The night was already midway, the darkness was dark, the moonlight was dim, the stars were sparse, and a cold wind was blowing from the west. The battlefield had finally been cleared.
Everyone returned to Suzhou City under the stars.
A lot of harvest.
There were carts full of Japanese pirates' heads covered with tarpaulin, carts full of Japanese pirates' weapons and armor, and carts full of gold, silver and jewelry.
Because there were messengers delivering messages in real time, people in Suzhou City were well aware of the situation of cleaning up the battlefield outside the city. Knowing that the trip would be smooth and uneventful, Suzhou City opened the city gates early and welcomed everyone back to the city.
Prefect Shang left the city a few miles early to welcome everyone back. He led a group of officials and bowed with a gentle smile.
"Zihou has worked hard, all the soldiers have worked hard, all the elders and fellow villagers have worked hard, and Deputy General Zhang has worked hard too. I have asked someone to prepare a midnight snack, you can enjoy it before entering the city and then go back to the mansion to rest."
The gentle words of Prefect Shang made everyone, who were tired from working for most of the night, feel like they were in a spring breeze, and their fatigue was greatly reduced.
"Thank you, Lord Shang." Zhu Ping'an dismounted early and bowed to express his gratitude. The people behind him also followed suit and clasped their fists to express their gratitude.
"Why are you still standing there? Hurry up and help pull the carriage into the city so that everyone can have some peace and enjoy a midnight snack."
Prefect Shang ordered the servants and soldiers behind him to come forward and help everyone pull the carts of harvest into the city.
After entering the city, there was a large square not far from the city gate, with bonfires ablaze and tables filled with feasts.
Pots of fragrant midnight snacks were simmering on the makeshift stove, and baskets of steaming meat patties were stacked in the steamer.
"Master Zhu, fellow soldiers, fellow villagers, please take a seat and enjoy your midnight snack."
After entering the city, Prefect Shang enthusiastically pulled Zhu Ping'an to sit down, then stood up and invited everyone to sit down and enjoy a midnight snack.
It was the coldest time of the year in Suzhou, and everyone had been busy most of the night. It was cold and freezing, and having such a hot midnight snack was like a middle-aged woman crawling into the bed of a bachelor who had been single for fifty years.
"Thank you, sir."
Everyone hurriedly took their seats.
"For supper today, I've prepared a few side dishes, meat patties, hot soup, and warm rice wine. Haha, don't blame me, Zihou. I know you are very strict in disciplining the army and prohibit drinking in the army. But this rice wine has a low alcohol content and won't make you drunk or cause any problems. It can also help you sleep. Don't worry, Zihou. It's okay to drink three bowls of it."
Prefect Shang greeted everyone warmly, and when he mentioned rice wine, he explained it specifically to Zhu Ping'an.
"Master Shang is thoughtful. Brothers of the Zhejiang Army can make an exception to drink rice wine tonight, but the limit is three."
Zhu Ping'an smiled and bowed to Prefect Shang to express his gratitude, then spoke to the Zhejiang troops.
"Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir."
The Zhejiang soldiers thanked them overjoyed. They were not allowed to drink alcohol on normal days. Although today it was only low-alcohol rice wine, but rounding it up, rice wine is also wine, so it was enough for the Chinese New Year.
While everyone was expressing their gratitude, the kitchen helpers brought up side dishes, meat patties, hot soup and rice wine.
"Thank you, Lord Shang." The young and strong people thanked him and couldn't help but pick up the wine and drink the rice.
They were exhausted from cleaning the battlefield all night.
Salvage the bodies of the Japanese pirates, behead them, burn them, dig pits; cut down trees, clear the grass, dig isolation belts... ...
I feel tired, cautious, extremely nervous, and a little unlucky.
In their hearts, they were definitely willing to clean up the battlefield, and it was quite satisfying to chop off the heads of the Japanese pirates, but they were corpses after all. In their minds, corpses were unlucky, not to mention the tens of thousands of Japanese pirate corpses, which was extremely unlucky.
Now they really want to drink to numb their nerves and drive away the bad luck.
So, after expressing their thanks, they picked up the big bowls and gulped down a large bowl of rice wine in one breath.
A little sweetness, a little sourness, and a little taste of alcohol. After drinking a big bowl of it, all the fatigue in my body is gone by half.
After drinking, you want to eat something to fill your stomach. Drinking on an empty stomach is not a good habit.
So everyone reached out and took a meat pie from the steamer and stuffed it into their mouths, eating it with a crunchy sound.
When you take a bite of the meat pie, you can smell the delicious meat aroma and the unique barbecue smell...
Barbecue?!
Everyone couldn't help but stop chewing, and the corners of their mouths twitched as if they were struck by lightning.
"Haha, I know you've worked hard today, so I asked the cook to roast pork and mutton for you, cut them into dices, and put them in the meat patties. When the meat patties are just out of the pan, the fragrance spreads for miles, it's really mouth-watering."
When Prefect Shang saw that everyone was in a daze while eating meat patties, he thought that the food was so delicious that everyone was stunned, so he couldn't help but smile and said to everyone.
He knew in his heart that the reason why everyone reacted so strongly was that the meat pie was delicious. There was no doubt about that. The meat pie was made by the top barbecue chef in Suzhou and his kitchen helpers. He had eaten a meat pie himself, and even he, who was used to eating delicacies from land and sea, thought it was a rare delicacy, not to mention ordinary people. Secondly, everyone had been cleaning the battlefield all night, and they were tired and hungry. When they were hungry, the food tasted several times more delicious. With these two reasons, everyone was stunned after taking a bite of the meat pie.
"Haha, this is the barbecue made by the famous barbecue Zhang in Suzhou. Of course it tastes good."
The officials in Suzhou followed suit.
Barbecue?!
Hearing the word "barbecue", everyone could not help but think of the various shapes of Japanese pirate corpses in the ashes of the forest, some clinging to tree trunks, some twisted on the ground, some hugged together, looking like charcoal and extremely hideous, and the horrible smell of meat that could not be covered even if one covered one's nose, drilling into people's nostrils... ...
At this moment, looking at the pieces of charred and fragrant grilled meat in the meat patties, it seems as if the corpses of the Japanese pirates in the ashes were chopped up and sandwiched in the meat. The burnt yellow color and the aroma that hits your mouth and nose are exactly the same.
So
My stomach was churning, and an indescribable, uncontrollable force rushed up from the bottom, straight into my throat, and instantly rushed into my mouth.
Everyone knew that this was not an ordinary occasion and was not suitable for vomiting, so they tried to hold it in by covering their mouths and noses.
But I had just drunk a big bowl of rice wine, and now it all came back up again. It's not like I can just cover it up.
All of a sudden, my mouth was filled with water. I covered my mouth with both hands, but it still couldn't be covered.
Ugh, ugh, ugh...
He was retching in his mouth, and liquid was gushing out from between his fingers...
Finally they knew not to spray on the table, so they turned their heads outward and sprayed through gaps between their fingers. Once they started spraying, they couldn't control themselves.
If a reservoir releases flood water, it will be out of control.
Everyone's abdomen contracted rapidly, and the contents of their stomachs rushed out rapidly. Everyone had to hold on to the table, lean over, and vomit violently.
At one point, thousands of people were vomiting violently. The scene was simply indescribable. Prefect Shang and others were all in a mess.