Husband and wife are hot on the kang

While enjoying the exquisite noodles in the Hou Mansion, the capital thousands of miles away is also very lively, especially the imperial palace.

During the New Year's Eve banquet, all favored ministers were rewarded with dishes from the palace. This was the rule of the holy ancestor. They should go home during the Chinese New Year, don't come to the palace, and the palace people eat by themselves.

That night, the people in the palace watched you together, and Eunuch Liu himself was in the small corner room at the back of the Qing Palace, watching the two jars of wine and enjoying himself.

He thought it was just a casual remark at the time, he is also a marquis after all, can you remember what happened to him as an eunuch?

He didn't expect to receive anything. He was in a good mood at the time because everyone there regarded him as an ordinary person, not some handicapped father-in-law.

After returning, it was one of the few good memories he had, so he cherished it very much and continued to work in the palace.

Life in the palace passed quickly and slowly, until three days ago, when the congratulatory gift from the north arrived and was sent to the palace, he didn't think of it.

It's just that no one came to look for him, so he let it go completely.

Unexpectedly, just yesterday, people from the Ministry of Internal Affairs sent over something specially, saying it was for him!

I still remember his reaction at that time, the whole person was completely stupid!

"It's for Eunuch Liu?" His Majesty the Emperor wandered over at some point, and looked at the dumbfounded Eunuch Liu, joking openly, "Could it be that you are corrupt and accepting bribes?"

Eunuch Liu was so frightened that he knelt down with a "plop"!

Said everything incoherently!

The emperor smiled and helped him up: "Since it's an annual gift for you, you can go ahead, it's just right, I'll also see what a good thing it is."

Eunuch Liu only prayed to God that for the sake of him never embarrassing those little eunuchs, Qingfenghou's gift should not be too much!

After seeing the gift, it really wasn't too much!

It's just too much!

Not only are they all farm products, but there are also two jars of wine!

"Why did you give me wine?" His Majesty the Emperor looked surprised.

"The servant once gave the grapes ammunition with the Hou Ye. At that time, he joked that the fruit produced wine, and it was a bit of thought to give the servant two jars. I didn't expect the Hou to take it seriously." The child was straight, the words were tough, and the smile was all over his face.

If Yu Liangji gave him a carload of various gold and silver utensils, jewels and jade pieces, he would really have no way out, but what did Yu Liangji give him a carload of things?

Air-dried rabbit, frozen pheasant, bacon and dried mushrooms, some agricultural and sideline products!

To put it bluntly, this carload of stuff and that wine is worth two bucks, but it definitely doesn't meet the threshold of bribery.

If someone bribes like this, it is estimated that nothing can be done.

"Really? It's okay to share a jar of wine with me, right?" The emperor looked at the car full of things: "Have half of the meeting, I don't want half so much, just a jar of wine."

"Yes, I will give you a jar of wine as a New Year's gift from my servant. Let you taste the wine made from the grapes grown by my servant." Can Eunuch Liu not divide it?Must score!

And he said without shame that the grapes were grown by him. In fact, he only played the potion once.

"You really have a big face, you just sipped the potion once, and you said you planted it? If you want to let Marquis Qingfeng know, why don't you get angry?" The emperor ordered the wine jar to be moved down.

"Of course not. Lord Hou looked a little dumbfounded. Apart from agriculture, he only cares about his brother Qi and his eldest nephew." Eunuch Liu sighed, "That child is also very good, and I heard that he studies well."

He would say that because a few days ago, he heard that Marquis Qingfeng asked to be crowned prince, but the emperor pressed down the table, neither nodding nor shaking his head.

He can't do much, just beat the side drums.

"Really?" The emperor thought thoughtfully.

On New Year's Eve, Mr. Liu drank wine, which tasted sweet with a strong grape fragrance. He ate pheasant stewed with hazel mushrooms, bacon stewed with beans, tofu made with the soybeans he sent, and soups he made, etc. .

"Someone is thinking about our family!" Eunuch Liu said with emotion.

The two little eunuchs who served him next to him were also very envious. Generally, when they enter the palace, they can't easily see their family members, and when they see them, there are people present. They can't have physical contact when they say or do anything, and they don't even pass things. Can.

I'm afraid that the news from the palace will be leaked.

Eunuch Liu thought it was over, but who knew that on the first day of the first lunar month on the second day, the ancestors of heaven and earth would be sacrificed, and all officials would congratulate him.

The Hall of Supreme Harmony was full of voices, and many people came to offer congratulatory gifts. At first, the vassal states, tribes, etc., followed by the relatives of the emperor to the honorable ministers. The gifts of the frontier troops were ranked after the ministers in Beijing. It's Lord Hou, who belongs to the nobles, so it ranks before the ministers and behind the veteran nobles.

Everyone may not know much about the new Marquis of Qingfeng. They only know that he is an expert in farming and can make various medicines and incredible fertilizers by himself.

So everyone booed, insisting on seeing the congratulatory gift from Marquis Qingfeng!

"This is for me, not for you?" His Majesty the Emperor joked.

At this time, the atmosphere was just right, and everyone felt that the law does not blame the public, so they collectively booed: "You must watch it, we are curious!"

Rare treasures presented by other vassal states, sea cucumbers and bird’s nests presented by relatives of the emperor, various fresh objects presented by honorable ministers, various precious furs that have remained unchanged for thousands of years in the frontier garrisons, and so on.

It hasn't changed for many years, so they just want to see, what did Qing Fenghou give?

Some people even mentioned Eunuch Liu with ulterior motives: "I heard that Marquis Qingfeng gave Eunuch Liu a carload of New Year gifts!"

"Ai Qing's news is really well-informed." His Majesty the Emperor glanced at him lightly.

