I just want to live a good life

Su Nuan had previously asked Ying Shu to check the handling records of Zhou Zhe's house.

She guessed that the letter brought by the servant was what she wanted.

After taking the letter, he hurried back to Duiyueju.

The letter recorded the handling of the house over the past seven years and, most importantly, the network of relationships among those who handled the matter. Ying Shu wrote down every clue on a thick stack of paper, which shows how much care he put into it.

Su Nuan carefully sorted out these clues, and actually saw the four words "Yongping Palace" in the relationship network of one of the people in charge. It said that one of the owners of this house was Ge Mingliang, the chief steward of Yongping Palace.

It was not uncommon for the palace steward to purchase a house outside, not to mention that this house was later sold again, but Su Nuan attached great importance to this clue.

She couldn't help but think of the back of Prince Yongping. Where had she seen him before?

I spent half the afternoon thinking about this, and finally fell asleep on the table without realizing it.

Su Nuan had a dream. In the dream, she was standing outside Cui Shaoyuan's window and peeking. Someone in the room hung Cui Shaoyuan high up. The person had his back to the window, so her face could not be seen. Cui Shaoyuan's body was swinging under the beams.

The scene was so horrifying that Su Nuan wanted to step back. Suddenly, the man with his back to the window turned around and grinned at Su Nuan. His ferocious face was exactly the same as that of Prince Yongping.

Su Nuan suddenly woke up from her dream.

"What are you checking?"

The sudden voice startled her again. She looked up and saw Mu Yunting sitting at her desk reading Ying Shu's record.

"This is the record of Zhou Zhe's house. I want to see if I can find out who is behind him."

"There are people from the emperor's uncle here."

Su Nuan thought of the dream, and finally remembered where she had seen Prince Yongping’s back, in the dream.

She always suspected that this dream was a memory of the original owner, but she didn't know why the original owner lost this memory.

"What do you think of this record?" Mu Yunting asked.

"I don't have any clues. In this record, I can only make some connection with the steward of the Yongping Palace, but this is too far-fetched."

Su Nuan did not tell anyone about the incident of Prince Yongping's back. She did not want others to know about it before she knew what role the original owner played in the incident.

"Since you have no clue, why not give me this record and I'll have someone check on these people."

"That's fine. It's better for your people to check it out than for me to guess here. Take it."

Mu Yunting took the stack of letters and put them back into his sleeve pocket, saying, "I'm hungry."

"Then I'll have someone notify Chef Kang to cook for you."

"I'm tired of his cooking. I want to eat the spicy food you made tonight."

"Oh, wait a minute, I'll do it."

Su Nuan walked out while talking, thinking about teaching Chef Kang how to make the spicy salad as soon as possible.

After autumn, the weather gradually gets cooler and it is no longer suitable to eat spicy food at night.

Su Nuan asked someone to go to the kitchen to get some beef, mutton slices and vegetables, preparing to have hotpot with Mu Yunting in the evening.

The ingredients are all ready-made, and she only needs to prepare the soup base and dipping sauce, making the meal very simple.

Soon all the materials were ready.

Su Nuan asked someone to put the hot pot on the stone table in the yard.

As it grew darker, lanterns were hung in the yard, casting a soft light on the stone table.

Hot pot also existed in this era, but it was called differently. The hot pot here was called Gudong 羮, and chicken soup or bone soup was usually used as the base of the pot.

Today Su Nuan used butter and chili peppers to make the soup base. She knew that Mu Yunting couldn't eat spicy food, so she prepared two pots, one with a clear soup base and one with a spicy base.

When Mu Yunting was invited to the stone table, the aroma from the pot had already given rise to the aroma of butter.

"When the weather gets cold, it's better to eat Gudong soup than spicy hotpot. I don't think you mind."

"You seem to be eating something different from me."

"Of course it's different. This base is specially made by me. Come and taste it and see how it tastes."

Although she said that she wanted Mu Yunting to taste it, Su Nuan picked up the chopsticks first.

She hadn't eaten hotpot for a long time and had been craving for it.

Seeing her picking up her chopsticks, Mu Yunting didn't want to be left behind, so he picked up his chopsticks and started eating.

The boiling spicy pot continued to emit a fragrant aroma, and Mu Yunting couldn't help but pick up a piece of beef and put it into his mouth.

The next moment, his handsome face was distorted by the spiciness, and he mumbled, "Quick, give me some water."

Su Nuan quickly poured him a cup of sour plum soup.

"This is a spicy hot pot. How dare you eat it if you are afraid of spicy food? I prepared a clear soup pot for you."

Mu Yunting drank a cup of sour plum soup, smacked his lips, and actually reached into the spicy pot with his chopsticks to pick up some meat.

"You still want to eat, aren't you afraid of spicy food?"

“It’s a little spicy, but it tastes great.”

Su Nuan handed the sesame sauce to Mu Yunting, "Dip it in this to relieve the spiciness."

Mu Yunting took the dipping sauce and took a bite. It was indeed not as spicy as before, and it tasted even better.

In the following time, the two of them ate happily and couldn't stop eating.

The two plates of meat slices that Su Nuan had people prepare were not enough, so she sent someone to the kitchen to ask for two more plates.

Kang Dahong heard that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Concubine Xia were eating Gudong soup, and that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince ate a lot.

He wanted to see what was so special about Concubine Xia's gudong porridge that could whet the Crown Prince's appetite, so he came to deliver the meat in person.

As soon as he entered the yard, he was deeply attracted by the fragrance in the air.

"Kang Dahong, is there no one available in your kitchen? You have to come in person to deliver the meat."

"Your Highness, I heard that the Concubine has prepared new dishes. I am curious and want to come and have a look."

"Want to steal Concubine Xia's skills?"

"I am not stealing your knowledge, I am sincerely seeking advice. If I learn this dish, Your Highness and the Concubine can cook it for you in the future as long as you tell them. I will prepare it for you immediately. You don't have to trouble the Concubine to cook it yourself."

"From now on, you don't have to learn Concubine Xia's dishes. She will cook and you just need to prepare the ingredients. Put down the meat and go back."

Su Nuan was a little puzzled. After Kang Dahong left, she couldn't help but ask Mu Yunting: "What Kang Dahong said makes sense, why don't you let him learn it?"

"The new dishes still taste the same old way. I'm tired of them."

"Then why did Your Highness keep him and not replace him?"

When this question came out, Mu Yunting was silent for a while before he replied: "He makes the best eight-treasure duck."

It was Eight Treasure Duck again. It sounded like he liked to eat Eight Treasure Duck, but Su Nuan had observed carefully during the several times they had eaten together, and he didn't eat duck meat at all.

So who likes to eat this Eight Treasure Duck?

The sweetheart, could it be Lou Guang?

I haven't seen that male fox for a long time. I'll try him out someday if I get the chance.

The meal was a pleasant one, but near the end a servant came to report that a prisoner in the Ministry of Justice's jail had given new testimony.

After hearing this, Mu Yunting hurried to the Ministry of Justice.