The First National Preceptor of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 283

The woman then skipped and hopped out, and soon it was seen that she was wearing a brocade dress, her skin was as white as jade, and her whole person was as radiant as the clouds. She had added a peony flower to her temple, which made her even more eye-catching.

Xu Tianyue swallowed hard, then said, "I never accept female teachers here!"

"Why did Master Dongfeng Tingyun remain at the academy?"

Xu Tian didn't want to explain to him.

"Girl, you should leave."

"Do you already know who I am?"

"Of course I know, you are a woman from the Yuan family of Chenjun." The woman nodded, then said, "Master Xu, I also made some pastries today, would you do me the honor of tasting them?"

Xu Tian assumed that the girl from before was still upset, so he asked the sisters in his clan to make the same pastries until he won her over. Unexpectedly, after eating them, he broke out in rashes all over his body.

He'd completely forgotten he was allergic to seafood. What kind of filling was in this pastry?

Unexpectedly, the woman immediately beamed and said, "I didn't expect you to like it so much, Master. This is a salt and pepper crab roe cake with a filling made from crab."

After that, Xu Tian didn't appear on the road for several days in a row. The woman, however, persisted, making Xu Tian's favorite pastries every day and delivering them to Feixue Pavilion. Then one day, the steward blocked the door...

“Miss, there’s no need to make pastries. My master said he will never marry a woman from the Yuan family of Chen County.”

The woman looked bewildered and then said, "Why? Master Xu doesn't seem to have any class prejudices. Is it because I'm not pretty enough?"

"Well... to be honest, my husband is allergic to seafood. He ate the seafood pancakes you made a few days ago and has been bedridden ever since."

The girl curtsied and said, "My name is Yuan Li. The one who came before me was my cousin. Everyone in the clan knows that my cousin's pastry-making skills are terrible. Only my second brother likes pastries. Since Master Xu is allergic to these seafood-filled pastries, I will bring some pastries that you like tomorrow. I wonder what you like to eat?"

As he spoke, he blinked, and the butler, feeling helpless, then made up a story on the spot.

"I like to eat the filling made from epiphyllum flowers."

"Master Xu is indeed different from ordinary people. Even his favorite pastries are different from those of ordinary people."

The epiphyllum withered in the blink of an eye; picking its petals to make pastries would be as difficult as climbing to heaven. However, the pastries would naturally be delivered to Master Xu.

He went back after saying that, and the housekeeper watched Xu Tian's departing figure, not knowing what to say, but Xu Tian called her into the house.

"Why are you lying to her? When have I ever liked eating pastries with epiphyllum filling?"

The steward said, "Master, you're in such a state now. What if this girl keeps sending you pastries? Does the teacher have to keep doing this? The filling for the epiphyllum flower is hard to find, and being able to make pastries with it is something that no ordinary person can do."

Xu Tian nodded, then said, "If he makes it again, don't send it over! I can refuse him personally."

Unexpectedly, the next morning I saw this beautiful epiphyllum pastry, with a crystal-clear outer skin and flower petals hidden inside.

Xu Tian took only one bite and immediately vomited violently, then said, "Butler, send this pastry to feed the pigs."

The next morning, when it was time for school, I saw the children of the surrounding noble families and the Six Ministries heading to the Jidi Building. The first lesson was Lu Deming's lecture on the strategic policies used by the Tang Dynasty in its battles.