Winter is the season for nourishment. Seeing that the soups Fengxian prepared had notable restorative effects, Zhao Ai ordered her to make a pot and personally brought her along to deliver it to Consort Li. Consort Li accepted it with a smile. After hearing Fengxian explain the soup’s benefits, she kept Zhao Ai for a long conversation. Noticing how he frequently mentioned Zhenzhen, she understood his intentions and summoned Zhenzhen, instructing her to escort the Second Great King back.
Zhenzhen accompanied Zhao Ai into the Brocade Rouge Corridor. After saying, “Second Great King, please take care,” she turned to return to Phoenix Arrival Pavilion. Zhao Ai suddenly seemed to remember something, pointing ahead and saying, “It was right there that my elder brother first saw Feng Jing.”
Zhenzhen asked in surprise, “Wasn’t their first meeting in Gathering Fragrance Garden?”
“You don’t know about this, do you?” Zhao Ai beckoned her. “Come, walk a little further, and I’ll tell you what happened.”
Driven by intense curiosity about the Crown Prince and Feng Jing’s story, Zhenzhen returned to the corridor. As she listened to Zhao Ai recount the tale of their first encounter beneath the corridor, she unconsciously followed him further along.
Fengxian trailed behind them. Seeing Zhao Ai enthusiastically chatting with Zhenzhen without so much as a glance back at her, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of loneliness. She deliberately slowed her pace, allowing a distance to grow between them.
After hearing Zhao Ai’s story and imagining the elegant demeanor of the two, Zhenzhen sighed, “What a pity. They were such a perfect pair of talented scholar and beautiful lady, and even their accidental meeting was so poetic…”
“That depends mostly on the people involved,” Zhao Ai said. “Feng Jing is a graceful and dignified beauty, and she was in this vividly colored Brocade Rouge Corridor. No matter how you look at it, it’s beautiful. So their first meeting naturally had a poetic charm. Unlike someone who, back then, rode a dirty horse, holding a whip, and came to spy on half-naked men… Ah…”
The “Ah” was prompted by Zhenzhen’s slap landing on his arm. Although Zhenzhen had told Fengxian about her first encounter with Zhao Ai, she hadn’t mentioned details like them playing polo with bare legs. Now, hearing him joke about it, she worried Fengxian might misunderstand. Furious and anxious, she couldn’t help but strike him.
But Zhao Ai didn’t stop. Protecting his right arm, he added, “…and there were two of them.”
Zhenzhen felt her vision darken briefly before her eyes blazed with anger. She swung her hands repeatedly, slapping him several more times. Zhao Ai only laughed as he fended off her blows, showing no trace of annoyance.
Fengxian watched from behind, a flawless smile reserved for nobility fixed on her lips. When their arms touched, she silently lowered her gaze.
Although the Emperor’s meals were nominally managed by Pei Shangshi, in recent years, the Emperor had come to rely more on Consort Liu. The Emperor’s meals were distinct and referred to as “imperial cuisine.” The imperial kitchen employed over two hundred chefs known as “culinary artisans,” along with more than two hundred assistants called “culinary apprentices” who handled miscellaneous tasks and meal preparation. All were managed by the Imperial Cuisine Office. However, the daily menu planning and the task of sampling the meals beforehand should have been the responsibility of the Director of Palace Food. For the past two years, these duties had largely been taken over by Consort Liu, who often personally presented food and drinks to the Emperor.
Now, however, Consort Liu was pregnant. Concerned that she might overexert herself and that it was no longer appropriate for her to oversee the sampling of imperial meals, the Emperor signaled to Pei Shangshi to select a young palace attendant from the Bureau of Palace Provisions to assist Pei Shangshi with these tasks.Pei Shangshi observed the palace attendants and felt that Fengxian was steady and reliable, having never made a mistake since entering the palace. Her work in Qinghua Pavilion was also commendable, and she was quite knowledgeable about dietary therapy. Thus, Pei Shangshi intended to promote her and called her over to inform her of the matter. Unexpectedly, Fengxian declined this great favor, kneeling before Pei Shangshi and saying, "I come from a humble background, and my culinary skills are not outstanding compared to those of the palace attendants. Moreover, I have not been in the palace for long and have yet to fully grasp the rules. Fortunately, I was assigned to the Second Great King's pavilion, where he is amiable and does not demand strict adherence to etiquette, allowing me to live peacefully until now. If I were to serve by The Emperor's side, I fear I would be trembling with anxiety every day and inevitably make mistakes, likely failing to live up to your recommendation."
Pei Shangshi tried to persuade her with kind words, but Fengxian still refused. Seeing Pei Shangshi frown, Fengxian quickly whispered, "I do have a suitable candidate in mind, someone ten times more suitable than I am."
