Is this where our ancestors lived?

The vast expanse of yellow land, the strong wind covered with sand, and the tributary veins of the Yellow River flowing past the village are like a flowing golden river under the sunlight. What this kind of beauty brings is The consequences of massive soil and water loss and poverty for generations, even today in the 21st century, we still have to rely on the weather for food.

Zhoukoudian is actually a village, which surprised Zhou Yi; he originally thought it was at least a town, but at least he couldn't see any trace of commerce here, which felt a bit untrue.

"Aren't you a little disappointed? It was because of poverty that your grandfather left home to escape famine. I heard from your grandfather that the army of people fleeing famine stretched for dozens of miles and affected tens of thousands of people. Some people died of starvation and illness on the road. , only those with good luck can find a way to survive..."

Zhou Maotong sighed a little, holding his son's hand and walking towards the village, nagging as he walked: "But no matter how poor and miserable, as long as we don't encounter a severe drought that has not happened in a century, the Zhou family living in Zhoukoudian will still be the best." There will be stuttering. Do you know why? Because this is a 'store' with commercial support..."

"Why, this is really a store, and there is a business exchange?"

Zhou Yi was speechless after hearing this.

Looking around, except for some spring wheat that has not yet reached the harvest season, there are also corn fields that have just been sown. Most of the villagers live in cave dwellings built on the slopes or mountains, and there is no sign of farming here. Will there be commercial activities?

"Of course, we have it. This is our old Zhou family's stewed vegetable business..."

The old man raised his head and said with some pride: "The ancestor of the Zhou family, the royal chef Zhou Tuoluo, passed down the unique skill of braised vegetables, do you understand, boy?"

"Stewed vegetables? This is the first time I hear you talk about it. Please tell me..."

Braised vegetables originated from the north of the Yellow River and are a common delicacy on the dining table. There are many types of braised vegetables, especially braised pig head meat and pig offal. Although they are coarse food, they are liked by many people because they are easy to carry and store. That is It also often appears on wedding and wedding banquets. Zhou Yi remembered that his father made it when he was a child, and it tasted very good.

Ever since he got the Almighty Idle System, Zhou Yi has set his sights on high goals. Occasionally, he shows off his skills by dipping into various famous dishes. Moreover, making this stewed dish is very troublesome. First, a certain amount of marinade must be prepared. It is not economical to make less. , he wasn’t planning to open a stewed vegetable restaurant, so he had never done it before. Now that he heard his father’s advance notice, he became interested.

This place was not originally called Zhoujiadian, but was named after the surname Zhou. It was because of the great ancestors and great ancestors of Zhou Yi. When Cixi, the old witch, fled to the west to Dayuan, she was finally picked up by a local official. The old woman did not take any vegetables or meat with her when she fled. There was no cook, so she had to eat stick noodle porridge to survive the whole journey. Now she was meeting her relatives, and she immediately ordered a cook to cook. She wanted at least four dishes and one soup!

Now the local magistrate was worried. He must not donate his famous Jiangnan chef, otherwise the old Buddha would wipe his mouth after eating and say, "What? You can afford a chef with such skills, let me drink stick noodles on the road." Porridge? Is it corrupt? Take it out and chop it! This bitch got angry all the way. This is something that cannot be prepared for...

Neither are the famous chefs from the major restaurants in Dayuan City. These people are well-informed, and they are usually under pressure from themselves. If they make Lafayette happy, blowing wind in her ears or something, they themselves will be in trouble.

After much deliberation, the local official finally found the great ancestor of Zhou Yi. The great ancestor of Zhou Yi was good at cooking and was a famous chef at that time. He was also honest and honest, and even cooked for the local official. He was a good character and could be trusted. It was just such a fateful meeting that Gaozu had this opportunity to take over and became the "Royal Chef". Otherwise, no matter what you do, you must first learn to be a human being and cultivate your moral character?

So the great ancestor of Zhouyi brought his great-grandfather to cook a table of dishes for Cixi. The great-grandfather was old, and it was great-grandfather who really took the initiative. The dishes on the table were mainly Shandong cuisine, and a dish of 'carp back' made the old woman and the young emperor happy. I couldn't help but bit my tongue three times on the spot; this was mainly due to my great-grandfather's skill in cooking. Of course, Cixi was also starving. She had been drinking corn noodle porridge for more than a month, but now everything she ate tasted delicious.

If she ate well, she would naturally be rewarded, but Cixi had no money. This time when she fled to Shanyin, she just calculated the little money in the pockets of Shanxi merchants. Would she still have money to reward others? So she rewarded a painting The word - "The emperor is close to the kitchen"!

