Time passed swiftly. In the blink of an eye, the hottest months of the year slipped by, and the season turned to its most agreeable stretch. Song Pu no longer needed blocks of ice to keep cool, though he still indulged in shaved ice from time to time.
His cooking could not compare with that of the imperial chefs, yet he possessed a certain ingenuity, and so Tantai Yi would occasionally have him prepare things like shaved ice and cakes.
The life of an emperor was, it seemed, becoming ever more comfortable.
Only, his sudden whim to resume court had made things rather miserable for those long accustomed to idleness. From Duke Song, Song Pu learned that during the months Tantai Yi had absented himself from court, the people had suffered floods, natural disasters, and man-made calamities alike. Rumours had long been circulating with the emperor as their target. If he wished to sit securely upon the throne, this return to governance could not be a passing fancy. As such, Song Pu had put in no small amount of effort, and at last managed to steady Tantai Yi for nearly a month.
Today was the Mid-Autumn Festival. Song Pu had prepared lotus paste mooncakes, salted egg yolk mooncakes, and preserved egg mooncakes in advance, and sent them into the palace.
Tantai Yi tried the lotus paste filling first and liked it very much, finishing an entire piece. For once, he was not sparing with praise. “Lord Song is deft of hand and full of invention. Even these mooncakes surpass those of my imperial chefs.”
Song Pu smiled. “Your Majesty, do try these other two as well.”
Tantai Yi extended a finger and pointed to the salted egg yolk mooncake. “What filling is this?”
“There is egg inside. Your Majesty has likely never tried it before.”
“I have not. I shall taste it.”
With that, he picked one up between his long, elegant fingers and took a bite. At once, his brows drew together. Plainly, the flavour did not suit him, though he still forced himself to swallow it.
“Your Majesty, how is it?” Song Pu asked softly.
Tantai Yi cast him a glance. “Lord Song is fond of this sort of flavour?”
Song Pu lowered his gaze. “To be frank, Your Majesty, I am exceedingly fond of it.”
Frowning, Tantai Yi took another bite, still unable to comprehend it. “Do not jest, Lord Song. You truly enjoy this?”
“If Your Majesty does not believe me, I shall eat one before you.”
He picked up a mooncake, finished it in a few bites, and gave a firm thumbs-up. “Delicious.”
Tantai Yi: “…”
He set down the half-eaten salted egg yolk mooncake and reached for the preserved egg one. “And this?”
“A preserved egg mooncake.”
At the word “egg”, Tantai Yi’s hand hesitated and drew back slightly, displeased. “Another egg?”
“This one is different, Your Majesty. Please wait.”
He took out a plate of sliced preserved eggs dressed with soy sauce and chilli oil.
Tantai Yi looked at it with an expression difficult to describe. “Lord Song is certain this is edible?”
Seeing he would not touch it, Song Pu picked up his chopsticks, ate a piece himself, and once again gave a thumbs-up. “Extremely good. Your Majesty, trust me. One bite and you will like it.”
Tantai Yi glanced at Cao Xi, who immediately stepped forward to test it for poison.
Song Pu said nothing. Preserved eggs did look rather like some dubious concoction; if anything went wrong, the attendants would certainly be punished.
Naturally, it proved harmless. Tantai Yi picked up a piece, ate it with a furrowed brow, and as he chewed, that frown gradually eased.
“Your Majesty, how is it?” Song Pu asked cautiously.
“Passable,” Tantai Yi replied with restraint, and took another piece.
Only then did Song Pu push the preserved egg mooncake towards him. Tantai Yi obligingly picked it up and took a bite.
That bite nearly made him retch. Yet, mindful of his dignity, he suppressed the urge and swallowed it down.
Afterwards, he looked at Song Pu with faint irritation. “You also like this?”
Song Pu replied with an innocent air, “I do. I thought that if I liked it, Your Majesty might as well, so I brought it for you to try. If it does not suit Your Majesty, then it is my fault for presuming too much. I beg Your Majesty’s forgiveness.”
Tantai Yi: “…”
His irritation eased somewhat. “I understand that Lord Song wishes to share what he enjoys with me. It is only that such peculiar fare is something I have never encountered. How could I take to it at once?”
“Then I shall finish it for Your Majesty.”
He took the mooncake from Tantai Yi, dipped it into the soy sauce beside him, and ate it.
Tantai Yi watched. “Is that how it is eaten?”
