Unbridled Medical Expert Consort: Demon Prince, Be Good - Chapter 44

Chapter 44a: Looking for Bones in an Egg (Nitpicking)

This was a popular Chinese perch dish steamed in half red and half green broth. The soup emanated a dense fragrance. The garnish included red peppers and delicate green scallions. The appearance warmed the heart and delighted the eyes, with faint wisps of steam still rising from it. Luo Qing Luan used chopsticks to lightly pick up a piece of fish near its air bladder and sent it to her mouth for a taste. As expected, she frowned again.

“Um……so fishy.”

As if she had to force herself to swallow it down, she glanced at the already somewhat embarrassed Nangong Qing and said, “Your Highness, I’m afraid that this fish isn’t fresh. It’s a little……forget it. It’s better not to eat, the smell is not so good.”

Seeing this expression of hers, having only eaten a bite, yet no longer willing to even have another taste, how could the food only be ‘smell not so good’? He’s afraid the food must be unpalatable! Hearing this, Manager Qiao started sweating bullets.

Expression darkening, Nangong Qing was angry now. “Manager Qiao, so be it if one dish wasn’t good. Now, even the second dish is unpalatable. Are you wanting me to tear your sign board to pieces?”

This was the first time that he invited a young lady he admired for a meal, yet it was handled like this. How’s he going to show off his stately crown prince face? In the past, he even thought that Moon Encounter Pavilion’s food was pretty good. Looking at things now……if they ruin his important date, he’ll have to tear down this place, no less!

“Your Highness, please quell your anger. Even if this commoner has the courage to reach heaven, I still won’t dare to mess around. These are truly all ingredients which we received early this morning, then prepared with meticulous cooking methods by the grand chefs……how can they be……how can they be……” Manager Qiao just about wanted to cry. He was so terrified that he trembled from head to toes.

“Forget it, Your Highness, there are still so many dishes here, they can’t be all bad.” Luo Qing Luan smiled with difficulty, pretending to put on an appearance of not minding. She then straightforwardly had Manager Qiao leave, to avoid Nangong Qing getting angry at him again once she started speaking again.

“Hurry and get lost!” Nangong Qing shouted.

“Yes, yes.” As if he’d received amnesty, Manager Qiao withdrew, scared witless.

When only two people were left in the private room, Nangong Qing’s expression finally changed and he smiled. “Miss Luo, don’t force yourself, if it doesn’t taste good. Try something else. I’ve visited this Moon Encounter Pavilion before and felt that it’s acceptable, yet why today……”

In order to avoid further problems, he straightforwardly tasted the dishes first. After looking at some tens of dishes around them, Nangong Qing tasted Fragrant Tea Chicken and felt that it tasted pretty good, before suggesting to Luo Qing Luan, “Miss Luo, this dish is also quite famous at Moon Encounter Pavilion. I tried it and there’s no problem. Once in the mouth, it transforms, aromatic, tender, delicious. Will you give it a try?”

Having just finished talking, he added, “I’ve already tasted it and guarantee that there’s no problem. You’ll like it for sure.”

Actually, he was feeling nervous. Nangong Qing had not felt like this in a long time.

When did he ever felt like this before? Even when he was together with those young girls who admired him, no matter what they did, he’d always remained unruffled, indifferent, and calm. There was a huge difference this time. Maybe it’s because he truly fell for her, but those two mishaps earlier truly made him worried that he wouldn’t leave a good impression on Luo Qing Luan.

If the first time eating with him left her dissatisfied, how could their future be mentioned?

“Since Your Highness say that it’s good, then it must be good.” Luo Qing Luan casually agreed. She was nitpicking deliberately. How could she not find an excuse? With only a taste, even though she didn’t say that it tasted bad, she nevertheless shook her head and sighed in solemnly.

Nangong Qing’s heartbeat nearly stopped. What’s up again? He already tasted it himself and there was no problem!

“Luo, Miss Luo, actually……but what problem is there?” If something’s truly amiss again, he simply wanted to have people smash this Moon Encounter Pavilion to ruins! Abominable. Didn’t he merely want to properly invite a young woman who he admired for a meal? Unexpectedly……rage couldn’t help but rose again, but Manager Qiao wasn’t there, so there’s no way for him to blow up. Nangong Qing could only endure while he even had to put up a smile.

Luo Qing Luan creased her eyebrows. She hesitated for a moment before speaking softly. “Your Highness invited me for a meal, so I should thank you. It’s just that……” She smiled apologetically, appearing as if she was very regretful. “Your Highness praised Moon Encounter Pavilion so much previously. Maybe that raised my expectations too much. Actually, these dishes can be considered not bad if they were served at other restaurants. It’s just a pity……”

“This is called the higher the expectations, the worse the disappointment.”

