Zhang Qi looked at the copper pot in front of him, with fiery charcoal burning in the middle, a thick soup all week, and a few plates of cut mutton next to him, and said to Du Zhongxiao: "It turns out that there is still this way of eating, but I haven't seen it before." ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "The mutton is boiled and eaten, and it is actually a little angry when it is cold, so it is better to eat it while it is hot." To cook mutton well, it is not only necessary to choose good meat, but also to choose good water, and it takes too long to cook it very badly. It's not as simple as this. ”

Saying this, Chen Qin commanded Muzi and brought a few small plates of pickles, nothing more than pickled cucumbers, sweet and sour garlic, salted mustard greens and the like. In the end, a few more kinds of greens were served, and there were only a few kinds of spinach, tripe, and lotus root slices this season. The tripe and woad look a little like cabbage that does not form balls, but there is no cabbage name in this era, and it is not real.

Zhang Qi didn't expect it to be so sumptuous, and his eyes widened when he saw Chen Qin bring it up like a person.

In the end, Chen Qin brought a few kinds of mushrooms and two plates of tofu skin.

The other Zhang Qi all knew what it was, but it was the first time he saw the tofu skin, and he pointed to Du Zhongxiao and asked: "Zhijun, what is this?" It's like pasta. ”

Du Zhongxiao smiled: "This is bean skin." Soybeans are ground into a pulp, and after cooking, there will be a layer of oily skin on it, and the layers will be peeled off, which is this thing. This product is very resistant to storage when dried, and it will not spoil for a long time, and it is also a good dish when marching. ”

Zhang Qi listened curiously, sandwiched a slice, soaked it in the broth, put it in his mouth and chewed for a while, and nodded: "It tastes good." ”

Chen Qin saw it over there and hurriedly said, "Damn it, I forgot to dip it on the plate." ”

As he spoke, he asked Muzi to bring up the oil dish. It is made with good sesame paste, and many seasonings such as minced garlic, coriander, and chopped green onion are added to it. This is the real good thing that has never been seen in this era, eating shabu-shabu.

Du Zhongxiao said to Zhang Qi with a smile: "The place is remote, the time is in a hurry, and the capital prison is not too shabby. As he spoke, he took a slice of mutton, cooked it in the pot, dipped the sauce in the dipping sauce, and put it in his mouth.

Zhang Qi learned from Du Zhongxiao's example, picked up another piece of tofu skin, dipped it in a dipping dish, put it in his mouth and chewed, and nodded: "This really tastes a lot." Zhijun, is this really made of soya beans? It's a good thing to carry on the march. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Of course. There are many more in the camp and field affairs yamen in front of this thing, and some will be taken away by the supervisor when the time comes. ”

At this time, tofu was not popular, let alone tofu skin, and it was not available on the market at all. Among the horse feed collected by the imperial court, soybeans are a kind of feed, and they are treated the same as sorghum, buckwheat and other miscellaneous grains, which shows that many uses of soybeans have not been excavated. Du Zhongxiao is used to extract oil and make various soybean products, which greatly expands the use of soybeans, which most outsiders have never seen.

In Zhang Qi's eyes, today's dishes are extremely rich. The lamb slices are eaten like you've never tasted before, and there are several kinds of pickles and leafy greens, and it's snowing outside, which is extremely rare.

After eating a few bowls of wine and a plate of meat, Zhang Qi let out a sigh, and the fatigue of the day was all gone.

Putting down the bowl, Zhang Qi said: "The Zhijun has only been here for half a year, and he can build a camp and field affairs, and there is also a horse grazing land here, which is really admirable." I wonder how many horses are raised here now? If there is a shortage of good horses, I can transfer dozens of them from the Fuzhou army. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Xie Dujian is kind. The small Tibetan tribe in the north came to camp and defected to the fields, and offered some horses. Now the Guangrui command of this army has replenished the war horses, and there are more than 200 horses raised here, which is not lacking. ”

Zhang Qi was taken aback: "Are there so many horses?" Zhijun is attentive. ”

The Volcano Army was not on the front line, and although the Guangrui Army stationed here was cavalry, it was not evenly armed, and many soldiers did not have horses. Zhang Qi knew this, and was really surprised to hear that Du Zhongxiao had made up the horses for them, and there were more than 200 horses left to keep here.

