Datang First Chef

Chapter 103

There are many monsters in the dangerous place.

Huizhi had taught Mo Wenyuan about ghosts and monsters since he was a child, and he had also said when and where monsters would appear.And after hearing that Mo Wenyuan and others were going to leave from Jiannan Road, they grabbed them and taught them a good lesson.

"There are many monsters in wild and dangerous places." He listed: "Nanzhao, Bashu and other places, as well as along the way in the Western Regions, there are many demons who have become spirits. There are few people in that place, the Buddhist wind is not prosperous, and Taoists seldom go there, so unless you are a wandering monk , No one can eliminate the demon."

"Then how do the local people deal with themselves?" Mo Wenyuan said, "I heard that the vicious monsters eat people a lot, if there is no one able to stop them, what will the people do?"

"The folk customs in the land of Bashu are tough." Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva said, "There is a way that if you meet the strong, you will be strong, and the people are the same. Ordinary monsters can be suppressed by middle-aged men. If not, there are troops guarding this place."

He paused and said again: "I heard that the Bashu plank road is sparsely populated, the terrain is dangerous, and there are occasional rumors of travelers being in danger. I think there must be a lot of monsters entrenched there, so be careful when you go." Hui Zhi said, "No matter how bad it is. Just hide behind Master Xuanzang."

He knew Tang Xuanzang's kung fu, he was exceptionally good at fighting, and he was the best among the monks who are still walking in the world. Huizhi knew that Mo Wenyuan himself had a lot of strength, and he was followed by Taotie, but if the upper class Guaranteed, it is still Master Xuanzang.

Hey, he is really a compassionate Bodhisattva, even though he has been tortured by Taotie for so long, he is still full of protection for Mo Wenyuan.

……

The thing about going south is different from learning scriptures from the west, few people know about it, and the same is true for the monsters that haunt the plank road. When Master Zang was waiting for others, he cast a spell and suddenly appeared.

After hearing the angry "Where is the demon", although he shrank subconsciously for a while, he didn't recognize the identity of this person. On the contrary, when he saw Xuanzang's face clearly, he showed disdain: "I thought it was a walking merchant, I don't want to It's actually a white-faced monk, quickly hand over your belongings, and I won't eat people."

Mo Wenyuan: "!"

Sun Wukong: "!"

Zhu Bajie: "!"

The reactions of the people and non-humans present were very similar. They stared at the monster with strange eyes, thinking that newborn calves are not afraid of tigers. It has been many years since a monster spoke to Master like this.

The monsters who disrespected the master have already been saved!

Tang Xuanzang was calm. He tapped his Zen stick on the plank road. He did not use much strength. After hearing the words of the monster, the frightening aura around him also subsided: "From your words, it seems that you don't eat people?"

"So, it's measurable."

Don't look at him like this, he is still very willing to save the lost monster. As the saying goes, put down the butcher knife and become a Buddha immediately. Of course it doesn't matter how you survive.

The demon blocking the way seemed young, with a youthful heart. Not only did he not feel happy after hearing Tang Xuanzang's words, but he became angry from embarrassment and said, "Who...who has never eaten people!" It is made of good materials, and there must be money, so quickly hand over the money, and I will let you live."

Master Xuanzang was still unmoved: "This plank road is in a dangerous place. If there is a fight, the plank will be destroyed. Do you want to fight here?"

The demon flinched and said, "No, why don't you go out and talk about it?"

Everyone behind Tang Xuanzang almost fell on their backs: This demon is too easy to talk to!

Master Xuanzang's ascetic and cold face finally showed a trace of a smile: children can be taught.

……

Guanyin Bodhisattva is very busy.

He thought he would have more leisure time after sending Xuanzang and Mo Wenyuan away from Beijing, but he didn't know that there were more things he needed to ask about. up.

"Master is on the way to save a little tiger demon. I need the light Bodhisattva to come and show him where to go."

"Little tiger demon?" Guanyin Bodhisattva said, "But you want me to collect the corpse?" He used to clean up the mess for the master and the disciples, not to mention that Monkey King also said the word "Duohua". For Tang Xuanzang, Degreeization is physical degreeization, which is to beat the monster into flying ash in the sky. He even started to think, which god in the sky raised that monster?

