Encountered You

14; an idle life

Li Xi Yue looked at Emperor's golden edict that she received, and also the new official robes of a Wang, then she sighed contentedly inside, she received it along with many gifts from the palace, starting with gold, precious stones and antique, there's another Imperial Edict for her younger shu brother, because Li Xi Qiu succeeded as a new Xian wang, that boy also got a new title, Count He Wu. A second son of a wang was supposed to be a junwang but his title was a count, mainly because Han-shi was just a concubine of a Wang.

After sent these officials go, she looked at Yin Liu,

"go to the kitchen and tell Uncle Qu to cook Dandan noodles."

Yin Liu looked at her Mistress twice, then nodded, her mistress's love towards spicy food is showing. Li Xi Yue loved spicy food since she was a child because her maternal cousin always gave her a lot of Sichuan food when she went there. Sichuan food always tasted so good, at first she frowned but then as her taste bud being highlited, it was the best food, it was bold, of spiciness, numbness, savory, sour and sweet, it was so delicious.

Then she watched as Yin Liu bring food box, Yin Liu opened it and Li Xi Yue's mouth watering by it sight. The noodles looked red, and drenched in chili oil with vegetables, sichuan peppers, and minced mushrooms on top, she was still in her mourning period so she was not allowed to eat any meat. Yin Liu put these food in front of her,

"we have buns?"

"Uncle Qu scared that Junzhu wasn't going to be full and afraid that your belly didn't hold it if you eat a lot of spicy food so he steamed some vegetable buns and a bowl of vegetable soup."

Li Xi Yue frowned at the crystal clear vegetable soup, she saw carrots, ginger and potatoes, and green vegetables that looked crunchy. She took the chopstick and begin to eat, her tastebud became alive when the noodles entering her mouth, savory, nutty, spicy and smooky became one, she sighed again, this is so good!

Not long after the food was gone one by one, her maid servants gulped, their Junzhu surely loved to eat spicy foods. They knew the Junzhu's fond of spiciness but when Wangfei Zhang still alived, they couldn't ordered it because of the tradition that women shouldn't eat this kind of foods, Wangfei Zhang now passed away and the household was under Li Xi Yue's command, because Han-shi and her son already moved away to another place to set up their household, now Li Xi Yue could do anything she wanted to, eat whatever she wanted, sleep wherever she wanted, if she got bored, just invited some singers or storyteller from the outside, or listen to rumours and run account books and stabilized the Wangfu, the new Xian Wang was still a kid in the age of nine almost ten, so as long as Xian Wang didn't married yet, the whole household would be under their mistress.

After she finished her food, Uncle Qu sent other snacks, she saw those snacks,

"Hong Ying, pack some of these sweets and sent them to Wang Ye and An Le in the palace."

After that she practised her guqin.

They always sighed when they looked at their Mistress, when An He Junzhu wanted to do something, she would do that perfectly, she wanted to practiced guqin, her mother invited the best musician to teached her, and she perfected it in a year, she wanted to embroider, Wangfei Zhang let her practiced with her dowry Embroider and now she perfected it, even surpassed her own teacher.

"junzhu?" Bai Xia came foward,

"yes?"

"you always idle like this, nubi is scared of your health, why don't we let Captain of Xian Wangfu's guards to teach us some movements?"

"Martial arts movement?" she asked, Bai Xia nodded, then she also nodded, "well then, tell Captain that i want to learn some movements."

Bai Xia took a second look at her mistress then retreated cheerfully to tell the Captain, it's rare that Junzhu wanted to do something other than sit and sleep or eat, it was good for her.

"nubi will be back soon!"

Li Xi Yue looked at Bai Xia's retreated figure, then her mind became alert, "Yin Liu?"

"nubi is here."

"take paper and grind inks, there's something i need you to do."

After Yin Liu took out some papers and grins inks to her, she began to write, and wait for the paper to dry.

"send this letter to Old Duke Zhang. He will agreed after seeing this." Li Xi Yue let out some soft laugh, "oh, also send those yulong tea to them, i think jiujiu will appreciate my tea."

***

Shu: a concubine born

Junwang: a county Prince; Prince of the second rank

Guqin; Chinese: 古琴) is a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument.

Yulong tea: is a chinese name for Oolong tea

Jiujiu: maternal uncle/mother's brother