The next day, a grand banquet was held.
The three-courtyard compound of the Duke’s Mansion, spanning an acre, was filled with tables and chairs.
Even then, these were only for artisans at the workshop supervisor level and above, commanders from the battalion level and above, and officials from the governor's office.
In the banquet hall beside the main hall, there was another table.
A large round table that could seat twenty people. The food and drink on this table were different from the rest.
It was exclusively Russian military rations.
That’s right, Fang Er planned to use this opportunity to secure another batch of orders.
Why not sell what had already been unlocked?
In the open marketplace, each portion contained five hundred bags and sold for only two hundred points.
Calculated, that was four hundred wen per bag, and the taste wasn't bad, at least, much better than the food ordinary people ate.
Self-heating rice boxes, milk tea packets, soup packets, canned goods, and chocolates were neatly arranged across the entire large round table.
After everyone was seated, Chai Shao looked at the items on the table and immediately felt unwell. He pointed at a can in front of him and said.
"Boy, you're not going to make this old man eat this, are you?"
The appearance of the canned goods was exactly the same as the culprit that had almost wiped out the Duke’s Mansion last time!
Thinking back to that occasion, Chai Shao’s throat began to constrict.
Fang Er saw his expression and knew he must have been traumatized by the fermented herring.
He smiled and said, "Father-in-law, you misunderstand. These canned goods are different from the previous ones.
These contain beef and fish roe, and they taste very good."
After explaining to Chai Shao, he noticed that the leaders of the various departments were looking at the meal boxes on the table, unsure how to proceed. He then introduced them.
"Gentlemen!~"
The leaders quickly looked up at him.
"You will all soon be undertaking your respective missions."
As the saying goes, no army moves without its provisions.
"This Duke deeply understands the importance of provisions during military campaigns. You are the experts in horse husbandry."
"But when it comes to eating, in this Liaodong, I claim the second spot, and I doubt anyone would dare claim the first!"
Fang Er boasted without blushing, picking up the self-heating rice on the table and continuing.
"This is rice. The box is double-layered; you can all pick it up and take a look."
After elaborating on the method of consuming the self-heating rice, he picked up the kettle at his side.
"Everyone has a kettle in front of them. You can try it yourselves."
A perfectly good celebratory banquet for the addition to the family turned into Fang Er's product promotion event.
The leaders all looked at the items in front of them with anticipation. Everything that Duke Fang produced was a rare and good item, and they wondered what surprises awaited them this time.
Everyone followed his instructions to prepare the self-heating rice.
The plastic spoons, forks, and packaging boxes, along with the transparent rice bags and vegetable packets inside, amazed everyone.
"Damn, this spoon is so exquisite!"
"And this bowl, it's so light!"
"Is this a bag? It's so transparent, and it even has patterns. It's beautiful!"
"Duke, you have such great generosity, to host us with such luxurious meals!"
When the rice was heated, another wave of discussion erupted in the banquet hall.
"There's such a simple cooking method in this world, it's incredible!"
"This taste… it seems to be beef!"
"Mmm~~ Delicious, so delicious!"
"Not only beef, but this beef is also so tender and soft, it melts in your mouth, and doesn't get stuck in your teeth at all!"
"Mmm, this rice, it's so fragrant!"
Chai Shao ate his rice in silence, listening to the discussions of the leaders around him. He was itching to try it himself but had to feign composure.
"This is too difficult!"
"This brat, he has good things and doesn't offer them to his half-father first!"
"Yes, half-father.
A son-in-law is half a son, and a father-in-law is half a father. It makes sense!"
As for Liu Dacheng, he also sat in a corner eating his rice, not participating in the discussion, not complaining in his heart. He was an invisible entity, non-existent!
"Everyone, please eat. Is it to your liking?" Fang Er smiled as he looked at everyone.
"Hahahaha, delicious, so delicious!" Yelü Goudan's characteristic hearty laughter.
"To your liking! It's so to your liking!" Ashina Bobi picked up the grains of rice from the corner of his mouth and put them back into his mouth, unwilling to waste a single bit.
"Exactly, exactly. I feel like I could eat ten boxes!" Gu Rouxianglian grinned at Fang Er.
He sat closer to Fang Er, and since Fang Er was standing while he was sitting, when he opened his mouth, you could practically see the sewer.
"This taste is absolutely amazing! In my life, I've never eaten such delicious rice!"
"Mmm~ Delicious~~ Mmm~~ Delicious~~ So delicious~"
Bale Menggan shoveled rice into his mouth without looking up, replying.
Fang Er was also proud to hear everyone’s praise and gave further explanations about the canned goods, milk tea powder, and so on.
This immediately caused a sensation.
The leaders, who had never seen such things, never imagined that such delicious rice could be accompanied by so many side dishes.
They all excitedly tried the other items.
The beef was soft, tender, spicy, and the fish roe was Q-bouncy and savory.
The milk tea was smooth and refreshing, and the vegetable soup was even more delicious.
After trying these, and then having a piece of chocolate, the meal, though simple, felt incredibly satisfying to the leaders.
There was food, drink, and dessert. It was wonderful!
Sweetness can bring immense happiness.
However, in this era, it was incredibly difficult to taste anything sweet!
The only sweet things available were honey and maltose, and these were also extremely precious commodities for the grassland people.
"Everyone, are you satisfied with today's banquet?"
Fang Er remained standing, smiling and looking at everyone.
"Satisfied! Extremely satisfied!"
"Exactly, exactly. The rice, the dishes, the soup, and this 'Ou Li Ge', it's great!"
"What 'Ou Li Ge'? It's clearly 'Qiao Li Ge'."
"You two idiots, Duke clearly said 'chocolate', didn't he?"
"Exactly, damn it, it's terrifying not to be cultured!"
"Hahahaha, let's talk about culture later. Today, let's focus on the meal."
Fang Er was also speechless at Bale Menggan mispronouncing the name of chocolate, but he had to interrupt them, otherwise, the conversation would have gone too far astray.
"Self-heating rice, canned goods, milk tea powder, soup packets, and chocolate—this is a complete set of field expedition rations."
"It is also the military rations this Duke has prepared for you. It can be stored for half a year without spoiling, and it is convenient, light, and easy to carry."
"This meal will cost only one string of cash at cost price."
"If you gentlemen need any, you can give me a number, and this Duke will have them prepared. You can take them with you tomorrow, along with the weapons and armor."
Instantly, the entire hall erupted in discussion!
It wasn't that they found it expensive, but rather, they found it cheap.