Tales of the Qing Palace

In 1735, the thirteenth year of the Qing Yongzheng reign, the Gengxu year, on December 20, the Yongzheng Emperor died at the Old Summer Palace at the age of 58. His edict read: “The Crown Prince Hongzhao is a man of noble character, who greatly resembles me. He will surely be able to inherit the great throne. He shall succeed me and ascend the throne as emperor, observing the customary mourning rites. After twenty-seven days, the mourning period shall end. Let this be announced throughout the empire, so all may know.”

Zhang Yingyu, now of the Wuli Su clan, became a sixth-rank Noble Lady in the Qing imperial harem, residing in Zhongcui Palace. The current emperor was Qian'an, the Yongzheng Emperor's legitimate son and the youngest son of the Ula Nara clan, Hongzhao.

The Qing dynasty was now in a parallel timeline, its history changed long ago by an unknown transmigrator. The great ship of history continued forward, though no one knew what lay ahead.

In this ocean of history, a little ship of fate sailed with the wind, passing through the mists of the unknown future and composing a splendid, colorful poem.

Everyday-life blurb:

Yingyu loved to eat, so Sun Zishan of the Imperial Kitchen made Old-Braise Chicken, one of his signature dishes. The key to Old-Braise Chicken was the old braising sauce.

The sauce was made with fine, hard-to-come-by ingredients. It required top-grade autumn soy sauce made during the hottest days of summer, sesame oil, vegetable oil, lard, and spices. Then game birds and animals were braised in it to bring out their wild, savory flavors. More ingredients were continually added, gathering countless flavors into one sauce. That was how the old braising sauce came to be.

To make Old-Braise Chicken, the chicken was washed and drained before being placed in the pot and slowly braised over low heat. It sat submerged in the sauce, which was covered by a layer of oil. Though no steam seemed to rise, the oil was in fact very hot, and its heat slowly tenderized the chicken.

Old-Braise Chicken was known for being both fragrant and tender.

Later, Sun Zishan learned to make many more dishes:

Squirrel-Shaped Yellow Croaker, Roasted Prawns, Tile-Shaped Fish, Smoked Fish, Sea Cucumber with Crab Meat, Braised Shark Fin, Crab with Two Whites in Cream Sauce, Braised Chicken Shreds, Braised Chicken Puree, Steamed Duck with Mushrooms, Fat Chicken and Smoked Cabbage, Chicken Braised in a Bean-Sheet Pot, Beggar's Chicken, Eight-Piece Fried Chicken, Chicken Slices with Tofu, Diced Chicken with Shrimp, Suzhou-Style Pork Knuckle, and Diced Kidney with Bean Curd Skin, among others.

Everyday stories interspersed with palace intrigue. Nothing is explicitly explained, and historical accuracy enthusiasts, please go easy on me.

Theme: Living an extraordinary life while persevering through ordinary days