There are too many gods in the heavens, and there are so many people who raise monsters, he can't count them all.

Sun Wukong was surprised and said: "How could a Bodhisattva think so, my old grandson's master is a Buddhist, and his salvation is of course a verbal teaching, first persuade him with words, so that he can devote himself to the Buddha."

"This little tiger demon is pure and kind-hearted. Even if he guards the Jiannan plank road, he has never hurt anyone. At most, he just snatched some money and kept the plank road from being damaged. Master saw him and recognized him as quite wise."

After hearing this, Guanyin Bodhisattva was shocked: rare, rare!

Tang Xuanzang didn't even physically convert demons!

……

Let’s talk about Jiannan Road, the little tiger demon was beaten up by Tang Xuanzang with his Zen stick, how could he dare to think about it, and now he is sitting sideways, crying bitterly, obviously he has been educated badly.

Master Xuanzang still didn't let him go, and recited the scriptures beside him, trying to move him with words to let him know the benefits of believing in my Buddha.

Big Black Sheep and Mo Wenyuan are packing up dinner. The land of Bashu has varied terrain and abundant ingredients. They happened to be walking on the cliffs. , fungus are included in it.

Among the companions, there were Buddhists like Master Xuanzang, but Mo Wenyuan and Shennong ate both meat and vegetables, so they had to take extra care when cooking, so that there were meat and vegetables.

Mo Wenyuan first washed the collected Hericium erinaceus. He was lucky. This kind of food is expensive even in Chang'an. Under the leadership of the big black sheep, he found a handful, which is very fresh and the quantity is very high. There are so many, he plans to make two dishes with it, one is porridge for the mage to eat, and the other is used to cook ribs.

The big black sheep looked at the little tiger spirit, and was still a little reluctant to part with it, smacked his lips, "baa baa baa baa baa" and said: "I really can't eat it?"

Mo Wenyuan had a headache and said: "He is a good monster, he has not committed the precept of killing, how can he eat?" Then he winked at Master Xuanzang, and conveyed the unfinished words with his thoughts: Master Xuanzang is with us, we should restrain ourselves Some, the demon will not eat it!

Unexpectedly, Master Xuanzang's hearing is really outstanding. He is like a little tiger spirit. He heard what Mo Wenyuan and the big black sheep said. The method of persuasion just now, the other party is still unshakable after talking so much, it is best to change the method.

His expression was cold, and his voice was even colder: "Can you hear me? If you do evil things, you will become food in his mouth."

Little Tiger Spirit:? ? ?

Then you're saving him!

……

Walking in the wild, eating food is rough, but Mo Wenyuan's cooking skills are superb, even porridge, the finished product is different from ordinary people's, it is very delicious.

For example, the Hericium erinaceus porridge he cooks now. Hericium erinaceus is an extraordinary ingredient, rare and expensive. There is a saying, "It is better to bear a thousand stones of millet than to bear Hericium erinaceus soup", which refers to its scarcity.

Ordinary people eat mushrooms and prefer grilled. Mushrooms are water-absorbing, and they are grilled together with the meat. The oil in the meat and the evaporated blood are absorbed by the mushrooms. One bite can inhale the fragrant and oily juice. , not to mention people in the Tang Dynasty who ate less meat, even modern people who eat pork casually think it tastes good.

But Hericium erinaceus is different. Its value among mushrooms is comparable to that of ambergris among fragrances, and a small piece is priceless.

However, no matter how valuable the ingredients are without proper processing, they will not be able to bloom deliciously. Compared with other meats, Hericium erinaceus, which is a mountain delicacy, is actually more difficult to handle. It has a bitter earthy taste. If it is not used properly The way to get rid of this smell will not taste good no matter how you do it.

The big black sheep lay on the ground and quietly watched Mo Wenyuan handle it. First, it was washed repeatedly with rice washing water. Hericium erinaceus absorbed water and swelled, but when the chef stretched out his hand to squeeze the juice, the squeezed juice was yellow. .

After repeating it several times, Mo Wenyuan touched the wet surface of the mushroom with his finger, then licked his finger, and finally nodded when he found that there was no bitter taste.This thing has finally been cleaned up.

