(Second update, Happy New Year's Day~)
Talking to Sister Lan, I arrived at the round arch leading to the backyard.
Sister Lan called Bu Tuo, helped Chu Lian sit on Bu Tuo, and was carried to the backyard by two strong women.
Princess Wei has got the news and is waiting for her.
Chu Lian was not taken to Princess Wei's yard, but to a pavilion by the pool.
Princess Wei is sitting in the gazebo and painting.
The warm sunshine shines on the pool water, the breeze blows, sparkling, like thousands of silver snakes dancing in the water waves.
Half of the octagonal gazebo is surrounded by felt cloth, leaving only one side for people to enter and exit, so that the sun can shine in without passing the wind, and you can also see the scenery of the lotus pond outside. There are not only withered old lotus in the lotus pond, but also stretched A few spots of fresh green came out of the water, and small lotus leaf bags stretched out of the water, standing straight.
Seeing this peaceful and vibrant spring scene, Chu Lian's mood also improved.
She couldn't help speeding up her pace and approaching the octagonal pavilion. It seemed that Princess Wei saw her coming, and saw her put down her brush from a distance, and sat at the stone table with a cup of tea to taste.
When Chu Lian was led into the pavilion by Nanny Lan, Princess Wei laughed, "Jin Yi, come and sit beside me."
The corners of Chu Lian's mouth curled up, revealing two shallow dimples on her cheeks.
Every time she is around Princess Wei, she feels very relaxed.
She first blessed Princess Wei, and then sat down next to Princess Wei.
Princess Wei pulled Chu Lian to talk, and Chu Lian saw the half-painted ink painting on the easel next to him at a glance.
"The princess is really good at drawing!"
Princess Wei was a well-known talented woman in Shengjing when she was young. She was proficient in all kinds of piano, chess, calligraphy and painting. Although she painted less later, her painting skills did not regress at all.
"It's hard to say, but today I have free time, so I just drew and played." Wei Wangfei said with a smile.
"That's much better than my drawing." Chu Lian praised it sincerely.
She only knows how to sketch gouache and stick figures, but because she is a modern designer, she doesn't know anything about Chinese painting.
"You child, why is Xiaozui so sweet? Duanjia showed me the jewelry you painted, as if they were really inlaid on paper."
Chu Lian blushed, it was specially painted sketches in order to let the masters in the shop see the details of the jewelry clearly...
"Why do you think of me coming today? You girl is not so active when you come here." Princess Wei glared at her.
Chu Lian suppressed the smile on his face, "Princess Wangfei, I need your help this time."
"Oh?" Princess Wei raised her eyebrows, seeing Chu Lian sitting beside her, looking at her with big clear eyes, like a pure deer, Princess Wei couldn't help pinching Chu Lian's soft and rosy cheeks .
"I knew it. If it's okay, you wouldn't think of my concubine."
Embarrassed, Chu Lian told Princess Wei the ins and outs of the matter.
On the other side of the lotus pond, next to the rockery, two middle-aged men were taking a leisurely walk together.
The middle-aged man in the purple embroidered unicorn and python robe had a handsome demeanor and a slender figure. At this moment, with a slight smile on his face, he was pointing to the scenery of the inner courtyard of the palace to the middle-aged man in the stone blue embroidered clothes beside him.
The stone-blue middle-aged man's eyes were deep and piercing. With his hands behind his back, he paced on the cobblestone path, laughing heartily from time to time, "Ninth Brother, I haven't been to your Wei Palace for a long time."
The king of Wei, who was dressed in purple and python robes, laughed, "Brother is busy with state affairs every day, so unlike me, he spends his days leisurely. I have refurbished this garden twice."
Today, King Wei and King Wei are brothers. The emperor has loved King Wei very much since he was a child. Later, King Wei helped his elder brother when Nine Dragons seized the throne, and the relationship between the two brothers has grown further.
To say that the most trusted person in the whole court is undoubtedly King Wei.
Emperor Taiping, who was dressed in ordinary silk clothes, looked like a leisurely rich man at first glance, regardless of his aura.
It was rare for him to take a leisurely trip out of the palace, and Emperor Taiping didn't want to think about those annoying political affairs anymore. His eyes fell on the huge lotus pond, and then fell into the distance.
He laughed, "Siblings are so excited. They are painting by the pavilion at this time, and the little girl standing next to her is Duanjia? This stinky girl hasn't entered the palace for a while, and her imperial grandmother has repeatedly said: I miss her."
King Wei looked at the Bajiao Pavilion in the distance, and happened to see his wife's happy smile. Chu Lian's back was facing them at this time. From their point of view, if they didn't really know that Princess Duanjia was not in Wei Wang's mansion, the father of Wei Wang would probably admit his mistake.
"Brother got it wrong this time. It wasn't Duanjia. This stinky girl, Duanjia, is still playing in Lanxiangshan and doesn't want to come back."
The emperor was a little surprised, "Oh? Who is that? Since when did you have a little girl in your house? Could it be for Artest to see?"
King Wei couldn't laugh or cry, "Brother, don't make foolish guesses. That child is married long ago. He is the wife of Marquis Anyuan, the sixth daughter of the Chu family."
In an instant, a pair of familiar eyes flashed in Emperor Taiping's mind, and he frowned slightly, "Jinyi?"
The smile on King Wei's face also disappeared, and he nodded, "That's the child. The princess' elder brother also knows about it, and Jinyi saved Duanjia again, so the princess has some special feelings for that child."
