Chapter 44 Ice Cream
After hearing Zhu San's unreasonable request, Zhu Hao was secretly delighted... The more you ask for, the more likely it is that I will bring your brother with me.
"Three cents a rabbit? Do you think I can always find rabbits by chance? I've been in the palace recently, and it's not easy to find rabbits outside the city."
Zhu Hao was embarrassed at first, but when he saw Zhu San's disappointed face, he added, "But I can think of a solution later. Why don't you come back tomorrow? I'll prepare the iced sour plum soup and the revolving lantern."
Zhu Sanxi smiled happily: "It's a deal."
After a brief discussion, although there is no certainty whether she will be able to find an opportunity to come out in the future, at least a normal communication channel has been established.
Soon Zhu San said goodbye, muttering, "I can only sneak out at noon when the master is not here. It would be terrible if I was discovered."
Zhu Hao deliberately said: "Why don't you bring your brother here tomorrow..."
"That's hard to say. He has been under strict surveillance recently. A Bing and I have tried to play with him several times but were not allowed." Zhu San did not hide anything and told the Prince Xing's Mansion how much importance they attached to Zhu Houcong.
Perhaps realizing that Prince Xing was being closely watched by the court, especially the royal family, the palace consciously strengthened security for Zhu Houcong.
"If he doesn't come, there will be a lot of fun things I can't give you, so whatever..."
Zhu Hao deliberately did not explain the situation clearly, and Zhu San was indeed interested. She really wanted to know what kind of good thing it was that required her brother to come.
…
…
Zhu San was eight years old, Zhu Hao was seven years old, and Lu Bing was four years old.
Where do such cunning and grudges come from in a group of little kids?
New and interesting things are more important than anything else!
The next day at noon, Zhu Hao prepared everything, but Zhu San arrived late when the sun was setting. This time he did not bring Lu Bing, and his younger brother Zhu Houcong was following him.
"Are you two brothers really here?"
Zhu Hao's eyes widened, showing surprise.
Zhu Houcong, looking terrified, quickly ran in, then turned around and pointed at the door to Zhu San who was walking slowly towards him.
Zhu San angrily scolded: "No one followed you, look how scared you are? It was fine to go out and play in the past. This place is still the territory of the palace. What are you afraid of?"
Zhu Houcong looked frustrated: "Third brother, I usually don't have the chance to sneak out, this time I had to let Xiao Luzi pretend that I was sleeping in the quilt, so I got what I wanted... Oh, by the way, Zhu Hao, didn't you say you wanted to catch a rabbit? Where is the rabbit?"
When the little guy arrived, the thing he cared about most was the rabbit.
Zhu San said first: "There is no rabbit. He said he would find a way to get it later. He didn't say he would have it today."
"ah!?"
Zhu Houcong suddenly felt cheated.
Zhu San looked very proud, as if teasing his younger brother was a very fun thing.
Zhu Hao smiled and said, "You guys came at the right time. I just made a bowl of ice cream. Would you like to try it?"
"What's ice cream?"
The brother and sister looked at each other, both with confused expressions.
"You'll find out once you get in."
…
…
Zhu Hao walked in front and led the brother and sister into the room. On the eight-immortals table in the middle was the ice cream that Zhu Hao made using the saltpeter ice-making method.
No one makes butter these days.
Zhu Hao used a mixture of egg white, salt, vinegar and sugar, stirred it vigorously to make cream, added it to crushed ice, and then added some sugar and fruit juice to make an ice cream that was unique in this era.
Although this thing doesn't taste as delicious as the ice cream produced in factories in later generations, as long as it is sweet and cool enough, it is a great way to cool off and quench your thirst.
For the Zhu siblings, this is probably a delicacy that cannot be compared with any other food in the world.
"tasty!"
Zhu Si was not on guard at all. He rushed forward, picked up the bowl, tasted it with a spoon, his eyes lit up, and then he started eating in big mouthfuls.
