Little Chengjiao showed off to strangers what he had learned from his uncle.
Zhang Liang was a little confused at first, but after careful thought he understood Zhu Xiang's intention. He couldn't help but sigh that it was no wonder that the King of Qin entrusted the young prince to Zhu Xiang.
I'm afraid that when the Crown Prince was away from Xianyang for a long time, someone made a random bet with Prince Chengjiao.
After filling his stomach, Ying Xiaozheng asked someone to inform his uncle, aunt and Han Fei that Zhang Liang had arrived, and to clean up a small courtyard for Zhang Liang to live in.
After hearing this, Zhang Liang quickly said, "How can you let the teacher come to find me? I should go to see the teacher."
Ying Xiaozheng said, "My uncle has been ill recently. I don't allow him to go out, so he spends every day at home thinking about what to cook. Han Fei, Li Si, and Fu Qiu often come to eat and drink. If you don't notify him in advance, you might run into him when you go home for dinner. It's better to inform him in advance."
A puzzled look appeared in Zhang Liang's little head: "Free food and drink?"
Ying Xiaozheng jumped on the horse and said, "Yes, eat and drink for free. Meng Tian, you hold Cheng Jiao."
Little Chengjiao jumped in front of Ying Xiaozheng's horse: "No, I want my elder brother to take me!"
"No!" Ying Xiaozheng refused coldly and ruthlessly.
It is more convenient to ride a horse on country roads. Although there is a carriage with spare clothes, pots and pans, food and water nearby, Ying Xiaozheng still rides a horse himself when he inspects.
Xiao Chengjiao was originally sitting in front of Ying Xiaozheng, but this guy was not honest when riding the horse. Ying Xiaozheng felt a little embarrassed and it damaged his majestic image as the Prince of Qin.
Little Chengjiao kept jumping up and down, "Brother, take care of us! Don't take care of Meng Tian."
Ying Xiaozheng raised his eyebrows: "Meng Tian."
Meng Tian sighed: "I am here."
He picked up little Chengjiao and tickled his armpits: "Follow me and ride on horseback."
Little Chengjiao was "kidnapped" by Meng Tian and put on horseback. He struggled and giggled: "Let me go!"
"Accept your fate." Meng Tian said, "The prince has given an order."
Xiao Chengjiao snorted coldly: "Forget it, I will grant you the honor of riding with me!"
Zhang Liang followed and mounted his horse, looking at Master Cheng Jiao curiously.
He originally thought that Master Chengjiao was an ordinary child, but this sentence actually had a bit of Master Qin's majesty.
The corners of Ying Xiaozheng's mouth twitched, and he said weakly: "Don't learn from the words in the story your uncle told you."
Xiao Chengjiao asked: "Why?"
Ying Xiaozheng said: "Just don't learn it."
Xiao Chengjiao asked: "Why why?"
Ying Xiaozheng pressed his forehead: "No reason."
Xiao Chengjiao continued to ask: "But why!"
Meng Tian couldn't control the smile on his face.
Ying Xiaozheng glared at Meng Tian, and Meng Tian quickly turned down the corners of his mouth.
Ying Xiaozheng cursed in his heart, just laugh, sooner or later I will send you to guard the Great Wall.
Xiao Chengjiao finally calmed down. Ying Xiaozheng breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhang Liang thought for a long time and asked in confusion: "Why can't I say it? What's wrong with this?"
Ying Xiaozheng: “…”
Xiao Chengjiao immediately repeated it again: "Yes, why!"
Ying Xiaozheng: "Shut up!"
Can he say that he has heard all the stories his uncle told little Chengjiao, and every time little Chengjiao imitated the lines in the story, he would immediately think of the content and characters in the story. Does he feel particularly embarrassed
Apart from complaining to his uncle and aunt, Ying Xiaozheng would certainly not say this directly.
Unfortunately, his younger brother was spoiled by his uncle and aunt and became more and more disobedient. They forbade him to do something without any reason, so he had to get to the bottom of it.
Ying Xiaozheng finally managed to divert Xiao Chengjiao's attention with other things.
