Chapter 197 Fishing for Koi
"Lan Su, you've even caught fish from the lake to eat. Are koi carp tasty?"
Upon hearing Granny Yu's words, Daiyu couldn't help but wonder about the taste of the koi.
Granny Yuan had taught her that the more beautiful something is, the less likely it is to taste good, so she had never considered whether koi fish were edible.
Now that I think about it, koi fish are fish too, so why can't we eat them?
“Girl, I didn’t eat these goldfish. What’s so good about them? There are more than just goldfish in this water. I caught a mandarin fish last time. Didn’t we eat the pine tree mandarin fish the other day? We caught it from here.” Lan Su hurriedly explained.
"Was the mandarin fish from our own water that day?" Daiyu thought back for a moment. "No wonder it tasted so good!"
Then he spoke to Granny Yu,
"Aunt Yu, quickly check if there are any mandarin fish left in the water?" Daiyu said with a smile.
"White egrets fly before Xisai Mountain, peach blossoms float on the flowing water, and mandarin fish are plump."
There are a few peach trees by the water near my home, and it's almost time for them to bloom. Poems say that mandarin fish are at their fattest when peach blossoms are in bloom, so I can't miss it.
"There are definitely still mandarin fish around there, near that peach tree. Let's go fishing there later. If we use the kind of feed that mandarin fish like, we're sure to catch some."
Yuan Hongqu couldn't help but smile. Whenever she saw Daiyu so vivid, lively, and full of vitality, she felt a surge of joy.
She would feel her heart become more vibrant as a result.
"Granny, I also want to eat squirrel-shaped mandarin fish and hibiscus fish slices!" Daiyu announced the names of the dishes.
"Let's talk about it after you catch a fish." Yuan Hongqu's gentle smile deepened.
"Please excuse the child, Eunuch Chen. He is just a young child and loves to play."
"It's alright, it's alright. Princess Lin is at the age of innocence and carefree. She will mature in the future. There's no need to rush."
Eunuch Chen was deeply moved. There were many princes and princesses in the palace, but he had never seen any of them like Princess Lin.
Although intelligent and perceptive, she retains the pure innocence unique to a child.
Knowing the ways of the world without being worldly-wise.
Chen Li had never seen anyone who could fully interpret this verse.
But he seemed to see it in Princess Lin.
As soon as the menu was announced, Daiyu's eyes were drawn to the newly floated goldfish.
“Eunuch Chen, the white one with red flowers over there is also pretty.”
"And then there's that one, the kind called Ranchu, chubby and looking kind of憨憨 (simple and honest)."
"And that one, Aunt Yu scooped up the one with the butterfly-shaped tail..."
Daiyu selected the goldfish she thought were the prettiest and had Aunt Yu scoop them up one by one.
The Lin family's goldfish were already quite large.
The large koi carp can only fit about six in a large wooden bucket.
Later on, Daiyu had Aunt Yu scoop out six buckets of goldfish for her.
Four of the buckets contained large koi fish.
There were also some smaller ones, but they looked very nice. There were more than a dozen in one bucket, and two buckets were filled with them.
Eunuch Chen intervened again before finally managing to stop Daiyu.
Because he had just purchased koi for the emperor, he had a good idea of the prices of these ornamental fish.
Leaving aside the large koi, just look at the goldfish in the bucket behind, some called Ranchu or Lionhead.
Outside, a finger-length piece of silver costs five taels of silver, and that's already considered extremely large.
A tree like the Lin family's, which is a foot long, is extremely rare and uncommon in the world.
If it were sold outside, it would probably be so popular with wealthy families that a single piece could fetch a hundred taels of silver.
Princess Lin is too honest. As the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department, Chen Li is trying to take advantage of a child by getting a few goldfish for the emperor. It doesn't sound good if word gets out.
“Princess Lin, these goldfish are for our Imperial Household Department’s purchase. I’ll have someone send you the money later.”
"No need, no need," Lin Daiyu hurriedly waved her hand.
"Princess Lin, you probably don't know the value of these goldfish?"
“I know,” Daiyu quickly replied. “My nanny told me.”
"It's not worth much, it's just interesting to look at. Once the weather gets warmer, there will be several times more of these fish!"
"We really can't keep them at home. They need to be fed special fish food. We have one person in our family who does nothing but prepare this fish food every day. It's such a hassle!"
"Remember to take a bag of fish feed back with you later, Mr. Chen. Our fish feed makes it less likely for the fish to turn belly up after eating it."
Although goldfish are beautiful, they are extremely difficult to raise, as Daiyu knew.
"Hehe, does the Imperial Household Department buy things without spending money?" Eunuch Chen chuckled. Princess Lin assumed that since her family had many goldfish, they weren't worth much. However, in the market, they were already priceless.
“Eunuch Chen, there’s no need to say more. In our family, these goldfish are really nothing.” Yuan Hongqu quickly stopped Eunuch Chen when he was about to say more.
Daiyu spoke again.
“Eunuch Chen, the goldfish was a gift from me to the Emperor. I was honored with the title of Princess and I am filled with trepidation. Last time I went to the palace to express my gratitude, the Emperor was busy with other matters and I did not have the opportunity to kowtow to him in person.”
"These goldfish are just a small token of my gratitude. I hope that when the Emperor sees them, he will know that I am thanking him."
Eunuch Chen had no choice but to agree and did not mention the matter of sending silver again.
He glanced at Yuan Hongqu furtively, thinking to himself,
It must still be Mr. Yuan's skill, right?
Since her estate is known for producing auspicious omens, raising these goldfish to such a size shouldn't be too difficult for her.
The closer the birthday banquet got, the calmer Chen Li became. They held such banquets many times a year in the palace.
For those in these professions, it's a piece of cake.
Originally, the birthday banquet should have been hosted by the Lin family themselves. The higher-ups in the palace thought that the elders should preside over the birthday banquet for Princess Lin. However, Lin Ruhai was not in the capital. Since the title of princess was bestowed by the emperor, the emperor was Princess Lin's elder, which made it reasonable.
Eunuch Chen had a very fruitful haul, and had the large wooden tub carried back to the palace.
No sooner had he left than Yuan Hongqu and Daiyu took their fishing rods and went to fish for mandarin fish under the peach tree.
Before the fish even took the bait, Xiangtao arrived with two well-dressed but unfamiliar young women.
“Granny Yuan, these two are from the Capital Women’s Academy. They say they want to meet you in person,” Xiangtao briefly introduced the two women.
Yuan Hongqu knew a little about it. The original owner used to be a teacher at Yangzhou Women's College. Later, Yangzhou Women's College moved to the capital, but the original owner did not come. Instead, she stayed in Yangzhou to raise funds to build a new women's academy.
Before the academy was approved, the original owner went to prison, and when he came out, everything had changed.
"Since you're guests, why don't you two talk in the reception room?" Yuan Hongqu said calmly.
"Lan Su, Xue Yan, you guys keep a close eye on the girl while she fishes. Keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't get too close to the water."
"Mr. Yuan, the Capital Women's Academy will be opening on February 18th. Will you be returning to teach there?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
