No war in the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 85: A Great Harvest of Cultural Spirit (Part )

Su Ze had already asked the chef to write a recipe for braised pork belly, and to promote the soy sauce in the vinegar sauce.

But he didn't expect that the owner of Dengke Tower would be willing to buy it at a high price of 500 strings of cash.

Su Ze looked at Mr. Qian again. No wonder he could run Dengke Building so well. He was magnanimous in his work. Even someone as proud as Yang Zong was very polite to Mr. Qian.

Su Ze was unwilling to take advantage of his five hundred strings of cash, but said:

"The recipe for Ba Zi Rou is very simple, it's just a matter of good meat and good soy sauce. It's okay to write it to Mr. Qian, but I'd rather not pay the five hundred coins."

Su Ze was unwilling to accept the money, but the Qian boss insisted:

"Then please leave your calligraphy, and this money will be regarded as Su Tiju's fee."

In the end, Su Ze couldn't resist Mr. Qian, and under the other party's kindness, Su Ze still left the menu. Finally, under Mr. Qian's enthusiasm, he waived the meal fee.

Mr. Qian then sent his servant to order some soy sauce from Jiangcu, and finally sent everyone away with great joy.

A personal servant was very puzzled and asked Mr. Qian:
"Boss, this soy sauce isn't any better than the one we ordered. Why are you trying so hard to curry favor with this Su Tiju? He's just a petty official."

Boss Qian glared at his personal servant. If this guy wasn't his nephew, he wouldn't bother to explain.

Seeing his nephew's confused look, Mr. Qian Dong sighed and said:
"What do you know? This Su Tiju is a remarkable man who is plotting to overthrow Lord Lu. He is currently in charge of the Municipal Exchange Office. Look at the kind of people he associates with! They are all among the top three in this year's imperial examination! He will surely rise to prominence in the future. If you establish good relationships with him now, you will surely be rewarded in the future."

"Besides, how important do you think soy sauce is when cooking?"

The personal servant still looked confused, and Mr. Qian continued:
"The food at our Dengkelou is indeed better than the food at the roadside stalls, but it's so much more expensive. Can it be twice as delicious?"

The personal servant immediately shook his head.

Mr. Qian then said:
"In the final analysis, before the Dengke Building brand, the taste of the food is important, but not unimportant."

"Tomorrow, have someone spread the word that Dengkelou has a new dish called 'Zhuangyuan Meat,' a delicacy that even this year's top scorer, Yang Zhuang, raved about!"

"what?"

The personal servant was shocked by Boss Qian's outrageous actions. How could he do this?

"What if the top scholar blames me?"

Mr. Qian waved his hand and said:
"We're helping the champion's friend promote soy sauce. How could he blame us? Just go hire a few boys to promote it!"
-
Su Ze was unaware of Mr. Qian's outrageous actions. He returned to his own courtyard and was about to check the cultural energy he had absorbed this time. He also brought the manuscript to Azhi and asked him to print the tabloid on woodblock as soon as possible.

But just as he returned home, he met the steward of Zhang Yaozuo's mansion.

"Manager Zhang, is there anything urgent?"

When Su Ze was still living in Zhang Yaozuo's house, this steward was nice to him, and he also knew that the other party was Zhang Yaozuo's confidant.

Manager Zhang immediately said:
"Something big has happened in the court, my lord, please go inside and talk!"

Hearing this, Su Ze quickly opened the door and waited until Manager Zhang entered the room before he said:
"The master has sent this old servant to inform my lord that he should be careful with his words and actions these days and try not to go out after dark."

Su Ze asked:

"What happened?"

Manager Zhang whispered:
"The Liao envoy was assassinated!"

"What!" Su Ze looked at Manager Zhang in surprise, only to hear him say:
"The Liao envoy was assassinated in the Sifang Pavilion! The emperor has ordered the Kaifeng Prefecture and the Dali Temple to apprehend the murderer! The Imperial City Division has also been dispatched. Bianjing City has been unsafe recently. The Lord asks that you try to stay out as little as possible and wait for a period of peace before making any decisions."

After saying this, Manager Zhang immediately said goodbye to Su Ze:

"This old servant will go to Mr. Zhang's house to remind him that Mr. Su must remember the master's words."

After saying this, Manager Zhang hurried out.

Not long after Manager Zhang left, Feng Shiyuan from next door also knocked on the door hurriedly.

After entering the door, Feng Shiyuan also said worriedly:

"Tiju! Something big has happened! The Liao envoy has been assassinated!"

Su Ze had received the news and his expression calmed down. Feng Shiyuan said:
"This is going to give Governor Guo a headache."

Guo Fuyin was Guo Zhen, the acting governor of Kaifeng Prefecture. The Liao envoy was assassinated in Bianjing City, and Bianjing’s public security was within his area of ​​responsibility, so he was bound to take the blame.

Su Ze shook his head and said:

"The Ministry of Rites, the Imperial House of Rites, the Sifang Hall, and the escort envoy Fu Bi are the biggest headaches. Oh, and there's also the Imperial City Administration."

Feng Shiyuan said worriedly:

"This time the Liao envoy is going to ask for an exorbitant price."

The assassination of an envoy of a country is a very serious event. If the Liao envoy is seriously injured or even killed, the Liao ruler can even use this as an excuse to send troops.

The negotiations between the Song and Liao dynasties were not going smoothly in the first place, and now with the Liao envoy being assassinated, the Song Dynasty became even more passive.

Su Ze also frowned. According to the history he knew, the Song-Liao negotiations still maintained the original annual tribute system. The Song Dynasty did not cede any land nor did it send a princess as a marriage partner. However, the assassination of the Liao envoy was not recorded in the history books. He didn't know whether it was omitted in the history books or it was the butterfly effect caused by his own time travel.

But Su Ze quickly relaxed his brow and said:

"This is a major court matter and has nothing to do with our store and house affairs, but we must pay close attention to store and house affairs and the market affairs these days. We must not make any mistakes that would give the censors a handle."

Feng Shiyuan knew that Su Ze had been impeached by the censors, and he nodded heavily.

At this moment, another burst of spring thunder sounded outside the window. Su Ze walked to the window and watched the spring rain falling from the sky, but he did not feel the joy of the spring rain which was as precious as oil. Instead, he became worried about the hazy scene outside the window.

The future of the Song Dynasty, like the rain-drenched city of Bianjing, became unclear.

After seeing Feng Shiyuan off, Su Ze picked up a book and entered the Peach Blossom Spring again.

Spring rain also began to fall in the Peach Blossom Spring. Large lotus leaves grew in the river beside the Peach Blossom Valley. The guiding boy was actually holding a lotus leaf as an umbrella and playing by the Peach Blossom Valley.

Seeing Su Ze, the guiding boy handed the lotus leaf umbrella to Su Ze. Raindrops fell on his green radish leaves. He smiled and said:

[As expected of the owner of Taoyuan! What a bountiful harvest!]

Su Ze finally smiled. The first issue of the tabloid gained 220 points of literary energy because of Ouyang Xiu's article!
Later, people wrote poems to advertise soy sauce and steamed pork, and gained another 10 points of literary energy.

Adding to the previous 130 points of cultural energy, Su Ze has accumulated a full 360 points of cultural energy!
Looking at the empty Peach Blossom Spring in the spring rain, the cultural energy in Su Ze's hand finally relaxed!
This time we can build well!

(End of this chapter)