The purpose of coming in has been achieved. Hua Zhi was about to get up and leave when she heard Lu Boxi say again, "The Sixth Prince appears here. Have you thought about the consequences?"
Hua Zhi sat back down, looking at Lu Boxi and suddenly smiled. Others might not know what was going on in the palace, but Duke An might have received the news. She simply said, "The Sixth Prince does not live in the palace now, but is ordered to accompany Prince Ling. What consequences should a prince who does not live in the palace have to consider when accompanying his grandmother to see an old friend?"
Although his thoughts were confirmed, Lu Boxi was not at ease. When he and his father received the news, they did not understand why the emperor did this. Was he trying to push his nephew to stand on the side of the Sixth Prince? What was the reason? The Sixth Prince could not be the crown prince chosen by the emperor.
He lowered his eyes to look at the green tea in the cup, took a sip, it tasted slightly bitter, yet also slightly sweet, so he took another sip.
Zhu Haocheng frowned and showed disapproval, but Hua Zhi did not explain much. She was grateful to the Zhu family and wanted to be close to them, but she did not intend to please the Zhu family. The Hua family had never done that before and would not do that in the future.
Only when the relationship is equal can it not cross the line.
But what they think is not her concern. She didn't say anything, right
There were footsteps outside, Hua Zhi turned around, stood up and moved aside.
Liu Xiang opened the curtain, and a group of servants, also wearing white cloth clothes, blue cloth shoes, and even their hair tied neatly with blue cloth, came in carrying tableware in the form of flat dishes or cups, some of which were still steaming.
After putting the things down, everyone bowed together and quietly retreated.
It's quite interesting, Qin Gongyang raised his eyebrows. No matter how the food tastes, the presentation is very good, which makes people feel comfortable just looking at it.
Zhu Haocheng looked around and said, "There are quite a lot, but the portions are not big."
Hua Zhi smiled and kept it a secret, "Uncle, please look carefully again."
Zhu Haocheng took another closer look, and there was a hint of surprise in his eyes, "It looks like it's all chicken?"
The other two also looked at it a few more times.
Hua Zhi explained to the three people, "The characteristic of vegetarian cuisine is that the guests choose an ingredient, and twelve dishes are made from this ingredient. The other four small dishes must also be related to the ingredient. For example, the ingredient on this table is all chicken, but the cooking methods and side dishes are different. The portion size is determined by the number of people. If there are ten people, ten portions will be made. If there are only two people, two portions will be made. Today is different. Originally, we were going to make three portions for ten people, but everyone sat separately, so I asked them to make small portions. Then each table will have all three ingredients, so that everyone can taste them."
As he was speaking, the waiter came in again, bringing the same small portion, but this time the ingredient was fish.
The third time they came in, they brought bean sprouts that Fudong had grown himself. All in all, they filled the entire table.
The three of them were amazed. Qin Gongyang shook his head and said, "This is really..."
Hua Zhi thought with a bit of complacency, there are twenty-eight cooking methods, and now I have only used half of them, what a big deal!
Hua Zhi took the wine handed over by Bao Xia, patted the seal and filled the glasses for the three people, saying, "This wine is brewed according to the ancient method, and it tastes okay."
Putting down the wine jar, Hua Zhi bowed and said, "Please enjoy your meal."
Knowing that she had other people to take care of, the three of them did not try to keep her. Even Lu Boxi nodded to her, and it seemed that he approved of her.
Hua Zhi went to take a look at the private room of the two young people. Seeing that they were all smiling and talking happily, she felt relieved. She politely declined their invitation to have dinner together, served her grandmother some food, and then went downstairs.
She went to the innermost room on the first floor. The outside was covered with green plants, making it very hidden. If you were not an insider, you would not know that there was a room that was not open to the public.
The door opened from the inside before she pushed it. Gu Yanxi looked at her with a smile, stretched out her hand to lead her in, and did not let go of her hand after she sat down. "I thought it would take you a while to get away. Those girls from those families seem to want to learn from you."
Hua Zhi took the tea he handed over and drank several sips. "If the sutra was so easy to obtain, there wouldn't be eighty-one difficulties. I just went in and said hello."
She had no interest in being their idol, nor did she intend to lead them in resisting the injustice of society towards women. The mental age difference was too great, and she had never intended to have anything to do with them from the beginning.
Gu Yanxi imitated the maids and gently pinched her fingers to give her a massage. In this simple house with only a soft couch, a small table, a small bookshelf and a desk, he felt at peace.
"Will you come here more often in the future?"
"Huh?" Hua Zhi didn't understand what he meant for a moment.
Gu Yanxi looked up and glanced around, and Hua Zhi finally understood, "It's for Fudong. She often has some good ideas, and she is used to writing them down and trying them out. If they are feasible, she will perfect them and compile them into her recipes. She has a set at home, and of course, the other maids also have them."
If you want your servants to be harmonious, it is very important to treat them equally.
"I think they are all capable of standing on their own."
"You still lack courage. You have sold yourself into the mansion for more than ten years, and the idea that you are a servant is deeply rooted in your bones. It is not easy to change."
"Take your time."
"Well, don't worry." Hua Zhi pulled away, unable to move, so she didn't care. Looking at the man in front of her with lowered eyebrows and eyes, giving her a sense of gentleness, her voice softened, "I think the Lu family may have figured out something?"
"Xiao Liu?"
"Well, I told him that the Sixth Prince was sent by the Emperor to accompany Prince Gu. I guess he has already thought about the issue of standing in line."
"Let him think about it first. I'll see his attitude. If it's what I want to see, I'll go to the Lu family as the prince."
"suitable?"
Gu Yanxi raised his head and met her gaze, his eyes without any aggression, "What's inappropriate about that?"
"I think it's too early."
"He's on his side. As long as he doesn't say it, no one will know. There's no need to do anything for Xiaoliu now. The emperor's attention is not here now, so it won't hurt anything. It's good for both of them to deal with each other as soon as possible."
Gu Yanxi seemed to move forward unintentionally, leaning forward slightly, closer to Hua Zhi, "You don't need to say anything more to the Zhu family, let them make their own decision. The closer the relationship, the more you can't use these things to negotiate."
"I won't say it, but my uncle should have noticed something."
"Even if they see it, the Zhu family won't make a decision right away. Old Master Zhu is a steady man. Unless he really thinks Xiaoliu has hope, he won't express his opinion. The Qin family is different."
"What do you mean?" Hua Zhi recalled Qin Gongyang's attitude, and it seemed that there was nothing special about it.
"The Qin family is considered a new noble in the capital, and several princes are keeping a close eye on them. They are not as confident as the Zhu family, and they will have to take sides sooner or later. If nothing happened to the eldest brother, they would not be able to hold on for long and would turn to the eldest brother's side. Although they are more cautious now, they still cannot avoid it. With what happened today, they will definitely list Xiaoliu as one of the candidates. I guess they will contact the Lu family later. Don't worry, the Qin family can't escape."
Hua Zhi raised her chin slightly, "After all, they are my grandmother's family, so they should be more gentle."
Gu Yanxi smiled, "As you wish."
PS: There are a lot of things to lay out in this paragraph, but after writing once a day for a few days, I felt it was dragging on and I was so anxious.