Let's head back to the Jiang family's residence.
After separating herself from the Ren family's retainers and the yamen runners, Huangfu Yue looked up at the sun. Seeing that it was nearing noon, she figured it was almost time for lunch.
She reasoned that Jiang Shangyun would surely invite her to lunch, and to avoid him or the people from the Prince's estate discovering her absence from her room, she needed to return before lunch.
After all, she had already gotten a general understanding of this Fumin County.
With that thought, Huangfu Qian used her earth elemental ability, burrowed underground, and quickly returned to the Jiang mansion, arriving back in her new room.
Emerging from the ground, Huangfu Yue walked to the door and glanced at it. No one had entered.
She would know if anyone had been in just by looking at the door; this was one of the small skills she had learned during her past training.
Huangfu Yue turned and casually sat down on a chair. Suddenly feeling a bit thirsty, she requested the space to send out a bottle of chilled Fanta from the freezer.
After opening the Fanta bottle cap, she brought the drink to her lips and took two gulps of the fruit juice.
The chilled Fanta tasted so good, so refreshing!
However, speaking of refreshing, ice-cold Coke was the most refreshing.
But ice-cold Coke wasn't as thirst-quenching as fruit juice.
That's why she had asked the space to chill the Fanta and bring it out for her to drink, instead of bringing out ice-cold Coke.
After another two sips of the chilled fruit juice, Huangfu Yue set the Fanta bottle down and took out all the items she had bought while shopping earlier.
She had bought quite a few things. With only two hands, it was inconvenient to carry them all, so she had found a secluded spot to send the purchases into her space.
Most of the things she bought were food items, famous local specialties of Fumin County, such as Fuling bing, crescent moon buns, and red treasure pearls...
Fuling bing, also known as Fuling jiabing, was named for its paper-thin, snow-white wrapper that resembled the Poria cocos slices used in traditional Chinese medicine, hence the name "Fuling bing."
As she thought about it, Huangfu Yue's gaze fell upon a "Fuling bing." She reached out and took a piece to eat.
Delicious! Sweet, fragrant, and flavorful, it melted in her mouth, crisp and refreshing.
While eating this "Fuling bing," she suddenly thought about learning to make "Fuling bing" so she could make it herself whenever she craved it.
She recalled reading a book from the Southern Song Dynasty called "Ru Men Shi Qin," which contained a recipe for "Fuling bing": "Four liang of Poria cocos, two liang of white flour, mixed with water to form a dough, then fried until cooked with yellow wax."
It seemed convenient and simple, but she wondered if making it was as easy as the description.
Huangfu Yue quickly finished a piece of "Fuling bing." She was about to reach for another piece when her hand suddenly stopped in mid-air.
She should try everything. She hadn't even tasted the crescent moon buns or the rolling donkey pastries she had bought earlier.
Huangfu Yue's gaze shifted to the crescent moon buns and the rolling donkey pastries.
The crescent moon bun, also known as a moon cake or pastry stuffed with steamed minced meat, was essentially a flatbread filled with shredded lamb and some vegetables. It looked quite appealing and should be delicious.
The red treasure pearl, on the other hand, was similar to the rolling donkey pastry. It was a glutinous rice ball with a red bean paste filling, coated in brown sugar powder, and looked quite pretty.
Which one should she eat first? The crescent moon bun? Or the red treasure pearl?
Huangfu Yue's eyes darted back and forth between the crescent moon bun and the red treasure pearl, finally settling on the red treasure pearl.
She decided to eat the red treasure pearl first because it looked more appealing.
Huangfu Yue extended her beautiful, slender jade-like hand, picked up a red treasure pearl, and brought it to her mouth to eat.
It was so delicious! It was soft and yielding in her mouth, with a unique flavor. The bean filling melted in her mouth, sweet to the core.
It felt even more delicious and enjoyable than the Fuling bing!
After finishing the red treasure pearl in her hand, Huangfu Yue resisted the urge to eat another one and reached for a crescent moon bun, intending to taste its flavor. However, just as she was about to take a bite, the sound of children's laughter echoed from the courtyard outside.
Upon hearing it, Huangfu Yue recognized the voices of her second niece, Huangfu Ying, and her younger niece, Huangfu Ling. She immediately stopped her action, put down the crescent moon bun, and then stood up and walked toward the door.
She opened the door and saw Huangfu Ying and Huangfu Ling playing in the courtyard, under the care of two maids.
"Ying'er, Ling'er!" Huangfu Yue called out, her face beaming with a benevolent smile.
"Little Aunt!" Hearing the familiar, pleasant voice, Huangfu Ying and Huangfu Ling immediately turned their heads towards Huangfu Yue and then, with happy shouts, ran towards their beloved little aunt.
"Run slower, be careful not to fall," Huangfu Yue said, watching the two little girls run with a hint of worry, she quickly cautioned them.
The two little girls slowed their pace but still reached Huangfu Yue, who was not far away, in a short time. They grabbed her skirt and sweetly called out, "Little Aunt."
"Little Aunt, there's something delicious here, do you want to eat it?" Huangfu Yue looked down at her two adorable nieces, who were as delicate as carved jade and very endearing, her eyes curved in a smile.
Children were always fond of treats. Upon hearing about delicious food, who wouldn't want to eat it? They immediately nodded vigorously and replied in unison, "Yes!"
"Can you go call your brother Xuan and sister Jing to come over, so we can eat together?" Huangfu Yue asked gently, smiling.
She could have asked the maids looking after the two little girls to call them, but she wanted the two girls to do it, to gradually cultivate their habit of thinking of sharing delicious or fun things with their elder siblings.
She also wanted to gradually cultivate the habit in Huangfu Xuan and Huangfu Jing of wanting to share any delicious or fun things they found with these two younger sisters.
She hoped the four little ones would be united and loving, like siblings born of the same parents, even though they were cousins.
"Okay." The two little girls didn't refuse and immediately nodded together again. "We'll go call brother Xuan and sister Jing now."