Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 43: Wok Fury
The next morning, Lu Beigu got up early and carefully put away the "Spring and Autumn Annals: A Brief Discussion on the Respect for Kings" that he had obtained yesterday. This book is profound and extensive. It would take several months just to read it one volume at a time in comparison with the Three Commentaries on the Spring and Autumn Annals.

He prepared his writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, put them in his bag, and headed towards the Yizhou Road Transport Commissioner's Office in the south of the city.

They are all currently staying in Qingyang Palace.

Yes, it is the famous Qingyang Palace in Chengdu.

In this era, it was very common for scholars and officials to stay in Taoist temples or Buddhist temples for personal travel. It was low-key enough, the accommodation was not expensive, and the environment was good.

Inside the palace gate, Lu Beigu saw an octagonal pavilion with double eaves and a pointed roof on the right. There was also a three-legged bronze incense burner in front of the pavilion, but there was not much incense left.

I didn't enter through the main gate yesterday, so I didn't see this thing.

Now that he was free and in no hurry, Lu Beigu walked into the pavilion to take a look.

Inside there was a stele that was much taller than him, carried by a Bixi. The stele looked to be carved from Qingcheng stone, a hard and fine-grained stone that was very suitable for engraving steles.

"Inscription on the Qingyang Palace in Xichuan?"

Lu Beigu squatted down and took a look below. It was written by a former Tang Shangshu named "Le Penggui".

Then, he recited the words above in his mind.

". The mountains and hills are towering, the towers and terraces are spacious, reaching the palace of the round cliffs of the eastern sea; the palace of the Transformed Man stands in the west, the spiritual power of the Sword Pavilion is drawn, all of which are under the control of the imperial court; the graceful beauty of the Emei Mountains is half integrated into the capital. Smoke clings to the green altar, and the wind carries the clear sound of chimes."

After reading Lu Beigu's works, I roughly understood what was going on. In the past, this place was actually called Qingyang Temple. In order to avoid the Huang Chao Rebellion, Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty fled to Sichuan and stayed here temporarily.

Emperor Xizong of Tang thought this place was good. The fact that he was able to turn danger into safety this time meant that it might be his blessed land. Maybe he would have to continue living here when he fled to Shu next time.

Therefore, after Emperor Xizong of Tang returned to Chang'an, he specially allocated money from the internal and external treasuries to build it on a large scale, and changed the name from Qingyang Temple to Qingyang Palace.

This place has not been destroyed by war, so it actually has a history of nearly two hundred years.

Well, this often means that there will be a lot of crowded ancient buildings around, or old and dilapidated residential areas.

I took only two steps forward and it was true.

After leaving the Qingyang Palace, the morning mist in Chengdu had not yet dissipated, but the surrounding alleys were already filled with the hustle and bustle of life.

——The “smell of everyday life” in the literal sense.

There were a lot of people coming and going, and the alleys and streets were filled with various breakfast shops.

Lu Beigu didn't want to eat here at first, but the food tasted so damn delicious that he became hungrier and hungrier as he walked.

He thought that he hadn't eaten any delicious food in Chengdu yesterday, so he simply found a stall in an alley that looked relatively clean and had few people to eat at.

"What would you like to eat, young master?"

"What's there?"

"There are only two kinds of meat noodles," the stall owner said. "One is a large braised noodle soup with meat topping, and the other is a large and small pork noodle with orange and scallion sauce."

Because Chengdu is quite hot and humid in the summer, Lu Beigu felt very uncomfortable because his clothes made his body sticky, so he didn't have much appetite for the thick soup and meat noodles.

He said, "Give me some noodles with orange and scallion sauce."

The noodles were almost cooked, so they were served quickly.

Lu Beigu took the bowl and saw that the noodles were covered with amber meat sauce, the minced meat was finely chopped and shiny, and the outside was covered with a layer of orange and leek. On one side, the golden orange shreds were cut as thin as hair, and on the other side, the green and white minced leek was spread.

He picked up a piece of noodles with chopsticks and tasted it first. The salty and fresh taste of the meat sauce wrapped in the fragrance of the noodles spread in his mouth. The noodles were boiled in well water, so they were smooth and chewy. They absorbed the sauce but were not sticky at all.