Zhu San wanted to issue a warning.
Her father once said that we should not eat anything from outside casually, so as an older sister, she had to take the responsibility of supervision. However, seeing that her brother had already started eating, it would seem too disadvantageous if she did not eat, so she quickly went over and used another spoon to scoop the crushed cream in the bowl into her mouth.
Soon, the ice cream made by Zhu Hao was eaten up by the siblings.
"Anything else?"
Zhu San and Zhu Si had cream crumbs on the corners of their mouths and they looked at Zhu Hao with longing eyes like resentful women.
Looking at the empty porcelain bowl, Zhu Hao frowned: "You two are too rude, aren't you? I made it and only ate one bite myself, so I wanted to ask you to come in and try it, but you ate it all up for me?"
Zhu San wiped his mouth with the corner of his sleeve and said, "What's the big deal? Food is made to be eaten by people... Uh."
Having said that, he burped.
"Third brother, it is indeed inappropriate for us to do this...why don't we give him something, that would be fair?" Zhu Si cared a lot about his face and didn't want to take advantage of others.
Zhu San scolded, "Are you stupid? He lives in the palace now, eats our food, wears our clothes, and uses our things. What's wrong with making us a bowl of... ice cream? Hey, Zhu Hao, hurry up and make some more. We haven't had enough."
Zhu Hao was unhappy: "Do you think it's that easy? How can we do it without ice? Even a good wife can't cook without rice..."
“Really…”
It's obvious that Zhu San is a greedy cat, and he is much more eager to eat than his younger brother.
At this time, Zhu Size focused his attention on the zoetrope. He didn't come yesterday, but just heard his sister talk about this exquisite gadget. Today, Zhu Hao brought new zoetrope. Four zoetrope were hung in the air. The patterns were exquisite and ingenious, which made him look so attractive that he didn't even blink.
Zhu Hao couldn't help but smile. He walked forward to light the candle in the revolving lantern and then moved the outer shell.
Zhu Si rushed forward and admired it with eyes wide open.
Zhu San said: "Zhu Hao, didn't we agree that if I bring him here, you would show us the good stuff?"
Zhu Hao glanced at her and said, "You ate all my ice cream, and that's not a good thing? Zhu Si, don't touch my revolving lantern. If you're not careful, the candle will fall over and ignite the silk shell."
"oh."
The brother and sister were each preoccupied with their own thoughts. One was concentrating on watching the carousel, while the other was staring at the bowl of ice cream , licking his lips from time to time, obviously not having enough.
At this moment, there was a sudden noise outside , and the brother and sister looked nervous as they prepared to find a place to hide.
"It's okay. Someone should be here to get something... I'll go out and deal with it." Zhu Hao gestured to Zhu San and Zhu Si to hide for a while, and he got up to open the door.
However, several carpenters started working and came into the yard to get saws, sledgehammers and other tools. When they saw Zhu Hao, they waved their hands disapprovingly and motioned him to stand aside, as if they were treating him as a warehouse manager. Of course, this manager had no jurisdiction over tools and raw materials, but if these craftsmen wanted to find tools, they would still ask Zhu Hao for help.
The craftsmen who came this time were all familiar, and the leaders were Jianmao Hao and Lao Song.
Zhu Hao rolled his eyes, glanced around, and approached Old Song and said, "Uncle Song, the cans of tung oil in the warehouse have leaked, and there is a large puddle on the ground . What if there is a spark?"
But these words were said to Jianmao Hao.
"Is it leaked? I'll go check it out...it really is..." Old Song was a very honest man. He could even talk to Zhu Hao, the highly alert kid in the palace. He deliberately went into the warehouse to take a look and found that it was just as Zhu Hao said.
The sharp-haired hoe sneered: "Could it be that you ran out of lamp oil at night and dug a hole to steal oil?"
Zhu Hao said disdainfully: "I have a lot of candles here, who wants to use tung oil?"
