The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Min Xi walked to the ticket office and asked the bald man inside: "Sir, how much does it cost to take a carriage to London?"

The bald man raised his eyes and looked at Min Xi and Yun Ji with his green eyes, with a look of surprise in his eyes: "Where are you from?"

Min Si said, "We came from Lisbon, France."

"Are you from the Fulanji people?" the bald man asked in disbelief.

"No, we are Chinese, from the far east."

"China? I've heard of it, a place rich in spices and gold!" The bald man excitedly called out to his companions, "Hey, guys, come and see, here are two Orientals, they say they are from China! Have you heard of China?"

This shout startled everyone around, and soon many people gathered around, looking at Min Xi and Yun Ji as if they were curious.

"These two people look different from us! They both have black hair and black eyes, and their faces are so flat, as if they were hit by a frying pan at home, haha!" Someone laughed out loud, thinking he was being very humorous.

Min Xi frowned: "Sir, please speak respectfully. At least we won't say you look like a dwarf pumpkin in front of you!"

It’s no wonder that Europeans of this period were generally not tall. At least he and Yun Ji didn’t meet many people taller than them. It seems that Europeans were not born tall, but became rich through looting, and then consumed enough meat, eggs and milk, which accumulated from generation to generation and led to their height.

The man was a head shorter than Min Xi. After being confronted by Min Xi, he immediately became angry and reached out to grab Min Xi's collar: "Hey, foreigner, what do you want to do? Do you want to act wild on our territory? This is not China!"

Before he reached his hand to Min Xi, Yun Ji, who had been silent all the time, grabbed his wrist and squeezed it hard. The guy immediately started howling like a ghost.

Yun Ji coldly threw out a word: "Apologize!"

The guy hurriedly said, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry! Please forgive me!”

Yun Ji then let go of his hand. The guy's face had turned the color of liver, and it was obvious that he was in great pain.

The crowd, who were originally in a mood to laugh at the joke, saw how powerful Yun Ji's move was, and quickly put away their contemptuous expressions and looked at the two of them again with curious eyes.

Min Xi turned to the bald man and asked, "Sir, how much does it cost to go to London?"

The bald man came to his senses and said, "3 shillings per person, and extra luggage will be charged."

Min Si said, "We want to rent a car for two people. How much does it cost? Is 18 shillings right?"

The bald man looked at them and said, "Just the two of you?"

"Yes, we still have some luggage in the hotel," said Min Xi.

The bald man said, "Of course you can. You pay the money first and I'll give you a voucher. Then you can take your luggage and take the bus."

Min Xi said: "Can we set off right away?"

"Yes, now that you are here, we can leave." said the bald man.

Min Xi said, "I hope the driver will follow us to the hotel to get our things now, and we can leave immediately after I take down the luggage."

The bald man thought for a moment and said, "It's not impossible. Robert, you will be responsible for sending these two gentlemen from China to London today. There are only two of them. You are lucky today!"

The man named Robert walked out of the crowd and took off his hat: "It is an honor to serve you two gentlemen." Of course he was happy. The fare for carrying two people was the same as that for carrying six people, and everyone would like to carry less.

Min Xi took out a pound from his pocket and gave it to the bald man. The bald man gave him two shillings in change. Min Xi took out a shilling and said, "Please change it into pence for me. Thank you very much."

The other party gave him change, and when Robert drove the carriage over, the two told him the address of the hotel and got on the carriage. On the way, they passed a bakery. Min Xi asked the coachman to stop the car and bought some wheat bread. Since they were in a hurry today, they would not cook for themselves and just eat something casually.

The two returned to the hotel and Mrs. Jonathan greeted them warmly.

Min Xi said, "Mrs. Jonathan, we have already rented a car and are leaving soon. Please settle the rent."

Mrs. Jonathan said, "Put your luggage away first. Once you are sure everything is OK, we will check you out."

Yun Ji had already gone upstairs to pack his luggage. The luggage was basically not scattered, and only the bedding needed to be packed. He quickly packed up the bedding and restored the quilts in the store.

