Chapter 162: Lunchtime Ideal
Xiao Qiao pouted her little mouth and dawdled before sitting down. “What’s wrong again? Are you going to lecture me again?”
“I’m not lecturing you. We’ve been with the general for over two years now. You know he’ll eventually be your husband, but you can’t just play around all day without end. Tell me, what can you do? Needlework? You can’t do needlework. Virtuous? You’re not virtuous. Literary talent? Your literary talent is even worse. Your writing looks like tadpoles. All you have left is a pretty face. Isn’t that right?”
“A pretty face is enough! Doesn’t Gan Lang like my face?”
“You—”
Da Qiao had a headache. “Don’t always think about that. In the future, when you have children, you’ll need to manage the household and raise the children. Your husband might not need managing, but what will you use to raise the children?”
“I’ve thought about it. I’ll give birth to a daughter. I’ll dress her up prettily every day, in the same dress as me—”
“A Yu, can you be serious?” Da Qiao was a bit unhappy.
Seeing her older sister’s gloomy expression, Xiao Qiao quickly stepped forward, hugged her older sister’s arm, and shook it. “Alright! Older Sister, don’t be angry. I really don’t like studying. I really don’t!”
Da Qiao sighed. “If you really don’t like studying, Older Sister won’t force you. But you can’t run out all day. You can find something you like to do. Learn from Yun Qing. She plants flowers, does fortune-telling, plays the qin, paints— all things she likes. Her life is very fulfilling. As long as you don’t run out all day, whatever you want to learn, Older Sister will help you.”
“Really?”
“Of course it’s real. Would Older Sister lie to you?”
Xiao Qiao thought for a moment. “A few days ago at the rouge shop, I saw some young ladies making rouge. I’m really interested. How about I tinker with making rouge at home!”
Da Qiao didn’t know much about rouge, so she could only smile. “When Husband returns, I’ll ask him.”
At dusk, Gan Ning returned to the manor. The family sat together for dinner.
Da Qiao mentioned Xiao Qiao’s interest in making rouge.
Gan Ning smiled and asked Xiao Qiao, “Do you want to open a rouge shop?”
Xiao Qiao was a bit embarrassed. “Not really! I just want to learn to make rouge, but—”
“But what?”
Xiao Qiao smiled guiltily, looking embarrassed. “Actually, I realized I don’t really like making rouge that much.”
“A Yu!”
Da Qiao was a bit unhappy. “What did you say this afternoon? You said you liked making rouge.”
Xiao Qiao lowered her head and muttered softly, “Wasn’t that just to comfort you? Who knew you’d take it seriously.”
Gan Ning smiled faintly. “A Yu, let me find something for you to do!”
“What?”
“You’ll be in charge of brewing tea for me, starting from selecting tea cakes— how to pick them, how to break them, how to grind them, what water to use, what heat— there’s a lot of knowledge in this. Once you learn to brew tea, I’ll be able to drink good tea from now on.”
Xiao Qiao’s eyes lit up. “Really? Then who do I learn from?”
“The female owner of the tea house, Wu Sanniang, is a tea ceremony expert. I’ll have her come teach you.”
“Great!”
Xiao Qiao excitedly clapped her hands. “Can we invite her tomorrow? I can’t wait. Or I could go to her place to learn!”
Xu Wei smiled with pursed lips on the side. Da Qiao turned and asked her, “What do you see?”
Xu Wei smiled. “It doesn’t matter what she likes to do. The key is who she’s doing it for!”
Da Qiao suddenly understood. No wonder her younger sister liked brewing tea so much— it was for her husband. This girl couldn’t do anything else, but she sure knew how to please her own husband.
At night, Da Qiao nestled in her husband’s arms. “It’s already July now. Has Husband thought about taking Xiao Qiao or Yun Qing into your chamber?”
Gan Ning shook his head. “To me, those two are still children. I have no intention of taking them into my chamber.”
“Yun Qing is fine! A Yu is like a child, but Yun Qing is quite sensible.”
Gan Ning still shook his head. “Xu Wei’s situation is more complicated. I don’t want her to have regrets. Besides, she still looks quite slender and is still developing. Let’s wait another two years!”
Gan Ning just couldn’t get past that hurdle in his heart. Those two young ladies looked like first- or second-year middle school girls, while Da Qiao was basically mature in both mind and body, so he could accept her.
