Chapter 22 The rich family is full of wine and meat
In Langton City at night, workers who had been busy all day in the outer city returned to their small and humble homes, ate a dinner that was neither warm nor sumptuous, and barely fed themselves. After half full, he dragged his tired and dirty body to sleep.
Although the empire is now powerful and its productivity has increased many times compared to the past, the lives of ordinary people have become more difficult.
The development of industry has brought about population growth. Although agricultural output has increased, it has not kept pace with the population growth.
Although the empire relies on large amounts of food imported from overseas colonies to feed its rapidly growing population, it is obvious that even today's empire on which the sun never sets cannot feed everyone.
Generally speaking, the main food of a working-class family is bread and oats, but obviously it cannot be high-quality white bread, and oats cannot be cooked into dry rice like Easterners do.
Usually, what they can eat is black bread and oatmeal, which are not much different from those before the industrial era.
The development of the industrial age has not brought about changes in their diet structure, but generally speaking, if a family's income can barely sustain food and clothing, they will at least have enough to eat one slice a day on the table. Bacon and some veggies, and the men can enjoy some butter to fuel up for a hard day's work.
Of course, drinks for men are also essential on the table.
In the past, it might have been a glass of beer, which not only provided the body with valuable calories, but also provided trace elements and minerals needed by the body.
But after His Majesty the previous emperor issued a ban on alcohol, coffee and cocoa began to replace beer on ordinary people's tables.
After all, the empire’s overseas colonies import a large amount of coffee beans and cocoa beans to the empire every year. These things can very well boost the spirit of the empire’s people and replenish their energy.
This also changed the eating habits of ordinary people in the Victoria Empire, from a glass of beer for dinner to a cup of coffee for breakfast.
Of course, if the men in the family can earn twice the salary of ordinary people by working on the railway, eggs, sausages, and even rare cakes can still appear on their tables.
But even so, it is difficult for the vast majority of people to fill their stomachs. People starve to death on the streets in Langton City every day, and the vast majority of workers suffer from malnutrition. Children...
They are lucky to live to adulthood. More children will leave this world prematurely due to diseases caused by hygiene problems.
After all, in this era, whether it is a delivery of a pregnant woman or a surgical operation, it is very rare to be clean. Medical disinfection? That is a new concept that has only been proposed in recent years.
Medical care is in such a situation, and the living and hygienic standards of ordinary people can naturally be imagined.
There is no running water, hot water cannot be used, and the restrictions brought by the regional water supply and the need to reserve daily water have made taking a bath, especially a hot bath, a very luxury for ordinary people. things. More importantly, use a pot of hot water to clean your body as much as possible in the morning.
Living in such an environment, without the habit of drinking boiled water, coupled with the lack of medical resources and the fact that ordinary working-class families have no money to see a doctor, one can imagine how high the morbidity and mortality rates are.
But in contrast, there is the luxurious life of the nobles.
Just like tonight, a luxurious feast is being held in Windsor Castle.
Not to mention the exquisite and luxurious decorations and the utensils used for the banquet, just the delicacies placed on the exquisite porcelain and gold and silver plates imported from the East are already ordinary workers. It is beyond the reach of other people at the grassroots level of society.
After all, just the ingredients for one of the dishes are enough for a working-class family to spend an entire month's income. This is a luxury that they can't even imagine.
The golden and tender lamb chops are grilled with spices that are more expensive than the ingredients themselves. They are brushed with sweet honey and placed on exquisite oriental imported porcelain. This is enough to serve as a small banquet even for a wealthy family in Langton. main course.
But at today’s dinner, they don’t even qualify for a prominent position on the table.
On the long dining table, which is long enough for the entire playing band to lie side by side, and for displaying musical instruments, there are piles of all kinds of delicacies and delicacies, all exuding an alluring aroma. It is not cooked carefully by the chef.
But compared with the roasted peacock as the main course, these foods pale in comparison. After all, no matter how bright the color of the food is, it cannot be compared with the spread of the peacock's tail feathers.
“To be honest, I really don’t understand why you have to put the peacock’s tail feathers back in after roasting it?” Purficott, who was wearing a white evening gown, held a hand in his hand. Wearing a cane inlaid with red gems and holding an exquisite crystal cup in one hand, he complained to Princess Anne rather boredly: "Is it just for looks? The aesthetic level and food making level of these cooks It’s really not that good, Auntie Anne, why don’t you take my advice and hire some oriental chefs to cook?”
"Oriental chefs do cook delicious food, but they are not suitable as banquet chefs." Princess Anne wore a dark red evening dress today, which made her graceful figure more colorful and made her look more colorful. She felt very constrained. She had not worn a corset for many years and could not help but feel that she had gained a lot of weight over the years: "At least they are not suitable for noble ladies! The food is too delicious, but it will make those ladies' slender waists It was stretched so big.”
Princess Anne once tried to hire a chef from the East at the recommendation of Perfectcott, but the price was that she gained twenty pounds in three months.
After twelve dresses were worn out and the buttons on her military uniform could not be buttoned, so she had to change to a larger military uniform. Princess Anne also had to change back to her original cook. Lose weight quickly.
However, after making a harmless little joke with Purphycott, Princess Anne also chatted with her about serious matters: "Little Purphycott, are you ready? Tonight's dinner , you are the protagonist, don’t be frightened when you give a speech later." "Stage fright? It doesn't exist." Looking at the well-dressed gentlemen and the beautiful ladies at the banquet, Perfection said. There was a confident expression on the face, but also mixed with a hint of disdain: "They are actually easy to manipulate, as long as you throw out some benefits, these people will surround them like jackals asking about the smell of meat, convincing them that they are not What skills are needed?”
(End of this chapter)