My hotel is full of emperors throughout history.

The morning sunlight streamed through the kitchen window, casting warm beams of light into the air.

Chen Mo rubbed his sleepy eyes, slipped on his slippers and walked into the kitchen, intending to find something to eat, but unexpectedly saw a familiar, slender figure standing in front of the stove.

It is Li Lizhi.

She was dressed in simple, modern casual wear, her long, black hair simply tied up, with a few strands gently falling to the side of her neck.

At this moment, she was frowning slightly, looking at the gas stove with a somewhat helpless expression.

Chen Mo glanced to the side.

But all I saw on the cutting board were the neatly arranged chopped vegetables and shredded meat she had prepared. Although her knife skills were a little clumsy, it was clear that she had put a lot of effort into it.

"Beautiful?"

Chen Mo was somewhat surprised and leaned against the door frame.

"Up so early?"

Li Lizhi turned around upon hearing the sound, and upon seeing Chen Mo, a faint smile appeared on her face.

"Brother Chen, it's getting late."

She explained softly.

"The Emperor and the other emperors hurriedly returned before dawn, saying that there were important matters in the court."

As she spoke, she pointed somewhat shyly to the ingredients prepared on the cutting board, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"Seeing that you and Sizi hadn't gotten up yet, I thought... I'd try making some breakfast. But..."

As she spoke, Li Lizhi fiddled with her fingers, looking embarrassed.

"This thing... I really don't know how to use it."

"I just tried it and the result..."

After she finished speaking, a hint of frustration appeared in her pure eyes.

It seemed easy for Chen Mo to open it, but when she actually tried it, she found that she couldn't even turn it on properly.

I tried to follow his movements for a long time, but I didn't even see a flame.

Looking at Li Lizhi's appearance, Chen Mo felt both amused and touched.

He walked over and stood beside her.

"This is called a gas stove. It's very simple, I'll teach you."

As he spoke, Chen Mo demonstrated with his hands.

"Look, like this, rotate counter-clockwise, then gently press down..."

With a soft "pop," a pale blue flame suddenly ignited.

"See, it's lit now, isn't it?"

Chen Mo released his grip and looked at her with a smile.

"To increase the heat, keep turning the knob; to decrease it, turn it clockwise; to turn it off, turn it back clockwise. Just be careful and don't let the fire spread elsewhere."

Li Lizhi looked at the leaping flames, then at Chen Mo's profile so close to hers, feeling the breath he had brought with him during their brief proximity, and her cheeks seemed to flush even more.

She imitated Chen Mo, carefully reaching out her hand and turning the knob as Chen Mo had done.

One time, I didn't press the button, and the fire didn't light.

The second time, I applied enough force, but the fire went out immediately as soon as I let go.

The third time, finally, with a "poof," flames appeared.

"It's a success!"

Li Lizhi let out a soft exclamation of surprise.

But upon seeing Chen Mo's smiling face, her cheeks flushed red, and she lowered her head.

"Not bad, you learned it in no time! Now it's time to cook!"

Chen Mo opened the refrigerator and took out a bowl of rice.

"There's some leftover rice left, but not much fresh vegetables. Looks like I'll have to go to the supermarket to restock later."

As he spoke, he took out a few more eggs from the refrigerator.

"You just happened to have sliced ​​the meat."

Chen Mo shook the egg in his hand and grinned at her.

"Let's make a simple and quick shredded pork and egg fried rice! It's nutritious and filling, and even Sizi said it was delicious!"

Li Lizhi looked at the cold rice bowl in her hand, then at the unevenly cut shredded meat she had prepared on the stove, and remained silent for a moment.

During the Tang Dynasty, food was mainly prepared by steaming or boiling, while stir-frying only became popular in the Song Dynasty.

Although she had learned to cook some dishes for Li Shimin before, stir-frying...

Li Lizhi raised her eyes, a hint of uncertainty in them.

"Can...I really do it?"

Chen Mo gently tapped the egg on the edge of the bowl, and the egg liquid slid into the bowl.

He skillfully whisked the egg mixture with chopsticks while turning his head to offer encouragement.

"Why not? It's just fried rice, nothing complicated. Everyone has a first time."

He placed the bowl of beaten eggs beside her.

"Believe in yourself. The steps are simple, and I'll be right here watching, ready to teach you. And..."

He paused, looked at Li Lizhi, and his gaze was sincere.

"I believe you can do it."

For some reason, seeing Chen Mo's trusting expression, Li Lizhi suddenly felt less nervous.

She looked at the beaten eggs and took a deep breath.

"Okay, I'll give it a try."

As she spoke, Li Lizhi rolled up her sleeves, revealing her fair wrists.

Chen Mo placed the iron pot on the already lit stove and poured in a little oil.

"Come on, let's stir-fry the meat first, and then we'll stir-fry the eggs after the meat is cooked..."

Chen Mo gave a brief instruction.

"Be careful, stay away, don't get splashed by the hot oil."

Upon hearing this, Li Lizhi instinctively pulled back the spatula she was holding, looking nervous.

Seeing this, Chen Mo pondered for a moment, his gaze falling on the dark blue apron hanging on the wall.

Without saying much, Chen Mo turned around, took the apron, shook it out, and walked naturally behind Li Lizhi.

"Here, tie this on so the oil doesn't get on your clothes."

Li Lizhi felt his approach and her body stiffened slightly. Before she could react, two soft ribbons had already gently wrapped around her waist.

Chen Mo deftly tied a knot behind her back with his fingers, trying to avoid excessive contact.

