In the garrison, separated by just a wall, Feng Shuo was handling official business in the pavilion of the western courtyard.

The sweet aroma wafting from the kitchen next door made even Xing Yao, who was standing beside him, unable to resist inhaling deeply. “It smells so good.”

Feng Shuo glanced at him coldly, and Xing Yao quickly turned his gaze elsewhere, pretending to be a wooden statue.

Feng Shuo slightly flared his nostrils, catching that enticing scent he couldn’t ignore.

His hand, which was holding the brush, paused for a moment.

He asked, somewhat concealing his curiosity, “Where is Chu Changping now?”

Xing Yao hurriedly replied, “The emperor has issued a ban, and now all major provincial capitals are rigorously screening people entering and leaving the city. Master Chu is still in Yuzhou, mixed in with a merchant caravan. It may take some time for him to reach Xizhou.”

The housekeeper, Fu Xi, was quite perceptive.

After the Jiang family girl returned a cart full of items to the garrison, Feng Shuo’s face had been dark for several days; it was clear to him what was going on.

Initially, he thought the girl’s status was too lowly, but now that he knew she came from a noble family, Fu Xi hoped for the two to become involved.

While pouring tea, he casually mentioned, “I noticed that the Grand Empress Dowager has had a poor appetite lately. The girl from the Jiang family seems to be good at cooking. I dare to suggest inviting her over to make some snacks for the Grand Empress Dowager.”

Feng Shuo’s eyes brightened for a brief moment, but he maintained his stern expression and replied, “You can arrange these trivial matters.”

Fu Xi complied, smiling as he retreated.

Seeing the smile on Fu Xi’s face, an inexplicable annoyance rose in Feng Shuo’s heart, but he had no outlet for his frustration.

Even Xing Yao, who stood nearby, started to become bothersome. “You can leave too.”

Xing Yao thought that his earlier comment about the “good smell” had displeased the master and cursed himself for bringing it up.

Knowing that the master was too proud to lower himself to address such matters directly, he quickly made himself scarce.

Once the western courtyard was empty, Feng Shuo set down his brush and walked to the osmanthus tree outside the pavilion, where a birdcage was hanging.

He furrowed his brows as he looked at the beautiful green-feathered parrot inside and attempted to teach it, “Elegant lady.”

The parrot tilted its head, its round eyes looking adorably clueless, as if it couldn’t understand a word Feng Shuo was saying.

Patiently, he repeated, “Elegant lady.”

This time, the parrot tilted its head in the other direction, still staring blankly at Feng Shuo with a silly expression.

Feng Shuo was frustrated.

Qi Qing had said this parrot was clever, but where was the cleverness?

He tossed a grain of coix seed into the food trough and muttered, “Silly bird.”

This time, the parrot was no longer dumbfounded.

It flapped its wings and hopped around the cage, squawking, “Silly bird! Silly bird!”

Feng Shuo raised an eyebrow and directly opened the cage door.

In the moment the parrot fluttered out, he caught it in his hand.

The parrot seemed to realize its fate was in someone else’s grasp and promptly exclaimed, “Elegant lady!”

Fu Xi, who had just returned, stepped into the courtyard and heard the parrot’s loud call.

When he saw Feng Shuo’s murderous gaze turn toward him, he quickly retreated, but the smile on his face was impossible to suppress.

Feng Shuo: “……”

He fixed a dark stare on the parrot he was holding, and the parrot hurriedly chirped even louder, “Elegant lady!”

…..

Jiang Yanyi made large egg tarts with a small bowl; after eating two, she was so full that she burped.

There was still half of the egg tart filling left, and fearing it would go bad, she poured it all into the tart shells and put them in the oven to bake.

Having learned from her first experience, Jiang Yanyi managed the temperature better this time, and none of the egg tarts were burnt.

The tart shells had distinct layers of pleats, and the egg filling puffed up slightly as it heated, turning golden yellow.

The tarts, paired with the white porcelain pear blossom-shaped bowl beneath them, looked exquisite.

Jiang Yanyi thought it might be a good idea to include the egg tarts in the dessert menu of her hot pot restaurant.

She took the tarts out to cool and used a fire tong to transfer the unburned charcoal from the oven’s fire pit into a nearby earthenware jar, which was pressed down with a wooden board.

The charcoal would quickly extinguish in the oxygen-deprived environment.

This was a common method for ordinary families to collect charcoal; they would take the coals from the stove while cooking and store them in the jar, allowing them to save some for winter and reduce the costs of buying charcoal.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the front of the shop.

After the earlier trouble with Young Master Hu in the morning, both were cautious.

Jiang Yanyi personally went to the front, and through the crack in the door, she saw it was the steward from the neighboring Feng residence, so she opened the door.