Mo Wenyuan took out the wooden cutting board that he carried with him, and chopped the mushrooms first, and then only heard the sound of "咚咚咚—" "咚咚咚—" The chopping sound of vegetables, those Hericium erinaceus has become fine powder Small crumbs.

He directly put the small crumbs into the crumbling iron pot hanging on the firewood, and boiled them together with the rice grains. As it got colder, in the cold night, the burning flames below the pot and the rising warm white smoke were all Can make people feel ironed.

There are many apes in Bashu, and occasionally you can hear the ferocious cry of partridges. Even a little tiger spirit would feel uncomfortable hearing this sound in the silent night, but today I don't know what happened. , The scent of big white rice grains, he actually felt a sense of happiness from the bottom of his heart.

"Gu—" There was a long humming sound from the abdominal cavity, indicating the hunger of its owner.

Master Xuanzang glanced at the embarrassed tiger spirit, and said to Mo Wenyuan, "How is the food?"

Mo Wenyuan said: "Okay, okay, you can eat."

Hericium erinaceus porridge is just one of them. In addition, he also grilled meat. Not only did he sprinkle salt on the surface of the meat, he also brushed a layer of sauce with a small brush. Burnt, yellow, nearly transparent oil hangs from the edge of the meat, crumbling.

A bowl of thick porridge, plus a few pieces of meat and sauerkraut, is the tiger spirit's dinner. For the spirit monster, this food can only be said to be stuffed between the teeth, but he holds the bowl carefully in his hand, his eyes wide open. full of longing and adoration.

Dig a spoonful of porridge with a spoon first. The porridge is very thick. You can see plump white rice, finely chopped Hericium erinaceus and green onion foam floating on the surface of the porridge. The green and white full of vitality make people feel happy.

Put a spoonful into the mouth, the first thing you taste is the rice fragrance as the base, and then the overbearing erinaceus umami taste reverberates in your mouth with lightning speed, this taste seems to be concentrated to the extreme, leaving only the essence of chicken soup , suddenly burst on the tip of the tongue.

Chopped scallions play the role of icing on the cake, not only the color is good-looking, the fragrance is striking, but also gives people a refreshing feeling when eaten.

Take another bite of the porridge dyed yellow by the meat sauce, which is salty and meaty.

Tiger Spirit's expression became very serious, and he said to Tang Xuanzang: "If I put down the butcher knife and become a Buddha immediately, can I eat this thing every day?"

Master Xuanzang thought, eating meat is not a good thing to become a Buddha, but if it is not his own disciples, loosely speaking, it seems to be okay, as for Hericium erinaceus porridge, it must be no problem, he nodded and said: "Yes. "

Tiger essence:! ! !

……

Halfway through the meal, Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva came late, and Monkey King followed closely behind. When he smelled the porridge, he immediately took out a bowl and ate it first as a respect.

Mo Wenyuan had also seen the Bodhisattva entity before, but that was a long time ago, and when we met later, it was all in a dream, so he was quite curious at this time, saying that there are not many opportunities, so he secretly looked at it and wanted to see the appearance of the Bodhisattva Keep it in mind.

The Bodhisattva also wanted to drink porridge, but he still wanted to maintain his image in front of Mo Wenyuan, so he coughed twice and said, "Is he the tiger spirit?" He looked at the young tiger spirit who was feasting.

Where did the tiger spirit look at him, all of his mind was devoted to his job, Master Xuanzang coughed twice before raising his head to see him shuddering suddenly, which shows that the master had left a lot of psychological shadow on him.

"That's him." Tang Xuanzang said, "He has a pure heart and a tiger is an evil beast, but he has never hurt anyone, and he is very Buddha-nature." Master Xuanzang said, "I don't know if the Bodhisattva can accept him."

Guanyin Bodhisattva pondered for a while and said: "That's good, the black bear spirit is inevitably lonely in the purple bamboo forest, and it's not bad to have the tiger spirit to accompany him."

How did you know that the tiger spirit didn't respond directly to the Bodhisattva's words, but held up his rice bowl and said, "If I go with you, will I have this thing to eat every day?"

Guanyin:"……"

I don't even have food every day, why do you have it?