But the fingers that occasionally brushed against the fabric on her waist still made Li Lizhi's heart skip a beat.

She looked down at the apron she was wearing, her cheeks flushed slightly, but a warm feeling and a sense of peace welled up inside her.

"alright,"

Chen Mo stepped back, looked him over, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Now I can cook with confidence and without worry."

Li Lizhi took a deep breath, picked up the spatula again, and slid the prepared shredded meat into the pot.

"Sizzle—"

With a thud, oil splattered everywhere.

The hot oil splattered instantly when it hit the water stains on the meat.

Li Lizhi panicked and instinctively tried to back away. Her hand, holding the spatula, froze in mid-air, and a few drops of hot oil were about to splash onto her arm.

"Be careful!"

Fortunately, Chen Mo had anticipated this and stepped forward to take the spatula, while simultaneously using his hand to block the few drops of hot oil that were splashing.

"Sizzle..."

Chen Mo frowned slightly, but didn't stop stirring the food.

Li Lizhi froze, clearly feeling the warmth and strength of the body coming from behind her.

Her cheeks flushed instantly, her heart pounded like a drum, and she even unconsciously held her breath.

The panic I felt earlier was replaced by a stronger, indescribable thrill.

It was her first time cooking, and even though Chen Mo had reminded her, she never expected it to be so intense.

but……

Li Lizhi raised her head and looked at Chen Mo.

Could this be considered a blessing in disguise?

At the same time, Chen Mo's voice came from beside her ear.

"Don't panic, meat always turns like this when it goes into the pan. Just stir-fry it quickly."

She slowly came to her senses and then noticed Chen Mo's arm, which was scalded red. She looked worried.

Are you alright?

"It's nothing. I used to get deep-fried a lot when I was learning to cook. I'll just rinse it with cold water in a bit."

Chen Mo smiled and handed the spatula back to Li Lizhi.

Li Lizhi pursed her lips, a mixture of guilt, gratitude, and another indescribable emotion welling up inside her.

She took the spatula and started stir-frying, just like Chen Mo had done.

"Yes, that's it. Make sure the shredded meat is heated evenly until it changes color."

Soon the shredded meat turned from red to white, emitting an enticing aroma.

"Okay, then add soy sauce, and then take the meat out..."

"We're frying eggs, so you don't need to worry about them getting deep-fried. I'm going to rinse my hands with water. Remember to add the rice quickly, or it'll burn!"

As Chen Mo spoke, he walked to the pool.

Chen Mo is gone, but Li Lizhi's heart seems to still linger there.

The scene from earlier kept replaying in her mind, making her cheeks slightly flushed and her thoughts drift away.

until

"It's burnt! It's burnt! Flip it quickly!"

Chen Mo's urgent voice boomed in her ears like thunder, and Li Lizhi snapped back to reality.

Take a closer look!

not good!

The eggs have started to turn black!

She quickly stir-fried it.

When it was finally taken out of the pot, a large patch of dark black stood out conspicuously.

Looking at the plate of yin-yang eggs, Li Lizhi blushed with embarrassment.

She lowered her head, not daring to look at Chen Mo.

"I'm sorry... I spaced out..."

Chen Mo looked at the disheveled scrambled eggs, then at her ashamed and embarrassed expression, as if she wanted to disappear into the ground.

I found it somewhat funny, and also... indescribably cute.

He picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of charred egg, and without changing his expression, put it in his mouth and chewed it.

"Um……"

"The heat was a bit too high; this half could be considered charcoal-grilled. But..."

Chen Mo picked up another piece of the tender yellow part, tasted it, and nodded.

"This half is still quite tender. It's my first time frying eggs, and it's not too bad! At least it didn't set the kitchen on fire, right?"

Upon hearing this, Li Lizhi was immediately amused.

Chen Mo continued with a smile.

"I'll go upstairs and call Sizi down for dinner. You'll be in charge of serving the rice."

Li Lizhi nodded.

However, Chen Mo had just stepped out.

"Hey! Old Li, you just left this morning and you're back again?"

"How come it's always such a coincidence? I just happened to be going upstairs to call Sizi for dinner. Let's eat together later."

Listening to the sounds outside the kitchen, Li Lizhi carefully scooped the fried rice into four bowls.

She stared at the charred eggs in the pan and fell silent.

Throw it away?

Her father taught her to be thrifty and frugal from a young age!

Just because you're a princess doesn't mean you can be extravagant and wasteful!

But the little rhinoceros is young and has a delicate stomach, how could it eat this burnt food?

Manager Chen just taught me how to cook and even shielded me from the oil stains, so I can't continue to make him suffer.

Finally, Li Lizhi's gaze fell on the fourth bowl.

If all else fails...

Please make this difficult for Father!

He was the ruler of a nation, the towering Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.

What storms haven't I weathered?

What suffering is unbearable?

This little bit of burning is probably nothing to him... right?

Li Lizhi thought to herself, "I accidentally put most of the burnt eggs" into Li Shimin's bowl, and even pressed them down slightly with a rice spoon.

Father probably can't tell!

Li Lizhi thought to herself as she placed four bowls of rice on the table.

Li Shimin looked at the food in front of him and saw that the portion seemed a little generous, and he was quite satisfied.

My daughter is so good to me!

He served more rice than that kid!

Seeing this, Li Lizhi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, lowered her eyelids, and quietly sat down to the side.

However, a faint blush, unnoticed by anyone, still crept up behind her ears.