Great Tang Idyll Volume 02 Chapter 26
Volume 02 Chapter 26: Registration Ends Today
Mats of green grass, gloomy cast in the sky. The sound of the zither and flute urges on.
After several days of preparation, the scholars’ intelligence game finally began. Although the restaurant saved a bit of money because they didn’t need to prepare ice, they felt that it was a bit of a pity. The sky was frighteningly gloomy today. They were afraid that a sudden rain would wet the banners outside, and they were also afraid that the people who came to watch would rush to leave.
The violent wind swept the sand and struck various places. The banners outside couldn't bear the attack, and they broke one by one.
Seeing this situation, Housekeeper Zhang was terrified. He was afraid that the merchants who had spent money would be dissatisfied, and he hurriedly found Zhang Xiao’bao and Wang Juan, who were drinking soup in the corner of the first floor.
"Young Master, this is troubling. Quite a few of the banners outside have been badly damaged by the wind, and the advertisements on them are ruined." Housekeeper Zhang spoke nervously to Zhang Xiao’bao.
A cold shiver washed over his entire body when he saw the worm-like thing in the soup that his Young Master and Young Miss were drinking. He felt nauseated. He had no idea what that thing was. In the middle of last night, those things were brought over from Xiao’hong’s place. They were raised in the water, and when it arrived here, they were still alive.
His Young Master and Young Miss told them to use those things to make soup today, and it seemed like the taste was good.
"Huh? Damaged? That's not surprising. I told you. If we don’t coat the paper, it would rip in the wind. Holepunching it was pointless. Now what? I was right, wasn’t I? Housekeeper Zhang, you’re just in time for soup. It’s really flavorful."
While Wang Juan was talking, she scooped some soup from the big soup bowl for Housekeeper Zhang, and there were even some worm fragments in it.
Housekeeper Zhang was on the verge of crying. Was this food even fit for human consumption? In the morning, he had seen what they looked like---they were a bunch of moving red worms in a basin. However, his Young Miss had scooped out the soup for him, so how could he not eat it? His two little masters were also drinking the soup too, and their tastes were definitely more exquisite than his.
Housekeeper Zhang gritted his teeth, and he picked up the bowl and chugged down all of the soup in two gulps. Even if this was poison, he would still drink it, so this soup that his little masters were drinking meant nothing.
"How is it? Isn't it delicious? Not just anybody gets to drink this soup. This thing is even better than wood fungus. Actually, no, they’re not even the same type of item. This is more expensive than wood fungus. Isn’t the taste very rich? Eat more of this, it’s good for your…that area. Xiao’bao, tell Housekeeper Zhang what it’s good for."
Seeing that Housekeeper Zhang drank the whole bowl of soup, Wang Juan continued to talk. After speaking, she felt it was inappropriate for certain words to come out of her mouth, so she cued Zhang Xiao’bao, who had his head lowered while he drank his soup.
Zhang Xiao’bao was in the middle of enjoying the soup when he was interrupted by Wang Juan. He lifted his head, and he looked at Housekeeper Zhang and said, “If the banners are broken, then so be it. In fact, that’s even better. Get someone to glue paper to it. Glue it everytime it rips. We need to let those people who spent money know how much we value this matter. No biggie.
Eat those pink things in the bowl, don’t be wasteful. If you’re not going to eat it, give it to me. If I give you Pepino melon, you will just swallow it whole. Give it over to me. "
Zhang Xiao’bao didn’t care if the glued paper banners would rip again. He has already prepared for this. Regardless of how many banners rip and how fast they rip, they can be repaired just as quickly. The merchants here didn’t think about quality issues. What they were concerned about the most was whether others cared about them. Restlessly repairing the banners while they’re being damaged will leave a good impression.
The only thing he was dissatisfied with was that Housekeeper Zhang drank only the soup, and he left the innkeeper worms behind at the bottom of the bowl. In his opinion, a steamed bun that cost 10,000 yuan was no different from a steamed bun that cost 0.1 yuan. If he wanted to eat it, then he would eat it. Even if it was a 0.1 yuan steamed bun, he couldn’t tolerate it all if someone threw it away after eating two bites.
It was wasteful. There were people who didn't have anything to eat. Back then, there was not a single businessman who worked with him that didn’t dare to finish their food. Who would dare to leave behind leftovers in front of him?
Glug glug. Housekeeper Zhang poured a bit more soup into the bowl and without hesitation, he poured everything in the bowl into his stomach. He didn't want to be beaten like that male servant from the inner courtyard.
During the Qing Ming Festival, his master gave gifts to the servants and held a celebration dinner. He clearly remembered that the food was served in a way that he had never seen before. When the foods were made, they were placed in large basins, and whoever wanted to eat it could use the bowl and chopsticks in front of them to take the food.
At that time, Shi’iu repeated three times that everyone should only take as much as they could eat. It was alright to eat as much as the person wanted to as long as the person could finish all of the food they took. One person was too gluttonous, and after eating a bunch of food, he still filled his bowl with pieces of fatty meat and even sprinkled green onions and ginger on top. However, in the end, he ate only half of it.
That person got into big trouble. The Young Master and Young Miss were also eating with them, and when they heard that someone didn’t finish their food, they immediately called the house guards over. The person was whipped exactly forty times without any mercy. From them on, everyone knew that their Young Maser was different from other people---he absolutely did not tolerate wasting food.
Their Young Master didn’t feel like it was a waste if a person ate a tael of wood fungus stir-fried with meat, but if a person didn’t finish eating the few remaining leaves of blanched spinach, then that person would be in trouble. They will be punished with at least ten whip lashes.
Wang Juan watched Housekeeper Zhang resist his disgust while drinking the soup, and she shook her head helplessly. She couldn't do anything about this. She knew what Zhang Xiao’bao had experienced before, and he had an almost reverent attitude towards food.