It's over... After just this one calligraphy appreciation, the Zhou family has completely stopped making a living. Who dares to invite the emperor's cook? Isn't this a crime of beheading? She took pictures of Feng after she finished her meal~ Rufeitian has left, and the Zhou family has no rice to cook.

There was no other way, so Zhou Yi's great-grandfather and great-grandfather had no choice but to sell their house in Oyuan and move to live near "Zhoukoudian". But the Zhou family has inherited cooking skills, so where can they farm? On the Loess Plateau, all the old crops are only They can live half full, not to mention they are half full. In the end, there is no other way. The young great-grandfather of Zhou Yi came up with the idea of ​​making stewed vegetables. This thing can be made and sold by others without having to show up. You can make a lot of money, so isn't there a way to survive?

So since then, most people of the Zhou family have made a living by making braised vegetables. Even today, there are braised vegetables restaurants opened by Zhou family children in Dayuan City. And this place originally called Sanshanwa was renamed ' Zhoujiadian', because braised vegetables are produced here.

"So that's what happened..."

Zhou Yi nodded: "Dad, why didn't you open a braised vegetable restaurant later?"

"Nonsense. I was in the early days of liberation at that time, and the whole country was eradicating the little tails of capitalism. I was still criticized for opening a braised vegetable restaurant. Besides, at that time, you had to ask for meat coupons to buy fat meat, so it didn't matter. We went to look for ingredients in various places. After the reform and opening up, supplies became abundant. Who would open a stewed vegetable restaurant? Your second sister will inherit the ancestral business and open a restaurant."

Zhou Maotong smacked his lips: "But our Zhou family's braised vegetables are nothing to talk about. This year's Qingming Festival, every shop in Zhou's family will be making braised vegetables. If we, men, hurry up a few steps, you will be able to smell the aroma of braised vegetables when you arrive at the entrance of the village. Already..."

Zhou Yi didn't understand what the Tomb-Sweeping Festival had to do with making stewed vegetables. But he had a good nose and didn't need to go to the village entrance. When he arrived about half a mile away from the village, he could smell the rich aroma of meat. Not to mention, he was really greedy. human.

"Third uncle! I've been waiting for you... Oh, Cang boy, call me grandparents, call me uncle..."

This section of the road is a loess mountain road with many potholes, so I didn’t ask Director Hu to send it over just now. At this moment, Zhou Yi was thinking about carrying his mother and walked over, when he saw a man and a woman walking towards him. The woman hugged five or six people. A boy of about 40 years old. The man was about forty years old. His head was wrapped in a white scarf and he wore a white cloth robe. His exposed arms were covered with lumps of flesh. He was pushing a wheelbarrow in his hand.

"Grandpa, grandma, uncle..."

The boy held a shiny pig's trotter in his hand. He squealed, then lowered his head and started chewing attentively. But Zhou Yi was a little puzzled. He heard from his father that the grandfather's lineage was forced to leave Chudu by the great grandfather, and even the ancestral inheritance

I have lost all my fish-scale and purple-gold pots; my family should be considered unwelcome guests. Why are there still people coming out of the village? It seems to be quite warm.

"Xiao Yi, this is your brother Dazhu. His father was recognized by your grandfather as his godson, and he also changed his surname to Zhou..."

Zhou Maotong understood it only when he talked about Zhou Yi. I remember my father mentioned that the bloodline of the Zhou family in my hometown was divided into three branches, the eldest grandfather's line, his own grandfather's line, and the third grandfather's line. After the third grandfather got married and had children, he left home and became a soldier.

He has never come back, and his family members all speculate that the old man has achieved glory on the battlefield. The eldest grandfather's lineage is the most prosperous, while the grandfather's lineage is relatively withered. Now he is just a seedling in his own land.

In addition to these three bloodlines, the Zhou family is composed of outsiders who have joined Zhou's shop one after another. In the early years, the war was raging, and the life of farmers was difficult. The Zhou family had the skill of braised vegetables, and relied on Dayuan Prefecture, so the business was very prosperous.

, and gradually some poor households from nearby villages or other places joined the Zhou family, and the Zhou family happened to be in need of labor, so they were asked to change their surnames. Over dozens or hundreds of years, these people became members of the Zhou family, and some of them were related to the Zhou family.

The family has a good bloodline, and everyone recognizes their godson. I guess this is the case for Brother Dazhu's father.

"Hello, Brother Dazhu... Oh, this is your child, why is it so small? It's so cute with a big head and a big head. Cang baby, please let your uncle hold it, and he will give you sweets."

This child reminded Zhou Yi of Xiao Zizi. When he arrived, he temporarily entrusted Zizi to Liu Rongrong. He didn't know if this little devil would be naughty.

"Hello uncle, Cangba wants some candy."

