Xing Junman was stung by these words, her face flushing crimson as she hung her head low, unconsciously twisting her skirt ties with both hands, too nervous to know what to do.
Qin Sishan withdrew her sharp gaze, slowly picked up her chopsticks, and tasted a bit of the crystal quail jelly and the flower-steamed quail. After a moment, she offered her assessment: "These two dishes are acceptable, bearing about sixty to seventy percent resemblance to the flavors created by imperial chefs."
The affirmation in her words brought Xing Junman a slight sense of relief, rekindling her hope. She lowered her head and glanced at the other two pufferfish dishes, secretly hoping that Qin Sishan would view her in a new light after tasting them.
However, Qin Sishan set down her chopsticks at that point and stated plainly, "I will not taste the dishes made with pufferfish. This ingredient carries hidden potent toxins; the slightest mishandling could endanger the diner's life. You and I are strangers; I know nothing about your training or whether you possess the skill to prepare pufferfish for consumption. Therefore, I am sorry, but I cannot risk my life to taste these two dishes of yours."
Xing Junman was stunned. Gathering her courage, she stammered, "But... pufferfish was among the optional ingredients. These optional ingredients should have been personally selected by you, Director of Palace Catering, right? Since it was available for us to choose, why won’t you taste it after it has been prepared?"
"Indeed, pufferfish was among the optional ingredients," Qin Sishan replied, looking directly at Xing Junman. "However, optional does not mean mandatory; you could have chosen to avoid it. In your pursuit of dazzling everyone with your skills, despite having other meats, fruits, and vegetables available, you still decided to use a toxic ingredient, disregarding the potential danger to those of higher status. For a Palace Food Attendant, this is a grave taboo. For chefs in the common world, the primary goal in preparing food may be to pursue exquisite flavor. But for those of us who serve nobles, the foremost priority must be safety; only then comes flavor. You must understand that at no time should you choose ingredients that could potentially harm those of high standing."
Xing Junman’s face turned as pale as paper. Immediately, she raised her hands to her forehead and performed a deep bow to Qin Sishan, apologizing in shame. Qin Sishan calmly instructed her to withdraw and continue preparing for the subsequent competition.
After the ten young women’s self-selected dishes were evaluated, the final round required each to prepare a dish using a unified main ingredient. Qin Sishan addressed the group: "On my journey from the capital, I saw spring vegetables piled in verdant greens, rapeseed flowers glowing golden, and fields of rapeseed blossoms stretching across hills and plains, blooming so brilliantly it seemed they would last until summer. Therefore, for today’s final dish, we shall use this common household staple: rapeseed greens. Use rapeseed greens as the main ingredient; select your own accompaniments and decide on your own cooking method. As before, Magistrate Shen and I will taste the results."
The young women exchanged glances. The final round would determine the winner, and everyone had previously speculated about how rare the final ingredient might be or how challenging the cooking process would be. None had expected Qin Sishan to choose such an everyday ingredient.
Upon receiving their orders, the women dispersed to prepare separately. Zhenzhen selected some dill, fennel, ginger, and Sichuan pepper, slowly dried them over low heat, then ground them into a fine powder and set it aside. Next, she took out the wok she had brought with her, cleaned it, heated it, added a small amount of sesame oil, and after a short while, stirred in some sauce along with the ground spice powder, frying it into a seasoned paste. After setting that aside, she cleaned the wok again, added heated vegetable oil, and promptly tossed in the washed and trimmed rapeseed greens. She stir-fried them briefly until they were just cooked and began to release their juices, then poured in the prepared seasoned paste, mixing it thoroughly with the greens.The sauce touched the hot rapeseed greens, instantly filling the room with fragrance and drawing the attention of the other girls who were cooking, causing them to pause their tasks and look toward Zhenzhen. Qin Sishan also strolled over to stand behind Zhenzhen, observing her actions.
The iron wok Zhenzhen was using was the newly improved one she had designed after discussing with Lin Hong. Resembling an inverted dome, the wok was lightweight and thin, with a wooden handle for easy grip. Zhenzhen held the handle with her left hand and a spatula with her right, smoothly flipping the rapeseed greens along the wok’s curved surface in one fluid motion. The wok was not large, and she carefully gauged the heat of the stove. When a burst of flame leaped up, she suddenly lifted the entire wok, rhythmically shaking her wrist to guide the flames to lick the bottom of the wok. The rapeseed greens inside danced in the firelight, each leaf enveloped in the aroma of the sauce as it rose and fell repeatedly.
The final dish, served on a plate, glistened with a vibrant sheen. Thanks to the precise control of the heat, the greens remained tender and appealingly green. The sauce blended with the oil and vegetable juices, enhanced by a faint trace of wok smoke, giving this simple vegetable dish a rich, savory flavor reminiscent of forbidden delicacies.
After tasting it, Qin Sishan fell into thoughtful silence, her gaze repeatedly shifting to the iron wok Zhenzhen had used. She even picked it up herself, examining it inside and out. Magistrate Shen, on the other hand, took one bite after another, praising, "I never imagined such a plain vegetable, touched by the worldly fire, could become so enchanting."
