However, Zhuangzhuang was young, and after eating the dumplings, he jumped out and said that he wanted to pay New Year's greetings to Mrs. Yang. According to Xiaoguo, Zhuangzhuang was probably going to ask for maltose.

During the New Year's market, Mrs. Yang bought a lot of triangular maltose and gave it to Zhuangzhuang once. However, because Xiaoguo was worried about his teeth, she didn't buy him any during the New Year, and she also didn't let him eat too many lollipops at home.

It seems that the little glutton can't help it, but, isn't it Chinese New Year? Let's just turn a blind eye.

During the whole morning, the adults in Taohua Village went out to visit their friends or took rides to other villages to wish a happy new year. The children gathered together to visit each household to wish a happy new year and say auspicious words. If they met a generous family, they could even ask for one or two sugar cubes. Those who did not have sugar cubes also generously sent their blessings back.

-

In the evening, the lights were on in Xiaoguo's house, and the sounds of talking, laughing and playing were endless.

"Sister Xiaoguo, why are you chopping chicken?"

Xiao Cui held the copper pot in her hand and looked at her doubtfully. Isn't it a hot pot? Why does it need chicken?

"We'll have hot pot chicken. We'll stir-fry it with some ingredients. It's delicious."

Xiaoguo threw the chopped chicken into the pot. A total of three large broilers were prepared, which were also the last three chickens in the refrigerator. The usual original spicy soup is also delicious, but it also has a unique flavor when made into hot pot chicken.

Two copper pots were prepared, one for spicy food and one for sauce-flavored food.

From blanching to frying the chicken, Ruyi and a few others surrounded her and watched her. Under the pretext of learning the skills, they followed her closely like a little tail.

A few people took over Zhuangzhuang's usual position, causing Xiao Zhuangzhuang to be squeezed out as soon as he squeezed in, and then be squeezed out again as soon as he stood firm.

He simply waved his hand and went straight to find Qin Anming, thinking generously in his heart that a good man does not fight with a woman, and he would not bother with a bunch of grown girls like them.

Charcoal was put on the table, and two pots of fragrant hot pot chicken were placed on the table. Meatballs and vegetables were placed around them, and there were also two large bowls of lamb rolls.

The restaurant also offers Xiaoguo’s exclusive secret sesame sauce and sweet and sour garlic.

I went to the market before and found new garlic, so I bought a bag of it. I ate half of it raw and pickled the other half into sweet and sour garlic.

If you eat lamb without garlic, the flavor will be half lost.

Raw garlic is spicy and not as delicious as sweet and sour garlic, but Xiaoguo likes it even more, so she ate a lot tonight.

The hot pot chicken is tender yet slightly chewy, and the soup is tasty. The more you eat, the tastier it becomes. Even the bones are filled with fragrance.

It was a very warm meal in such a cold weather, and the hot pot chicken was well received by everyone.

Capital city.

The streets were bustling all day long.

Carriages and sedan chairs from all over the world were moving towards the imperial palace. Although their starting points were different, their destinations were the same.

At this moment, Jiang Shanhe was standing at the entrance of the Qianqing Palace in his official uniform. Although he was smiling as he welcomed the envoys from various countries, he was cursing Shao Zhan in his heart.

He knew clearly that he was not suited to this kind of occasion, but he still insisted on giving this responsibility to himself. In other words, the prince was still young, and the only minister he valued was Jiang Shanhe. If not him, who else could take the position?

So, Jiang Shanhe stood inexplicably at this position.

Looking at the group of idle civil officials behind him, Jiang Shanhe was about to get angry again. If all else failed, he could just pick a random civil official to stand here. Why let him come?

Although they thought so, they put on a smiling face. They cannot lose the demeanor of a great country.

The grand court banquet can actually be called the foreign vassal banquet.

It was mainly used to entertain leaders of ethnic minorities in border areas or envoys from vassal states. On this day, envoys or leaders would bring tributes from various countries to Beijing and present them to the emperor.