A bodhisattva and a tiger spirit stared at each other for a long time, but there was no result. Mo Wenyuan coughed and said, "Eating every day may not make it, but I often send offerings to the bodhisattva. If you are with him, you can do it too." food."

Guanyin:? ? ?

who said it.

Tiger Jing said: "Well, it doesn't matter if I enter Buddhism."

After the matter was over, Guanyin Bodhisattva was supposed to leave with the tiger spirit, but he didn't want to leave once he ate delicious food, and he had to eat before going on the road. Bodhisattva is a merciful person and can only wait for him.

During this period, Guanyin Bodhisattva kept winking at Mo Wenyuan, hoping to see him say something. Mo Wenyuan received the look and felt a little familiar for no reason. Mo Dalang is a good-looking person, so he immediately said: "Today, I made more porridge. Although I know this thing It's humble, but I have to ask questions with a shy face, the Bodhisattva needs to use it." The following words are all self-effacing words.

The big black sheep and Master Xuanzang's disciples all looked at Mo Wenyuan with heartbroken eyes: No way, we don't have enough to eat with this big stomach king tiger spirit, and now we have to squeeze a Guanyin Bodhisattva?

They all hated the Bodhisattva.

Hehe, who didn't see your wink?

Hearing this, Guanyin Bodhisattva nodded with satisfaction, and pretended to be reserved: "Monks don't value foreign things, even mountain dew can be eaten, let alone sweet porridge." Take out a bowl, you're welcome.

Little did they know, Mo Wenyuan opened his eyes wide when he saw Bo's appearance clearly.

Monks all use bowls for alms. The quality of the bowl is good. Many monks only have one bowl in their life. The same is true of Mo Wenyuan’s master, monk Huizhi. He has good eyesight and a careful mind. When serving porridge to the Bodhisattva, you can see more clearly when looking at the bowl.

Mo Wenyuan remained calm, and handed the bowl to Guanyin Bodhisattva. Seeing him take a sip, his brows stretched, he sighed, and suddenly asked: "How does it taste, Master Huizhi?"

Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva said casually: "Very good——"

Before he could speak, he was like a rooster whose throat was strangled by fate. He couldn't speak, so he raised his head and looked around for a while, not to mention others, even if he was as indifferent as Monkey King, he showed a look of surprise. look.

Shennong has a good relationship with Guanyin Bodhisattva, but he is not very familiar with Mo Wenyuan, so he can't feel the subtle and complicated situation at this moment, so he can only give Bodhisattva a friendly look of encouragement, and the big black sheep, which is rare from eating. With a little thought, he looked at himself, his eyes full of ridicule.

Big Black Sheep: Quack quack quack quack!Bodhisattva, you also have today.

Don't let us agree, didn't we lose the horse in the end?And the posture of falling off the horse is not good at all!

Hahahahahahahaha, stupid, stupid!

It seems that he doesn't remember the care he gave to Taotie, and the days and nights when he was harassed.

Looking back at Mo Wenyuan again, I saw that his eyes were very complicated, there was still respect, but it was a little less, and more doubts.

Master, what are you doing?

I didn't expect you to be such a master!

I never thought that you are such a bodhisattva!

Guanyin:"……"

Who did I provoke me?

……

After Tiger Spirit was taken away, nothing serious happened on the way to Annan.There are still spirits, but they are all cannibals. Naturally, the cruel Master Xuanzang will not show mercy to them, and those who should be physicalized will be physicalized. The sheep are still clamoring to eat spirits, but Xuanzang is hindered. Master Zang is here, so he doesn't act like this.

After three months of walking, they finally arrived in Annan.

At this time, the center of Annan was not called the Annan Protectorate, which was established by Tang Gaozong, and now the center of Annan is the Jiaozhou Protectorate.The handover here is taken from the meaning of Jiaozhi.

Ancient Vietnam was also known as Cochin.

In the early Tang Dynasty, the national power was strong, and the guarding of remote areas was also very effective. The rule was stable. The tax law used in Annan was called the two-tax law.

The counties and counties in Annan, in addition to the annual tribute including native products to the Tang Dynasty government, also had to pay salt tax, iron tax, jewelry tax, hemp tax, etc., and the regulations were relatively strict.

