Although tomorrow is the banquet of the Four Nations, this afternoon, the royal chefs from each country will enter the palace to prepare, which can be said to be to adapt to the venue. At this point, Li Qi feels that he has done a very good job. Being familiar with the venue is also important for the chef.
A very important thing.
After lunch, Li Qi took his two apprentices and set off amidst Mrs. Qin's nagging. Zuo Boqing had already prepared the materials for them, and the puffer fish was too toxic and should not be stored.
In the palace, they will not be sent in until tomorrow's competition, so Li Qi and the others set off lightly. This is the home field advantage.
After walking for about half an hour, they arrived at the Daqing Gate in the south of the palace. After getting off the car, Li Qi said to Maqiao: "Maqiao, remember, you must deliver the puffer fish on time tomorrow. I will
I'll ask someone to pick you up here."
Ma Qiao hummed and said, "I understand."
"That's okay. You can go back first."
"Brother Dazhu, we are finally entering the palace."
"I really can't believe it."
Wu Xiaoliu and Chen Dazhu looked up at the majestic gate, their voices trembling. This was something they had never imagined in their dreams.
Li Qi glanced at the two of them, shook his head, and said: "Stop looking, let's go quickly. You two should follow closely, or you might be caught as a little eunuch, but having said that, you two look quite similar."
Little eunuch, remember, this is a way out."
Eunuch? When the two of them heard this, their faces turned green with fright, and they quickly followed Li Qi from left to right, almost grabbing the corner of his clothes.
"For a humble position, see the official Yan envoy."
When the imperial guard at the door saw Li Qi coming, he said "The chapter is updated the fastest" and quickly saluted.
Li Qi hummed, took the token, and said: "I have been ordered to enter the palace to attend the Four Nations Banquet. These two are my assistants."
As soon as he finished speaking, a young eunuch came over. He bowed to Li Qi and said, "Master Li, the emperor ordered me to wait here for you. When you come, I will take you to Chongzheng Hall to meet the saint."
Sweating! Do you need to be in such a hurry? Li Qi pointed at the two apprentices and said: "What should we do with them?"
"Sir, please rest assured. We will send someone to ask the two young masters to take a rest in the imperial kitchen."
"That's okay."
Li Qi nodded and said to Wu Xiaoliu and the others: "I'll go see the emperor first. You guys should be careful."
Wu Xiaoliu said with a sad face: "Brother Li, can I go with you?"
"What do you think?"
"Oh. Then remember to come to us early."
"Okay, you're the only one talking nonsense."
Li Qi rolled his eyes at him angrily and followed the young eunuch in. Wu Xiaoliu and Chen Dazhu followed the two young eunuchs to the other side.
Arriving at the door of Chongzheng Hall, Li Qi walked in after the little eunuch came in to report. He saw Song Huizong sitting high on the dragon chair, Liang Shicheng standing respectfully aside, and some maids standing beside him.
.
"The humble minister Li Qi comes to see the Emperor."
"No gift."
Song Huizong smiled slightly and said, "Li Qi, how are you preparing?"
Li Qi replied: "Thanks to the emperor's concern, everything is ready."
" Song Huizong smiled and nodded, and said: "That's good. That's good." After a pause, he added: "I heard what Gao Aiqing said two days ago that you plan to use the highly toxic river for your last dish.
I want to do it by fishing, but I wonder if this is possible?"
In fact, Gao Qiu had told Li Qi the day before yesterday that the emperor had promised him to cook with puffer fish. Li Qi nodded and said, "Yes."
Song Huizong looked forward to it and said: "I have long heard that this puffer fish is extremely delicious. It's a pity that I have to worry about the safety of the world and can't just taste it. Now that you are absolutely sure, I will have a good taste of the tea."
People are willing to risk their lives to taste the puffer fish. Just go for it, and I will definitely support you."
If you don't dare, just say you don't dare, and say you have to worry about the safety of the world. It's really shameless. Li Qi saluted and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your support."
Song Huizong hummed and said seriously: "Li Qi, I will never allow failure this time. You must win."
Li Qi confidently said: "Your Majesty, please rest assured, I will definitely win without any suspense."
Song Huizong was overjoyed and said: "Okay. What a win without any doubts. I believe in you."
.
After Li Qi gave Song Huizong this reassurance, he went to the imperial dining room. As soon as he entered the room, Li Qi was dumbfounded. He saw Wu Xiaoliu and Chen Dazhu each holding a plate of pastries, with their mouths full of food.
What a shame for two hungry people who came out of the refugee camp. Seeing that Li Qi looked unhappy, the two quickly put down their plates.
Zuo Boqing came up to him with a smile on his face. After the two exchanged greetings for a while, Zuo Boqing stretched out his hand and said, "Brother Li, I will take you to the place where tomorrow's banquet will be held."
"Then there's Brother Lao Zuo."
Li Qi cupped his hand and then said to the two apprentices: "Do you two carry the plates?"
"The Little Chef of the Northern Song Dynasty Chapter 365: The Eve of the Competition" "No, no need."
The two shook their heads like rattles.
Zuo Boqing laughed and said: "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. When I usually go to Zuixianju, the two young masters treat Zuo very warmly. Now that they finally come here, I, the manager of the imperial kitchen, naturally have to fulfill my duties as a landlord. Please.
.”
"please."
Li Qi glared at them again before walking out with Zuo Boqing. Wu Xiaoliu and Chen Dazhu also quickly followed.
On the way, Zuo Boqing said with a smile: "Brother Li, you are so brave and talented, you dare to cook with puffer fish."
Li Qi smiled and said: "No, no, this is all thanks to my father. He taught me how to remove the toxin from puffer fish."
