In the Ming Dynasty 1498, my restaurant connects two worlds.

Chapter 110 Zhu Houzhao's Lesson on People's Livelihood (Part 2)

"Not using it?" Zhu Houzhao was stunned. "Why wouldn't you use something perfectly good?"

Song Xiaoyi interjected, "Your Highness, among the common people, a pig is a treasure trove from head to toe. Pig's blood can be made into soup, pig's intestines can be braised, and pig's liver can be stir-fried—aren't they all delicious? It's just that the palace doesn't lack that kind of fine meat, so these 'unrefined' things are discarded."

Wang Shu listened from the side, his expression softening slightly. Looking at Zhu Houzhao's thoughtful expression, he thought to himself: This step might really be the right one.

Shen Xiang ordered someone to bring over some prepared snacks and said, "If Your Highness doesn't mind, why not try some of the food that we, the minor officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, usually eat? These were all made by me personally."

"Did Aunt Shen cook all of this herself?"

Song Xiaoyi took over the conversation again, "Your Highness may not know this, but our Song family is a family of chefs. My great-grandfather was the head chef of the Imperial Kitchen appointed by His Majesty. The next generation, my father was not good at cooking, so the family skills were inherited by my mother and me."

"I see!"

"This..." Wei Bin hesitated when he saw Zhu Houzhao wanting to take the snack.

"Don't worry, Eunuch Wei. I have already inspected the snacks made by my mother. Your Highness can eat them without worry." Song Xiaoyi took the snacks first and secretly activated his intermediate-level food identification technique to confirm that they were not poisonous before handing them to Zhu Houzhao. "I reminded everyone yesterday that breakfast will be served at the Guanglu Temple today."

"The dishes for breakfast today were cooked by Xiao Yi and his grandfather at home."

Before long, several bowls of steaming noodles were served. The noodles were ordinary wheat noodles, topped with a layer of braised pig intestines and a few slices of pig liver. The aroma was irresistible. Song Xiaoyi initiated the identification process again and confirmed that there was no poison.

"This is..." Zhu Houzhao looked at the topping on the surface, somewhat hesitant.

"This is a very common braised noodle dish in the capital," Shen Xiang explained. "It's also a favorite food of many lower-level officials and cooks in our Guanglu Temple. Although it's not refined, it's hearty and satisfying; a bowl of it warms you up from head to toe."

"However, today's braised pork topping uses the Song family's secret recipe."

"Oh~, then I must try it, Wang Taibao..."

Wang Shu hadn't had breakfast yet, so he quietly swallowed and nodded.

With Wang Shu's approval, Zhu Houzhao excitedly picked up his chopsticks and, encouraged by Song Xiaoyi, tentatively picked up a mouthful of noodles and then a piece of fatty intestine.

The moment it entered his mouth, the rich, savory flavor of the fatty intestines, with its soft yet chewy texture, instantly won over Zhu Houzhao's taste buds. This was something he could never have tasted in the palace.

"Mmm! Delicious!" Zhu Houzhao's eyes lit up, and he buried his head and sped up, finishing the bowl of noodles in no time, even drinking the soup.

He wiped his mouth, still savoring the flavor, and said, "This noodle dish, while lacking the savory aroma of the instant noodles in the palace, has its own unique charm!"

"Eat more if you like it." Shen Xiang smiled and asked someone to add another bowl. Then she glared at Song Xiaoyi, her meaning clear: Who told you to bring instant noodles into the palace?

Although he was only seven years old, Zhu Houzhao had a large appetite. One bowl of braised noodles was not enough to fill him up, but two bowls would have been too much. Zhu Houzhao, who was full and satisfied, had a blush of contentment on his face.

Seeing that everyone had finished eating and drinking and put down their bowls and chopsticks, and rested for a while, Shen Xiang led everyone out of Guanglu Temple and towards Donghuamen Market, the largest vegetable market in the capital, which was not far away.

This is the real highlight of today.

In this capital city, there are government-run housing construction sites, as well as self-organized and thriving vegetable markets.

If you want to show the Crown Prince real life, you have to come to this market. You can't learn these things in the government-run cramped quarters. These were my mother Shen Xiang's exact words last night.

It was still early, but the Donghuamen vegetable market was already bustling with people, shoulder to shoulder.

During the Hongzhi era, commerce was already thriving, and the markets in the twelfth lunar month were especially bustling, with shouts of vendors, bargaining, and the neighing of livestock all blending together.

For safety, Mu Bin had already arranged for dozens of skilled plainclothes Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) to disguise themselves as merchants, customers, and porters, and to be scattered around the area. At least a dozen people secretly followed their movements and changed positions, forming an invisible barrier without anyone noticing.

It was the first time Zhu Houzhao had been in such a dense crowd. He was as excited as a child, looking around curiously. Zhu Houzhao was only a seven-year-old child, but he usually acted too maturely. Only now did he show the curiosity and excitement that was appropriate for his age.

Zhu Houzhao saw mountains of cabbages, fresh fish covered in ice, bright red chilies and dried fruit, and people arguing heatedly over a few coins.

At Song Xiaoyi's prompting, Zhu Houzhao, eager to try, mimicked the tone of a young man nearby and approached an old woman's stall, her face weathered by time, asking, "Auntie, how much are these cabbages?"

The old woman raised her head, looked at the richly dressed but kind-looking "young master" with her cloudy eyes, grinned, revealing a few broken teeth: "Young man, it's the twelfth lunar month today, so I'm selling cheap, three coins a pound."

"Three coins is cheap?" Zhu Houzhao feigned surprise. "I heard yesterday that it was only two and a half coins."

"Oh dear, young man, that was the price a few days ago." The old woman sighed, pointing to the heavy snow in the sky, "Look at the sky, the snow is falling so heavily, and the roads are so slippery. This old woman pushed these hundred-odd pounds of vegetables from the vegetable garden more than ten miles outside the city early this morning, with this little grandson in tow, and we slipped and slid all the way here."

"This cabbage costs two and a half coins at the field, but what about the fare for the journey, the taxes to enter the city, and the stall rent at the market? Tell me, isn't that extra half a coin hard-earned money?"

Zhu Houzhao listened to the old woman's simple words and looked at her hands, which were red from the cold and covered with frostbite and cracks, and his heart was suddenly shaken.

He squatted down, touched the cold cabbage, and then looked at the little grandson shivering beside the old woman.

"Grandma, I'm cold..." the child whispered.

The old woman quickly wrapped her worn-out cotton-padded coat around the child and said with heartache, "Wait a little longer. After Grandma sells these vegetables, I'll buy you a hot steamed bun and some cloth to make a new dress for your mother so we can celebrate the New Year together."

Zhu Houzhao silently stood up, his eyes slightly red.

He turned to look at Wang Shu and Song Xiaoyi. The old woman pursed her lips tightly, her eyes filled with complicated emotions. Song Xiaoyi looked up at the sky, her eyes already brimming with tears, which she didn't want anyone to see.

"Auntie, I'll take all of these cabbages," Zhu Houzhao said solemnly, clenching his small hand.

Upon hearing this, the old woman's eyes widened, and she quickly waved her hands, saying, "No, no, this must weigh over a hundred pounds! You want so much..."

"It's alright." Zhu Houzhao smiled, took a ten-tael silver ingot from Wei Bin, and handed it to the old woman. "Take all of these. And please take these cabbages to the soup kitchen over there. I saw they were short of vegetables when they were distributing soup."