A master of metaphysics is farming.

Chapter 121 Hua Chao Zhang

Inside the He residence, He Sui'an squatted on the ground watching the fire, turning the large ladle towards He, and swallowing hard as he looked at the pig's trotters in the pot.

She hadn't cooked in a while, but today when she passed by the market, she saw that the butcher had such good pig's trotters, so she bought them without hesitation, determined to have a meal with them.

"I rarely see you cook. Is it just so you can have a bite of meat?"

Xiang He put one hand on her hip and pouted, "What else? I'll make you braised pig's trotters today, you'll absolutely love it!"

"Then I'll look forward to it."

"I have enough firewood; I'm just blanching it now."

He Suian stopped turning the firewood and sat on a small stool, staring at the fire. "I didn't go out with you today, so I missed out on a lot of excitement."

"It wasn't really that lively, but these people have such bad tempers, they even brought weapons to grab a stall."

A glint of fire flashed in He Sui'an's eyes, and he tugged at his sleeve. "Did Prince Shen ask anything?"

Xiang He glanced down at him, her face calm.

"He asked me if I was new here, and also asked who Brother He was. I guess Qi Xin had already told him everything."

"Well, that's fine."

With a large ladle twirling in her hand, Xiang He stared intently at the flesh-colored flesh. "What's wrong? Is there a problem with Prince Shen? Qi Xin said he wanted to meet him by Yaohu Lake tonight. Do you want to go?"

"Today is the Flower Festival; it will be more lively if we go out later."

It seemed he was going out. Xiang He didn't mind; going out was just for fun, so it didn't matter how many people were there.

"As the heir apparent, his status must be quite high. Marquis Changning is very favored by the emperor?"

The status of a person depends on how much respect they receive from the master of the Marquis's mansion. Today, seeing how respectful the head constable was to Shen Zhuoci, he must have received a great deal of imperial favor.

"The title of Marquis of Changning is an imperial conferment. The old Marquis was highly decorated in his time. Even though he is no longer involved in politics, he still holds considerable influence in the court."

The pig's trotter was rolling around in the water. Xiang He carefully scooped it up. "I understand. It's a marquis who was granted a title by imperial decree. His status is comparable to that of a marquis with the same surname."

"Ah."

"Come help, scoop all the water out."

He Sui'an patted the dust off his shoes and stood up. "Is there anything else that needs to be prepared?"

"Not for now, I'll be there in a bit."

While the two were busy in the kitchen, Xing Ji and Zhu Nan were outside turning over the soil. They had become addicted to hoeing the ground these past few days and found it quite interesting.

It was a peaceful and harmonious afternoon, with everyone busy with their own tasks.

By the time the fragrant braised pig's trotters were served, all four of them felt incredibly hungry.

"Your cooking skills are so good, I am ashamed to admit that I am not as good as you."

Xiang He carried the casserole out, sniffing hard, "I'll cook more next time. I'm getting tired of Xing Ji's food lately, it's too bland."

Eating only bland vegetables and meat all the time really kills my appetite.

Otherwise, the reason I couldn't resist eating pig's trotters today is because I was craving strong flavors.

-

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The Flower Festival, also known as the Day of a Hundred Flowers, falls on the second day of the second lunar month. People go to the city early to set up their goods, just to buy and sell a few items to take home.

The girls would dress up appropriately at home, agree on a time to go out for a stroll, enjoy the lanterns and sightseeing, which was called "treading on the spring."

There are also long tables that can be seen everywhere along the street, covered with red paper. For a fee, you can cut out paper flowers and hang them on flower branches in a place where they can be hung. This is called "appreciating red".

The vendors hung colorful lanterns and called out their wares incessantly.

The lanterns at night were indeed more beautiful. Xiang He admired the scenery on both sides and followed He Sui'an to Yaohu Lake. A lot of people had already gathered there. It was a festival again after the New Year, and everyone was in high spirits.

The two climbed the bridge and looked down. A painted boat passed by underneath, and women were dancing on it. Their dance was graceful and pleasing to the eye. Some wealthy people were throwing coins and silver down.

In the distance, there were two large boats with music playing on them, presumably belonging to wealthy families enjoying the lake.

"The capital city is really lively."

Hearing her sigh, He Suian moved to the other side of the bridge, and Xiang He followed closely behind.

