeds were bought from the traveling merchants. The fruit produced by this kind of fruit is indeed not available in their Qi Kingdom. Even the emperor has not missed it. Du Ke suddenly had an idea. If someone could travel around all the small tribes, and then record all the precious things in these small tribes and bring them back to Qi State, then would it be of great significance to the development of Qi State?
If Yang Haiyan knew Du Ke's idea, she would be even more surprised. Because this is similar to Zhang Qian's mission to the Western Regions and Zheng He's voyage to the West.
Du Ke is a person who is strict with himself. When he is thinking, he will never sleep. So he asked his entourage to prepare his personal belongings and record his thoughts about watermelons and cucumbers. After recording, he began to write memorials to the emperor.
Qin Fang returned to the inner courtyard, and before he could speak, Aunt Yu said, "General, the princess is in the kitchen."
Qin Fang nodded and went to the kitchen again.
There were quite a few people in the kitchen. Today, Kun Zhang and others helped Yang Haiyan. It must be said that Yang Haiyan had never been so attentive in preparing food for Wei Ting and Manager Chi. She had always asked the kitchen to prepare it. Today, Du Ke came, and she spent twelve points of her heart to prepare it.
"Meet the general." Seeing Qin Fang coming, everyone hurriedly saluted.
Yang Haiyan turned around: "Why are you here? Aren't you accompanying Lord Du?"
Qin Fang said: "I sent the teacher back to the yard to rest. Is there anything I can help with?"
Yang Haiyan said: "No, I will prepare the dinner myself today. You are tired too. It's not dinner time yet. Go and rest for a while."
Qin Fang said: "Not tired." He is in good health. He runs back and forth in the Beast Mountain every day. His physical fitness is not comparable to that of ordinary people. How can he be tired? "By the way, Yanyan, I have invited Lord Wei to come to my house tomorrow night."
This means that a dinner will be prepared tomorrow.
Yang Haiyan said, "Okay, I see. Then let's prepare a family dinner tonight, no need to make a big fuss."
Qin Fang said, "Okay. This year's watermelons are ripe earlier than last year. Last year, they were ripe in August." He remembered the taste of watermelons very well, especially when he came back from work, he could eat half a watermelon, and it was very interesting to eat it with a spoon.
Yang Haiyan said, "No, this year's watermelons are not ripe yet. Only one out of four is ripe. Even if it is ripe, it doesn't taste sweet enough. It will take more than half a month. But Niu Da said that the land here is much more fertile than that at the border, and the crops mature faster than at the border."
Qin Fang didn't understand these things. "Niu is still awesome."
Yang Haiyan smiled and didn't answer. She wouldn't praise other men in front of Qin Fang: "Then when we have dinner tonight, go pick up grandpa, grandma, father and mother, and let them meet Lord Du. When Lord Wei comes tomorrow, father and mother won't have to sit at the table, I'm afraid they are not used to it."
Qin Fang said: "Okay, you are thoughtful."
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