Daqin: My weak and virtuous minister

"Your Majesty, would you like to have some of my lunch here? I'll ask Er to prepare some different dishes."

Zhang Yuanqing still had some dignity. Seeing Ying Zheng repeatedly looking at him with an expression like "How can Zhang Qing be so shameless?", he quickly changed the subject strategically.

"Okay, I'll eat some here with you."

Nowadays, most people eat twice a day, but Ying Zheng knew that Zhang Yuanqing ate three times a day. He didn't find it strange. Zhang Yuanqing was so weak, he should eat more.

"A'er, ask the cook to make some noodles for lunch. Make noodles with soybean paste." Looking at Ying Zheng, Zhang Yuanqing added, "Prepare a roast duck."

"promise."

"Who is this eunuch?"

"I am Zhao Gao, honored to meet Master Zhang."

!!!

Zhang Yuanqing's hair stood on end.

Zhao Gao!

It turned out to be Zhao Gao!

Zhao Gao, the man who has monopolized the name for more than two thousand years!

With his own power, no one with the surname Zhao dared to use Gao as their name in later generations. Even people with other surnames did not have the character Gao. This shows how powerful he was.

Zhao Gao felt uneasy when he was being looked at. He hadn't offended this person, so why was he looking at him like that?

Ying Zheng was also curious, "Zhang Qing, why are you looking at Zhao Gao like that?"

Zhang Yuanqing came back to his senses and said nonchalantly, "I was just curious. This was Eunuch Zhao's first time accompanying Your Majesty, and I had never seen him before, so I took a few extra glances."

Upon hearing this, Ying Zheng naturally knew that Zhang Yuanqing was not telling the truth, but he did not expose it immediately.

"Eunuch Zhao, I don't know what the king's dietary restrictions are. Could you please go and check?"

When Zhao Gao heard this, he also considered that what the king ate could not be taken lightly, so he immediately took his leave.

"Zhang Qing, do you have anything to tell me?"

Zhao Gao didn't know the situation the first time he came, so how could Ying Zheng not know? He had eaten at Zhang Yuanqing's place more than once, but it had never been like this before.

Zhang Yuanqing's expression was serious, causing Ying Zheng to become serious as well. "Your Majesty, I know some physiognomy. Eunuch Zhao had a difficult early life, but he has been blessed with a noble opportunity and great fortune. However, Your Majesty cannot trust him. If you entrust him with important tasks, it may bring great disaster to you and your descendants."

!!!

Ying Zheng was shocked.

Zhang Qing also understands the theory of Yin and Yang?

Will Zhao Gao bring great disaster to me? And bring disaster to my descendants too!

If it weren't for the talents Zhang Yuanqing had shown before, Ying Zheng felt that he would definitely drag Zhang Yuanqing out and chop him into pieces at this moment.

The evil talk confuses the people.

But considering Zhang Yuanqing's talents, it is very likely that this is true.

Moreover, this was the first time Zhang Yuanqing met Zhao Gao. The two had no previous contact and no hatred. It was impossible for Zhang Yuanqing to frame a eunuch for no reason.

Then this statement is extremely credible!

If this is true, then if I trust Zhao Gao so much, in the future he...

Thinking of this, Ying Zheng shuddered.

"Are you serious, Mr. Zhang?"

"Your Majesty, every word I say is true."

In the end, Zhang Yuanqing couldn't help but remind Ying Zheng, for no other reason than to avoid the tragic death of this once-great emperor. This is a regret shared by all of us Chinese. The Qin Dynasty fought bravely for six generations to unify China, yet the descendants of the First Emperor met tragic endurances.

But now that I'm here, many things will change. Maybe Zhao Gao won't be able to make any waves.

But, who made this man so famous in war? Zhao Gao and Qin Hui have been the only ones who have made such great military achievements for thousands of years. We have to be on guard against them. We have to be on guard against them.

"I believe you."

After a long silence, Ying Zheng spoke in a firm tone.

"Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty. Actually, Your Majesty, you don't have to worry too much about this man. As long as you don't give him power, he won't be a threat."

"My king, the noodles with soybean paste are ready. You must eat them now."

At this time, Zhao Gao had already brought Ah Er over with noodles.

"come in."

Zhajiangmian, this is another new word, and Ying Zheng was also very curious.

“Is this fried noodles?”

Looking at the round and thin thread in the bowl, Ying Zheng was very curious, as well as the side dishes on the other plates. Well, he had seen these before.

"Your Majesty, I have come up with an idea. The Mohists invented a stone mill. Wheat was placed in the mill and pushed, turning it into powder, or flour. Water was added to this flour, kneaded into a ball, and then made into these noodles that we have in our bowls."

When it comes to food, Zhang Yuanqing speaks eloquently. It's unavoidable. As someone accustomed to the diverse cuisine of today, arriving in the Qin Dynasty and having to eat only millet porridge and stews for years—you can imagine how miserable it must have been. Even if these were delicacies unavailable to ordinary people, it still wouldn't work. It's difficult to go from extravagance to frugality; the ancients were right.

"My lord, this is a special sauce. Pour it into the noodles, add these side dishes, stir and you can eat."

As he spoke, Zhang Yuanqing had already started working. Zhao Gao wanted to go forward to help Ying Zheng mix the noodles, but was pushed away by Ying Zheng.

"I will do it myself."

Following Zhang Yuanqing's example, Ying Zheng curiously used chopsticks to stir the noodles.

As soon as you take a bite, the aroma of noodles mixed with sauce explodes in your mouth.

Both Zhang Yuanqing and Ying Zheng were satisfied.

“Is this roast duck?”

"Yes, Your Majesty, the duck meat has been sliced. Please try it. It is delicious with noodles."

Zhang Yuanqing asked the cook to prepare the seasoning for the roast duck. Although there is no cumin or chili pepper now, other ingredients can be used as substitutes.

Ying Zheng picked up a piece of duck meat, which was a bit spicy. He was not used to it at first, but after taking a mouthful of noodles, he realized how delicious it was.

The only sound in the room was the two people eating noodles.

Zhao Gao was drooling as he watched.

Ah Er quickly called Zhao Gao to come down to eat. He was also hungry. There was still a lot of noodles left over from the meal, so if he went over now, they would have a bite to eat.

Ying Zheng nodded and asked Zhao Gao to go down and eat.

When the two returned to the kitchen, the cook naturally prepared two large bowls of noodles for them and also sliced ​​some roast duck for them.

"More duck."

Ah Er saw that there was still a lot of meat left and said, "Give some more to Eunuch Zhao as well."

whirring whirring

The two of them didn't care about anything. They found a place to sit in the kitchen and started slurping noodles.

"How's it? Is this noodle soup delicious?"

When Ah Er found time, he asked Zhao Gao, who was eating voraciously.

Zhao Gao didn't even raise his head. "Delicious, delicious."

After saying that, the two of them started slurping noodles and eating a few bites of duck meat.

It’s so delicious, so delicious, Mr. Zhang is really a genius.

A'er and Zhao Gao enjoyed the meal, and Ying Zheng and Zhang Yuanqing were also satisfied.

"Your Majesty, I think this stone mill can be promoted in my Qin State, so that the people can use it to grind wheat into flour and eat it. Of course, flour can also be used to make many other foods. When the time comes, Your Majesty will send someone to my house to learn how to make it, and then teach it to the people."

"color!"

"This way, the people of Qin will have more food."

Ying Zheng said excitedly.

The main food in Qin was chestnuts. When the people were extremely hungry, they would cook wheat, but it tasted terrible and children and the elderly could not get used to it.

If wheat were turned into flour, how many more Qin people could be fed?