The evening breeze wakes up the appetite.
In the evening of midsummer, the rolling heat waves are gradually cooled by the evening breeze. Sitting at the table and eating heartily in the cool evening is the most appropriate thing to do at this time.
Especially since the table is filled with rich and delicious dishes that smell delicious, you can't let your mouth and stomach down.
Braised shark's fin is made with precious shark's fins tributed from Luzon. They are golden and bright, full of elasticity, and have a soft and glutinous texture that is easy to absorb. The stewed soup is made from old chicken soup that has been slowly simmered overnight. It is both fresh and fragrant. The addition of shark's fins to the chicken soup brings about a sublimation of taste and vision, which is nourishing, invigorating, and strengthening the muscles and bones. It is wonderful.
The sika deer tendons are made from the sika deer from Changbai Mountain that were offered as tribute by the three guards of Jianzhou. The deer tendons are then paired with wild rabbits and pheasants native to Changbai Mountain, as well as ginseng, wolfberry, and white cabbage that easily absorbs the soup, and finally simmered with sweet radish and apples. The sika deer tendons are fresh and clean without any fishy smell, and the soup is still rich and mellow. The whole dish is neither fat nor greasy, and has a special wild flavor.
The most eye-catching large plate of lamb ribs in the middle of the table is made from the Yanchi beach sheep in the Hetao area. The beach sheep here eat Chinese herbal medicine and drink ditch spring water. The meat is red and fat, delicious, fragrant and not smelly. After stewing, the aroma of the meat reaches the tip of the tongue.
... ...
All the delicacies from land and sea, all the exquisite dishes, are made with precious ingredients and all exude an enticing aroma.
But
Zhang Juzheng, who was sitting behind the table, looked at the delicacies from land and sea, but had no intention of eating anything.
same
Yang Guoliang, who lived two rooms away from Zhang Juzheng, was also faced with the same table full of delicacies from land and sea, but he also abstained from both meat and vegetables, and did not eat a single bite.
The reasons are the same.
No chopsticks.
Yes, the eunuch served them a table full of delicious food, but forgot to give them a pair of chopsticks.
No spoon either.
How can you eat food without chopsticks? How can you taste soup without a spoon
This is just like going to an exam without a pen or going to the battlefield without a weapon. Even if you have skills, you won't be able to use them.
Faced with a table full of delicious imperial meals, all I could do was stare blankly.
Of course, there were also strong men who bit their fingers to write answers in blood and tore up Japanese soldiers with bare hands. Yes, that was Zhu Pingan, who lived two rooms away from them. At this moment, there were two fewer lamb ribs on the plate in front of Zhu Pingan, and a clean lamb rib was added on the table. The lamb rib in his hand had been eaten halfway.
When Zhu Ping'an finished eating the second lamb rib, Zhang Juzheng, who was two rooms away from him, finally moved.
"Excuse me for bothering you, sir. Could you please get me a pair of chopsticks..."
Zhang Juzheng turned around, bowed to the nearest eunuch, apologized, and asked him to get him a pair of chopsticks.
"Ah, chopsticks... It's all my fault. I forgot to put chopsticks for Master Zhang. Damn it! How can you eat without chopsticks? Master Zhang, wait a moment. I'll get you chopsticks right away."
Upon hearing this, the eunuch took a look at the table and was "shocked" to find that he had forgotten to serve chopsticks to Zhang Juzheng. He hurriedly apologized to Zhang Juzheng, then immediately turned around and went out to get chopsticks, spoons and other tableware for Zhang Juzheng.
The tableware in the palace was naturally different. The eunuch brought a pair of white ivory chopsticks and a jade spoon.
"Thank you, father-in-law."
After Zhang Juzheng took the chopsticks, he bowed to express his thanks, sat upright, and started to eat the imperial meal with an aristocratic demeanor.
The ivory chopsticks pick up the fragrant food, the imperial cuisine is indeed worthy of its reputation.
When Zhang Juzheng took the first bite of the dish, Zhu Ping'an had also finished the second rib of lamb. When Zhu Ping'an was about to reach out for the third rib of lamb, the eunuch beside him seemed to "finally" realize that he had forgotten to put chopsticks in front of Zhu Ping'an. He hurriedly stepped forward to apologize to Zhu Ping'an, saying, "Oh, damn it, I actually forgot to put chopsticks in front of you, Master Zhu. Please forgive me, Master."
"Ah? Haha, it's okay, it's okay..."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Ping'an was stunned for a moment while holding the third lamb rib. He glanced at the table and suddenly realized that there were no chopsticks on the table. Then he smiled naively, waved his hand indifferently, and continued to put the lamb rib in his hand into his mouth.
The eunuch standing by had been paying attention to Zhu Ping'an's expression.
now.
He was deeply impressed by Zhu Ping'an's "acting skills".
The slightly raised eyebrows, the slightly opened mouth, the surprise flashing in the pupils, the raised curve of the cheeks...
Even Lord Zhu sounded surprised when he heard me say that I forgot to put away the chopsticks.
The "surprise" and "sudden realization" expressed by Mr. Zhu, everything is so natural, everything is so real, everything is so just right...
When the eunuch saw this and thought about his own behavior, he couldn't help feeling ashamed.
The expression he had just made when he "discovered" that he had forgotten to put on the chopsticks was very different from the expression Lord Zhu had when he "discovered" that there were no chopsticks. Although he couldn't see his own expression at the time, the eunuch also knew that his expression was a bit stiff and unnatural, and there were many flaws in his expressiveness.
Lord Zhu is truly worthy of being the top scholar in the imperial examination at a young age, and a rising star in the officialdom who is promoted every three days, enters the cabinet in two months, and is promoted twice in three months.
At this moment, Zhu Ping'an's figure kneeling and eating seemed so tall in the eyes of the eunuchs, as if he was a thousand feet tall...
The eunuch turned around with respect and got the chopsticks for Zhu Ping'an and placed them on the table in front of Zhu Ping'an. They were also a pair of ivory chopsticks.
"Thank you very much."
Zhu Ping'an took the chopsticks, thanked the eunuch, and continued to finish the unfinished lamb ribs with his hands. He then picked up the wet towel beside him to wipe his hands clean, and then picked up the sika deer tendon with chopsticks, put it in his mouth, and began to feast on it.
At this time, Zhang Juzheng and Zhu Ping'an both had chopsticks, and they were either enjoying their meals like aristocrats or eating with relish.
but
Yang Guoliang, who was two rooms away from them, still abstained from meat, vegetables and soup. Facing a table of delicious food, he sat upright without touching a single dish. He just poured himself cup after cup of hot tea, drinking it, drinking it, drinking it...
Come on, let's drink this one, and there's one more...
The tea in the palace is so delicious, so delicious that you can't stop drinking it...
Yang Guoliang felt uneasy as he drank the tea, but he just kept drinking, one cup after another.
The eunuch in the room "didn't" notice that he had forgotten to put chopsticks in front of Yang Guoliang, and just watched Yang Guoliang drink one cup after another.