Yuan Xing listened to Yuan Xi's words, pondered slightly, and clapped her hands, saying, "I understand, you want to make sugar cakes."
"Putting sugar in the middle of the dough and then steaming it will definitely be delicious."
Yuan Xi smiled upon hearing this, "My dear sister understands the art of cooking, but it's slightly different. It's not steaming, but frying with sesame oil."
Yuan Xing was stunned: "Frying? What's that?"
Sesame oil is extracted from sesame seeds. At that time, the names of sesame were unclear. One type was flax brought back from the Western Regions by Zhang Qian, and the other was sesame, said to have been introduced from India.
The former is mostly planted in the harsh lands of the north, while the latter is suitable for both the north and south, but most of the time it is not used for cooking, but for lighting lamps.
At that time, food was scarce, and the oil used for fried food was considerable, so frying as a cooking method was not yet popular.
Yuan Xi briefly explained the method of frying to Yuan Xing, and finally said, "The food made this way is called fried cake, also called sugar cake."
Yuan Xing smiled upon hearing this, "Now that you mention it, Second Brother, I'm quite interested. Make it quickly and let me see."
She asked the maid to bring sesame oil and white flour. Yuan Xi saw a stove in the corner of the courtyard and was about to go over and start a fire, but Wu Zhao hurriedly said, "You go make sugar cakes, I'll start the fire."
She deftly stuffed straw and branches into the stove, struck the flint, and saw the flames slowly rise.
She looked up and saw Yuan Xi carrying a bucket of water over, and was taken aback, "Aren't you going to fry it?"
Yuan Xi smiled, "Boil water first."
The flames in the stove made a whooshing sound, and more and more bubbles appeared in the iron pot, gradually starting to boil.
In this era, even drinking boiled water was a luxury.
Despite the forests everywhere, the wood that was actually used for starting fires had to be dry branches, which were scarce in the forests. Often, it took a strong laborer most of the day to collect a bundle.
After taking these firewood home, a lot would be used up just for cooking, and some would be reserved for heating, so in the end, there wasn't much firewood left for boiling water.
Even well-off farming families would only boil a pot of water with the remaining embers in the stove after cooking.
In the three years that Yuan Xi had been in Beixin City, he had tried every means to get the people to drink more boiled water, but when they couldn't get enough to eat, most people didn't have the energy to do these things.
However, the effect was very good. In these three years in Beixin City, there were no major epidemics, which was not unrelated to a considerable number of people drinking boiled water.
If everyone in the world could develop this habit, perhaps the lifespan of the people would increase significantly?
Seeing that the water in the pot was boiling, Yuan Xi took a wooden spoon, scooped out some of the boiling water, and poured it into a wooden basin containing white flour, then kneaded it with his hands.
While kneading, he poured in sesame oil. Under the kneading, a delicate, soft, and elastic dough gradually took shape, and soon a fragrance spread out.
The tender white dough constantly changed shape under the ravages of his fingers. Yuan Xing and Wu Zhao couldn't help but exchange glances. This was extremely similar to the subtle experiences of a twenty-year-old unmarried woman in the dead of night, and they both felt their faces turning red.
Yuan Xing coughed dryly to cover up the awkward atmosphere and said, "I've never heard of this method of yours, Second Brother. Who did you learn it from?"
Yuan Xi didn't notice the embarrassment of the two women and looked up, saying, "I just thought of it myself, but I'm sure many people will like it."
"If Elder Sister marries a suitable husband, she can make it for him to eat, which can enhance the relationship between the two."
Yuan Xing scolded, "Are you mocking me for being old?"
"Given the current situation of our family, where can we find a suitable match?"
"I'm in a situation where I'm too good for some and not good enough for others."
She looked around and whispered, "I heard that Father's friend, Cao Mengde, wants to seek a marriage for his eldest son, Cao Ang, but Father seems to be hesitating."
Yuan Xi was shocked and blurted out, "That won't do!"
Yuan Xing was surprised, "Why? Is Cao Ang's character very bad?"