The security situation on this day was very important. Jiang Shanhe was unable to leave for the moment, and he was a little worried about leaving only the Jinyiwei to patrol, so he arranged for Li Shouji to be on the scene as well.

He led the team to guard every entrance and every place that could bring the emperor into contact. Even the tribute items were checked one by one. They were strictly guarded and not even a fly could fly in. In this regard, Jiang Shanhe had great confidence in his ability.

The banquet started smoothly.

The first step was for the emperor to give some formal remarks on the throne, followed by the envoys coming to the court and presenting the lists of tributes they had brought. Eunuch Su on the side read out the list, while the eunuch behind him recorded it.

Shao is a populous country, with countless small countries around it that it relies on.

Although the surrounding countries are not big, due to the geographical location, the rich tributes paid every year are also unique, which adds a lot to the treasury of Shao Kingdom.

After reading the list, Shao Zhan frowned slightly and glanced at the envoys and leaders sitting below. There should be twelve names on the list, but now there is one missing.

After looking around, Shao Zhan locked onto a messenger.

"Why is the Western Regions envoy not on the list?"

As soon as these words came out, everyone's attention was instantly focused on the envoy from the Western Regions.

And that person seemed to have been waiting for this moment. He stood up with an excited look on his face, walked to the center of the hall, and saluted with his right hand on his left shoulder.

"Your Majesty, it is better to see the tribute from the Western Regions with your own eyes."

As soon as he said this, there were whispers in the hall. It was obvious that everyone was speculating about what he had said and was discussing what it might be.

Shao Zhan narrowed his eyes slightly, and became a little interested. "Pass it on."

The Western Region envoy had a look on his face that was exactly what he expected. He was a little hesitant at first about presenting the gift, but when he saw that he was the only one sitting on the main seat and the empress was not there, he became more certain of his guess.

The envoy from the Western Regions had a proud look on his face and made a gesture to the people outside.

Everyone in the hall was craning their necks to look outside, wanting to be the first to see what it was. It was obvious that their appetite had been whetted by the tribute from the Western Regions.

In the whole audience, only Jiang Shanhe had no expression. He still sat in the front seat, drinking tea leisurely. He should have drunk some wine, but he didn't. He was old enough to take care of his health. After all, after returning home in the spring, he was still thinking about having a daughter, and alcohol was the most draining thing on the body.

Shao Zhan showed curiosity on his face, but his heart was calm.

Looking at the Western Regions envoy who looked uncertain, he sneered, saying how stupid he was.

As everyone was looking forward to it, a graceful and elegant figure with a strange fragrance appeared at the door, getting closer and closer.

She was dressed in a blue Cuiyan shirt, a misty green grass pleated skirt, and a light blue Cuiyan gauze. Her shoulders were cut into waistlines, her skin was as white as cream, and her breath was as fragrant as orchid.

Her eyes were filled with the clear waves of spring water, and on her head was a hollow gold hairpin slanted, decorated with bits of purple jade, with tassels sprinkled on her black hair. Her delicate and fair face was more beautiful than flowers, and her every frown and smile was touching. There was really a bit of pink, soft and charming taste.

Some envoys began to swallow their saliva unwillingly, watching the beautiful figure passing by their eyes. They couldn't help but take a deep breath, intoxicated by the fragrance.

After he came to his senses, he looked with regret at the figure standing next to the Western Regions envoy. The beauties of the Western Regions were famous, and now he saw that they were indeed worthy of their reputation.

From the moment the beauty appeared, the fake interest in Shao Zhan's eyes disappeared. He was just a vulgar person.

The Western Regions envoy was still unaware of his master's thoughts. He only paid attention to the inhalations around him and slowly became conceited. Their Western Regions beauties were well-known, and now he was offering the most beautiful woman in the Western Regions to the Emperor of Shao. If he was lucky enough to be favored by her, it would be a great achievement. By then, wouldn't their Western Regions be...

It makes me happy just thinking about it.

The Western Regions envoy smiled sincerely, but if he had paid more attention to the expression of his superior, he probably would not have smiled.