The other party's body froze, and he explained with an embarrassed smile: "I just listened to my colleagues chatting, and I didn't ask for it on purpose."

As a result, the colleagues around him glared at him: What nonsense is this grandson talking about?When did they gossip about the father-in-laws in the palace?

Without His Majesty's permission, who would dare to have a personal relationship with the palace?

"Forget it, forget it, I'm also curious, what did Lord Qingfeng give me?" His Majesty the Emperor thought that he had received a gift early in the morning, but he hadn't come to look at it yet!

So many people are curious, what gift did that miraculous Marquis of Qingfeng give herself?

I heard that it is not a rare treasure, nor a treasure of gold or silver, nor a rare animal, but it was delivered in two large carriages, and it was kept warm along the way.

He guessed all morning and didn't guess it, even the queen was curious!

"What needs to be kept warm?" The empress was wearing a big dress, sitting on it looked dignified, but she actually had the same personality as the emperor.

"I don't know, I'll see it in a while." The emperor sat majestically on the surface, only the queen who was close to him could tell that His Majesty the emperor was also extremely curious.

"I heard that the prince and the emperor are guessing later, and they all write down the answers. Whoever guesses right will win the exquisite jade ball." The empress smiled casually: "The prince doesn't like that thing, but my little sister I like it very much. The second child also said that he would win it as a dowry for the younger sister. The third child is still young, so he knows that he will have meat to eat with his brothers."

The empress gave birth to three sons and one daughter, the first three were princes, and finally had a princess, not to mention the empress and the emperor, even the first three princes loved this little princess very much.

While chatting, things came up.

It is held on a large plate, covered with a yellow silk cloth, which looks square.

Wait until the end is in front of you, then slowly uncover the yellow silk cloth, this is the rule in the palace.

The yellow silk cloth was removed, revealing the true content of what was inside!

A turquoise, patterned, boxy, and handle...watermelon!

"Pfft!" The first person to spray it was the old man of the country!

Followed by the big guys are one by one with weird expressions!

"Hahaha!" His Majesty the Emperor laughed first, and then everyone burst into laughter.

"How did Marquis Qingfeng do it? A watermelon was actually planted into a square shape!" The Empress also pursed her lips and snickered for a long while before letting go. After laughing, she was left curious.

Everyone knows that watermelons are round, but the watermelons offered by Hou Qingfeng are square!

"I don't know either." His Majesty the Emperor had the same question as the Empress after laughing, and opened his mouth directly: "Come here, the person who delivered the gift will come up and explain."

Fortunately, the person who came this time was the steward from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, who had seen the world and served Yu Liangji's experimental greenhouse. He knew something, and Yu Liangji didn't hide it from them. I can tell.

The steward explained the whole process of planting, including the wooden boxes.

"You mean, when the watermelon grows up, wrap it in a wooden box?" His Majesty the Emperor became interested.

"Return to Your Majesty, yes, Lord Hou is said to have been inspired by the legend of Fangzhu." The person in charge explained the reasons for Liangji's nonsense.

In fact, there are many legends about square bamboo, and I don’t know which one is true and which one is false, but bamboo is square, and other round things also have squareness!

Such as this watermelon!

After everyone heard about it, they were a bit surprised.

"...There is one last reason...that is not a reason." The manager blushed when he said this.

"Tell me!" The empress eagerly wanted to know.

"Master Hou said that round watermelons are not easy to cut, because they are easy to roll. Square watermelons are better. They are square and square. One cut will yield a piece. If you cut six cuts, you don't need to throw away the watermelon skin." The manager said of himself They all feel embarrassed, as if their Lord Hou is lazy, but Lord Hou is actually very diligent.

His Majesty the Emperor laughed together again, and waved his hand along the way: "Come here, cut up the melon, and cut it in front of us!"

The eunuchs began to prepare tremblingly. To cut the watermelon in front of the emperor, they had to use special watermelon cutting knives, which was amazing.

Except for the guards with sabers who the emperor especially trusted En Zhun in front of the imperial court, even if the other people were wearing ceremonial sabers, they couldn't be opened!

The watermelon knife must be a knife from Kaifeng. According to the rules, you can’t go to the palace, and you can’t get too close to the emperor. If you are too close, you will be suspected of stabbing. No matter who you are, the Imperial Forest Army will shoot you into a sieve first!

In the end, it was the Queen who appointed Eunuch Liu to kill watermelons for everyone.

Eunuch Liu went up with a watermelon knife that was only as long as his forearm. At first he was nervous, but then he became excited. This proves that Eunuch Liu is the one the empress trusts!

The watermelon had just been cut into one side, and everyone said "Hey" at the same time. Eunuch Liu was so nervous that he almost stabbed himself. He looked down, and it turned out that the problem was the watermelon!

For banquets in the palace, there is no shortage of fruits such as watermelons, and the people in the imperial dining room are very knowledgeable. The watermelons on each table are half filled and carved in the shape of peony flowers!

It is both beautiful and auspicious. When placed on the table, when everyone eats, they basically eat watermelons that are like petals. The visual experience is very beautiful.

But these watermelons are all red, big red peonies!

But the watermelon that Eunuch Liu cut was actually yellow once the skin was removed!

It's that kind of bright yellow, not golden yellow, and the seeds are pitifully small, it's all pulp!

His Majesty the Emperor blushed again with joy: "Good good good good good good good good! This congratulatory gift from Qingfeng Hou is a reward, a great reward!"

Eunuch Liu is also a good guy. After cutting the watermelon, he cut the watermelon into small square pieces and put them on the plate. The watermelon knife was immediately taken away by the commander of the imperial army.

Eunuch Liu held the plate tremblingly, ate three pieces first, and then put it respectfully on the empress's dining table after a long time: "Please taste it with your majesty and empress."