amaotonovel Chapter 155 Gagazi Stewed Pork Ribs Forum
Chapter 155 Gagazi Stewed Pork Ribs Forum
Xiao Si always manages to add a special sense of ritual to daily life.
Whenever she gazes at the reeds on the shore of Dongting Lake, a longing for the vast meadows of her hometown in Northeast China wells up in her heart, and she remembers the time when she was Wu Zetian's "daughter" An Ding Si.
At that time, she and her brother Qiu Rongmu were by a puddle near the meadow, where they stuck branches in the ground and used large bird traps to hold the insects in place.
Then it was carefully covered with soil.
On one occasion, Xiao Si and his brother caught more than a dozen birds in one morning, breaking their previous record.
At that time, there were swallow nests under the eaves of several houses in Ninth Master's house. When spring came, the swallows would fly back from the south.
Back then, whenever they passed a lake, they would buy some fish that the fishermen had just caught; the fish meat was tender.
Xiao Si remembers a lake in his hometown where his older brother, Mu Tou, used to winter swim. It was formed by the confluence of the Nenjiang River, Songhua River, Taoer River, and Huolin River, and of course, there was also divine rain from the sky.
The lake water there is alkaline, which naturally purifies the water and removes impurities.
Little Si often asked Brother Mu to scoop up some aquatic plants from the bottom of the lake and bring them home to keep in the water tank.
In fact, these aquatic plants are food for those large, plump fish, and are rich in various microorganisms and nutrients.
Iron pot stewed big fish is a dish that not only has a long history, but also carries a mysterious color of traveling through time.
It's all because our Zhen Xiaosi accidentally traveled back to the Tang Dynasty and came to the shores of Chagan Lake hand in hand with Qiu Rongmu.
There, she witnessed firsthand how Brother Wood lit a roaring fire with a stick, then poured lard, special Northeastern soybean paste, pork skin, five-spice powder, and the aroma of scallions, ginger, and garlic all into the pot.
After simmering for an hour, the big fish in the pot seemed to be saying, "Come on, sprinkle on some cilantro and chopped green onions, and let me become a legend on your taste buds!"
Now, Jiedushi Yu Zhanmo, with Xiao Si, has returned to his youth, only to find that his pockets are emptier than his face.
However, Lady Luck seems to be particularly kind to Xiao Si, because they have encountered Li Bai's parallel universe incarnation again—"Quyoujiu, the Wine of Dispelling Sorrow"—oh dear, let's just call him Brother Xiao Jiu.
This young man is practically a carbon copy of Li Bai—unrestrained and carefree, spending money like water, as if to say:
"What are land deeds and property? Come, let us raise our cups to the bright moon, and together we three will be there!"
Scene change: Forum on stewed pork ribs with gagazi.
Beside a large, steaming pot.
Xiao Si (raises his glass and clears his throat):
"Ahem, thank you all for attending this year's Ga Ya Zi Stewed Pork Ribs Forum. The theme is—'Why did the Fubing System (a military system) fail? What happened to the Equal-Field System? And how did eunuch supervisors of the army emerge?'"
Now, please welcome our three special guests: historian Qu Youjiu, junior officer Yu Zhanmo, and the mysterious eunuch brother Zi'an. Let's get started!
"Who is Zi'an?" Yu Zhanmo asked.
“I thought I’d definitely meet him this time, since he was my little follower before… haha, let’s just pretend he’s here…” Xiao Si pointed to the cloth tiger on the stool.
Qu Youjiu (puts down his chopsticks and sits up straight):
"Alright, let's talk about the equal-field system first. This thing is like the foundation of a house. The Fubing system (a system of military garrisons) relied entirely on it for support. Later, the foundation collapsed, which means that the equal-field system was distorted and robbed by landlords—the land all went to the rich and powerful!"
"The common people have no land to cultivate, no houses to live in, and can't even afford to eat. How can the country expect them to fight on the front lines? If the source of soldiers dries up, the militia system will naturally collapse. Isn't that right?"
Little Si (with a fishbone in its mouth, waving its hand):
“I agree with that! Before the equal-field system caused any problems, when my brother Mu’s village blew the horn, all the young men would line up with hoes to sign up. And then what happened?”
Everyone's fled to the provincial capital to work. My brother Mu, even with his hoarse voice, can't summon a single mouse. Without soldiers, what's the point of fighting?
Yu Zhanmo, who never smiled (sipped his soup, shook his head), also spoke:
"Xiao Si, don't rely entirely on the equal-field system! The imperial court also has its own responsibility. It can't even keep the household registration stable. The population is moving around like a kite with a broken string. How can it implement the Fubing system?"
