Harem Daily Life

Seeing that the kitchen had delivered fresh white radish today, Tao Yanyan asked Caiyun to cut the white radish into shreds and add it to the meat stuffing.

Radishes are rich in nutrients and can relieve greasiness. They are perfect for serving to the Empress Dowager.

About an hour later, the eunuch in the Empress Dowager's palace received twelve freshly baked mooncakes with shredded radish and pork filling.

Today, Tao Yanyan also used osmanthus to make honey-glazed lotus root and spicy duck sauce, and cut two plates for her father-in-law to take back.

The Queen Mother was eagerly looking forward to food, and she asked Eunuch Qin to go outside the door to see if he had returned. Then she asked him to go out and check again. When he looked for the eighth time, he finally saw the person coming.

When Eunuch Qin saw three food boxes, his mouth twitched: "How much is this? Does the Queen Mother have such a big appetite?"

The young eunuch immediately said, "Replying to Eunuch Qin, Lady Tao has made two new dishes today and said that they will be sent here for the Queen Mother to try."

Eunuch Qin opened it and took a look. He was attracted by the dish of sweet osmanthus lotus root.

Eunuch Qin loved sweets since he was a child. His family was poor when he was young, so where could he get candy? So the less he could get it, the more he wanted to eat it. Later, he entered the palace and worked hard to become a top eunuch beside the Queen Mother. He couldn't let go of sweets.

"Take it in. I think Lady Tao's cooking skills are really good. Each of these dishes makes people salivate at a glance." Eunuch Qin said this, but his mind was on the dish of candied lotus root.

"Her Majesty, Lady Tao said that you shouldn't eat greasy food, so we added radish to the mooncakes today. Radish helps digestion and relieves greasiness, and it has a unique flavor when put in the mooncakes. Please try it, Your Majesty." The eunuch brought out two plates of radish and meat mooncakes and picked up two and placed them in front of the empress dowager.

The remaining ten were taken away by Eunuch Qin.

The Queen Mother looked at Eunuch Qin with displeasure: "Don't eat it all!"

Eunuch Qin said helplessly: "Lady Tao has said that you can only eat two a day. These are foods that cannot be kept for a long time. If you don't eat them, they will go bad."

After saying this, she signaled the eunuch with her eyes, and the eunuch quickly brought out the osmanthus candied lotus root and spicy duck sauce: "This is the osmanthus candied lotus root that Lady Tao specially sent. It is said to be sweet but not greasy, and delicious whether eaten hot or cold. This spicy duck sauce is a snack for the empress dowager, and it is sent to the empress to taste together."

The Queen Mother was used to eating delicacies from land and sea prepared by the imperial kitchen, so the sight of these really aroused her appetite. She first ate a mooncake. Whether it was the one with pure meat filling last time or the one with shredded radish this time, it was all so delicious that she made her lick her lips.

She ate another piece of sweet osmanthus lotus root, which seemed to have rice added to it. It was sticky and sweet, with the fragrance of osmanthus. The fragrance lingered on her lips and teeth after one bite, and she felt sweet to her heart.

Eunuch Qin swallowed his saliva, fearing that the Queen Mother would eat the entire dish of sugared lotus root and leave no bite for him.

Fortunately, the Queen Mother only ate three pieces and then switched to the spicy duck.

The smell was so tempting that the queen mother picked up a piece and put it in her mouth. The spicy and fresh taste made her unable to stop.

After eating the first piece, I wanted to eat the second one. Finally, I put down my chopsticks after eating half of it and finished the last mooncake.

After the Queen Mother finished her meal, she said with satisfaction: "Oh, if I wasn't afraid of the Emperor getting angry, I would have asked Lady Tao to be my cook. How can a lady from a wealthy family cook so well?"

Eunuch Qin, who was thinking about going downstairs to eat the candied lotus root, replied, "Maybe she made it a lot in her boudoir. It's obvious that her craftsmanship has been acquired through years of practice."

It's no wonder that everyone was confused. The main reason was that ladies from wealthy families rarely cook, so it was surprising that Lady Tao could cook such a delicious dish.

The delicious food cooked by Tao Yanyan not only captured the heart of the Queen Mother, but also her beloved brother and subordinates.

Tao Yanyan didn't allow Xiao Jinan to eat the spicy duck to prevent him from being too spicy. As for the rest, he ate one mooncake and half of a candied lotus root.

Xiao Jinan's eyes lit up: "Sister, I declare that my favorite thing to eat today is this candied lotus root. It's so sweet, fragrant and sticky."

Tao Yanyan pinched his face and said, "If you like it, we'll do it next time. But you have to go digest the food after eating. Let Xiao Quanzi accompany you for a walk. Go play!"

Xiao Quanzi followed the order and went out to play with Xiao Jinan. Mingyue said, "My lady, there are still two of these candied lotus roots. Should we cut one into a plate and send it to His Majesty?"

Although His Majesty has not come in the past few days, Mingyue feels that Concubine Tao needs to make her presence felt more on His Majesty's side, otherwise her favor will be cut off over time.

Tao Yanyan said indifferently: "Don't send him off recently. Don't go to him if you don't have anything to do, or he might think I'm trying to win his favor! While he's not here, we should do our own things. I have to practice the pipa. I've lost my tune after so many years."

When she started learning the pipa, she was still young and had the basic skills, but she was eventually destroyed by education and college entrance exams. She gave up these extracurricular activities and focused on reading books of sages. When she was really compared with professional musicians, she still felt unsure.

Also, she had to think about how to talk to Qi Yizheng about opening a store together. This was her top priority on the day of the palace banquet.

She couldn't leave the palace at all. Someone had to watch over her to look after the store, buy the store, decorate it, cook the food, and sell the goods. The only outside person she knew in this world was Qi Yizheng. Apart from seeking a partnership with him, she really couldn't think of anyone else.

This is a major matter concerning her future earning, and is closely related to her personal interests. She must agree on it on the day of the palace banquet, otherwise she will never have the chance to meet Qi Yizheng again.

Taking out a pen and paper, Tao Yanyan wrote a concise cooperation plan, including investment ratio, profit distribution, management points, and product types. He also wrote down the recipes of several things and gave the recipes directly to Qi Yizheng, showing his full sincerity.

In Fengyi Palace, the Queen was trying on the new dress sent by the Clothing Bureau and was very satisfied. "The style is good this time. You guys are thoughtful. Come, give me a reward."

The head palace maid gave a bag of silver to the head of the clothing bureau who came in person to deliver the clothes.

Manager Sun thanked her profusely: "Thank you, Queen Mother, for the gift. Your Majesty's dress matches the new clothes you made this time. We have made some adjustments to the details. At first glance, they are a perfect match."

The queen was even more satisfied, her eyes were full of smiles, but she said, "I'm afraid others will see through it and laugh at my little daughter's thoughts."

Manager Sun was very shrewd. The queen looked so happy that she couldn't be unhappy. So she said, "The queen is the only one who can be called a perfect match for your majesty. Others can only envy her. How dare they laugh at the queen's devotion to your majesty!"

The queen was very pleased and asked: "Besides making new clothes for me, who else made them this time?"

Manager Sun reported back, "The Imperial Concubine, Shu Concubine, and Rong Concubine have all been made. I don't think Concubine Li will be present because we were not asked to take her measurements. Apart from that, only Concubine Tao is still short of two sets of dresses according to her quota, and she paid the embroiderers to make two more sets herself. No new dresses have been made for the other concubines in recent times."