The deposed prince was calm and ate whatever his son offered. Though the food was cold and less tasty than when hot, it still had a faint meat flavor. 

The chicken skin was tasty, and the meat was tender, easily coming off the bone. 

This made his eyes light up slightly. 

It was better than what he remembered from the imperial chef.

Seeing his father eat, Zhou Zhaoheng smiled and said, “This is the best meat I’ve ever had! Sister Shu from Dongdong’s family made it. She invited me to play, and I could eat her roasted oranges. He didn’t cough after eating!” 

“Can I go?” he asked eagerly. 

The Crown Princess sobbed quietly. 

Earlier, she had cried over her son having no friends. Now, she was sad again, realizing he would never go to a friend’s house unless both of them died and the new emperor showed mercy.

The prince felt his heart, which had been calm for years, tighten as if it was suffocating. Sweat appeared on his forehead.

After a long time, he pressed his son close and said hoarsely, “Go to sleep.” 

Zhou Zhaoheng tried to look up but couldn’t. He lay down on his father’s chest and closed his eyes.

The child slept soundly, but the prince stayed awake, eyes open until dawn.

The next morning, Yan Qiushu had some insomnia but not as much as before, so she woke up early. 

When she got up, the sun wasn’t fully up yet. 

If this were modern times, many night owls would envy her schedule. 

She sighed, washed her face, and asked, “What did you make this morning?” 

“Dumpling soup. The kitchen sent fresh spinach, and we made green dumpling soup. Young Master Dongdong and Young Miss Wan’er loved it when we delivered it,” Shui Yu replied.

“It sounds delicious,” Yan Qiushu said with a smile.

There are many types of breakfast, but she doesn’t have new ideas every day. So every time she makes something, she teaches Aunt Xu and Shui Yu how to make it too. This way, if she wakes up late, they can make it for her.

As for Madam Xiao, the mansion’s chefs learned how to cook specifically for her. However, Madam Xiao didn’t enjoy eating very much. But when Yan Qiushu cooked, she ate more than usual. So, Yan Qiushu usually sent the food over to her after cooking it herself.

She didn’t like visiting other people’s homes, especially since this wasn’t her own. The yard that the Xiao family gave her was big enough, with plenty of space for activities. Sometimes she thought about opening up a vegetable garden, but she didn’t know how to handle the watering and fertilizing, so she gave up.

Yan Qiushu wiped her face, applied an ancient version of facial cream, and went to the dining room. Aunt Xu had just brought over some dumpling soup and pickled vegetables made in the mansion. The vegetables were quite delicious—salty, sour, slightly spicy, and perfect with rice.

They were a bit too salty, but this was necessary for preservation.

Yan Qiushu missed modern pickled radish, which was sour, spicy, crisp, and refreshing. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any white vinegar or Yunnan chili pepper available. She wondered where Yunnan was in this time and whether merchants were bringing goods from there to sell.

“I’ll have to raise this idea sometime,” she thought. In ancient times, transportation wasn’t well-developed, so goods from different places depended on traveling merchants.

Yan Qiushu took the dumpling soup and sipped a mouthful, enjoying the noodle fragrance while her thoughts wandered.

She enjoyed delicious food because it relaxed her and made her happy. Especially sweets, which uplifted her mood.

Wait!

Yan Qiushu’s eyes lit up. She immediately told Shui Yu, “Bring me some fresh milk. It must be fresh.”

“Okay,” Shui Yu replied quickly.

Shui Yu had followed Yan Qiushu for some time and heard many requests like this. Every time it turned into something tasty, making Shui Yu eager to help.

Some wealthy families had milk. At that time, people knew that drinking milk was good for health. Some families cared so much for their children that their seven or eight-year-old kids were still drinking breast milk. But this wasn’t something to speak about publicly, so cow’s milk and goat’s milk were common substitutes.

In just half an hour, the milk arrived after Yan Qiushu took a short walk. She looked at the still-warm milk and smiled happily. “If possible, send half a pound every day. Milk can be used to make a lot of delicious things!”

She then entered the kitchen, ready to cook!

One of the easiest dishes to make in ancient times is double-skin milk ^[1]a dessert made with milk and egg whites.. It doesn’t require butter or cream, just egg white and milk.

Some toppings like sweet red bean paste ^[2]which is mashed sweetened red beans. can be added to improve the taste.

First, the red beans are boiled until soft.

While they cooked, Yan Qiushu boiled the milk in another pot, stirring constantly. She poured the milk into porcelain bowls to cool, allowing a thin layer of milk skin to form on the surface.

This is the first layer of milk skin.

She beat the eggs, separated the yolk and egg white, and added ginger juice ^[3]is liquid from crushed ginger used to remove fishy smells.. Lemon would have been better, but lemons weren’t available, so ginger juice had to do.

Yan Qiushu poured the milk into the egg white carefully. The milk skin stayed on the bowl’s edge. The bowl didn’t need to be washed for the next use.

She then mixed the egg white with milk, added a little white sugar, stirred well, and poured the mixture back into the bowls. Finally, she covered each bowl and put them in the steamer for about 15 minutes.

During this time, the red beans finished cooking. Yan Qiushu added sugar and simmered them further. By the time the red beans were done, the double-skin milk was completely steamed.

Thanks to the egg white, the double-skin milk solidified and didn’t wobble when taken out.

As soon as the lid was opened, the kitchen filled with a rich milk aroma.

Shui Yu and Aunt Xu, who were watching, both took deep breaths and exclaimed, “It smells so good!”

“There’s no fishy smell, just a sweet fragrance!”

Aunt Xu craned her neck to see it more clearly. Surprised by its solid state, she asked, “Miss, why is this milk solid?”

“This is double-skin milk, which uses egg white to solidify, like steamed eggs,” Yan Qiushu replied with a smile, sniffing it as well.

It turned out perfectly this time.

The smell was fragrant and sweet!

But it wasn’t completely finished yet.

Yan Qiushu took a spoon and added a dollop of sweet red bean paste to each bowl. The white and tender double-skin milk contrasted beautifully with the red beans, making it even more appetizing!

***

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