Several grand secretaries looked at each other, only the grand secretary of Zhongji Hall was still sipping tea. He also had some cold noodles made by the Third Prince at noon, and judging from his expression, it should taste quite good.
Otherwise, I wouldn’t have to eat it tomorrow.
In the hot summer, who wants to eat something so refreshing?
Everyone felt that the Third Prince was moody and no one knew what he would do next.
But this attitude is somewhat useful.
After all, Xie Pei's attitude towards the nobles in the inner palace is basically different from his attitude towards them.
Even if they are university scholars, they are still human beings and have human emotions, so it is inevitable that they will feel more comfortable.
This is a ferocious person who has a bad temper towards everyone, but he just looks at you for a second longer, and the feeling is still a little different.
Besides, everyone can see the Third Prince’s abilities.
Tea is a small matter, but attitude is important.
After Su Wan and Xie Pei had tea delivered, they actually put the matter behind them and started playing the official selection game.
Su Wan had played this game before when she was in the inner palace. It was similar to flying chess.
After all, this was just a game for children. The two of them played Go again. Su Wan was learning on the spot, so she was definitely not as good as Xie Pei, but she improved so quickly that even Xie Pei was slightly surprised.
So when Su Wan returned, Xie Pei gave her a few chess manuals. It would probably not be long before the two of them could play chess seriously.
Su Wan actually found some fun in this and studied it for several days in a row. Xie Pei's place was indeed comfortable, and it became more and more natural for her to take a nap here.
After staying in the room for a long time, they naturally wanted to go out for a walk, and they set out to climb the mountain early in the morning.
Su Wan and Xie Pei, along with a few familiar guards, went out for an outing.
The Yuhua Palace is located on the mountain, just above the foot of the mountain. The mountain is called Laixi Mountain. From the name, you can tell that it is a beautiful place with mountains and rivers.
Although the weather is hot in summer, if you walk up a little further to the halfway point of the mountain, the mountain breeze will feel cool and there will be a gurgling stream nearby.
The stream is so clear that you can see the bottom, and there are many small fish and shrimps foraging in it.
This mountain is indeed wild and interesting, otherwise it would not have been chosen as a summer resort.
By noon, the heat wave had become a bit stronger, so the few of them simply found a shade under a tree to cool off. They also brought some packaged ice jelly, one small bowl per person, which was enough to cool off.
As for lunch, it was also simple. With the stream nearby, they had already prepared to eat grilled fish!
These guards were worthy of being brought up by General Ding. They obviously had experience in the wild. Some of them were catching fish, some were collecting firewood to make a fire, and Su Wan and Xie Pei were looking for some wild rosemary and mint leaves to use for grilling fish later.
Logically, they didn't have to do anything, especially Xie Pei, who just had to wait, but he still followed Su Wan. Su Wan picked the fruits and he collected them, then went to the stream nearby to wash the leaves.
Is this an ancient version of a picnic?
Since the fish are being grilled, they must be grilled near the water, so it is less likely to cause a fire and the sparks can be extinguished in time.
The guards cleaned the fish thoroughly before bringing it over, and then watched eagerly as Su Wan grilled it.
Fortunately, Su Wan was very calm about these looks and was not afraid at all. She took the dagger from Xie Pei and cut a few fish into pieces, then spread the seasoning she brought evenly on the fish meat and put them aside to marinate.
Fresh fish is marinated quickly, skewered on split bamboo, and grilled.
First, brush a layer of oil on the fish to roast out the fish oil. When the fish oil comes out, add more oil immediately. Many barbecues are too dry and woody because the oil is not rich enough.
Not only grilled fish, but several common mushrooms were also picked and roasted. These mushrooms were picked only after they were confirmed by all of them to be edible. People with little experience must not go up the mountain to pick and eat them by themselves. If they encounter poisonous mushrooms, they will at least get seriously ill.
Given the medical conditions in ancient times, it was basically a failure.
