tallest building

Chapter 298 A Familiar Reunion

When Consort Hui and her entourage arrived at the Yuzhen Temple on Bowang Mountain, they naturally set up an altar and performed a ritual to worship and pray for blessings.

They work diligently every day, never daring to slack off.

For a time, the Taoist temple was filled with the smoke of incense and the chanting never stopped.

This place was originally a royal Taoist temple, and outsiders were not allowed to enter.

So it is very peaceful and comfortable.

Of course, since the eldest princess lived here, Consort Hui would inevitably have to pay her respects to her often.

That day, she came to the princess's room again, where the princess was having breakfast.

Upon seeing this, Consort Hui hurriedly said, "But I have come at an inopportune time, disturbing Your Highness's meal."

The eldest princess said, "It's alright. I just got up late today. If it were every morning, it would all be used up."

Consort Hui hurriedly asked, "Is Your Highness feeling unwell?"

“No,” the princess shook her head, “I just overslept and got up a little later than usual.”

“I’ve been sleeping better in the mountains than in the palace since I came here. I think this place is quiet and peaceful, the best place to nourish the body,” Consort Hui said with a smile.

The princess asked her, "Have you had breakfast yet? If not, why don't you have some with me?"

Consort Hui always got up early, so she naturally ate breakfast. She could tell that the Princess was just being polite, but for some reason, the food on the table looked exceptionally delicious to her, and she couldn't help but say, "I got up too early, so I just ate some porridge. I didn't feel hungry before, but Your Highness asked me and I'm starving."

The eldest princess smiled and said, "No need to be so polite with me. There's so much food anyway, we can't possibly finish it all."

Then he asked Sang Er to fetch more bowls and chopsticks, and invited Consort Hui to dine with him.

Now that Zhang Ma is on the mountain, she is in charge of preparing most of the Princess's meals.

Because of his excellent cooking skills and knowledge of food preparation, the princess liked him very much.

Consort Hui first drank a small bowl of mushroom and old duck soup, and couldn't help but praise, "This soup is amazing, you can't even get this in the palace. No wonder Your Highness insisted on coming back here! I can't live without such a good cook."

“Zhang Ma’s soup is truly exceptional. Try some of the others,” the Princess said.

The princess's meal consisted of only four hot dishes, one soup, and two cold dishes, making it relatively light overall.

But every dish was a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate, leaving an unforgettable impression.

Consort Hui then tried a dish of steamed eggs with wolfberry sprouts. The taste was naturally fresh and smooth, but it also gave her a sense of déjà vu.

This feeling stirred up a memory from long ago.

"What's wrong? Does it taste wrong?" The princess noticed that she seemed a little lost and couldn't help but ask.

Consort Hui immediately came to her senses and smiled, "I was wondering why there are still fresh goji berry sprouts at this time of year?"

It was already April, and spring was coming to an end, with summer just around the corner.

"Have you forgotten that we're in the mountains?" the Princess laughed. "The seasons are about a month later in the mountains than at the foot of the mountain!" "Oh, I see. I was being silly." Consort Hui quickly mocked herself. "This steamed egg tastes really good. It seems that the value of a dish doesn't depend on its price, but only on the chef's skill."

She finished her meal at the Princess's place, then chatted and drank tea with the Princess for a while before taking her leave.

Just as I returned to my residence, people from the Grand Tutor's mansion came to deliver some things.

The eldest princess then asked the messengers, "Who sent you? What did you bring?"

"It was Madam who sent us here. She knows that Your Highness and Consort Hui are praying for blessings on the mountain, and she was worried that there might be some lack of food, since it is somewhat inconvenient here. So she asked us to bring up some fresh vegetables and fruits, and to ask if there is anything missing, so that she can send someone over."

"Thank you for your concern, Madam. Just tell her that everything is fine here and she doesn't need to worry too much. Zhao'er has been a little sick these past few days. Take her down with you and have Ping'er come up the mountain."

Both of them were maids of the eldest princess. She sent Zhao'er back and sent Ping'er up the mountain, but she only wanted the two of them to stay in the mansion in turns to find out what Dong Gang was up to.

The obedient person naturally understood, but of course could not say it out loud, so he agreed: "When we go down the mountain later, we will take Miss Zhao'er with us, and Miss Ping'er will come up the mountain first thing tomorrow morning."

After the servant left, Consort Hui said, "Send someone to send some vegetables to the Princess, as I just ate there today."

"Mother, did you eat at the Princess's place?" The eldest princess laughed upon hearing this. "What delicious food made you unable to resist picking up your chopsticks?"

"You know what," Consort Hui said with a smile, "the Princess and the former chef are really skilled. If you eat here, you'll definitely crave it."

The princess was naturally interested upon hearing this and said, "Since we're all living on the mountain, why don't we take these fresh vegetables to the princess's place and have her people prepare them? We'll get to enjoy a meal together, wouldn't that be a good deal?"

"You little monkey, you're even more cunning than me! Very well, then let's have Granny Xia send these things over! I see there are quite a few mushrooms and apricots, which will surely suit the Princess's taste."

The eldest princess always ate a very light diet, but it was too bland and inevitably lacked nourishment.

If you want something light and healthy, these are the things for you.

Granny Xia led a group of people to the Princess and humbly asked for her instructions: "Your Highness, our mistress has sent me to ask you for a suggestion. A lot of fresh fruits and vegetables have just been delivered from the foot of the mountain, and our Lady wishes to return the favor after having a meal here with you. However, we really don't have a proper cook on our side, so we were thinking of borrowing your place and your help. I wonder if that would be convenient for you?"

The eldest princess, of course, wouldn't refuse. She smiled and nodded, saying, "Your Majesty is too kind. It's good that everyone is staying on this mountain. It's lively. I've eaten for free, so why would I be unhappy?"

“Since His Highness has agreed, then I will go back and inform him,” said Granny Xia hurriedly. “I wonder if His Highness has any other instructions? I will take them with me.”

"Since they are fresh vegetables, we should take advantage of them sooner rather than later. Go back and tell your mother and Yingpei that we'll have lunch today, but we'll have it a little later, so that we can just have some porridge for dinner," the Princess said.

Granny Xia agreed and went, then went back and told Consort Hui.

Consort Hui then said, "Prepare some reward money later. We borrowed someone's cook, so we should reward him. We shouldn't let the people below feel disheartened."

Upon hearing this, Granny Xia asked, "Does Her Highness intend to reward only the cook, or will she reward the other servants as well?"

"The way you ask this doesn't sound like you're dealing with some old business with me," Consort Hui said. "Of course, everyone should be rewarded, but the cooks should be rewarded especially much more."

"This old servant understands, I will go and prepare it right away." It wasn't that Granny Xia didn't understand the rules, it was just that since the rewards came from her son, she couldn't make the decision for him.

"The Princess doesn't have many people around her, so we'll send our people over to help her." Consort Hui was quite thoughtful.

"Yes, this old servant has noted it all down. I'll arrange it later." After saying that, Granny Xia went to make preparations.