Chapter Forty-Seven
Thinking that the dish she was going to make for Duanmu Huaixin today was a rather time-consuming one, Wen Weili quickly picked out a mandarin fish from the fish tank.
The old cook looked at the 'Green Job's Maid' who had inexplicably used the small kitchen and had chosen fish to cook, and said with mixed feelings: "Young lady, you are delicate. This fish is difficult to cook. Why not ask the chef to help you?" She did not believe that a maid could make this fish dish with many bones and difficult to prepare delicious.
Wen Weili nodded and said, "You have a point." But she did not ask the chef for help. She held the mandarin fish, knocked the fish unconscious with a knife, removed the scales, and skillfully slid the tip of the knife down from the head of the fish, removed the head, picked out the bones along the spine of the fish, and then removed the internal organs from the belly of the fish. After cleaning, she added green onion slices, ginger slices, soju, and fine salt to marinate it.
Put the steamer on the stove which has just been lit, heat it up, put the marinated fish in it and steam it for a while. Wen Weili has already prepared a bowl of mixed egg yolk with fresh ham, tender bamboo shoots and diced mushrooms.
Remove the skin and bones of the marinated fish, chop it into fine pieces, and put it back into the marinade to absorb the flavor.
Hot oil in the pot creates small bubbles, add clear soup and bring to a boil, add long pieces of scallion and simmer, pour in the bowl of mixed egg yolks and remove the scallion and discard it.
When the soup starts to bubble up again, Wen Weili adds the fish and the juice into it, and adds a little salt. The fresh and fragrant aroma overflows from the pot. When the soup boils, add two or three drops of balsamic vinegar, and add cooked lard to the cook's surprised expression. Remove from the pot and sprinkle with the bright red cooked ham shreds.
A bowl of red and white fish soup is ready.
"This..." The cook had to admit that she had underestimated the palace maid. She was indeed good at cooking, but it was a pity that she was not from their kitchen. So she asked attentively, "Miss, do you want to make anything else?" She thought to herself that if she wanted to please the master, one dish would not be enough, and she would have to make some complementary dishes.
"No need." Wen Weili put the fish soup into the food box and said with a smile, "He is very well behaved."
The cook watched Wen Weili leave, and couldn't help but wonder, why is this maid speaking so strangely? Which master in the palace can be called so obedient?! Perhaps it's because the young master she serves is only three or four years old and is at the peak of her clingy nature. That might make some sense. But, are there such young masters in the palace?
Wen Weili didn’t know what the cook was thinking, but even if she knew she would probably laugh out loud. Isn’t the Duanmu Huaixin she is taking care of a big baby now?
Wen Weili, carrying a food box, had just stepped into the door when she saw Duanmu Huaixin sticking his head out from the door of the main hall, looking at her curiously and excitedly.
Seeing his beloved sister, Duanmu Huaixin leaped and ran out of his room to greet Wen Weili. Perhaps to get a good night's sleep, Duanmu Huaixin had untied his hair, letting his soft black hair fall loose. No one had brushed it that morning, so it had sloppily draped behind him. Now, it fluttered around his ears as he ran.
"Slow down!" Wen Weili quickly put down the lunch box and carefully put her arm around Duanmu Huaixin. "Be careful where you step. It hurts if you fall."
"Sister will definitely catch me," Duanmu Huaixin's face was still as clean as before, and her dark and deep expression was reflected in his eyes which were light and bright due to the loss of memory. He listened to every word of Wen Weili innocently and happily. He trusted her, believed in her completely.
Wen Weili lowered her head, her voice still smiling, and gently pushed Duanmu Huaixin away from her arms and said, "Xinxin, be good and come and have some food."
"It smells so good, what delicious food is this?" Duanmu Huaixin's eyes sparkled as he looked at the food box in Wen Weili's hand with anticipation.
Wen Weili smiled as she took out food from the lunch box and placed it on the table one by one. She pointed to the soup in the middle and said, "That's fish soup. There are some snacks and rice on the side. If you like, feel free to use more."
Wen Weili was absent-mindedly watching Duanmu Huaixin eating, when she suddenly heard Duanmu Huaixin ask.
"Sister, are we leaving?"
"Yeah..." Wen Weili paused, "Why does Xinxin think so?"
"Because my sister seems very happy," Duanmu Huaixin asked casually without even looking up from his food. "My sister always looks sad outside, but today she's smiling so beautifully."
"Xinxin is so smart. I'll take you back to Wen Mansion later, okay? Wen Mansion is my home."
When Duanmu Huaixin heard that it was Wen Weili's home, he asked happily, "What does your mother look like? Is she as fragrant as you?"
"So Xinxin thinks my sister is fragrant?" Wen Weili said in surprise, "I've never heard Xinxin say that before."
Duanmu Huaixin thought for a moment and said, "Maybe Xinxin didn't pay enough attention before! Now Xinxin can smell the fragrance on her sister's body. It's fragrant, but very faint. You have to be very close to smell it."
Fragrance? Wen Weili was not as relaxed as Duanmu Huaixin. She knew very well that she had not applied any perfume, let alone balm or other things that could leave a fragrance. Fragrance... was not a good thing.
With some doubts in her mind, Wen Weili was not as relaxed as before. She thought carefully about every step of the plan, wondering where the flaws lay.
"Xinxin, take a rest first. I'll call you and we'll set off."
"Sister, you haven't told Xinxin yet, is your mother also Xiangxiang?" Duanmu Huaixin remembered the question just now.
