Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War.

Chapter 216: Promoting Steamed Food
Tia nodded slightly after hearing this: "It sounds like it saves fuel and tastes much better than most breads. How long can it last?"

When talking about bread, many people's impression is that it is white, tender, soft, slightly sweet and has a wheat aroma. In fact, these are all improved types after modern times. The bread in both the classical era and the Middle Ages is very different from this type.

More people eat the so-called black bread, which is made by baking barley, oats and certain impurities. The bread eaten by the army is much better in texture, but it is also quite hard. If it is not soaked in water or cooked into porridge, it can almost be used as a brick.

Freshly baked bread is indeed much better, softer and easier to eat, but that’s it. Overall, it is not as delicious as steamed bread.

"If you're careful, it'll take about a week. It's really not easy to preserve. If it's longer, it'll start to grow mold and go bad. But steaming saves more firewood than baking, it's much more efficient, and residents can steam it at home without going to a bakery. I've heard from the Parthians that steaming preserves nutrients better than baking, and from my observations, this should be true."

In fact, due to the water shortage in Parthia, they either baked naan or flatbread, but there was no way to steam buns. Orwell was just looking for an excuse to make the other party believe it. Otherwise, the vague excuse of saying that it was a big country at the end of the world would be even less credible.

Tia didn't seem to bother about this little thing, she just nodded to show that she understood what Orvel said.

“You want to promote this practice?”

"That is to recommend it to people around you. Whether they like it or not depends on each person. This can complement the toast."

"Well, it shouldn't be a problem, especially in Britain."

The way to bake bread is actually quite wasteful of fuel, as it heats up a huge oven first and then uses the residual heat to bake the bread. And this kind of baking will more or less destroy some of the original nutrients, so it is not a good idea from this perspective.

But baked bread can indeed be stored for a long time. To exaggerate a little, it can be stored for a year or two. And it does not require too much water, which is an advantage in many cases. Which one is best depends on personal opinion.

As for the situation in Britain, many of Orville's officers began to learn to steam food like Orville, and even some Germans began to do so because the infrastructure here could not keep up.

In Rome, every city has a decent bakery where you can eat freshly baked bread. At this time, it is more a matter of personal preference. The Romans are definitely more accustomed to eating toast, especially soft wheat white bread, which is considered a high-quality staple food in their eyes.

But there are not many bakeries here. Locals just cook porridge and stew. It is very troublesome to eat real bread. Ovens are very troublesome. Only a few places have built ovens. Although there are bakeries in the military camp, it takes a long time to bake bread. At this time, few officers dare to occupy public resources to satisfy their appetite.

Therefore, if they want to eat soft and delicious staple food, it is more realistic to cook steamed buns in their own kitchen during holidays.

Orville himself was a foodie, and it was natural for officers and soldiers to want to eat something good during their holidays. He even secretly encouraged this behavior by privately funding the provision of mobile steamers for them.

As time went on, this practice spread, and Orville had no reason to ban it, so he just let it run its course.

Although Tia didn't quite understand what Orville was doing, she had no reason to object. She had a simple and quick dinner as usual, and ended with a glass of wine without water.

After dinner, she mentioned some household matters to Orville: "Domitia and Miss Berenice are still living in Paris. Domitia wrote to say that she wants to come over to visit you. What do you think?" "If she wants to come, the situation here is basically stable. She can come with the next batch of supplies. I personally welcome it. But it's better to hurry up. I feel that we should go back to Rome."

Tia raised her eyebrows: "Now? The situation here hasn't stabilized yet, is this the right time?"

Orville finished his wine at this time and said, "I can't help it. I noticed something is going on in Egypt. There might be a coup d'état there."

Hearing him casually mention such a major piece of news, Tia almost immediately stood up from her chair and asked in surprise: "When did this happen? How come I didn't know about it?!"

"It's not certain yet. Cleopatra wrote to me and told me that the situation over there is almost unsustainable."

Tia slowly sat back in her chair, her expression changing from surprise to subtle suspicion: "I know you have some relationship with her, but is she willing to tell you such a big thing?"

This was not a trivial matter such as who had cats and dogs. The political situation in Egypt was directly related to the overall layout of the Roman Empire.

"You also know that I provided her with weapons to fight against the tyrant Berdinos who controlled the government. It is normal for her to tell me more things, because I am afraid she will continue to rely on me in the future. I have already informed my father, and he probably knows what the situation is, but he just didn't tell the elders."

After hearing this, Tia's expression improved a lot. At least she could accept this explanation.

Although she believed that the Ptolemaic royal family, the successors of Alexander, were rotten, she still recognized the authority and legitimacy of the successors and had no good feelings towards tyrants. Orville helped the legitimate heirs to fight against the tyrants and asked Emperor Vespa for permission. This was completely in line with her moral concepts.

It was this word that made her feel subtly uncomfortable, but she couldn't say it directly.

"So what do you want to do? I can do either. I have learned everything I should learn here, and the situation in Gaul has returned to stability. It doesn't matter if I go back anytime. It's a good opportunity to train somewhere else." For Tia, there was no reason for her to stay in Gaul.

"It's almost time for us to go home. Once we make some progress in the war against the Vikings, I will contact my father and ask him to transfer us back home. Then we can find a way to deal with the situation in Egypt. There are some things that only I can handle. I want to try to mediate the conflict between the two sides. I'm afraid others can't do it."

Generally speaking, the governor's term of office is two to three years, but there is no explicit stipulation. The emperor has a great deal of freedom and autonomy. No one would gossip if the two of them were transferred back at this time. Anyway, this is the emperor's province, and the emperor has full authority to appoint and dismiss officials.

"If the situation in the British province can be stabilized, this is not a bad idea. The credit you get from expanding a new province is enough to hold a triumphal ceremony. You can take this opportunity to hold the triumphal ceremony. But you have to make sure that the situation here is in order and then hand it over to a reliable person to take over."

"I have already chosen my successor. Belisarius is the best choice, and he has no objection to it."

(End of this chapter)