Chapter 1960

This is also why the Central Plains came to form its eight great culinary traditions.

The Central Plains is simply too vast—climate, produce, customs all differ—so naturally each region developed its own signature dishes.

Zhong Ling looked startled: "Not used to the taste?"

Mu Wanqing: "Some places serve sweet-flavored dishes."

"Sweet?" Zhong Ling's eyes lit up. "I love eating sugar the most."

In the Song dynasty, cane sugar had developed fairly well and production had seen a big boost, but it still wasn't something ordinary households could get their hands on. Only during New Year festivals would somewhat better-off families buy a little, treating it as a hard-to-come-by holiday good.

Although Zhong Ling's family was well-off and lacked for nothing,

because of the productive limits of ancient times, sugar had always been in tight supply, never meeting demand. Even a household like hers couldn't gorge on sugar freely.

Hearing what Mu Wanqing said, expectation rose in her heart at once.

"The Central Plains really is prosperous—could I eat sugar till I'm full?"

Zhong Ling drifted into a daydream, and before her eyes there seemed to appear one delicacy after another made of candy.

Mu Wanqing's mouth twitched slightly, very much looking forward to the moment Zhong Ling saw the sweet-flavored dishes.

Eating plain sugar, she could handle that too.

Made into a dish, though, that would be different.

A moment later.

Mu Wanqing found an open patch of ground, descended, then led the horse forward on foot.

Zhong Ling followed behind curiously, looking this way and that.

It was her first time leaving home, and she was curious about everything.

Besides, this was the lands south of the Yangtze.

Whether accent, dress, or produce, everything differed from Dali, broadening her horizons.

"Sister Mu, what's that?"

"That's whitebait!"

Along the way, Zhong Ling turned into a walking encyclopedia of why-questions, always gasping and exclaiming over every little thing.

Mu Wanqing, too, never grew tired of it, answering patiently and carefully.

In the past, Mu Wanqing naturally wouldn't have had such a good temper.

But right now she had just broken out of her cage and shaken off her family; her heart was happy, so she was naturally willing to chat more with Zhong Ling.

Lunchtime.

...... 0

The two went up into a restaurant and ordered a whole table of dishes.

Mu Wanqing had come to Jiangnan with Qin Hongmian to assassinate Lady Wang more than a few times, so she was very familiar with the flavors of Jiangnan cuisine.

Therefore, she only ordered a few dishes that suited her own palate.

Zhong Ling, meanwhile, ordered a few sweet-flavored dishes.

At first Zhong Ling was full of anticipation, but once the dishes arrived and she took a bite, her little face scrunched up entirely.

"This dish—how is this dish so weird?"

Mu Wanqing chuckled lightly: "That's the local taste. A Dali person like you definitely isn't used to it. I told you earlier—if you want sugar, just buy some. You just wouldn't listen!"

Zhong Ling said awkwardly: "Maybe if I eat a bit more I'll get used to it?"

So saying, she picked up her chopsticks again and kept eating.

Mu Wanqing didn't stop her either, just went on eating her own meal, until Zhong Ling slumped over the table and let out a long sigh: "Sister Mu, I can't anymore!"

"Alright, don't force yourself." Mu Wanqing shook her head. "If you can't finish it, then don't eat it."

"Mm."

Zhong Ling nodded and finally gave up, then tried the dishes Mu Wanqing had ordered. After a few bites, she finally came back to life.

"Jiangnan really does have abundant produce—if it weren't for those dishes, it would actually be delicious!"

Mu Wanqing laughed helplessly: "It's just that you don't like them. The locals love them. It's just like if you brought Dali dishes to Jiangnan—they'd have a hard time liking them either."

Zhong Ling nodded.

Under Mu Wanqing's explanations, she also came to understand how vast the nine provinces of the Central Plains were, and how people's tastes all differed. She could only cry out at how marvelous it was—this trip to Jiangnan had truly broadened her horizons.