If the imperial court's ability to manage the population declines, how can it collect military service?
Once the nomadic cavalry from the border arrive, they'll be as fast as lightning. How can our garrison troops possibly catch up?
Besides, the training of those northern cavalry and local militia was simply not enough to keep up with the pace.
Out of necessity, the imperial court began recruiting professional soldiers and providing them with specialized training—thus, the conscription system was born.
Qu Youjiu (nods):
"That's how it is. After the Kaiyuan era, the army relied entirely on a conscription system. Anyone who wanted to join the army could sign up, and the court paid their wages and provided rations. But the problem was that these soldiers became increasingly close to the local generals, and gradually they all became 'brothers.' That's how the separatist warlord system started."
Yu Zhanmo (puts down his chopsticks and smiles bitterly):
"Yes! Let alone the powerful military governors at that time, he was practically my father! Even as a military governor used to plug holes, which of my soldiers doesn't call me 'godfather'?"
Later, when the imperial court said they were to be dismissed, they were visibly unhappy, even more so than if they could see a stewed pork ribs but couldn't eat it!
Little Si (patting her belly, then changing her tone):
"Let me speak on behalf of Brother Zian! Uh, it's because those local military leaders like An Lushan went too far that the court had no choice but to send eunuchs like us out of retirement! The job of military supervisor is basically to keep an eye on you so that you don't cause trouble one day."
Qu Youjiu (slams his hand on the table):
"Keep an eye on them, and you yourselves will become the leaders! Deposing emperors, installing emperors... turning the court into chaos. What's this called? The mantis stalks the cicada, while the eunuchs stalk it from behind!"
Xiao Si continued speaking on behalf of Zi An (raising her chin dismissively):
"Hehe, don't be so absolute. We were 'forced by circumstances.' Without us keeping an eye on things, would the separatist regimes have been resolved so quickly? Hahaha, what do you call that? Circumstances create heroes!"
Besides, we were forced into this position; what could we do? We've got too many responsibilities; if we don't take the blame, who will?
Qu Youjiu (raises his glass):
"Alright, alright! Experts, the soup will be gone in no time. Who cares who takes the blame? History has already simmered this pot of ribs into what it is today. Let's eat our wide noodles first, then we can talk about the next topic, shall we?"
Yu Zhanmo talked more and more, and they became quite familiar with each other:
"Yes, after the Kaiyuan era, the entire army was converted to a conscription system. Anyone who wanted to join could sign up, and the pay was quite high. However, a problem arose: the army became localized, and the relationship between generals and soldiers became extremely close. As the fighting progressed, they stopped wanting to listen to the imperial court. This led to the separatist rule of regional warlords."
Xiao Si continues to play the role of Brother Zi An:
"Everyone knows that the court wants to transfer them to other places because they are afraid that the court will cause trouble if they are too united."
So, that's where we eunuchs came in! The court, seeing that you local military leaders were disobedient, simply sent us to supervise the troops. And before long, even the emperor had to listen to us!
Yu Zhanmo clasped his hands in a fist salute:
"Hero, don't be so smug! This is the second time in Chinese history that eunuchs have held power. They have too much power, and what was the result? They even dared to depose and install emperors. The court is almost falling apart because of you."
Qu Youjiu (stands up, raises his wine glass, and waves his hand):
"Alright, alright, it seems no one wants to take the blame! But in the end, the destruction of the Fubing system and the Juntian system was ultimately due to the uncontrolled population movement in the Tang Dynasty and the court's inadequate management of household registration."
(He paused and glanced at the crowd) The later conscription system became localized, resulting in the separatist warlordism of the regional military governors, which snowballed and grew larger and larger, eventually "pushing" eunuch supervisors to the historical stage.
Xiao Si interjected, "It's like when I'm skiing. I'm sliding downhill so smoothly that I can't stop."
(Little Nine clapped his hands and continued to summarize)
"That concludes today's discussion! Thank you all for 'speaking with chopsticks' and 'clapping with your lips.' We've truly made this a new chapter in the history of our 'Gagazi Stewed Pork Ribs'!"
(As he spoke, he gripped his chopsticks tightly, looked up at the sky, and sighed.)
"I'll go write a poem in a bit. If I could live my life again, I, Qu Youjiu, would still prefer to be Li Bai! Drinking and writing poetry, living a carefree life in the martial world, how wonderful! Politics and power struggles? I'd rather not touch them, they're really boring—either you're taking the blame or you get blamed."
Yu Zhanmo doesn't talk much, but he loves to deliver the finishing touch (sucking on a fishbone and adding quietly):
"Indeed, it's not as fragrant as a chestnut!"