Chapter 213: The Feast of the Gourd 1

A large square formation arranged by ten thousand cavalrymen, the outermost 10,000 cavalrymen were heavy armored cavalry. They were wearing plate armor, and even the horses were covered with thin armor, and rumbled past the reviewing stand. Zichan observed carefully on the high reviewing stand: this large square formation of ten thousand cavalry seemed to be composed of concentric circles, the outermost layer was heavy armored cavalry, and the inner layer was replaced with light armor. Inside, the weapons in their hands were replaced with spears to short bows and sabers. The soldiers in this circle were clearly layered, and the settings of weapons and armor were obviously different from each other.

Therefore, the entire Wanqi Square formation was like a blooming chrysanthemum, and the center of the flower was a military flag and a command chariot.

Zichan thought for a long time and couldn't think of how this cavalry should fight. He turned his head and looked at Yan Ying and asked, "The people of Qi had been raided by cavalry. What was the scene of that battle?"

Yan Ying shook his head: "I am not good at military affairs. That time, Zhao Wu besieged us with cavalry, but it seems that the cavalry did not exert its power... However, judging from some of the content I heard from, Zhao's cavalry tactics are developing rapidly, and they mature every time they are used. This time, Zhao Wu directly abandoned the chariots. It is believed that the cavalry tactics have taken shape. But I can't speculate on how they fight with the chariots."

Zichan smiled and said with confidence: "Maybe everyone in the world will see it soon."

Yan Ying asked softly: "How long will the battle between Jin and Chu break out?"

Zichan chuckled: "This year is no longer possible. The king is going to get married, and Jin State has just overcome the famine, so this military parade has a heavy impact on the southern countries. I guess that the real outbreak of war should at least be next year."

It is the end of the year. The "next year" that Yan Ying mentioned is not the second year of turning around. What he meant was that: Jin, Chu and Wu were fighting again, and both sides needed a whole year to prepare.

Yan Ying whispered: "I just got a piece of news that the Jin State went to Qin State for employment and Cheng Zheng died on the way. Does this mean that Jin State wants to replace the six ministers again?"

Zichan smiled and asked back, "You said?"

Yan Ying replied: "Wuzi carefully cultivated the orphans of Zhi's family for many years, and it's Zhiying's turn to take office."

After Yan Ying and Ji Zha discussed this, they had lost interest in continuing to watch the powerful soldiers of Jin. No matter how strong the military affairs of Jin are, what does it have to do with them? Anyway, these two people don’t want to compete with Jin for the overlord.

So the two of them gathered aside and talked about the music they were enjoying, and the chat was very enthusiastic.

The Jin army passed the reviewing stand, perhaps the continuous visual impact made the princes of various countries lose their sense of shock. When the only regular soldier of Jin State, the Wuwei Army, came on the stage, no one cared about what the Wuwei Army looked like...

That night, the princes rested in Hulao City. There were three huge copper furnaces placed in the hall of Hulao City. These three copper furnaces were new wall-mounted ovens invented by Zhao. It was actually a stove with the outer ring a copper grid ventilated everywhere, and the inner ring was a fully enclosed oven. The charcoal fire was burning under the furnace. Due to the effect of the outer ring grid, although the three huge ovens were mounted in the hall, everyone did not feel any fireworks.

This is the official banquet after the League. At this banquet, the ruling country of the overlord will present a "stolen gift" to all the princes. Three animals were roasted in three ovens. Most of the three animals in the Spring and Autumn Period were strange animals that cannot be described in modern society. Perhaps the names of animals were different in ancient times. Anyway, Zhao Wu didn't even understand what those animals were called.

Therefore, Zhao Wu decided not to fully comply with the Zhou Li's regulations to cut prey. The three ovens were roasting sika deer, dragon, and wild boar respectively.

The "dragon" mentioned in the Spring and Autumn Period is actually a crocodile.

In the main hall of the military parade, there are also some special points to whoever sits in which seat. The overlord, Duke Ping of Jin, is "Bojun (Bo of Fang Bo, not of Earl's Bo)". He sat at the top, and Duke Shan Jing of the King of Zhou's family tomb (prime minister) sat side by side with him. The princes of the state of various countries sat on the right, and the nobles of Jin were divided on the left side of the hall. Among the princes of various countries, the king of Lu, the king of Song, was the duke with the highest title, sat on the first and second seats below, and the king of Zheng (the count) sat in the third position. Next is the king of Wei (marquis, defending the northern Rong people for the Zhou royal family), and the king of Qi (marquis, defending the Zhou royal family for the Zhou royal family).

