In the early days of winter, the first light snow fell from the sky. As soon as it landed on the ground, the roof turned into a puddle of water. The domestic animals on Zhuangzi shivered and were unwilling to leave their nests. Old Yellow Dog brought some rags and hay out of nowhere and made a bed for himself.
Apart from the evergreen Uncle Pine on the mountain, there seemed to be no trace of greenery in the world. There were no sounds of frogs croaking in summer or autumn. There was also no sound of little swallows chirping. There was only mud on the ground, but there was no smell of soil.
After the silkworm farmers cooked the silk, some would spin it into a ball, while others would just leave it. This year, there was no need to hand in anything to the county. The harvest was less, but the days were better.
The people selling Liangpi in the county were nowhere to be seen. The business of pancakes seemed to be better. The people selling tanghulu also came out early and sold from dawn to dusk. The thin pieces of tanghulu hanging on the tanghulu did not melt too much. It was much better than the white sugar. One could feel the crunchiness amidst the sweetness and sourness.
The workers at the Little Luoshui Pier were busier than before. Many merchants wanted to earn a sum of money in the winter. While the river was not frozen yet, they worked hard to transport the goods they could receive.
There were several large shelves supported by ropes and hooks at the bottom, making the docks much faster. This made the business of the restaurants and shops beside the docks go crazy.
The scholars and beauties seemed to feel that there was nothing to write about in this season. Some of them hid at home and thought about what to write about in the winter snow. The only place that many scholars were still willing to stay was Between the Clouds and the Water.
Wang Juan deliberately used a phrase that attracted many people before it snowed. "Who said that cicadas in winter were thin and cold, but said that the weather was cold in autumn."
Others did not know where this phrase came from, nor did they know that the first phrase was that the youth did not know the taste of worry. Many scholars directly thought of these two phrases as that when the weather was cold, some poor people did not have clothes to wear. Some people even admired this kind of scenery. Scholars always liked to place their feelings in the scenery.
In addition, Between the Clouds and the Water released a new dish, which made them even more willing to come and taste it. They felt sentimental while eating.
It is not the sound of cicadas in the heart, the silkworms will not stop until they die.
That was how the name of the dish came about. To put it simply, there were three words, Si Fangjin.
Zhang Xiaobao didn't pay attention to this aspect. Wang Juan came up with the idea herself. Judging from the situation of the customers ordering this dish, it was not bad.
Originally, after the silkworm cocoons were shredded, most people would not eat them. The farmers would keep them for themselves for a few days. If they could not finish them, they could only throw them away. Wang Juan specially thought of this method for them and changed Li Xiaoyou's sentence.
That was how Wang Juan evaluated Li Shangyin. She said that most of his poems were filled with melancholy. For example, Jin Se was pleasant to hear, but there was always a kind of sad beauty to it. Wang Juan liked the line "Bright pearls in the vast sea have tears," while Zhang Xiaobao liked to hear Zhuang Shengxiao dream of butterflies.
While they were talking, Wang Juan asked Zhang Xiaobao, "What do you think? Didn't I spell those two sentences very well? "
"It's average. It's not as good as the three female voices from the Chinese department that I've heard before. At that time, I didn't know anything and was sitting on the train. They were reciting poems and said that one of the poems was very good, especially the two lines in the middle. 'This love can be turned into reminiscence, but there's no choice but to fall.'
"Later, you found out that it was a poem and a sentence in a poem, right?" Wang Juan asked with a smile.
Zhang Xiaobao shook his head. "No. Later, I thought that if the one surnamed Yan took over the body of the one surnamed Li, would she be able to write a sentence like Maoling's autumn rain and illness, and last night's west wind withered the green trees?"
"Zhang Xiaobao, can't you be more polite with your words?" Wang Juan asked with a smile.
"I'm serious. Do you eat the black thing in the silkworm cocoon?" Zhang Xiaobao asked seriously.
"If I don't eat it, who will eat the organs? Have you seen what a silkworm cocoon looks like before?" Wang Juan asked.
Zhang Xiaobao nodded. "Yes. When I was young, someone gave me more than 50 kilograms of cocoons. It was a woman in her thirties. She wanted to adopt a younger sister as her daughter, but she didn't raise her. I always thought that she was the most beautiful. When I ate it, I left one behind. At the beginning of spring, it turned into a big white moth. She roasted it and gave it to me."
"Aiya, if I had known earlier, I would have left some for roasting. As long as I said that only the brave could eat it, many men would eat it, especially when there's a beauty around." Wang Juan's face was full of regret.
*****
How could Tianhan not know? But he complained that winter was late. Guarding the charcoal with a single layer of clothing, I ask who will eat the scones.
"Father, it's here. Look, it's cold, but the water hasn't frozen. They are so busy that they are covered in sweat. They earn a lot of money with every trip. Father, a few days ago, I heard that the Zhang family sent many cucumber seedlings and planted them in the yamen's backyard.
