White-robed Minister

0058 [Crabapple blossoms fall into the cup]

A maid brought over a brown-glazed earthenware jar with two red labels on it: one read "Minister's Treasury" and the other "Spring of a Hundred Flowers."

This is homemade wine from the Guangzhou Minister's Wine Cellar, mainly used to entertain officials and merchants from both Han and non-Han ethnic groups.

Later archaeological discoveries of shipwrecks revealed that these government-brewed wines were even exported, though it is unknown which country they were transported to for sale.

The wine was good, but the dishes were simple.

Stir-fried bean sprouts, stir-fried chive blossoms, poached chicken, stir-fried bamboo shoots with meat, steamed shad, and chicken soup (the original broth from cooking poached chicken).

The meal consisted of four men and two women, with only five dishes and one soup in total, which was quite frugal for Yu Jing's status.

Xu Lai drank a couple of cups with them, then couldn't help but ask, "Sir, may I have a bowl of rice first? I was busy surveying the geography yesterday and didn't have a proper meal all day. I just ate a few bites this morning."

"Eat up, young people need to grow." Yu Jing was increasingly satisfied with Xu Lai.

sincere!

It is extremely difficult to achieve these two words. If it were a student from another state, they would definitely be drinking with the three officials right now.

I'll endure the hunger no matter how hungry I am.

Shi Xun looked at Yu Jing, then at Xu Lai, and thought to himself: This kid really knows how to pretend.

A servant helped serve rice, which Xu Lai ate quickly but maintained basic manners, finishing the bowl in no time.

Then he drank with the three of them.

Actually, he only accompanied two people, and Shi Xun never toasted with him.

Pianpian didn't seem to like eating meat, pointing instead to the bamboo shoots and bean sprout sandwiches. She almost finished the bamboo shoots.

Madam Lin, the stepmother, couldn't bear to see her like this, so she picked up two slices of pork and put them in her bowl: "Eat more meat, you're too thin."

Unable to refuse, Pianpian began to devour the meat slices.

Don't believe Su Shi's claim that pork was too cheap for nobles to eat. According to the earlier "Hua Man Lu," the roasted pork at the Xiangguo Temple in Kaifeng was exceptional. Yang Danian often went there to eat with his fellow officials.

Yes, they sell roasted pork inside the temple.

It was baked by monks themselves, freshly baked and sold on the spot.

Bald head, ordination scars, vegetarianism—these are stereotypes about monks in later generations.

Monks in the Song Dynasty weren't so particular; they didn't wear ordination scars, nor did they always keep their heads shaved. Lower-ranking monks often shaved their heads only after they had grown them to a buzz cut, and it was even more common for ascetic monks to keep their hair long.

As for temples, consider this record: "Those who follow the Buddhist path trade with various people, indulging in wine and meat; their pagodas and temples are gathering places for butchers."

Larger temples often also operate slaughterhouses!

As Xu Lai drank and ate meat, he thought that next time he went home, he should buy an iron pot so that his family could also taste the flavor of stir-frying.

Although iron pots are becoming increasingly popular, they haven't yet reached every household. A search of the entire Qingxi Village revealed not a single iron pot; cooking methods primarily consist of stewing, steaming, and boiling…

"You don't need to drink with us. If you haven't eaten enough, go and have some more food," Yu Jing said to Xu.

"Thank you for your concern, sir." Xu Lai went to get another bowl of rice.

Shi Xun felt a pang of jealousy; he and the Yu family were old friends. As a child, he lived in Kaifeng and often visited the Yu family. He knew Yu Jing's eldest and second sons, but Yu Jing had never been so considerate to him.

"Considerate? What a joke!" Yu Jing wished he could block the door and keep this guy out of his house. He'd corrupted both of his sons!

Perhaps because he had too many shady friends, neither of Yu Jing's eldest nor second sons passed the imperial examination.

His eldest son received an official position through hereditary privilege and rose to the rank of Palace Attendant, but died young from illness.

The second son received an official position through imperial favor and has been promoted from Palace Attendant to Imperial Physician.

The Palace Attendant and the Imperial Academy Doctor were honorary titles with no real power. Moreover, their ranks were quite strange; the former was a fifth-rank official, while the latter was an eighth-rank official, yet one had to first reach the fifth rank before being promoted to the eighth.

This is because once you become a Taichang Doctor of the Eighth Rank, you will be qualified to obtain a substantive position in the next stage!

Yu Jing was very worried about the future of his children and grandchildren.

The eldest son is dead, and the second son is just so-so. The youngest son has just entered the Imperial Academy, but he doesn't seem to be cut out for the imperial examinations, so he'll probably have to rely on hereditary privilege in the end.

As for the eldest grandson, who has just come of age, he has already been granted an official position through hereditary privilege and is waiting for the right number of years to be promoted to Palace Attendant.

Of all those children and grandchildren, not one of them amounted to anything.

Yu Jing felt helpless about this.

He looked at Xu Lai, who was engrossed in eating, and couldn't help but think: How can this not be my son and grandson?

After looking at Xu Lai, Yu Jing looked at his daughter Pianpian and suddenly had an idea.

The eldest son-in-law is a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), comes from an ordinary family, and has already become an Assistant Minister of Works.

The second and third sons-in-law were both sons of friends who held official positions through patronage.

The fourth son-in-law was also a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), and was appointed as a judicial officer in Jianzhou. Because he was relatively young, he had some potential.

The fifth son-in-law... is only engaged, and it's unknown whether he will pass the imperial examination this year.

It seems we can start looking for a sixth son-in-law.

