Border Cook

Chapter 553 Testing
With Xia Mingyue's words, Xia Yunji and Fan Jinglan had no scruples at all and started a crazy "siege" on the roast chicken on the table.

Even Ying'er couldn't resist the rich aroma of the roasted chicken and took a chicken wing to eat.

Normally, she doesn't like eating chicken wings because they have more skin than meat, and they taste soft and greasy, with a really bad texture.

But the crispy roast chicken this time has a crispy skin and a little chewy texture. It does not have the usual greasy feeling at all. Instead, it becomes more fragrant the more you chew it.

As expected, there is no bad food in this world, only badly cooked food!

The aroma of the roast chicken quickly attracted other people, and a group of people gathered around the table and began to enjoy the fragrant crispy roast chicken.

Even Wu Jin got half one. It smelled so good that he licked it again and again, squinting his eyes as he ate it with relish.

Everyone was eating happily and enjoying themselves, but Xiao Luoan, who was thousands of miles away, had no appetite at all when facing the dishes on the table.

The dishes on the table did not taste bad. On the contrary, they were extremely exquisite, with carefully selected ingredients and extremely attentive presentation.

And this table of food was originally the emperor's lunch.

But because Xiao Luoan came to the palace to pay his respects, and the emperor was meeting with ministers in the conference room, he gave him his lunch as a reward.

He had just returned to the capital after being away for several months. Although he had heard about the situation in the capital along the way, he had to face the emperor after all, and he could not find out or guess what the emperor was thinking.

The meal was given very suddenly, which made Xiao Luoan feel uneasy. Faced with the dishes on the table, he didn't know whether to eat it or not.

After hesitating for a long time, Xiao Luoan had no choice but to look for help at the eunuch Ding Dahai who was standing by, and bowed slightly, "Eunuch Ding."

"Third Prince." Ding Dahai bowed respectfully. "What instructions do you have?"

"Please forgive me, Eunuch Ding." Xiao Luoan smiled bitterly, "I have been away from the capital for a long time, and have not been able to show my filial piety to my father. I don't know much about his daily routine. I wonder if he has had lunch?"

Was this a tentative question to ask him whether he wanted to eat the dishes on the table by himself, or wait for the emperor to come and eat together?

"The emperor has been busy in the conference room for more than an hour. During this time, he only asked for tea, but not any cakes." Ding Dahai did not make things difficult for Xiao Luoan and just told the truth.

As for whether the emperor would have lunch with him later, that was not something a servant like him could control or guess.

Whether or not to wait depends entirely on your personal understanding.

Xiao Luoan understood the meaning behind these words, and also knew that Ding Dahai had his own difficulties. He was very tolerant of him by saying these, so he smiled and said, "Thank you, Eunuch Ding."

"You're welcome, Third Prince." Ding Dahai bowed slightly, then stood up straight.

Xiao Luoan still sat very upright at the table, not moving his chopsticks.

After waiting for about a cup of tea, a noise came from outside, "The Emperor has arrived——"

Xiao Luoan stood up hurriedly and stood straight towards the door. When a bright yellow light passed by his eyes, he knelt down respectfully and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you, Father."

"Get up." The emperor passed by Xiao Luoan.

There was no way to tell whether he was happy or angry in his tone, so Xiao Luoan just followed the rules and said, "Thank you, Father."

Then he stood up, not daring to sit down directly, but just stood aside obediently.

The emperor sat down, glanced at Xiao Luoan, raised his hand, and said, "Come and sit down."

"Your son obeys your command." Xiao Luoan did not say anything too polite and sat back in his previous seat. The palace servants waiting on both sides immediately stepped forward and served the two people food.

"I just ordered someone to serve you a meal. Why haven't you started eating?" the emperor asked.

"Your Majesty is busy, and I don't know if he has had lunch yet. I dare not enjoy it alone." Xiao Luoan said, "So I want to wait for a while."

"What if I never come?" The emperor narrowed his eyes.

Xiao Luoan paused, "Father... do you want to hear the truth?"

"Of course." The emperor nodded slightly.

"I will probably eat these two." Xiao Luoan pointed to the small bowl of green rice in front of him and a dish of braised meat with dried bamboo shoots on the table.

“Why this dish?”

It was normal to eat the rice, but among the dishes on the table, the braised pork with dried bamboo shoots was not the one that was closest to Xiao Luoan.

The emperor suddenly became interested in knowing the reason.

"The dried bamboo shoots in this dish are something I've loved since I was a child." Xiao Luoan said with a smile, "Besides, the meat goes well with the rice, and it's easy to get full."

"Thirdly, this dish is very oily. If it gets completely cold, it won't taste good and won't feel good in the stomach. So if Father doesn't come soon, this dish won't keep well."

"That's the truth." The emperor raised his hand.

The palace servant at the side very tactfully placed the dish of braised pork with dried bamboo shoots in front of Xiao Luoan.

"Thank you, Father."

After waiting in the palace for a long time, it was already past lunchtime. Xiao Luoan was starving, and the braised meat with dried bamboo shoots tasted especially sweet to him.

The emperor looked at him and smiled slightly, "You eat like this, did you not have enough to eat during your travels?"

"It's not that serious, but the food in different places is different, and I often encounter food that I can't eat, so I always miss the food in the palace. Also, when I eat out, I feel like a drifter, and it's not as safe as eating in the palace."

Xiao Luoan said, "I am sorry for my poor behavior, Father."

"It's not that I am embarrassed, but I see that you have lost a lot of weight, and I know that you must be very hard-working outside."

The emperor said, "You might as well tell me where you have been and what local customs you have learned about. Are there any interesting ones?"

"Yes." Xiao Luoan stopped eating and said, "It's just that what I have seen and heard on my journey west this time is limited to this. I have seen a lot of local customs and witnessed a lot of struggles among the nobles. I have benefited a lot, but these are not very important. The important thing is that I have understood a truth."

"Oh?" The emperor raised his eyelids and looked at Xiao Luoan with interest, "Tell me about it?"

"Ants can have lofty ambitions, and good birds do not need to choose good trees."

The emperor was silent for a moment after hearing this. "That sounds interesting, but an ant is still an ant after all. If a good bird does not choose a good tree, where else can it live? If it becomes a rootless duckweed, drifting with the current, it would be better to be an ant and choose a good tree, which would be safer."

“If there is no good tree, you can plant one yourself. It will just take a little longer and more effort.”

Xiao Luoan said, "But in this way, being free from constraints and acting independently can be considered a very good thing."

"But Yugong moved the mountains with the help of gods. To plant trees and grow them, you first need land." The emperor added, and looked at Xiao Luoan meaningfully.