They are trying to please father. Why don't we take this opportunity to say that Zhangjia Zhuangzi is lying? Otherwise, how can there be more this year? Then we can get someone to sneak into Zhuangzi and learn how to plant cucumbers in the winter. "
At the pier, Jia Weiran, who had just spent two coins to buy a piece of scones with meat inside, was talking to a stout man beside him.
The two of them didn't bring any attendants with them. Their clothes weren't luxurious either. They walked slowly, ignoring the snowflakes that fell from time to time. They treated it as if they were no different from ordinary people.
The person who was called father by Jia Weiran was the new county magistrate. No one knew what he was thinking, but he decided to come over and change his clothes. There were still a few days before he took office, but he came to San Shui County.
Since Jia Weiran went back to report and then came back immediately, he didn't interact with his old friends. He only watched and listened at the pier. This time, he didn't waste his energy and told his father in detail about the situation here.
The Jia County Magistrates looked at his son and then at the bustling scene at the pier. He said, "It's too late. A few days ago, someone submitted the recipe for planting cucumbers in the winter. Zhang Yongcheng is known by many people. We can't do this, or we will get into trouble."
"Ah? It was submitted? Is the Zhang family so upset that they are stupid? Since they know, why did they send cucumber seedlings to the yamen? Do they think we can't afford cucumbers? "
Jia Weiran didn't expect that the idea that he had been thinking about for a few days would be wasted before he could use it. He thought about the cucumbers that were sent to the yamen and couldn't take it lying down.
The Jia County Magistrates thought a lot and said to his son, "It was submitted. Even if we want to plant cucumbers elsewhere, we have to wait for some time before the cucumbers bear fruit. This recipe can not only plant cucumbers, but also other vegetables. But it's not easy to do it. We have to plant them together before the bees and butterflies die.
The Zhang family isn't stupid. If they give up this part of the money, it will save a lot of trouble. How much can cucumbers in the winter be sold for? How much is the pier here in Xiao Luoshui worth? Not to mention the two Zhuangzi, even if it's a prince, would he dare to keep this method of planting vegetables in the winter? What will happen to the people then? "
The Jia County Magistrates thought more than his son. Before he came, he already knew that this place wasn't good to stay. The previous County Magistrate Cheng had done almost all the good things, so he could only follow along. Otherwise, the people wouldn't be willing. This place was different from other places. The prince was the provincial governor and was close to the capital. If something happened, it wouldn't be able to hide it. Moreover, the two seventh-ranked officials of the Zhang and Wang families could also submit a memorial to the higher-ups.
"We can't do anything rashly. We can't." As he thought about it, the Jia County Magistrates started to mumble softly.
"Father, what I said last time can't be done either? They gave us four thousand mu of land, but that piece of land is six thousand mu. It's not a small crime to occupy two thousand mu of land, right? " Jia Weiran still didn't want to give up. He felt that he had embarrassed himself in the restaurant that day. Even if it was two children, he still had to take the children's families into consideration.
The Jia County Magistrates was still as calm as ever. "We need to go back and look at the documents in the yamen. If they really occupy it, then it'll be easy. I'm just afraid that they won't occupy it. With the pier in Xiao Luoshui and the taxes, they don't lack money and aren't afraid that others will find trouble with them."
At this time, Jia Weiran didn't know what to say. He took a bite of the scone in his hand and swallowed it. Suddenly, he said, "Father, this scone is really good. There's another one selling it in front. I'll buy one for you to try later."
"Yes, it's cold. The people here can still do business. It's better than starving. Otherwise, it will be difficult to pass the examination next year. County Magistrate Cheng is indeed capable." The Jia County Magistrates thought about things from a more holistic perspective. It would be easier for him if the local people had a better life.
Jia Weiran pursed his lips. "Father, it's not County Magistrate Cheng's ability. This scone has a special seasoning from Zhangjia Zhuangzi. I don't know how they do it, but the seasoning seems to be different for every dish. I've asked someone to taste it. He can roughly taste a few, but it won't work if there are too many."
"Why is that?" Jia Huanzhen really didn't know.
"I found someone to smell the spices, and the person who smelled it kept sneezing. I found someone to taste the spices and name a few that were easy to taste. Before they could eat it, their mouth went numb, and they couldn't tell what the taste was. I asked someone to specially use those spices to make a dish. If they put too little, the taste would be wrong. If they put too much, they wouldn't know if the taste would be wrong. They would either have diarrhea or dry food.
Jia Weiran was depressed when he talked about this. The seasoning used to make fish was definitely different from that used to make meat. The seasoning in the scone was also different. There were also special seasonings for filling and soup. He didn't know how Zhangjia came up with so many tricks.
When the Jia County Magistrates heard this, he felt that this was right. He pointed to a place selling Chinese crepes in front of them. "Go there and buy some Chinese crepes. I heard it was delicious before I came."
"How is it delicious? It's just a little saltier sauce and more chopped green onions. Poor people can eat anything delicious," Jia Weiran muttered as he walked over.
"Isn't this Brother Jia? I haven't seen you for a few days. What have you been busy with? " Jia Weiran hadn't even reached the place when a sudden voice from the side gave him a shock.
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