During dinner, Yin and Xiao Guai sat facing each other on the soft couch. On the small kang table were Qingyan's favorite foods. Upon discovering his favorite foods, the little guy swayed back and forth, indicating that he was very happy.
"Fourth Brother, the scallion pancakes from the Imperial Kitchen are delicious, and they also have fish head stew." Xiao Guai's eyes lit up. "Aren't we in mourning? How come there's fish head?"
"No one else will eat this except you. Princes and princesses under the age of 13 don't really have to watch their diet." Xiao Guai's taste is notorious in the imperial kitchen; it's simply not something to be complimented.
This little guy especially likes the foods that ordinary people enjoy.
Qingyan rolled his eyes twice; he didn't like the food but was still frantically piling food onto his plate. He didn't use a single piece of fish or meat; he was perfectly content with just some flatbread and side dishes.
"Hmph, then don't eat it!" Yin smiled faintly. Fish head stew with flatbread was an unpretentious dish that he had only served during disaster relief.
None of those dishes tasted as good as the ones Xiao Guai had prepared. The imperial kitchen was also very helpful; they ordered the fish head and then immediately brought over the flatbread.
"Sisi, this cold noodle dish is also great." With the weather getting hot, Qingyan often orders cold noodles.
A variety of flavored condiments were prepared, and Yin found them exceptionally delicious after using them.
Xiao Guai ate the original flavors. The dishes prepared in the palace were made with various exquisite broths and other ingredients, which were completely different from those used in Qing banquets.
"Su Peisheng, have the kitchen prepare these flavors of cold noodles tomorrow." Yin looked at the blazing sun outside and finally decided to use these noodles.
Qingyan ate the buckwheat noodles in the small bowl. After the noodles were scooped out, they were placed on the ice mountain for the master to eat. Some vegetables and other ingredients were added, and then seasoning sauce was poured on top.
Instantly, her appetite returned.
"." Yin rarely ate more than four bowls of staple food in the summer. Although the small bowls were not big, six bowls of noodles added up to quite a lot.
Qingyan looked at the tiny bowl in her hand with some disdain; it was about the size of a modern dipping bowl.
“From now on, it’s always more satisfying to eat noodles from a big bowl!” Upon hearing Qingyan’s words, Yin was stunned.
Under the influence of these rules, the noble ladies of the Eight Banners behaved with exceptional grace, even using similar small bowls when dining, a stark contrast to the boisterous eating habits of the Qing Dynasty.
The chefs in the imperial kitchen were finally relieved when they saw the reward money that Xiao Sula had brought. Buckwheat noodles were something only the poor ate; Qingyan's suggestion was truly putting them in a difficult position.
After several trials, I finally got the ratio of buckwheat flour to wheat flour right. Then I heard Su Peisheng say that the Fourth Prince would be having another one tomorrow.
Several people couldn't help but give the steward a thumbs up; this princess seemed to have connections to the highest levels.
At this moment, Li Dequan brought the buckwheat noodles and dipping sauce to Chenggan Palace early in the morning. Lan Ya was using these coarse grains for the first time and couldn't help but feel curious when she saw their dark color.
Emperor Kangxi shook his head with a wry smile. How could the little fellow have come up with such food? During disaster relief efforts, Emperor Kangxi had also eaten buckwheat noodles from a villager's home, and the taste was truly awful.
"Xuan Ye, it tastes really delicious!" Consort Tong's eyes lit up after taking a bite.
The dipping sauce contains apple cider vinegar made by Qingyan Weinan Kitchen. Just a little bit of this makes the sauce refreshing.
"Xiao Guai is using something quite good. Li Dequan, open my private treasury and send over the set of Yuan blue and white porcelain double-eared vases that Qingyan likes." Consort Tong also suffers from the summer heat. The summer heat makes him especially worried about her and her son.
"." In addition to preparing cold noodles, Qingyan also prepared several common leafy green vegetables, which were basically not cooked over a fire. They were mostly blanched and mixed with seasonings.
These are all more affordable and palatable than the large stews made by the imperial kitchen. In addition, the mourning period mainly consists of vegetables, and the broth for the stews is made from various meats, which looks greasy and not as vibrant green as the vegetables served at the Qing banquet.
"Tomorrow, the little guy will bring something unexpected." Lanya picked up some lettuce from the plate and put it on Kangxi's plate with sesame sauce and peanut sauce, which was also Qingyan's suggestion.
"It tastes good!" Kangxi nodded slightly. It was definitely the right choice for him to let Qingyan prepare the food.
During the vigil, the endless stews made him lose his appetite and he lost a lot of weight.
Half an hour later, Li Dequan arrived at the prince's residence with the reward. Qingyan's eyes lit up as she asked Sulan to place the Yuan blue and white porcelain in Yin's study. A smile bloomed on her lips as she thought of more summer foods, hoping that the number of Heyang blue and white porcelain items would increase.
"Little money-grubber!" Yin sighed, the little guy looked at those things and wished he could take them all for himself.
Qingyan smiled obsequiously. The red-bottomed white bird vase that Yin had prepared was also her favorite. In modern times, she had been completely captivated by the vase ever since she first saw it at the Capital Museum. Whenever she passed through Jingdezhen on business, she would secretly go there to see if there were any fakes.
Now that she has the opportunity to collect treasures, how could she not be happy?
"I don't have any other hobbies!" Qingyan turned her body away, arrogantly turning her back to Sisi.
"Never mind, I was going to give a box of jade to someone, but it seems they don't appreciate it!" Yin Yi said, and Qing Yan's little face immediately turned away.
Woo woo woo!
It snuggled up behind him, placed its little paws on his shoulders, and started massaging him.
The servants had already cleared away the dinner table, and he was reviewing memorials in his hand.
"Heavier!" Yin enjoyed Xiao Guai's service; such treatment was not available in the market.
"Sisi, look how well-behaved I am," Qingyan said with a smile.
Yin was speechless. This girl could fawn over him to this extent for a box of jade.
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