Chapter 195 A Private Visit
The princes and nobles, who had been living in constant fear, finally breathed a sigh of relief after safely sending the Buddha statues back to the capital. While they were relieved, others were on the verge of agitation.
Because this trip involved many people, even though Yinzhen was eager to return home, he couldn't afford to rush into a military campaign. His health had improved considerably over the past year. Now, having received a letter from his thirteenth brother, he felt even more at ease. A sudden idea struck him: why not take this opportunity for a clandestine visit? He hadn't had a chance to properly observe the lives of ordinary people outside the palace before, and now that he had finally escaped the palace, he figured he might as well stay a day or two longer on the road since he was going back anyway.
He simply didn't want to stay on the grasslands anymore, and Hongzhao naturally understood his father's little scheme, so he naturally agreed.
But just looking at this, I'm afraid someone is going to suffer.
"Your Majesty, the Empress asked if you would like to stop and rest for a while. If we continue walking, we'll see that we've entered the city and it looks like a prosperous place. Perhaps we can take a stroll around." Su Peisheng reported the Empress's words through the curtain, while Hong Xihai listened attentively with his hands at his sides.
Yinzhen lifted the curtain and glanced ahead. The city gate could be vaguely seen in the distance. "Since we're almost there, why don't we rest for a while? We have a lot of people and carriages. Once we enter the city in a grand procession, there's no point in talking about traveling incognito."
"Su Peisheng, go arrange for a change of carriages. First, have Consort Jing take the concubines and children to the post station to rest. I will take the Crown Prince and the Empress for a stroll around the city. Don't arrange for so many people to follow us." Having made up his mind, Yinzhen instructed Su Peisheng outside, "Remember to find two sets of ordinary clothes for the Empress to change into as well."
"Yes, Your Majesty, this servant will make the arrangements immediately." Su Peisheng and Hong Xihai exchanged a glance, then each went off to perform their respective duties in different directions.
After all the fuss, the dozens of carriages and horses were reduced to one, with the emperor, empress and crown prince dressed in plain clothes inside. Su Peisheng drove the carriage himself, with Xiao Dezi and Xue Xin walking on either side of the carriage.
Lu Jiaying had just combed her hair again, taking off her dignified, gorgeous, and heavy headdress and replacing it with a common woman's braided and coiled bun. Her hair was always the most beautiful, black and thick, and when coiled up, it was towering high. Her hair ornaments consisted of only two pure gold hairpins inlaid with kingfisher feathers and gemstones, adorned with a few pearls and precious stones. She looked like a beautiful and serene matriarch.
In the past, Yinzhen loved seeing her without makeup, looking as if she were a goddess from the heavens who had mistakenly fallen into the imperial family. But since she was made empress, her status had changed. He had only ever seen her dignified and noble before, and he hadn't seen her like this for a long time.
"The Empress is kind-hearted, and her appearance, like her temperament, has not changed in ten years. She is as beautiful as a lotus emerging from clear water, naturally beautiful without any artifice." Yinzhen smiled as he looked at his virtuous wife beside him, and reached out to squeeze her folded hands twice to show his affection.
Lu Jiaying couldn't help but tilt her head and smile, "You'er is still here. Your Majesty always knows how to tease people. Now that our four children are all growing up, how could I not have changed in appearance?"
Yinzhen leaned over and removed her hand from her face. His tone was teasing, but also sincere. "How is this a joke? You could have said the same thing to You'er. I am always fair."
“Since we are traveling incognito, we can no longer address each other as Your Majesty and Your Majesty. In public, Ying’er can call me… call me Master, and I will call you Madam. Let’s just pretend we are a wealthy merchant family, traveling with our son.”
Hongzhao was sitting opposite his mother, listening to her sweet words, which made his dimples grow deeper and deeper. Although the words were a little cloying to him, the warm atmosphere made him very happy. For some reason, he really felt that they were an extremely happy and harmonious family of three.
If you forget the people in the post station.
The market was indeed bustling, with stalls of all sizes lined up together, and vendors carrying baskets on their backs walking around selling their goods, their various shouts filling the air.
It was nearly noon, and the three of them, who had rushed into the city, hadn't even had a hot meal yet. Yinzhen wasn't one to crave food, but the aroma of food mingled in the market, and he couldn't help but glance at it a few more times.
Su Peisheng naturally didn't want to spoil the mood, but he still took out the wrapped silver needles from his pocket and said with difficulty, "Master, the things outside are not clean, we should..."
Yinzhen shook his head and waved at him—"Once is fine. How can you say you've visited someone if you don't try it yourself?"
As he spoke, he walked toward a pastry shop, and the crowd around him naturally followed closely. The shop had nearly twenty kinds of pastries displayed on the shelves, and they all looked quite good.
"Madam loves three-fruit pastry, and You'er likes steamed chestnut flour cake with osmanthus sugar. It's good to buy some of both today." Yinzhen said without even gesturing, and Su Peisheng stepped forward quickly—"Shopkeeper, please pack one of each of the two that our master just mentioned."
The shopkeeper's voice was cheerful, and his movements were quick—"Alright, two servings of cakes for a total of four hundred coins, please take them."
He handed out the wrapped pastries with an absolute smile, but the wealthy-looking customer didn't give him any money for a long time.
Yinzhen reached out and pressed down on Su Peisheng's hand as he reached for his money, repeating uncertainly, "Four hundred coins?"
Let alone two servings, a single serving of this pastry in the palace would cost at least twenty taels of silver. If it were to be served with some expensive ingredients, such as crab roe pastry, it would be even more expensive. How come it looks similar outside but only costs four hundred wen?
Yinzhen's question came from the bottom of his heart, but the shopkeeper misunderstood it.
He exclaimed in sudden realization, then looked the group of people up and down. “Sir, you must be a merchant from out of town. You may not have heard of my shop elsewhere, but it’s a very famous and unique recipe in this city. It’s bound to be more expensive than other places. If you don’t like it, I can give you some more. Buy a small amount to try. I guarantee you’ll want to come back for a second time!”
As he was saying this, he made a move to open the packaging again, but Hongzhao quickly stopped him – “Shopkeeper, there’s no need, this is fine. Since you praised it so highly, we’re new here and want to try something new.”
After saying that, he gestured with his chin toward Su Peisheng and quickly paid the money.
With the bag of pastries in his hands, Yinzhen was still pondering the shopkeeper's words.
Four hundred coins for two servings of pastries is considered quite expensive. So what price would a normal family pay?
Lu Jiaying noticed that the Emperor was distracted and, knowing the reason, she comforted him, "My lord, don't worry about this. Ours is naturally different from others. We are very particular about the ingredients and recipes, and many people have to keep an eye on the cooking time. This is an advantage that others can't match."
As she spoke, she took a piece of the oiled paper from the paper Xuexin was holding and took a small bite. But as soon as she took that bite, she swallowed the rest of her words.
The imperial chefs in the imperial kitchen were basically "inherited" and all aimed to avoid mistakes rather than make any merits. The taste of their dishes remained unchanged for decades. They were edible, but definitely not delicious. Even if they had one or two specialties, they would have gotten tired of them long ago.
If it were a palace banquet, it would be even worse; apart from the pots and pans for winter, there would be practically no hot dishes on the table.
If this applies to meals, then pastries are naturally no exception.
So much so that with this bite of the three-fruit pastry, Lü Jiaying instantly felt as if she had returned to the time before she was married. When she was a young lady in the mansion, her father would bring her delicious pastries from the market, and she hadn't tasted such fresh flavors in a long time.
The food at the Imperial Household Department restaurant is... both expensive and terrible!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