After a soft sigh, her fair and delicate appearance carried a trace of gloominess, as if a cloud had covered up the moonlight. Failing to see her smiling expression again immediately made Nangong Qing very embarrassed, as he blamed himself endlessly.

Picking up a piece of Fragrant Tea again, Luo Qing Lu stated unenthusiastically, “For genuinely delicious Fragrant Tea Chicken, no matter whether it’s the choice of tea, or the chicken, both are vitally important. If some common tea leaves are randomly picked, or if the chicken has been raised for two or three years, the flavor of the resultant dish will absolutely be different.”

“The tea leaves must be picked among newly sprouted ones during sunny spring days in March. Only the tips of the sprouts should be used. After stir-frying carefully, cure them over a fire, then boil them in the best spring water from a snow mountain to produce tea water. As for the chicken, it can’t be over one year old. The best ones should be about ten months old. Cook it well in this tea water, so that the fragrance of the tea permeates completely into it.”

As she spoke, Luo Qing Luan watched the already somewhat shocked Nangong Qing. Her expression didn’t change in the least, as if she was speaking about something extremely ordinary. Her red lips opened gently. Like a connoisseur who had tasted delicacies from all over the world, she continued docilely. “Cooking the chicken in this way is merely the first step. When the dish is presented, the meat still needed to be sliced from the bones. It slice can only be as big as about one point three inches. The thickness needs to be uniform. If it’s too thick, the flavor can’t be thoroughly absorbed. If it’s too thin, the texture won’t be good. Look, Your Highness, this Fragrant Tea Chicken is cut into cubes. Even the bones haven’t been removed. Eating it like this, not only is it annoying, it’s also unrefined. This dish has already fallen to the lowest level. As for this most critical dipping sauce, sigh…..if we’re really particular, then this Fragrant Tea Chicken really shouldn’t be eaten. Surprisingly, the Moon Encounter Pavilion is proclaiming this to be their signature dish.”

Chapter 44b: Looking for Bones in an Egg (Nitpicking)

“Also this dish.” After she finished speaking, she pointed at the Pearl Honeyed Fruit dish at another table.

“The colorful appearance of this dessert is not bad. Snow white lychee, bright red watermelon, orange yellow peach, arranging them together does indeed warms the heart and delights the eyes. However, the chef is not a doctor and doesn’t understand that lychee is a yang fruit and its nature is heat inducing, not a good pair at all for the cold natured watermelon. As for this peach, the medical manuals say that eating a large amount causes bloating and even gives birth to skin sores, doing more harm than good. It’s even worse for pregnant women. Therefore, even this small dessert plate is not suitable for every customer at all.”

With a faint long sigh, Luo Qing Luan lay down her chopsticks appearing not to be interested in eating any longer.

Listening to what she said caused Nangong Qing to both blush with embarrassment and exclaim in admiration. Blush with embarrassment, because his status was so high, yet was incapable of satisfying his guest. Not only was the food not good, a young girl was able to point out so many faults, really hurtful to a crown prince’s prestige.

As for admiration……

Nangong Qing had never seen anyone who was capable of paying such careful attention to fine foods. Every single step in its preparation, every single pros and cons was detailed and penetrating. She simply could not be compared to an ordinary person. Previously, when he heard Luo Qing Luan complain that Moon Encounter Pavilion’s food was not tasty, he even thought that she was somewhat picky. He didn’t expect that she would be so proficient regarding fine foods!

As someone who already tasted culinary delicacies, she’d naturally be picky when asked to eat those common foods. Sampling and eating one’s fill was not the same thing. He invited her for a meal, so of course he hoped that she’d be satisfied. He wanted to find the best place and the best gourmet foods, but Luo Qing Luan obviously didn’t have a high opinion of this place. Perhaps even those foods that he usually eat from the imperial kitchen would be merely trash, that’s all.

Such a spirited, graceful, virtuous, and beautiful woman was truly rarely encountered!

He originally only thought that her personality was not bad forthright and magnanimous, not the least bit pretentious. This was what aroused his interest. Who would have thought, when he saw her the second time playing the zither, he took her to be a celestial being before discovering that Luo Qing Luan’s every movement was gentle and proper, as quick as a fleeting hare, while also as quiet as a maiden, simply making him falling in love at second glance.

Yet when he interacted with her alone, he discovered that he had still known her only superficially. He had not discovered much of her goodness, her beauty. Luo Qing Luan was like a cup of tea whose fragrance rose in spirals. The first sip was fragrant and sweet. The second sip was a taste to ponder on extensively. The third sip lingered with even more inexhaustible flavor, to the extent that it was difficult to give up on, difficult to relinquish, making him gaze upon it as a treasure.