He doted on his youngest daughter the most, fearing she would suffer mistreatment in marriage. As long as the man Pianpian liked was upright and reliable, Yu Jing would agree even if he didn't pass the imperial examination.

We still had to work in the afternoon, so after lunch we went to the government office area together.

Yu Jing took a few steps and then turned back, claiming he was going back to his study to get something, but secretly approached his wife, Lin, and asked, "What do you think of Xu Sanlang?"

Lin thought for a moment and said, "I've only seen it once, so I can't make any rash judgments. My impression was quite good."

Yu Jing said, "Next time he comes, you can subtly ask him if he's already engaged. I can't bring myself to say anything about this."

Madam Lin frowned and said, "His background is too low. Even if you want to marry your daughter off, you should at least wait until he passes the imperial examination. Otherwise, it won't sound good if word gets out."

Although those who passed the imperial examinations did not enjoy many privileges, their qualifications expired and they had to retake the exams.

However, as long as one had passed the imperial examination once, one was considered a true scholar and qualified to be accepted by official families.

"What's wrong with it?" Yu Jing didn't like hearing such words.

Lin said, "You may not care, but don't your children and grandchildren care? They also have friends and need to save face for others."

Yu Jing said, "Respect is earned, not given by others."

Lin didn't want to argue with her husband: "If Xu Sanlang is really a genius, how could he not even pass the imperial examination? Once he passes the imperial examination, I will agree to the marriage."

The Lin family's requirements were already very low; they didn't need the Jinshi degree, just the Juren degree.

In fact, it was easier to become a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations) in the Song Dynasty than in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but even those who passed the exam still had to compete for a quota.

……

Yu'er watched Xu Lai's departing figure, feeling both angry and helpless.

Does this Xu Sanlang not even go to the toilet?

She couldn't find an opportunity to give the sachet.

Even when Xu Sanlang left, he walked with Chen Congyi; she couldn't give him things in front of outsiders.

"Take it out!"

Pianpian suddenly appeared behind her.

Yu'er was startled and stammered, "Wh...what do you want me to take out?"

Pianpian extended her right hand, looking at her with a half-smile.

Yu'er carefully took out the sachet, her heart filled with fear, and she kept exclaiming that it was all over.

Pianpian snatched the sachet, looked at it, and then casually tossed it back to her, warning, "Don't do that again!"

"No, not anymore."

Yu'er knew she had done something wrong, and she lowered her head as if she wanted to bury it in her chest.

She felt uneasy; the young lady was too clever, she had guessed all her thoughts.

"Father!"

She skipped and hopped over, then returned to her lively and adorable self.

However, Yu Jing had just finished talking with his wife, Lin, and was about to rush to the Military Affairs Office to handle official business.

The father and daughter walked together toward the West Garden. As they were about to leave through the back gate, Yu Jing smiled and said, "Go back now. Practice your needlework diligently, lest you find yourself unsure how to sew clothes for your husband after you get married."

"I'm not getting married," Pianpian pouted.

She returned to the backyard, asked Yu'er to bring her needlework items, and stood on the veranda gazing up at the sky.

After watching the clouds for a while, I felt increasingly bored.

Two swallows flew over the small pond, landed under the eaves to build their nest, and then flew away together.

Yu'er quickly retrieved the items and lit a fire in the small stove to brew tea.

She sat gracefully on the stone bench, clumsily practicing her embroidery. She had been embroidering this handkerchief for half a month, and the pair of mandarin ducks she had embroidered had turned into plump ducks.

After embroidering for a while, she threw the handkerchief aside and lay idly on the stone table.

Yu'er was busy for a moment. While boiling water, she roasted the tea cake near the stove. Then she crushed and ground it with a tea mallet, then sifted it into powder, waiting for Pianpian to use it.

"My lady, the water is boiling, and the tea is strained," Yu'er reminded her.

She gracefully lifted the kettle and poured boiling water over the teacups.

Before she even started making tea, the steam caused a crabapple petal to fall and land right in the teacup in front of her.

Pianpian found it quite amusing, looked up at the crabapple branch, and stood there motionless in a daze.

"My lady, aren't you going to make tea? The water's getting too cold," Yu'er said.

Pianpian's neck ached from looking up, and she rubbed the back of her neck, saying, "I'm not going to order anymore. Go get some paper and pen; I just thought of a good sentence."

Yu'er quickly ran to get the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone.

Pianpian lay on the stone table, pondering the words and phrases in her mind, trying to expand that line into a short poem.

Yu'er brought the things over and helped grind the paper.

Pianpian picked up her pen and wrote: "To the tune of Bu Suanzi - Crabapple: It's not that I love watching the clouds, but I happened to stand early on the corridor. I saw swallows carrying mud across the winding pond, and forgot that my spring clothes were getting old. Embroidered handkerchiefs on stones, the needle fell unnoticed. A crabapple petal fell into the cup, and people said that the spring red was clever."

Yu'er couldn't help but remind her, "My lady, the tones are all messed up..."

Pianpian didn't care: "I know, who cares if the tones are wrong or not, I like it myself. I'm not showing it to anyone else."

Yu'er thought to herself: You're also lovesick, writing this kind of lyrics.

Pianpian scratched her head and muttered to herself, "When writing lyrics, how can I keep the tones and rhythm from getting messed up? I can force it to be right, but then it doesn't suit my original intention."

Yu'er thought to herself: "It's because you're not talented enough. Sanlang's self-proclaimed status as the best in the world is much better."

Pianpian simply gave up thinking, ignoring the embroidery and tea, and grabbed Yu'er, running and laughing: "Let's go play on the swings!"

Yu'er looked back at the sifted tea leaves and sighed helplessly: "Sigh, all that work for nothing."