Chapter 7: Simple Bean Sprouts

  Early summer morning, Zhao Yan was woken up again by the gentle rain outside the window. He had been transported to Northern Song Dynasty for a month and had gradually gotten used to life without TV, mobile phones, or internet. However, he didn't know why it had been raining in Kaifeng City since the day he arrived. Although the rain wasn't heavy, it had been drizzling on and off for half a month. On rare occasions when it didn't rain, the sky was overcast, making the surroundings damp and humid. Zhao Yan even felt like he was going to get moldy.

  Zhao Yan sat up in bed, turned his head and looked at the pillow he had made with his own hands. The original porcelain pillow was too hard for his head, so Zhao Yan used a few thick clothes to make a temporary pillow. However, there was now a wet patch on this pillow. Although he had dreamed of sugar vinegar ribs all night last night, Zhao Yan would rather believe that it was the tears of his thoughts about his loved ones from his past life than admit that it was his own saliva flowing while he was dreaming.

  Zhao Yan stretched and sat up in bed, thinking about the sugar vinegar ribs he had made with his own hands last night. He was still regretful that Cao Ying had discovered them. If he had known, he should have tasted a few pieces before she came in to satisfy his craving. Who knew which lucky guy had benefited from his leaving the kitchen?

  After dressing up, Zhao Yan pushed open the window to take a look outside, only to find that it was still drizzling outside. Fortunately, he didn't have any plans to go out either. He closed the window and stretched his body a few times before practicing some Tai Chi moves in the room, which he had learned from following some old men and women in the park. It was a great way to exercise, and after a month of rest and practice, Zhao Yan could feel his body recovering extremely quickly. In fact, he felt like he could even run a marathon now if he wanted to.

  After Zhao Yan finished exercising, Xiao Douya also brought in all of Zhao Yan's toiletries. It turned out that Zhao Yan had brought his entire set of toiletries with him, which made his life easier for the time being. After all, he was really not used to living without a toothbrush, toothpaste and soap.

  The cup was filled with clear water, Zhao Yan took out his toothbrush and toothpaste, squeezed the toothpaste onto the toothbrush, and quickly brushed his teeth. The refreshing mint flavor of the toothpaste made Zhao Yan feel not only fresh in his mouth but also cleared his mind. As for the little servant girl, Xiao Douya, standing beside him, he didn't worry about her at all, because this little girl hadn't initiated a conversation with him for a month, even when she saw Zhao Yan using strange objects like toothbrushes, although curiosity flashed in her eyes, she still didn't dare ask, probably because Cao Ying had instructed her beforehand.

  "Prince, what is that thing you use to brush your teeth every day? Especially the one squeezed out of a tube, it smells so good, does it taste good too?"

  Xiao Douya suddenly spoke up, which startled Zhao Yan, who turned her head and looked at her in surprise, hastily rinsing her mouth and saying: "Xiao Douya, how dare you speak to me today?"

  "I... I was just curious, so I wanted to ask!" Xiaodouya replied with some trepidation.

  "Oh?" Zhao Yan also looked at Xiaodouya with great interest for a while, then raised the toothbrush in her hand and said, "This thing is called a toothbrush, the stuff squeezed out of the tube is called toothpaste. Although toothpaste smells very fragrant, it can't be eaten. After brushing your teeth, you have to spit it out, otherwise it's bad for your body."

  "Oh!" Xiaodou nodded, actually over the past month, she had often seen Zhao Yan brush her teeth twice a day in the morning and evening, and understood the use of these two things, now it was just making conversation for its own sake.

  After brushing his teeth, Zhao Yan took out the soap and washed his face and hands. This time, without waiting for Xiaodou to ask, Zhao Yan explained: "This is called soap. Its function is the same as the bath beans you used to wash me before, both are used for cleaning the body. The difference is that this soap not only has strong decontamination ability but also smells very good, much better than those bath beans!"

  What is called "澡豆" is actually the precursor to soap, which was already invented during the Wei and Jin dynasties. The method of production can be found in Sun Simiao's "Qianjin Fang". It mainly involves grinding pig pancreas into a powder, adding various materials, and shaping it into small balls called "澡豆". However, the formula for making "澡豆" was not as good as that for soap, and its ability to clean was limited. After use, one's skin would feel rough and uncomfortable. Despite this, the production of "澡豆" was extremely limited, and it was very expensive. Only royalty and nobility could afford it, and even ordinary officials couldn't use it.

  Zhao Yan spoke as he washed his face, and it wasn't until he finished washing and took the towel from Xiao Douya's hand to wipe his face that he discovered this little girl was gazing at his soap with a very envious look in her eyes. This made Zhao Yan feel somewhat amused, so he opened his mouth to ask: "Xiao Douya, what do you usually use to wash your face?"

  "We?" Xiaodouya was taken aback, withdrawing her gaze to answer, "Us servants usually just wash with hot water, if our faces are too dirty, we use the soap for washing clothes. Only Fourth Sister has bath beans, I secretly used them twice, and after washing, my face felt really clean... Ah!"