Zhang Liang looked at the faint fatigue on Ying Xiaozheng's face and couldn't help but think of his brother.
When he was naughty, his brother often showed this expression.
It turns out that Prince Qin is also an elder brother from an ordinary family, and he would also be tired of taking care of his younger brother.
"Zhang Liang, have you seen the differences between Chu and Qin along the way?" After Ying Xiaozheng finally got Xiao Chengjiao to shut up, he got down to business.
That is, to show off to Zhang Liang.
Ying Xiaozheng was very confident in the governance results of Wu County.
Seeing the refugees from Chu constantly pouring into Southern Qin, he knew that the land under his rule was definitely more prosperous than that of Chu.
But guessing it yourself and having others praise him after experiencing it are two different things.
Zhang Liang has gone through a lot in the past few years, from being a lawless son of a top noble family in Xinzheng City to someone who needs to please others.
His talent for observing people's expressions was on display, and he saw the boasting in Prince Zheng's expression.
According to his heart, Zhang Liang should have said "nothing special" and forced himself to express his disdain as he had done before.
But when he was about to say this, Zhang Liang stopped.
After a while, Zhang Liang spoke expressionlessly about the changes he had seen along the way from Han, Chu, Southern Chu, and Southern Qin, as well as some things he had observed that were either helpless or puzzling.
Ying Xiaozheng originally just wanted to show off, but he didn't expect Zhang Liang to answer so seriously.
He put away the idea of showing off, thought about the message in Zhang Liang's words, and discussed them with Zhang Liang from time to time.
Meng Tian and Xiao Chengjiao were listening very seriously.
Soon, Meng Tian was still listening very seriously, and little Cheng Jiao fell asleep in Meng Tian's arms.
Meng Tian looked down at Prince Cheng Jiao who was almost asleep and sighed in his heart.
Prince Chengjiao was completely different from the Crown Prince when he was young.
Perhaps the prince matured too precociously.
When Ying Xiaozheng and Zhang Liang were discussing the common people's land, taxes and corvee labor, Zhu Xiang, who was forced to stay at home to recuperate, received the news of Zhang Liang's arrival.
Zhu Xiang didn't have any serious illness. He just got caught in the rain and was unconscious for a while. Now he has a slight cough.
It was the autumn harvest season, and he thought that he shouldn't rest for such a minor illness. Who knew that Ying Xiaozheng would send soldiers to put him under house arrest in a manor on the outskirts of Guangling? How unfilial!
What made Zhu Xiang even more angry was that Xue Ji actually said that Ying Xiaozheng did a good job!
There is no place for him in this family anymore!
Zhu Xiang angrily wrote to Zichu, "Look! What kind of son did you teach? You sent troops to surround Cai Ze and Lin Zhi's homes, and your son dared to send troops to put me under house arrest!"
After Zhu Xiang's impotent rage, he reluctantly accepted the fact that he was under house arrest. He stayed at home tending to his vegetable garden and thinking about what fresh food to make every day.
When Zhu Xiang received the news of Zhang Liang's arrival, he was grinding beans to make tofu pudding.
The soybeans donated by Wei Wuji were harvested. The protein and oil yield of the newly harvested soybeans were better than those of the existing soybeans. Whether it was for oil extraction or making tofu and bean curd, the yield rate was higher than that of the previous soybeans.
The autumn heat has been quite fierce in recent days, and Zhu Xiang wanted to make some ice tofu pudding for Ying Xiaozheng and Xiao Chengjiao who had been busy outside all day.
Add crushed ice, brown sugar, preserved fruits and chopped melon seeds to tofu pudding and it will be a delicious dessert that you will never get tired of.
Both nephews like sweets, they must be very happy to taste it.
Zhu Xiang was fiddling with saltpeter to make ice while muttering to Xue Ji.
He thought Xue Ji would be bored with him, but he didn't expect that Xue Ji was used to being busy. After seeing that he was well, she became impatient to stay at home and continued to be busy with weaving.
How abominable! I won’t let you eat the first bite of iced tofu pudding!
