Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were strolling on horseback. There was a special horse path next to a short flower bed. Between the two horse paths was a road, and on the other side of the flower bed was a sidewalk.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were unable to eliminate the transportation force of livestock. There were very few tractors, and they were only used to transport those who were qualified to attend court to and from work. Bicycles could be used, but the problem was that they could not bear to use steel in this aspect. Animal power must exist.
The two of them were riding on military horses, and there were other pedestrians as well. There were horses, donkeys, mules, and mules. Under normal circumstances, there were very few people who were riding on horseback like the two of them. Usually, they would carry extra things, such as a sack of dung at the front and a sack of manure at the back.
The two of them didn't know that while they were strolling, the entire Great Tang's telegraph system hadn't been idle since this morning. Last night, Zhang Xiaobao had agreed to Li Longji's marriage on the 26th of the first month, and this news had already spread.
Anyone who received this news in the capital, no matter how many connections they had, immediately spread the news of Xiao Bao and Cuckoo's marriage.
The entire Great Tang went crazy. When the two of them left in the afternoon, all of the major cities in Great Tang had posted this news on the bulletin boards. Soon after, people began to spread the news to even more remote places.
Some wealthy people were already busy preparing congratulatory gifts. Regardless of how long the journey was, they were prepared to ship the goods immediately. They would definitely be able to ship the goods to the capital by the time of the wedding.
Some of the ordinary citizens of the county had already begun to discuss whether they should gather money to buy gifts for Xiao Bao and Cuckoo to congratulate them.
After more than two hours, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan arrived at the western side of the capital. This place used to be outside the city, but now, it was also a place where people who didn't have much property lived.
However, there were no single-story houses. The capital's land resources were too scarce, and the shortest house was two stories tall. It wasn't that the upper and lower floors were separated, but that there was a staircase at the bottom of each house. This way, it would reduce the noise and fighting between neighbors.
Today's weather was not bad. It was not as cold as the northeast. The sun hung up without any shelter. A little to the west, there were not many people wearing thin clothes on the streets. Otherwise, it would be too cool when the breeze blew past.
At this moment, it was the West Wind, around level 3. It could blow up the signboards of the nearby shops and taverns. There was also the flag of the Great Tang. In the past, there was no such flag, but now, almost every family had one. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had specially designed a jigsaw dragon. Otherwise, it would have been very troublesome to make.
There were some places that specialized in selling them, some that had their own embroidery, and some that had been painted with dyes. Quite a few of these flags were not standardized, but this did not affect the Great Tang's love and support for the Great Tang.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan saw with their own eyes a baby wrapped in such a cotton flag, carried by his mother and standing beside a wine shop, chatting with another woman while waiting for the wine to be served.
The two of them did not believe that the woman's actions were blasphemy against the flag. If the weather was too cold and they couldn't find anything to warm themselves with, burning the flag was fine. Why did they have to say that such actions violated the law? There was no need, and the Great Tang currently did not have such laws.
The two of them did not put on much disguise, and there were many guards around them. They held guns and brazenly protected them. Whenever the common folk of the capital saw the two of them, they would excitedly wave and nod. The two of them would return the greeting without even saying anything.
Zhang Xiaobao dismounted from his horse and said to Wang Juan, "This kind of casual peace is the most intimate form of love."
Who in the world doesn't know you? That restaurant's minced meat noodles are not bad. It smells good. Let's go and eat a few bites. It's a pity that there's no smell of chili oil. Wait for another two years, and there will be more chili. "
Wang Juan sniffed and looked at a three-story noodle restaurant that was emitting hot steam. The signboard clearly had the word "hot" written on it, but they were selling minced meat noodles. It was probably because the weather was not cold yet, and the hot pot was not selling.
Zhang Xiaobao smacked his lips and felt that he could still eat a little. He followed Wang Juan and walked over. Naturally, someone was in charge of their horses.
"Yo, Xiao Bao and Cuckoo are here. What do you want to eat?" The waiter was very enthusiastic and greeted the two of them with a smile. If it were someone who did not know the situation, they would think that the waiter had met a regular customer, but in fact, it was the two of them's first time here.
The waiter did not cry bitterly, nor did he shout and hug them. It was a very simple greeting, but the waiter's legs were shaking uncontrollably, his eyes were shining, and he kept swallowing.
Obviously, he was trying not to make Xiao Bao and Cuckoo feel uncomfortable. If he did not let go, the two of them would probably find an excuse to leave.
There were not many people on the first floor. After lunch time, only two tables were occupied. They turned their heads at the same time and took a deep breath, but did not stand up.
"Two bowls of noodles. I want mutton soup, preferably clear soup. Don't add mutton. I want a single portion. Don't put too much noodles on it. Don't put too much noodles on it. Don't put any side dishes. I already ate with my wife at noon." Zhang Xiaobao was indeed very comfortable.
The waiter took a cloth and wiped the table next to the window. "Okay, you two sit here."
After saying that, he did not shout back. Instead, he turned around and ran in to arrange it personally. Another waiter immediately came over to check the vinegar on the table. He shook it and found that there was not much left. He exchanged it with the vinegar bottle on the table next to him. He stood by the side, ready to serve at any time. He did not forget to explain.
"There are not many people on the first floor. I have to stand anywhere. Do they eat?"
The question was asked by the bodyguards who walked in openly. The bodyguards did not hide their purpose at all. They held their guns and looked around.
Whether it was the waiter or the people at the two tables, they did not think that Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were putting on airs. If there were no bodyguards, they would be worried.
