Chapter 77 (Spicy Pork Belly with Garlic Sauce...)

Yan Qiushu felt uncomfortable after seeing this look. She picked up the corn uncomfortably and took a big bite.

She bit off the corn kernels mixed with a little soup and ate them with her little mouth.

Prince Huai chuckled and said, "It seems that the Lord likes eating very much."

Yan Qiushu replied casually: "Yes."

Prince Huai did not feel ignored and continued to talk about other things.

When someone mentioned herself, Yan Qiushu would just respond with a few words, and when someone else mentioned something else, she would just concentrate on eating.

She was exhausted after working so long this afternoon.

I originally thought that the two families were having a meal together, and she brought her children, the Xiao family, and the Chang Wang couple to eat together, but I didn't expect it to be such a formal occasion, with so many more people.

Yan Qiushu sighed silently.

Fortunately, the meal was finished quickly. The maids came in and cleared away all the tableware, and everyone was about to leave.

Yan Qiushu immediately perked up and wanted to slip away.

However, as the host of this small banquet, she was pulled to the door by Xie Qingyun to see the guests off.

Because it was too formal, Ah Heng was unable to say a word to Yan Qiushu, and was very reluctant to leave: "Sister Ah Shu, I will come to play with you another day."

Yan Qiushu rubbed his head and said, "You are always welcome."

Ah Heng then left with satisfaction.

The next to go was Prince Shun. As he passed by, he said with a smile, "Ah Qin was very happy to hear that you had made contributions and were named a county lord. He is included in the gift I sent. If possible, please write a letter to him."

The two were not familiar with each other, so they only chatted briefly at the banquet. When Prince Shun said this, Yan Qiushu was stunned for a moment, thinking of the pitiful little boy, and her eyes narrowed: "Yes, thank you, Your Highness."

Prince Shun waved his hand and strode away.

After that came Dongdong’s good friends. These kids were also very simple-minded. They ate very contentedly with bulging bellies. When they left, they all followed Dongdong’s example and called her “Sister A Shu” and left with brisk steps.

Next came the Xiao family's in-laws, followed by the Prince of Jin and Yan Qiuyuan. The two walked past one after the other. The former didn't even look at her, but the latter paused when he passed by her and said in an ambiguous way, "You are quite successful now, but Dad doesn't even know it."

"I have a father?" Yan Qiushu blinked blankly. "Miss Yan Liu, you are joking. My father has been dead for a long time, and his body was cut into pieces by wild beasts. To be honest, they don't know how successful I am now. I will tell them when I pay my respects in a few days."

Yan Qiuyuan's face changed slightly, and she looked at her angrily. She didn't expect that she could talk about her father's sudden death so casually! It seems that she really has no feelings for the Yan family.

Yan Qiushu looked back with a smile.

After looking at each other for a few seconds, Yan Qiuyuan snorted and strode away.

Why is she laughing now? When she really enters the Sixth Prince's backyard and becomes a concubine, she will still have to pay respect to her, especially since this concubine is the one Zhou Zejing doesn't want.

Xie Qingyun noticed what was happening over there and came over to ask softly, "You have a bad relationship with her?"

Yan Qiushu nodded: "Last year, the Yan family's daughter got into trouble, and it was she who did it, but I was blamed for it. How can this relationship be good?"

The atmosphere in Xie Qingyun's family was good, and the Xiao family was even more united. Although she had heard about the horrors of some women's home fights, she was still shocked to see people around her experiencing such things. She wondered, "How could two sisters from the same family end up in such a mess?"

As soon as the voice fell, the Fourth Prince finished talking to Madam Xiao and walked over. When passing by Yan Qiushu, he smiled and said, "I had a very pleasant conversation with the Lord today, but I still feel a little unsatisfied. If there is a chance, I would like to invite the Lord to dinner and talk about the specialties of other places."

Yan Qiushu smiled politely: "That's not necessary, this is all I know. If Your Highness likes it, why not go to the food court? The chefs there are actually more skilled."

They don't know each other, why make an appointment?

The smile on Prince Huai's lips froze for a moment. He looked at her deeply, said goodbye politely, and left.

As soon as Prince Huai left, everyone else in the mansion also left.

Xie Qingyun had been serving for a whole day and was already exhausted. Without outsiders around, her shoulders slumped. She pounded her arm and frowned, "What's wrong with His Royal Highness Prince Huai? Why does he seem to be..."

She muttered to herself, but then thought it was impossible.

King Huai was fond of Buddhism, and in order to travel around the country while his brothers were fighting for the throne, he went out for fun, which impressed many people.