Zhu Xiang, who is already over thirty years old, complained like a child.
"Why is Zhang Liang here?" Zhu Xiang made the preliminary preparations and handed the rest to the cook, "Go call Han Fei... Call Li Si as well."
Han Fei and Li Si were both in Wucheng.
Wucheng would cross the river to send letters every few days, so the news was relatively smooth. Zhu Xiang went to inform them now, and they could come to Guangling City tomorrow.
Zhu Xiang was very worried that Han Fei would lose his mind whenever he encountered anything concerning the Kingdom of Han. Li Si, who was helping him, was better able to persuade Han Fei to come back than Zhu Xiang, as an elder.
Zhu Xiang couldn't help but blame Zhang Liang irrationally.
Given the distance between Wujun and Han, when they learned that the capital of Han was under siege, Duke Lian might have already kidnapped the King of Han and taken him to Xianyang.
The dust has settled. Han Fei can only accept reality.
Now that he knows in advance that the capital of South Korea is under siege, he wonders how Han Fei will suffer.
Of course, Zhu Xiang also knew that his idea was too selfish and irrational.
How could he blame a child who was also suffering
It’s just that people are close to each other, and he is not a saint. Occasionally, some not-so-noble thoughts will flash through his mind, and he can’t control it.
With a sigh, Zhu Xiang went to the kitchen to prepare a welcome dinner for little Zhang Liang.
Zhu Xiang remembered that Zhang Liang preferred light food, and he was indeed a person who would live a long life in the future.
Zheng'er, you should study hard!
Then let’s make some steamed sea bass.
When you come to the south, you must eat fish from the Yangtze River. Zhu Xiang ordered steamed sea bass as the main course, and added other hard dishes such as beef with chives and roasted lamb legs with cumin. The vegetarian dish was a large platter of seasonal vegetables mixed with sesame oil and oyster sauce.
Li Mu sent a lot of shells, probably oysters, saying that they were salvaged while sailing.
Zhu Xiang didn't know how Li Mu could bring back so many catches every time he came back after training his troops in Nanyue. All he needed to do was eat them.
After a few days of eating garlic vermicelli, oysters and scallops, there were still a lot of oyster shells left.
Zhu Xiang did some research and boiled shell meat and oyster meat into oyster sauce, and used the remaining residue to feed geese.
Li Mu brought some geese from South Vietnam to him to raise. He was tired of roast duck and wanted to try roast goose.
It was a pity that Zhang Liang came at the wrong time. If he had come a few days earlier, he would have been able to eat fresh oysters.
Now Li Mu has gone south to train his troops again. I wonder what delicious food he will bring back this time.
Zhu Xiang previously complained that Zhang Liang came too early, but now he regrets that Zhang Liang came too late. What a contradiction.
After completing today's inspection, young Ying Zheng challenged Zhang Liang to a duel to see who could ride faster.
Zhang Liang didn't want to compete with him.
It is obvious that his riding skills could not possibly compare to those of Crown Prince Zheng, who is already seventeen years old.
But with just a few words from young Ying Zheng, such as "No way", "Are you scared?" and "There's no bet", Zhang Liang, who still had a very bad temper, was successfully irritated.
Little Zhang Liang not only raced horses with little Ying Zheng, but also made a bet that whoever lost would copy a book.
Then young Ying Zheng rode away, and young Zhang Liang was defeated so badly that he didn't even get to see the horse's butt.
After Prince Zheng ran away, Meng Tian said speechlessly: "Not only is your horse not as good as the prince's, but you are not familiar with the road. Besides, the prince can ride a horse into the battlefield. What can you compare with him?"
Little Zhang Liang said in a very mature manner: "You should ask your prince. He is older than me and has ridden on a horse to the battlefield. He has a better horse than me and knows the road better than me. Yet he insists on competing with me."
Meng Tian: “…”
Little Cheng Jiao, who had already woken up, immediately asked, "Your name is Zhang Liang, right?"
Little Zhang Liang said, "Yes, sir."
Xiao Chengjiao grinned and said, revealing the black hole in his mouth: "You must tell this to big brother!"