Yuan Xi was speechless. He couldn't possibly say that Cao Ang was likely to die in a few years, right?
Even if history changed and Cao Ang survived, the Yuan and Cao families would eventually have a war, and it would be a never-ending one. Even if Yuan Xing and Cao Ang married, there would be no good ending.
He stammered, "Cao Cao is a descendant of eunuchs, will Father agree?"
Yuan Xing said distressedly, "But I'm already old. I was supposed to get married in Luoyang, but Father rebelled against Dong Zhuo and came to Ji Province, which delayed it."
"Many Ji Province gentry families also want to form marriage alliances, but Father doesn't think they are suitable."
Yuan Xi sighed upon hearing this, "That's indeed the case. I did recently acquire a surrendered general from Gongsun Zan, Zhao Zilong of Changshan. His character and appearance are both excellent, but his family background is not good enough."
Yuan Xing also nodded, "You also know that we can only form marriage alliances with gentry families. Military generals are not well-regarded. Even if I were to marry one of the Four Pillars, Father would probably think it would damage our family's reputation."
At this time, Yuan Xi had already shaped the dough. He took out a few pieces of sugar, crushed them with the bottom of a bowl, and then poured them into a bowl containing white flour and stirred. The filling was ready.
He said, "It's not that Father looks down on military generals, but that military generals don't have titles."
"If it were a military general who had been ennobled as a marquis, he should be worthy of Elder Sister."
Yuan Xing teased upon hearing this, "You seem to appreciate that Zhao Zilong quite a bit?"
Yuan Xi pinched off small pieces of dough from the dough, flattened them into round cakes, then wrapped the sugar filling inside, sealed them, and flattened them into round cakes again.
Wu Zhao understood and quickly helped out in the same way.
Freeing up his hands, Yuan Xi then said, "My judgment of people is very accurate. He will definitely be remembered in history."
Yuan Xing was skeptical and sighed, "Even so, it's unknown how many years it will be before he's ennobled as a marquis. By then, not to mention getting married, I'll probably have a bunch of children."
Yuan Xi thought to himself, not necessarily. In a little over a year, there would be an excellent opportunity.
In order to tie Zhao Yun down, he could only cruelly sell out his elder sister.
Besides, Zhao Yun had such strong luck, he was very likely to die a natural death, which was already extremely rare in this chaotic world.
He couldn't explain in detail, and smiled, "If he's ennobled as a marquis and Elder Sister hasn't married yet, I'll help him propose to Father?"
Yuan Xing smiled and punched Yuan Xi's shoulder, "You heartless brother, are you cursing me to be unmarriageable?"
Wu Zhao watched the siblings talking and laughing, feeling a long-lost warmth of family affection. She used to feel so happy when she was with her father, but that would never happen again.
Seeing that the pot was almost ready, Yuan Xi slowly poured sesame oil into the pot. At this moment, a maid hurried over and said to Yuan Xing, "Madam Zhen Rong requests to see the Eldest Miss."
Yuan Xing was stunned and wondered, "Why is she here at this time?"
She explained to Yuan Xi, "Zhen Rong is the fourth daughter of the Zhen family. She got married last year and is usually familiar with me."
Yuan Xing suddenly reacted and smiled, "I was wondering, she's here for her sister!"
"The news of your return has probably spread throughout Ye City. She's probably here to find out your details."
She had an ambiguous smile on her face, "She's in such a hurry, did you do something outside?"
Seeing the sesame oil starting to bubble, Yuan Xi clamped the dough cake with wooden chopsticks and carefully put it into the oil. The pot started to make crackling sounds.
He scratched his head: "Maybe it's because I brought back dozens of women?"
Upon hearing this, Yuan Xing poked Yuan Xi's forehead hard, "What exactly have you been doing outside all these years?"
"Never mind, I'll go welcome Zhen Rong in first!"
"After sending her away, I'll have to properly ask you about those women!"
Zhen Mi covered her face and pretended to be a maid following Yuan Xing and Zhen Rong in.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, she saw a man not far away intently staring at the oil pot.
He was so focused that he didn't even look up in this direction.