Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 108 - : Jade Pool, How Is This Different from a Pig?
Heavenly Court, Imperial Kitchen.
"How is the preparation of the new dish I ordered you to make?"
Surrounded by a host of palace attendants, Queen Mother looked down at the two Immortals and a Mortal kneeling below, as well as at the standing Wukong, her voice somewhat ethereal.
"Please taste it, Your Highness," Wukong said indifferently.
Queen Mother nodded, "You all know the importance of the Flat Peach Festival. If it doesn’t meet my standards, you should know the consequences."
The Kitchen God and the God of Cookery below trembled, sweat beading on their foreheads.
Of the remaining one hundred and forty-eight dishes, not one had been settled upon, and their hearts were icy cold. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺
After Great Immortal Wukong returned yesterday, he didn’t clarify anything, merely told them not to worry.
But was this something they could simply stop worrying about if told to?
This was a matter that concerned their official positions and their very heads.
One by one, the dishes were brought forward by the Immortal Attendants in presentation, and Queen Mother delicately picked up the chopsticks and grasped the first dish, braised pork.
Hmm!!
Queen Mother’s eyes instantly lit up with surprise and delight.
The sauce was sweet and clear, the meat tender and soft, fatty yet not greasy, truly irresistible.
Exquisite.
Queen Mother’s brain was instantly occupied by chunks of this deliciously juicy braised pork.
One bite followed another.
This made things quite difficult for the attendant serving the dish; normally the process involved tasting one bite per dish before moving to the next, but the Highness couldn’t stop eating.
There were still over three hundred dishes to go.
"Your Highness!" An Immortal Attendant finally couldn’t bear it any longer and spoke up as a reminder.
"Hmm?" Displeased at being interrupted, Queen Mother said, "What is it?"
The Immortal Attendant was frightened into a shudder, and quickly spoke, "Your Highness, there are still over three hundred dishes ahead. If we continue at this pace, the following dishes will get cold."
Queen Mother also came back to her senses, realizing that her behavior had been somewhat eager and completely unbecoming of her dignified and majestic stature as Queen Mother.
She gently wiped the grease from the corners of her lips with a napkin, reluctantly waving away the first Immortal Attendant.
However, before Queen Mother could dwell on it, she was attracted by the second dish, sweet and sour pork.
Thus, the third dish, the fourth...
She tasted at least three bites of each dish before slowly waving them off, a scene quite different from the Food God and Stove God’s preliminary tasting.
Watching this unfold, the hearts of the Food God and Stove God warmed briefly—Queen Mother liked the dishes!
As dish after dish was replaced, time passed without knowing how long, and the last Immortal Attendant also stepped back with their dish.
Queen Mother slightly lifted her head, burped, and squinted her eyes with satisfaction, her upturned eye corners hinting at the sheer enjoyment she felt from eating.
It had been so many years since she tasted such delicious cuisine.
Although some of it had to do with the changed styles of the Food God and Stove God, the sensory delight and taste of today’s dishes were indeed much better than before.
But right after belching, Queen Mother realized her impolite behavior and hurriedly coughed twice to cover her embarrassment.
Seeing no Immortal Attendant before her with dishes to serve, Queen Mother was startled. Was it all finished?
Although there had been many dishes, and she had been focused on eating without counting them, it seemed too soon to have ended, right?
"How many dishes did we have just now?"
The Food God, Stove God, and Zhou Kang’s expressions turned bitter; they were found out after all.
"Your Highness, there were a total of two hundred and seventeen dishes just now!" Wukong stepped forward and said.
Queen Mother’s eyebrow lifted, "Oh? Didn’t I say that there must be three hundred and sixty-five dishes?"
"Where are the other one hundred and forty-eight dishes?"
She was still looking forward to eating more.
Wukong chuckled and said, "Your Highness, we made only these two hundred and seventeen dishes."
"So you’ve been deceiving my court?!" With a fierce glare of her phoenix eyes, the Queen Mother’s voice suddenly turned stern.
"Are you aware of the crime of deceiving your sovereign?"
As the Queen Mother and the leader of the Female Immortals, her status was no different from that of a king.
The voice of the Jade Pool was like a heavy hammer, smashing down on the people kneeling on the ground, leaving their expressions ashen and their bodies trembling.
It was over, they had been discovered, and the Queen Mother did not intend to let this matter slide.
They were doomed!
The might of the Quasi-Saint of the Jade Pool spread in an instant, making them unable to lift their heads, nor daring to raise them, let alone speak in their own defense.
Only Sun Wukong, neither humbling nor arrogant, said, "Your Highness, please calm your anger, your humble servant has a solution."
"A solution?" The Queen Mother laughed it off in anger, "What solution could you possibly have, to bring back all the previous dishes to fill the gaps?"
With such incomplete and shoddy offerings, wouldn’t it still be a disgrace to her Jade Pool?
Better to change everything back to the old dishes instead!
Sun Wukong bowed ceremoniously and said, "I have a dish that can rival countless others, and it will certainly ensure the Flat Peach Feast proceeds without a hitch."
The expression of the Queen Mother was one of shock, taken aback by Sun Wukong’s declaration, but she also found it somewhat amusing. One dish that could rival countless others?
Such arrogance indeed.
She discreetly withdrew her oppressive aura.
"Let’s hear it then, what dish is that?"
Sun Wukong smirked confidently and said, "Your Highness need not worry, your humble servant has a way."
With a cool look, the Queen Mother said, "How will you prove it?"
"By the fact that all these dishes were made by yours truly!"
"What do you mean, you made the dishes?" The Queen Mother was stunned.
She had thought it the result of the God of Cookery and Stove God’s hard work. She couldn’t believe it was actually this monkey who made them.
But recalling the Mapo Tofu from the previous competition that was extremely delicious, she began to understand.
This monkey was truly extraordinary in the culinary arts.
The Food God and Stove God below also started to heap praise.
"To report to Your Highness, the culinary skills of Great Immortal Wukong are without peer, and I am far inferior," one of the deities said.
There was no other way to make the Queen Mother believe, they had to speak thus, and indeed, it was the truth.
"May I ask if Your Highness can trust me? I will ensure a perfect Flat Peach Feast for you!"
Looking into Sun Wukong’s resolute eyes, the Queen Mother felt inexplicably compelled to trust him.
She sighed and with a milder tone said, "Very well, then this court shall grant you this favor!"
"However, should you fail to satisfy me tomorrow, your crime will be even greater."
"Alright," declared Sun Wukong, fearless and without hesitation.
Nodding, the Queen Mother exited with her court attendants.
The kneeling people struggled to their feet, especially Zhou Kang who was human; his knees were numb from the pain by now.
Barely standing, he stumbled as if he were about to fall, but Sun Wukong, quick as a wink, flashed to his side and steadied him, then led him to sit on a stool.
"Great Immortal Wukong, what exactly is the dish you’re talking about? Are you really confident about it?" the God of Cookery asked, uncertainty and anxiety coloring his tone, aware that if there were any mistakes, they would have nowhere to run to.
"It’s hotpot," Sun Wukong said with a mysterious smile.
Hotpot?
The Two Immortals and a Mortal were utterly baffled, like monks who couldn’t find the head of a fish, clueless as to what it could be.
"You’ll know in a bit. I need to take a quick trip," said Sun Wukong before he vanished on the spot.
Shortly after, a streak of light flashed by, and Sun Wukong appeared at the Heavenly Court’s usual ironworks.
"How’s it going with the item I requested?" Sun Wukong entered the shop and shouted loudly.
