In the northwest corner of the Great Xia Imperial Palace, there is the Yuanhua Hall, which is where the retired emperor resides.
At this moment, bursts of laughter and someone's off-key singing could be heard from inside the hall.
Upon hearing that the emperor was about to leave the palace,
The East Palace and West Palace were extremely busy.
The Crown Princess makes pancakes.
The Empress of the Western Palace peels scallions.
...
"Hahahaha, hahahaha," the Emperor Emeritus, his face flushed from drinking, was laughing so hard he couldn't speak as he listened to Chen Ke's lyrics.
In the seat of honor, a kind-faced old lady was also laughing so hard she was doubled over, making the palace maids and servants behind her very nervous, fearing that the old lady might laugh herself into some serious trouble.
After Chen Ke finished singing loudly, he sat down and said to the old lady with a smile, "Grandma, you don't know, the common people in the countryside are always thinking about the lives of the nobles in the palace. They say that the emperor must use a golden axe to chop wood, and the empress must use a golden hoe to farm."
The old lady's tears, which she had just stopped, started flowing again, this time for laughter.
The retired emperor nearly spat out his wine, pointed at Chen Ke, and laughed and scolded, "Kid, I misjudged you. How could I have given birth to such a glib-tongued fellow!"
Chen Ke chuckled; he had no choice.
He had only intended to deliver some wine and duck necks to the Emperor Emeritus, but unexpectedly, the Emperor Emeritus insisted on keeping him there.
If we leave it at that, the Emperor Emeritus's mother, the Empress Dowager (it's title), also arrived. Her face was grim, her brows furrowed, as if she wanted to drag Chen Ke out and execute him at any moment.
Chen Ke knew exactly what was going on. It was simply that the Qin princess was the Empress Dowager's darling, and now that he was about to take her away, the old lady was bound to be unhappy.
Left with no other option, Chen Ke had to use all his skills to liven up the atmosphere.
It seems to be working well now; the old lady is overjoyed, and her eyes have become more affectionate towards him.
At least tonight, Chen Ke won't be dragged out and beheaded.
The Empress Dowager stopped laughing, and the wrinkles on her face seemed to smooth out, making her look more than ten years younger.
She looked down at the Emperor Emeritus and smiled, "Wuxu, I think Xiao Ke is quite good. He has secretly helped Guo Guo several times, which shows his loyalty and righteousness. He has brought you so much fresh food and is trying to make this old woman happy. This shows his filial piety."
The Emperor Emeritus hurriedly nodded: "Mother, that's why seeing is believing. If I hadn't secretly gone to Shu Prefecture and personally witnessed Chen Ke risking his life to save people under the city walls besieged by the demons, and personally witnessed him outwitting and outfighting the demon spies, how could I have possibly betrothed Guoguo to him?"
The Empress Dowager nodded and looked at Chen Ke with a sigh: "Child, I'm sorry to have wronged you. If we hadn't bypassed those who spread rumors and conducted a special investigation on you, you would probably have been kept in the dark like everyone else, and your talent would have been buried."
Chen Ke's eyes reddened, but he smiled and said, "Grand Ancestor, your words are enough. No matter how wronged I am, it is not a wrong."
Chen Ke didn't dare keep that expression for long, and lowered his head after speaking.
Which of the nobles who wield great power in the imperial palace isn't a master of drama, a master of performance?
Therefore, you must not overact; too much of a good thing can be bad.
In truth, he harbored resentment and even bitterness. After all, the world's attacks on the Chen family were not simply about taking a piece of flesh from them, but about tearing the Chen family to shreds.
The royal family is high above, holding the power of life and death. If they were to be misled or misled, they could wipe out the Chen family with a mere flick of their fingers.
Even if Chen Ke is incredibly thick-skinned and has the experience of living two lives, he cannot completely eliminate the fear in his heart.
Therefore, Chen Ke is more inclined to believe that the Empress Dowager's kindness and goodwill towards him were due to certain circumstances.
It should be noted that in the palace secrets that Chen Ke had heard, whether it was the Empress Dowager or several powerful concubines, they were all killed by this kind-hearted Empress Dowager through various means.
Outside the main hall, an old man bowed and said, "Ancestor, Master, as instructed by Young Master Chen, everything is ready over there."
The Empress Dowager smiled and nodded, clearly very satisfied with the title "Ancestor" invented by Chen Ke.
Chen Ke stood up, bowed to the two distinguished guests, and then walked down.
Before long, he returned, followed by two rows of palace maids serving dishes.
The Empress Dowager and the Emperor Emeritus looked on with curiosity. They were also eager to know how far Chen Ke could take the common people's flesh and blood.
The first plate was placed down, and the gold tray on top was pulled open, revealing a magnificent dish of foie gras to the Empress Dowager.
Foie gras is braised, not fried; Chen Ke doesn't have the time or skill for that.
However, when arranging the food, the chef listened to Chen Ke's advice and carved some radishes, arranged strawberries and vegetables, making it look fresh and elegant.
The portion of foie gras was small, just enough for one bite, which pleased the Empress Dowager.
The second dish was a platter of braised dishes, each in a small quantity, arranged in the shape of a giant peony.
The third dish was a vegetarian braised dish. The lotus root was diced, the wood ear mushrooms were arranged in clusters, and there were some soft broad beans, like pebbles in a pond.
In this way, the whole dish becomes an abstract landscape painting.
The fourth, fifth, sixth, ... all the way to the ninth dish, although they were all braised dishes, none of them were the same, and each dish was very exquisite.
Nine is the number of supreme status. After the palace maids left, the Empress Dowager couldn't stop smiling as she looked at the nine exquisite dishes.
The people serving the two noblemen in the main hall all looked at Chen Ke with admiration.
Putting aside the taste of these platters, Chen Ke's ingenious creativity alone impressed them.
To cook so many different dishes in such a short time using only four large pots of ordinary ingredients is something not everyone can do.
"Chen Ke, what about mine!" The Emperor Emeritus looked at the nine plates of delicious food and was already impatient.
The Emperor Emeritus's food was also served, with a dozen large pig trotters glistening with oil and covered in braising sauce, arranged on a large plate.
Pork knuckle, ham hock, and duck feet were arranged in a huge Bagua (Eight Trigrams) plate, one plate being equivalent to nine plates held by the Empress Dowager.
Both large plates were very deep, and the Empress Dowager could not see the greasy contents unless she looked specifically.
It's not surprising that palace servants, who spend their lives serving nobles, have such delicate thoughts, but it's quite rare to see them in Chen Ke.
With the coloring and flavoring of chili peppers, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor Emeritus enjoyed the novel and delicious food. For the first time ever, the Empress Dowager also drank a little of the wine that Chen Ke had personally mixed.
The Empress Dowager's face flushed slightly. Suddenly remembering something, she asked casually, "Did Yuncheng eat the food I sent him?"
The Emperor Emeritus paused slightly before continuing to devour the pig's trotter.
An old palace maid walked up behind the Empress Dowager and whispered a few words in her ear.
The Empress Dowager put down her chopsticks, her face full of surprise: "You mean, Yuncheng is drunk and is on his way here?"