Chapter 1270: [YeXi] Happiness
Han Yunxi succeeded!
After working an entire day, she changed a big pot of clear water into a small pot of concentrated soup. It was extremely fragrant and smelled tantalizing. All of the chefs were foodies and could guess the flavor of the soup just with a whiff! They were pleasantly surprised and only hoped to have a taste as soon as possible so they could analyze it for themselves.
Despite being cooks for so many years, they’d yet to make something so savory and fragrant as the empress’s soup! Han Yunxi was mesmerized by her work as well. She looked at the little bowl of soup and almost salivated. She knew the flavor was excellent without even tasting it!
However!
She still wanted a personal taste test! Carefully, she spooned up a mouthful and tried the first soon.
“Ohh…” she couldn’t help exclaiming, “Tut tut tut, it tastes amazing!”
Seeing this, all of the other cooks grew expectant. Han Yunxi drank a second spoonful, her face full of enjoyment. “Mm….the lingering aftertaste is world-class!”
The cooks couldn’t help gulping down saliva at her obvious pleasure. Han Yunxi ended up downing the rest of the soup and even licked her lips as she turned towards the kitchen staff. “It was extremely tasty, I’m not lying!”
All of the cooks fell to their knees. “Respectful felicitations to Esteemed Empress! Congratulations to Esteemed Empress on finally making soup!”
“All of you rise!” Han Yunxi grinned.
All of the cooks stood up, waiting for the empress to award them soup. But she only clapped the lid back on and began to seriously record the ingredients, quantities, and the different simmering stages of the fire.
So now that she’s succeeded in cooking, the empress won’t force us to taste the soup anymore? The half-starved cooks were about to lose it! This was more depressing than being forced to drink the failed soups!
After Han Yunxi finished recording all the relevant numbers, she quickly prepared some flour and mixed some soup stock with water to boil before cooking it all together. After months of study, she could create balls of dough with regular sizing. While they boiled, she used water to wash some fresh vegetables, poached an egg, then placed both atop the noodles, making the entire bowl of flour balls even more fragrant.[1]
Despite being an empress of a nation, Han Yunxi was actually smiling because she managed to make a bowl of doughball soup. Just what kind of joy was this? Something exclusive to women alone irregardless of status, rank, or skill. It was the happiness of cooking something for the man she loved.
After all, there was no guarantee that the best female chef could have a chance to make the man she adored a bowl of food! Afraid of the dish going cold, Han Yunxi picked up the bowl and stepped out using lightness techniques to find Long Feiye. Somehow, he’d managed to shake Rui’er off into Gu Beiyue’s hands. The boy would stay at the Grand Tutor’s estate that night. Han Yunxi ran into Long Feiye at the imperial study just as he was coming out.
Long Feiye immediately smelled the delicious scent and dropped his gaze to Han Yunxi’s bowl. He assumed the cook had made it ad she was here to deliver the food. He had no idea of her hard work in the kitchens cooking soups in the past few months.
Long Feiye wasn’t hungry and didn’t pay much attention to the bowl. But Han Yunxi was filled with expectation and placed it on the table without telling him she’d made it. “Eat it while it’s hot. Where’s Rui’er?”
“At the Grand Tutor’s.” In other words, he wasn’t coming home tonight. Han Yunxi would be a fool if she didn’t get what he was implying.
“Oh!” she sprawled lazily into a seat and picked up one of the memorials to peruse.
“Did you laugh your fill this morning?” Long Feiye asked with interest.
Han Yunxi knew he was coming to claim his debts and couldn’t help chuckling. “Emperor, do you dare to next time?”
“Looks like the empress hasn’t laughed enough.”
Long Feiye quickly walked in front of Han Yunxi with cold eyes. She didn’t fear his stare because she’d seen all sorts of cold and fierce ones. There was always a way to soften him up. However, when Long Feiye raised his hands, she grew alarmed.
“Long Feiye, you’re not allowed—”
Long Feiye moved in to trap her on the chair! This was a semi-curved seat with high armrest and an even higher back. His movements completely blocked Han Yunxi’s escape. She was afraid of being tickled! But he knew full well and went to tickle her.
Han Yunxi was stuck between laughing, begging, yelling, and resisting. “Long Feiye, enough enough!”
“I won’t laugh anymore alright? I’ll stop laughing, hahahaha…”
“Long Feiye, I plea mercy, mercy! Let go! Let go already!”
“Long Feiye, I was wrong…I was wrong!”
“Ahhh….help!”
Her voice and shouts had all of the shadow guards backing far away from the entrance. Zhao mama was about to come overwhen Xu Donglin abruptly stopped her. “Zhao mama, do you have business?”
“I’m just asking whether the crown prince is coming back,” Zhao mama said seriously.
“The crown prince went back with the Grand Tutor. Esteemed Empress just returned and will probably be staying in the imperial study tonight,” Xu Donglin said calmly.
