AWB Chapter 894 Girl’s Thoughts
Chapter 894 Girl’s Thoughts
When Lu Cheng got home from get off work, it was afternoon, the hottest time of the day.
Lu Cheng's family didn't have any ice to cool off, so Xiangling, Qingwen and others could only stay in the house, with the windows open, and fanning themselves with palm-leaf fans.
Seeing Lu Cheng coming back, Xiangling and Qingwen stood up and walked forward at the same time.
Xiangling saw that Lu Cheng was still holding something in his hand, so she couldn't help but ask curiously: "Brother, what did you buy? Where should I put it?"
"Put this on the table first. I'll need it later. You guys are all too hot, right? We'll make something to cool you down later. Xiangling, go ask the kitchen to cook some red beans and sweet potatoes. Cut the sweet potatoes into smaller pieces."
Afterwards, Lu Cheng found clay basins, pottery jars, porcelain pots and other containers, found a cool place, first crushed the Glauber's salt purchased from the pharmacy, then began to pour it into the basin, stirring it to dissolve.
After the Glauber's salt is dissolved in the water, the water temperature in the basin begins to drop rapidly, and the teapot placed in the basin also cools down quickly.
After the temperature dropped to a certain level, Lu Cheng found a thin quilt to provide insulation.
Xiangling and Qingwen watched Lu Cheng's operation curiously. They had never seen or even heard of making ice with saltpeter, so naturally they didn't know what Lu Cheng was doing.
Seeing pieces of ice floating on the water in the basin, Xiangling and Qingwen became excited and asked, "Is this ice?"
"If it's ice, you can tell by touching it."
Upon hearing this, Xiangling did not hesitate. She stretched out her slender hand and touched the floating ice on the water with her fingers.
Qingwen glanced at Xiangling, then at Lu Cheng, before reaching out to touch the floating ice in the water.
"Ah, it's so cool!"
"Okay, go to the kitchen and get a bowl and spoon. There's something delicious."
Xiangling stood up immediately. Qingwen did glance at Lu Cheng, a little unsure: "Master, do I... do I have it too?"
"Of course you have your share, go get the bowl."
Qingwen did not hesitate any longer. She immediately stood up and ran out, her steps becoming much lighter.
When she first came here yesterday, Qingwen was a little nervous. She didn't know what kind of person this new master was.
When she was at the Jia Mansion, Qingwen heard a lot about the ridiculous things done by the young masters in the mansion, such as Master Bao who liked to eat the rouge on the lips of maids, and Master Lian who was a playboy.
Originally, Qingwen thought that in the future she would be assigned to a master in the Jia family and be a slave for the rest of her life.
It didn't seem like he had suddenly arrived at Lu Cheng's house and had a different owner.
Lu Cheng's talent and appearance were well-known in Kyoto, and even the maids in the deep mansions had heard many rumors about him.
But there is always a difference between hearing about it and actually seeing it.
From yesterday till now, although Qingwen had only been with Lu Cheng and the people in the courtyard for a short time, she could feel the sincerity and gentleness of this gentleman's attitude towards others, and she couldn't help but feel a sense of belonging in her heart.
Soon, Qingwen and Xiangling each held a porcelain bowl in their hands, which was half filled with icy sweet potato and red bean smoothie.
The two girls carefully scooped a spoonful with a spoon and put it in their mouths. They immediately felt a cool breath flowing down their throats into their stomachs. The heat of the summer afternoon immediately dissipated a lot, and they felt comfortable all over.
After taking a bite of the smoothie, Qingwen looked steadily at Lu Cheng who was sitting in front of the window. There was only one thought in her mind: she didn't want to be resold or given away again in this life. It was enough for her to just follow this master forever.
Xiangling was eating the smoothie in her bowl, but she couldn't help but ask, "Brother, do you want to send some to Sister Lin?"
"Of course I do. I'll make some more later and prepare an insulated box to store them. I'll have Lai Wang drive the carriage to deliver them to the Duke's Mansion."
"Well, brother, I'm done. Can I have some more?"
"Of course, go and help yourself. However, you shouldn't eat too much of these cold foods, as they can easily hurt your spleen and stomach."
"Got it." Xiangling immediately called Qingwen: "Qingwen, do you want some more?"
"Thank you, Sister Xiangling. These are enough for me."
Afterwards, Lu Cheng took out some seasonal fruits from the storage space, made several fruit smoothies with different flavors, and temporarily stored them in the storage space. In the future, he could have someone send some to Daiyu every day.
Today, Lu Cheng has 400 cubic meters of storage space, which is equivalent to a five-meter-high, -square-meter large warehouse, enough to accommodate a lot of supplies.