  Xiao Douya finally realized she had said something she shouldn't have when she mentioned using Cao Ying's things, and quickly covered her mouth. She looked at Zhao Yan with embarrassment and said in a very awkward tone: "Your Highness, please don't tell Fourth Sister about this, or else the nanny will scold me to death."

  "Hehe, you dared to secretly use Cao Ying's things before, didn't you also use mine in private?" Zhao Yan joked, during this time he was isolated by Cao Ying and the entire Wang Fu, not even having anyone to talk to, now finally opening a gap with Xiao Douya, which made Zhao Yan's mood very good.

  "There's no need, Fourth Sister had already instructed me earlier that I absolutely cannot touch the Duke's things, not even speak to him, lest he catches wind of it and punishes me." Xiaodouya timidly shook her head repeatedly, and even revealed what Cao Ying had told her previously, looks like she's indeed a simple-minded little maid.

  "So why did you suddenly talk to me today?" Zhao Yan asked with great interest.

  "Because... because..." Zhao Yan's question seemed to be very difficult for Xiao Douya, only to see her big eyes also showing a worried expression, after a while she replied with a sudden realization, "Because I think the king is not as bad as the legend says, and... and the dishes you made yesterday were delicious!"

  When Zhao Yan heard Xiaodouya's first reason, he was quite moved in his heart, because this was a genuine little girl's evaluation of him with her own intuition. However, when he heard the second reason, he almost burst out laughing. He didn't expect that the sugar vinegar ribs he made yesterday would be eaten by Xiaodouya and even become her standard for evaluating whether someone is good or bad. It seems that today Xiaodouya took the initiative to talk to him, that plate of sugar vinegar ribs was definitely not in vain.

  "Little Douya, do you want to try the soap?" Zhao Yan suddenly handed the soap in her hand to Little Douya and said. This simple and lovely little girl was indeed likable. Looking at her, Zhao Yan thought of the students she had taught in her previous life, wondering how they were doing now and whether they had a new teacher to continue teaching them.

  "Ah~ me?" Xiaodouya's eyes widened in surprise, her face filled with an incredulous expression.

  "It's just a piece of soap, if you like it I'll give it to you. Anyway, I can make more myself, no big deal!" Zhao Yan said very generously, although he majored in painting, he still knew about saponification from high school, as long as there was oil and alkali, he could make as much as he wanted.

  "No, no... this... how can I accept it, this gift is too valuable, I, a humble servant, cannot receive it!" Xiaodouya hastily declined, the price of Youdou was not cheap, in the entire palace only Zhao Yan and Cao Ying had the qualifications to use it, let alone the creamy white soap in front of her which was much better than the black Youdou, Xiaodouya naturally did not dare to accept.

  "Take it, consider it a gift from the Duke!" Zhao Yan said as he stuffed the soap into Xiaodouya's hand. Although his identity had changed to that of a duke, in his heart he was still the substitute teacher from the countryside. Looking at Xiaodouya who had been diligently serving him for a month, giving her something was only right, and besides, the soap wasn't anything valuable anyway.

  When she heard that it was the king's reward, Xiaodouya didn't dare to decline, took the soap with both hands and smelled it under her little nose, then revealed a delighted smile, just like those students of Zhao Yan in later generations who got first place in the exam and received prizes. This also made Zhao Yan sigh again in his heart, fearing that he would never see those lovely students again in this life.

  After washing up, Zhao Yan reluctantly went to the cafeteria. The daily green vegetables and tofu had already given him psychological trauma, but not eating was not an option, and he didn't want Cao Ying to look down on him either. So every day, he could only force himself to go eat, with Xiao Douya by his side, who understood Zhao Yan's thoughts very well. Seeing his painful expression, she would walk alongside him, stealing glances and occasionally taking out the soap hidden in her sleeve to take a sniff.

  To Zhao Yan's surprise, when he arrived at the restaurant, Cao Ying was not there. This made him feel relieved, and he picked up his bowl to finish his millet porridge. As for the remaining vegetables and tofu, he didn't even want to take a look at them. Anyway, as long as Cao Ying wasn't around, no one in the entire Wang Fu dared to bother him.

  After throwing down the rice bowl, Zhao Yan quickly walked out of the dining hall as if he was escaping. However, he didn't know that after he left, Xiaodouya looked at the remaining green vegetables and tofu that Zhao Yan had left behind, revealing a regretful expression on her face. In the end, she sat down and ate all the dishes clean.

  After leaving the restaurant, Zhao Yan did not return to his bedroom. He had been staying there every day for a month and was already feeling extremely bored. Although it was still raining today, the rain wasn't heavy, and he hadn't seen Cao Ying at breakfast, which put him in a good mood. So, he casually strolled around the Wang Mansion.

  When Zhao Yan arrived at the northeast corner of the Hou Zhai, he saw that there was a large courtyard here, and it seemed to hear some people talking in the courtyard, as well as some animal roars, which made Zhao Yan very curious, so he walked towards the courtyard.