Xiao Zhang was curious: "Why?"
Little Chengjiao smiled proudly and said, "My uncle said that it's fun to see my elder brother get angry and embarrassed!"
Little Zhang Liang: “…”
These brothers are truly brothers.
Zhang Liang really told these words to Ying Xiaozheng.
Ying Xiaozheng sneered: "You are just looking for an excuse for your loss."
Zhang Liang: "If you say so, then so be it. Then, Prince, do you dare to publicize our competition just now? Remember, you were the one who made the first move to publicize it."
Ying Xiaozheng: “…”
Zhang Liang showed a proud smile.
When Zhu Xiang came to greet the guests, he heard Ying Xiaozheng snorting coldly.
He often worried that Ying Xiaozheng might develop rhinitis from snorting all the time.
Now Xiao Chengjiao has learned Ying Xiaozheng's cold snort. It is easy to learn bad things but difficult to learn good things.
"What lost?" Zhu Xiang was curious.
Ying Xiaozheng said: "Nothing."
Zhang Liang said, "The prince challenged me to a horse race and I lost. The prince is really amazing."
Zhu Xiang: “…”
He looked at Ying Xiaozheng silently.
Ying Xiaozheng looked back at his uncle with confidence.
What are you looking at? Any questions
Zhu Xiang silently withdrew his gaze and said nothing, so as to avoid making Ying Xiaozheng angry.
Sometimes Zheng'er is really childish. Is it because I raised my child wrongly
Zhu Xiang first scolded Zichu, and now began to reflect on himself.
If there were no outsiders present, Zhu Xiang would have definitely teased Ying Xiaozheng. But with outsiders present, Zhu Xiang had to protect Ying Xiaozheng's face.
He changed the subject and said, "Long time no see. Take a rest first, and we can talk tomorrow."
Since Zhang Liang has come to Southern Qin, there is probably nothing urgent.
Zhang Liang saw that Zhu Xiang was protecting the crown prince's power.
He couldn't help but think of his family in Xinzheng, and his expression became gloomy.
After he exchanged greetings with Zhu Xiang, he briefly explained that he was now planning to join his teacher Han Fei and would not be returning to Xinzheng. Then he was led by Zhu Xiang to the tidied courtyard to pack his luggage.
After a simple change of clothes, Zhang Liang came out wearing a slightly larger set of silk clothes.
He was very confused: "Duke Zhu Xiang, why are there clothes I'm wearing? Did Duke Zhu Xiang know I would come?"
Zhu Xiang said, "This is Zheng'er's old clothes."
Zhang Liang: “…”
Why are the clothes that Prince Zheng used to wear still kept
Zhu Xiang was puzzled by Zhang Liang's shock.
Ying Xiaozheng grew up very fast, and he changed his clothes after wearing them only a few times. These clothes were made of good materials, how could he just throw them away
Besides, it would be better for children to wear old clothes, so Zhu Xiang planned to give the clothes worn by Ying Xiaozheng to Cheng Jiao or his friend’s son.
Unexpectedly, Zichu actually threw Cheng Jiao over. So Ying Xiaozheng’s old clothes could not be thrown away, so they were just right for Cheng Jiao to wear.
Ying Xiaozheng didn't care about it.
As an emperor, he often gave used clothes to his beloved ministers. What his uncle was doing now was similar to what he did in his dream.
Zhang Liang found it a little difficult to accept Zhu Xiang's frugality.
This kind of silk clothes wrinkle easily after washing, and many noble families have to throw away their clothes after wearing them once or twice, not to mention the king.
The clothes that the monarch changed every day were rarely worn a second time. If he wore old clothes that had been washed, it would be considered economical.
Therefore, the king often gave the used clothes as rewards to others or cut them into other things.
Duke Xiang of Zhu was so frugal that he kept all of the crown prince's old clothes and planned to give them to Prince Chengjiao
Zhu Xiang knew that his commoner thinking might be somewhat incompatible with the nobles of the time.