Zhao mama gave a start before she cried, “Oh um…understood, understood! This old servant understands!”
Thus, she left cheerfully.
—
Inside the imperial study, Han Yunxi was already standing on the chair in a huff. She couldn’t escape, so she could only stand to make sure Long Feiye couldn’t tickle her armpits. But Long Feiye was so tall and his arms so long that all he needed to do was go on tiptoe to reach her. As his demonic claws approached, she retreated to the table in fear. As soon as she landed on the surface, she became floored. This was no ordinary table, but the emperor’s exclusive desk. All of the memorials from the civil, military, and other officials were all laid on its surface! Han Yunxi was about to jump off when Long Feiye grabbed her foot, forcing her to sit down.
“Don’t fuss! Let me get off!” Han Yunxi said seriously.
Long Feiye arched his brows with a wicked laugh before pushing Han Yunxi down against the table and pressing down on her. “Perfect, Zhen doesn’t want to fuss either,” he said in a low voice as his fingers wrapped around her waist.
Han Yunxi was alarmed. “Long Feiye, have you gone mad?”
Long Feiye looked even more smug. “Are you afraid?”
“Don’t fuss!” Han Yuxi was truly panicking.
He loved seeing her flustered and nervous. She’d laughed at him in the morning, but now he was laughing back at her. Han Yuxi shoved him.
“Get up, I won’t let you fool around!”
“If you say you’re scared then I’ll—”
“I’m scared!” she said before he finished.
Long Feiye couldn’t help laughing out loud. “Even if you say that, I won’t let you off.”
“You!” Han Yunxi fumed.
Long Feiye immediately covered her lips with his own. She struggled, but that only spurred him up as an evil demon! The two of them tangled on the ebony table before moving onto the long couch. After a few rounds, Han Yunxi felt like her waist was breaking. After all, Long Feiye had been denied for at least three months ever since Rui’er starting clinging to him! Without him here, how could Long Feiye spare Han Yunxi?
The amorous scenes played out in the quiet and stern imperial study was absolutely indescribable. When the naked Han Yunxi was finally left to sprawl on the couch, Long Feiye grabbed a sheet of silk to wrap her up and picked her up in his arms.
“Shall we go back to the bedroom?” his voice was always gentle after doing the deed.
Han Yunxi nodded lazily before suddenly recalling her food. She almost wanted to cry. All the hard work she’d put in to feed him ended up with him eating her instead. She comforted herself with the fact that it was happiness to cook for her beloved, but even more joyous to be devoured by him.
“Long Feiye, are you still hungry?” she asked.
Long Feiye was surprised to hear that kind of question now. Usually when Han Yunxi was too exhausted to move, he would whisper in her ear that he hadn’t had his fill yet. Today she was a different woman. With a sly grin, he asked, “Do you still want to feed me?”
Han Yunxi extended her jade-like arm from the sheets and pointed towards the cold bowl of food. “That, I cooked it myself. Will you try it?”
Long Feiye’s smile immediately froze on his face.
“Are you eating it or not?” she asked in a coquettish tone.
Long Feiye only coughed and didn’t answer.
Han Yunxi caressed his cheek before her little hand burrowed into his chest below his robes. “I cooked for an entire day. Are you eating it or not?!”
Hearing this, Long Feiye’s complexion turned even more ghastly.
Han Yunxi stroked his chest and said slowly, “Long Feiye, if you won’t eat then I won’t feed you next time!” There was a double meaning implied in her words and a clearly veiled threat.
How could Long Feiye resist Han Yunxi’s caresses? He placed her back on the bouch and stilled her restless hand. “Enough,” he said hoarsely.
Han Yunxi actually withdrew her hands and then shoved him away. “I cooked it for you myself. Are you eating it or not? Give me a clear answer!”
Although Long Feiye had smelled something delicious, he still feared Han Yunxi’s cooking skills.
“If you won’t then forget it!” Han Yunxi was angry. She was about to get off the couch on bare feet, but Long Feiye stopped her. Without a word, he carried the bowl to the door and yelled for Xu Donglin to heat it up. Han Yunxi smiled with joy as she hugged him from behind and leaned against his hard back.
“Long Feiye, I’ll make you something everyday from now on, all right?”
Long Feiye didn’t answer, but she was too lost in her silly joys to press the after. Soon enough, Xu Donglin delivered back the warmed bowl. Although the vegetables and eggs looked less than ideal, the scent was still delicious. Long Feiye sniffed it and picked up a few doughballs before gauging that the dish seemed decent.
He hadn’t paid it any attention when Han Yunxi first brought it in, so now he began to suspect whether Xu Donglin had switched the bowl of food for him.
“Hurry and have a taste!” Han Yunxi was filled with expectation.
1. So these “flour dough” soups are really tasty (even though they didn’t look that great) because they essentially absorb all the flavor of your soup. Yum.
