"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress!"
"I'm not the empress yet. There's no need for such ceremony. I hear you're from Yuan City?"
Zheng Sheng stared in terror at the woman before him, trembling with fright.
Commoners at the bottom of society dared not have much contact with the children of prominent families, let alone when the place he had been brought to was the Imperial Palace!
Zheng Sheng had once worked as a cook in Yuan City before opening his own restaurant in Luoyang. These days, his life had been fairly good, full of flavor.
But today, several ferocious-looking armored guards had stormed into his restaurant and asked whether he could cook Yuan City dishes.
The moment Zheng Sheng said yes, they bundled him into a carriage and sped away.
When Zheng Sheng opened his eyes again, he was inside the Imperial Palace.
His legs had gone weak, and he could barely speak coherently.
Zheng Xian hurriedly said, "Don't be afraid. It's like this: ever since I was little, I've heard that Yuan City's food is delicious. I wanted to learn to make it for the elders in my family. Everyone says your restaurant is the best in all of Luoyang, so I sent people to invite you here. I just want you to teach me."
"If you can teach me, I can reward you. If you can't, that's all right too. I won't blame you."
Zheng Sheng's head was still muddled, and he hastily said, "Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress!"
Still, he breathed a sigh of relief. So it was only teaching her to cook.
He gave no thought to the reward. As long as this noble lady did not punish him if she failed to learn, that was enough.
Zheng Xian wasted no more time and led