As time passed, news about Yang Siying gradually faded away. Both the Zhao and Yang families were now preparing for their own weddings, which were held before Xu Di's. In fact, the two families' weddings were quite close together.
As the weather grew hotter, the lotus flowers planted in the pond in the mansion bloomed, some pink and some white. Zhang Zhaoci asked Xu Di to pick a few of the best-blooming ones for her, so she could coat them in egg batter and fry them.
Looking at the cleaned lotus flowers, Granny Lu asked with some surprise, "Can these flowers still be eaten?"
Zhang Zhaoci said, "Why can't we eat it? Fry it and then coat it with a layer of icing sugar. It's sweet and fragrant, and incredibly delicious."
Xu Zhi exclaimed in surprise, "So flowers can be eaten too!"
Xu Di had gone down into the pond to pick these few flowers. He had already washed the mud off his legs in the yard and was now standing at the kitchen door with his trousers rolled up. He said, "In this world, everything is edible, it just depends on how you prepare it. If you prepare it well, whether you steam it, boil it, or fry it, it will always be edible."
Xu Zhi blinked and asked, "Brother, is that really true?"
Xu Di said, "Of course that's how it is. In this world, no one will starve to death. You can eat anything, so you won't starve to death, right?"
Xu Zhi said, "I still feel like there are some things I can't get my hands on."
Xu Di recalled the wilderness survival missions he had taken with special forces soldiers. They would catch reptiles and stuff them directly into their mouths. At first, he couldn't stand it, not psychologically, because the impact was too strong. But if you were hungry for two days, you had to force them into your mouth to survive. You would chew them a few times and swallow them. Once you got over that psychological hurdle, you could stuff them into your mouth without batting an eye.
Zhang Zhaoci personally took charge of the cooking, which was quite a rare occasion. The servants in the courtyard stood by and watched as Zhang Zhaoci rolled the washed flower petals, which still had some water stains, in the dough, dipped them in the beaten egg, and then put them into the hot oil that was about 70% hot. He then quickly took them out and drained the oil.
The few flowers, after being fried, looked quite large, filling a whole bamboo basket. Zhang Zhaoci had some sent to the old lady while they were still hot, and also sent some to several masters in the mansion. The rest were eaten with Granny Lu and the children, dipped in frosting sugar.
It was the first time Granny Lu had eaten this, and she felt a little awkward, but she didn't want to refuse Zhang Zhaoci's kindness. She took a small bite and immediately felt a sweet fragrance in her mouth. It tasted and smelled better than other pastries. She ate the petal in a few bites.
Granny Lu said, "I really didn't expect it to taste so good."
Zhang Zhaoci said, "It's true, as long as you use the right method, you can make anything taste good."
Granny Lu said, "I've heard people talk about using fresh flowers to make food, and about flower cakes, but I've never seen them before and I don't know what they taste like."
Zhang Zhaoci said, "I need to think about this carefully. I remember there was something about it in a book. We can just follow what they wrote and see. However, some flowers and herbs are not good for the body, so we need to check them carefully first."
Xu Di said, "That's right. Although everything can be eaten, some things are poisonous, so there's no need to force yourself to eat them and risk losing your life."
Several people gathered around the kitchen doorway and talked about food for a while. Seeing that it was getting late, Granny Lu said, "I've had some people wash the cloth for making bedding. The sun is shining now, so it should be dry by now. I'll go and put it away."
Zhang Zhaoci said, "Granny, I'll go with you. The steward said he went to buy cotton, and it will be delivered in a few days. Let's finish making Xu Di's bedding first."
Xu Zhi said, "Mother, do we need to prepare a dragon and phoenix quilt? I heard that it needs to be embroidered with gold and silver threads."
Zhang Zhaoci said, "I ordered it from an embroidery shop outside, along with embroidered curtains. I heard that it's now fashionable in the capital to have them custom-made by embroidery shops."
Granny Lu said, "Nowadays everyone just wants to save trouble and just buy it directly. I heard that a few years ago, brides would embroider it themselves while they were waiting to get married."
Zhang Zhaoci said, "Embroidering this is hard on the eyes. I can't bear to let Yuexi waste her energy on this. She could use that time to do something else."
Granny Lu said with a smile, "I wonder how much good karma this girl from the Li family must have accumulated in her past life to have you as her mother-in-law in this life."
Zhang Zhaoci smiled and said, "Grandma, I'll take that as a compliment."
Granny Lu said, "Anything is fine, whatever makes you happy."
At first, Xu Di didn't feel anything about the upcoming wedding. However, as the weather got hotter, more and more news came from Ganzhou. The Li family was unwilling to buy a house in the capital, so Xu Di rented a courtyard for them. After the two families discussed it, they decided that when Xu Rao returned, she would be married off together with the Li family's wedding procession from the courtyard that Xu Di had rented. This way, the bride would have a place to go when she returned home on the third day after the wedding.
Xu Di not only has to take care of the renovation of the new house, but also has to find someone to tidy up the small courtyard he rented. Apart from Lord Li, who is going back to the capital after attending the wedding with Xu Rao, Madam Li and her son and daughter-in-law are planning to stay in the capital for a while. They might have to stay in this courtyard for a year or two, so they need to take good care of it so that they can live comfortably.
Xu Di's rented courtyard was not far from the Xu family's residence, located in an alley near the Marquis's mansion. This alley contained several small courtyards, some with one or two courtyards in total. Most of the residents were candidates who had come to the capital to take the imperial examinations. These candidates either shared a courtyard in groups of three or five, or brought their families. Living here was peaceful, and most importantly, the surrounding area consisted of such families, making the environment relatively simple and free from any chaotic or disorganized households.
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