**The beggar's chicken is related to two historical figures, Zhu Yuanzhang and Emperor Qianlong**.

Beggar’s Chicken, also known as Changshu Beggar’s Chicken and Braised Chicken, is a traditional famous dish in Changshu, Jiangsu. The production materials include fresh lotus leaves, yellow mud, live native chicken, etc. Its preparation method is similar to "Pao Pork", one of the "Eight Delicacies" of the Zhou Dynasty. "Pao Pork" is a dish made of suckling pig wrapped in clay, grilled, and then further processed. It is bright red in color, fragrant, crispy and tender in texture, crispy and tender in the mouth, and has a unique flavor.

According to legend, a long time ago, there was a beggar who begged for food and ended up in a village in Changshu County. One day, he accidentally got a chicken and wanted to kill it and cook it, but he had neither cooking utensils nor seasonings. He came to the foot of Yushan Mountain, killed the chicken, removed its internal organs, and coated the feathers with yellow mud and firewood. He put the coated chicken in a fire and roasted it. When the mud dried and the chicken was cooked, he peeled off the mud shell, and the chicken feathers also followed the mud. The shell is taken off to reveal the chicken. About 100 years ago, the "Shanjingyuan" restaurant in the Yushan resort in the northwest of Changshu County based on this legend, removed the rough and extracted the essence, and followed the example to create this chicken.

The connection between Zhu Yuanzhang and Emperor Qianlong and the beggar's chicken is: before Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor, he once met an old beggar while fleeing after a defeat. The old beggar used soil and lotus leaves to control the chicken. The chicken was wrapped and cooked, and then presented to Zhu Yuanzhang. Zhu Yuanzhang was full of praise after eating. Later, after Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor, the chef of "Shanjingyuan" made beggar's chicken based on this legend. Zhu Yuanzhang was very satisfied after tasting it, and the beggar's chicken got its name. The connection between Emperor Qianlong and the beggar's chicken was when Qianlong visited the south of the Yangtze River incognito. He got lost in the wilderness because of unfamiliar roads. A beggar saw Qianlong's pity and shared the beggar's chicken he had just made with Qianlong. Because Qianlong was hungry, he felt that the beggar's chicken was extremely delicious, so he asked the beggar for the name of the chicken. The beggar thought for a while and then said that it was called Fugui Chicken. It turned out that the beggar was very good-looking, so he didn't want such a delicious chicken to have a shabby name. , so the name was changed. Therefore, beggar's chicken is also called rich chicken.