"It doesn't matter, as long as the younger siblings feel better, Jin Yi is not a child who has no sense of propriety."
Hearing what Brother Huang said, King Wei's complexion improved. He was really worried that Brother Huang would blame their husband and wife for this incident.
King Wei laughed lowly, "It's a coincidence, this child is really a lucky star of Duanjia, and he looks somewhat similar to Duanjia. The two children are about the same size and height, so it's no wonder the princess thinks so."
King Wei was talking beside him, but he didn't realize that the emperor had lost his mind. His gaze crossed the surface of the lotus pond, landed on that slender figure, and then passed through that figure again, as if he was looking at someone else.
"Brother, today is just a coincidence. Since Jinyi is here, let her cook a few dishes for you to taste. This girl has a good cooking skill, and I don't know how she practiced it. Let me tell you, it is better than the one in your palace." The chefs are all delicious."
Emperor Taiping finally withdrew his gaze, and the corners of his mouth curled up, "Then I will stay in the palace today and taste Jinyi's craftsmanship."
Emperor Taiping met Chu Lian once a year ago, and then he was busy with political affairs, and he almost forgot that dusty memory in his mind.
But when I think about it again now, I find that it is still so clear.
Chu Lian came to ask Princess Wei to do something, so she became a cook for no reason...
At this time, Chu Lian didn't know that the meal was made for the present-day sage, and thought it was a tribute to Wei Wang and his wife.
She asked about the taboos of King Wei and Princess Wei, and took Lan Lan and Wenqing Wenlan to the small kitchen of the palace.
There are all kinds of ingredients in the small kitchen of Wangfu.
Chu Lian also carried some seasonings like chili with him, but he was not afraid of not having enough.
Thinking about the early spring, it is not suitable to eat too spicy dishes, and it is the time when wild vegetables are plump.
A few steps forward from the small kitchen is the small garden of the palace. Chu Lian walked around and saw many delicious and tender wild vegetables.
She called the little maid to pick wild vegetables and send them to the small kitchen according to her request.
Chu Lian chose fresh Artemisia annua and chrysanthemum brain, and asked Wenqing to process the river shrimp and fish, and asked Wenlan to stuff the meat.
If you want to make light dishes that don't get angry, and there are so many spring ingredients, of course Jinling dishes are the best.
Jinling cuisine has a mild taste, freshness, crispness and tenderness. The dishes are exquisite and elegant, and they are the most suitable dishes for early spring.
The few dishes Chu Lian chose didn't take very long.
The five dishes were ready in half an hour.
Different dishes are selected for each dish, and then decorated with fresh flowers, the green is emerald green, and the red is bright, which makes people appetite just by looking at it.
Because Queen Wei informed in advance that King Wei would buy another table, so Chu Lian made two servings of each dish.
At this moment, Chu Lian asked someone to eat one with Wei Wangfei, and one for Wen Qing to the front yard.
In the flower hall in the front yard, King Wei and Emperor Taiping had already taken their seats and were drinking tea.
There was a guard outside the door announcing that the food had been delivered.
Emperor Taiping waved his hand, "Set the meal."
Sister Lan led Wenqing and the maids carrying food boxes into the flower hall one after another.
Wen Qing knew that King Wei was in the front yard, and she had also seen King Wei when she came to the Wei Palace with Chu Lian. She thought that there was only King Wei in the front yard, and at most the king of the big county was there, but she didn't expect that there was also a strange middle-aged man.
She raised her head for a quick glance, and was startled by the aura of the middle-aged man, and immediately lowered her head politely.
The identity of a middle-aged man who can sit on an equal footing with King Wei and who is quite close is definitely not ordinary.
After understanding this point, Wenqing became more disciplined.
Sister Lan ordered the little maids to put the dishes in the food box on the table one by one, and then said with a smile: "Master, please use, these are all made by the Lord himself!"
Five porcelain plates of different colors and shapes were placed on the table. The porcelain plates were specially ordered by Princess Wei to find them out, and each one was priceless. But the dishes on the porcelain plate are more beautiful and attractive than the porcelain plate.
It can even be said that these porcelain plates have been reduced to the foil of the dishes.
Emperor Taiping's eyes lit up, and he pointed to the dishes in front of him that were more beautiful than handicrafts and asked, "Quickly tell me, what are these!"
Although King Wei regretted that the roast duck he ate last time was not included in this table, he couldn't wait to see the delicious aroma exuding in front of him.
Wenqing followed what Chu Lian taught before, and took a step forward to introduce everything.
"Back to the two masters, this Cuibi stir-fry is called Jinlingcao. It is made from the tenderest part of the tip of the Artemisia stalks. It is fried and it will have a natural fragrance. The side dish is anchovy shrimp. The freshest river prawns are removed and shelled, wrapped in egg white and other accessories, fried in duck fat... ”
Wenqing briefly introduced the five dishes in a row, and Emperor Taiping and King Wei sitting at the table would taste each dish.
When he tasted the first Jinling grass, Emperor Taiping's eyes lit up.
Fresh artemisia is tender and fragrant. Just put the simplest oil and salt, and control the heat, you can get the most natural deliciousness out of the pot. Then decorate a few bright red rose flowers next to the plate. The visual impact brought by the red and green will make people more appetizing.
Shrimp with anchovies has white meat and bright red tail shell, which looks like anchovy tail, and green beans are lined next to it. The color is gorgeous. The shrimp is tender and not greasy, crispy and fresh.
These two dishes have captured Emperor Taiping, not to mention the red plum fish maw, crispy eel, and chrysanthemum brain soup.