Song Shi knelt with perfect form. The two people before her would, without a doubt, become her powerful backers in the future, so she felt no qualms about kneeling at all.
Qi Jinrui stared blankly ahead, not sparing Song Shi or her porridge even a glance.
Princess Consort Li[1]The title for the principal wife of a prince in a Chinese-style noble household. Specific court titles varied by dynasty; this story uses a fictional setting. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });, however, looked at it with bright interest. The porridge was vibrant in color, and its fragrance was delicate and clean. Just looking at it for a little longer made her feel a bit hungry. She turned to watch Qi Jinrui’s reaction. He raised a hand, preparing to cover his nose.
“?”
Was this going to be a failure?
Just as Song Shi’s heart sank, Princess Consort Li spoke, her voice carrying a hint of entreaty.
“Jinrui, Mother’s a little hungry. Won’t you try some of this porridge with me?”
Qi Jinrui looked at Princess Consort Li in silence. Just as Song Shi thought he was going to refuse, he nodded!
Song Shi hurriedly took out two clean bowls and served them each some porridge.
Princess Consort Li picked up one bowl and glanced at the other.
Understanding her look, Song Shi picked up the porridge, scooped up a small spoonful, and held it to Qi Jinrui’s lips. “Please eat, Commandery Prince Rui’an[2]A commandery prince is a noble title found in Chinese imperial systems, often distinct from higher princely titles. Its precise rank in this fictional state is not established here. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });.”
“It’s hot.”
Qi Jinrui turned his head away.
Hot? The porridge was at just the right temperature to eat straight away!
But Song Shi didn’t dare argue. She simply held the bowl and spoon up, her head slightly bowed.
“Mother tasted it already. It’s just the right temperature.”
Princess Consort Li took another bite in front of Qi Jinrui. The rice grains were as soft as clouds, slowly melting on her tongue. The fragrance of grain filled her mouth, while a faint sweetness brushed over her like a gentle autumn breeze, soothing her body and mind and making her want to take one bite after another.
Though Princess Consort Li ate elegantly, her expression one of pure enjoyment, Qi Jinrui remained unmoved.
Song Shi naturally wasn’t willing to give up her chance. “Commandery Prince Rui’an, a breeze just passed by. Did you feel it?”
Qi Jinrui lifted his eyes, waiting for her to continue.
“The breeze has cooled the porridge for you.” Song Shi’s voice was gentle, but inside she was close to losing it. Was he a child? Did he need someone to coax him into eating?
Qi Jinrui’s lips curved slightly at that. He was about to speak, but before he could get a word out, he coughed several times. Song Shi instinctively pulled the porridge away. When she came to her senses, she found him looking at her with a cool gaze.
“I’m done. Next.”
Qi Jinrui’s words made Song Shi’s heart sink halfway. Was that really necessary?!
“Jinrui, just one bite—as a favor to Mother?”
At the crucial moment, Princess Consort Li came to the rescue again. Song Shi was so moved that she scooped up another spoonful of warm porridge and held it out to Qi Jinrui.
Qi Jinrui dodged again. “Smile, and I’ll eat.”
Song Shi, her face expressionless, immediately pressed her lips into a smile.
“Your smile is too stiff.”
“……”
It was hard to smile from the heart at a “guest” who was deliberately making things difficult for her!
“This servant[3]A self-effacing way for a household servant to refer to themselves when addressing someone of higher status, reflecting the social hierarchy. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); is worried about Commandery Prince Rui’an’s health, so I can’t smile naturally. Please forgive me, Commandery Prince Rui’an.” Song Shi dropped to her knees with practiced ease.
Qi Jinrui found it pointless and stopped paying attention to Song Shi, gazing instead at the sky, now dimming with dusk.
The dim, lifeless look in his eyes broke Princess Consort Li’s heart. Tears slid silently down her face, one drop after another; their silence said more than words could.
“Get up. Feed me.”
This time Qi Jinrui didn’t make trouble. He obediently opened his mouth and ate the porridge.
The moment it entered his mouth, it washed away the bitter taste of the medicine lingering there, leaving only a faint sweetness and the aroma of rice. Qi Jinrui chewed a little. The fragrance grew richer, but the discomfort and urge to vomit didn’t rise up. After a moment’s hesitation, he swallowed.
“Jinrui, how is it?” Princess Consort Li’s voice trembled slightly.
Qi Jinrui shook his head and looked at Song Shi.
Song Shi offered him a second spoonful, then a third and a fourth, until the small bowl of porridge was empty.
“Commandery Prince Rui’an, would you like more?”
Qi Jinrui stared blankly at the bowl in Song Shi’s hand—the now-empty bowl—and nodded.
Princess Consort Li’s eyes lit up in an instant!
Qi Jinrui ate two bowls, then refused a third.
That made Princess Consort Li anxious again. Her son had tried to eat small amounts of food before, too, but he had always vomited them back up soon afterward.
“Jinrui, do you feel unwell anywhere?”
Qi Jinrui shook his head. “Mother, I’m fine.”
The porridge he’d drunk was warming his body little by little. It felt very comfortable, and he didn’t feel like throwing up.
“Did you make the porridge yourself?”