But on second thought, Ah Shu is a good girl, Prince Huai does not like power, although Ah Shu is now named Xiangjun, it is just a title. According to the old emperor's character, if Ah Shu did not have other fathers and brothers, this reward would definitely not fall on her.

The identity of the woman, and possibly the factor of the Xiao family, made the old emperor only intend to give her a nominal title to get the matter over with. However, if such a woman was married, it would also help to dispel the suspicion of other princes and prevent them from being involved in the dispute over the throne.

The more Xie Qingyun thought about it, the more she felt it made sense. However, she looked at the girl beside her and felt a little unhappy. She was brought back by Lao Liu, so she asked tentatively, "Ah Shu, what do you think of His Royal Highness Prince Huai?"

Yan Qiushu frowned slightly and said decisively: "Not very good, he doesn't look like a gentleman."

How could a man who could take advantage of Hsiao Hwai-ya's weakness be a good person? She hated such people.

Xie Qingyun was stunned. She didn't expect to get such an answer. She thought that even if he didn't like her, he just didn't feel anything. Unexpectedly, he seemed to be a little disgusted. After a moment of silence, she said, "Just now I saw that His Royal Highness Prince Huai seemed to be interested in you."

Yan Qiushu's eyebrows jumped when she heard this, and she thought of the biography of Ping Niang that Xiao Huaiya was reading.

Although as for that incident, because it was impossible for Prince Huai to contact Xiao Huaiya again, and she could not find an excuse to hint at the moment, she gave up temporarily, but in her heart, Prince Huai was not a good person.

He seemed to be a non-confrontational person, but in his previous life, he was able to give up the throne and leave Kyoto openly after killing the fifth and sixth princes. Such courage showed that he was not an ordinary person.

After knowing another dark version of what happened between him and Hsiao Wai-ya, this man seems particularly terrifying.

Why did he try so hard to make a woman who had lived in a Taoist temple for several years like him? It was impossible that he did it for the Xiao family!

Now that he can't conquer Hsiao Wai-ya, he turns to conquer himself?

It was no wonder Yan Qiushu thought too much. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that she was right. Then she thought about how Yan Qiuyuan suddenly looked at her when the banquet was halfway through. She always felt that there was some hostility in his eyes before, but after Prince Huai started talking to her, the look Yan Qiuyuan gave her was no longer hostile. Instead, it was very strange, which made her feel uncomfortable.

If this is true...there are actually clues to follow?

Because he pointed out the shortcomings of potatoes, perhaps people noticed it. The Xiao family's big move in the food court has definitely attracted a lot of attention. Many people are jealous and want to follow suit, but only a few can make the food as delicious as the food in the food court.

The Xiao family never boasted about her contribution. The recipes and everything were all invented by her. If you ask around, you will know that in the eyes of those people, she is definitely not as important as Xiao Huaiya. If they want to use her, it will be much easier.

This is also the reason why she doesn't want to run a restaurant herself. In this class society, it is difficult for her to keep these things. Those in higher positions may make all her hard work go to waste with just a word.

But the point now is not this, but how will Prince Huai treat her?

Shouldn't we just go and ask for permission directly?

Yan Qiushu shook her head. Not really. They had just met once, so why should she go and ask for permission now? Moreover, it happened to be at this time when she was awarded the title of Lady of the Country for her contribution to potatoes. Even though her status was not prominent, it was still somewhat ambiguous.

So just wait, when the enemy comes, we will stop them; when the water comes, we will block it with earth!

Prince Huai's Palace.

Summer nights seem especially short.

After returning from Xiao Mansion and resting for a while, Prince Huai had to get up and attend court. After the court was over, he had to go to the royal planting area to see if the potatoes had sprouted.

Because it was he who presented such a good thing as potatoes, the emperor was very supportive and directly put him in charge of potato planting. However, he did not have to do anything personally, he just had to control the overall situation.

But because of this, countless people came to please him.

In everyone's mind, this is a prince who is destined to go down in history!

It would not be impossible for him to be the crown prince, right?

The third prince is gone, and Prince Shun has Concubine Lu above him. His Royal Highness Prince Chang and His Majesty have often disagreed on political views. And there was the previous confinement. Who knows if it will happen again in the future?

Although the Sixth Prince, Prince Xuan, seems capable, he is not outstanding enough. The Fourth Prince, Prince Huai, is the first choice of many ministers who want the best for the country.

Of course, there are also people who want to get a piece of the pie, such as promoting the contribution of potatoes to benefit people all over the world.

