Yun Zhiyue personally entered the kitchen herself, simmering bone broth and mixing seasonings.
Liu Tinglan watched with fascination written all over her face.
“I never expected Miss Yun to be so talented in so many ways.”
She had rarely seen noble young ladies personally cook.
Xiao Zhaoning lifted her chin proudly.
“Of course. Zhiyue’s food is incredibly delicious.”
A short while later, Yun Zhiyue brought bowls of malatang to the table—one bowl for each person.
The broth in the bowls was milky white, rich, and glossy, with a thin layer of red chili oil floating on the surface.
Tender slices of meat bobbed within the soup, dotted with bright green vegetables.
Golden instant noodles soaked up the fragrant broth completely.
The aroma of bones, spice, and rich seasonings filled the air.
Just looking at it was enough to stimulate anyone’s appetite.
As for the smell—
It was practically the kind of delicacy one imagined could only exist in heaven.
Xiao Zhaoning slurped up one mouthful of noodles and immediately began praising it nonstop.
“So good!”
“The soup is delicious too!”
“I love this!”
She swore then and there that malatang had become her new favorite food.
Liu Tinglan sat upright on the edge of her chair with perfect posture, leaning slightly forward as she carefully tasted the bowl before her.
As the granddaughter of the Grand Tutor, she had seen every luxury imaginable.
Her grandfather was the Emperor’s former teacher.
Her father had once been the Emperor’s study companion, growing up beside him since childhood.
And she herself had grown up accompanying the Third Princess, later becoming engaged to the Crown Prince.
Practically everything the princess received from the Emperor, she too would receive.
Yet now—
This single bowl of malatang completely shattered her understanding of food.
She realized for the first time that bone broth could be both richly savory and intensely spicy at the same time.
And that the combination could become extraordinarily delicious.
The golden noodles were chewy and springy, fully soaked with flavor.
Every bite was pure enjoyment.
As a noble daughter of an aristocratic household, her mother had always taught her:
Sit properly while eating.
Chew slowly.
Take no more than three bites of any dish.
Eat only half a bowl of rice.
So she had always believed herself uninterested in indulgence or gluttony.
Yet now—
She had nearly finished the entire bowl of malatang.
She almost ate herself overly full.
Because the weather was so hot, Yun Zhiyue had placed two basins of ice in the room to cool the air.
After they finished eating, she also served lemon green tea.
“Zhaoning, I thought over the restaurant plans last night.”
“First floor: malatang.”
“Second floor: barbecue.”
“Third floor: still undecided.”
“The first floor will use open-fire cooking, while the second floor will use charcoal grills.”
“These ingredients overlap considerably too, making procurement easier.”
This was Yun Zhiyue’s current concept.
“However, we’ll need a rather large building.”
At the mention of that, Xiao Zhaoning suddenly remembered something.
Recently, a corrupt official’s estate had been confiscated.
All his lands, shops, and restaurants had been seized by the court.
And among them…
There happened to be a three-story restaurant of considerable scale.
“All right,” Xiao Zhaoning said immediately.
“I’ll handle the restaurant building.”
She’d probably need to beg Imperial Father a little first.
Liu Tinglan looked puzzled.
“So Miss Yun and Your Highness are discussing opening a restaurant?”
“Yes!”
Xiao Zhaoning’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
“I’m partnering with Zhiyue to open one!”
“She’s the primary owner, and I’m the second owner.”
“We’ll cooperate for mutual success and create a glorious age of cuisine together!”
Her enthusiasm surged higher and higher.
“We’ll open restaurants everywhere so everyone can taste such delicious food.”
“And in my lifetime, I also want to travel and see all the beautiful landscapes across the realm.”
But Xiao Zhaoning did not say aloud—
Though she was born a princess and enjoyed endless luxury, she still could not freely travel wherever she wished.
The furthest place she had ever gone from the capital was Zhenguo Temple.
She had never seen the watery beauty of Jiangnan.
Never seen the vast blue seas.
Never seen the snow-covered Changbai Mountains.
All those sights had only been described to her by her Seventh Imperial Uncle.
Liu Tinglan listened quietly and found herself unexpectedly moved.
“Your Highness’s ideas are wonderful.”
“If I wished to join your partnership as well… would that be possible?”
She had always lived a life of rules and routine.
Since childhood she had studied music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.
Her grandfather taught her the Four Books, Five Classics, poetry, and etiquette.
Her mother taught her household management and the art of noblewomen’s scheming.
Then once she reached marriageable age, she would marry the Crown Prince.
She had always believed her life would continue step by step exactly like this.
Until now—
Hearing her friend speak of such ambitions stirred something inside her.
For the first time, she wanted to join in.
Wanted to create something of her own.
Yun Zhiyue looked toward her and smiled knowingly.
“Of course.”
“We sincerely welcome your partnership.”
Xiao Zhaoning instantly became excited.
“Sister Liu, welcome aboard!”
Liu Tinglan smiled softly, a faint glimmer shining within her eyes.
Yun Zhiyue wrote out a rough operational plan for the two of them.
The three women divided responsibilities accordingly.
Xiao Zhaoning would handle securing the restaurant property.
Yun Zhiyue would oversee ingredients and seasonings.
