SFS Chapter 454 Morning
Chapter 454 Morning
At night, Sun Heyin had a rare good sleep. The faint fragrance emitted by the burning red charcoal kept her awake all night, and even her breathing became much lighter.
It was not until she woke up in the early morning that she realized that the outside of the window was covered with snow. The heavy snow was still falling, and the snow in the yard was already above her ankles.
She stood by the window, gazing at the pristine white world, a sense of wonder arose in her heart. The snow in the south of the Yangtze River was always gentle and short-lived, but this was the first time she had seen such a blanket of snow.
After changing her clothes and dressing up, she sat at the dining table. Bai Zhi walked into the hall with a food box and placed the food inside.
Sun Heyin picked up the chopsticks and took a bite of food, but found that the food was already a little cold.
Bai Zhi also noticed that the food was no longer steaming, and quickly said, "My lady, would you like me to heat it up for you?"
Sun Heyin shook her head: "Don't bother, just have a bite."
Before he could finish his words, he saw a young eunuch hurriedly walking in from outside the courtyard holding an umbrella.
It’s Xiao Shi.
He walked to the palace gate, brushed off the snow on his body, then bowed and entered the palace. He bowed and said respectfully, "Your servant greets the young master."
Sun Heyin put down her chopsticks and looked up at him: "What's the matter?"
"Empress Hui asks you to go to Yonghe Palace immediately."
Sun Heyin was puzzled. Could it be that they were just taunting her today because of what happened yesterday? Without asking any more questions, she simply nodded, "I understand."
She stood up, and Bai Zhi immediately took out the white fox fur cloak that An Lingrong had given her yesterday and gently draped it over her.
When they arrived at Yonghe Palace, Shen Meizhuang was sitting on a couch with a book in her hands.
Seeing Sun Heyin coming, she smiled slightly and said in a gentle tone: "Sister Sun is here, come sit by the fire and warm yourself, it's very cold outside."
Sun Heyin bowed and walked to the stove and sat down. The warmth gradually dispelled the coldness in her body.
She looked up at Shen Meizhuang, but saw her stand up and walk straight into the bedroom.
Sun Heyin was confused, but she didn't ask any questions. She just sat quietly and looked towards the bedroom.
Shen Meizhuang lifted the bed curtain and whispered a few words to the person inside. Then, An Lingrong walked out of the bedroom, sat at the dressing table, and began to fix her makeup.
Shen Meizhuang then returned to Sun Heyin's side with an awkward smile on her face as she explained, "Sister Sun, it's cold today, so she slept a little longer. Sorry to have kept you waiting."
Sun Heyin didn't know what they were going to do, so she said calmly, "It's okay."
After An Lingrong finished dressing, she came up to them and said with a smile, "Sister Sun, it wasn't that I broke the palace rules yesterday, but I was feeling a little unwell. You're a woman too, so you naturally know that there are always those days every month... hehe..."
As she spoke, she covered her lips and chuckled, with a hint of cunning in her eyes.
Sun Heyin felt a little embarrassed when she heard this. How could she say this out loud?
Shen Meizhuang remained calm. She was no longer surprised by An Lingrong's words and continued to read the book in her hand.
Even though Sun Heyin reacted quickly, she couldn't think of how to respond, so she could only say, "Your Majesty...you don't have to explain this to me..."
An Lingrong saw her face flush, and her smile deepened. "Of course I have to explain. You've only been in the palace for a short time, so you don't know my temper. I'm a very polite person."
Sun Heyin rolled her eyes silently and replied, "Whatever the Queen says is fine."
Although these words sounded a bit perfunctory, An Lingrong nodded in satisfaction and sat with her by the fire.
Sun Heyin raised her eyes secretly.
An Lingrong's face was tinged with a dim warmth by the firelight, and a small flame in her eyes was warm and flamboyant.
Seeing her looking at her, An Lingrong smiled brightly.
Sun Heyin quickly restrained her expression and cleared her throat: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your reward yesterday!"
