Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

"What ancestors? I've become your underling now," Zhao Gou said with a bitter face.

Back when Madam Shen was the head of the Imperial Kitchen, he always thought about switching places with Wang Erdan, so that Wang Erdan could become the Grand Eunuch and he could do odd jobs for Madam Shen in the Imperial Kitchen.

Now, his wish to do odd jobs has been fulfilled.

Madam Shen is no longer in the Imperial Kitchen; Wang Erdan has become the head of the Imperial Kitchen.

Waaah... I still feel a little uncomfortable.

Wang Erdan lowered his head, "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare..."

"What do you mean by 'dare' or 'don't dare'? I'll really become your little brother."

Zhao Gou didn't even mention his self-designation as a "jack-of-all-trades."

"Alright, stop teasing Xiao Wang. He's already at a loss for words," Shen Qing said.

"You two should take care of each other in the palace from now on. Zhao Gou, you are smart, so please remind the young prince more often and make sure he doesn't offend any important people."

"Young Wang, you are now the head of the Imperial Kitchen, so you don't need to call me 'Grand Ancestor' anymore. You can discuss things with Zhao Gou more often."

Wang Erdan nodded repeatedly, "Don't worry, Madam Shen, I will definitely protect Eunuch Zhao!"

"Protect? It's more like I'm protecting you," Zhao Gou said from the side.

"How about this, you acknowledge me as your elder brother, and I'll protect you in the palace!"

Shen Qing: "..."

You've got it wrong, Wang Erdan is clearly the head of the imperial kitchen.

So who's protecting whom?

The next moment, she heard Wang Erdan's stunned voice.

"Thank you, brother."

"Second brother!" Zhao Gou's voice was surprisingly excited.

"Big brother!"

The two clasped hands together, just like long-lost brothers.

Shen Qing sighed and rubbed his forehead in exasperation: "Alright, I'll teach you how to cook."

"Okay, okay, okay!"

The two were overjoyed and followed Shen Qing to the stove.

"First up is the braised pork intestine noodles. You've already learned how to prepare the pork intestines, so I'll just tell you about the seasonings: Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, scallions, ginger, rock sugar, salt..."

Shen Qing only mentioned the seasonings available in this dynasty. Although the resulting dish might not taste as good as her previous ones, it would definitely not be bad.

Next, Shen Qing taught the two how to make fried rice with eggs, rolled cold noodles, and so on.

Then I cooked a few home-style dishes myself.

The first dish was braised eggplant.

Cut the eggplant into chunks, marinate with salt, squeeze out the bitter juice, heat oil, add the eggplant chunks and stir-fry slowly, then mix sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and other seasonings to make a sauce, pour it into the pan and stir-fry, finally sprinkle with a handful of green garlic sprouts.

The second dish is stir-fried pork slices with scallions.

Slice the pork tenderloin thinly and marinate it with cooking wine, soy sauce, and starch for a while. Heat oil in a pan, add the pork slices, and stir-fry until the meat changes color. Remove the meat from the pan. Then, stir-fry the scallions until fragrant. Add the previously stir-fried pork slices back in and stir-fry quickly over high heat. Add soy sauce and salt, and it's ready to serve in a few seconds.

The third dish was stir-fried bok choy with shiitake mushrooms.

Blanch the bok choy, slice the hot pot and stir-fry it in a pan, add soy sauce, oyster sauce and a little of the water used to soak the shiitake mushrooms. Once the sauce has thickened, pour the hot pot and sauce over the bok choy.

The fourth dish is cold shredded lettuce salad.

Shred fresh lettuce, marinate it with salt for a while, then mix it with sugar, vinegar, sesame oil and other seasonings.

The last dish was steamed tofu with minced meat.

Cut the soft tofu into thick slices and arrange them neatly on a plate. Then, add soy sauce, cooking wine, minced ginger, and white pepper powder to the minced meat, mix well, and pour the mixture over the tofu.

Steam until thoroughly cooked, then sprinkle with chopped green onions and drizzle with sesame oil before serving.