“Indeed… ah, I forgot to mention, this preserved egg mooncake must be dipped in soy sauce and chilli oil to taste its best. Would Your Majesty care to try again?”
Tantai Yi rubbed his fingers, somewhat suspicious. “Lord Song is not deceiving me?”
“How would I dare? If it proves unpalatable, I shall cut off my head for Your Majesty to sit upon.”
“…If Lord Song continues to speak in such a manner, you wrong my intentions.”
Even so, he believed him once more. Taking another preserved egg mooncake, he followed suit, dipping it before biting into it again. Instantly, his brows knitted together once more.
“Your Majesty, how is it?” Song Pu asked.
Tantai Yi’s golden eyes flashed sharply at him, yet he said nothing, only swallowing it down.
“Your Majesty?”
With a tight smile that did not reach his eyes, he said, “I had not expected Lord Song to favour such flavours.”
Song Pu lowered his gaze with modest composure. “Your Majesty has come to understand me better today. I am most moved.”
Tantai Yi: “…”
For some reason, he had the faint impression that Lord Song had grown somewhat… peculiar.
He reached instead for the lotus paste mooncake he had first enjoyed. With the other two as contrast, it now seemed all the more delicious.
Seeing this, Song Pu said, “So Your Majesty prefers the lotus paste after all. What a coincidence, it is my favourite as well.”
“Since I have eaten Lord Song’s, Lord Song should try mine.”
The imperial kitchen had prepared flower-and-savoury pork mooncakes, their crust flaky and delicate, shedding crumbs if one was not careful.
Song Pu quite liked them. They were small enough to finish in two bites.
“How is it?” Tantai Yi asked.
“This flavour belongs only in heaven; rarely is it found in the mortal world.”
Tantai Yi smiled.
At that moment, a palace maid attending upon the Empress Dowager arrived to summon him to Yonghe Palace.
The smile vanished from Tantai Yi’s face at once, replaced by cold hauteur. “How many times have I said it? Am I someone she may summon at will? If she wishes to see me, let her come herself.”
The maid trembled and prostrated herself. “Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager is unwell and must not be exposed to the wind.”
Tantai Yi flew into a rage, seizing a cup and hurling it at her. She shrieked and collapsed to one side, narrowly avoiding being struck. “She is unwell, yet summons me? Does she intend to infect me as well?”
Song Pu, standing nearby, was so taken aback he almost applauded.
“Get out. Tell her to remain in Yonghe Palace. If she dares step beyond it and endanger my health, even as Empress Dowager she shall be severely punished.”
Thus, the maid was dismissed.
Only after she had gone did Tantai Yi’s temper ease somewhat. He complained, “The Empress Dowager is truly malicious. Being unwell, yet still daring to summon me, as though she wishes to pass the illness on.”
Song Pu: “…”
So this emperor even suffered from a touch of paranoia.
Aloud, he said, “Your Majesty is wise, to see through her scheme at a glance.”
Speaking ill of the Empress Dowager alongside Tantai Yi was always safe enough; after all, she was not his birth mother, and their relationship was irreparable.
Tantai Yi’s anger came swiftly and departed just as quickly. Hooking Song Pu’s little finger with his own, he said with perfect composure, “On this Mid-Autumn Festival, I wish to spend it with Lord Song.”
Song Pu hesitated. “My elder brother is far away on the northern frontier. At present, my parents have only me at home. This festival holds great meaning, so I fear I cannot remain by Your Majesty’s side.”
Tantai Yi’s expression cooled. He glanced at Cao Xi, who at once withdrew and closed the doors behind him.
Only then did he speak. “Half a month has passed. I wish to rest.”
Song Pu: “…”
“Your Majesty, allow me to consider it. If I remain, it will be difficult to answer to my parents.”
“What difficulty is there? I intend to make you my empress. The empress ought to remain by my side.”
“…Your Majesty, I am not yet empress.”
Tantai Yi gave a cold snort. “Sooner or later.”
A flicker of heat entered his gaze as he cast Song Pu a measured look. “I have laboured at court for half a month, yet you have only managed the smallest one. I lent you all those illustrated manuals. You had best apply yourself and not be perfunctory.”
“…Your Majesty, why not come to my residence for the festival instead?”
At that, something flashed through Tantai Yi’s eyes. The corner of his lips curved upwards. “Very well. I have grown weary of the palace in any case. Tonight, I shall stay at Lord Song’s residence.”
Song Pu: “?”
That was not what he had meant at all.