"I don't know about this either," Wen Weili tapped Duanmu Huaixin's forehead, which was raised curiously. "Xinxin, asking this question might offend others, especially a woman. Is Xinxin going to do such a bad thing?"
"Okay..." Duanmu Huaixin nodded, "Then please come back soon, sister. I miss you so much here alone."
"Yeah." Wen Weili responded, then packed up her things and left in a hurry.
"Sister!" Duanmu Huaixin suddenly called out to Wen Weili. He glanced around nervously and shouted, "There are bad guys. You, you come back quickly!"
Wen Weili knew that although Duanmu Huaixin had lost his memory, his inner strength was still there. She immediately turned around and stood beside Duanmu Huaixin, holding Duanmu Huaixin with one hand, and asked sternly: "Who are you? If you want something, why don't you show yourself!"
The palace was completely silent, as if no one else was there. However, Wen Weili trusted Duanmu Huaixin's judgment and knew clearly that she was being followed. She just didn't know which faction this person belonged to, but it was definitely not the Crown Prince's men. Otherwise, they would have been surrounded by the enemy, so why would they be being followed?
"Since you are unwilling to show up, please don't hinder us from leaving!" Wen Weili guessed that this person might be responsible for controlling the traffic in the palace. Sure enough, after she said this, a figure appeared in front of them.
"Prince Huai, Miss Wen, I'm sorry for the offense!" The man in black respectfully called out Wen Weili's name. Wen Weili knew that this was a deterrent. He must have known both of their backgrounds, and he pointed it out just to warn them not to act rashly and not to think about escaping.
"Sister... who is he?" Duanmu Huaixin clutched the corner of his clothes tightly, trying to clear his mind from the dull headache. He should have asked his most trusted 'sister', but an inexplicable emotion made Duanmu Huaixin's voice unconsciously become smaller.
Wen Weili only heard Duanmu Huaixin calling "sister", so she thought Duanmu Huaixin was uneasy. She hid Duanmu Huaixin behind her and looked directly at the man in black, looking at him coldly.
"Offended? That's too much." Wen Weili had a guess in her mind, and sneered at the black-clad man's threat, "I guess the Emperor isn't really that ill, but it's causing such a stir for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to be so smug!"
The man in black ignored Miss Wen's ridicule and said, "Your Majesty makes the arrangements, and we only need to obey."
"Since you don't want us to leave the palace, that's fine. I just have a few questions to ask you." Wen Weili knew that she couldn't leave today, so she might as well take this opportunity to ask clearly.
"Please tell me clearly, Miss Wen!" The man in black was not vague.
Wen Weili glanced at Duanmu Huaixin, hesitated for a moment, and ultimately did not let him leave. She only asked, "May I ask where your stalking began?"
"last night."
Last night... It seems they were discovered while investigating. Wen Weili couldn't help but think of the potion, and a sudden shiver lurked in her heart, a sense of foreboding. Although the potion had been made at her request, and she had verified its effectiveness, what if the person had done this on purpose?
After all, that man is her master—Li Zhigu!
Even though Wen Weili was very reluctant to believe that Li Zhigu had tampered with the potion he gave her, the facts made her unable to believe it. The potion did not work as she had hoped, Emperor Duanmu Qing was not seriously ill, and was even unable to leave the palace. The feeling that her plan had been completely disrupted made Wen Weili upset.
She frowned and asked, "When will His Majesty recover?"
"Your Majesty has his own arrangements." After saying that, the man in black climbed onto the roof and disappeared from Wen Weili's sight.
It seems that nothing can be asked, Wen Weili thought, what a pity, it is obviously such a good opportunity, but it is just Duanmu Qing's plan, and it is acted so realistically. I am afraid that except for these guards who are completely hidden in the dark, no one will not believe that the emperor has fully delegated power himself.
But Duanmu Qing had the courage to do so. When he pretended to be unconscious, he gave up all the guards in the palace. He endured the Queen acting like the Queen Mother and allowed the Prince to eliminate dissidents in the court like a new monarch. He actually endured it!
Perhaps when Wen Weili saw Duanmu Qing's behavior in the palace with her own eyes, she would still have some doubts, but who could blame her for not having such a deep grasp of the palace? This time she did not suffer an unfair defeat, but she only lost this battle, and it was not time to finally admit defeat!
Just as Wen Weili was reviewing her mistakes in this defeat, Duanmu Huaixin quietly let go of the hand that Wen Weili was holding. He seemed to have inexplicably believed in the woman in front of him—the eldest daughter of the Wen family. He also believed the stories she made up about his so-called "life experience", but the man in black called himself "Prince Huai"?
Amidst waves of dull pain, Duanmu Huaixin recalled some vague images. It seemed as if he was wearing very gorgeous clothes and receiving something. The people around him were congratulating him, and it seemed that they were shouting "Prince Huai". Is this scene really the story of the "illegitimate child" that the eldest daughter of the Wen family had told?
After figuring this out, Duanmu Huaixin looked deeply at Wen Weili who was thinking about something, and returned to the house without saying a word.
Wen Weili, immersed in her own thoughts, did not notice anything unusual about Duanmu Huaixin. She had been on guard against Duanmu Huaixin, but Duanmu Huaixin completely dispelled her guard with his sincerity and purity. She believed that Duanmu Huaixin would not betray her, but Wen Weili did not know that Duanmu Huaixin at this moment was no longer the brother who had all the memories of their time together.
Human nature is selfish. When Duanmu Huaixin loses his love and trust for Wen Weili, Wen Weili's love and trust for Duanmu Huaixin will probably be shattered like a delicate flower in a sudden rain.
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