Seeing that Zhang Liang looked unhappy, he immediately said, "Are you not used to wearing old clothes? Wait a moment, I will send someone to buy a new set of clothes. There is a ready-made clothing store in Guangling City."
He said apologetically, "Zheng'er has only worn this coat once. I saw that you didn't bring enough clothes, so I ignored etiquette."
Zhang Liang immediately said, "No, it's okay. According to etiquette, I received the old clothes given by the elders. It means that the elders think highly of me."
This is indeed the case in etiquette.
When friends and relatives come to visit his home, the host will give them his good old clothes to wear, which is a symbol of their close relationship.
Zhang Liang was going to take Han Fei as his teacher, and Zhu Xiang was actually Han Fei's elder, so Zhang Liang was also Zhu Xiang's junior.
Zhang Liang temporarily stayed at Zhu Xiang's house. Zhu Xiang gave Zhang Liang some old clothes from his children, which showed that he treated Zhang Liang as his own son or nephew.
Prince Chengjiao is not very fond of clothes, so his clothes now are all altered from Ying Xiaozheng's clothes.
The clothes that Ying Xiaozheng wore before were also altered from Zhu Xiang's clothes.
When Zhu Xiang lived in Lin Xiangru's house, Lin Xiangru often gave Lin Zhi's old clothes to Zhu Xiang to wear.
If it was an ordinary scholar family, it would be reasonable to do so. However, Zhang Liang was a little surprised that Ying Xiaozheng was the crown prince of Qin and was so frugal.
After being surprised, Zhang Liang felt a warm feeling in his heart.
Duke Zhu Xiang would naturally wear Prince Zheng's old clothes, and in his heart he truly treated him as his own son or nephew.
This was the first time Zhang Liang left his hometown alone.
This was the first time he left his hometown alone and traveled across the entire Central Plains, a distance so far that he had never dared to imagine before.
It is impossible to say that he was not uneasy.
He is still a child after all.
Seeing Zhu Xiang treat him like this, Zhang Liang finally felt relieved and was no longer so worried about the future.
Zhu Xiang was a little flustered when he saw Zhang Liang's eyes were red, but he soon realized that Zhang Liang's eyes were slightly red because he was moved.
Moved... Zhu Xiang thought for a long time before he figured out what Zhang Liang was thinking.
Only when he treated Zhang Liang as his own son or nephew would he give Zhang Liang his children's old clothes. Zhang Liang probably realized how close he was to him.
This is indeed the case.
If it were an outsider, Zhu Xiang would not interfere with the clothing matter at all, and at most would send someone to take him to the clothing shop.
Zhang Liang took Han Fei as his teacher, but Han Fei didn't know how to take care of the child, so the child could probably take care of himself. So he treated Zhang Liang as his own son or nephew.
"Don't worry. King Han and your family will be fine." Zhu Xiang finished speaking and added, "As long as Xinzheng doesn't rebel, King Han will be fine."
Zhang Liang suppressed his emotion.
He wanted to cover his ears and say that he didn't want to hear such comfort.
Ying Xiaozheng came over arrogance and asked Zhang Liang if he had changed his clothes. He was hungry and wanted to eat. He just happened to hear Zhu Xiang comforting Zhang Liang.
Ying Xiaozheng's voice change period has ended, but he still deliberately laughed like a duck.
Zhu Xiang glanced at Ying Xiaozheng helplessly.
Zhang Liang didn't do anything to you, did he? You have always been the one bullying Zhang Liang. Why on earth do you have to target him
Zhang Liang hasn't assassinated you yet!
Is this a natural incompatibility
"You're too short." Ying Xiaozheng raised his chin and looked down at Zhang Liang, who was five or six years younger than him. "Don't you have enough to eat in Korea?"
Zhang Liang: “…” I am the son of the former Prime Minister of South Korea, and you say I can’t eat enough!
"Alright, alright, let's go eat." Zhu Xiang held Ying Xiaozheng's hand with his left hand and took little Zhang Liang with his right hand, dragging the two away. "Cheng Jiao can't wait to eat the ice bean curd."
Ying Xiaozheng: "What? We're having ice bean curd today? Why didn't you say so earlier!"