Coming and going, every day, Prince Huai had to receive many people because of official business. Finally, he returned to the palace tired. He rested for a while, and the maid massaged his limbs. He lay on the soft couch. When the massage was comfortable and his limbs were relaxed after a day of hard work, he dismissed the maid and asked softly: "Have you finished the things I asked you to do?"

The personal attendant immediately responded: "It has been completed and will be delivered this morning. Can I show it to Your Highness?"

After getting permission, the servant took a letter from the bookshelf, opened it and handed it over.

Prince Huai took it and took a look, his brows slowly wrinkled.

This was the information he had people collect about Lady De'an the day before yesterday, starting from the time she returned to Kyoto as Yan Shu. However, there was only information about her - eating and drinking!

She followed Xiao Wai Ting back, but she didn't do anything else. She was either eating or on her way to find food. The only time she was different was when she went out to join in the fun on the Lantern Festival and bought some popcorn.

After seeing what happened next, Prince Huai's expression finally improved.

She still has some weaknesses. She wants to go out and buy a house.

Although the Xiao family gave her the farm, she still could not move out. It was probably because the Xiao family was reluctant to part with such a cash cow and would not let her go. Since then, she gave the Xiao family significantly more recipes, and the food court was established soon after.

The Xiao family wouldn't be so stingy as to exchange a farm worth hundreds of vehicles for so many prescriptions, right?

Prince Huai curled his lips and smiled. He had been worried that this girl would be very loyal to the Xiao family because of Xiao Huaiting's life-saving grace, and would be difficult to deal with. But now it seems that she is easy to deal with.

He said, "Send a letter to this king."

It's time to get in touch with her. If she agrees, it will save some trouble. After all, he is going to marry the daughter of the Minister of War, and it is not good to take a concubine before she gets married.

It is most appropriate to be a mistress first.

This is the best. If a woman really likes a man, she can be humble to the dust, especially Yan Qiushu's identity. She was born as a concubine's daughter, abandoned by her family, and lived in the Xiao Mansion as a dependent. In order to live a good life, she would rather be the cook of the Xiao Mansion and coax a group of young masters.

It's still easy to grasp.

King Huai gave the order and the attendants immediately obeyed.

But within half an hour, the person came back, with a look of helplessness and embarrassment on his face: "Your Highness, the Lady of De'an said that their status is different, it is inconvenient, and she doesn't like going out, so she won't go."

Prince Huai: “…”

He frowned in displeasure, but he remembered that the record of Yan Qiushu's schedule also said that this girl really didn't like to go out. When she was in the Yan family, she tried her best to go out, begging her stepmother to take care of her and coaxing her stepsister to take care of her. She did all these things. But in the Xiao family, Yan Qiushu really didn't go out much.

But is he so easy to reject?

Prince Huai said, "Send another letter, saying that she has something to ask about potatoes, and then meet her at her favorite food court. After all, she knows so much about potatoes, and she saved Prince Chang because of them. I want to ask her what else she knows about potatoes."

The attendant nodded again: "Yes."

Yan Qiushu was helpless when she received this letter.

It turned out that Prince Huai was going to capture her.

After being rejected once, give her a compliment the second time so that she has no choice but to refuse.

Shui Yu knew that she didn't like the King, and was very worried: "Miss, are you going?"

"Of course I have to go. What else can I do now that he's said so?" Yan Qiushu shrugged, but remained calm. She had many ways to deal with this situation, so she wasn't too worried, as long as he didn't bring up the old emperor.

It is not easy for a prince who has always been spoiled to hate a woman.

Seeing this, Shui Yu said, "Then I will go and prepare the carriage."

Yan Qiushu nodded and simply tidied herself up. She wore the plain clothes she usually wore in the mansion. Apart from changing her eyebrows and eyes as usual, she didn't do anything else to cover up her appearance.

When she arrived at the gate of Xiao's house, Shui Yan was already waiting there and the carriage was ready.

The food court was located in a remote area, and the carriage took a while to arrive. As soon as we got off the carriage, a clean-looking man with no stubble and a slightly shrill voice came over and said, "Hello, my master. My master is already waiting in the store. Please come in."

Yan Qiushu nodded and followed him.

The restaurant that Huai Wang decided to go to was a serious stir-fry restaurant, also opened by the Xiao family. Except for some Kyoto specialties and Da Zhou specialties, all the other dishes were made by her.

The food court was as crowded as usual, and this restaurant was also very crowded, but because the store was expanded to the back, the space was spacious and there were many private rooms inside.

Yan Qiushu was led to one of the private rooms.

King Huai was sitting there.

