Li Dequan had already arranged for the rooms to be cleaned thoroughly beforehand, so they could go in and rest as soon as they arrived.
Although the house is small, the furnishings inside are quite exquisite.
Even though it wasn't as valuable as the calligraphy, paintings, and porcelain in the palace, the bed made of pure Phoebe zhennan wood, the antique display shelf, and the tea set on the top panel were clearly worth a fortune.
"Jiaojiao".
Inside the room, Kangxi held Harigana and stood by the window: "I just want to try living the life of an ordinary person in this unfamiliar place."
"You like Jiangnan, so let's try and see if it's a good place for us to live."
He had noticed that Harigana didn't really like the environment when he was in Fujian Province. Although he didn't say anything, he could still sense it.
Therefore, if she is still not satisfied with her time in Hangzhou, she will switch to Suzhou.
The Qing Dynasty's territory was so vast; there must have been a place she liked.
"Okay, let's give it a try."
After resting for a while, the two changed into new clothes and had dinner with local officials.
In the past, there would definitely have been dancers.
But the fact that the Emperor favored the Empress alone was known throughout the Qing Dynasty.
Therefore, the Governor-General of Jiangnan and his entourage did not arrange any singing or dancing. They ate a quiet meal and then obediently withdrew.
Of course, Harigana was unaware of the previous situation, and Kangxi would not have sought his own death by saying those things.
Starting from the second day, the two of them wandered around the Hangzhou area, occasionally taking the baby and Beibei on a boat trip on the lake.
However, most of the time it was just the two of them traveling, hiking, and enjoying tea.
Harigana also learned how to make Longjing tea from a local old man. He finally learned how to knead the dough, but he always made mistakes during the frying process.
If it weren't for the old man's heroic efforts, those precious dozen kilograms of Lion Peak Longjing tea leaves might have turned into real tree leaves and been buried in the ground as fertilizer.
"My husband, I'd rather not learn it."
Harigana stood before Kangxi with his bright red hands raised, watching the old man beside him continue to fry tea leaves, looking utterly dejected.
"Okay, okay, I won't study anymore."
Holding her hand, I finally felt at ease.
He didn't know why he suddenly thought of making tea, and he was on tenterhooks.
These delicate little hands are no match for those things.
"Yeah, let's go back, otherwise I won't be able to hold back."
He turned his head and looked at the basket of tea leaves on his back, then gritted his teeth and said something.
She thought Kangxi would say that if she really wanted to learn, she could try again, but she was taken away as soon as she finished speaking.
Sitting dazedly in the carriage, watching the man applying medicine to her, she withdrew her hand and gently patted his shoulder.
"I thought you would support me, huh."
When she first wanted to learn, Emperor Kangxi praised her and even whispered in her ear that she was fortunate enough to drink tea personally roasted by the Empress.
Surprisingly, he disagreed from the very beginning.
"Jiaojiao, I'm worried about you."
Kangxi put down the ointment in his hand and gently blew on it: "Does it still hurt?"
Harigana immediately lost her temper, leaned against him, and looked dejected.
"It doesn't hurt anymore."
Kangxi thought she wouldn't mention learning any crafts again and would behave herself after this.
Two days later, he surprisingly expressed his interest in learning how to make West Lake Fish in Vinegar Sauce.
Fortunately, I have a certain talent for cooking, and with the help of the chef, I managed to make a dish that wasn't quite authentic West Lake Fish in Vinegar Sauce.
This gave her immense courage and confidence, and now she wants to make some Sichuan-style spicy chicken.
"Jiaojiao, wait a minute, let Li Dequan do it."
Kangxi stopped Harigana, and seeing her holding the kitchen knife, he swallowed hard.
When she was cooking fish, the cook would clean it and hand it to her, but now it's a chicken being slaughtered.
"Xuan Ye, I... I'm a little scared too."
She had been trying to mentally prepare herself, but after hearing Kangxi's advice, she gave up immediately.
“Yes, yes, Jiaojiao won’t do such a thing. Let Li Dequan do it.”
He snatched the kitchen knife from her hand and handed it to Li Dequan.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Li Dequan also had a long face, but he couldn't disobey the emperor's orders.
He knows how to wield a sword and kill without batting an eye, but this is the first time he's slaughtered a chicken.
I've killed chickens before, but I've always shot them with a bow and arrow. This is the first time I've killed a chicken with a kitchen knife.
I took the struggling chicken out of the cage and, following the cook's instructions, made a cut on its neck.
It didn't cut open!
Harigana covered his eyes, peeking through his fingers at his comical appearance, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Emperor Kangxi was also speechless, never expecting his son to be so useless.
Li Dequan felt extremely wronged.
With a determined look, I stabbed hard, and this time I succeeded.
The chicken blood had been drained almost completely, and it stopped flapping around.
"Your Majesty, let this servant help you pluck the feathers."
Li Dequan, having successfully killed the chicken, happily put it aside. Just as he was about to hand the cleaver to the cook, the rooster, which was clearly dead, came back to life.
"ah!!!!"
"Mother!!!"
Harigana jumped onto Kangxi, hugged his neck, and wrapped his legs tightly around his waist.
Dulan was also startled, and shouted before retreating far away.
When the chicken saw Dulan run away, it actually tilted its blood-spurting neck and followed behind her, clucking loudly.
The most innocent one was the cook. He was about to take the cleaver from Li Dequan when he was so frightened by them that he almost hit his foot. If he hadn't dodged in time, he would have lost two of his toes today.
"Xuan Ye!"
Harigana turned pale with fright when he saw the rooster running around the yard, spitting blood.
"Quickly, grab him!"
After Kangxi finished speaking, he carried the person back to his room.
No one expected this to happen. They frantically tried to grab it, but Dulan had to use a broom to hold it down before she could actually catch it.
Inside the room, seeing the woman's panicked expression, Kangxi could only offer words of comfort.
"Jiaojiao, don't be afraid."
Harigana's mind is now filled with images of a rooster with its neck stiff and spitting blood. She vows never to step into the kitchen again and never to cook anything delicious again.
That's terrifying!
She hugged Kangxi's neck and rubbed against it, taking a while to regain her senses.
"Xuan Ye, I never want to eat chicken again."
Seeing that the person was no longer as scared as before, she sighed softly, "Okay, I won't eat it anymore, I'll never eat it again."
"Hmm, I'm not eating it, it doesn't taste good."
Full of resentment, yet also somewhat relieved.
Luckily, it wasn't her who killed the chicken, or she would have been scared to death.
But thinking of the scene of Dulan being chased by chickens, she couldn't help but chuckle: "Hehe, do you think Dulan might also hate eating chicken?"
Emperor Kangxi had long known that she was carefree, but he never expected her to be this carefree.
He was just terrified and turned pale, but in just a short while he started laughing at Dulan.
Before he could speak, he heard, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, are you still making chicken? It's the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, wishing you prosperity!"
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