In the past few years, when Lu Cheng had nothing to do, he would purchase some fruits and vegetables in different seasons and store them in the storage space for easy consumption.
In this era without vegetable greenhouses, current planting conditions, and lack of refrigeration technology, out-of-season fruits and vegetables are also very expensive.
Moreover, such a huge storage space has many other wonderful uses. If it is all used to transport food, coupled with the blessing of the aircraft in the cross-border space, Lu Cheng can even be responsible for the food consumption of 100,000 troops alone.
Before the troops move, the food and fodder must be sent first. In ancient wars, the consumption and transportation of food was also a big problem. Once an army was cut off from food and lost its logistical supplies, it would soon collapse without a fight.
On the contrary, if an army does not need to consider logistical supplies, it can complete more incredible combat missions with its super high mobility.
Whether it is used for marching and fighting, or for making a fortune, this storage space can create endless possibilities. It is definitely a cheat among cheats.
As evening approached, the temperature finally dropped slowly.
In the back house of Rongguo Mansion, Daiyu had just finished copying the "Preface to the Lanting Poems" when she saw Xiangling walking in holding a wooden box.
"Sister Xiangling, why did you bring such a big box?"
"This is a summer dessert that my brother made for Sister Lin. Why don't you come and try it..."
At night, in the Lu family study.
Xiangling was grinding ink on one side, Qingwen was lighting a lamp on the other side, and Lu Cheng was writing furiously, scribbling down a story on sheets of paper.
Xiangling finished grinding the ink and couldn't help picking up the first page of the manuscript to start reading. The opening line read:
Five generations have been in chaos, and once the clouds clear, they will see the sky again.
The vegetation is covered with new rain and dew for a hundred years, and the carriages and books are covered with old mountains and rivers for thousands of miles...
Afterwards, Xiangling was attracted by the story on the paper and couldn't help but read it carefully.
Qingwen, who was illiterate, saw Xiangling was so engrossed in reading that she couldn't help but come up to her and ask in a low voice, "Sister Xiangling, what's written on it?"
"This is a story from a Chinese opera. It seems to be about Bao Qingtian from the Song Dynasty."
Indeed, what Lu Cheng wrote was the "Three Heroes and Five Gallants" which was widely circulated in later generations.
This story describes the period of Emperor Renzong of the Northern Song Dynasty, when Bao Zheng, with the help of many benevolent and ambitious people, tried strange cases and redressed unjust imprisonment, as well as the story of many chivalrous men who eliminated violence and protected the good and performed heroic deeds.
The central idea of this story is to be loyal to the emperor and serve the country, and the greatest heroes serve the country and the people. There is nothing wrong with writing it in this era.
Moreover, Lu Cheng also polished the novel specifically according to the situation at that time, avoiding some sensitive and ironic plots, adding some twists and turns and legendary elements to the story, making the whole novel easier to spread.
This was the era when novels were popular, and there were many legendary stories among the people, which were even told by storytellers and spread far and wide.
Seeing that Qingwen could not read, Xiangling kindly read it to her.
In order to increase the readability of the story and facilitate its circulation, Lu Cheng deliberately wrote it in a simple and easy-to-understand manner and reduced many allusions so that Qingwen could understand it.
Writing a story is not like writing for an imperial examination, and there is no need to worry about the font. Lu Cheng just wrote in regular script, his pen moving quickly but not chaotically. Before he knew it, he had finished the first three chapters, which contained nearly 20,000 words.
Of course, the brush was worn out and a lot of paper was wasted. If it were an ordinary scholar, his wrist would probably be worn out after writing so many words.
Lu Cheng put down his brush, looked at Qingwen who was carefully drying the paper, and said casually: "Qingwen, when you finish your work, you can learn to read and write from Xiangling."
Qingwen was also stunned, a little bit unbelievable: "Master, can I...can I also learn to read?"
"Why not? Learn some characters and read some books, and you will understand more about things in the future. Also, when Xiangling is doing the standing posture in the future, you should follow her and learn from her."
After that, Lu Cheng looked at Xiangling again and said, "Xiangling, ask the kitchen to give Qingwen extra meals from now on. One bowl of egg custard every day. Pay attention to the combination of meat and vegetables. It's the time for her to grow, so she can't be hungry."
Xiangling smiled and nodded in agreement: "No problem, I've been thinking about it for a long time."
For some reason, Qingwen suddenly felt her nose sour. It was the first time she felt the warmth of home since she was sold by her family at the age of ten.
Her heart was surging, and Qingwen lowered her head quickly, not wanting Lu Cheng and Xiangling to see the moisture in her eyes: "Master, I'll go get you some water to wash your feet..."