"Your father's cooking skills are really impressive!" Zuo Boqing sighed, rolled his eyes, and said with a smile: "Brother Li, to tell you the truth, I have actually studied this puffer fish before, but unfortunately I have never done so.
Being able to find a way to make it is truly a great regret in Zuo's life."
Damn it! If you want to steal a lesson from me, just say so. It's really childish for you to play this trick with me. Li Qi smiled and said: "Brother Zuo, actually cooking pufferfish is nothing. If you want to learn, Li Qi will do it yourself."
I must obey the order, but I feel that this pufferfish should never appear in the imperial kitchen, or even in the entire palace. This is why I have not brought the pufferfish into the palace now, because if I miss it, the consequences will not be borne by you and me.
, and there are so many people in the imperial dining room, it is difficult to take good care of them."
Zuo Boqing nodded slightly and said: "Brother Li is right. Let's see. After I step down from the position of general manager, Brother Li will definitely give me some tips."
Li Qi smiled and said: "Where, where."
While talking, the two came to a fan-shaped door. On the door was a plaque reading "Little Chef of the Northern Song Dynasty" with the words "Longting Garden" written on it.
"This is where the banquet will be held tomorrow."
Zuo Boqing stretched out his hand and said: "In the past, it was always in Jingfu Hall, but this time the emperor moved the banquet here because of you."
"For me? What do you mean?"
"You'll know when you get in."
Several people came to the garden, and the scene inside was breathtaking. It had exquisite buildings and a compact layout, and was planted with ancient cypresses and locust trees. The ground was covered with pebbles of various colors to form various symbolic patterns, criss-crossing, rich and colorful, and rugged and beautiful stones.
The piled rockery looks like it was made in nature, with winding paths, potted flower piles, and a small artificial lake in the middle, but it has frozen. There are pavilions of different shapes erected in the east, west, south, and north. The innermost one is three stories high.
The attic is connected to the four pavilions by corridors.
At a glance, it looks like a winding dragon, majestic.
The ingenuity of the construction is surprising.
The only pity is that it is winter now, and many potted plants have withered and withered. If spring comes, it will definitely be a different scene.
"Wow! So beautiful."
Wu Xiaoliu and Chen Dazhu sighed in unison.
Li Qi was slightly startled, pointed towards the artificial lake in the middle, and said with a smile: "Brother Zuo is pointing to this small lake, right?"
Zuo Boqing laughed, stroked his beard, and said, "That's right, the water in here has not frozen. The emperor made it specially for you."
Li Qi originally wanted to get a big piece of ice, but he did not expect that Song Huizong would spend such a large sum of money for his dish. After thinking for a moment, he understood that now the Song Dynasty is discussing Yan with Da Jin. "
Regarding the issue of Yun's ownership, this dish can be used to declare one's sovereignty in front of the other three countries. It can be said that it comes at the right time. He said: "The emperor's kindness is so great that Li Qi is really ashamed to deserve it."
Zuo Boqing laughed and said, "Please."
"please."
Li Qidong looked at it, then looked at it, and pointed at a rockery and said: "This stone is really artistic. Brother Zuo, where did you buy this? I will also buy two pieces and put them in my backyard someday. Firstly, it can enhance the scenery. Secondly,
You can also raise some monkeys or something.”
Zuo Boqing said sarcastically: "Brother Li, these are the emperor's favorite granite stones. I'm afraid it would cost thousands of pieces just for this one."
Li Qi was shocked, md, this foolish king is really extravagant. One stone costs several thousand guan, and there are so many stones here. He didn't dare to think about it any more, and said: "Then it's better to skip it. You can buy me steamed buns with this money."
You can eat it for a lifetime.”
"Don't talk nonsense about this. The emperor will be unhappy after hearing this." Zuo Boqing waved his hands, not daring to continue the topic. He pointed at the four pavilions and said, "These four pavilions have now been changed to
There are four small kitchens for you to cook tomorrow. The emperor, other ministers, and envoys from the other three countries will taste the food you cook in Longting Pavilion."
Li Qi nodded slightly and said, "Which pavilion am I at?"
"Which one is to the east? Come on, I'll take you to see it now."
"Thank you very much."
Several people came to the octagonal pavilion to the east. The royal pavilion was naturally much larger than the ones outside. It was at least thirty square meters in size. There were two stoves, three long tables, and some kitchens inside.
Essential items.
Li Qi carefully checked every item inside. Wu Xiaoliu suddenly said: "Brother Li, this stove is not enough."
Li Qi hummed.
Zuo Boqing smiled and said: "It's easy, how much more do you need?"
Li Qi said seriously: "I still need three stoves."
Zuo Boqing said in surprise: "You need three more stoves? Why do you need so many stoves?"
Li Qidao: "My last dish had a total of one hundred and eight steps. If there were only two stoves, I would have to waste a lot of effort, so I would need at least five stoves. In addition, I also hope to be there," said He pointed toward the eaves on the left side of the pavilion and said, "Put in a big stove and a long table. I have to use this to dispose of the fish waste."
Zuo Boqing was a little stunned and said in a trembling voice: "You said this dish has a total of one hundred and eight steps?"
Li Qi hummed and said, "Yes, I have prepared a total of twelve puffer fish, and every part of the puffer fish has to be cooked separately, so the process is very complicated."
One dish uses twelve puffer fish and requires one hundred and eight steps. Zuo Boqing unconsciously thought of the "no form" again, and there were dense beads of sweat on his forehead. Just thinking about it made him feel tired. He nodded and said, "Don't worry, I'll ask someone to help you prepare it later."
At this moment, a large group of people suddenly came in from outside.
Zuo Boqing looked up and said, "They are the opponents you will encounter this time."
"Oh." Li Qi looked up, and after a moment he said: "It looks too ugly." (To be continued.)