Freshly picked mushrooms can be delicious if they are grilled casually. You can also brush the grilled fish with a layer of honey or sprinkle it with dipping sauce directly, which will give it a different flavor.
Su Wan is efficient and does things efficiently, and she doesn't pursue the perfection of cooking when she is outside.
But the grilled fish grilled in this way has a unique flavor.
Of course, the fish and mushrooms are fresh enough, so it doesn’t require complicated cooking techniques to make it look great.
The fish meat is roasted to be crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. It is so comfortable to drink the fragrant tea I brought with me.
Cicadas chirped all around, and Su Wan felt sleepy again. It was okay not to take a nap before, but now she was used to it and always had to take a nap after a nap.
Counting it up, it started on June 13th, and it’s only late June now, just over ten days. Isn’t it a bit too fast to adapt?
As Su Wan was thinking about this, she fell asleep under the roots of the old tree.
Seeing that she had fallen asleep, Xie Pei fanned her intermittently, and then listened to someone reporting official business.
Sure enough, after he became quiet, some people became anxious.
Those people were not afraid that he would go crazy, but they were afraid that he would suddenly calm down. Now they were eager to find his faults, and even wanted to bring up the old matter again and re-convict him of the palace search.
Xie Pei sneered and lowered his voice and said, "Let them do it. Are all the civil and military officials in the court fools?"
Everyone knows it was intentional, so this plan has failed by three points.
The guard looked at the Third Prince's actions with a strange expression on his face, and then said, "Let me fan Miss Su Wan."
To be honest, as a close guard of His Highness, it was already a compliment for him to fan a little palace maid, let alone the Third Prince.
Xie Pei shook his head: "No need."
This answer seems unexpected, but also expected.
However, seeing that the two were still young, the guards and others naturally did not say anything, and simply regarded it as the friendship of support from the young men.
The friendship between young people is always deeper.
No matter what happens to the two of them in the future, this is a moment for Your Highness to take a break from the struggles in the previous dynasty.
As for Su Wan.
She is a special little girl in every way.
When Su Wan woke up, she only felt a faint breeze around her. When she got up, she saw Xie Pei fanning herself while reading documents. When she woke up, he smiled and said, "Did you get enough sleep?"
I did get enough sleep, but I felt a little embarrassed.
Su Wan was about to rub her eyes when Xie Pei grabbed her wrist and said, "Wash your hands first."
It's okay in the room, but it's still dirty outdoors.
When Su Wan woke up, she found that it was almost dusk. She slept too comfortably.
But think about it, he is only thirteen or fourteen years old, and he is naturally sleepy. He is usually busy in the Shangshenjian and the family shop. Even from the beginning of the New Year to now, this is the most relaxing time for him. He will find a chance to take a nap.
Since it was already dusk, it was time for the two to go down the mountain. They felt refreshed after going out.
Xie Pei's expression became much softer.
A few people packed up and went down the mountain. Since they wanted to avoid those people in the inner palace, they took the unfenced mountain road.
As they walked down, they ran into a few villagers head-on. Judging from their accents, they were villagers from nearby. They must have encountered too many assassins before. Su Wan clearly noticed that everyone was on alert for a moment.
Such a reaction shows how often he is stabbed.
But it was indeed a villager from nearby, holding a clearly breathable cloth bag in his hand.
But it's already evening, what are we doing up the mountain?
Wait, this bag and the clothes wrapped around it are not for catching bullfrogs!
No, I don’t know what kind of frog it is here, but I guess we catch frogs to eat!
"Excuse me, are you catching frogs?" Su Wan asked quickly.
Frog is another name for frog.
It's summer now, a good time to eat frogs.
The villagers were a little timid, and seeing the extraordinary demeanor of this group of people, they stammered, "Yes, yes."
"Are you going to eat them yourself or sell them? If you are going to sell them, can you sell me some tomorrow?" Su Wan asked hurriedly.
This is a frog!
Although I don’t know what kind of frogs are local, I think about frog pot, frog porridge, and dry-pot stone frog.
She flows like water.