Liu Tinglan would recruit and train staff.
Yun Zhiyue even wrote out detailed training guidelines for her.
Liu Tinglan found the whole thing unexpectedly interesting.
Before opening the barbecue restaurant, Yun Zhiyue planned to establish a brewery first.
After all—
What was barbecue without alcohol?
“Imperial Father, are you hot?”
“Your daughter will fan you to cool you down.”
Xiao Zhaoning enthusiastically waved a fan beside the Emperor.
The eunuch whose job had just been stolen silently retreated to the side.
The Emperor kept his gaze fixed on the book in his hands.
“What is it this time?”
“Imperial Father, your daughter genuinely cares about you.”
Emperor Mingde suddenly turned to look at her.
“When have you ever shown such attentiveness without wanting something?”
Xiao Zhaoning stomped her foot in fake indignation.
“Imperial Father! How could you think such things about your daughter?”
The Emperor chuckled softly.
“Enough fooling around. Speak.”
“What do you want this time?”
Xiao Zhaoning secretly observed the Emperor’s mood.
Seeing he seemed in rather good spirits today, she immediately felt more confident.
“Imperial Father, your daughter wants Ruifu Restaurant—the one recently confiscated.”
Ruifu Restaurant?
Emperor Mingde recalled it instantly.
Wasn’t that the restaurant belonging to the Jiang family officials recently convicted of corruption?
Only two days ago, the Minister of Justice had submitted the inventory of confiscated assets.
Ruifu Restaurant had been among them.
However…
That restaurant had previously been used as a secret meeting place for those corrupt officials.
Large amounts of incriminating evidence had even been discovered in its rear courtyard.
At this thought, the Emperor’s expression turned slightly serious.
“And what do you want that restaurant for?”
“Imperial Father, your daughter wishes to use it for a food business.”
The Emperor raised a brow.
“A food business?”
“Yes!”
“And your daughter even brought samples of the dishes the restaurant plans to sell.”
Xiao Zhaoning clapped excitedly.
A palace maid entered carrying a food box.
“Imperial Father, try them.”
She enthusiastically opened the box, revealing malatang, barbecue skewers, and lemon green tea.
These had been gifted to her by Zhiyue recently.
She hadn’t even tasted the barbecue herself yet.
Everything was being sacrificed to curry favor with Imperial Father.
The barbecue released waves of rich fatty fragrance and spicy aroma.
The malatang emitted a soul-hooking spicy scent.
Xiao Zhaoning unconsciously swallowed.
Imperial Father, if you don’t hurry and eat, I won’t be able to resist anymore.
The smell truly was enticing.
Emperor Mingde glanced sideways at his daughter.
Judging by how greedy she looked, she clearly wasn’t pretending.
The Emperor waved his hand.
A eunuch immediately stepped forward, withdrawing a long silver needle from his sleeve and carefully inserting it into the food.
After a moment, the eunuch nodded.
Then he picked up serving chopsticks and cautiously sampled a bite of barbecue.
He chewed twice.
Then his eyes lit up instantly.
Heavens above.
The meat was crisp outside and tender within.
Juicy and springy.
Overflowing with smoky fragrance.
The spices seemed to penetrate directly into the bones.
Utterly delicious.
Rare even in the mortal world.
Unable to help himself, he licked the corner of his mouth.
“Your Majesty, this food is exceptionally delicious—ah, no—Your Majesty, the food is not poisoned.”
The eunuch nearly wanted to slap himself.
How had he accidentally voiced his inner thoughts aloud?
Xiao Zhaoning covered her mouth, secretly laughing.
So even Eunuch Zhang was a foodie.
Emperor Mingde waved dismissively.
“All right. You may leave.”
Then he personally picked up his chopsticks and sampled each dish.
The flavors truly were extraordinary.
“If you simply want to eat such things, you could have the palace cooks prepare them.”
“Why go so far as opening a restaurant?”
“Does Imperial Father know why your daughter wants to open a restaurant?”
“Oh?”
“If you can persuade me, I’ll grant you the restaurant.”
At once, Xiao Zhaoning remembered Yun Zhiyue’s persuasive speech techniques and immediately felt full of confidence.
“Imperial Father, according to your daughter’s observations, the foods currently available on the market are rather monotonous in flavor.”
“My friend and I wish to create a completely new culinary market and spread diverse flavors everywhere.”
“The people regard food as heaven.”
“Your daughter believes cuisine should come in many varieties—not remain limited and repetitive.”
“I’ve also seen countless ingredients discarded simply because nobody eats them. It is extremely wasteful.”
“Many ingredients used in our restaurant make use of such neglected foods.”
“The costs are low, while the profits are high.”
“The nation prospers today because Imperial Father governs diligently day and night with exceptional wisdom.”
“As a princess of this nation, your daughter deeply admires Imperial Father and also wishes to contribute in a small way.”
“We hope to establish food-processing workshops and open restaurants throughout the realm.”
“We can hire large numbers of common laborers, allowing ordinary people to gain employment, earn income, and improve their quality of life.”
“In doing so, economic activity will increase, and tax revenues will naturally rise as well.”
“Your daughter humbly requests Imperial Father’s approval.”