Such a rare and precious woman, how could he not like her, how could his heart not be moved?

“Miss Luo is indeed knowledgeable. Hearing what you say today truly expanded my horizons.” Nangong Qing tried to control his heartbeat and continued in a rather awkward manner. “I have never seen anyone as knowledgeable as Miss Luo, yet not arrogant, not hot-tempered, nor fond of inflated reputations. Today I rashly invited Miss Luo to lunch. It seems that I’ve really been rude.”

Slowly standing up, Luo Qing Luan brushed her clothes before responding. “Your Highness don’t need to blame yourself. I was just picky, that’s all. Today, I’ve already tarried for such a long time, I’m afraid that Father and Father’s Concubine are getting worried. I’d better take my leave.”

“This……”

He was originally going to chat a bit more with her, but Nangong Qing was also worried that Luo Qing Luan might speak about something he didn’t know, such that he had no way of answering. Thinking it over, he decided to forget it. Today had been quite humiliating already. How could he still find an excuse to interact more with her?

Without any other option, Nangong Qing could only send Luo Qing Luan downstairs and had someone fetch a horse carriage to send her home.

Once she returned to her own room, Luo Qing Luan finally returned to normal.

“Oh my god, so tiring. Pretending to be a virtuous lady is really restrictive, so painful.” A moment ago, she couldn’t even speak loudly. Even though she was already getting very impatient, she still wanted to pretend to be gentle and submissive, racking her brains to say those picky things. If she didn’t deliberately pretend to be dainty and particular, maybe Nangong Qing would even think that she was really finding faults to complain about, looking down upon his status as a crown prince. If by chance this incurred his wrath and he deliberately looked for trouble with her like that third princess, then it’d be disastrous.

It’s not that she’s afraid. She just didn’t have the time to deal with these boring people.

If Nangong Qing knew that Luo Qing Luan thought of him as a boring person, he probably wouldn’t know whether to laugh or cry. To think that as a majestic crown prince, which female in the capital didn’t hope to me married to him? Yet he surprisingly had been disregarded by someone.

Apparently, Wang Xue Ru had also been scared stiff by what Luo Qing Luan did at the imperial palace today and didn’t come to make trouble for her. She just rested in her room. An entire afternoon passed by with her writing and drawing. In the evening, she ate dinner with Dai Yue. Luo Qing Luan returned to her room and had just put away the new novel she wrote, planning to visit Boss Li as soon as possible.

She just finished hiding the good stuff when Luo Qing Luan felt something. There seemed to be a disturbance outside in the distance.

It’s just about time to go to sleep already. Who was still being noisy outside? Moreover, this residence had always been managed very strictly by Wang Xue Ru. No servant would dare to make a racket randomly. Whose voice was it this time?

After asking Dai Yue about it, she found out the reason.

It’s not that Wang Xue Ru didn’t have the time to come give her trouble. Rather, she was angered enough to be dizzy and seized a servant girl to vent her anger. At this time, she was in her room ferociously punishing the servant, enough to cause a ruckus in the General’s Mansion in the middle of the night.

“Isn’t she most cautious normally? Why is she throwing a fit so late at night? Isn’t she afraid that more wrinkles will grow on her face?” Luo Qing Luan faintly smiled and continued, “Dai Yue, stealthily go and see what in the world happened.”

Chapter 45a: How Did Her Mother Really Die

After some time, Dai Yue returned, her little mouth pouting in sadness.

“What is it, Dai Yue, what did you hear?” From what Luo Qing Luan could see, Dai Yue looked more like the person who’d been punished rather than someone else.

Just now, she secretly asked around. What she found was that there was a huge ruckus at the Side Madam’s courtyard. It appeared as if someone was being punished to be an example to others. Not only was all of the servants commanded to watch, moreover, a servant was told to ruthlessly strike that person’s face. Dai Yue’s face couldn’t help but hurt just from watching.

Only after hearing what Nanny Song had to say later on did she know that a servant maid seduced the master and was discovered by the side madam, resulting in the severe punishment. In the end, that servant girl’s face was beaten swollen, then dragged out and driven away from the General’s Mansion.

“Nanny Song told me that Sister Bitao absolutely did not seduce the master. Basically, the side madam doesn’t like her, so she purposefully found an excuse to beat and send her away.” Once she recalled this, Dai Yue’s little face frowned, both alarmed and terrified.