Old Song squatted down and observed it carefully. He said, "The bite marks are obvious. They must have been gnawed by mice... The wooden jar itself is not sturdy and is easily damaged. We should move it away later. Most of the materials stored here are wood. Wouldn't they catch fire if they encounter sparks?"
"We'll talk about it later! Get to work!"
The sharp-bristled hoe walked out carrying the wooden ladder, not caring at all.
Lao Song’s carpentry skills are far better than those of the sharp-bristled hoe, but the sharp-bristled hoe has a higher status among the craftsmen and is considered an “administrative staff member.”
Since Jianmaohoe said they would solve the problem later, Lao Song could only look at Zhu Hao apologetically and then lead his men away.
…
…
“Does anyone come here often?”
After everyone had left, Zhu Hao returned to the room. Zhu San was still looking outside with some fear.
In her opinion, if people knew that she brought her brother to Zhu Hao's place to play, it would be a serious crime and she might be confined by her father and mother.
Zhu Hao said, "What do you think? This is a warehouse. Who knows what those craftsmen usually need and when they will suddenly come? Even if it's the middle of the night and disturbs my sleep, there's nothing I can do... Next time you come, just stay in the room and don't go out. They won't come in to see you."
"That's right, who would care about a little brat?"
Zhu San knew at first glance that he didn't take Zhu Hao seriously.
The princess has a bad temper and is very arrogant!
"Fourth brother, it's time for us to leave. We can't be out for too long, or we'll be discovered." When Zhu San saw that the ice cream was finished and Zhu Hao couldn't come up with anything better, he wanted to take his brother away.
Zhu Si was annoyed: "I just got here not long ago, why are you in such a hurry to leave?"
Upon hearing this, Zhu San went over to twist Zhu Si's ear and said in a condescending manner, "If your father knew you were out, how could you live a good life? Zhu Hao, if possible... next time we come, you can make some ice cream."
"It's hard to do without capital."
Zhu Hao showed his mercenary side.
Zhu San pursed his lips and said, "I knew you were a stingy person... How about this, I'll ask A Bing to send a few dozen coins over later. I don't have more... Lao Si, do you have any money?"
Zhu Si shook his head honestly.
Apparently the palace had never allowed Zhu Si to come into contact with money, and Zhu San often sneaked out of the palace. Only after he knew the benefits of money did he start to save it.
Zhu Si is not as shrewd as his sister.
"A few dozen coins should be enough. Let's go!"
Zhu Hao noticed that Zhu San was consciously trying to avoid more contact between Zhu Houcong and herself... Perhaps her sister sensed that she had "bad intentions". Zhu San had reminded him not to enter the palace before because the people in the palace were discussing how to deal with Zhu Hao. She overheard the conversation and sent Lu Bing to remind him.
Since she knew that the palace was on guard against Zhu Hao, how could she not have any concerns at all? Children, when they are one year older, they will understand many more things.
Zhu Hao was not in a hurry to implement his plan immediately.
Being able to get Zhu San and Zhu Si to come together is already a great achievement. The next step is to find a way to get Zhu Si to come alone...
…
…
Outside the city, Zhu family manor.
Captain Lin visited late at night.
Captain Lin said bluntly in front of Zhu Jiashi: "I have already inquired clearly and confirmed that your grandson did not enter the inner courtyard of Prince Xing's Palace. He is now placed in the sundry room at the east gate of the palace. It is estimated that he will be driven out in some time. If the Zhu family wants to spy on the palace, they should find another way."
Zhu Jia looked calm and composed, "Impossible, my grandson has found out a lot of secrets. If he hadn't entered the inner courtyard of Prince Xing's mansion, he wouldn't have been able to obtain so much information."
Captain Lin said, "Then I have to ask your grandson how he found out. I have heard that someone in the palace wants to do something bad to him. If you don't take him out in time, he might disappear... who knows. No one will see him alive or dead, how tragic!"