Qin Sishan picked up Zhenzhen’s spatula and slid it along the inner wall of the wok, feeling the smooth, unhindered arc of its design. She then said to Zhenzhen, "We also stir-fry dishes in the palace, but we use copper pans—shallow, flat-bottomed ones. We only occasionally use them for stir-frying meat. Fluffy vegetables like these aren’t as quick to cook, and it’s harder to control the heat, so they often burn. We don’t use them much for that. Your iron wok is quite novel—I’ve never seen this shape before. Where is it from?"
Zhenzhen replied, "This wok was designed after I repeatedly experimented with stir-frying under the guidance of my cooking teacher. We summarized the pros and cons of various wok designs, revised the drawings again and again, and finally had a blacksmith forge it according to the plans."
Qin Sishan nodded. "A craftsman must sharpen his tools to do his work well. With this fine tool, you can now explore many stir-fried dishes that no one has attempted before."
Regardless of the ingredients they chose, all the other girls opted to boil their rapeseed greens. Many made them into soups, adding ingredients like dried scallops and shrimp, tofu and fish balls, or stewing them with cured meats. Xing Junman also boiled hers, but she used a broth made by simmering pork, quail meat, chicken bones, and pork bones over low heat, then straining it. After boiling the rapeseed greens, the broth remained clear, resembling an ordinary vegetable soup with no visible ingredients. Yet, as soon as one tasted it, the rich, savory flavor filled the mouth, quickly revealing its ingenuity. Magistrate Shen praised it profusely: "Indeed, you’ve returned from studying in Lin’an. I’ve only seen similar methods in the grand restaurants of Lin’an."The final dish to be presented was Fengxian's. Unlike the others, she used no meat or seafood ingredients. Besides rapeseed, she employed two other vegetables: artemisia selengensis and reed shoots. The three vegetables appeared in roughly equal portions. Fengxian blanched each separately in boiling water, drained them, and arranged them neatly on a plate. In a small bowl, she mixed sauce, soy sauce, and a bit of sugar until well combined. She heated a little oil in a small pan, stir-fried shredded ginger over the fire until fragrant, then removed the ginger. Next, she poured the prepared sauce into the pan to blend with the oil, and finally drizzled the mixture over the blanched vegetables.
This method preserved the refreshing texture of boiled vegetables while adding a savory richness from the oil and sauce, which was perfectly balanced in saltiness and sweetness, making it a delightful dish.
Facing this dish, Qin Sishan also had questions: "I said the main ingredient should be rapeseed. In your dish, rapeseed, artemisia selengensis, and reed shoots are in equal portions, with no clear distinction between primary and secondary. What is the reason for this?"
Fengxian bowed her head and replied, "I named this dish 'Three Friends of the Spring River.' Since they are three friends, I thought it inappropriate to favor one over the others, so I deliberately did not make rapeseed the main ingredient."
Qin Sishan fixed her gaze on Fengxian but did not question her further for the moment. Meanwhile, Magistrate Shen had already forgotten about his stomach discomfort and was busy tasting the dish while they spoke. Seeing that he only ate the rapeseed, Fengxian couldn't help but softly remind him, "Magistrate Shen, please also try the artemisia selengensis and reed shoots... It's best to eat all three together."
"Oh? What is the benefit of eating all three together?" Magistrate Shen asked as he picked up a portion of the Three Friends of the Spring River with his chopsticks, gathering all three vegetables at once. He chewed them slowly and then smiled, saying, "It does seem more fragrant than eating just one alone."
"Not only that..." Qin Sishan spoke up slowly at this point, revealing Fengxian's true intention. "Legend has it that consuming rapeseed, artemisia selengensis, and reed shoots together can counteract pufferfish poison. This girl likely noticed that the magistrate had just eaten the 'Xishi's Breast' dish and was concerned about any residual toxins, so she specially prepared this dish to detoxify him."
Magistrate Shen was taken aback and turned to Fengxian. "Is that what you were thinking, young lady?"
Fengxian bowed to the magistrate and said, "I cannot be certain whether this method is truly effective, but consuming the three together is harmless, so it is worth a try."
Magistrate Shen couldn't help but exclaim, "Not only is your culinary skill exceptional, but you are also thoughtful, wise, and remarkably clever!"
Witnessing this scene, Xing Junman broke out in a cold sweat on her forehead. Her body swayed slightly, and she nearly fainted. Aware of the probing gazes of the women around her, she gritted her teeth and managed to steady herself.
Qin Sishan turned to Fengxian again and said, "Your move was quite risky. If I hadn't known about the detoxifying properties of these three vegetables and had judged you to have lost this round for failing to distinguish between primary and secondary ingredients, wouldn't you have been wronged?"
Fengxian replied, "Even so, I would not have been wronged. If Magistrate Shen remained unharmed, all would be well. But if anything had gone wrong, knowing this remedy yet not preparing it for the magistrate to consume would have left me with lifelong guilt. That is why I dared to do this. Winning or losing is important, but compared to the safety of the diner, whether I am selected or not is a trivial matter."
(To be continued)
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