In many people’s opinion, the saying ‘a lot of hard work went into each grain of rice’ didn’t mean much to them. They might think that a farmer’s hard work had nothing to do with them and that the food was bought with money earned from their own labor and not obtained for free, so why should they care if the farmers have worked hard?
But for Zhang Xiao’bao, it was a different situation. He always wanted to save more food for himself. No matter what he ate, he looked extremely happy. It has been more than once where Wang Juan had to tell him that fish bones cannot be eaten at his current age. If something bad happens, there are no hospitals here that could treat him.
She had never seen Zhang Xiao’bao leave behind leftovers. At the beginning, when Zhang Xiao’bao saw his family’s leftover food, he frowned. Wang Juan couldn’t understand this kind of obsessive behaviour of his, but perhaps if she lived like Zhang Xiao’bao for a while, she would understand.
"Do you feel full now? This is really a good thing; it’s even more expensive than wood fungus." Zhang Xiao’bao asked with a smile as he watched the housekeeper finish off everything.
"It's delicious, it's delicious, it's so delicious. Young Master, how can you make such a delicious thing? Oh, I'm going to get people to glue those banners right now." Housekeeper Zhang didn’t even know what that thing tasted like, so he could only agree with his Young Master.
Zhang Xiao’bao watched Housekeeper Zhang leave in a hurry, and then he picked up a piece of innkeeper worm and put it in his mouth. “He is not even aware of how blessed he is. I can’t believe drinking innkeeper worm soup made him this scared. Last time I even saw him eat pig kidney. How could pig kidneys be better than innkeeper worms? Dummy."
"Why do you have those two shortcomings? One is towards food and the other is towards the poor and weak."
"I’m not a deity--- I’m a human, and humans have shortcomings. You’re not the first person to discover my shortcomings; back then, quite a few people knew. Do you want to use my shortcomings to your advantage? You can try to." Zhang Xiao’bao was still calm as always, and he didn't feel scared at all.
"I’m not going to try. I think a person who understands what kind of shortcomings he has and still retains his shortcomings is standing on the border between heaven and hell." Wang Juan was not a fool. She understood after thinking about it for a bit. Sometimes when you can clearly see another person’s weaknesses, you shouldn’t attack because it might be a trap.
"Okay, I'm done eating; the little bit that is left is yours. Can you still eat? If you can't eat anymore, give it to me, I’ll eat it."
Zhang Xiao’bao was unwilling to waste time on something that was meaningless.
"I’m not full yet. Xiao’bao, I want to go up there and see how the scholar’s are playing the intelligence game." Wang Juan didn't eat as fast as Zhang Xiao’bao. She was controlling her eating speed this entire time. She scooped some of the hearty bits into her bowl, and ate as she discussed with Zhang Xiao’bao.
"Go if you want to. It's not a big deal anyway. I’m going to stay here and keep eating." Zhang Xiao’bao was taken aback for a bit. This is the first time Wang Juan has spoken to him in this tone, so this made him a little uncomfortable.
"I’m going to go there for real then. But what will I say after I go there? I’m such a small child. Help me come up with an idea." Wang Juan said a little troubled. Of course Zhang Xiao’bao didn’t know what was going on in her mind. He never studied female psychology before and he didn’t know that a lot of times, women are the first to take on responsibilities and obligations.
Wang Juan was not that good at earning money. She had already received the news from the Magistrate that the Wang family will also receive a special reward: fiefs. Zhang Xiao’bao was the one who helped her family receive this. Some of the resident’s treatments were made possible by taking items from Zhang Xiao’bao’s warehouse.
She wanted to take responsibility for a few household duties. She was a strong woman, but she was used to living in a family where her father had the final say. Even her mother, who was the deputy minister of municipal affairs, also had to listen to her father when at home. In her mind, her father was not only a family member, but also her idol. Zhang Xiao’bao possessed some of her father's temperament; in fact, he was slightly better. She subconsciously acknowledged this kind of identity without realizing it.
Zhang Xiao’bao didn't know about this type of imperceptible influence on the mentality. He looked at Wang Juan with a little worry and he wondered if she was suddenly emotionally unstable.
"What are you looking at? I told you to come up with an idea." Wang Juan changed again at this moment. This type of mentality couldn't be explained using logic and theories.
Zhang Xiao’bao just witnessed Wang Juan's character abruptly change in a short period of time, and was dumbstruck by this. He mumbled, "How about this, after you go up, if they question you, just tell them ‘I’m just looking, I won’t say anything’.”
"Tell me now, are you stupid or am I stupid?" When Wang Juan heard Zhang Xiao’bao's response, she really didn't know what to say to him.
"Forget it, don't go up. Let's just listen to the results when it’s over." Zhang Xiao’bao's mind wasn’t focused on this topic. Seeing that Wang Juan didn't insist on going up, he didn't continue to talk about this, and he changed the topic by saying,
"Let’s go ask how many people are participating in the wilderness survival training. That's what we should be really getting ourselves involved with."
"Alright. Brother Ga’zi, I want to ask you a question." Wang Juan also gave up on the plan to go upstairs. If she went up, it would be hard for her to explain herself. She listened to Zhang Xiao’bao and she waved her arm.
Ga’zi was pleasantly surprised by this sudden attention, and he ran over to Wang Juan and Zhang Xiao’bao.
"Brother Ga’zi, how many people have signed up by now? I remember that registration will end tonight."
"Young Master, Young Miss, there are a total of 133 that registered. There are 77 children between the ages of eight and twelve, and the remaining 58 are all five to eight year olds.”Ga’zi replied back respectfully.
"In that case, tell Young Childe Li to get ready to leave soon then, don't wait anymore." Wang Juan ordered.
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