Shuse Jinjia

Dong Jie had mixed feelings, but going to Prince Chen's mansion was a good thing for her.

Like Xue Jintong, her mother died early, her father remarried, and her stepmother had younger siblings who treated her coldly.

The only thing she was better off than Xue Jintong was that her stepmother chose her husband, and her father had to approve his marriage proposal, so her stepmother didn't dare to go too far.

Li Qin and Xie Zhaotang had previously discussed Dong Jie and Xue Jintong's backgrounds, and Xie Zhaotang knew that Dong Jie was currently in a situation where she was neither good enough for a high-end job nor good enough for a low-end one.

Those from families of too high social standing looked down on Dong Jie's timid personality, while those from families of too low social standing were looked down upon by Dong Jie's father.

Before you knew it, Dong Jie had grown up to sixteen and still hadn't received any attention.

"Perhaps Young Master Duan enjoys a lively atmosphere. Don't worry, I don't think he'll make things difficult for us!"

Xie Zhaotang comforted her.

In any case, it was Duan Chengyu who took the initiative to invite them to be guests this time, and it would be inappropriate for such high-ranking people to make things difficult for his guests.

When the group arrived at Prince Chen's residence, Xie Zhaotang got off the carriage and saw two white marble lions crouching at the entrance, their expressions majestic and their craftsmanship exquisite.

Three characters were written in bold strokes in the center of the main gate: "Prince Chen's Residence".

Xie Zhaotang already knew that this Prince Chen was Duan Chengyu's grandfather and the current emperor's uncle.

Duan Chengyu's father was the Marquis of Jingyuan. Duan Chengyu was the eldest son of the legitimate wife, and he also had two younger sisters and a younger brother.

The eldest sister is already married, but the remaining sisters and brothers are not yet married.

As Xie Zhaotang was watching, a young lady came out to greet him with two maids and a nanny.

"Miss Li, hello. I am Duan You. My brother is entertaining guests, so my mother asked me to come and greet you."

Duan You greeted him with a big smile.

Xie Zhaotang looked at Duan You and saw that she was about fifteen years old, with an oval face, bright and clear eyes, and wearing a rose-red dress, looking beautiful and wealthy.

Li Qin introduced Xie Zhaotang and the other two to Duan You. Duan You glanced at Xie Zhaotang curiously and then smiled.

"Fourth Miss, I also help manage my mother's Juxiangzhai. We are extremely grateful for your suggestions. Come, let's go inside and sit down to talk."

Duan You led the way, and Xie Zhaotang and the other three followed into the Prince's Mansion.

After walking through a wide blue brick path, you will reach the second gate. The corridors on both sides are winding and meandering. In addition to crabapple trees, many other flowers are planted in the garden.

The servants in the Prince's mansion came and went, and everywhere you looked, you could feel the luxury and comfort of a wealthy and powerful family.

When they arrived at the flower hall, there were already many guests inside, all of whom had been invited by Duan Chengyu, including Pei Yu and his siblings, as well as Huo Beiyu and Zhu Feng.

Madam Duan and Pei Yun sat together, drinking tea and chatting.

"The Fourth Sister has arrived!"

Duan Chengyu turned around and saw Xie Zhaotang and the others. He stood up and greeted them with a smile.

"Fourth Miss, Shunzi went to Guifuzhai to buy pastries and hasn't returned yet. Please have some tea first."

Madam Duan also stood up and invited, "Ladies, please sit here."

Duan You then led the four of them over.

Xie Zhaotang observed that Madam Duan was around forty years old and wearing a crimson dress. Duan You looked somewhat like her, but lacked Madam Duan's wealth and elegance.

Duan You introduced four people to Madam Duan, and Madam Duan then pulled Xie Zhaotang to sit next to her.

"Fourth Miss, when you buy the pastries later, you have to tell me in detail the differences between my family's and Gui Fu Zhai's, and also let me know exactly where Ju Xiang Zhai's is inferior!"

Madam Duan laughed and said, "It's not that I'm short of money, I'm just not convinced. After all, the master chef I hired came from the imperial kitchen."

As Madam Duan was speaking, several servants rushed in carrying food boxes.

"Madam, Your Highness, I have bought all the pastries from Gui Fu Zhai. As Your Highness instructed, we also brought a portion of all the varieties from Ju Xiang Zhai."

Duan Chengyu then instructed the nanny and maid to plate and arrange the pastries.

