Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

Madam Lu and Madam Song entered the Lotus Blossom Pavilion with their invitations.

The remaining two, Duke Lu and Marquis Song, were awkwardly separated for a while, but had no choice but to pretend to be good brothers and walk in side by side.

"Do the two of them have invitations?" Someone blocked their way.

Duke Lu stiffened, then raised his voice: "I am Lu Yan."

"I am Song He," Lord Song imitated.

The servant blocking their path frowned: "You two, your voices..."

"Hmm... I didn't cover myself properly with the blanket last night, so I caught a cold."

Lord Song: "Me too."

"Even if you catch a cold, you don't need to wear a veil, do you?" The servant hesitated, feeling that something was off.

You should know that this veil is worn by women.

Although Lu Yan used to wear makeup, he always maintained the image of a refined gentleman.

Duke Lu's lips twitched: "It's Song He's first time wearing makeup. He's shy and doesn't want to see anyone. I brought Mi Li with me to keep him company."

"Yes, yes, me too."

"Young Master Song, you..." The servants were dumbfounded; he felt the atmosphere was strange and eerie.

Is Young Master Song unable to speak properly?

Duke Lu felt that his partner was terrible. He secretly stepped on Lord Song's foot and said in a high-pitched voice, "He's caught a cold and is shy, and he can't even speak properly."

After saying that, he grabbed Lord Song and dragged him into the Lotus Flower Pavilion.

The servants were completely dumbfounded.

He sensed an inexplicable intimacy between Young Master Lu and Young Master Song.

Neither of them were properly covered and they caught a cold. Could it be... just one blanket?

"Shy," "Unwilling to see people," "To accompany him"

Just listen to these words, isn't the fact obvious?

"Good heavens, a huge secret, a huge secret!!" The servant felt he had discovered the truth.

Meanwhile, Duke Lu and Marquis Song, after blaming each other all the way, finally arrived at the hot pot restaurant, stumbling and scrambling along the way.

The two chose two of the most secluded corner spots, trying their best not to attract attention.

But it was impossible for others not to notice; the two of them wearing veils were simply too conspicuous.

"Father, those two older sisters are all covered up, how are they going to eat hot pot?" The young prince, Nangong Yao, couldn't help but ask curiously.

Upon seeing the veil, he instinctively assumed it represented his two older sisters.

Prince Chun also looked at her curiously several times: "Perhaps some girl is shy and doesn't want to see people, especially so late at night."

"As for how they'll eat hot pot later, we'll find out when we see."

Nangong Yao nodded and secretly made a mental note of it.

He wanted to observe carefully how these two older sisters were going to eat hot pot.

It's actually quite interesting.

Before long, all the guests had arrived, a total of twenty people.

Yan Wenli only sold eight invitations on the black market. He didn't dare to sell more, since it was only the second day of the hot pot sale and he was afraid something might go wrong.

When the time came, all the lights around went out.

The shadow puppet show begins!

The same process is being followed, and while that's happening, the artisans in the back are engraving names on the tableware.

Since they cannot know the guests' names in advance, they have arranged for artisans to be ready at all times.

The craftsmen are all experienced; by the time a shadow puppet show is over, they have finished carving.

A single tolling of a bell signals the arrival of the cauldron.

Everyone present was extremely excited: "A feast fit for an emperor! This ingenious idea is truly rare!"

"My name, this is my name!"

"Oh my God!"

Prince Chun was extremely satisfied. It was the first time he had ever encountered tableware engraved with his own name, and he found it quite novel.

Young Prince Nangong Yao was overjoyed, repeatedly shouting, "That's fantastic! I have my own pot now!"

"It's my own pot!"

Only Duke Lu and Marquis Song were disappointed.

It's not their fault!

I always feel like I'm missing something compared to others, and it makes me uncomfortable!

"It will taste the same when the time comes," Lord Song couldn't help but whisper to Duke Lu.

These words were meant to comfort Duke Lu, and also to comfort himself.

Duke Lu: "Yes, it's the same. It's just a name, what's the big deal..."

"Father, my two elder sisters are whispering!" Nangong Yao called out to Prince Chun again.

Prince Chun smiled and patted Nangong Yao's head without saying anything.

He had heard the maid address the two men as "Young Master Lu and Young Marquis Song" when she brought the cauldron.

The two sons of the Duke's and Marquis's families are indeed quite close.

"Please, Madam Shen, start cooking!!" the maid's voice rang out.

Upon hearing this, Nangong Yao immediately stood up from his seat, his eyes wide open, staring straight into the distance.

Soon, Shen Qing's figure came into view.

"Sister Shen!!" Nangong Yao rushed over immediately, without caring about anything else.

Shen Qing immediately recognized Nangong Yao. Although she didn't know Nangong Yao's identity, she had a deep impression of him because he always rushed to the front of the line when buying spicy strips, taking advantage of his small size.

"You're here for hot pot too?" Shen Qing smiled gently.

Nangong Yao nodded repeatedly: "Sister Shen, Father brought me here. After we finish eating hot pot, could you sell me some spicy strips?"

"Just tell my father what spices you need, and he will surely be able to provide them."

Without waiting for Shen Qing to say anything, Nangong Yao directly pulled Shen Qing in front of Prince Chun.

"Father, Sister Shen's spicy strips are incredibly delicious, better than you can imagine! But she's stopped selling them because she's out of spices. Could you help me find some?"

Prince Chun's expression darkened slightly: "You went out to buy food without permission?"

"I......"

Nangong Yao was stunned. How did he end up selling himself out?

"You are the heir of the Prince's mansion; you shouldn't eat things from outside indiscriminately," Prince Chun admonished.

He originally didn't want to come to the hot pot restaurant, but since it cost a thousand taels of silver per serving and many people praised it highly, he reluctantly brought his son to take a look.

As for eating, he had no intention of eating at all; it was just to satisfy his curiosity.

"Sister Shen's food is different," Nangong Yao insisted.

Seeing this, Shen Qing said, "You two are sitting here, presumably for hot pot. Why don't I prepare the soup base for you first, so you can eat hot pot sooner?"

"Alright." Prince Chun nodded.

There are twenty people here, not just the father and son. If they don't eat, they can't stop others from eating.

Shen Qing began adding hot pot base and pre-prepared broth to the pot one by one.

While watching Shen Qing's actions, Nangong Yao was making plans in his mind.

Sister Shen's hot pot must be something special.

After his father tastes the hot pot, he will describe the deliciousness of the spicy strips to his father, tempting him to find spices.

Then he'll have his spicy snacks!