Just as the bodyguards chose a place to sit down, two people came in from outside. Just as they were about to speak to the waiter, they suddenly froze. They looked at the bodyguards with guns and then turned their heads. They met the eyes of a man and a woman. One of them opened his mouth, took a deep breath, and finally spoke.
"Xiao Bao, Cuckoo, you, you two are here too?"
"Yes, we came because of the smell. We still have some space in our stomachs. What do you want to eat?" Zhang Xiaobao said with a smile.
"Two bowls of mutton noodles. Put more chopped green onions and coriander. More oil. One dish of fennel beans and one dish of sweet garlic." The man shouted to the waiter and then nodded at Zhang Xiaobao. "Let's eat at that table."
Zhang Xiaobao raised his hand and gestured, meaning that they would go ahead.
The two sat down. In less than three minutes, the noodles were served. There were fennel beans and sweet garlic, as well as four small plates. The smallest plate had a serving of garlic cucumber, a salted eggplant, a pickle, and a boiled salt bean.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan waited for another five minutes before the noodles were brought out by the waiter who just went in. He explained while putting the noodles on the table, "The master was resting just now. He was woken up by me and made the noodles himself."
"That's what I meant. If you want to eat, let's eat what the master made." Zhang Xiaobao expressed his understanding. He picked up the chopsticks and stirred the noodles in the bowl. The bowl was big, but there was not much noodles. Although it was clear soup, there was still oil floating on the surface. The chopped green onions were only white, and the coriander foam was also emerald green.
There was a shirtless man two tables ago. He craned his neck to see what Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were playing with. He said to the waiter with a smile, "I'm not being picky, but look at the chopped green onions and coriander in my bowl. Compared to what Xiao Bao and Cuckoo are eating, it's obvious that I'm older. The coriander stalk is hard, so I put it in my bowl."
"Oh, that's not what I meant. I was thinking that your teeth are good, so it's chewy," the waiter replied with a smile.
"You dare to say that Xiao Bao and Cuckoo have bad teeth, so you should be punished. Xiao Bao, where are you two going?" The man teased the waiter and asked Zhang Xiaobao.
Zhang Xiaobao held the noodles in his mouth and slurped a lot. After biting it off, he swallowed it with the soup. He let out a long sigh of relief and said to the man, "Go to the west and look at the terrain. There's a suitable place to build a new train station. There's not enough train stations in the capital. Where do you work?"
Zhang Xiaobao introduced his purpose and asked about the other party's work. He didn't need to say what he did, as he believed that the other party would definitely know.
When the man heard this, he became happy, "Really? That's great, I'm someone who can directly benefit from it. I pull feet. Look at the mark on my shoulder. My family lives in the west, and it's too far away to travel. At night, I don't see any goods coming from the east, so it's an empty trip. It's tiring, and my heart is tired. The road is not close, and there's no money to be made. It's so frustrating. We should have built a train station in the west a long time ago.
Fortunately, you're here. "" The imperial court is already making plans. The two of us came back to speed up the process. The Emperor is very supportive. "Zhang Xiaobao couldn't say bad things about others, so he could only explain it this way.
"Yes, yes, I understand." The man wasn't stupid and understood what he meant. He nodded and turned back to continue eating. They ordered a lot of noodles, wine, and six cold plates. There were no hot dishes, no side dishes, and only a plate of bones with little meat. The waiter probably exchanged them for the side dishes. It seemed that they didn't plan to work in the afternoon.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan looked at each other and sighed. There were still rules in the food industry today. Restaurants would definitely have side dishes. Even if it was a roadside tea stall, if you didn't have money, you could go and ask for a bowl of water and the stall would give you a bowl of tea foam for free. However, if you brought the tea leaves yourself, you had to pay for the water. There were rules in the industry. It could also be said that it was a moral tradition.
The two ate a bowl of noodles very quickly and drank half a bowl of soup. They couldn't finish a big bowl.
They stood up and paid the bill. The waiter said that it was two copper coins per bowl. Zhang Xiaobao didn't ask and let the guard pay. He said to the waiter, "In the future, when the bone marrow is knocked out, put it on a separate plate. Otherwise, if you put it in the soup, it will be boiled away and you won't be able to taste it. Mix ginger juice and salt into a half-dry, half-wet mixture and eat it. You can sell it for money or give it to people who ordered a lot of dishes."
"Oh, you can eat it like that? Our Xiao Bao is really awesome. I'll listen to you. I'll tell the boss later. Benevolence and righteousness. " The waiter knew that he undercharged them. Xiao Bao and Cuckoo understood, but they didn't pay more. Instead, they gave them a dish, which was much more expensive than the one they undercharged.
Seeing the two walking out, the waiter asked, "Xiao Bao, Cuckoo, are you two really going to get married on the 26th of the first month of the New Year?"
"How do you know?" Zhang Xiaobao asked in surprise.
"Everyone is spreading the news. The telegraph office hasn't been idle since this morning. We want to get a share. I guess other people are also preparing." The waiter confirmed from Zhang Xiaobao's words that they were really going to get married on the 26th of the first month.
"Yes, that's the day." Zhang Xiaobao didn't say much. He went out with Wang Juan and showed a worried look.
"Let's publish it in the newspaper. Tomorrow's newspaper will be sent out early in the morning. Don't let them buy things and send them here. It's not cost-effective." Wang Juan could imagine what the final result would be if they didn't mention it in the newspaper.
"If there's no other way, tell them that we'll charge them ten copper coins per person. We'll treat all the people of the Tang Empire to a banquet with ten copper coins per person. It's almost enough for our capital. Then we'll take out a few million strings of coins and add two good dishes for each table."
Zhang Xiaobao said.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