Du Zhongxiao said: "As long as you have money, you can buy horses from Fanbu." A few days ago, I received firewood here, and I asked someone to transport it to Bingzhou, and all of it was exchanged for cash. Within a few months, more than 50,000 yuan had been brought to the Volcano Army from the state, and business was booming, and taxes were increasing. ”

Transporting iron money from Bingzhou was equivalent to issuing currency to stimulate private commerce, and the economy of the Volcano Army prospered a lot in a few months. Those tens of thousands of dollars are nothing, and the economic prosperity driven by the flow has caused the current lively scene of the Volcano Army. Du Zhongxiao agreed with Feng Yuan and other merchants engaged in the trade of Bingzhou that they would return from Bingzhou and bring as much new iron money as possible, and the current Volcano Army has always had cash flowing in.

Zhang Qi asked about the current situation of the Volcano Army, and was taken aback when he heard that there were more than 600 households in the field work in the front camp. At this rate, another volcano army can be built in two or three years, and there is no shortage of food and grass, and the strategic situation in this area has changed.

After eating and drinking, Zhang Qi and Du Zhongxiao sat together and chatted. Speaking of the surrounding situation, Zhang Qi said: "The most regrettable thing about the Volcano Army is that the east side of the village has been abandoned. With that stockade, the Khitans would not be able to move south and stabilize the surrounding dozens of Tibetan tribes. However, this village has been abandoned long before the army comes, so it is no wonder that the army is not known. Now relying on Dongjiazhai, although the main road is choked, the land hundreds of miles east of the river is inevitably encroached upon by the Khitans. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "When the wheat is harvested in the next year, the grain and grass are sufficient, and you can organize people to build the side head village again." Although the Volcano Army does not have many troops, it is not difficult to draw one or two hundred people to be stationed there. It's just that before building the partial head village, I want to recover Tanglong Town first. ”

Zhang Yu was surprised when he heard this: "Since Shoushun defected into the western realm, Tanglong Town has been abandoned, and now the party members regard it as their territory. If the Zhijun goes to recover Tanglong Town, they are afraid that they will clash with the party. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "What are you afraid of, the party is here, just call back." Since the founding of this dynasty, Tanglong Town has been a territory, and the family has always been under the jurisdiction of the prefecture. Now Tanglong Town has become an empty city, and there is no owner in the surrounding areas, and many people have come to the Volcano Army to take refuge. A few days ago, a nephew who came to Shoushun also arrived in the Volcano Army, and I have sent someone to settle it. There is such a person, send it back to rebuild Tanglong Town, and no one else can say anything. ”

Zhang Qi thought carefully for a while and said, "What Zhijun said is actually reasonable and works. It's just that the key point in the meantime must be defended when Tanglong Town is built. Not only must be able to guard against party members, but also against Khitan people, otherwise it is to make wedding dresses for others. ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded: "What the eunuch said is right, the most important thing is to hold it." I set up a camp here to do field work, so that there is enough food and grass to support hundreds of elite soldiers and be stationed in Tanglong Town. Now that Fengzhou has been broken, it is too far away from Fuzhou, and it can only rely on the Volcano Army. ”

Zhang Qi looked at Du Zhongxiao: "Speaking of this, Zhijun is very sure, I don't know what to use to defend Tanglong Town?" ”

Du Zhongxiao said with a smile: "On the way here, the eunuch said how there are two good irons. Don't hide it from the capital prison, it is a newly made artillery, using gunpowder to fire shells, hundreds of steps away when the advance is powder, the most sharp weapon. To defend Tanglong Town, it depends on good gunpowder and muskets and artillery. ”

Where did Zhang Qi hear this, and shook his head again and again: "What kind of weapon is so powerful?" The army is young, and he has not been in battle, so he doesn't know the strength of the Khitan and the party. They were all cavalrymen, familiar with geography, coming and going like the wind, and extremely difficult to fight. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "The eunuchs are at ease, I don't fight with them, I only hide in the walled fort." If they come to attack, and the guns are fired, these people will be beaten with iron and blown into slag. Tomorrow I will go to the mountain with the capital prisoner, and when I see the power of the musket and gunpowder, the capital prison will know in his heart. ”