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Lu Mingzhi swallowed the food in his mouth and took a moment to reply to his father, “Big brother is a bit thickheaded, he can’t help much even if he comes back.” For example, he had rushed back as fast as he could, but still arrived a step too late. And Big brother was used to his parents being omnipotent, always thinking that with his parents around, there would be no problem with Second Sister’s affairs.
“That may be true, but it can’t be done that way.”
Lu Mingzhi didn’t say anything. People are biased, his elder brother had given birth to his own blood relatives, and his focus would naturally shift to his own small family. Forget it, they were family after all, no need to be too demanding, just treat them as relatives. How you treat me, I will treat you the same way, fair and square.
Forget it, the eldest brother is just a simpleton, not very bright, and easily influenced by others. Lu Desheng now just hoped that the eldest brother and his wife would not regret it later. Because he was very sure that his youngest daughter would definitely achieve great things in the future, and the eldest brother didn’t know to take advantage of this time when his youngest daughter hadn’t risen yet to build a good relationship with her.
But forget it, he knew his youngest daughter was a smart person, and she had her own compass in her heart, she wouldn’t mistreat the eldest brother’s family, that was enough. It’s not good for parents to interfere too much in the affairs of their children.
“You are very good like this.” Lu Desheng patted his youngest son’s shoulder.
Lu Mingzhi looked up at his father, a little confused.
Lu Desheng didn’t say anything else, just said, “Your second sister is doing very well now. She doesn’t cause trouble, and she’s not afraid of trouble when she really encounters it. She does things with a good method.”
Lu Mingzhi thought, of course, Zhao Bin, two years older than him, was considered a perverse and ruthless character in their circle in Chang’an. Everyone in the same circle was afraid of provoking him, and they also couldn’t provoke his sister, otherwise he would be like a mad dog, biting anyone he caught.
His second sister had actually beaten him up, no, it should be said that she had directly disabled him, without any mercy. And she had even forced the Zhao family to be unable to vent their anger, having to resort to under-the-table tactics. If that’s not impressive, what is?
“What are you two talking about?”
Lu Songli came to the main courtyard after learning that Lu Mingzhi had arrived home. She walked in leisurely from outside, wearing a medium-thick cloak.
“Second Sister? You’re here. Come and sit.”
His father was right, his second sister really was a changed person. She used to give people a feeling of quiet elegance, but now she was bright and lively. With her original cold and elegant features, she was like a plum blossom blooming quietly in the warm sun in winter, giving people a sense of harmony between cold and warmth.
Lu Songli looked at the little wild man in front of her, her eyes filled with laughter, and she naturally sat down on the chair he had pulled out.
Lu Mingzhi was the youngest child in the Lu family, two years younger than her. He would turn fourteen in two months. When he was born, his father Lu Desheng had already made a name for himself, and the Lu family’s situation had improved greatly. His father was not as busy as before, and he often took Lu Mingzhi with him, the two of them were very close.
“Second Sister, haven’t you eaten yet? Come have some dumplings. Dad, is this called dumplings?” After getting confirmation, Lu Mingzhi strongly recommended it to Lu Songli, “This is delicious.”
Lu Songli laughed. It was true, there was nothing better than dumplings, nothing more beautiful than eating a bowl of steaming hot dumplings on a cold winter day. “Okay, then Mother, please bring me a bowl of dumplings.”
Actually, dumplings had existed in ancient times, invented by Zhang Zhongjing during the Eastern Han Dynasty. They were originally called “jiaoer”. At that time, the dumpling filling was wrapped with some herbs to ward off the cold, which could cure the ears of the common people who froze in winter.
The customs of the Great Li Dynasty were closer to those of the Wei and Jin Dynasties. They had dumplings, but they were not common.
Last time when she went to see her sister at the Xu family, when she came back, her sister-in-law sent her a lot of pork, all the best cuts of the pig. They couldn’t finish it all at once when they came back. Her mother wanted to dry it and make dried meat, which was easier to store.
In her later life, dumplings were a staple of her daily diet, how could she not eat them here? With her description and the chef’s efforts, the chef made dumplings with the pork she brought back.
The first time they made them, she watched the filling being mixed, white sung pork filling. The pork chosen was five-layered pork belly, which was minced and then seasoned with wine and wild ginger to remove the fishy smell before being mixed and set aside. The white sung here is actually Chinese cabbage. The Chinese cabbage of later generations, after thousands of years of domestication, is sweet and delicious. The white sung of this era still has a bit of the bitterness of wild vegetables. It is especially delicious when paired with five-layered pork belly.
Lu Mingzhi ate a large bowl of dumplings, his stomach warm and fuzzy, and he praised the dumplings endlessly.
The dumplings, a mix of meat and vegetables, served with fine white noodles, were more suitable for her parents than meat pies.