Duan Chengyu smiled and said, "Miss Pei just gave me a suggestion that I think is very good... The suggestion is that everyone should taste all kinds of pastries later and write down what's good and what's not good about them."

"Whoever speaks well and gets to the point, and can help my mother, I will give them a reward of five hundred taels of silver."

Upon hearing this, Xie Zhaotang looked at Pei Shu, the Fifth Miss Pei, opposite him.

Pei Shu seemed to have been watching her closely, and when she met Xie Zhaotang's gaze, she gave a provocative smile.

Xie Zhaotang understood. Pei Shu didn't want him to gain the favor of Madam Duan and Duan Chengyu, so she came prepared...

Once the tables were set, the maids brought plates and dishes, took out the pastries and placed them on the plates, cut them into small pieces, and then distributed them to each table.

The first dish was the lotus seed paste pastry from Juxiangzhai, which Xie Zhaotang had praised at Hexi Garden. The maid also served Xie Zhaotang the same one from Guifuzhai.

Xie Zhaotang first ate the lotus seed paste pastry from Juxiangzhai, then took a sip of tea before tasting the Guifuzhai pastry.

Before she could speak, Pei Shu eagerly said, "I can tell from the taste. Juxiangzhai's is crispy and crumbly, with a warm, sweet aroma. I think it tastes better than Guifuzhai's. It has no flaws."

Pei Shu dared to speak because Madam Pei had specially arranged for someone to guide them.

Pei Yun glanced at her sister with a smile and added, "Juxiangzhai's lotus seeds are delicate, and they're filled with red bean paste. The red bean paste is a bit coarser than Guifuzhai's."

Huo Beiyu doesn't like sweets, so even though he tried both, he didn't feel there was much difference.

Before anyone could ask, Zhu Feng and Pei Song shook their heads together: "We can't taste the difference."

Li Qin was tactful and knew that Prince Duan had mainly invited Xie Zhaotang to give his evaluation, so she shook her head and smiled faintly: "I know there are differences, but I can't put my finger on it."

Dong Jie didn't want to steal Xie Zhaotang's thunder, so she shook her head as well.

Madam Duan then looked at Xie Zhaotang.

Xie Zhaotang came here for the opportunity and didn't care whether his words would offend the Pei family.

She said frankly, "Madam Duan, there is indeed not much difference between the two. If we really have to compare, Gui Fu Zhai is better. If you taste it carefully, you will find that the layers of their pastry are distinct, and it is also slightly less sweet than Ju Xiang Zhai's."

"Don't underestimate this small difference. It's less sweet and won't be cloying, with a lighter texture. Although both brands use red bean and lotus seed fillings, theirs has a higher proportion of lotus seeds, so you can taste the fragrance of lotus seeds. In contrast, the lotus seed flavor of Juxiangzhai is masked by the red beans."

Madam Duan nodded repeatedly: "Fourth Miss is right. I always felt something was off when I ate Gui Fuzhai's lotus seed pastries, but now that you've pointed it out, I understand."

"Here, try some Poria cocos cake. It's a dessert that both our families have. See if you can tell the difference!"

The maidservant quickly brought up the Poria cocos cake.

Pei Shu glared at Xie Zhaotang and then lowered her head to eat.

Pei Yun nudged her under the table, signaling her not to rush to speak.

Everyone tasted it this time, and without saying a word, they all looked at Xie Zhaotang.

Xie Zhaotang didn't stand on ceremony and pointed out, "Madam Duan, Gui Fu Zhai's Poria Cocos Cake is soft, glutinous, and sweet, with a faint medicinal fragrance, and it's gentle and comforting. Ju Xiang Zhai's is still making the same mistake as before; it's too sweet, with a slightly higher proportion of glutinous rice flour, which suppresses the natural fragrance of the Poria Cocos Cake."

Pei Shu couldn't help but laugh and said, "Fourth Miss, you don't dislike things that are too sweet, so you think every pastry is too sweet? I think this level of sweetness is just right."

Duan Chengyu, still holding the half-eaten Poria cocos cake, thought for a moment and agreed, "I also think the sweetness is just right."

Pei Yun had harbored resentment ever since Duan Chengyu invited Xie Zhaotang to the Prince's Mansion, and today she came to figure out how to suppress Xie Zhaotang.

When she saw that Duan Chengyu agreed with her sister's point of view, she echoed him.

"Everyone has a hundred different tastes. Since you're running a pastry shop, you have to cater to the majority of people's tastes. Fourth Sister, we don't find it sweet at all. Are you just assuming it's too sweet?"