"Have someone send these to His Majesty and Zhou Wentong and the others."

Shen Qing prepared two portions of all the dishes, one for the emperor and his entourage, and the other for herself to share with Zhao Gou and the others.

"It looks delicious, I can't resist!" Zhao Gou rubbed his hands together, drool already dripping down his face.

This table of dishes looks so appetizing that it makes your mouth water. The braised eggplant is coated with a brown sauce and has a glossy sheen. Scattered among the green garlic sprouts are a refreshing sight.

Stir-fried pork slices with scallions are even more tempting. The edges of the pork slices are slightly curled up, the white parts of the scallions have softened, and the aroma of the pork and the aroma of the scallions intertwine.

The cold lettuce salad and the shiitake mushroom and bok choy salad are light and refreshing. The lettuce shreds are very thin, with green and white stripes, and the bok choy is bright green.

There was also the steamed tofu with minced meat. The dark brown minced meat was laid on top of the tender tofu, garnished with bright green scallions, and a thin layer of sauce had accumulated at the bottom of the plate.

Wang Erdan brought over three bowls of rice, and his eyes lit up.

After many days, he was finally able to eat Madam Shen's cooking again!

"Ah Qing—"

Shen Qing turned his head and saw that the person who came was Su Jiao'er.

Su Jiao'er was overjoyed and rushed in to give Shen Qing a big hug.

"Ah Qing, you're finally back! I've missed you so much!"

Shen Qing was equally delighted. In the palace, Su Jiao'er was considered a friend of hers.

"Quick, you've come at the right time. The food is fresh out of the pot, have a taste."

Su Jiao'er's eyes lit up: "I'm so lucky! I just happened to catch you cooking. Aqing, I love you so much!!"

As she spoke, she sat down without any hesitation.

Wang Erdan, being very perceptive, ladled out another bowl of rice and placed it in front of Su Jiao'er.

Thank you!

"No, no, it's my honor to serve rice to the Imperial Concubine."

Su Jiao'er chuckled: "What kind of imperial concubine am I now? If it weren't for saying goodbye to A Qing, I wouldn't be in the palace by now."

The late emperor is already dead, so of course she is no longer a concubine.

All she could say was that she died a good death, a truly wonderful death; she would never have to feel disgusted by the late emperor's greasy face again.

"Sister Su, what will you be doing in the future...?" Shen Qing asked with concern.

Su Jiao'er said happily, "Let's go home."

"It's all thanks to His Majesty's wisdom and might that he released all the women in our harem from the palace with a wave of his hand. However, I wanted to see A-Qing again, so I stayed in the palace for a few more days."

As she said this, her eyes crinkled into crescents, her face full of anticipation.

She has been a concubine in the palace for seven years, and it would be a lie to say she doesn't miss home.

"It's a pity that I won't be able to see Ah Qing often in the future..."

Shen Qing smiled and said, "It's nothing. We can write letters, or I can come to you directly, or you can come to the capital to find me. No matter how far apart we are, our feelings for each other will never change."

"Oh, right!" Su Jiao'er smiled playfully.

"Ah Qing, you must keep your word. My home is in Jiangnan, and our town is called Yanyutang. When you get to Yanyutang, just ask about the Su family. Everyone in the town knows us."

"Okay, let's eat."

"Uh-huh!"

Only after receiving Shen Qing's assurance did Su Jiao'er focus her attention on the food in front of her.

A bite of braised eggplant, the eggplant soaked in sauce, is salty and sweet, with slightly charred edges, it's very appetizing.

One bite of stir-fried pork slices with scallions—the pork slices are tender and smooth, bursting with the aroma of scallions, making it irresistible.

The shredded lettuce and bok choy with shiitake mushrooms are refreshing and light, relieving the greasiness in your mouth. The lettuce has a sweet taste, and the shiitake mushrooms are smooth and tender.

The steamed tofu with minced meat doesn't even need chewing; the tofu melts in your mouth with just a touch of your tongue, releasing the savory aroma of the minced meat.

This meal wasn't a fancy feast, but everything was delicious and made you feel at home.