The First Lackey Under The Empress

"Indeed."

The elegant and sweet Xu Junling nodded with a smile, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"…"

Zhao Du'an was silent for a moment, then said quietly, "Why didn't the Princess mention this before?

If I remember correctly, the Princess only said she would take me to enjoy the night view of Huting Lake and arrange a dinner."

The Prince of Huai'an wants to see him!

This really caught Zhao by surprise.

Although he had vaguely sensed from the Little Princess's behavior along the way that she seemed to have prepared some surprises.

But on the first day of entering the city, first meeting the Prince of Jing, then meeting the local Prince of Huai'an in Huaishui…

This tight schedule still made him a little uncomfortable.

The key is…

He was unprepared.

Xu Junling pretended to be ignorant, feigning stupidity, "Really, didn't I say so?

Perhaps I forgot for a moment?

Or perhaps the Envoy didn't hear me?"

Zhao Du'an sighed, helpless against this shrewd Princess, but he wasn't displeased.

From a standpoint, if he, representing the imperial court, could meet with the Prince of Huai'an, it would undoubtedly send a positive signal.

This is the subtlety of a large family.

They caught Zhao Du'an off guard, leaving him no time to fully prepare, thereby gaining the upper hand in this meeting.

But such a grand banquet was also beneficial to him, making it hard to be angry…

Hmm, in that case, arranging for Xu Junling, a woman, to handle this matter was also a manifestation of their shrewdness.

If the Heir Apparent of Huai'an, Xu Qian, had completed this "deception," Zhao Du'an wouldn't have let it go so easily.

While these thoughts swirled in his mind, he perked up and turned to look at Eunuch Hai and the others behind him:

"Then so many people…"

Xu Junling smiled sweetly:

"The sixth floor of Dafeng Tower, except for the top floor for viewing, my father has set up a separate banquet on the fifth floor to invite the Envoy, and a banquet is also set up on the fourth floor to entertain everyone."

Alright…

No wonder they booked the entire venue with such fanfare, they even considered the guards.

The old offering smiled and squinted:

"Let's go, let's go.

This old man is really hungry and wants to taste the craftsmanship of Huaishui river delicacies.

The last time I came to Dafeng Tower was decades ago."

Haitang, Lang Shiba, Ji Yue, and the Brocade Guards of the Pear Blossom Hall were all somewhat tempted.

Only one floor apart, so there's no need to worry about danger…

Zhao Du'an pondered slightly, nodded, and continued to climb the stairs.

The entire Dafeng Tower was exceptionally quiet and extremely soundproof.

Walking inside, one could hardly hear the noise outside.

Upon reaching the fourth floor, sure enough, Dafeng Tower waiters were respectfully waiting.

Standing at the front was none other than the Princess's elder brother, Heir Apparent Xu Qian.

Xu Qian greeted Zhao Du'an with a rather complicated look, and then respectfully said to Eunuch Hai:

"Please, Eunuch Hai."

If it were ordinary guards, there would be no need for the Heir Apparent to accompany them personally, but Hai Chunlin's status was different.

As the head of the imperial family's offerings, a legendary figure who had served three emperors, someone of weight had to stay and accompany him.

"Hehe, good."

Eunuch Hai said carelessly, leading the guards to their seats.

The Princess's maids, such as Lvshui, also stayed on this floor.

Leaving only Zhao Du'an and Xu Junling to go up another floor.

…

…

When Zhao Du'an stepped onto the fifth floor, he saw that the entire spacious and luxurious floor was brightly lit.

The floor was covered with precious knitted carpets, and the lamp posts in the corners illuminated the place as if it were daytime.

On this floor, handmaidens who were clearly servants of the Prince of Huai'an's mansion stood respectfully around, and in the center of the crowd, there was a long table that was particularly eye-catching.

On the long table, there was a spindle-shaped bamboo tray, and on the tray lay a well-proportioned large blue fish.

At this moment, behind the long table, an old man with a plump figure, fair complexion, and well-maintained appearance, making it almost impossible to tell his real age.

He was wearing an apron and holding a narrow knife, processing the blue fish.

Each time his wet hands moved, another cut appeared on the fish, apparently reaching the final step of preparing the ingredients.

"Father, Envoy Zhao has arrived."

Xu Junling said softly, bowing.

This fish-killing "rich merchant" is the Prince of Huai'an, Zhenbao's uncle, Xu An, who sits in Huaishui, controls several fleets, and holds immense wealth?

Zhao Du'an was surprised.

Although he had seen portraits of the Eight Princes, he still found it difficult to associate a royal prince with a chef personally killing fish in a restaurant.

The Prince of Huai'an happened to make the last cut, raised his head, and his pair of eyes met Zhao Du'an's on his fat face.

"This official, Zhao Du'an, greets Your Highness."

Zhao Du'an smiled and bowed.

His attitude towards this person was very different from that towards the Prince of Jing.

When the Prince of Huai'an smiled, he looked like Maitreya in a temple:

"Haha, today is not a formal meeting.

Since you are acquainted with my little girl, just address me as an elder."

Zhao Du'an followed his lead and changed his address with a smile:

"Your Highness is right.

This junior didn't expect that, in addition to being a well-known foodie in the Great Yu Dynasty, you also have this skill."

Good praise must be grounded in reality.

Sure enough, the corners of the Prince of Huai'an's mouth widened a bit, and the Princess next to him said with a smile:

"My father likes to cook at home, but not often.

This time, it's thanks to you that we can taste the fish made by Father."

Zhao Du'an was flattered.

The Prince of Huai'an shook his head, picked up a rag, wiped his hands, and said seriously:

"My fish-making skills are not as good as the imperial chef of this Dafeng Tower, but it's always reassuring to handle good ingredients myself.

