The Great Tang's King of Provisions

Chapter 37: The Great Culinary Endeavor

The imperial physicians left, but Li Yuan and Li Shimin paid them no mind. The imperial physicians had come merely to check whether Changsun Wugu’s condition was stable, whereas Li Xuanba had simply released a bit of “immortal energy” with a wave of his hand, instantly stabilizing her condition. When you compare the two, isn’t it obvious whose advice to follow? “Second Sister-in-Law, these are my future wives, Mei Hanxue and Du Xingxuan. They’re both equally important to me.” Seeing that Changsun Wuguo was fine, Li Xuanba took Mei Hanxue and Du Xingxuan by the hand and introduced the two women—who had been designated as his wives—to Changsun Wuguo. “You two sisters are so beautiful—what a blessing for Da De,” Changsun Wuguo said, delighted to see that Mei Hanxue shared a similar aura to her own. She took their hands and began chatting with them in a soft, gentle voice. Seeing that Changsun Wuguo was not at all aloof, Mei Hanxue and Du Xingxuan breathed a sigh of relief and bowed to her in unison. “Mei Hanxue and Du Xingxuan pay their respects to the Crown Princess!” “Don’t call me Crown Princess Consort. Just like Da De, call me Second Sister-in-Law.” If anyone else had said this, Changsun Wuguo would have agreed immediately—after all, she was the Crown Princess Consort. But when faced with Li Xuanba’s two wives, she had no fondness for such formal titles and asked the two women to simply address her by the same name Li Xuanba used. “Second Sister-in-Law, Second Sister-in-Law.” “Ah! That’s better.” Seeing the three sisters-in-law hit it off immediately, Li Xuanba smiled faintly, stepped back into the kitchen of the Imperial Kitchen Bureau, and set about his culinary endeavors. Amid the flash of knives and swords, Li Xuanba cut the thick pork leg into chunks, blanched them briefly in boiling water, then poured soybean oil into the pot and stir-fried them vigorously. The moment the soybean oil was brought out, Li Yuan and Li Shimin were immediately stunned. After a while, as the aroma began to waft through the air, Li Yuan and Li Shimin snapped out of their daze. They examined the golden-yellow soybean oil closely and asked curiously, “Master Da De, is this soybean oil? The color looks almost identical to rapeseed oil!” “That’s right! This is soybean oil. Both soybean oil and rapeseed oil are vegetable oils. Rapeseed oil is pressed from rapeseed, while soybean oil is pressed from soybeans. Soybeans don’t yield as much oil as rapeseed, but the process is much simpler and more convenient.” Li Xuanba didn’t explain that this “simple and convenient” referred to his own method—he simply held two large iron discs and gave them a casual tap to extract the oil. If this were done during the Tang Dynasty, it would have taken at least a hundred people working together to achieve this level of oil extraction. Even if old oxen were used to pull the iron discs, it would likely take more than ten of them to produce the same result. Once the pork had been briefly fried and the aroma had released, Li Xuanba added a large pot of water to the cauldron, tossed in various spices, and directed the kitchen staff to stoke the fire as he began simmering the bright red braised pork. While the braised meat simmered on one side, Li Xuanba produced several dozen jin of flour with a wave of his hand and began kneading the dough to make the fragrant Baiji buns. Watching Li Xuanba produce snow-white flour with a mere wave of his hand, Mei Hanxue and Du Xingxuan were already used to it, but it drew looks of astonishment from Li Yuan, Li Shimin, and Changsun Wugu. Li Yuan and Li Shimin exchanged a glance, further strengthening their belief in Li Xuanba’s claim that he had entered the Immortal Realm and become a deity. Yet, while their curiosity was piqued, they refrained from asking—after all, they remembered Li Xuanba’s warning. While the adults refrained from questioning Li Xuanba, Li Chengqian and Li Tai, standing to the side, began whispering to each other with eyes sparkling. Li Chengqian took Li Tai’s hand and murmured, “Second Brother, Uncle Three is so amazing! Father and Mother told us that Uncle Three is an immortal.” Li Tai nodded, gazing enviously at the dough shifting shape in Li Xuanba’s hands. “Big Brother, should we learn some of Uncle’s divine powers? Then we could wave our hands and make things like this appear. That way, I’d never have to go hungry again.” Li Chengqian waved his hand, putting on a manly air. “You’re such a wimp. If you’re going to learn anything, learn how to turn beans into soldiers—that’s what a real boy should learn.” “But I’m still little—I don’t need that kind of power. I’d be happy just to have a full stomach,” Li Tai said. As soon as the words left his mouth, he rubbed his little belly; the smell of Uncle San’s cooking was making him even hungrier. At this point, Li Chengqian and Li Tai were still young, so the open and covert rivalries between them had not yet emerged; instead, they seemed to get along quite well as brother and younger brother. Seeing how close the two boys were, Li Xuanba was delighted. Noticing that Li Tai was getting a bit hungry, he waved his hand and produced a large platter of tomatoes, beckoning them over: “Gaoming, Qingque, come here and help your father and grandfather divide up these tomatoes.” Seeing the rare treat in Li Xuanba’s hand, Li Tai blinked and swallowed hard. “Third Uncle, what’s this? Can we eat it?” “These are called tomatoes. They’re sweet and sour. Each of you can have one first, but don’t eat too many—otherwise, you’ll get too full and won’t have room for the roujiamo Uncle San is making.” “Mm-hmm, got it, Uncle Li.” After Li Chengqian and Li Tai agreed, they didn’t start eating right away. Instead, they took the tomatoes outside first and gave one each to their elders—Li Yuan, Li Shimin, Changsun Wugu, and others—before happily tucking into the unfamiliar tomatoes. “Wow! So good—it really is sweet and sour!” After just one small bite of the tomato, Li Tai immediately grinned from ear to ear, his eyes narrowing into slits. At six years old, that sweet-and-sour flavor was his absolute favorite. “Woo-woo! Uncle San, these tomatoes are so good. Can we eat them often?” Li Chengqian took a bite of a tomato and immediately looked at Li Xuanba with sparkling eyes, as if eagerly anticipating the next time he’d get to eat them. Seeing the adorable, greedy little face of his second son, Li Xuanba burst out laughing: “Haha! If you want some, just come find Uncle Three—I’ve got plenty!” “That’s great! Later, I’ll bring a few tom… tomatoes back for Li Zhi and Li Shu too,” Li Chengqian said, jumping for joy at Li Xuanba’s words. He devoured the tomato in his hand in big bites, no longer worried that they’d run out once he finished them! Watching Li Xuanba, Li Chengqian, and Li Tai—who seemed to have no sense of age hierarchy—Li Shimin and Changsun Wuguo not only didn’t get angry but exchanged a glance, both seeing the hint of delight in each other’s eyes. As for their own children—the eldest of whom would one day become the Crown Prince—Li Shimin and Changsun Wugu naturally hoped he would mature early and learn to handle state affairs. However, the consequence of making them grow up too quickly was that whenever they saw Li Shimin and his wife, these children looked like little old men, each mimicking adult etiquette and completely losing the innocence they should have had. If they could regain their youthful innocence through Dade, it might not be a bad thing—especially since Tai’er had once been Dade’s adopted son. Amid the laughter and merriment, Li Xuanba’s several hundred white steamed buns were finally ready. Of course, to avoid any taboos, the group didn’t actually eat right there in the “restricted area” of the kitchen; instead, they took the meal—a simple yet hearty dinner—inside the Taiji Palace to enjoy it.