Early the next morning, before the princess woke up, Eunuch Wang, the chief eunuch next to the emperor, came to my yard.
"Isn't this Director Wang? Why come to my place when you have time?" I saw him showing polite enthusiasm.
"I'm here to pass on the emperor's oral order, announce that Song Xiran from the imperial dining room will see you." I felt very nervous and worried, so I asked the manager Wang.
"Director Wang, do you know why the emperor summoned me?"
"Yo~ We are slaves who are just messengers. How can we know what the emperor is thinking? Besides, we are not know-it-alls on the street."
This is not to indicate that I should express it. Sure enough, black-bone chickens in the world are as black, and the rule in the palace is that money can make ghosts push.
I instantly understood what he meant, and stuffed thirty-two silver notes into his hand.
"I don't know if my father-in-law can reveal what you know?"
Seeing me handing over the banknote and accepting the banknote, he immediately smiled, and the wrinkles on his face were all crumpled due to the exaggerated smile.
"Why is this so embarrassing? Lord Song, don't be too anxious. I heard that Xiye Kingdom sent a princess to make a wedding. The emperor was very satisfied with your food last time. So it may be related to this state banquet. That's all I know, please ask Mr. Song to come with me to find out."
Hey~ Look, the guy who took the money speaks differently, they are all called Mr. Song. I've never done this state banquet, I'm really not sure, what should I do? No matter how uneasy I am, I have no choice but to follow Mr. Wang to the emperor's study.
"Slave Song Xiran kowtowed to the emperor."
The emperor sat in front of the desk and corrected the memorial. When he saw me coming in, he raised his head and looked at me and said, "Pingshen."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." I immediately stood up.
"Song Xiran, I sent you here this time because the Xiye Kingdom sent the princess to come and marry me. I need you to show off my great power at the state banquet. After eating your food in the Imperial Garden last time, I am very excited. Satisfied, I think you should be able to take on this important task, you will not disappoint my expectations." The emperor seemed to be asking me, but in fact it was a mandatory imperial decree, how could I evade it.
"Slaves...slaves will definitely not disappoint His Majesty's great trust, and will try their best to do their best." God knows how many rejections filled my heart, but I had to agree.
"Okay, I appreciate capable people the most. I am very pleased that you can take on this important task. After the state banquet is over, I will definitely reward you a lot." The emperor looked very happy and very satisfied.
"Thank you, Lord Ron, that servant will step down." He beckoned me to go out.
I was walking back to Yihua Palace, Hun'er seemed to be taken away, my eyes were dull and dull.
This is a state banquet! It's not a child's house, and it's no better than the last family banquet. If this makes the emperor lose face in front of the subordinate country, then I will die without a whole body? !
I went back to Yihua Palace dejectedly. At this time, the princess had already got up. Seeing me coming in with a depressed face, she asked me:
"Xiran, what happened to you early in the morning, I saw that you were not here in the morning, so I sent someone to look for you, and they came back and said that you were called by the emperor, why, what's the matter?"
"Sigh~ this time the Xiye Kingdom sent the princess to make a wedding, and the emperor sent me to have a state banquet. It must be something new and interesting. I have never done it before, so I don't know what to do, so I am under a lot of pressure."
"Then why don't I beg your father for you, begging him to change someone. I also know that this matter is important, and I don't want you to take risks." She looked at me very worriedly, and turned around to find the emperor while speaking.
I immediately grabbed her sleeve and shook my head slowly.
"Zhen'er, I know you are worried about me, but this is the emperor's imperial decree. I have already agreed, so how can I go back on my word? It makes Long Yan unhappy, not to mention that I am a small cook in the imperial kitchen, and I have no right to outsiders." I have no power, how can I get Princess Yihua to speak for me? If the emperor finds out, it will definitely cause unnecessary trouble for you, and I don't want to involve you."
After hearing what I said, she was very moved but hesitated. On the one hand, she was concerned about the face of her father and the leisurely mouth in this palace, and on the other was the safety of her loved one. As the princess of this palace, At this time, we need to take the overall situation into consideration, but she can't worry about me.
I gradually watched her frown come together, and suddenly felt how much uneasiness I had caused her, and I shouldn't have done this.
"Zhen'er, you don't look good when you frown, it will cause wrinkles. Be happy, you don't have to worry about me, your Xiran is super delicious to cook, and you can see it, right? ? So you have to have confidence in me, I will work hard, and you have to prove that it is a very wise choice for you to choose me~"
I gently caressed her cheek, wiped away the sadness on her forehead, and showed her an extremely bright smile.
"Come on, little girl, give me a smile~"
Seeing me like this, she is very angry and funny. Is this heartless and worry-free person really not afraid
I saw that her brows relaxed a lot, and a smile gradually appeared on her face, and my mood immediately improved.
