Chapter 621 - New Year Gif (2/2)
It was easy to preserve chocolates and candies in the winter, so Xiaocao prepared many different kinds of sweets. Not only did she made a mellow and rich type of dark chocolate, but she had also made milk flavored chocolate, hazelnut flavored chocolate, silky and smooth flavored chocolate, wine-flavored chocolate...most of the candies were coffee-flavored and some of the chocolate was stuffed. She packed the sweets in an elegant and cla.s.sy case and wrapped the case in high-grade wrapping paper.
The pastries were made similar to the Jing Ba Jian . There were several different varieties of pastries in each box and there were dozens of boxes prepared. She told her elder brother, who was the one sending the gift to Prince Jing’s Estate, to inform the steward that the pastry needed to be eaten within five days.
Yu Hang was a.s.signed the task to give a New Year gift in return to Prince Jing’s Estate because he was the eldest son of the Yu Family. He was so nervous that he was sweating buckets inwardly. Fortunately, the steward was informed in advance about his arrival by his master, so the steward treated him with enthusiasm and great courtesy. Zhu Junyang valued his future brother-in-law, so he personally headed to the outer courtyard to accompany Yu Hang to drink tea and chat.
The New Year gift prepared by the Yu Family naturally received Princess Consort Jing’s approval and love. As the female head of Prince Jing’s Estate, there weren't many things that she hadn’t yet seen. Her husband doted on her a lot, so he would give all his treasures to her. Furthermore, she had a son who liked to go on adventures. Her son even managed to give her many gifts from the western hemisphere and overseas. As a result, it was hard to capture her interest with rare and expensive treasures because she had already seen most of them.
However, the candies and desserts that Xiaocao sent over were items that she had never heard of, seen, or even tasted before. Princess Consort Jing was entertaining a few n.o.ble-t.i.tled madams for the New Year when she received the New Year gift from Xiaocao. She immediately opened the gifts once she received them and couldn’t help but chuckle when she saw what was inside! It was impossible for her not to love Xiaocao; she even managed to deliver the snacks right on time.
She immediately asked the servants to serve the snacks and candies that were given by Xiaocao. However, she put aside the well-preserved chocolate and coffee-flavored candies. Instead, she opened the boxes containing the pastries first.
When the madams heard that the New Year gift from the Yu Family only contained sweets and snacks, they felt contempt for the Yu Family. It was no wonder that they were a family who came from the countryside. How could they send out such cheap gifts? They believed that Princess Consort Jing was too kind. If they were the ones who received such cheap gifts, then they would’ve already thrown the gift back at the person who gave them the gift. Were they looking down at people from Prince Jing’s Estate? How could they send out such poor gifts as a New Year gift?
However, the madams knew that Royal Prince Yang was extremely protective of the little girl from the Yu Family. So, even though they felt contempt for the people of the Yu Family, they didn’t express their true feelings.
“Xiaocao must’ve made a new type of dessert again! You probably didn’t know, but Xiaocao is a very considerate little girl. Whenever there is something delicious to eat, she would never forget to send some to me. Seeing how much care to put into wrapping the gifts this time, I bet the snacks will definitely taste delicious. You guys are in luck today because you’re in for a treat!”
Princess Consort Jing personally opened the delicate lid of the case. A strong yet novel fragrance slowly filled the room. Even though she was a princess consort who had tasted all kinds of delicacies, she couldn’t help but become intoxicated by the sweet fragrance produced by the snacks inside the case. She could feel her saliva increasing.
The madams looked at each other profoundly after noticing Princess Consort Jing’s att.i.tude towards Yu Xiaocao. They didn’t dare to feel the least bit of contempt towards the dessert. It seemed like the people from Prince Jing’ Estate had already accepted the little girl from the Yu Family as their future daughter-in-law. The Yu Family had climbed onto a higher social status. In the future, not just anyone could step on them or look down on them!
At the same time, the madams couldn’t help but reveal a slightly surprised expression when they smelled the delicious fragrance that the content of the case was exuding. What kind of dessert could exude such a rich yet mellow fragrance at the same time? This fragrance was something they had never encountered before. With this fragrance alone, it was already enough to pique their interest and appet.i.te!
They all subconsciously started focusing on the content inside the delicate food case. The round food case was divided into six equal parts, and there were six different kinds of snacks inside the food case. None of the madams present, including Princess Consort Jing, had ever seen any of the snacks inside the food case. These snacks didn’t appear in any of the limited-edition snacks presented in The Yu's Pastry Shop.
Princess Consort Jing couldn’t wait as she picked up a dainty and delicate spoon and reached out to scoop a spoonful of the tiramisu. Even though she was impatient to taste the snacks, her actions remained graceful and attractive as she put the spoonful of tiramisu into her mouth. The dessert melted the moment it entered her mouth. The tiramisu contained a slightly bitter but strong coffee aroma. It tasted sweet like a cake made from eggs and sugar and was mellow like sweet wine. The fragrant chocolate, the denseness of the cake, the rich aroma of the whipped cream, and the dryness of the cocoa powder——each layer of the tiramisu evoked a different taste. When each layer was all eaten together, the resulting taste reached the peak of what a dessert could taste! Princess Consort Jing was infatuated with this incredible taste.
The other madams were very curious about the fragrant dessert when they noticed that Princess Consort Jing still had her eyes closed as she relished the taste. What did it taste like? They were curious, but they couldn’t speak their mind since Princess Consort Jing still hadn’t spoken yet. Although they didn’t reveal their curiosity on the surface, their hearts were itching to taste the dessert.
Princess Consort Jing finally snapped out of her daze after tasting the rich flavors of the tiramisu. When she noticed that the madams were looking at her hungrily, she hurriedly said, “I have never tasted a dessert with such a complicated yet harmonious taste. Meixiang, go and serve the snacks along with some scented tea to the madams. It will be a delicious treat!”
Soon, each of the madams was served a fragrant and alluring dessert on a delicate porcelain plate the size of a palm. The Ministry of Ceremonies’ wife, Lady w.a.n.g, followed Princess Consort Jing’s example. She picked up a small spoon and gently scooped a small portion of the simple and elegant matcha flavored red beans cake and put it into her mouth.
[1] Jing Ba Jian/Beijing 8 (京八件) - a series (of 8 different types of confectionery) of Chinese desserts made during the Qing Dynasty. Each of the eight desserts means different things. The eight meanings: happiness, success, long life, luck, wealth, education, excess, and fertility.