Inside the great hall, song and dance were already in full swing.
A group of Chen Kingdom palace maidens danced within the hall. Long tables stood on either side, piled high with delicacies. Few of those present were young; most were in their thirties or forties. Yang Guang did not sit on the dragon throne this time, instead having a separate table set below it.
Everyone's gaze rested on the palace maidens dancing in the center. They took occasional sips of wine, each attended by servants pouring their drinks. As for the late-arriving Wang Yan, they merely gave him a casual glance and said nothing more.
Wang Yan was seated at the very end.
Still, there was truly no shortage of food: all kinds of stir-fried dishes, stews, and roast chicken. The portions were not large, but there was quite a variety.
Stir-frying had appeared during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and over the centuries, generation after generation of master chefs had refined it.
Naturally, only a small handful of people could enjoy such things. Limited by productive development, even by the Ming and Qing Dynasties, stir-fried dishes were not something everyone could afford to eat.
There was not much difference from modern times, really. The gap lay in the ingredients and seasonings—there were not nearly as many condiments, nor were the ingredients as abundant.
Overall, the flavor was quite good. Under the existing conditions, it was probably the best that could be done...
Wang Yan ate and drank heartily, his eyes roaming over the people seated in the hall.
His seat truly was at the very end, right by the entrance to the hall. A few steps and he would be outside. The hall itself was enormous, stretching dozens of meters deep. Only because Wang Yan had such sharp