Pei Shangshi asked who it was, and Fengxian replied, "Wu Zhenzhen. Like me, she is from Pujiang. During the Bureau of Palace Provisions' selection, her ranking was higher than mine, and she was Qin Sishan's first choice, which shows her culinary skills are more refined than mine. Moreover, her sense of taste is exceptionally sharp. It was she who detected the unusual taste in the Qing salt from Phoenix Arrival Pavilion. Isn't a keen sense of taste the most crucial quality for a Palace Food Attendant serving The Emperor?"
Pei Shangshi pondered and said, "Wu Zhenzhen is indeed good, but her temperament is too lively and not steady enough."
Fengxian replied, "Zhenzhen is indeed lively, but this may not be a bad thing in The Emperor's eyes. If The Emperor only preferred steady individuals, Phoenix Arrival Pavilion and Furong Pavilion would not be as they are now."
Pei Shangshi's expression instantly darkened. "Watch your words!"
Fengxian immediately prostrated herself on the ground. "I spoke out of turn. Please punish me, Shangshi."
Pei Shangshi did not make an immediate decision but kept Fengxian's words in mind.
In recent days, the Bureau of Palace Provisions had ordered the older palace attendants to provide basic culinary training to the younger ones in their teens. One task involved processing mushrooms to make filling for buns. Most attendants simply washed the mushrooms, boiled them in water, chopped them, and seasoned the filling. However, Pei Shangshi noticed that Wu Zhenzhen sliced a few pieces of ginger and added them to the boiling water while cooking the mushrooms. She explained to the young attendant she was instructing, "Some mushrooms are poisonous, and we may not recognize all of them. For safety, it's best to add a few slices of ginger or garlic cloves when boiling them. If the mushrooms are toxic, the ginger or garlic will change color."
Qin Sishan observed this and whispered to Pei Shangshi, "Wu Zhenzhen seems to have grasped the primary principle of palace cuisine—safety."
Pei Shangshi did not comment and continued silently observing Zhenzhen's actions.
During knife skills training, the palace attendant Tang Li suddenly raised her voice and scolded the young attendant she was instructing, "How many times have I told you? When cutting vegetables, curl the fingers of your left hand inward. Don't lay them flat on the vegetable—you could easily cut yourself!"
The young attendant was frightened and began to cry. Qin Sishan reminded Tang Li not to raise her voice, and Tang Li agreed but couldn't help muttering, "I've reminded her repeatedly, but she just doesn't remember."
Seeing this, Zhenzhen approached the crying young attendant, wiped her tears with a handkerchief, and comforted her gently. Then, she picked up the young attendant's knife and guided her with a smile. "Little sister, let me tell you a secret: this knife actually has a spirit. Every time you pick it up with your right hand, you instantly turn into a cat..." She then showed the young attendant her left hand. "And your left hand is no longer a hand—it becomes a round, plump cat's paw."She then curved her left hand into an arch, smiling as she waved it before the young palace attendant, and passed the knife to her right hand. "Try again."
The young palace attendant pondered for a moment before turning back to the chopping board. As she lifted the knife and placed it on the board, she repeatedly reminded herself, "Cat's paw, cat's paw." Her left fingers indeed curled inward, no longer extending straight out while chopping.
Pei Shangshi and Qin Sishan exchanged smiles, recalling Fengxian's words and gradually realizing they were not entirely without merit.
Meanwhile, at Phoenix Arrival Pavilion, Hu Dianshan submitted her resignation to Consort Li. For years, she had failed to detect the unusual taste in the green salt, which led to Consort Li being harmed by the medicine and suffering physical damage. Overwhelmed with guilt and unease, Hu Dianshan felt she could no longer continue managing Consort Li's meals as if nothing had happened, despite Consort Li's leniency out of consideration for their long-standing relationship. She thus requested to be demoted and return to the Bureau of Palace Provisions as an ordinary palace attendant.
Consort Li tried to persuade her to stay several times, but Hu Dianshan remained resolute in her decision to resign. Consort Li then summoned Pei Shangshi to discuss the matter. Pei Shangshi agreed that Hu Dianshan had indeed made a mistake and, in both principle and reason, should not remain in her position without punishment, as it would fail to serve as a warning to the other palace attendants. Demoting her and having her return to the Bureau of Palace Provisions was an appropriate course of action. Consort Li thus agreed to let her go.