Fuxi, accompanied by two young servants, smiled and clasped his hands towards Jiang Yanyi, saying, “I apologize for disturbing the neighbors.”

Jiang Yanyi hurriedly replied, “Not at all! You are too polite. There was a ruffian causing trouble in the shop this morning, but thankfully, the guards from your residence chased him away.”

Fuxi then expressed concern, “Did anyone from the neighborhood get hurt by that ruffian?”

“Not at all,” Jiang Yanyi stepped aside to let him in. “Please come in and have a seat; I’ll pour you a cup of tea.”

Fuxi waved his hand, saying, “If that ruffian comes to cause trouble again, just send someone to inform us at the residence. We have plenty of guards; one ruffian is nothing to worry about.”

“But I didn’t come just for tea. The Grand Empress Dowager has not had much of an appetite lately and often leaves her meals untouched. The people below can only find ways to make snacks that suit her taste. I heard that the neighbor is skilled in the kitchen, so I came to seek your assistance.”

Jiang Yanyi laughed and said, “I’m still quite inexperienced in making snacks, so I wouldn’t dare to show off in front of your cooks. However, by coincidence, I made some snacks today. Take a look; if you think they’re good enough, it would be an honor for my shop to present them to the Grand Empress Dowager.”

As she spoke, Jiang Yanyi signaled to Qiu Kui to bring the egg tarts from the kitchen.

Before long, Qiu Kui emerged with six egg tarts on a tray, and the sweet, creamy aroma filled the air instantly.

Fuxi had seen many delicacies from the royal kitchen while working in the palace, and upon seeing these snacks, he couldn’t help but praise, “These are truly exquisite!”

Jiang Yanyi picked one up and handed it to him, “Please give it a try.”

Fuxi took a bite and was quite surprised, praising, “Is this base made from Rohan cake? The crispness is wonderful! The top is as tender as milk tofu; the neighbor is indeed skilled!”

Rohan cake is named for its layered structure, resembling stacked monks, and the tart crust is also folded into several layers, which makes them somewhat similar.

“You flatter me,” Jiang Yanyi smiled.

After a moment of hesitation, Fuxi said, “I have an unreasonable request. Would you be willing to teach the chefs at the Mansion how to make this snack? I’ll pay a hundred taels for your recipe. Rest assured, the method will not be passed on; it will only be made for the Grand Empress Dowager at the Mansion.”

As he spoke, he took out a hundred tael silver note from his sleeve.

A hundred taels for a recipe for egg tarts is certainly a lucrative deal.

Having already spent quite a bit on setting up her shop, and needing to buy ingredients later, Jiang Yanyi was indeed short on funds.

The fact that someone from the Feng residence approached her at this time felt like a pillow was being offered just as she was about to doze off.

Jiang Yanyi was a bit tempted, but considering that the other party was from the Feng residence and that she had already received many benefits from them, she didn’t want to take advantage of them again.

So she replied, “As I plan to open a shop here in the future, I will still rely on the protection of your esteemed residence. Just for a recipe, how can I accept your money?”

She knew that the position of the Grand Empress Dowager was highly esteemed.

If she bought food from outside and something went wrong, it would implicate many people, leading to an unresolvable situation.

It was safest to give the recipe to the royal kitchen and let the chefs make it themselves.

Fu Xi chuckled and said, “As the nearby neighbor running a business, how can we let our neighbors suffer losses? The royal residence collects menus, and the prices are set; we shouldn’t refuse any further.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yanyi felt a lot more at ease.

It wasn’t just her being treated generously.

As the saying goes, money and goods should balance, so she wouldn’t feel guilty.

Since that day when Feng Shuo had his unusual antics, Jiang Yanyi had been reflecting on herself day and night, worried that she was taking advantage of him.

How could she describe this feeling? It was like having a male classmate confess their feelings for you.

You knew there was no possibility between the two of you, and you made it clear, yet when they bought you breakfast, you accepted it without hesitation.

That felt ridiculous.

Having confirmed the deal, Jiang Yanyi thought it was better to act sooner rather than later.

She asked Qiuqiu to keep an eye on the house while she accompanied Fu Xi next door for the teaching session.

The garrison was vast, with seven courtyards.

Once inside, Jiang Yanyi found herself doubting whether she was walking through a university campus.

The reason was simple: it was just so big…

Now she understood why Fu Xi had mentioned that the western courtyard was idle; with such a large courtyard and Feng Shuo being all alone, the only female head of the household was the Grand Empress Dowager, which naturally left some small courtyards vacant.

What Jiang Yanyi didn’t know was that Fu Xi had intentionally taken her on a long detour just to pass by the flower room.