He immediately ran forward and almost knocked Zhu Xiang down.
Zhang Liang: “???” It’s just a bite of food, why bother with you
Then Zhang Liang tasted the brown sugar ice tofu pudding.
In the south where it doesn't freeze in winter, on the most severe days of the autumn heat, he held a bowl of white jade paste with crushed ice, looked at the colorful preserved fruits and dumplings in the bowl, and couldn't bear to eat it.
Is this the ice dessert that Zhu Xianggong made himself? Zhang Liang had never seen such beautiful food.
"What is this?" Zhang Liang was curious. "Is it made of flour?"
When the Qin State began to promote stone mills on a large scale, stone mills and the way of eating flour also became popular among the nobles of the six states.
Seeing the jade-white paste, Zhang Liang could only think of noodles.
But when the porcelain spoon in his hand touched the white jade paste, it immediately dispersed, which did not look like a lump of dough.
Zhang Liang continued to speculate: "Could it be egg whites mixed with flour?"
Ying Xiaozheng, who loved the coolness, had already gulped down half a bowl of iced tofu pudding.
Seeing that Zhang Liang hadn't eaten a single bite and had been grumbling all the time, until the ice had melted, he said unhappily, "Eat your food, why are you talking so much nonsense? This is made of Dashu."
"Ah? How is that possible?!" Zhang Liang was extremely surprised.
Beans were the food that poor people used to fill their stomachs. He once ate the bean rice of a servant in his house out of curiosity, but he found it hard to swallow even though it was cooked.
Can beans be made into such beautiful food
Little Chengjiao didn't eat as fast as Ying and Xiaozheng, but he was young, so the bowl of iced tofu was very small. He finished it in two or three bites.
Seeing Zhang Liang still in a daze, Xiao Chengjiao stretched his head over and said, "Zhang Liang, don't you want to eat? If not, give it to me."
While Ying Xiaozheng was enjoying his meal, he scolded his brother: "No! You are still young, you can't eat too much ice!"
Little Chengjiao pointed at Zhang Liang and said, "But he doesn't eat it. What a waste! Uncle said we can't waste it!"
Zhang Liang immediately scooped the ice bean curd into his mouth: "I'll eat it... Mmm, it's delicious!"
The tofu pudding melts in your mouth, and the light bean flavor is dissipated by the brown sugar.
Finely crushed ice cubes, preserved fruits and melon seeds mixed in the ice tofu pudding add a rich taste to it.
The colorful little meatballs are the finishing touch, they are sweet and sticky and very satisfying to chew.
Zhang Liang instantly recalled the few short months he spent eating for free in Xianyang City.
The food and snacks at Zhu Xianggong's house are heavenly delicacies! This is irrefutable evidence that Zhu Xianggong is a banished immortal!
Zhang Liang immediately buried his head in the bowl.
Xiao Chengjiao's face fell and tears welled up in the corners of his eyes.
He turned around and threw himself into Zhu Xiang's arms: "Uncle! You all have food to eat, but I don't! Wuuuuuuu!"
Zhu Xiang was almost hit in the back by Xiao Chengjiao's head.
Why do these two nephews like to hit me with their heads? ! Are you calves? !
Zhu Xiang couldn't help but glare at Ying Xiaozheng.
Ying Xiaozheng didn't want to know why his uncle was glaring at him. He picked up the empty bowl and stretched out his hand: "Uncle, give me another bowl. Cheng Jiao, you are not allowed to eat!"
Little Chengjiao: "Wuwaaaa! Big brother is bullying me!"
Meng Tian also came along to get some food.
He knew that Zhu Xiang would personally prepare a welcoming banquet to welcome Han Fei's disciples.
Hearing Prince Chengjiao crying because he failed to get ice bean curd, Meng Tian moved his butt and moved closer to Zhang Liang with the stool.
Zhang Liang was puzzled: "What's wrong?"
Meng Tian said: "Stop it, or Master Chengjiao will hate me in the future."
Zhang Liang: “???” What’s wrong with you? !
(End of this chapter)