Then I picked up a chopstick of orange and scallion sauce. The orange shreds were very crispy and tender, with a slight fruity aroma when chewed. The spicy aroma of scallion just right relieved the greasiness of the meat sauce.

With one chopstick on the left and one chopstick on the right, the bowl of noodles was quickly finished.

Lu Beigu was reluctant to eat until his forehead was slightly sweaty, so he simply scraped the sauce at the bottom of the bowl clean with noodles.

After eating, he breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that the damp heat and stuffiness from the morning had been swept away, and his whole body felt refreshed.

The stall owner happened to pull out his hand and saw that he was eating with relish. He smiled and asked, "Are you satisfied, young master?"

Lu Beigu nodded, took out a copper coin and handed it over: "This orange and leek sauce is very well made, sweet and sour, and it is appetizing. It is perfect to eat in summer." As the ancients said, when the granaries are full, people will know etiquette.

People only start to have wild thoughts after they have eaten a full meal.

Looking at the various breakfasts sold by the stall owners, Lu Beigu thought as he walked.

As a scholar, when Newton saw an apple fall, he did not think about whether the apple tasted good or not, but wondered why the apple fell.

Lu Beigu was also a scholar, but he was different from Newton. He was thinking very seriously about the issue of eating.

During this period, he tasted many kinds of Sichuan food.

But he discovered that in today's Song Dynasty, although there were many varieties of steamed and boiled foods, the snacks were of excellent quality.

But cooking is far inferior to modern ones!
why?

Is it because the pot is not working?
Lu Beigu glanced at the pots of the stall owners in the alley, and it was obviously not the case.

In this era, thin-walled iron pans, also known as "woks", which are truly suitable for cooking, have been widely used, and the concept of "wok qi" has been formed among the people, which is commonly known as "pot qi" in modern times.

So is it a fuel issue?
Nor is it.

Although some people here use firewood, more people choose charcoal. The combustion efficiency of charcoal is definitely sufficient to meet the needs of cooking.

If you think about it carefully, it’s not an oil problem.

The oil pressing technology of the Song Dynasty can be said to have made great progress compared with the previous Tang Dynasty. The prices of vegetable oils such as sesame oil, rapeseed oil, and soybean oil are very cheap. Rapeseed oil only sells for a few dozen copper coins per pound, which is much lower than lard. Vegetable oils are resistant to high temperatures and have a high smoke point, making them suitable for cooking.

After eliminating all options by the process of elimination, Lu Beigu got an answer that made him feel both amused and sad.

——That is, although the chefs in the Song Dynasty can cook, many of them have not figured out how to cook dishes that are delicious enough!
"If I let my sister-in-law open a restaurant and I teach her how to cook, wouldn't it be packed with diners every day?"

A thought arose in Lu Beigu's mind.

However, although it seems feasible, opening a restaurant is not just about making good food, it still requires capital, manpower, and connections.

Lu Beigu shook his head and temporarily put this idea out of his mind.

Afterwards, he crossed several streets and alleys, and soon saw in the distance a government office building made of blue bricks and gray tiles. The seven large characters "Yizhou Road Transport Commissioner" on the lintel shone brightly in the sun.

Lu Beigu straightened his clothes and stepped forward.

The guard at the door asked, "What brings you to this office?"

"I need to see Zhao the Transport Envoy."

Lu Beigu handed over the official certificate written by Zhao Yan yesterday with both hands.

The yamen runner took the official certificate and examined it carefully. Seeing Zhao Yan's private seal on it, his expression immediately became more respectful and he nodded.

"I have already given you instructions. Please follow me."

Walking around the main hall where officials frequently came and went and passing through several courtyards, Lu Beigu noticed that although the Transport Commissioner's Office was quite large, it was simple in every way.

The vermilion paint on the columns was peeling and the corners of the stone steps were worn, but everywhere was spotlessly clean.

Soon after, they arrived at a secluded courtyard in the back court.

In the courtyard, an old plum tree that had long since withered stood alone and proudly, and the stone table and stone bench under the tree were spotless.

The yamen runner stopped outside the door and said, "The transport envoy has already given instructions. Just go in directly."

After thanking him, Lu Beigu went into the courtyard alone. He saw the door of the main room was wide open and Zhao Yan was writing furiously at his desk.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up and a rare smile appeared on his usually serious face.

"You're early."

(End of this chapter)