Chapter 61: 061: Barbecue

The more he thought about it, the more he felt he was being made a fool of.

“HE YING!”

Unable to hold back, he shouted loudly.

Frightened, everyone present knelt down, “Greetings to the Emperor—”

Including Xuanrao,

who also knelt down to pay her respects.

Except for Sang Yan.

She hesitated for a moment before walking over and bowing, “Emperor, what brings you here?”

He Ying looked at her innocently puzzled expression, and those dirty thoughts dissipated somewhat.

She was so pure, how could she have such strange tastes?

It must have been his overthinking.

He cleared his throat twice, returning to normal, “It’s nothing, just nothing important, just came to see how your farming is progressing.”

Pei Muyang, standing nearby, thought to himself: Nothing important? Yesterday copying Buddhist Scripture, today copying Buddhist Scripture, barely finished and hadn’t yet looked at a few petitions that had piled up like a mountain, and still saying it’s nothing important?

Sang Yan, unaware of the internal affairs, mentioned the farming and smiled as she reported the progress, “Emperor, your timing is perfect, we are almost done. We were just discussing stone-grilled meat, Emperor, let’s have barbecue together tonight.”

Seeing her happy, He Ying naturally went along with her, “For such small matters in the future, you can decide on your own.”

“Thank you, Emperor.”

Sang Yan smiled her thanks and gestured to the people still kneeling, indicating for them to stand up.

He Ying understood her gesture and lifted his hand, “Everyone, stand up. Continue with your tasks.”

Sang Yan also went back to work.

She pulled Xuanrao up and discussed the barbecue plans with her.

When she got to the exciting part, she even started gesturing, “We’ll set up a platform, burn charcoal underneath, place an iron plate on top, and then cover it with a layer of pebbles…”

He Ying was also listening and taking it to heart. He immediately instructed several craftsmen to follow Sang Yan’s instructions.

Many hands make light work.

Under Imperial Power, efficiency is even higher.

The men mixed mud, moved bricks, and constructed platforms, doing all the hard labor.

Sang Yan picked and washed pebbles with Xuanrao.

He Ying watched from the side, wanting to help but feeling it wasn’t his place, yet he didn’t want to leave.

After a while, Sang Yan, noticing him still standing there, teased with a smile, “Emperor, come and wash with us. It’s fun. This is the joy of a group activity.”

He Ying frowned and said, “I am the Emperor, how can I do such things?”

He was actually reluctant despite his words.

When Sang Yan said, “What about the Emperor? Being the Emperor, you should share joy with the people.”

He immediately compromised.

“You make a good point.”

Rolling up his sleeves, he crouched down, “This is me sharing joy with the people.”

His serious demeanor was quite comical.

Sang Yan laughed.

Xuanrao laughed too.

But when He Ying glanced at Xuanrao, she immediately restrained her laughter, not daring to laugh any longer.

As for Sang Yan?

She was naturally indulged.

Not only laughing freely, but she also handed him a brush, teaching him how to do it, “Emperor, you have to scrub meticulously like this to get it clean.”

He Ying nodded, took the brush, and started scrubbing earnestly.

Xuanrao watched as Sang Yan commanded the Emperor around so obediently and secretly gave her a thumbs-up.

The difference between liking and not liking was indeed significant.

Fortunately, she was past the age of jealousy.

After washing the pebbles, it was time to prepare the ingredients.

Sang Yan shook off the water from her hands and went to the Imperial Kitchen.

A crowd followed behind her, creating quite a spectacle.

“Xuanrao, let me teach you—”

She first chose a large piece of prime pork, removed the tough skin, sliced it into thick thin slices, and placed them in a bowl nearby.

Then, she prepared ingredients like ginger, sliced into shreds, garlic, sliced into pieces, coriander cut into segments, and added them all to the meat.

Lastly, she poured soy sauce, cooking wine, chili powder, salt, cumin, sesame, and sugar over it, mixing everything thoroughly, and marinated it for an hour.

“It’s quite simple.”

“Did you get it?”

“Just wait until the barbecue platform is set up.”

She took a handkerchief from Qiuzhi, dried her hands, and with a grand gesture, directed people to move things to the Cold Palace.

At that moment,

the barbecue platform was nearing completion.