There is no such thing as giving vassals technology, agricultural products, and treasures without asking for anything in return for the sake of showing national prestige. The rulers of the Tang Dynasty did not have the good qualities of not asking for something in return.

Mo Wenyuan was quite surprised to see the endless stream of merchant trucks and boats going down the waterway, sending boxes of goods into Annan: "The commercial prosperity here is slightly inferior to that of the Western Regions, but it is not too far behind." There are many merchants, and the circulation of goods is also very large.

However, the keen Monkey King said after watching for a while: "I don't think so."

"Why did the Great Sage say that?"

"I see that there are quite a lot of merchant ships, donkeys and horses here, but they are all sent to Annan by the Tang Dynasty. It is rare to see Annan merchants transporting goods to the east."

Mo Wenyuan has done some research on this. He has been with Li Sanniang for a long time, and he is familiar with business affairs: "I have never heard of any local products in Annan, and the porcelain and tea of ​​the Tang Dynasty. Sales are booming even in the Western Regions, and I’m afraid it’s the same in Annan.”

In fact, what Mo Wenyuan said is not wrong. The land of Annan has been Sinicized for a long time, especially the local rulers and nobles, all of whom are accustomed to the living habits of the Han people. They like drinking tea and appreciating porcelain, so these objects are very popular in Annan. .

Shen Nong is a standard agronomist, and he is not very interested in business affairs, so he reminded: "When we come here, we each have something to do. It's better to disperse it after discussing it."

Mo Wenyuan nodded and said to me: "That's very good, I want to go to the market to see how the rice prices go here."

Shennong apologized: "It's hot here. It's winter, but it's warm enough to plant. I want to go to the field."

Master Xuanzang clasped his palms together and uttered Hoover's name: "Amitabha Buddha, poor monk, let's go to the temple to have a look."

The three of them looked at each other and had already made a decision. Mo Wenyuan paused for a while and said, "Do your own thing, how about seeing you here in ten days?"

Tang Xuanzang and Shennong had no objection, and nodded in agreement.

But when the personnel were allocated, something else happened. Shennong was alone, and there was no need to worry, but Tang Xuanzang had a lot of apprentices.

Even for the consideration of daily food, several people wanted to go with Mo Wenyuan.

How did he know that the big black sheep reacted violently, "baa baa baa baa" non-stop, but he just disagreed.

No, no, since you are with Master Xuanzang, why bother to walk with us, and then go with Master.

Sun Wukong had a clear mind, saw the big black sheep's resolute attitude, thoughtfully: "Sure, then I will disturb you, how about looking for something to eat?"

The big black sheep opened and closed his mouth, as if he wanted to say something, but Mo Wenyuan agreed first on his behalf: "It's okay, it's okay, as long as you come earlier."

Come early...

Sun Wukong seemed to have discovered some serious things worth discussing, and said with a serious expression: "My old grandson knows."

The delicious little idiot Zhu Bajie who followed behind him was full of doubts: What do you know?

……

There are many Jiaozhi markets, and Mo Wenyuan settled in a larger market after inquiring about it. There are not only various shops, but also restaurants and hotels here, just like a miniature version of the West Market.

There are fewer Han people in the market, and more locals from Jiaozhi. Their appearance is slightly different from that of the Han people. They are not tall, their skin is darker, and their facial features are darker.

Mo Wenyuan has a lot of experience in going out, so he knew that he needed to find a place to stay first, so he took the sheep and left. Cozhi people don't know about the big black sheep, and few people hear Mo Wenyuan's name, so they all showed doubts at this time color.

He had looked at all the hotels in Cochin, and finally chose the one he liked.

It is said to have been seen, but the house is also low and damp, but there are no cobweb entanglements, and there are no unlovable small animals such as mice, geckos, and many-legged insects.

The shopkeeper is from Jiaozhi. When he saw the sheep, he said in Chinese with a strange voice: "Guest officer, this sheep..."

Mo Wenyuan said: "I would like to add more money and let him live with me."

They asked for a room. After the sheep entered the door, it felt the fine dust particles falling on its body, and its fur exploded. It immediately cleaned the house, and then turned into a human form, showing hope to Mo Wenyuan.

"No one is there now, can we go up to the collapse hehehe..."

Walking with Master Xuanzang all the way, he will suffocate to death!