Min Xi collected the clothes that they had hung out to dry. The wind was strong at the seaside, and they were dry after a night.

Mrs. Jonathan watched their neat and tidy movements at the door and felt quite sorry for them. The two guests washed and scrubbed themselves clean as soon as they arrived. They were very clean and had no odor on their bodies, which was much better than British men. They were also quick to pay, but it was a pity that they only stayed for one night.

The two of them carried their luggage, and Min Xi said, "Mrs. Jonathan, please check, we have packed everything."

"No problem." Mrs. Jonathan took out six pence from her purse and handed it to Min Xi. "This is your deposit. Please keep it. Welcome to visit next time."

Min Xi smiled politely: "If I come to Southampton again, I will definitely come."

Robert, the coachman downstairs, was not in a hurry. Their carriages always leave when all the tickets are sold out. It might take a few days to leave. After all, not so many people want to go to London. Today I met two fortune gods who bought tickets for 6 people at once. This was 18 shillings, which was half a year's income for an average person. It seemed that these two Chinese were really rich.

But Robert was just thinking about it, he didn't dare to offend these two men. The tall man spoke very little, but his hands were very dark, and he could make Dell cry for his parents with just one hand.

The two put their luggage away, got on the carriage, and said to Robert, "Sir, we can set off now."

Robert nodded: "Dear sir, please sit down, we will set off now." After that, he whipped the horse-drawn carriage and set off.

The two opened the car window and looked at the scenery outside, and also saw the difference between here and Frankfurt. Min Xi leaned out of the window and chatted with Robert: "Sir, if we leave now, when can we arrive in London?"

Robert said, "It's more than 70 miles from Southampton to London. It's only been nine o'clock. Normally, we can reach London at three or four in the afternoon. Don't worry, sir. It's still early when we get to London."

"That's good!" Min Xi asked, "You must have been running on this road for many years, right?"

"Yes, sir, I have been running on this road for several years. I remember clearly where there are stones and potholes on this road. Don't worry, I will definitely take you to London safely." Robert was very interested in these two Chinese people. He wanted to talk to Min Xiduo so that he would have something to brag about in the future, so he was particularly enthusiastic.

Min Xi said: "Then this road should be safe, right?"

"This is a must! Since Bessie ascended the throne, the law and order in England has improved a lot, and the roads are more peaceful than ever before. Bessie is our greatest queen!" Robert's tone was full of pride.

Min Xi then realized that the Bessie he was talking about should be Elizabeth I, which was probably the nickname of the queen given by the British people. It seems that Elizabeth I not only has courage and ability, but also is very friendly and is deeply loved and respected by her people.

No matter what system it is, if there is a leader who is loved and respected, then the country will have strong cohesion and infinite fighting power, and the people will be able to create a brilliant and brilliant history. Min Xi has seen too many such examples. Elizabeth I happens to be such a monarch.

The journey was indeed as peaceful as Robert said. Min Xi chatted with Robert for a long time and learned a lot from him about the current situation in Britain. He had a general understanding of the people's livelihood. Of course, this was only one-sided and he still needed to verify it from more angles.

Yun Ji was very envious of Min Xi's talent for languages. They learned English at about the same time, so why could he only understand some simple sentences and vocabulary, while he could chat with others so enthusiastically, and he rarely stuttered when expressing himself?

Min Xi was very considerate of his feelings. After chatting with the driver for a while, he would repeat to him the general content of their conversation.

Yun Ji felt quite ashamed: "Ninth brother, your talent for languages ​​is amazing. You can learn any language immediately. Why can't I learn it?"

Min Xi comforted him: "Seventh brother, don't think like that. I can't learn every language either. Maybe I have a special talent for European languages, so I learn faster. It may not be the same for other languages. And you are already learning languages ​​very quickly."

Yun Ji shook his head: "I was with those pirates and I felt like I learned a lot of English, but I didn't expect it was still not enough."

Min Xi patted the back of his hand and said, "Don't worry, Brother Qi. Before you learn English, I will be your ears and mouth. I can convey whatever you want to know and say."

Yun Ji felt much better after hearing this: "Okay."