An Lingrong waved her hand casually: "As long as you can use it!"
Then he stood up, looked at Caiyue and asked, "Is breakfast ready?"
Caiyue replied, "It's already set up!"
Shen Meizhuang then put down the book, nodded, and stood up: "Let's go."
Sun Heyin was stunned for a moment. She was called here in the heavy snow just to eat?
Seeing this, An Lingrong took two steps back, walked up to her, and said with a smile, "Come on, it's time to eat. Aren't you hungry?"
Sun Heyin was still a little dazed. Seeing that she didn't move, An Lingrong wanted to go forward and hold her hand.
He reached out his hand, but then felt something was wrong, so he pinched her sleeve with two fingers: "It's so cold today, the breakfast delivered to the Yanxi Palace by the imperial kitchen must be cold. Aren't you not feeling well? You can't eat cold food."
Sun Heyin finally came to her senses and let An Lingrong hold her sleeve and walk forward.
When we arrived at the dining hall, the table was already filled with breakfast, including squirrel mandarin fish, fried eel shreds, Suzhou braised duck, crab meat lion head, pickled pork with preserved vegetables, braised pork with bean curd sheets, ginkgo and choy sum, clear river shrimp, water shield and silverfish soup, and a plate of jujube paste rice cake. The staple food was green glutinous rice porridge.
The steaming food exudes an enticing aroma.
Shen Meizhuang sat down in the main seat, and Sun Heyin was pulled by An Lingrong to sit next to her.
An Lingrong looked around and said, "Not bad, not bad. Today's dishes are quite rich."
As she spoke, she stood up and personally served a bowl of soup to each person, her movements skillful and natural.
When Sun Heyin saw the soup being handed to her, she felt a little uncomfortable, but it was difficult to refuse, so she had to take it and thanked him in a low voice.
As the host, Shen Meizhuang saw that she looked reserved, so she spoke gently, "Sister Sun, this is your first time dining at Yonghe Palace. I don't know what you like, so I asked the kitchen to make some Huaiyang dishes. Please try them and see if they suit your taste."
Sun Heyin calmed down after hearing this and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty. The food in your palace must be excellent. I dare not be picky."
An Lingrong couldn't help laughing after hearing this and said, "You can't tell whether it tastes good or not by looking at it. Come on, try it!"
As she spoke, she picked up some shrimps and put them on Sun Heyin's plate, then looked at her with burning eyes, expecting her evaluation.
Sun Heyin felt a little embarrassed by her burning gaze, so she had to pick up the chopsticks, pick up the shrimp and put it into her mouth.
This dish features tender freshwater river shrimp from Taihu Lake, sautéed in Suzhou's specialty, Biluochun tea leaves. The shrimp is fresh and tender, the tea aroma is mellow, and the taste is sweet.
"taste good."
An Lingrong's face lit up with a brilliant smile when she heard her say that. She said proudly, "Isn't that right? The Yonghe Palace kitchen is best at cooking shrimp."
Then he looked at the maid standing beside him and said, "Um, what's your name?"
Bai Zhi was confused when she saw her pointing at her. She stepped forward and said, "My Lady, this is your servant Bai Zhi."
"Oh, Baizhi, you should go down and eat too. You don't need to wait on me."
Caiyue came to her side, "Miss Baizhi, please come this way."
Bai Zhi subconsciously looked at her mistress.
Sun Heyin nodded slightly. Although she didn't understand their intentions, this was Yonghe Palace and they would not do anything to her here.
Only after getting Sun Heyin's signal did she follow Caiyue out.
When the three of them were the only ones left in the hall, An Lingrong finally felt more at ease and called out to the others, "Eat, eat, eat. Treat it like home. Don't be polite!"
Although Sun Heyin couldn't see through their intentions, she hadn't tasted the food from her hometown for a long time. Looking at these dishes, she felt hungry and ate a lot.
An Lingrong was also very happy to see that her expression had relaxed a little.
The atmosphere at the dinner table was very harmonious.