Lightning cracked the sky, brilliant, unbearable to the eye. Lotus Pier was in the grip of a thunderstorm. Thunder crashed nearby. Soaked to the skin, a bigger storm raging within, Lan Zhan flew in on Bichen and dismounted into chaos.
The wind tore off lotus pads and carried them flapping over the docks. Lightning again, rivaling the Zidian! None of it bothered Lan Zhan. He had but one goal, the kitchens of Lotus Pier.
Hurrying forward, Jiang Cheng ushered him into a room and offered him dry robes. Lan Zhan merely nodded his thanks wordlessly and retired behind the screen. Carelessly pushing his sopping hair over his shoulder, he said, "Sect Leader Jiang, I am ready!"
"I am afraid you're not!" Jiang Cheng actually smiled at Lan Zhan. Answering the unspoken question, Jiang Cheng said, "The Lotus Pier's kitchens are still ruled by the precepts of our JieJie. No one, but no one not even our A-Niang could challenge her there! What I am saying is, you won't be allowed to set foot in there in your current state!"
Handing him a towel and a jade comb, he said, "Dry your hair, comb and braid it tight, then you will have to wear a cap over it. Yanli Jie actually dismissed our Head Chef once when a single hair found its way into her beloved Lotus Root Pork Rib Soup! Even today, she watches over the kitchens!" he said with a sad smile. In a rare display of feeling, Lan Zhan patted his shoulder and accepted the towel and the comb.
A few minutes later they were inside the kitchens. It was a different world in here! There were several fires, large, medium and small. Lan Zhan's senses were assaulted by colours, smells and sounds. The rich aroma of meat cooking, the pungent notes of aromats like ginger and garlic rent the air. These were overlaid by the subtle yet distinct flavours of exotic spices - black pepper from India, cloves and cinnamon from Lanka, pungent chillies from across the seas, that stung both his nostrils and eyes!
Bunches of pink onions, pearly white garlic and blood red chillies hung from the ceiling in orderly bunches within easy grasp. There were porcelain jars with tightly shut lids bearing names of exotic herbs. Near the window were clay pots where green shoots were sprouting up merrily in the warm atmosphere - fresh herbs that would grace many a dish!
There being no rule against shouting at Lotus Pier, the cooks called out cheerfully, and loudly, to each other and their assistants.
"Hand me the sieve, no, the large one!"
"That's enough garlic, wait for it to brown!"
Apprentices stood stirring bubbling cauldrons, woks sizzled and raised clouds of steam as Chefs tossed in vegetables and meat. At one end, a mountain of bamboo steamers were being loaded by two teenagers. Dumplings, momos, Bao buns and rice cakes, there was enough to feed an army!
"Right," thought Lan Zhan, "unlike Cloud Recesses, every single soldier and disciple, visitors, guests and the hosts, everyone ate the exact same food prepared in the same kitchen! Big heart, YanLi Jie!"
The clang of cauldrons, the hiss of steam, sizzle of woks and the roaring fires added to the sensory overload. Lan Zhan was beginning to feel frazzled by the controlled chaos, when Jiang Cheng signalled for him to enter a small cubicle at the far end.
Lan Zhan stepped in, dwarfing the space and found Jiang Cheng bowing deeply to a middle aged aged lady dressed in the Jiang clan's purple robes. Lan Zhan had never heard mention of a senior female cultivator of note. There were several promising disciples, still learning though. Lan Zhan followed suit and bowed.
"A-Cheng, will you please stop embarrassing me or do I have to throw you out of my Kitchen?"
The sharp comment drew a genuine smile from Jiang Cheng, who then went forward and murmured, "Jie, he is here!" and then briefly hugged her!
