My Empress is My Bad Girl - Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Spicy Boiled Pork

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Zhao Yuanjing’s eyes looked over the table and noticed that there were two plates filled with food that was reddish and glistening with oil.

Before anyone could say anything, he’d walked over and sat down at the table.

His initiative made Lady Lin of Decorous Service’s heart leap for joy. It was her birthday after all, so she hoped that the Crown Prince would try to be nice.

After that, the ladies sat down.

Lady Lin of Decorous Service even took out a bottle of good wine from her own collection and personally poured the Crown Prince a glass.

“Your Highness, have some wine.” She held the wine glass with her fair, slender fingers and brought it up to Zhao Yuanjing’s lips.

Zhao Yuanjing pushed her hand to the side abruptly. “Move aside, stop getting in the way of my food.”

Lady Lin of Decorous Service didn’t know what to say to that.

Consort Chen felt like laughing inside when she saw how the prince had snubbed Lady Lin of Decorous Service.

Zhao Yuanjing’s eyes were fixed on the two dishes on the table. He couldn’t care less about the expression on Lady Lin of Decorous Service’s face. He pointed at the dishes and asked, “What are they?”

Consort Chen and the others finally turned to look at the two shiny dishes on the table.

All of them ate separately in their own quarters. They had smelled something strange earlier, but nobody had been particularly bothered by it.

When they finally looked at the dishes on the table, they were shocked.

“What is that? That smell…” Consort Chen used a handkerchief to cover her nose and didn’t bother hiding the disgust in her eyes. “It looks so weird and gross…”

Lady Lin of Decorous Service also frowned when she looked at it and turned to ask her maid, “What is this? How dare you serve this food?”

The maid replied very nervously, “These dishes were specially prepared by the small kitchen for His Highness.”

Over the last two days, the Crown Prince and these three ladies had eaten the new dishes from the kitchen, and they had been very happy with them.

Consort Chen snapped, “Don’t they know that His Highness doesn’t have a good appetite? How could they make something so stinky for him to eat? They must be up to no good.”

She sounded as if she was reprimanding the kitchen, but she was secretly targeting these words at Lady Lin of Decorous Service also.

Of course Lady Lin of Decorous Service could see that.

Lady Lin of Decorous Service felt so hateful at this moment. She told herself that she was going to teach those reckless women in the kitchen a good lesson later.

“Your Highness, I’m so sorry. I was too careless, and I actually allowed something like this to be served to you. I’ll take it away right now.” Lady Lin of Decorous Service looked sad and guilty as she went up to the Crown Prince and stretched out her slim fingers to take the dish away.

PAK!

Zhao Yuanjing rapped a chopstick on the back of her hand and said in a displeased voice, “Did I say you could touch my food?”

Lady Lin of Decorous Service winced and pulled her hand back. There was a bright red mark on the back of her hand now.

Tears started to well up in her eyes. “Your Highness…”

Zhao Yuanjing glanced at her. “Aren’t you going to sit back down to eat?”

Lady Lin of Decorous Service didn’t dare contradict him, so she had to return to her seat feeling sad with tears in her eyes.

Consort Chen was so pleased to see her in this state, and she wished she could throw a huge, noisy party to celebrate this.

There was no point in being so coquettish. His Highness didn’t care about anything except this food.

Zhao Yuanjing had already picked up his chopsticks and stuffed a piece of meat into his mouth.

It was spicy.

And fragrant.

Zhao Yuanjing gobbled it down, and then quickly reached for a second piece of meat.

His fair, handsome face immediately started to redden. By the time he’d started eating the third piece of meat, the tip of his sharp nose had begun to perspire.

His aide, Liu Dequan, quickly came forward with some tea.

Zhao Yuanjing drank a huge mouthful of tea and rested for a while. The redness of his face slowly faded.

He asked the maid, “What is this called?”

“This is spicy boiled pork,” the maid quickly replied.

Zhao Yuanjing nodded slightly, then picked up a piece of meat from the second plate and started chewing it.

Hmm. It did smell a bit weird, but it was chewy and yummy.

Also, it wasn’t too spicy.

He ate five or six pieces at one go before putting his chopsticks down.

Liu Dequan and the maids were all in shock.

Consort Chen, Lady Lin of Decorous Service, and Filial Lady Guo of Excellence all stopped eating, because they were watching him eat.

Since when did the Crown Prince suddenly have such a good appetite?