Generally, in a banquet, the chef's contribution accounts for sixty percent, and the buyer's contribution accounts for forty percent…

Besides, each thing has its own flavor and should not be mixed together…"

"Just like in recent years in the Great Yu Dynasty, hot pot is commonly used for banquets in winter, which is noisy and annoying for guests.

Moreover, the taste of each dish has a certain degree of heat, suitable for gentle or intense cooking, suitable for removing or adding, which is difficult to control in an instant.

Now, using fire to force everything together, how can the taste be good?

Recently, people use shochu instead of charcoal, thinking it's a good idea, but they don't know that things change taste after being rolled many times…"

Zhao Du'an was speechless, not expecting that he started a topic and the other party would talk endlessly, giving him a lecture…

No wonder he has the nickname of "Foodie Prince."

Although he didn't understand much, he could tell that he was indeed quite knowledgeable about "eating."

Xu Junling said helplessly, "Father, Envoy Zhao is coming with an empty stomach tonight."

The Prince of Huai'an laughed and said, "I was being verbose.

Come on, take it to be cooked, and tell the back kitchen to serve the dishes."

Immediately, a maid stepped forward, picked up the blue fish, and went downstairs.

More people worked together to remove the long table.

The Prince of Huai'an took off his apron and made a gesture.

Zhao Du'an immediately followed and sat with the father and daughter at the prepared Eight Immortals table next to them.

He faced Xu An, and the Princess accompanied them on either side.

With footsteps following one after another, the maids brought up the dishes from downstairs.

In the blink of an eye, dishes with exquisite plating, color, aroma, and taste were placed around the table.

Leaving a large space in the middle, apparently reserved for the fresh fish that was still being cooked.

Zhao Du'an glanced around and found that the dishes on the table were mainly "river delicacies," with the rest as supplements.

Among them, the eight plates of river delicacies surrounding the center were the most eye-catching.

He looked towards the window on the side.

At this moment, the window was slightly open, and he could vaguely see the continuous lights in the distance, seemingly coming from the painted boats and buildings.

"That's Yansuo Lake over there,"

The Prince of Huai'an explained:

"This lake has a history of over a thousand years.

When the Grand Canal of the previous dynasty was dug, it was used for flood discharge.

Originally, although it was a scenic spot, it couldn't be considered too famous.

Instead, Huting benefited from the opening of the canal and gradually became lively.

Although it's outside the city, it's not far away.

There are painted boats and ships staying there overnight, but its prosperity is inferior to the 'Huai River' of Huaishui Road.

Therefore, in recent years, it has also been called 'Little Huai River,' but unfortunately, there are more than a dozen of the eighteen prefectures of the Great Yu Dynasty vying to be 'Little Huai River.'

Heh, its scenery, apart from the statue of a god carved on the ancient mountain wall, has nothing special.

In my opinion, its reputation is greater than its reality, mostly due to the poems and praises of those literati.

However, my little girl has different ideas, saying that it has a unique atmosphere, and she has written several poems for it."

You'd better be simply talking about Yansuo Lake, and not implying something…

Zhao Du'an smiled:

"This junior has only been in Huting for half a day and hasn't had time to see it yet."

"Is that so, there's no rush."

The Prince of Huai'an smiled.

He leaned back in his chair, and his plump body filled the gap:

"In my opinion, the scenery in this world, natural scenery is secondary, talent is the most worthy of appreciation."

"For example?"

Zhao Du'an echoed.

The Prince of Huai'an said with interest:

"For example, that lively event you had with Xu Jinglong on the river, and for example, Xu Wen's personal visit to the Humble Administrator's Garden."

Getting to the point!

Zhao Du'an knew the pleasantries were over and quietly tensed his nerves.

A thought suddenly occurred to him, and he said in a joking tone:

"Your Highness's information is quite accurate, even knowing about my affair with the Heir Apparent of Jing on the river.

Could it be that you saw it with your own eyes?"

The Prince of Huai'an smiled and said, "Indeed, I happened to see it."

He actually admitted it!

Zhao Du'an was stunned, realizing that the source of the peeping he had vaguely sensed on the official ship was the foodie prince in front of him.

Zhao Du'an's thoughts raced, and he smiled on his face:

"Is that so?

That's quite a coincidence.

Hmm, then this banquet tonight, wouldn't it also be a spur-of-the-moment decision after seeing the Prince of Jing go to the Humble Administrator's Garden?"

The Prince of Huai'an was slightly surprised, but nodded with a smile: "Indeed, that's right."

He admitted it again!

Xu Junling, who was accompanying him, explained with a smile:

"My father did arrange this banquet temporarily after hearing me talk about it, so it's really not that I didn't tell the Envoy in advance."

A face full of innocence.

I'd only believe you if I were a ghost…

Zhao Du'an muttered to himself, watching the father and daughter sing in harmony, tightly grasping the initiative of this meeting from beginning to end.

That wouldn't do…

Of course, he wouldn't think this was a simple banquet.

He knew even more that if he continued to follow the other party's rhythm, he would always be at a disadvantage.

Zhao Du'an pondered slightly, smiled in relief, simply bent down, picked up the wine pot, got up, poured a cup for the Prince of Huai'an, and then looked at the Princess, who raised her hand to protect the wine cup, smiling to indicate that she would replace wine with tea.

Zhao Du'an put down the wine pot, using this set of actions to artificially interrupt the conversation rhythm dominated by the father and daughter.

Then he slowly delivered a sentence:

"Your Highness meeting with me alone, if it gets out, aren't you afraid that the Prince of Jing will find out and misunderstand your position and intentions?"

…

Next chapter will be updated before midnight