"Zhen'er, can I go out of the palace for a while? I want to ask the master how to make this state banquet novel. He must have experience." I asked her for her opinion.
She knew that this matter was no small matter, and she didn't joke with me, she just nodded and agreed.
The state banquet will start around after the Mid-Autumn Festival, and there is still more than a month to prepare, so I am not in a hurry. What I have to do now is to go to the master and ask him what he should do now.
So I brought some clothes for daily use in the afternoon, and after saying goodbye to the princess, she sent someone to take me to my master.
As soon as I stepped into the master's garden, I felt refreshed, and my troubles seemed to be reduced a lot.
This is really a good place to live and live. When I get old, I want to find a place with the princess to build a garden and enjoy life. I wonder if the princess is willing
I was thinking while walking towards the front of the master's house.
"Oh, it smells so good!"
I could smell the aroma of food coming from the master's room from a long distance away. The master is indeed a master, hiding his secrets. It seems that I am lucky.
When I approached, I saw that the door was not closed, so I walked in and saw a few home-cooked dishes just prepared by the master on the table. There are crystal clear West Lake vinegar fish, wine-scented drunken shrimp, refreshing and attractive tofu mixed with shallots, and black-bone chicken soup with yam and wolfberry that exudes a strong fragrance. Three dishes and one soup, both meat and vegetables. At first glance, he is a person who knows how to keep in good health, tsk tsk, master is living a very comfortable life.
Just as the master was about to move his chopsticks, he saw me walking in. He was both happy and surprised.
"Hey, what kind of wind is this that brought me, a noble apprentice, back. You really know how to hurry, so you come here at this meal time. You sit down first, and I will bring you a pair of bowls and chopsticks."
Master, this seems to be full of disgust, but he loves me very much. A teacher for a day, a father for life. After getting along with those days, the master has long been no different from my father in my heart.
So I sat down obediently and waited for the master to bring me a pair of bowls and chopsticks and hand them to me. I took the bowl and chopsticks, and said to the master with a super obedient look:
"Thank you, master. What did the master just say? I came back this time to see the master. I knew that the master loves me the most~"
While talking, I picked up a large piece of West Lake vinegar fish and stuffed it into my mouth, and took another mouthful of rice. Before the rice and fish were completely swallowed, I couldn't wait to say:
"Ah~ Master, why has your cooking level improved again? It's so delicious. I'm afraid that if I eat this fish, I'm afraid I won't know the taste of other meat in March."
"Slow down, don't eat or sleep, don't talk, have you been starving in the palace for two months? You are not afraid of getting stuck here if you eat fish like this? And your flattery is too fake. But for your mother's sake, it has nothing to do with you, otherwise I wouldn't care about you." The master asked me to slow down with a kind face, but at the same time showed his arrogance.
Then I replied repeatedly: "Yes, yes, thank you, master, for being kind enough to accept me as an apprentice for my mother's sake. I am so grateful." Then I held up my master invisibly.
"Okay, shut up and eat well. This kid..." I could see that even though the master told me to shut up, there were more smiles on his face. It seemed that he was very pleased.
After dinner, I helped the master clean up the bowls and chopsticks, and we sat back on the table in the lobby. The master brewed two cups of good Longjing, put one in his place, and passed the other to me.
"Let's talk, you don't have to go to the Three Treasures Hall if you have nothing to do. You don't have to say those polite words anymore with me. If you have anything to say, just speak up. I will definitely consider it for you as a teacher." The master said.
So I told my master exactly what the emperor ordered me to be in charge of the state banquet.
He was also taken aback when he heard this. What surprised him was that he didn't expect me to be valued so much by the emperor in just a few months after entering the palace, but he was more worried that I would not be able to take on such a heavy responsibility.
"So, master, I thought of you right away. Don't you think I'm here to look for you? Although there is an imperial chef in this palace, it's either too young or it's not convenient to ask. You used to be an imperial chef. You should be very experienced, can you teach Xiran some knowledge necessary to prepare for a state banquet? And I still need some innovative dishes, master, you have to help me, if you don’t help me, no one will help me.” I looked at him pitifully.
"Okay, I will help you. You are staying with me during this time. I will tell you more about the things necessary to prepare the state banquet. Starting tomorrow, I will officially start teaching you, and you will live in the guest room over there." , have a good rest tonight."
"Yes, thank you master, Xi Ran is very grateful."
I went back to the guest room, washed up, lay on the bed in the guest room, looked at the night outside the window, my eyelids were slightly heavy. I don't know what the princess is doing at this time? I'm afraid I'm already asleep.
Good night, sweet dreams, Zhener~