Pei Shangshi then proposed her plan for reassigning the person in charge of the meals at Phoenix Arrival Pavilion: promoting Feng Jing to Dianshan to take over Hu Dianshan's duties, along with two exceptionally skilled palace attendants from the Bureau of Palace Provisions, to manage Consort Li's meals. As for Wu Zhenzhen, she suggested transferring her to the Hall of Blessing and Tranquility to assist the Director of Palace Food with the task of sampling the imperial meals.
Consort Li pondered for a long while before finally saying, "Having Zhenzhen sample the imperial meals is certainly a reliable choice, but I'm not sure how she would feel about such a sudden transfer. She has rendered me a great service before, so I would like to discuss this with her first and ask for her opinion."
The Emperor typically did not eat at night, but recalling that this date marked the anniversary of when he took Consort Li as his concubine, he came over in the evening to accompany her for a few drinks, along with some side dishes and pastries.
After chatting casually for a long time, the Emperor showed no sign of leaving. Consort Li glanced outside and suddenly called for an attendant, saying that snow had begun to fall and instructing them to prepare the Emperor's cloak and umbrellas to escort him back to the Hall of Blessing and Tranquility later.
Thus, the Emperor had no choice but to bid farewell and leave.
Attendants surrounded the Emperor as he departed. Zhenzhen looked at the remaining pastries and side dishes and softly asked Consort Li, "The Emperor clearly wanted to stay. Why did you..."
Consort Li shook her head and said, "He didn't want to stay. He just felt that tonight was something he owed me, and he thought he should remain here."
Zhenzhen refrained from saying more.
Consort Li gloomily drank the last of her wine and, emboldened by the slight intoxication, continued speaking to herself: "In the beginning, I was forced upon him by the Empress Dowager as a gift. He didn't want me but couldn't refuse. So, out of a sense of filial duty to the Emperor and Empress, he accepted me... Later, when Empress Anshu was gravely ill, Grand Tutor Qi tried to pressure him into marrying the daughter of one of his allies. To avoid this, he deliberately spent every night in my chamber, but most of the time, he either read books all night or went to bed early, rarely speaking to me... After Consort Liu entered the palace, my place became completely deserted. Now, when he comes, it's merely out of guilt..."She set down her wine cup, leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and a moment later, a tear slid from the corner of her eye. "He never, truly, liked me..."
Hearing this, Zhenzhen felt somewhat flustered and unsure how to comfort her. After a moment's thought, she poured hot water, wrung out a towel, and handed it to the consort to wipe her face.
"Today, Pei Shangshi told me she wants to transfer you to the Hall of Blessing and Tranquility," Consort Li said after drying her tears, changing the subject. "I didn't agree immediately. I thought you would probably prefer to go to Second Great King's side."
"Ah, no, no!" Zhenzhen immediately denied it. "I have no improper thoughts toward Second Great King."
Consort Li opened her eyes in surprise. "I thought you two..."
"It's just that Second Great King likes to joke with me," Zhenzhen asserted firmly.
"Oh, is that so..." Consort Li seemed somewhat disappointed. After a moment of thought, she suddenly asked, "You mentioned your teacher outside the palace before... He must still be relatively young, right?"
This question caught Zhenzhen off guard. She hesitated before answering, "Yes, in his twenties."
Consort Li understood. "So it's him you like."
"That's not it either..." Zhenzhen tried to deny it, but her tone sounded noticeably weaker.
"Then why did you enter the palace?" Consort Li sighed. "The palace isn't exactly a good place. Wouldn't it have been better to live a good life outside with your teacher?"
Zhenzhen remained silent for a long while before finally deciding to tell the truth. "Because I need to find my mother."
Under Consort Li's persistent questioning, she told the consort everything: the changes in her family, how she entered the palace, and her conversation with Cheng Yuan.
"So that's how it is..." Consort Li pondered, then gazed at Zhenzhen sincerely and said, "I haven't heard of your mother's name either; it's likely an alias. Who she really is—perhaps only Cheng Yuan knows. Cheng Yuan is from Cifu Palace, and I cannot order him or force him to reveal the truth. Now it seems that going to the Hall of Blessing and Tranquility might be a good choice for you. By becoming someone close to The Emperor, even Cheng Yuan will have to show you some respect. Perhaps before long, when you ask him again, he will tell you your mother's whereabouts."
Thus, the matter was settled. Consort Li later reminded The Emperor of Zhenzhen's contributions regarding the Qingyan salt and Feng Jing's background, and combined with Pei Shangshi's praise, suggested promoting her to Zhangshan. With Feng Jing's promotion to Dianshan leaving a Zhangshan position vacant, The Emperor gladly agreed, promoting Zhenzhen to Zhangshan and ordering her to assist Pei Shangshi in overseeing the tasting of imperial meals.
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