Her parents were both forty years old this year, an age when they should start taking good care of themselves. Compared to the average lifespan of seventy or eighty years in the future, forty was still considered prime time, but in ancient times, forty was already considered the twilight of life. After all, people in ancient times had shorter lifespans. According to statistics, the average lifespan was eighteen years during the Xia and Shang dynasties, twenty years during the Zhou and Qin dynasties, twenty-two years during the Han dynasty, twenty-seven years during the Kang dynasty, thirty years during the Song dynasty, and thirty-five years during the Republic of China.
Human lifespan is related to diet, medical environment, and other factors. The lack of advanced medical technology, the impact of wars, and the shortage of food supply all affected people’s lifespans.
This is why, in the original story, Qin Sheng, who died at the age of twenty-four, caused Qin Heng to grieve but not to doubt. First, everyone had a short lifespan, and second, beautiful women and famous generals were not allowed to grow old together. Qin Sheng, as the commander-in-chief of the Qin army, had many things to worry about, and he had to be the first to charge into battle, so his lifespan was even shorter.
Her parents, who had lived for forty years, were quite open-minded about it. They felt that with their current health, they would be able to live a few more years. Even if they died in a few years, their lifespan was already considered good in this era.
However, Lu Songli came from the future, where the average lifespan was seventy-eight years. She naturally didn’t want Lu Desheng and Madam Jiang to die young. She could make up for the medical aspect, and for the rest, she would try her best to ensure they had enough to eat, stay warm, and avoid wars so they could enjoy their later years. She thought that this should allow them to live longer.
Her thoughts were racing, but it was just a fleeting moment.
When Lu Songli brought the dumplings to the table, Lu Mingzhi had already eaten his fill, and Lu Desheng had already had breakfast earlier. She ate with her mother.
Lu Mingzhi sat beside them and chatted about his travel experiences. He said that they had set off from Yuzhou, traveled through Huainan County, Jiangzhou, and Guangzhao, which served as their turning point. They then traveled through Changsha County, Wuling, Jingzhou, and Badong County before returning to Chang’an.
“The trees in the south don’t lose their leaves in autumn and winter.”
“My teacher said that in Jiaozhou, where Guangzhao is located, it’s sometimes only necessary to wear two layers of clothing even when it’s coldest here.”
Lu Songli thought to herself, Guangzhao should be Guangzhou in the future.
Madam Jiang listened with great interest and curiosity. “Is there really such a place?”
Lu Songli listened while eating. Lu Mingzhi was talking about the differences in landscapes caused by the different climate zones from north to south.
Climate zones are divided into belt-shaped climate regions based on their latitudinal distribution characteristics. The factors that influence climate include temperature, air pressure, wind, rain, and so on. China is roughly divided into six climate zones: equatorial, tropical, subtropical, warm temperate, temperate, and frigid zones. These concepts are covered in junior high and high school geography.
Lu Mingzhi and his teacher traveled from north to south and then from south to north, twice in total, experiencing different landscapes.
“My teacher also said that in Dunhuang County, it usually gets dark around the eighth hour of the night (8 pm), while in Lelang County, it gets dark around the seventh hour of the afternoon (4-5 pm).”
“The time it gets dark is almost two hours apart?”
Lu Songli thought to herself, Dunhuang is in Gansu, bordering Xinjiang, while Lelang is in Liaodong. One is in the far west, and the other is in the far east. Their longitudes are different, so naturally, the times of sunrise and sunset are different.
Lu Songli discovered that Lu Mingzhi read widely. Compared to classics, histories, and philosophical works, he was more interested in the changes of nature, such as mountains, rivers, landforms, the sun, moon, stars, wind, rain, and seasons.
She remembered that during the summer of that year, when her mother’s birthday came, he gave her a very special birthday present. She still remembered how he took the whole family to the artificial mountain, and then, she didn’t know how he did it, but he made water flow from the artificial mountain. Then, he created a rainbow for her right there. At that time, the whole family was like country bumpkins, completely stunned.
Lu Songli discovered that her younger brother was a budding scientist. This was a pleasant surprise. The more she looked at him, the more Lu Mingzhi resembled her two cousins from the future. They were both the type who delved into technology. Her cousins studied Chinese medicine, while he studied natural science. But it didn’t matter which field they studied; the important thing was the talent.
“I’m full. Little brother, do you want to go back and rest for a while? After you’ve rested, let’s all sit down and have a good chat.” Lu Songli noticed that his eyes were slightly red, and physiological tears were welling up. He must be very tired. Such a treasure must be well protected.
“Yes, yes, go and rest first.” Madam Jiang agreed. She had been so engrossed in listening to her youngest son talk about all the interesting things he had seen that she hadn’t noticed how tired he was.
Lu Mingzhi was embarrassed. After eating the hot food, he was indeed feeling sleepy, but he had been holding back his yawns. It wasn’t just that they missed him; he had been gone for months on his travels and missed them too. So when he came back, he wanted to use their conversation as a chance to get closer to them. Now that his family told him to rest first, he would listen.