Jin Jinzhi threw the note into the stove beside her, watching the paper burn to ashes, and fell into deep thought.
...
After leaving Huichuntang, Yun Duoduo and A Xiang went to Granny Xue's residence.
Granny Xue's courtyard was furnished by Ah Xiang, and it wasn't far from Huichuntang. The two arrived quickly.
Grandma Xue's backyard has a small river, and there are two geese and a duck in the yard. Behind the duck, there are always a few ducklings, waddling along, which is very cute.
"Hello, little ducks!"
The clouds greeted the ducks warmly.
"Gagaga..."
The ducks responded enthusiastically to the clouds.
"Hahaha……"
Yun Duoduo couldn't help but laugh as she watched the ducks waddle along.
The little duckling at the head of the group, which had been standing tall and proud, suddenly stopped and looked at Yun Duoduo with a scrutinizing gaze: "These humans are laughing at us."
The ducks behind it also stopped walking.
"But I have no evidence."
Listening to the little ducks' inner thoughts, Yun Duoduo laughed even harder.
She discovered that, apart from the two brownish-yellow bears, Big Bear and Little Bear, that she had encountered in the Shu Kingdom last time, all the other animals were quite cute.
"Young Master!"
Zheng Ningxiang, who was washing clothes, was surprised to see Yun Duoduo walk in, and she hurriedly bowed.
"If I had known that the young master was coming, I would have bought more vegetables and meat."
Zheng Ningxiang was somewhat annoyed.
"Ningxiang, no need for formalities. How is Granny Xue? How has Granny Xue been lately?"
Zheng Ningxiang smiled and nodded.
"The Pavilion Master is practicing his luck inside."
"luck?"
Yun Duoduo peered inside curiously. She knew that Granny Xue was extremely skilled in martial arts. For someone who had practiced martial arts for many years, it took a long time to circulate their qi and open up all the blood vessels in their body.
She knew that the feeling of relief and ease after circulating her energy was very pleasant.
"I've already told you, don't call me 'pavilion master' anymore. The Plum Blossom Pavilion has been handed over to Duoduo!" The old woman's voice came from inside the house.
[Plum Blossom Pavilion?]
Ah Xiang was completely confused. She turned to look at Yun Duoduo, who patted her hand, indicating that she would explain it to her later.
Ah Xiang understood that the princess had her own opinions and knew what to do. Moreover, Zheng Ningxiang was very respectful to the princess and didn't seem like a bad person, so she wasn't too worried.
"Grandma Xue, come here, let me check your pulse."
Ever since Granny Xue suffered a severe blow to her health last time, she has been taking medicine to regulate her body.
After taking Granny Xue's pulse and confirming that her health was fine, Yun Duoduo got down to business.
"Grandma Xue, have you ever heard of Xi Jing, the King of Western Chu?"
“Xijing…”
"Oh my, is he the number one on the list of handsome men in the Central Plains?!"
Grandma Xue thought for a while, then suddenly clapped her hands and looked at Yun Duoduo with a smile.
Yun Duoduo was taken aback, not expecting that Granny Xue was so familiar with this kind of gossip ranking.
"The list of handsome men in Central China, or the top spot?"
This amused Yun Duoduo. If we're talking about the top of this handsome men list, it should be her brother Jinzhi, or even Lian Jiucheng, right?
Could this list have been compiled by Xijing themselves?
Seriously, shameless...
"Duoduo, do you want to know about Xijing?"
Grandma Xue noticed Yun Duoduo's expression; she rarely saw such a solemn and serious look on this little girl.
She understood that this matter was important.
"Ningxiang, send messages to our spies all over the country, and send all the information we have gathered about Xijing and Xichu to the capital of Nanyang."
Granny Xue gave instructions to Zheng Ningxiang, who was standing to the side.
"Yes, I will take care of it right away."
"Duoduo, the Plum Blossom Pavilion will be in your hands from now on. Ningxiang will help you manage everything in the pavilion."
Grandma Xue held Yun Duoduo's hand and said earnestly.
Yun Duoduo nodded. Although she had only heard bits and pieces about the Plum Blossom Pavilion before, she could tell from Granny Xue and Zheng Ningxiang's words that the Plum Blossom Pavilion was a sizable organization with considerable power.
Ah Xiang was also visibly taken aback. The Plum Blossom Pavilion had spies in various places, so it seemed to be a very disciplined organization.
"Young Master, please have a seat. I'll go cook!"
Yun Duoduo wanted to say no, since there weren't many vegetables in the yard anyway, but before she could speak, Zheng Ningxiang had already walked out quickly.
In no time, Zheng Ningxiang carried a steaming bowl of fragrant soup noodles from the backyard into the front hall and placed it on the table in the inner room.
The noodles were very thin and looked quite chewy. They were sprinkled with scallions, ginger, garlic, a few pieces of mint, and a few slices of meat. "Wow, Ningxiang's cooking is pretty good! It smells so good!"
Ah Xiang followed Zheng Ningxiang to the backyard to get the remaining bowls of noodle soup. After the two of them brought the noodles up, they picked up their chopsticks and sat down together to eat.
"Ningxiang, tell me quickly, how did you make these noodles?"
Yun Duoduo took a big gulp of soup and asked curiously, "I want to tell the secret recipe of this soup to my third brother."
When the Third Prince's breakfast stall opens, I imagine many people will want to have a bowl of hot noodles on a cold winter morning.
"This soup was prepared in advance," Zheng Ningxiang said, seeing that Yun Duoduo was very interested.
"After the noodles are put in a bowl, pour a spoonful of braised pork broth over them, then pour in boiling broth to release the aroma, and finally drizzle on a layer of cooked lard."
"Finally, sprinkle on a layer of scallions, add vegetables and sliced meat, and a bowl of hot noodle soup is ready!" Zheng Ningxiang said enthusiastically.
"Hmm, it's truly a cup of minced meat soup, with scallions and oil all handmade. It's like a heavenly offering, something I know is hard to come by."
Zheng Ningxiang and A Xiang looked at each other, puzzled. "What does this mean?"
"It's just a bowl of noodles with ginger and garlic, made into noodle soup by hand. I wonder how it differs from the ghee offered in heaven."
"Haha, what a great poem!"
The group ate noodles, laughing.
Grandma Xue became interested in Yun Duoduo's poem. After taking a sip of soup, she slowly said, "The south wind propels me along day after day, and I am happy when the north wind carries me. A cup of soup noodles is like a tangled silver thread, and a few sprigs of mint are like jade hairpins lying across my face."
"What does this mean?" Ah Xiang and Zheng Ningxiang looked completely bewildered.
"That's right, the south wind blows every day, letting me row freely, but now that the north wind is blowing, I'm going on a long journey."
"The noodles are scattered in the bowl like silver threads, and a few pieces of mint are placed horizontally on top like jade hairpins," Yun Duoduo explained.
Ah Xiang and Zheng Ningxiang exchanged a glance without speaking, then lowered their heads to eat their noodles. Clearly, neither of them had grasped the meaning behind the poem.
After finishing her noodles, Yun Duoduo prepared to return to the palace. She and Zheng Ningxiang agreed that she would have A Xiang come to collect the news in three days.
After saying their goodbyes, the group dispersed.
...?
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