Chapter 12 Amusement

  Mu Yu Xiang looked around the kitchen and didn't see Gui Sao, so she turned to Tian Nuan Yu and asked: "Did you cook these dishes?"

  "Yes," Tian Nuanyu walked into the kitchen, scooped two bowls of rice and returned to the dining table, telling Mu Yuexin about why Gui Shu and Zhong Shu went out.

  "Will you still cook?" Mu Yu Xin sat down in front of the dinner table.

  "I learned a bit before, but my level is average, try it," Tian Nuanyu sat down opposite Mu Yuexin.

  Since Tian Nuoyu arrived, Mu Yuxin let Tian Nuoyu sit with her at the dinner table, and there was no distinction in seating position, on this point Mu Yuxin did not put on airs as a noble lady.

  "Does the dish you cooked have a name?"

  "Four seasons dish."

  "Oh? How did I not notice that for four seasons," Mu Yu Xin looked at the dishes on the table, her face full of puzzlement.

  On the table, there were four dishes and one soup. One dish was a shallow green long tray with a golden yellow long cylindrical egg roll placed on it, shaped like a horse lying down, set against the light green bottom of the plate, as if it was lowering its head to eat grass.

  Tian Nuoyu pointed at this dish: "This is Spring".

  "Does the horse eating grass mean it's spring? Besides, I haven't seen any grass yet?"

  "The color of the grass is distant, but when you get close, it's gone. It's all because of the good spring weather this year, and the grass has been eaten into the belly." Tian Nuan Yu picked up her chopsticks and gently opened the egg roll in the middle, only to find that the egg roll was cut into several segments like sushi, wrapped with green and oily chopped shepherd's purse. When arranging the dish, she spliced several segments into a horse shape.

  Mu Yu Xing smiled and a hint of interest flashed in her eyes. She pointed to a dish on a pale pink plate and asked, "Is that Xia Ruo?"

  The bottom of the plate is lined with lettuce leaves, on which are arranged a few lotus flowers carved from winter melon, topped with a drizzle of strawberry sauce.

  "Yes, the lotus leaves are not pierced by the blue sky, and the reflected sun on the lotus flowers is a different kind of red." Tian Nuanyu said with a gentle smile.

  "Where is the lotus leaf? I haven't seen it?" Mu Yu Xin asked on purpose.

  Tian Nuanyu pointed at the lettuce leaves spread out on the plate: "No time to pick lotus leaves, just treat this as lotus leaves," after saying that she laughed herself.

  This is clearly just playing with words! However, Mu Yu Xin thought it was quite interesting, and her interest was also piqued.

  "That's Dong," Mu Yu Xing pointed to another dish and said with certainty.

  On a white, long oval-shaped ceramic plate, green asparagus juice is used to draw the shape of plum branches. Several buds of baby corn are carved into the shape of plum blossoms, with small yellow dots scattered among the branches, resembling a single branch of golden plum blossoming proudly in the snow.

  "I know which poem this is, 'A plum blossom at the corner of the wall, bravely opening alone in the cold.' Mu Yu Xing gave Tian Nuan Yu a sideways glance and raised an eyebrow."

  Tian Nuoyu smiled with a pursed mouth, she indeed wanted to use this poem to describe this dish.

  "What's left is this dish of autumn leaves, but how can this dish be called autumn?" Mu Yu Xing pointed to the last remaining dish among the four.

  On a shallow blue plate with wavy golden edges, ten shrimp are arranged in an orderly circular shape, their heads clustered towards the center. A few florets of broccoli form a flower ball placed on top of the shrimp heads. At first glance, the orange-yellow shrimp seem to be lively and playful, as if they are swimming in the water with the flower balls on their heads.

  Su Shi has a poem about autumn, which says: "The best scenery of the year I must remember, is when the oranges are yellow and the tangerines are green." Autumn is a season of harvest, with fruits abundant. Tian Nuoyu smiled and gently pointed to the plump and tender shrimp on her plate with her chopsticks.

  Looking at the shrimp in the plate, Mu Yu Xing suddenly thought of Tian Nuan Yu's words about "solid results", and felt that each shrimp seemed to be plump, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.

  Although the dishes were made very delicately, they weren't particularly special. However, with Tian Nuanyu's commentary, each dish became interesting and Mu Yuexin found it quite novel.

  She pointed to the soup placed in the middle, her eyes sparkling: "What about that soup? In a year on earth, there are only four seasons - spring, summer, autumn and winter, but no fifth season. You won't say this is a mix of all four seasons, will you? But this soup only has green and white, without orange, yellow or purple!"

  The soup was served in a round, celadon-green bowl, with nearly transparent broth that held green fragments of shepherd's purse and white, thread-like codfish strips.

  Mu Yu Xing wanted to hear what Tian Nuan Yu had to say about this bowl of clear soup.

  Tian Nuoyu's face revealed a smile, and she said slowly: "Eating is not just about tasting the flavor, but also about one's mood. When you're in a good mood, food tastes better. If you've experienced the flavors of 'spring, summer, autumn, and winter', your mood will naturally fluctuate, like the phrase describes: The wind suddenly rises, rippling the spring water."

  Tian Nuanyu finished speaking, picked up the spoon in the soup bowl, and gently stirred the soup once. The soup immediately rippled like lake water with a few circles of ripples.

  Mù Yǔ Xīn burst out laughing, and after she finished, she tilted her head and looked at Tián Nuǎn Yù with an unusual gaze, saying: "I find you to be a pretty interesting person!"

  "Life is supposed to be fun, isn't it too dull without it?" Tian Nuanyu said with a light smile.

  "Cut it out, you're being too serious," Mu Yu Xin said with a dismissive pout.

  Suddenly her gaze fell on the plate of egg rolls, and a second later a sly glint flashed in her eyes. She pointed to the egg rolls and asked, "Where is the horse's leg?"

  "Huh?" Mu Yu Xing suddenly asked this, Tian Nuan Yu didn't understand her meaning.

  "Many times, flattery often falls on the horse's leg. I want to taste the flavor of the horse's leg," Mu Yu Xing raised her head, flashing her eyes, and a sly smile appeared on her face.

  Tian Nuoyu smiled, she understood that Mu Yu Xin was making a veiled criticism of her using petty tricks to curry favor and flatter people. Tian Nuoyu didn't mind, she pointed to the front part of the egg roll tail and said in accordance with Mu Yu Xin's meaning: "This is it!"

  "Alright, I'll eat this horse leg first," Mu Yu Xing picked up her chopsticks and picked up the egg roll and put it in her mouth.

  After savoring it carefully and swallowing, Mu Yu Xing laughed and said: "Hmm, not bad, not bad, the taste of horse leg is really good!"

  Watching Mu Yu Xin's delightful expression, Tian Nuan Yu curved her mouth and smiled too.

  The villa door suddenly opened and both of them turned their heads at the same time.