Hi, my dear readers, have you ever eaten lentil sprouts？Frankly speaking, I have never seen them in my hometown (Central China) before, let alone eat them.
Not long ago, I run across them at the first time in an open-air bazzar of Xinjiang(in northwest China where is habitated by some minorities believing in Muslim except most of Han nationality). They are similar to the mung bean sprouts, but shorter and thinner. I asked the vendor what they are curiously. He told me that they are lentil sprouts, more toothsome than soybean or mung bean sprouts.
So I bought a few entil sprouts back home to have a try. After I sprinkled them into the dumpling soup, they really tasted rather fresh and yummy.
Lentils
Fried lentil sprouts
I can't help doing some research about this new kind of bean online. The result shows that the English noun word "Len" is just derived from the "lentil" since the shape of lentil looks like a bi-convex lens, and the adj. word "lenticular" just means "shaped like a lentil". So interesting! It is really a surprising harvest in my English-learning path!
However, the bigger surprise is yet to come. It proves that lentil is also called Yan Yi bean/扊扅豆 in the ancient Chinese book and has a long cultivation history in Asia, Europe and Mediterranean region, etc. What's more, the origin of its another name--Yan Yi bean is unexpectedly associated with a beautiful allusion about Baili Xi acknowledging his wife.
Lentil anatomy map
About Baili Xi:
From Wiki
百里奚/Baili Xi was an influential prime minister in Qin Kingdom during Spring-Autumn period of China.
He was born during the Spring and Autumn period, a time of great internal chaos in China. Though talented, he came from a very poor family and was unable to realize his potential by the time he was in his 30s. After much encouragement from his wife, he left home to seek greener pastures and hopefully advance his career ambitions.
He went to the prosperous state of Qi to seek his fortune. However, the government was riddled with corruption and he had no money to bribe the officials. Before long, he had used up all his money and was forced to beg in the street. While in Qi, he befriended Jian Shu (蹇叔), another fellow scholar. Jian Shu talked to him and found him extremely talented.
Some years later, Baili Xi went to work in the minor state of Yu (虞国). He ended up in the state of Jin. Not wanting the serve the Jin regime, he went south to the state of Chu, another large state. The King of Chu did not know about his talents and sent him to care for the animals instead.
Some years later, (about B.C. 655) Duke Mu of Qin heard about Baili Xi and inquired of his whereabouts. Upon the advice of his minister, he famously redeemed Baili Xi with five pieces of goatskin. In order to escape detection from the king of Chu, he sent a low-ranking official to meet the king and had Baili Xi transported to Qin in a prisoner's cart. Once in Qin, Duke Mu accorded Baili Xi with great respect and appointed him as his right-hand man. Baili Xi was already in his 70s by that time. He recommended his old friend Jian Shu to Duke Mu. Together, the duo played a major role in Qin's rise to power. Thus, Duke Mu was able to attain "hegemon" status and became one of the "Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period".
Chinese legend also claims that Baili Xi lived about a century, exactly 104 years old(about B.C.725--B.C.621). All in all, when Baili Xi finally became the prime minister of Qin, realizing his career ambition inspired by his wife, it has been nearly 40 years since he separated from and lost touch with his wife and son.
One day a maidservent in his mansion volunteered to play Pipa(a Chinese musical instrument) for him, he agreed with her kindly. While doing so, she sang loudly in public suddenly：
百里奚，五羊皮。忆别时，烹伏雌，炊扊扅，今日富贵忘我为。
"Baili Xi, five pieces of goatskin. At the moment you left home, I served a delicious chicken stew along with lentils especially for you. Unfortunately, the fuel had ran out, but the meal was not cooked yet. In desperation, I chopped our door latch bar and threw them into the stove as firewood. How can you forget me--the person who love you so deeply after you acheive the rank and wealth？"
All people on the spot became very shocked and angry. How dare a maidservent act so boldly and impolitely in the imposing prime minister's mansion？Whereas, only Baili Xi came down from the stage quickly and hugged that old maidservant at a stroke in tears, murmuring "my wife"!
It turned out that after his wife heard of the famous Prime Minister of Qin who was not others, but her beloved husband Baili Xi, she decided to go to Qin from the homeland and managed to enter his mansion by becoming a servant on washing clothes, in order to seek opportunity to be near him. At last, this long-term separated couple got reunited!
From then on, the lentils Baili Xi's wife cooked for him began to own a new name: Yan Yi bean/扊扅豆 because of the "door latch bar" being called "Yan Yi/扊扅" in ancient Chinese language. The lyrics she sang are called Yan Yi song/扊扅歌 accordingly.
Do you love this sweet moving ancient Chinese story？Welcome to tell me down in the comments!
P.S.
In fact, lentil is typed as 小扁豆 in Chinese Characters. We have another kind of bean which is typed as 扁豆. So it begs the question here: I'm not sure what Yan Yi bean/扊扅豆 means, 小扁豆 or just 扁豆？ It seems that 扁豆 means “hyacinth bean”, instead of "lentil" in English. I checked a lot of resources about Yan Yi bean online; some authors said that Yan Yi bean should be the "hyacinth bean/扁豆" which is also a common kind of vegetable I've eaten since childhood. So, if anyone knows the exact answer, please teach me about it!
Hyacinth bean(pod)/扁豆
Hyacinth bean flowers/扁豆花
source
Reference materials:
What are lentils
Purple hyacinth bean