As soon as he heard that there was candy, the boy's eyes lit up, and he threw himself into Zhou Yi's arms without caring about the baby, and kept shouting. Zhou Yi blushed, where could he get candy? But he must not do this to children.

The one who broke his promise quickly took out his wallet, took out two hundred yuan and stuffed it into Cang Wa's hand: "Uncle, give me the money, Cang Wa can go buy some candies by yourself."

Five or six-year-old children already knew that "Old Man" could be exchanged for sweets and toys. The Cangba was not stupid and shouted: "Thank you, uncle..." and then looked at Zhou Maotong and his wife.

"This kid is so funny..." Li Xiufen looked at Cang Wa, her eyes narrowed with laughter, and she also took out five hundred yuan.

"Hey, I don't dare, I don't dare...Uncle, aunt, big brother, you can't spoil your children like this."

Zhou Dazhu became anxious when he saw it, and hurriedly stopped Li Xiufen, and even snatched the money from Cang Wa's hand and gave it back to Zhou Yi, which made the child burst into tears.

"Dazhu! This is for the child, why are you following it? If you don't accept it, you will be looking down on your uncle." In the end, Zhou Maotong glared, and Zhou Dazhu accepted the money hesitantly.

After collecting the money, Zhou Dazhu smiled even more honestly. He put Zhou's father and Zhou's mother on the wheelbarrow. He pushed the wheelbarrow, and the family walked in front with their children in their arms. They chatted with Zhou Yi all the way and walked towards the village.

The closer you get to the village, the stronger the aroma of meat becomes. Zhou Yi has a master-class nose. He can tell which restaurant's meat is almost cooked, which restaurant's meat lacks seasonings, and which restaurant's cooking is the most authentic. It's said to be fragrant.

Three miles is not an exaggeration... The best taste comes from the cave dwelling at the highest point of the village.

Zhoujiadian is close to the Taihang Mountains, so the cave dwellings are built in rows. There are twenty or thirty cave dwellings at the highest point, but they are surrounded by two courtyards, both with red walls and blue tiles, two meters high.

The black gate clearly identifies the big family in the village. The aroma of braised pork from these two families can be said to overwhelm the whole village, which is better than anything else.

"Don't look at it. That is your eldest uncle's house. Next to it is your second uncle's house. They are all from your eldest uncle's family. After dinner, I will take you to visit. Whether we are on good terms or not is one thing.

, etiquette must be observed, otherwise you will be picked on by others..."

Zhou Maotong snorted. He came all the way and informed Dazhu before. Dazhu was designated to tell these two cousins, but the old man didn't move and the younger one didn't come out, which made him very sad.

It's unpleasant.

"Uncle, if you want the geese, you won't go. The geese have not been taken care of by them these years and have been bullied. The geese will not go. I advise you not to go either."

Dazhuhu said angrily: "Everyone is braised meat. In three days, we will choose three animals for the ancestor worship. The goose will be the main one with the pig's head. When the goose wins, will you still have a seat in front of the ancestors' graves? You don't have to stand far away.

See..."

It turned out that three animals were chosen for ancestor worship. No wonder everyone in the village made great efforts to prepare the braised pork. Zhou Yi looked at the big pillar and shook his head secretly. There was no need to compare. As soon as he smelled it, he knew that the braised pork in the whole village belonged to the uncle's family.

Okay, obviously they are not on the same level. But what did Brother Dazhu just say? When worshiping ancestors, dad has to stand and watch from a distance. What is the rule?

But this was just what he was thinking in his heart. Zhou Yi didn't ask carefully. He was afraid of making his father unhappy.

"Humph, that's not necessarily the case..."

Zhou Maotong was breathing heavily, and he didn't know whether he was tired or angry. Normally, Zhou Dazhu should be the one who was so tired when he was sitting on a wheelbarrow.

"Da! Goose Da is back..." (locals call dad 'Da')

Following Zhou Dazhu up a mountain ridge, the wheelbarrow stopped in front of a farmyard that was neither big nor small. Before the car could stop, seven or eight children poured out. The oldest ones were thirteen or fourteen years old, and the youngest ones were as well.

Just a little older than Cang Wa, the children gathered around the Zhou Yi family and looked at them curiously. The oldest child suddenly shouted: "It's me! Goose knows me..."

"Brother, I made you laugh. My brother was poor in his early years and married late, so he didn't have many children. Counting the Cang children, there were only nine in total..." Zhou Dazhu looked ashamed.

"Uh, nine? It's really not many..."

Zhou Yi saw a glimmer of longing in the old mother's eyes. He was immediately startled and knew that he must not continue talking about this topic, otherwise he would be in great trouble. He quickly took out a stack of 'old man's heads' and one of the children sent one, laughing.

