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The Emperor harbored special feelings for Yan Langqing, finding her more pleasing to the eye than others. But even so, he couldn’t lie to himself and say that the zongzi she made were tastier than the one made by Lin Dan. The result of the competition was already decided and nothing he said now could change that. It was better to stay true to his taste buds.
With that in mind, he set down his chopsticks and slowly said, “Lin Dan, you’ve won.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, a crisp sound echoed through the private room— it was Yan Langqing’s chopsticks falling to the ground. Everyone turned to look at her, only to see her eyes reddened, her face pale, and her hands and feet trembling slightly, seemingly overwhelmed. Her father, Yan Shouye, was intensely glaring at Lin Dan, his face full of unwillingness and resentment.
Lin Dan bowed respectfully, her face showing no trace of triumph. “In that case, may Cook Yan fulfill the wager and return the golden knife and the recipe book.”
Yan Langqing struggled to open her mouth seemingly wanting to speak, but Yan Shouye, already furious, shouted, “No! That belonged to my father. It’s a Yan family heirloom. Why should we give it to you?”
“Grandmaster entrusted it to my father before his death, so it belongs to him. Back then, when you wanted to take it back from me, you relied on your culinary skills. Now I’m reclaiming it with my skills— what’s wrong with that?”
Yan Shouye wanted to argue further, but the Emperor had already furrowed his brow, his expression showing displeasure. Yan Langqing immediately pressed her father’s shoulder and said hoarsely, “I brought the items with me. I’ll give them to you right away.” She had intended to show her magnanimity, but she hadn’t expected to truly lose to Lin Dan. However, the common people had already judged her as the loser and the Emperor had personally acknowledged it. No matter how unwilling she was, what could she do?
Lin Dan placed the golden knife aside, opened the Yan Family’s Recipe Book, and raised her brows in surprise. The book, which should have been reduced to just sixty pages after Lin Baotian’s portion was returned to Lin Dan, was now thicker than it had been before it was divided. This showed that Yan Langqing had been diligent over the years, developing many new dishes and adding new glory to the Yan Family’s Recipe Book.
However, the more Lin Dan read, the more her brows furrowed, until she finally sneered. She tore out a page and handed it to a cook who had come to watch the competition, saying, “This braised deer tendon, if I recall correctly, was developed by Master Liu. Now it’s returned to its rightful owner. This clear stewed softshell turtle belongs to Cook Fang. Here you go……” She continued to tear out many pages of the recipe, returning each to its original creator.
These cooks glanced at Yan Langqing and then at the Emperor, unsure whether to accept or refuse.
The Emperor looked puzzled, not knowing what Lin Dan was up to, but Prince Cheng sneered. “Your Majesty, perhaps you are unaware that this Cook Yan is quite domineering. If she can’t create dishes that please you, she forcibly takes others’ recipes from the common folk and forbids them from selling the dishes again. She claims that once a dish is served to you, no one else can eat it. Otherwise, it’s a crime of great disrespect. If that’s the case, Your Majesty, you should make a list of foods to avoid, so that we won’t accidentally commit a grave mistake!”
Prince Gong, pretending to be alarmed, spread his hands and said, “If that’s true, wouldn’t we all starve? If Your Majesty eats meat, we can’t eat it, and if Your Majesty drinks water, we can’t drink water either?”
Prince Cheng quickly reassured him, “Don’t worry, you won’t starve. You can dine at Yan Family’s Restaurant. Although other places aren’t allowed to serve dishes the Emperor has eaten, her restaurant continues as usual. Others may fear the royal authority, but her family does not— they have ‘Imperial Cook’ Yan backing them up!”
The two princes’ back and forth exposed the Yan family’s underhanded tactics in suppressing their peers, even accusing them of overstepping royal authority, which terrified Yan Shouye, leaving him trembling and pale. Yan Langqing looked at her father in disbelief and bitterly cried out, “Father, what’s going on?” Then she immediately knelt down and pleaded with the Emperor, “Your Majesty, I have never said such things. I was deceived as well. Please forgive me!”
The Emperor gazed down at her, his eyes, usually warm, now cold as ice. When Yan Langqing raised her head and met his gaze, her heart skipped a beat. She had lived in the palace for a long time and rarely returned home, never imagining that her family would act so tyrannically. She only wanted to learn a few more dishes and sincerely support common cooks, but instead, she harmed them. No wonder the cooks invited today had such stiff expressions when they saw her, as if they were angry yet dared not speak, and somewhat disdainful.
But how others saw her was no longer her concern. She only worried that the Emperor might be displeased with her. Young Master Tang had already grown tired of her ten years ago. Now she had lost the golden knife, the recipe book, her reputation, and the hearts of the people— she could not afford to lose the Emperor’s favor as well. Without the Emperor, after today, Yan Langqing would be nothing.
Yan Shouye was so frightened that he dared not say a word, only following his daughter and kowtowing. When he was flaunting his power and suppressing his peers, he never imagined that this day would come.
Lin Dan removed all the recipes the Yan family had stolen and set them aside, ready to return them to their rightful owners.
The Emperor glanced at Yan Lanqing before furrowing his brows and saying, “Rise. Since your restaurant has already closed, let’s forget about the past. Whoever those recipes belong to, take them back. Continue to prepare these dishes as you always have. I am the Emperor, but I am also the ruler of all the people. Whatever I can eat, everyone in the world can eat.”
A light remark had surprisingly let the Yan family’s father and daughter off the hook. Prince Cheng and Prince Gong showed discontent, but they said no more.
Lin Dan was still flipping through the recipes. When she reached a certain page, her calm expression finally showed a ripple of emotion. “If I’m not mistaken, this ‘Wanfu Meat’ is Cook Yan’s signature dish, right? The Emperor noticed your culinary skills and summoned you to the palace after tasting it.”