“So be it, if she doesn’t like her, just a little servant girl. Who wouldn’t Father’s Concubine punish whenever she wanted to? During these many years, she depended on Father not marrying anyone else and acted like she’s the mistress managing this household. Now that Elder Sister is Fifth Prince’s side consort, how can she still place other people in her eyes?”

Luo Qing Luan continued indifferently, “forget it. As long as she doesn’t punish you, it’s fine. There’s no need for us to mind other people’s business.”

She originally didn’t take this matter seriously, because this kind of matter happened frequently in the past. Who would’ve imagined that Dai Yue would say, “My Lady, it’s not like that. If the side madam punishes someone else, I wouldn’t have talked about it, but I heard Nanny Song say that Sister Bitao served our Madam before in the past.”

Eyes flashed, Luo Qing Luan was somewhat startled. “What? She’d served my mother before?”

She didn’t know about this at all. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have disregarded the matter. Her mother passed away early. She never even glanced at her mother before, and she didn’t have any status in the General’s Mansion at all in the past. Besides only Dai Yue to serve her, and Nanny Song to look after her, how would she know about anything that happened previously?

“What in the world did Nanny Song say to you? Dai Yue, tell me.” Subconsciously, Luo Qing Luan’s tone of voice deepened.

“My Lady, I also didn’t know anything previously. If it wasn’t for your asking me to make inquiries tonight, and I wouldn’t have happened to run into Nanny Song there. It was because she could no longer bear to watch that she spoke a bit more than usual.”

As she spoke, Dai Yue displayed some lingering fear and softly continued, “I heard that during these years, of the servants that the side madam had either beaten to death, or sent away, half of them had once served our Madam. Even those people who occasionally talked about the Madam had been sent away by the side madam. I also don’t know why the side madam hates the Madam so much when she’s already passed away for so many years.”

If it’s truly like that, could it be that there’s an issue in there somewhere?

Luo Qing Luan originally as going to have Dai Yue go find Nanny Song to get to the bottom of the matter, but she saw that it’s getting too late and was afraid of disturbing Nanny Song’s rest. Nanny Song was getting old and her health was poor. She’s already tired enough during the day. It’s better to let her rest properly at night.

Recollecting the past, it’s not that Luo Qing Luan hadn’t inquired about matters pertaining to her mother, but no one ever knew what happened. Either those servants wouldn’t tell her, or they simply ignored her. At the time, she was timid and stupid and basically also didn’t have the inclination look for answers. Even though she currently already turned over a new leaf, she also didn’t truly suspect anything before.

It seemed that she should properly investigate this matter now.

Why did Wang Xue Ru want to either kill, or send away all of her mother’s servants? Was it truly only because they made mistakes, or possibly merely because they made Wang Xue Ru unhappy? Or was there some unspeakable secret?

Early the next day, after breakfast, Luo Qing Luan prepared to step out. Dai Yue already asked around. That servant named Bitao from last night was already sent away after she was beaten. She was sent back home to never return. She was beaten so severely. If her injuries were not treated right away, she would very likely become totally disfigured.

Since Nanny Song knew something, but didn’t tell her, Luo Qing Luan guessed that there was some purpose behind it. However, this didn’t prevent her from making some inquiries first, so that she could learn something before getting to the bottom of what in the world happened that time.

Bringing Dai Yue, the two of them changed into men’s clothes and as before, they left through the back door.

But when Luo Qing Luan found the beginning of the remote alley at the north of the city, she saw people completely surrounding the area before her. From their discussions, she found out what happened.

Bitao was actually chased and killed by debt collectors. Not only her, even her parents, along with a very young younger brother had all been killed. Currently, the authorities were investigating, but from the looks of things, it was just for show. They casually looked at and walked around the little dwelling. Very likely, they simply wouldn’t be able to find out anything significant at all.

Luo Qing Luan had originally wanted to find Bitao to ask her what actually happened last night. If she found out that Bitao really served her mother before, then she could even give her some money to treat her wounds. Who would’ve known……she actually came late.

She absolutely didn’t believe that this scene was as simple as a case of being chased down and killed by a debt collector. If things were truly like that, then how could the entire street full of people know what went on so quickly? Shouldn’t those debt collectors be more discreet and cleaner, to avoid being discovered?

More likely, there were people who deliberately spread rumors in an attempt to find a reasonable justification for the deaths to hide the truth of this matter. These deaths were so coincidental. As it happened, Bitao was punished just yesterday and was already killed today. The implications within these events truly caused Luo Qing Luan to ponder.

“Let’s go, Dai Yue, let’s go home.”

“My Lady, Sister Bitao died so miserably……” Dai Yue was somewhat aggrieved, the rim of her eyes turned entirely red.

“If she truly died unjustly, I won’t easily let the murderer go free.”