The Eastern Depot's Little Canteen (Food)

The main story is complete. Extra chapters will appear from time to time~ [The Fussy Madam Is Loaded] is complete and ready to binge. Coming soon: [Everyday Delicacies in the Prince's Manor] and [The Lazy Consort De Fei Wins Without Trying (Qing Dynasty Food Story)] Blurb: Everyone knows that Lu Yuan, the chief eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, is ill-tempered and picky about food. Over the years, he has gone through countless cooks, and quite a few have met untimely deaths. To save her family, Song Yunning volunteers to become Lu Yuan's cook. Lu Yuan gives her a faintly amused look. "Miss Song, wouldn't serving a eunuch be beneath you?" Song Yunning replies, "Eunuchs are people too. They have appetites like anyone else." Lu Yuan's eyes grow dark and unreadable. "Very well. Since you don't mind serving a eunuch, then go and take care of the food and drink for the eunuchs of the Eastern Depot!" Ever since Song Yunning arrived, the Eastern Depot's dining hall has been packed. Pork stir-fried with fish-fragrant sauce, rich and savory; Sichuan-style boiled beef, spicy and delicious; Crystal-clear braised pork knuckle, tender and springy; Pork ribs with taro, sweet, soft, and fragrant... There is something for everyone. The eunuchs' days are filled to the brim with delicious food. Then one day, the Eastern Depot's dining hall closes. Everyone is deeply disappointed, until a little eunuch timidly says, "The Chief Eunuch has ordered that the dining hall won't serve breakfast anymore... He wants Miss Song to sleep in." Little Scene 1 Song Yunning serves the dishes and asks, "Chief Eunuch, how does it taste?" The first time, Lu Yuan keeps a straight face. "It's barely edible." The second time, Lu Yuan gives a soft snort. "It's nothing special." The third time, Lu Yuan raises an eyebrow. "Passable." Song Yunning's face turns cold. "In that case, don't eat it, Chief Eunuch." Lu Yuan grabs her hand as she reaches for the dishes and whispers, "Can't I just admit I was wrong?" Before You Start: 1. Not recommended when you're especially hungry, because it'll only make you hungrier. 2. The male lead is a real eunuch. The female lead has a strong will to survive. They begin by meeting each other's needs and grow to love and trust each other completely. 3. The recipes are sourced from the internet. There's no need to scrutinize them, and please don't get hung up on whether a certain ingredient existed in this fictional dynasty. If you see it, they eat it. 4. A companion story to [The Embroidered Uniform Guard's Dining Hall], set several years later. Anti-piracy: 70%/48 hours. If that bothers you, please read with caution. Coming Soon 1: [The Fussy Madam Is Loaded] Su Yuyin wakes up inside a book as the only precious daughter of the richest man in the land. Su Yuyin: Am I lucky, or what? The System demands, "You must maintain your spoiled, fussy persona, or you'll have bad luck." Su Yuyin isn't worried. She's the real deal when it comes to being a spoiled brat. In her previous life, she was willful and overbearing, throwing her wealth around and flirting with respectable young men everywhere. Now that she's old enough to marry, she can't find a match who meets her standards, and the richest man, Master Su, is growing frantic. One spring day, a peerlessly handsome young man arrives at the Su residence from Mengzhou. Mengzhou is the poorest prefecture in the dynasty, so broke that even the wind whistles through its pockets. Its most valuable asset is Prefect Gu Qingyun. Gu Qingyun is learned and handsome. Last year, the emperor personally named him the top scholar, but after offending an influential figure in the capital, he was demoted to the impoverished backwater of Mengzhou. Gu Qingyun wants to build a road, but the yamen is so poor it can't even pay its staff. With no other choice, he steels himself and goes to see Master Su. Gu Qingyun says courteously, "Master Su, I will repay this hundred thousand taels of silver, principal and interest, within three years..." Master Su waves a hand. "The price is two hundred thousand taels, and you take my daughter as your bride!" Gu Qingyun: "..." Su Yuyin arrives in Mengzhou with an extravagant bridal procession. A maid in the Gu household says, "I hear the madam is spoiled and willful, and terribly difficult to serve..." Su Yuyin says, "A gold leaf for everyone who didn't just say something bad about me." The Gu household maids: "!!!" The mountain roads in Mengzhou are steep and muddy. Su Yuyin says, "The mud splashed all over my gold-threaded pearl-embroidered shoes. Bring out my dowry. We'll build seven or eight roads before we do anything else." Mengzhou is full of poor people, and resources are scarce. Su Yuyin says, "They hurt my eyes. Buy them some clothes so they'll look better." There aren't nearly enough schools in Mengzhou. Su Yuyin says, "The children are too noisy. Build dozens of schools so they can study late into the night every day. No one leaves until their homework is done!" Su Yuyin takes her spoiled ways to the extreme, yet somehow wins the love of countless townspeople. The people of Mengzhou: The prefect's wife is a living bodhisattva! Little Scene 1: Gu Qingyun's friend: "Brother Gu, you're so brilliant. How did you end up marrying such an ignorant woman, with so little learning?" Gu Qingyun's face immediately turns cold. "Who are you calling poor?" Little Scene 2: Gu Qingyun: Yuyin, do you have any room for me in your heart? Su Yuyin: Haven't I already answered that? Gu Qingyun: No... I just want to hear it one more time... Su Yuyin: Stop being so fussy, dear. Coming Soon 2: [Everyday Delicacies in the Prince's Manor] Li Chengyun is the third son of the Prince of Pingnan. Brave in battle and exceptionally handsome, he's the young man everyone in the capital admires. Yet he has chosen to marry Su Xinhe, a cook's daughter. Everyone says the Su family's ancestors must have done something extraordinary for Su Xinhe to marry into the prince's household. Little do they know, this is compensation for the Prince of Pingnan borrowing grain from Master Su, a matter that cannot be discussed openly. When Su Xinhe first enters the prince's household, her mother-in-law dislikes her, her younger brothers-in-law treat her coldly, and her sisters-in-law look down on her. Even the household dogs outrank her, and her husband is a stone-faced devil. Su Xinhe doesn't care. "What's a husband good for? Can you eat him?" While Li Chengyun reads, Su Xinhe eats fried chicken wings, their rich, oily aroma drifting through the door; While Li Chengyun practices swordsmanship, Su Xinhe eats noodles with hot oil poured over them, spicy, silky, and bursting with flavor. The sound of her slurping never stops; While Li Chengyun discusses business with his brothers, Su Xinhe eats hot pot with a divided pot. The beef tripe is springy, the fatty beef firm, the lettuce stems crisp, and the whole courtyard is filled with delicious aromas. The eldest, second, and fourth brothers all say, "There's no way we can keep having this meeting!" Su Xinhe smiles awkwardly. "Why don't you all sit down and eat with me?" Everyone sits down at once. Su Xinhe's inner monologue: I was only being polite... Why did they take me seriously!? Later, the third master's courtyard becomes the liveliest place in the prince's household, and Third Madam becomes the most popular person in the household and even the imperial palace. Little Scene: Maid: "Madam, I've noticed that the third master has been sneaking looks at you lately..." Su Xinhe looks surprised. "Isn't he looking at the food in my hands?" Theme: Good food can heal anything.