SWDnovel Chapter 91 The Imperial Kitchen is a Curse Against Me!
Chapter 91 The Imperial Kitchen is a Curse Against Me!
Chapter 91 The Imperial Kitchen is a Curse Against Me!
Li Shimin roared.
The once lively scene instantly fell silent.
The eunuchs and palace maids were so frightened that they all knelt down on the ground. They didn't know whether to hide the candied hawthorns in their hands or throw them away. They could only hold them above their heads and tremble.
Little Sizi was startled and shrank back, but when he saw it was his father, he grinned.
"Dad! Look! The baby gave me these red berries!"
She proudly pulled the last string of candied hawthorns from the straw bundle, held it high, and presented it to Li Shimin.
"It's so sweet! And it even has red bean paste!"
Li Shimin looked at the string of red berries that had been bitten in half and were still covered in his daughter's saliva, and then at the whole string in Wang Dequan's hand next to him. His heart was filled with overwhelming jealousy.
So you won't eat the grapes I presented as tribute, but instead go and eat the wild fruits made by that cook?
They even shared it with the servants?
In your heart, am I not even as important as these servants?
"I won't eat it!"
Li Shimin flicked his sleeve, and that awkward feeling welled up inside him.
Little Sizi paused for a moment, slowly lowered her raised hand, and her little mouth started to pout again.
"snort."
Li Shimin couldn't bear to see her so aggrieved, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He snorted coldly, turned around, and headed towards the imperial kitchen. "I want to see what kind of bewitching potion Su Mu gave you, making you try to fool the princess with this roadside stuff!"
He strode forward, each step making a loud thud on the floor tiles.
Little Sizi blinked, looked at the candied hawthorn in her hand, then at her father's back, quickly stuffed the remaining half into her mouth, and scurried after him on her short legs.
"Wait a minute, Dad! There's still one with Pot!"
The backyard of the imperial kitchen.
Su Mu was tidying up the cutting board.
I made too much, there's still one string left.
But this string of beads is defective. When I was removing the pits, one of them wasn't completely cleaned, and a hard pit was left inside.
He casually placed the string of skewers on the side of the cutting board, intending to eat them himself later.
boom!
The courtyard gate was pushed open forcefully.
Li Shimin stormed in with a dark expression, his bright yellow dragon robe looking completely out of place in the bustling courtyard.
"Su Mu!"
Su Mu paused in his rag, looked up, and asked, "Uncle, what's wrong? Why are you so angry? Did you not get to eat the candied hawthorn that Si Zi brought back?"
Li Shimin was furious and pointed at Su Mu's nose: "How dare you say that! Si Zi's teeth haven't healed yet, and you're giving her this hard candy?"
If you break a tooth, I will hold you responsible!
"That's called candied hawthorn, it's crispy."
Su Mu wasn't annoyed and continued wiping the table. "Besides, it was to whet her appetite. Didn't she enjoy it quite a bit just now?"
"Cheer my ass!"
Li Shimin plopped down on the bench, staring at the empty pot bottom. "That's because she's never seen the world! My grapes—"
He couldn't continue.
Nobody eats grapes.
Just then, his gaze fell on the lone string of candied hawthorns on the side of the cutting board.
Bright red and sparkling.
It looks really good.
I just watched those servants eating with gusto; the sounds were really enticing.
In addition, it was lunchtime, and Li Shimin was so angry that he didn't eat much breakfast, and his stomach rumbled loudly.
"Is this what they call candied hawthorn?"
Li Shimin asked casually.
"hold head high."
Su Mu threw the rag into the water. "That's what's left over, it wasn't cooked—"
He hadn't finished speaking.
Li Shimin was quick and grabbed the string of candied hawthorns.
"Since it's leftover, it's a waste to throw it away. I'll try it for you and see what's so special about this thing that could bewitch the Rhinoceros so completely."
He was angry.
Half of his anger was directed at Su Mu, and the other half at that embarrassing bunch of grapes.
Li Shimin didn't stand on ceremony. He opened his mouth wide, aimed at the largest hawthorn on top, and took a big bite.
He wanted to prove that this thing was hard and tasted terrible!
Click!
The sound of the sugar coating cracking was indeed crisp.
Then, the teeth pierced through the soft, mushy flesh and closed heavily.
Just as Li Shimin was about to enjoy that soft and glutinous texture.
collapse!
A dull thud that made your teeth ache.
Li Shimin's expression froze instantly.
It was a hard, rock-hard fruit pit, which was stuck right between his front teeth, which he was clenching with all his might.
The recoil force traveled straight up the tooth root to the pulp, so intense it made you want to take off.
"Ugh!!!"
Li Shimin suddenly covered his mouth, his facial features contorted in pain, and tears welled up in his eyes on the spot.
Su Mu stood by the basin, still wringing out a rag, looking at the Tang emperor with a speechless expression.
"I love this."
What I'm trying to say is that it was a defective product; the pit wasn't removed.
Su Mu sighed and shook his head. "Uncle, that's not how you fight for food."
At the door, Xiao Sizi, panting as she caught up, happened to witness this scene.
She watched as her father covered his mouth and spun around in pain, and instinctively covered her own loose tooth with her little hand.
"Ah Ye————"
Little Sizi looked at her with sympathy, "Are you losing your baby teeth too?"
Li Shimin was in so much pain that he couldn't speak. He could only stare at Su Mu, then at the string of wicked candied hawthorns, letting out angry and frustrated whimpers.
This imperial kitchen is truly a nemesis to me!
The autumn wind blew into the Rissei-den through the window cracks, carrying a bone-chilling cold.
The candlelight inside the hall flickered wildly in the wind, and the shadows cast on the curtains seemed to stretch and sway.
Empress Zhangsun lay on her side on the couch, clutching the corner of the brocade quilt tightly in her hand.
The itching sensation in my throat felt like it had grown hooks, desperately pushing upwards.
She buried her face in the pillow, trying to suppress any sound, her chest heaving violently, her cheeks flushed with a sickly redness.
The breathing around him was steady and long; Li Shimin seemed to be fast asleep.
She didn't want to wake him.
The drought in Henan Province and the disputes in the imperial court these past few days have taken their toll on him, and only tonight can he finally get a good night's sleep.
.
.
But I just couldn't get that feeling out of me.
It felt like my lungs were stuffed with a wad of rotten cotton, completely blocked.
"cough----!"
Even with the utmost care, a muffled cough, which was being suppressed, still escaped.
Li Shimin, who had been fast asleep, suddenly sat up, his movements as quick as if he had been awake the whole time.
He didn't even bother to put on a robe before reaching out to pull Empress Zhangsun into his arms, his large hands gently patting her thin back to help her breathe.
"Feeling unwell again?"
His voice was hoarse, revealing a lingering weariness, but even more so, an undisguised anxiety.
Empress Zhangsun leaned against him, and having already broken her composure, she couldn't help but cough for a while.
This cough was so violent it felt like his lungs were being ripped out, and his body trembled like a leaf in the wind in Li Shimin's arms.
She finally managed to stop, and leaned weakly against the headboard, her forehead covered in a fine layer of cold sweat.
"Erlang—I woke you up."
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She smiled weakly, trying to reach out and pull up his slipped nightgown. "It's nothing, it's just that it's autumn and my throat is dry."
Li Shimin ignored him, his face darkening as he roared outside, "Imperial physician! Where have you been! Get in here!"
The shout was so powerful that it startled the eunuch on night watch outside, who scrambled to his feet to summon him.
Before long, the Imperial Physician rushed in carrying his medicine chest, his hat askew. He didn't dare to help him up, and instead knelt on the footboard to begin taking the pulse.