"Haven't you gotten tired of playing these past few days?"

“How could I get tired of it?” Xiang He tightened the sachet around her waist. “There are still so many places I haven’t been to yet.”

“He usually takes Zhu Nan with him when he goes out, as he is familiar with the Jingzhong Road.”

"understood."

The two chatted as they arrived at the open space they had visited a few days earlier. Tonight, many tables and chairs had been set up, and a large group of people were gathered around, chatting and laughing.

"There are already so many people..."

Judging from their attire, most of them were dressed in high-class clothes. The most eye-catching was Lian Zhuo, whose woman wore gold and silver hairpins and had beautiful eyebrows and eyes, while the man was dressed in fine clothes and had an extraordinary temperament. They were clearly not ordinary people.

Just as Xiang He was about to pull He Suian away, someone rushed up to her, "Brother He! Miss Xiang! You've finally arrived!"

He Suian politely raised his hand, "It's been a long time, Brother Qi."

"Hello……"

Qi Xin seems to have no sense of propriety, always appearing at the most inopportune times.

He turned and looked at the long table in the distance. "Young Master Shen is waiting for you two. Come with me quickly."

Xiang He looked up and saw Shen Zhuoci waving at them, which aroused curiosity among the others.

"Who are those two people? That girl is dressed so simply, how could we know her..."

"Keep your voice down. The young master has many friends, and they must be extraordinary people."

One of the men glanced at her coldly and said, "That man is a lowly...abandoned son of the He family, and the woman is just a country bumpkin. She is nothing special."

Those who were discussing it immediately crowded around and asked, "How did you know?"

I ran into him a few days ago.

The speaker was none other than Xiao Quan, the man who had spoken so quickly that night.

His face was full of disdain, his contempt evident in his expression. "I don't know how he got to know the young master again. He must have some tricks up his sleeve."

"Stop talking, the young master will hear you..."

"He's not allowed to speak anymore?"

Those standing nearby, listening to Xiao Quan's words, didn't want to say another word to him, for fear of displeasing the young master.

Xiang He and He Suian arrived at the long table. Xiang He saw several familiar faces, the most familiar of which was He Yuncheng, the eldest son of the He family.

He nodded to He Suian, who merely responded politely, maintaining the appearances perfectly.

"This must be Brother He?" Shen Zhuoci gestured for the two to sit down. "I was greatly shocked when Brother Qi mentioned your deeds!"

"It was just something I happened to encounter."

The two sat down, and a servant brought them tea. Xiang He sniffed; the tea smelled good, but it was a bit too strong.

Seemingly noticing Xiang He's nose twitching, Shen Zhuoci glanced at Yin Zhong before turning to prepare tea.

"Miss Xiang saved people in time today and has been praised by the county magistrate."

"Oh."

Seeing her indifferent expression, Shen Zhuoci sat down and leaned closer. "Miss, I want to ask why stitches are better than medicine?"

Knowing full well the answer, Xiang He's expression remained unchanged as she looked into the distant mountains, and she replied, "It won't reopen the wound when you pull it."

"I see. We need to discuss this method with the military doctors."

Seeing that he was really thinking, Xiang He had no choice but to chime in, "Sewing also requires technique, and ordinary embroidery needles can only be used in emergencies."

"Is there some trick to this?" Shen Zhuoci asked curiously. "Tell me about it."

"This isn't over yet," Xiang He frowned slightly. He Sui'an took the tea from Yin Zhong and said, "Your Highness, today is a festival, we should be enjoying the flowers. Let's talk about these things another day."

"I was too hasty," Shen Zhuoci waved his hand again, and a maid brought over a lot of food. "Today is the Flower Festival to admire all the flowers. Did you hang any flowers on your head, Miss?"

"will not."

She remained indifferent, but Shen Zhuoci didn't find it inappropriate and continued to greet people with a smile.

But to outsiders, this village girl was extremely arrogant, showing such a cold face to the dignified prince, and was really ignorant of manners!

The woman with the flushed face peeked out curiously, "I just heard the young master mention today, did something interesting happen?"

As Shen Zhuoci and He Suian were talking, Qi Xin, who was sitting next to Xiang He, immediately perked up.

Let's talk about what happened today again.