Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty

The dishes on the Qiansen Banquet are different from those in the 52nd year of Kangxi. In the 52nd year of Kangxi, the dishes were mainly local specialties in order to take care of the eating habits of the elderly who came to celebrate Kangxi’s birthday. Today’s dishes are mostly Beijing dishes.After all, all the ministers of the Eight Banners who came to the banquet today have long been used to this kind of diet.

Although it is not difficult to seat hundreds of nearly a thousand people in the imperial dining room, it is not easy.

Many things were prepared in advance, such as pasta and snacks, and the rice was made and prepared together by the imperial chef staying up late at night.

At this time, the banquet has not yet started, and the warm tea has already been prepared in the pantry, and the maids are orderly serving them to the table one by one. Maybe it is a little cold, maybe it is in the way of the rules, but the people are not talking much, not far away. The palace surrounded by the banquet and the outside world are very lively.

"How's the preparation going?" Li Dequan got Kangxi's order to come to see the meal first.

At this time, it was not long before the banquet, the smell of food filled the room, and no one was free except the supervisor.

"Mr. Li, the preparations are almost ready. You must have been caught in the cold wind when you came here. Try this soup." The fat manager uncovered the soup pot on the small stove and filled a bowl for Li Dequan.

"Hey, I still have this skill, it seems that it's almost done." Li Dequan took a sip of the soup and felt the chill in his bones finally eased a bit.

"This soup was stewed when I was young, thinking that Mr. Li would run this trip to suffer from the cold wind." Refilling the half bowl of soup held by Li Dequan, the fat manager first led Li Dequan to the backyard "Here is the soup that has been stewed for two hours. Because of the large quantity, it is not easy to see the fire, so it is stewed in water. It tastes fresh when it is served."

The old eunuch who was watching the fire next to him lifted the bamboo lid, and put a shelf in the huge pot. Dozens of small soup cups were neatly placed on the shelf. At this time, the water in the pot was less than half of the soup cup. The location is right, and the water is about to bottom out when the banquet starts.Looking at the number of cauldrons in the backyard, the number of soup cups is probably more than ten or twenty cups more than the number of people eating. It is thoughtful.

"This is a stomach-nourishing soup specially mentioned by the ladies. The servants went to the imperial physician early to find out what medicinal materials are used. It is beneficial to the health of the adults..."

Li Dequan walked around, everything that should be prepared was ready, the cold vegetables and dried fruits had been cut and placed on the plate, and they were ready to pass the meal. When Li Dequan returned to his command, it was time to stir-fry. Suddenly, the whole palace was buzzing The temperature was much higher, and everyone who was busy in the house broke into a fine sweat after a while.

Not long after Li Dequan went back to his command, he delivered the decree to start the banquet, and the fat manager ordered: "Hurry up and send the four dried fruits to the front in a food box."

The four kinds of dried fruit are very common walnuts, crystal fudge, spiced cashew nuts, and peanut sticks. It's hard to overcome Fei Ya without talking.

At this time, the fat manager stood aside and looked at the little eunuch who was packing the box, and his face no longer smiled at Li Dequan all the time, "Be careful, if you pretend to be wrong and mess up, you will all go to the miscellaneous family to sit on the bench tomorrow." Get on your stomach."

If you make a mistake today, no matter how small it is, it will be a big mistake. Today is a day of great joy and you will not see any blood. Once today is over, you may not be punished. This is a warning and a reminder.After all, these are the ones that can be used by looking at the teaching, and it will be a long time to feel bad if one is missing.

After the fourth grade of dried fruit is served, it's time for candied fruit. This candied fruit is not as sweet as some ladies in the harem eat. It has less sugar and more refreshing fruit, which is more suitable for men's appetite.

Afterwards, after the pickles were served, the appetizers began to be served. The seven appetizers are called the seven appetizers. There are chicken, rabbit meat, abalone, three silk, winter bamboo shoots, wild rice stems, both meat and vegetables, and there are many flavors. It can make people want to eat chopsticks.

After the appetizer, there is a Northeastern dish, braised fish lip in a pot.

The braised fish lip in a pot is made by burning, and the main raw material used is also the fish lip. This is a very nourishing dish.

This dish is sealed in a small jar before being served, and when the lid is lifted on the table, there is a strong fish fragrance, and the petals of fish lips are soft and crystal clear in the flesh-colored soup.

Since chopped green onion has been sealed for a long time, it is naturally not suitable for decoration. Instead of chopped green onion, the decoration is mung bean. Mung bean is peeled after soaking in advance. The green flowers, the mouth is delicious and tender fish lip and slightly sandy mung bean fragrance, all kinds of flavors can only be known after tasting.

After that, there are five imperial dishes. The so-called imperial dishes are the dishes that can often be served on Kangxi's dining table. This dish has been cooked by the imperial dining room countless times and is naturally familiar. If mistakes are not avoided, a few old imperial chefs are selected to watch over the checks , After confirming that there is nothing wrong, put it in the food box and take it out.

After this dish, there will be some stuffed pastry, two products, thousand-layer steamed cake, and assorted flower baskets.These two are common snacks in the palace. After all, the palace only serves two meals, so naturally there will be more pastries to fill the stomach at other times.

After that, there are five imperial dishes and two pastries.

Alternately, you can eat hot food in this cold early spring and you can also eat enough. After that, there are two barbecues. Most of the ministers of the Eight Banners are from grasslands. BBQ is naturally common on the dining table, and the grilled chicken and fish are also very common. Eating is just a nostalgia.

