The White-haired Queen

The food competition in South Vietnam gave the people of South Vietnam a certain understanding of potatoes, and potatoes suddenly became a popular food in South Vietnam.

This time, Tian Fangzhou and Li Changqing worked together to solve the food problem caused by floods in the Kingdom of Nanyue.

In order to express his gratitude and help to Shangxie Kingdom, the Emperor of Nanyue Kingdom specially hosted a banquet for Tian Fangzhou and Li Changqing.

In addition, there was a princess in the Kingdom of Nanyue who loved farming and cooking since she was a child. She was interested in farming and agronomy. She opened up several plots of land in her palace to grow various crops.

Her palace was just like the Queen Mother's palace of Shangxie Kingdom. She grew fresh fruits and vegetables all year round... The Emperor of Nanyue Kingdom saw that his daughter was interested in farming and agronomy, so he named her Princess Qinghe.

Since the Nanyue Kingdom suffers from floods every year and food shortages occur frequently, Princess Qinghe is now researching greenhouse cultivation technology on her own.

However, due to the large investment and low yield of greenhouse cultivation, it has not been put into practice and is still in the exploratory stage.

Now, through this food competition, she feels that Shangxie Kingdom is superior to Nanyue in crop cultivation and cooking, so she specifically asked her father to allow her to go to Shangxie Kingdom for exchange and study.

Princess Qinghe said, "Father, you know that I have been interested in agriculture and cooking since I was young. You often praise me for my talent in agriculture and cooking. So I beg you to let me go to Shangxie Country for exchange and study."

The Nanyue Emperor said: "In Nanyue, as long as your father is here, you can have whatever you want. But if you go to Shangxie, your father is afraid that others will think your hobbies are not good enough and will be a setback to you."

Princess Qinghe said, "Father, you have taught me since I was young that labor is the most glorious. I try and develop according to my own interests and hobbies. Regardless of whether I can achieve anything, I think this is an honorable and happy thing."

The Emperor of Nanyue said: "You are right, but father does not want you to hear those idle gossips and does not want you to suffer these meaningless grievances."

Princess Qinghe said: "As long as I don't forget my original intention and stick to it, gossip will not be able to harm me, so I beg you to let the envoy of Shangxie take me to Shangxie for exchange and study. Besides, as long as you give an imperial decree, Shangxie will definitely help and protect me."

The Emperor of Nanyue said, "Then my father wants to ask you, are you really determined to go to Shangxie for exchange and study?"

Princess Qinghe said, "Father, I went to Shangxie to learn their planting and cooking techniques, not for fun, fighting or playing. The purpose of the exchange and learning is to solve the problem of food shortage in our Nanyue country. Right now, the food problem is the most fundamental problem of our country year after year."

The Yellow Emperor of Nanyue stroked Princess Qinghe's head and said, "You are very thoughtful, but it's a pity that you are a girl."

Princess Qinghe said: "Brother is also very good. He did a very good job in dealing with the flood disaster this time. Qinghe should learn a lot from him."

The Emperor of Nanyue said, "Today's dinner, my father will host a banquet for two envoys from Shangxie. You can hide behind the screen and listen to what they have to say before making the final decision. Is that okay?"

Princess Qinghe said, "Thank you, father. I'll ask them about the planting and cooking conditions in Shangxie Country."

The Emperor of Nanyue said, "Don't worry, father knows what's going on."

While the dinner was being prepared, Princess Qinghe sneaked into the imperial kitchen. She wanted to see what dishes would be prepared that day.

The Nanyue Kingdom was a land of fish and rice, and the daily staple food was mainly cereal crops, so Princess Qinghe also wanted to make her latest invention - fresh lotus leaf rice - for the two guests who came from afar according to her own wishes.

It was already autumn. In the capital of Nanyue, the lotus flowers had long withered and the lotus leaves were no longer supporting the sky. Only the lotus leaves in the southernmost region of Nanyue were in full bloom.

She ordered people to pick a few fresh lotus leaves from the river pond in the southernmost area of ​​Nanyue Kingdom early in the morning, washed some japonica rice, wrapped it up, and steamed it in a steamer. The steamed rice would have a strong fragrance of lotus leaves and taste delicious.

In order to make better lotus leaf rice, Princess Qinghe tried many kinds of rice, and also tried whether fresh lotus leaves or dried lotus leaves were better. Finally, she decided to make fresh lotus leaf rice.

Princess Qinghe only asked her brother to try the lotus leaf rice. Her brother was very impressed with her invention. She wanted to ask her father to try it as well, but because of the flood disaster in Nanyue Kingdom, her father was busy with government affairs, so the matter was delayed.

Princess Qinghe was very satisfied with the fragrance of lotus leaf rice. Her brother also praised it highly. So, she began to learn from it and made bamboo tube rice, blending the fragrance of bamboo into the rice, which tasted unique.

Now Princess Qinghe wants to make fresh lotus leaf rice for her father and two guests from afar to taste.

If the king agrees to issue an order to let her go with them to Shangxie Kingdom, they will definitely take better care of her along the way, thinking that she is a delicate little princess.

She wanted to use this fresh lotus leaf rice to make them have a good impression of her and to be able to make friends with her as an equal.

As soon as the two envoys entered the banquet hall, Princess Qinghe hid behind the screen and the Kabuki performers began various performances.

Qing He secretly observed them. He felt that the older man was well-mannered and should be quite knowledgeable. The younger man stood tall and straight, so he should be a military commander.

The Emperor of Nanyue said: "Today, we will not discuss politics. As the saying goes, 'food is the first necessity of the people', and we are no exception. So today we will only talk about farming and cooking. You two can speak freely."

The Emperor of Nanyue then asked: "What are the staple foods of your country?"

Tian Fangzhou said: "The dietary habits of the Yue region and the Nanyue Kingdom are quite similar, and they are also mainly based on cereals."

Li Changqing said: "The capital area of ​​Shangxie State mainly produces wheat."

The Emperor of Nanyue asked, "Then what is your favorite food?"

Tian Fangzhou smiled and said, "My favorite thing now is to eat mashed potatoes."

Li Changqing scratched his head and said a little embarrassedly: "I like fried or baked potato strips or potato chips the most. They are fragrant and crispy when you bite them."

The Emperor of Nanyue smiled and said, "I like mashed potatoes as much as Mr. Tian."

After saying that, all three of them laughed.

……

After listening to them, Princess Qinghe felt that both of them were very approachable and easy to get along with, which made her more determined to go to Shangxie Kingdom to learn planting and cooking.