“Husband, I really want to have a child. Doctor Liu also said I can have children now.” Da Qiao hugged her husband’s neck and whispered.
Gan Ning kissed her and smiled. “Let’s go with the flow. It’ll happen when it’s time.”
“How about we go with the flow one more time?” Da Qiao smiled coyly and gently twisted her body.
“You woman, you’re like a slow burn, but I like it!”
Gan Ning was utterly enamored with this peerless beauty of a wife. He once again bravely set to work.
The next morning, as soon as Gan Ning arrived at the official residence, Lu Xun reported to him, “Strategist Lu came once. He said Liu Biao sent someone for negotiations. The strategist said he’d meet with the other side first and then report in detail to the general.”
Gan Ning nodded. “Who came from Liu Biao’s side?”
“It’s Pang Shanmin, Strategist Pang’s cousin!”
“I understand!”
Gan Ning thought of something and asked, “Any news from your family?”
Lu Xun was silent for a moment. “The family has expelled me from the ancestral hall. I’m not allowed to participate in ancestor worship anymore. Grandfather doesn’t acknowledge me as his grandson.”
“Is this real? Or is it your family’s strategy?” Gan Ning asked again.
Lu Xun sighed. “It’s a strategy. We agreed on it before I came, but actually being expelled from the ancestral hall still feels bad.”
Gan Ning nodded. “I understand your feelings. I believe one day, you’ll be grandly welcomed back by the Lu Family.”
“Thank you, General. I also look forward to that day coming soon.”
At noon, Ma Liang brought a food box to Gan Ning’s desk. “This is pastries Madam sent for the general!”
Han Dynasty custom was not to eat lunch, but Gan Ning could never get used to it. He always had to eat something at noon to fill his stomach, or he couldn’t stand it. Even on marches or campaigns, he’d gnaw on a dry biscuit and drink some water at noon.
Da Qiao knew her husband’s habit, so every day at noon, she’d have a female guard send a box of pastries. But what the box actually contained were her husband’s favorite baked meat pies— two thick, steaming hot baked meat pies. Paired with a cup of hot tea, it filled the hunger in his stomach.
Gan Ning nodded. Soon, the tea boy brought a pot of hot tea and then left.
Gan Ning opened the food box, smelled the fragrant meat pie, picked up a piece, and started eating. Just as he was halfway through, Lu Su arrived.
Lu Su was startled and quickly said, “General, eat slowly. I’ll come back later!”
“It’s fine. Come in!”
Gan Ning put down the pie, covered the box, wiped his mouth with a cloth, and said a bit embarrassedly, “By noon, my stomach gets so hungry I can’t stand it. I have to eat something to pad it.”
Lu Su also smiled. “Actually, this subordinate is the same. I secretly eat two pastries at noon too.”
“Then why not promote eating lunch?” Gan Ning asked.
Lu Su sighed. “Grain doesn’t allow it! If grain production becomes abundant in the future, perhaps the habit of eating lunch will gradually form. But not now. Everyone can only eat two pastries at noon. We can’t form a lunch-eating custom, or it would be unfair to the common citizens at the bottom.”
“You’re right! The key is still not enough grain.”
Gan Ning understood why the habit of eating lunch only gradually emerged after the Tang and Song dynasties. The key was the large-scale development of the south, especially introducing high-quality rice seeds like Zhan Cheng Rice, and greatly increased grain yields per mu. The Tang dynasty’s grain yield per mu was double that of the Han Dynasty.
Gan Ning sighed. “One of my lifelong goals is to make it so everyone can eat lunch.”
Lu Su nodded. “If that day comes, it will truly be the fortune of all under heaven!”
Gan Ning waved his hand with a smile. “Let’s talk business. Is the strategist here about the Jingzhou negotiations?”
Lu Su quickly said, “This subordinate has talked with Pang Shanmin. In this negotiation, Liu Biao’s posture is quite low. His only request is to hope that the soldiers who want to go home can be released. Of course, they’re willing to provide compensation.”
Gan Ning was of course concerned about the ransom and quickly asked, “What about the compensation?”
“They’re willing to compensate twenty shi of grain per person, or a one-time payment of 300,000 shi of grain.”