After that is the hot pot, which is mainly game, venison, roe deer, pheasant, wild boar, wild duck, squid, fresh fish... and vegetarian dishes such as bean sprouts.

Hot pot is a special big pot, enough for a table of people to have a refreshing meal together. During the period, the maids went to add wine and vegetables, and Kangxi sat alone in the upper seat and watched his children and grandchildren talking and laughing with the ministers who had been with him for most of his life. His appetite improved. .

Once the hot pot was served, the atmosphere in the hall improved a lot. The steam lingered on the dining table. The old man who had drank a few glasses of wine chatted with his former colleagues who had not seen each other for a long time. Middle affairs, but trivial matters at home.

A son who grows up to expectations or a dude can get congratulations or sighs from other people at the table. Talking about grandchildren is nothing more than naughty behavior. Occasionally, one or two grandchildren who have already understood the truth will always be envied by others gaze.

In addition to the children and grandchildren, they also share their experience with the birds and other animals raised during this time. Although many of them have resigned for retirement, they don’t have many opportunities to get together. What they are afraid of is the suspicion of the superiors. , so I took advantage of this banquet to talk more.

The time to eat hot pot is also very long, and there are long talks and drinks, and the clan is urging wine and food on the sidelines. Several hours have passed by the time the porridge is served. During this period, there are also singing and dancing, and some are enjoying continue the conversation.

The lotus leaf meal porridge is to reduce the fire and nourish the stomach after eating hot pot. After all, venison and so on are great tonics. If the fire is not reduced, these ministers may not be able to bear it.

A bowl of porridge also relieves some of the dry mouth caused by the hot pot, and the fruit after that is a good thing to quench your thirst and eliminate food.

There are few melons and fruits in winter, and they are rare in the cold north. These are fresh melons and fruits brought back from the south all the way by water not long ago to keep warm.It is still juicy and fragrant when eaten in the mouth.

Kangxi issued a decree to award a lot of money, cloth and other things to these veterans, and finally served a cup of farewell tea. Yanghechun green was named by Kangxi to remember his achievements. Although it is exaggerated, there is nothing wrong with it.

The banquet was over, and the elder brothers, the emperor's grandson, and the clan stayed behind to follow Kangxi to the side hall.

"You all behaved very well during the banquet today. I saw that they were all smiling. You are also tired. Go back and rest early. There will be more Han ministers tomorrow, and I am afraid that you will be more tired than today." Kangxi has brought A little drunk, besides the toast, he also drank a lot because he was in a good mood.

"Yes." After saying that, everyone backed out, and some of the slightly weak drinkers were supported by the eunuchs. They just kept their last sobriety in front of Kangxi because they were afraid of being rude. Although it was uncomfortable, it was worth it to get Kangxi's good words.

The clan has already left, and the rest are elder brothers. It is only the second day of junior high school and they have not yet gone to court. Before they are drunk, they want to greet their mother-in-law, but they are all drunk and afraid of bumping into the concubines in the harem. Therefore, there has been no action for a long time.

"Hongli, please go and say hello to Concubine De, I can't go to the harem after drinking alcohol." Prince Yong said to Hongli who was standing beside him.

Hongli was only 12 years old at this time, although he drank only two or three glasses of wine, he did not feel drunk at all.

After receiving Prince Yong's words, Hongli bid farewell to several elders and left, and the elder brothers next to him also told their children or the little eunuchs around them to leave the palace together with Prince Yong.

When Hongli arrived at the Palace of Concubine De, he happened to meet Chen Xiuming who was also there, and after inviting Concubine De, he left the palace.

"Now that the banquet is over, the imperial concubine should go to the Qianqing Palace to see the Lord Long Live. I am afraid that the Lord Long Live drank a lot of wine today." Concubine De has been with Kangxi for many years, and I am afraid that she will drink more today when she is happy. a few cups.

"Then I'll go, I'm afraid I'll be more tired tomorrow than today, so I should reward the imperial dining room and the maids and eunuchs of Qianqing Palace." Chen Xiuming feared that Concubine De would forget to remind her.

"This must be rewarded, and it will be added to their allowance for this month." All the shrewd Consort De in the palace understood.

After hearing this, Chen Xiuming left, this place is not far from the Qianqing Palace, and Chen Xiuming didn't rush in when he arrived at the Qianqing Palace, and let Fanghua serve the hangover soup before entering the palace.

"Slave greets the imperial concubine and empress." Li Dequan raised his voice and saluted when Chen Xiuming came, and Kaixin, who was squinting and leaning on the chair, also opened his eyes.

"Why are you here? This place is full of alcohol."

Chen Xiuming stepped forward and put the hangover soup in Fanghua's hand on the small table, "The concubine has brought the hangover soup to Lord Long Live."

"Yeah, I thought this hangover soup tasted bad and didn't want to drink it, but it seems that I have to drink it." Kangxi picked up a small bowl and drank it down.

After drinking Sober Tang Kangxi took Chen Xiuming back to Yongshou Palace and took a nap for a while. After waking up, he ate some porridge to satisfy his hunger.

Even though I feel less sleepy as I get older, I can't bear the fatigue of these days and feel more sleepy. Besides, I have to get up early tomorrow, so it's better to go to bed early.

Chen Xiuming used to sleep a lot these days, but now she happened to rest with Kangxi, although she was not too busy.