There are also some considerations for seating in this way. The monarchs of Lu and Song were dukes, and the monarchs of Zheng were earls. However, Zheng was the "first overlord of the Spring and Autumn Period" and the earliest "Fang Bo" - "Book of Rites. Kings" records: "Fang Bo was set up thousands of miles away." Fang Bo was the leader among the ancient princes, who was the leader of one side and the eldest of the princes.

So he, the Count, sat next to the two dukes. Although Duke Xian of Wei was a marquis, his status had declined a lot recently, so he had to sit behind the king of Zheng.

The king of Qi was also a marquis. Although the country was large and he destroyed several countries, he still had to sit under the shoulders of Duke Xian of Wei, who was not favored by the people of Jin. There was no way, compared with the king of Wei, the marquis of Jiang's clan was slightly lower than that of this.

There is no seat for Zhao Wu among the Dukes and Ministers of Jin. This is because Zhao Wu is the host of the Menghui, and all the etiquettes in the Menghui will be completed by him.

In the hall, the fire in the cauldron was burning, mixed with many spices to bake the prey, emitting a scent. The chef (the chef) came forward from time to time to uncover the door of the furnace. As the door opened, people could see the red furnace wall and the golden prey.

From the king of Lu, the princes of various countries toasted and sang the grand event. After a while, the Ku Ding extinguished the fire. Several people worked together to carefully remove the baked prey with a huge fork, and then placed the roasted prey in three huge trays.

The ruling uncle of Lu State, Sun Bao, stood up to chant a poem, and presented a sharp sword with both hands. This sword was not produced by Lu State, but was still carefully forged by Zhao. Shusun Bao offered his sword and started the ceremony of cutting and offering. Zhao Wu picked up the sword and cut a symbolic knife on the deer's head. Then, Ku Ding stepped forward and began to dismember the deer. The deer head and the deer's neck were neatly placed on the tray, and some fruits were decorated next to it. Zhao Wu held up the tray with one hand and presented the deer head to the monarch. Then he took the venison meat dismembered by Ku Ding and distributed it to the tables of the monarchs.

The kings of all countries accepted Zhao Wu's cedes and chanted different poems to thank Jin for their gifts. Both sides sang rewards to each other. If they met poems that they both admired, the hall would also play music to celebrate. The above rituals were all carried out after killing animals, making a vow to heaven, making a vow, and then burying sacrifices (cattle and sheep for sacrifices) and letters of the alliance. After the complicated covenant, the vow was buried underground, and everyone should enjoy their desire to be able to enjoy their mouths. Zhao Wu, who presided over the ceremony, personally handed over the three baked livestock one by one. Soon, the Jinping desk was filled with three huge beasts, and his little face could hardly be seen standing under the hall.

As the overlord, Duke Ping of Jin could only enjoy the flesh on his head. However, during the Spring and Autumn Period, he believed that the meat on his buttocks and legs were the most exquisite. Now the exquisite meat was shared by the princes of all countries. Therefore, Duke Ping of Jin, who was sitting in the head, looked at the three beast heads lonely on his table with a bitter face.

In fact, he should be content with being able to enjoy the beast-headed meat. At this time, Zhao Wu didn't even have a mouthful of food, but he just drank a lot of wine.

Perhaps, is this the so-called Chinese food culture? It has a long history, perhaps, even the Spring and Autumn Period is not its beginning. If we really want to pursue its origin, we can probably reach the clan society of the Stone Age.

The princes of various countries shared the flesh of the three wild beasts with the Zhengqing of Jin. Although these three wild beasts were very large, they could not resist the large number of people. Therefore, people with insufficient levels were only given a small handful of shredded meat. As for the nobles and officials under the princes, they were like Zhao Wu, and they could not share any food at all.

At this time, Ji Zha's eyes were green, and he was about to jump out and pick out the problem, accusing the three animals used in the Manghui for not complying with the rules (the dragon is not a sacrificial product). He heard his uncle Sun Bao stretching his neck and swallowing frequently while saying, "I have already smelled the aroma of roast duck. Perhaps, the famous 'pie cake roast duck' is almost ready."

Sure enough, as soon as Shu Sun Bao finished speaking, more than a hundred cooks held a small tray in their hands and walked into the hall with small steps. They placed a roast duck with scorched skin in front of each person. Then, teams of maids held a chessboard in their hands, which were filled with various small plates and a large stack of "thin paper" - this was a thin pancake like paper.

Zichan was not polite, he poked his uncle Sun Bao and asked, "I heard that you lived in Zhao Wuzi's mansion and knew how to taste this kind of duck. Please start first and set an example for us."
Chapter completed!