The taste of fresh bullfrog is definitely not inferior to crayfish!
"Yes, it's for sale. No matter how much you want, we will definitely deliver it to you tomorrow." The villagers didn't expect that they would meet buyers on the road.
This is a good thing.
Xie Pei naturally wouldn't stop him, but a frog is a frog?
This kind of food was rarely eaten in the palace. Only the poor people who could not afford meat would catch frogs and eat them.
But seeing how Su Wan is looking forward to it, I guess it will taste good.
After the deal, they will deliver the caught bullfrogs tomorrow morning. As long as they don't weigh more than ten kilograms, she will take them all.
The villagers live off the mountain and don’t ask for a high price. Who asked them to guard the mountain? The mountain is big and there are many streams. A few pounds of frogs are nothing.
After listening to their description, Su Wan determined that this should be a local stone frog.
The taste of the stone frog is almost the best among all frogs, with a delicate texture and very soft meat.
When it comes to eating frogs, there is only the first time and the countless times.
But you must eat fresh frogs. Fresh frogs and slightly aged frogs have completely different tastes.
Hearing that they could help with the slaughter, Su Wan paid some more deposit, but asked them to kill the animal tomorrow, otherwise she would not give her the remaining money.
When eating frog, what you eat is freshness.
The villagers here were simple and honest. Seeing these people dressed in luxurious clothes, there was no reason for them not to listen, not to mention that the other young master also said that if they did a good job, he would give them rewards.
Then we must wait until tomorrow to kill them all and send them to the designated place.
Why give it to the stone frog tomorrow?
Naturally, since stone frogs mostly come out at night, they catch them under the cover of darkness and then go down the mountain at daybreak. Their families will then slaughter them and deliver them to Xie Pei's guards in the morning.
When the villagers heard that the little girl wanted it tomorrow, they knew that she was someone who knew how to make frogs.
But do such rich people also eat stone frogs? They think only poor people do, don't rich people eat delicacies from land and sea?
According to Su Wan, stone frog is naturally a kind of mountain delicacy.
After this was settled, Su Wan said, "I will make stone frog stew for lunch tomorrow. After you finish eating, you will definitely want to catch a few more pounds yourself."
When Su Wan referred to you, she was naturally referring to the guards around her.
The guards knew Su Wan's cooking skills best, but no matter how delicious the food was, they had never heard Su Wan say such words.
Is it really that delicious?
Come on, this is a cute frog!
Su Wan was almost ready to make a promise.
Now everyone will start looking forward to tomorrow’s stone frog pot from tonight.
Xie Pei didn't say anything either. Anyway, he trusted Su Wan the most.
The two men came down from the mountain and sent Su Wan back to her residence first, and then Xie Pei went back.
On the morning of the second day, Su Wan didn't even wait for the kitchen to prepare lunch. She finished the work at hand and immediately went to the side hall, wanting to see the cute frogs as soon as possible!
Everyone knew that Su Wan had been transferred to the side hall, but they didn't know that she walked into the main courtyard of the side hall with ease. The guards were also very familiar with her. When they saw her coming, they immediately said, "The stone frog has been delivered. It is indeed very fresh."
"So early?" Su Wan was slightly surprised. Just as she was about to pay, the guard said, "Your Highness has already paid."
That's fine, we're all eating together, so it doesn't matter who pays.
Most of the villagers are hardworking. These stone frogs were reserved in advance, so they were motivated to work. They spent the whole night collecting them and waited until there was some light before going down the mountain.
They took a short nap while the women in the family slaughtered the frogs skillfully without wasting any time. They brought them over early in the morning. After receiving the silver, they felt relieved.
The slaughtered bullfrog was now in an ice jar in the small kitchen of the side hall.
Su Wan almost drooled at the sight of the tender meat.
She didn't even go to see Xie Pei. She had already tied on an apron and was ready to start making the stone frog pot for lunch!
The people around were watching and had only one thought in their minds: how delicious must this stone frog be to make Su Wan so excited!
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