Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

After a round of Tusu wine, Jiang's mother smiled and invited them to dinner. "You guys always said you wanted to go to Lexianlou to show your support to my Nian Nu. But I think we're neighbors and have lived here for years. Why would you travel so far? This dish today was made by my Nian Nu. You should really try it."

The aroma of food in the air whetted one's appetite. Jiang Wangri couldn't wait any longer. If he could eat so well every day, he was sure that he would grow very tall!

"Hahahaha, of course I have to try it. Although Lexianlou is wonderful, it is a place for nobles after all. People like us can't bear to go there once a year!"

"Yes, Madam Jiang is really good at educating children. Nian Nu has become more and more mature. However, he is still as quiet as when he was little!"

"Nonsense again! Nian Nu has grown into such a pretty young lady now. How can she still be like your five or six-year-old cleft-lipped kid, who is so talkative and exposed to the wind?"

When neighbors sit together, they naturally talk about each other's children, neighborhood gossip and interesting stories.

After three rounds of drinks, someone suddenly said, "Are we still going to Lai's house today? We all know the situation of his family..."

This is a question, hi!

For a moment, everyone was a little at a loss. Although the banquet was held door to door, the people who were eating were actually quite worried. If you don't go, people will think you look down on them. If you go, you are afraid that the other family is not rich enough. It is really a headache.

"Tsk, every year at this time they ask us to eat stewed radish and cabbage."

"It's better to eat a few more bites now and prepare to clear your intestines!"

"Of course we have to go. Lai Da is a man who cares about his reputation. If we don't go, I'm afraid he will be angry and may even come to our door to beat us up."

"Yes, it's New Year's Day, don't bring bad luck. We can just eat a few bites when we get there. Even if there's a lot left, they can still eat for two days."

They were all ordinary people, living their lives according to the routine. They would quarrel and scheme against each other from time to time, but those were just minor problems that were not serious. Unless they encountered any earth-shattering disasters, everyone would keep some face.

Jiang Shangxian didn't actually have a very deep impression of Lai Da, but he had occasionally seen his family members selling bamboo woven items at the gate of the town a few times, and they seemed to be living in poverty.

However, this year... it shouldn't be a feast of radishes and cabbages, right?

"You guessed wrong this time."

One man calmly picked up a piece of boiled lamb with his chopsticks, dipped it in the sauce, and put it into his mouth. He chewed it slowly, savoring the taste very well, and swallowed it down. After whetting everyone's appetite, he slowly said, "This morning, my wife sent me to buy some soy sauce. Guess who I ran into?"

(Soy sauce is the prototype of soy sauce. The earliest soy sauce appeared in the pre-Qin period, and clear soy sauce appeared in the Han Dynasty. The word soy sauce clearly appeared in the literature of the Song Dynasty.)

"Don't keep us in suspense during New Year's Day. Tell us quickly!" The person next to him pushed him rudely.

"Hey, you guys, why are you so anxious? I saw Lai Lao Niang!"

"Hey, I thought that was something else! Old Lady Lai is old, it's normal for her to wake up early in the morning."

Old Madam Xia also followed up, "Yes, since I got older, I have been sleeping very lightly every day. I wake up before dawn."

"I haven't finished yet! Old Lady Lai was carrying a bamboo basket covered with a piece of cloth. I walked past her face to face and she ignored me when I greeted her. If the wind hadn't been so strong that it blew up a corner of the cloth, I wouldn't have known the Lai family was willing to spend so much money on meat!"

"Is it true? Don't exaggerate. Is there really a basket of meat?"

"Yes, a basket of meat is not cheap. I have seen his wife buying meat several times, and each time she only bought a palm-sized piece."

"Who's selling meat this early in the morning, on a day like this?"

"Why would I lie to you?" The man, seeing that no one believed him, grew anxious and gestured with his hands. "That basket is the kind they usually sell. It's deeper than most. I can see clearly that the meat can't even fit in there. It's completely filled to the brim, chunk by chunk."

Seeing that he was serious, most people believed him, but they still couldn't believe it: "Lai Da is the most stingy, how could he be willing to spend money to buy so much meat?"

"Who cares? Since there's meat, we can each have a bite and save the rest for them to eat."

"How dare you eat his meat? Don't you see that Mrs. Lai is as thin as a bone? His two children have big heads and small bodies, and their clothes are empty. Please don't do evil and let the children eat a few more bites!"

Lai Dajia's topic ended quickly, and the neighbors chatted while eating, then went to the next house in a group again. Old Lady Xia also went with her granddaughter and grandson.

Jiang's mother looked at the remaining dishes with a certain amount of pride: "In previous years, we never ate at my house for this long."

Jiang Shangxian gathered the dishes and took out some snacks. Soon, a group of kids under ten years old would come to eat!

It wasn't until the evening that the three of them came back with their bellies full. Jiang Wangri couldn't wait to drink a glass of cold water as soon as he entered the room: "Oh, we're so full, so full."

Xia Zhenying's eyes were red from drinking. "Aunt, cousin, the New Year celebrations in Chang'an are really lively. I've really broadened my horizons!"

"No."

Old Madam Xia also drank a lot. The older she got, the more she drank. She was even a little dizzy. "I thought our food was good, but I didn't expect that there are several restaurants that make good dishes. Although they don't taste as good as what Nian Nu makes, they are all excellent. After all, the emperor is rich. Chang'an is really the richest place in the world."

Seeing that they had drunk too much, Jiang's mother hurriedly poured them cold water to drink, fearing that they would get stomach upset, and hurriedly took the teapot to boil water.

Jiang Shangxian asked them curiously, "How about everyone's dishes today?"

"That's it."

Jiang Wangri shrugged. "They did make several dishes of meat. I wanted to try some, but my grandmother wouldn't let me. She said people don't have a easy life, so they should keep it for themselves."

Xia Zhenying squinted, rubbing her eyelids and lowering her head as she continued, "That's right. I saw that the others only took a few bites with their chopsticks and didn't eat much. It's a bit cold at home, and the stove isn't burning well, so the room is freezing. If he bought so much meat, why didn't he buy more firewood?"

"You're just talking like a child."

Old Lady Xia patted her on the back and said, "Firewood is called external heat, and the meat you eat is called internal heat. Once you're full, you won't be so afraid of the cold."

Jiang's mother smiled when she heard this and said, "It seems that life is getting better and better. Everyone is willing to buy meat for the feast."

In previous years, the Lai family’s banquet was not very oily and made people lose their appetite. Even if they had meat, they would eat it among their family members. How could they give it to their neighbors?