Song Shi stepped forward and bowed slightly. “Yes, Commandery Prince Rui’an. This servant made it.”
“How?”
At that question, the cooks waiting in line with their food boxes quietly pricked up their ears. Any porridge that could get the pickiest eater in the Prince’s Residence to drink two bowls must have something special about it. They had to learn how to make it!
“First, pour the washed rice into a pot and add water…”
Of course, it wasn’t ordinary water but spirit spring water[4]A supernatural kind of water in Chinese-style fantasy stories. Its specific abilities here are determined by the novel’s fictional rules. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_4').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_4', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });. Song Shi glanced from the corner of her eye at the inconspicuous mole on the back of her right hand. It was the vessel for the spirit spring water. There was only water inside; she couldn’t store anything in it or enter it herself. She could only draw water from it.
Without realizing it, Qi Jinrui’s attention was drawn to the woman before him. She was tall, with a clear, gentle face and bright, limpid almond-shaped eyes. She spoke in an unhurried voice, melodious and pleasant to hear, putting a person at ease.
The cooks listened to Song Shi’s method with pursed lips. Anyone with even a little cooking experience could do that.
“Your name?” Qi Jinrui asked his second question.
“Xiaoshi.”
Servants weren’t allowed to use their birth names.
“Your original name.”
“Song Shi.”
“Which Shi[5]Chinese names are written with characters; several different characters can have the pronunciation ‘Shi.’ He is asking which written character her name uses. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_5').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_5', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });?”
“The Shi in ‘benefactor.’”
Song Shi answered without thinking, making Princess Consort Li cover her mouth and laugh. Who explained it like that?
“Forgive this servant for making the Princess Consort laugh. This servant never learned to read.”
“Then how do you know your name uses the Shi from ‘benefactor’?” Qi Jinrui asked with a smile in his eyes, finding her answer extremely amusing.
“My—my Dad told me.”
“And your Dad?”
“He died. My mother remarried. I didn’t want to burden her, so I sold myself into service…” Song Shi blurted out everything about the original owner.
Guanyue leaned down to whisper to Princess Consort Li. After confirming that Song Shi’s account was true, she also told her what she had witnessed earlier.
Princess Consort Li’s gaze turned cold. If Guanyue had arrived even a little later, she and her son might never have tasted that delicious porridge.
The matter would have to be dealt with severely—but first, she needed to see what Song Shi could do.
“The head cook’s position in Qing’an Courtyard[6]In an aristocratic residence, a named courtyard can be a separate living area with its own rooms and domestic staff; this one has a private kitchen. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_6').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_6', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });’s small kitchen is yours. From now on, you’ll be primarily responsible for Commandery Prince Rui’an’s meals.” Princess Consort Li turned to the silent Qi Jinrui. “Jinrui, do you approve of Mother’s arrangement?”
“Mm,” Qi Jinrui replied softly.
“!!!”
She’d done it!
“Thank you, Princess Consort Li and Commandery Prince Rui’an, for trusting this servant. I will certainly fulfill my duties and give this my utmost effort.” Song Shi knelt again, her voice utterly sincere.
Thinking that she wouldn’t have to return to Ziqiang Courtyard to face Biyu, and considering all the other benefits to come, Song Shi nearly laughed out loud.
“You seem to be smiling naturally now,” Qi Jinrui remarked coolly.
Song Shi pretended not to hear him. “Commandery Prince Rui’an, this servant will go prepare your midday meal.”
“Make extra. I’d like to try some, too.” That little bowl of porridge had left Princess Consort Li longing for more. She hoped the midday meal wouldn’t disappoint her.
Song Shi acknowledged her with a bow and took her leave. Following Guanyue’s lead, she headed for the small kitchen, thinking as she walked about what to make for the midday meal. On her first day in the post, it would have to be abundant, with color, fragrance, and flavor all in perfect harmony—
“Do you know how often the cooks in Qing’an Courtyard’s small kitchen are replaced?” Guanyue suddenly asked.
Song Shi nodded. “I do.”
The shortest any cook had lasted in the small kitchen was three days; the longest hadn’t made it to a month. Most hadn’t been replaced—they’d asked to leave themselves.
The reason was that Qi Jinrui was an excessively picky patient with a long list of dietary restrictions. Just thinking up dishes each day was enough to make a cook suffer, and even then, he might not eat what they made. They had to keep trying until he was willing to take a bite. For a cook, it was pure torment.
The cuisine of Shi State had plenty of variety, but once you eliminated everything unsuitable for a patient, there wasn’t much left. That was only a problem for cooks from Shi State. Song Shi was a cook from Huaxia[7]A traditional name for Chinese civilization or China, used here in contrast to the story’s fictional Shi State. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_7').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_7', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });, so she had no such worries. The eight great culinary traditions[8]The eight major traditional Chinese regional cuisines are commonly classified as Shandong, Sichuan, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hunan, and Anhui. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717366_1_8').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717366_1_8', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); alone could keep Qi Jinrui fed for half his life, never mind the regional and ethnic specialties from every province and city.
So she would never ask to be transferred. After all, she had fought hard to get this position—and she certainly wasn’t going to give Qi Jinrui the chance to replace her!
References[+]