When the marinating time was up, the barbecue platform was also ready.

Sang Yan arranged the cleaned pebbles on it, spread a layer, and began smearing vegetable oil on top.

“Start the fire.”

She said while brushing oil, “We can start the fire now.”

Shortly after, the fire started and smoke billowed out.

“Now we can put the meat on.”

Using chopsticks, she placed the marinated slices of meat onto the pebbles.

“The moment to witness a miracle is almost upon us.”

No sooner had she spoken than the meat sizzled and oozed oil.

It was a kind of overflowing golden yellow.

The aroma began to spread.

Sang Yan rubbed her hands together in excitement.

He Ying, seeing this, felt a sudden surge of appetite, but he was still concerned about her safety, “Sang Yan, step back a bit, be careful of the burns.”

Sang Yan shook her head with a smile, “It’s fine. Emperor, it will be ready to eat soon. Don’t go anywhere, I’ll let you taste the first piece.”

Unbeknownst to them, night had fallen.

Lanterns were hung.

She had been busy until now, her forehead sweaty, her face dirty, and her beautiful dress stained, looking like a woman trapped in the kitchen but still stunningly beautiful.

He Ying watched her tenderly and responded with a smile, “Hmm. I am not going anywhere. Be careful.”

Finally,

the first piece of meat was ready.

Sang Yan immediately picked up the meat slice and brought it to his mouth.

Thinking it might be hot, she blew on it for quite a while.

Yet, when He Ying tasted it, it still felt hot.

Had it not been fed by her, he would have definitely spat it out instantly.

“Does it taste bad?”

Sang Yan, seeing his pained expression, instinctively picked up a piece of meat to taste it herself.

He Ying quickly stopped her, “Don’t eat, it’s very hot. Extremely hot.”

He probably scalded his mouth.

The hot meat went down his stomach, making him feel uncomfortable as well.

He had endured it, but he wouldn’t let her suffer the same.

“Wait a bit before you eat. Be careful of burns.”

He covered his mouth, fanning the air.

Sang Yan, realizing belatedly she had made a mistake, looked worried, “Did you burn yourself, Emperor?”

She put down the chopsticks and reached out to touch him, but remembering his peculiar illness, she pulled her hand back in time.

“I’m sorry, I got too excited seeing the barbecue, I just thought about eating.”

She couldn’t touch him, so she signaled, “Open your mouth, let’s see if you are burned?”

At that moment, Pei Muyang brought over some tea.

He Ying hurriedly took it and drank a sip of the cool tea, finally feeling a bit better, “It’s fine now.”

He looked at her barbecue and praised it, “Though it’s very hot, it indeed tastes very good.”

Sang Yan was pleased to hear this and immediately smiled, “Really? I’ll taste some too.”

Xuanrao had already started eating and also praised, “This meat is really delicious. Truly a delicacy of the mortal realm. Sang Yan, how did you think of this?”

Sang Yan was at a loss for words.

How could she think of this?

It was all the wisdom of modern folks!

“Ha ha, if it tastes good, eat more.”

She offered a perfunctory smile and changed the topic, “Actually, it can also be eaten wrapped in lettuce leaves. Oh right, add some slices of garlic too, if you don’t mind the smell.”

Xuanrao, not one to fuss about appearances, immediately followed her suggestion, “Yun Qiao, quickly go to the Imperial Kitchen and get some lettuce.”

Yun Qiao was already drooling with desire.

She stared longingly at the barbecue, really wanting to taste it, but upon receiving the order, she swallowed her saliva and ran to get the lettuce.

At this moment, Sang Yan also tasted a piece—it was indeed delicious, crispy and fragrant.

Good things are naturally meant to be shared.

She took a plate and placed several pieces of meat on it, distributing them to the people who had helped.

“Thank you, everyone. Have a taste.”

She was approachable, without a hint of arrogance.@@novelbin@@

Those people had been salivating over the barbecue already.

But who would have dared to think they could have a taste?

Therefore, when offered the food, they were moved beyond measure and knelt down to express their gratitude.

“Thank you, my Lord.”

“Long live Our Lord.”

Indeed, this Lord Sang was truly a Bodhisattva of the harem!

May she live for thousands and thousands of years.

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