Then he said to the eldest child: "My dear, what's your name? Can you show me your cave dwelling?"

The cave dwellings in Shanyin are called "Fairy Cave". It is said to be warm in winter and cool in summer. Even in the cold winter, the temperature can be maintained above ten degrees, and it is neither dry nor damp, which is more comfortable than living in a villa. Zhou Yi had long thought

He has learned a lot, and also to stay away from the crowd of children, so as not to be caught by his mother and educate him again, telling him the importance of continuing the family line and so on...

"Chunsheng, take your uncle there. It's time to have dinner when you get back."

Zhou Dazhu's daughter-in-law He Xiuxiu was very happy to see Zhou Yi's generous gesture. In the village, it is natural for elders to give greeting gifts to younger generations, and it is not looked down upon. Moreover, what Zhou Yi gave was just right. Except for the youngest Cang baby, one One hundred children.

"Uncle, come with Goose, I will show you the best cave dwelling in Goose's house..." Zhou Chunsheng got the benefit and immediately became intimate with Zhou Yi.

"Haha, you are fourteen this year, right? Why aren't you in school?"

"Euda said that it would be fine if he graduated from junior high school. He will go to work in the city next year..." Zhou Chunsheng was a little sad.

"Really?" Zhou Yi was stunned for a moment and touched Chun Sheng's head: "You're wrong, you should still go to school. Okay, let's leave this matter to my uncle... Is this a cave dwelling? ?Hehe, it’s really warm.”

Zhou Chunsheng's family also has four cave dwellings. The entrances of the caves protrude five feet and serve as rain eaves, and the rest are in the mountain. As soon as I walked to the door, a warm current hit my face, which made people feel very comfortable. Like the hot air blown by the air conditioner, although it is warm, it is very dry.

There are tables, beds, and some simple household appliances in the cave. Although there is no decoration, it is very clean. Zhou Yi sat in the cave for a while, smelling the unique mud fragrance of the loess, and was a little intoxicated for a while. He felt that this place was strange. , and familiar, as if I had been there many years ago.

Is this a connection with his ancestors? Zhou Yi smiled, he was not superstitious, and He Xiuxiu's shout also rang out, it was time for lunch.

When they walked into the yard, they saw that Zhou Dazhu and his wife had already set up two tables. According to the rules of the farm, Zhou Dazhu sat at one table with Zhou Yi and his family, and He Xiuxiu took the children to sit at the same table. Because Zhou Chunsheng was the eldest son, he also sat at the same table. Now that he is almost an adult, he can sit with Zhou Yi and others, and his status is higher than that of his mother.

The dishes are also very rich. In addition to a few seasonal vegetables, there is also a large plate of spicy fried chicken. Although it is not as good as the craftsmanship of famous chefs, it is better than the big pots and stoves, and the real firewood is used to cook the fire. The taste is stronger than that of ordinary restaurants; in addition, there are There are several large plates of braised pig head meat, pig trotters, pig meat, etc., all laid out on the table in a shiny manner, making people appetizing just by looking at them.

Zhou Dazhu opened a jar of home-brewed grain wine, toasted Zhou Maotong and his wife, and then came to Zhou Yi with a smile: "Brother..."

"Haha, brother Dazhu, just stop talking, I know the rules..."

Zhou Yi laughed: "You have to drink three bowls first, right? You can't eat the food until you finish drinking it?"

The children of the Three Qin Dynasties are all bold and bold men who drink hard and rage with horses. How can they do it without fighting for wine? The old man is getting older, so Zhou Yi knew that Dazhu had to fight with him for wine, so he had already made preparations.

"Ha, big brother is the one who understands, so come on!"

Zhou Dazhu placed three big black bowls in front of himself and Zhou Yi respectively, filled them with wine, and said with a smile: "Brother, come first!" After saying that, he picked up the bowl and drank up his neck.

Zhou Yi was dumbfounded. This bowl was half a catty, so he drank like this? Fortunately, it was him. If it were someone else, he wouldn't have to eat vegetables today. He would probably have to lie down directly after drinking three bowls of wine. ....

ps: Thanks to books such as "One Shot to the Sky", "Swordsman", "Super Dark Novice", "Leader of the Century", "Fifty One Stone", "The Intersection of Light and Darkness", "Recalling the Sui Dynasty" and "tx002" Friends’ monthly tickets support:)

Thanks to book friends such as "The God of Death is My Little Brother", "Guah Guah", "Qi Meng Ф Abandonment", "The Nothingness of the World", "I Love Chen Ying", "Xingyun Star", "Injured Caibaozi" and so on for their generous rewards:)

Thanks to the "Intersection of Light and Dark" brothers for the chapter:)
Chapter completed!