Yan Langqing’s expression, which had just relaxed, tensed up again.
Lin Dan glanced at the other party, her tone laced with a hint of sarcasm, “But who would know, the authentic Wanfu Meat isn’t made this way, nor is it even made with meat. Cook Yan, I recall you once swore you’d never make my father’s dishes, so why did you use his hard work to secure your own future? You’re truly one to say one thing and do another……”
Yan Langqing’s lips trembled as if she wanted to retort, but she was too nervous to speak. Yan Shouye, however, shouted indignantly, “Lin Dan, don’t talk nonsense! That dish was clearly invented by my family’s Langqing herself, I saw it with my own eyes!”
Lin Dan closed the recipe book and said slowly, “Really? Did she invent it herself, or was it passed down to her by one of my father’s pupils? If I’m not mistaken, both of my father’s pupils are currently head cooks at your Yan Family’s Restaurant.”
“You—, you have no proof, you’re slandering us!” Yan Shouye was so furious he nearly spat blood, while the person in question, Yan Langqing, remained silent with a pale face.
Lin Dan opened the door and said, “Whether it’s slander or not, let’s see after I make the real Wanfu Meat.” With that, she headed straight to the kitchen.
The Emperor gave Yan Langqing a deep, scrutinizing look before unhurriedly following Lin Dan. The others, unable to sit still, quickly rushed over to join the spectacle. Today’s competition had been one dramatic twist after another, truly thrilling and exciting! Who would have thought that Shopkeeper Lin, who seemed doomed to lose, would triumph under the pressure of imperial power? And who could have guessed that Cook Yan, who appeared so gentle and kind, was actually a woman of such deep schemes and ruthless methods?
Lin Dan was the Emperor’s esteemed guest, and when she requested the use of the kitchen, the shopkeeper dared not refuse. He immediately cleared the largest stove and prepared the ingredients for her. Lin Dan picked up a piece of tofu, cut it into two-inch squares, and carved a beautiful ‘wan’ character on one side before placing it in a rich, aromatic bone broth to simmer. After about two-quarters of an hour, she took it out, heated some master stock in a pan, and added seasonings to reduce the liquid to a thin layer of sauce. She then placed the tofu blocks into the sauce to simmer, allowing only one side to be submerged.
Prince Cheng reminded her, “You haven’t added enough sauce. The tofu blocks aren’t fully submerged, so they won’t absorb enough flavor.”
Lin Dan smiled faintly. “Your Highness, you might not be aware, but this is exactly the flavor I’m aiming for.” Another two-quarters of an hour later, she carefully removed the tofu blocks and arranged them neatly on a plate. When everyone took a closer look, they saw that the tofu had turned a shade of light brown on one side and remained milky white on the other, giving it a rather peculiar appearance.
Lin Dan then placed the tofu blocks into a preheated oil pan, frying the side with the sauce until it became crispy and fragrant, forming a golden crust. The other side, untouched by oil, remained tender and white. After this step, she simmered the tofu blocks in bone broth again, then in a red broth, and finally steamed them. To finish, she poured a thick sauce made from finely chopped fish, chicken, and pork over the steamed tofu blocks, garnishing them with minced ginger and scallions for extra flavor.
The tofu blocks, having absorbed the essence of the broths and master stock, had become incredibly flavorful. The surface, having taken on the color of the sauce and been fried, looked exactly like pork skin. If one hadn’t seen it being made, they would have thought it was a bowl of braised pork, not tofu.
The Emperor was the first to taste it and his eyes immediately lit up. There was no mistaking it— this tofu not only looked like braised pork but also tasted like it, without the greasiness of meat, yet full of its rich, soft, and savory flavor.
Lin Dan slowly explained, “My mother loved eating meat but was afraid of gaining weight, so my father thought of creating a dish she could eat without worrying about getting fat. And so, this ‘Wanfu Meat’ was born. It combines all the strengths of meat dishes while discarding the downsides. It’s neither fatty nor greasy but soft and fragrant and melts in the mouth. My father told me about this dish, and he also told his two pupils, but it was never recorded in the Yan Family’s Recipe Book. At that time, it wasn’t even called Wanfu Meat but ‘Wanzi[1]symbolizes the feet, or the footprints, of the Buddha Meat’, because only when the tofu was carved with the ‘wan’ character could it fully absorb the flavor. Cook Yan, you must have learned this recipe from my father’s pupils, but you couldn’t get the tofu to taste like meat, so you used pork instead, didn’t you? This ordinary vegetarian dish turned meat dish somehow became the special Wanfu Meat you claimed was created for the Emperor’s birthday. Cook Yan, you’re quite skilled at guessing the meaning behind the dish, but if you had applied all that effort to your cooking, you wouldn’t have lost to me today.”
Without sufficient experience and painstaking research, even with a recipe in hand, an ordinary person would struggle to recreate the dish. They wouldn’t know how to handle the ingredients, control the heat, or balance the seasoning. A slight mishap with any of these elements would completely alter the dish’s flavor.
Just as Lin Dan had said, even with the recipe, Yan Langqing couldn’t make the tofu taste like meat, so she had to use actual meat instead. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to create her own dishes, but when she was driven out by the Marquis back then, it was during the most uncertain time of her life. She was desperate to make a name for herself, to establish a foothold in the capital, to prove herself, and in that desperation, she took the wrong path.
Seeing the Emperor’s scrutinizing and doubtful gaze, Yan Langqing’s barely straightened back finally began to slump. This time, she had lost completely, her reputation ruined beyond repair!
References
↑1 | symbolizes the feet, or the footprints, of the Buddha |
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pocketrobbin[Translator]
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