"The Lord is finally here. I have been waiting for a long time and thought he would not come."

"I have met His Royal Highness Prince Huai." Yan Qiushu smiled and said, "Your Highness, you are joking. How can I not come to such an important event related to potatoes?"

Prince Huai's eyes darkened, and his fair and handsome face showed a bit of depression: "If it weren't for potatoes, the county lord wouldn't have come out?"

"Of course." Yan Qiushu said bluntly.

Prince Huai sighed, his expression becoming more gloomy. He forced a smile and stopped talking about the topic: "I ordered some blanched vegetables. What do you like to eat?"

Yan Qiushu knocked on the menu. The private room had a special menu, which was the same as that of an ordinary restaurant, listing the main dishes, meat dishes, vegetarian dishes, and various drinks.

She scanned the table from top to bottom and said, "Give me a plate of spicy garlic pork belly, garlic chicken wings, garlic spare ribs, and a cup of iced milk tea."

She calmly announced the names of the dishes, but the expression of the young man beside her gradually stiffened. As a prince, the palace maids around him never ate such strong-tasting food since he was a child, for fear that the smell would offend his master.

The woman in front of him was the only one who dared to order a bunch of garlic dishes in front of him!

The waiter also looked strange, but he took the order since the customer had placed it. After accepting the order, he asked, "My two guests, what else would you like to order?"

“…No need.” said King Huai.

The waiter nodded immediately: "Okay, I'll bring it to you right away."

He went out quickly and told the kitchen to fry it first.

Silence returned to the private room.

Prince Huai wanted to speak several times, but Yan Qiushu lowered her eyes and played with her fingers. When the milk tea came, she just drank it, completely ignoring the fact that there was someone beside her, which made the smile on Prince Huai's face become more and more forced.

"The Lord is a straightforward person." Prince Huai sighed.

Yan Qiushu smiled modestly: "It's okay, it's okay. The main reason is that life is short. If you don't act straightforwardly, you will not live comfortably and make yourself uncomfortable."

Prince Huai raised his eyebrows and said with a smile, "Do you plan to live in Xiao Mansion forever?"

"Well, it looks good at the moment." Yan Qiushu said.

Prince Huai was about to say something when the waiter knocked on the door and brought the dishes.

Yan Qiushu's eyes lit up immediately, and she looked at the dish with great anticipation. The dish filled the elegant room with the aroma of garlic as soon as she entered the room. "This smells good. The chef's cooking skills are really good."

"Thank you for the compliment, fellow countryman." The waiter smiled happily, put down the dishes, and left respectfully.

Yan Qiushu picked up the chopsticks and said with a smile: "Your Highness, would you like to eat?"

"...Eat." Prince Huai nodded with a forced smile and picked up a handful of simple vegetables with chopsticks.

Yan Qiushu had a piece of meat with chopsticks.

The spicy garlic pork belly is cooked in a similar way to the crispy pork, except that the batter is not as thick as the crispy pork. It is also stir-fried in the wok at the end so that the spicy garlic sauce adheres to each piece of pork belly.

The pork belly that Yan Qiushu picked up with her chopsticks was slightly curled and covered with minced garlic and ground peppercorns. When she took a bite of it, the salty aroma of the minced garlic mixed with the spicy taste and the crispy pork belly rolled on her tongue.

Every bite is full of juice, and the aroma of minced garlic fills your nose.

The not-too-spicy taste enriches the overall flavor, making the pork belly not greasy or oily and very delicious.

"It's delicious, isn't it, Your Highness?" After eating it, Yan Qiushu did not forget to ask the people around her, her eyes full of anticipation: "This is my favorite dish! If you eat meat without garlic, the flavor will be half as good. Your Highness, eat more. Doesn't it smell and taste good?"

Prince Huai: “…”

The corners of his mouth twitched, and he moved away from her in resistance, saying perfunctorily: "The girl has a very special taste."

"It's OK." Yan Qiushu smiled. "It's a pity that there is no stinky tofu. But Your Highness may not have eaten it. It's tofu that has been fermented and made to stink. Then you put it in a pan and fry it. It smells stinky but tastes delicious. I'll bring some for Your Highness next time?"

Stinky tofu is too smelly and has not yet conquered many people. Xiao Huaiqi was afraid that it would drive away diners who were not aware of the smell, so he did not allow it to appear in the food court, which made Yan Qiushu very regretful.

Otherwise she would have ordered a lot of stinky tofu by now!

Of course, just this description was enough to make Prince Huai's face turn green, and he lost his appetite, so much so that he couldn't even take the second bite of rice.