After driving Lord Lu away, Gu Yanyue quickly poured the boiling water that had been boiled on the side into the pot, threw the soaked vegetables into the pot, and then poured in the hot pot base that she had just prepared.
After the soup boiled with a sizzling sound, Gu Yanchuan poured half of the soup base into the small pot that had been prepared long ago. Wearing gloves, he placed the entire pot directly on the dining table where Yu Wenran was sitting.
The soup base was red and fragrant. Gu Yanyue secretly felt that her cooking skills had not deteriorated at all because of her time travel. The soup she made was truly the most delicious food in the world.
Lord Lu, who was following behind her, saw her carrying the pot directly up and thought she was going to assassinate the emperor. He hurried over and said, "Empress, how can you bring this hot pot... right in front of the emperor?"
Gu Yanyue smiled meaningfully and then clapped her hands.
Behind her, more than a dozen palace maids lined up, each holding a gold-inlaid plate in their hands, on which were placed lettuce, raw tofu, raw vermicelli and raw meat slices.
Su Xue'e suddenly sneered, as if she really couldn't help it, and looked at Gu Yanyue again, her eyes full of teasing.
Yuwen Ran glanced disdainfully at the table full of lettuce and sneered, "The Queen thinks I have a poor appetite, so she's giving me lettuce. Is this what the Queen calls a solution?"
This Gu Yanyue is getting more and more outrageous!
He went through so much trouble for most of the day just for a table full of raw vegetables and meat. How ridiculous!
However, just as Yuwen Ran was about to explode, Gu Yanyue took out a bowl of light brown seasoning from the hand of a palace maid beside her, placed the bowl of this strange substance in front of Yuwen Ran, and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, please try it and then judge me. This is a delicacy unique to my hometown. Not eating this hot pot for a day is simply a torture to my taste buds."
"It's not as mysterious as you say." Yu Wenran calmed down and wanted to see what this little girl could make.
Gu Yanyue smiled and picked up the vegetables on the plate and put them into the pot one by one.
When the hot pot was almost done, Gu Yanyue quickly picked up a piece of beef and put it in the bowl in front of Yu Wenran and stirred it. The light brown sesame paste completely covered the meat slice.
Yu Wenran was even more disgusted: "What color is this thing?"
"Your Majesty, please try it."
Perhaps unable to withstand Gu Yanyue's coquettish offensive, Yu Wenran finally spoke and put the beef slices into his mouth.
“Hmm!”
The moment he ate the beef slices, Yu Wenran felt that the taste of the beef slices seemed to have changed. After taking a bite, the sesame paste flowed into the taste buds on the tip of his tongue. The beef slices were also extremely tender and fragrant, leaving a lingering aftertaste. His attitude took a sudden turn.
“Why is it so delicious?!”
Yu Wenran felt like he could hardly speak anymore, so he just started eating in silence.
Gu Yanyue also patiently told him that it would be most perfect if he dipped it in the sesame sauce in the bowl.
She knew that no one could escape her secret hot pot!
Su Xue'e, who was standing by, saw Yu Wenran, who hadn't eaten for several days, eating so happily. She smelled the rich aroma of the hot pot and swallowed her saliva countless times, but she really didn't want to ask Gu Yanyue for food.
Gu Yanyue looked at her with a smile, then scooped out a piece of meat, put it in the bowl of sesame sauce, and gently handed it to Su Xue'e, "Do you want to eat it?"
Su Xue'e nodded hesitantly.
Gu Yanyue just smiled faintly and handed the bowl to her.
Seeing Su Xue'e also showing an expression of enjoyment after finishing her meal, Gu Yanyue smiled again and snatched the bowl back from her hand, "When you poisoned me, did you ever think that you would become a mediocre person who only cares about eating?"
Gu Yanyue is very confident in her cooking skills. Just this one bite is enough to make people linger.
Su Xue'e looked at her with a face full of grievance, but was frightened back by Gu Yanyue's cold gaze.
It’s really delicious!
I really want to continue eating!
But……
Seeing Su Xue'e's uncomfortable look, Gu Yanyue almost laughed to death, but he had to pretend that he was calm inside to prevent others from seeing his gloating face.
On the other side, Yu Wenran, who had not eaten for several days, cleared the entire table of hot pot. Thinking of his previous vow not to eat the food cooked by the Gu family's daughter, he suddenly felt a little embarrassed.
"You..." Yu Wenran coughed lightly and changed the subject, "How come I didn't know that your cooking skills are so superb?"
Gu Yanyue smiled, a smile that was so captivating and moving, "Your Majesty has never truly understood me."
Yu Wenran was at a loss, and only came to his senses after Gu Yanyue asked for permission to leave.
…
Gu Yanyue found Lord Lu alone. Lord Lu had just finished tasting the leftover hot pot from the imperial kitchen. When he saw her coming, his face was full of excitement.
"Your Majesty, I'm blind and ignorant! This thing looks a lot like the folk 'antique soup,' except that the 'antique soup' is made with just water, and the resulting meat is bland. But Your Majesty's... 'hot pot' is simply a delicacy. I almost squandered such a gift, and I feel truly guilty!"
"No problem, no problem."
Gu Yanyue smiled, helped him up, and said with a smile: "Master Lu, I came here to ask you a question. This powder..."
As she spoke, she pulled out a handkerchief that contained the powder from the osmanthus cake that Su Xue'e had brought her. "Your Excellency, as the head chef of the Imperial Kitchen, must be well versed in this kind of thing. I would like to ask Your Excellency to secretly investigate this for me."
Lord Lu agreed, thinking that if he helped the Queen, the Queen might be so kind as to treat him to a hotpot!
After explaining everything, Gu Yanyue hummed an English song and jumped around in the palace. The palace maids behind her could only watch in fear, fearing that their master would be in danger.
But she was only happy for a short while, as she ran into Yuwen Ran head-on.
"Your Majesty, I have seen you."
Yuwen Ran looked down at the little girl, feeling a mixture of emotions. "Stand up."
Gu Yanyue stood up as he said, and looked up to see his expression. Her beautiful eyes were full of melancholy. When she thought of Yu Wenran's current situation, she felt very uncomfortable.
"It's getting late, Queen, please return to the palace quickly."
After all, she is not his.
Yu Wenran turned around dejectedly, and the dragon robe with black background and gold lines on his body seemed to blend into the night.
Gu Yanyue gritted her teeth, made up her mind, and took a few steps forward, "Your Majesty, I am not a daughter of the Gu family, I am the queen of Dongsheng."
She said this without any context, but she was actually expressing her feelings to Yu Wenran.
Yu Wenran turned around suddenly, but was stunned for a moment when he saw the girl's eyes full of sincerity. "Do you know what you are saying?"
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