Chapter 619: That Simple (Part 1)
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
Not riding in carriages, but on horseback? Mingzhu frowned. In such cold weather, there might even be snow. While Yuwen Bai would be curled up in his dragon sedan chair, warming himself by the fire and drinking hot soup and eating pastries, he wanted everyone else to ride horses and endure the wind? This little brat just couldn’t stand seeing others well! He’s truly sick in the head.
Dai Wangfei was worried. Her son, County Prince Jiangyin, was already young, and she was already very worried about him going to worship the heavens. Now suddenly hearing that they couldn’t ride in carriages but had to ride horses, it felt like her heart was being fried in oil.
Huayang Wangfei’s mood was also not good. Since she gave birth to a daughter, her relationship with Huayang Wang had been like honey and oil, and of course, she was reluctant. Only the Wusun Princess and Fu Wang’s Concubine Ji didn’t mind. The Wusun Princess grew up on horseback, and it was normal for men to ride horses. Fu Wang’s Concubine Ji didn’t care because her relationship with Fu Wang was not deep, so she didn’t care.
Seeing that none of them were in high spirits, Consort Xiao felt better. After all, Yuwen Long had been ordered to prepare in advance, so it didn’t matter.
Each person harbored their own thoughts, and the atmosphere in the warm pavilion quieted down. Princess Kangning smiled, sometimes praising Fu Zifei’s emerald jewelry, sometimes admiring Min Baoyun’s beautifully painted nails, and finally inviting County Princess Anle to her palace for a chat.
Time passed quickly, and as dawn broke, a eunuch came in to report, “The honored guests have arrived.”
Dai Wangfei and Fu Wang’s Concubine Ji stood up and went to greet the female relatives of the royal family who entered the palace. Fu Zifei also followed to check on tea and other items. Mingzhu and Huayang Wangfei discussed and prepared to personally inspect the food in the main kitchen. Seeing this, Min Baoyun and the Wusun Princess also got up and followed. Huayang Wangfei was very disgusted and whispered, “Two troublemakers have arrived, but we can’t shake them off.”
Mingzhu smiled. Since these two had always wanted to follow her, she wouldn’t be polite to them either. She immediately stopped the Wusun Princess and Min Baoyun and said, “The four of us should not stick together. Didn’t we agree? Ninth Sister-in-law is responsible for overseeing the dishes. If there’s any shortage or excess, we’ll only come to you. Baoyun, you’re responsible for the soup and desserts. Both the soup and desserts are your responsibility. You two should go find your subordinates. If you can’t produce anything or make a mistake, I won’t be polite.”
Min Baoyun had never had such a leisurely mindset and said with a sneer, “I’m just assisting Ying Wangfei, right? Of course, you have to take the lead in these matters. I’ll just run errands on the side.”
Mingzhu sneered, “If you want to run errands, I have maids and palace servants for that. Are you my servant or a palace servant? Since you’re assisting, you have to follow my orders. If you don’t, then leave. Don’t cause trouble for me.”
It was either endure or leave. It was that simple.
After intense mental struggle, Min Baoyun still reluctantly accepted it. After all, her aunt was the Empress Dowager, and her cousin was the emperor. Unless someone from the Fu family wanted to cause trouble for her, no one dared to provoke her. But then again, since Mingzhu was in charge, she couldn’t afford to sabotage herself. It was worth doing this job!
The Wusun Princess didn’t say much and obediently followed Mingzhu’s arrangements. She even took the initiative to call Min Baoyun away, “Let’s go together. Teach me wherever I don’t understand.”
Huayang Wangfei watched the two of them leave and whispered, “I always feel that the people of Wusun have ulterior motives.”
Mingzhu said, “When have you ever seen them with good intentions? Let’s go. Let’s handle things first and respond accordingly.”
As soon as they arrived at the kitchen, they encountered troublemakers. The troublemaker was a chef named Jin Sanpei, who usually cooked for Min Baoyun and was greatly favored by her. He was skilled in steamed dishes and was always nitpicking about various things, first complaining about the fish not being fresh, then about the smoked meat not being top quality, and then about the poor knife skills, and finally, he complained that the fire wasn’t burning vigorously enough, kicking the young eunuch who was tending the fire.
Coincidentally, the young eunuch flew up and smashed into the long table where many spare dishes were placed, causing chaos. Everyone shouted that they were affected and couldn’t serve the dishes on time.
Mingzhu calmly watched for a moment, then waved to summon the chief eunuch of the royal kitchen, Qiu Yunhai, and pointed at Jin Sanpei, “Take him down for me, strip him and give him fifty lashes, then find someone who can make steamed dishes to fill his position. Replace the young eunuch tending the fire, and everyone else, get moving. Clean up the damaged and soiled dishes and quickly bring out the replacements.”
Eunuch Qiu frowned and said, “He is the person favored by the Empress Dowager and usually doesn’t listen to orders. This, this…”
Mingzhu gave him a sideways glance, “Are you saying that what I just said is nonsense?”
Eunuch Qiu thought to himself that this Ying Wangfei spoke very rudely, but outwardly he remained even more respectful and helpless. “Please, Wangfei, understand the difficulties of a humble servant.”
He was assuming that Mingzhu was only temporarily in charge and would not have authority over them afterward. Huayang Wangfei, furious, raised her eyebrows and said, “We do understand your difficulties, but why does no one understand ours? You think we’ll leave after this, but if the Winter Solstice banquet isn’t set up on time, you’ll be the first to lose your head!”
Mingzhu said calmly, “Since you can’t handle it, you don’t need to be the chief steward anymore. You’re bound to die anyway, so I won’t waste words with you. Stand aside quickly.”
Sweat beads appeared on the tip of Eunuch Qiu’s nose, but he still didn’t dare to deal with Jin Sanpei. Jin Sanpei, kneeling on the ground, looked smug, thinking that Lan Gugu in front of the Empress Dowager was right—no matter how fierce the Ying Wangfei was, she couldn’t do anything to him. However, Mingzhu turned around and glanced at the few submissive eunuchs behind her.
Without a word, the eunuchs stepped forward, grabbed his broad shoulders, twisted his neck, and dragged him out by his hair. Jin Sanpei, realizing something was wrong, shouted, “What are you doing? What are you doing? Is there no law left? Empress Dowager, save me…” Before he could finish, his mouth was stuffed with something foul and greasy, making him feel nauseous.
Eunuch Qiu forced a laugh, “Wangfei, this…” He didn’t have time to plead before the sharp-faced Momo behind Mingzhu pushed him aside. He staggered a few steps before regaining his balance, while Jin Sanpei was already being dragged outside.
Everyone in the kitchen fell silent, waiting to see how Mingzhu would handle Jin Sanpei. If she dealt with him properly, they would work diligently; if not, they wouldn’t bother, as they still had to survive in the palace and follow the rules.
Someone had already brought over two chairs and placed cushions on them. Mingzhu unceremoniously sat in the chair on the left and invited Huayang Wangfeig to sit in the chair on the right.
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
