Prince Jin walked in with a noble aura and an elegant smile.
"Please rise.
"Magistrate Xiao has invited me to the banquet today. All of you don't have to be so formal."
The patriarchs of the great aristocratic families who were present had more interactions with Prince Jin, so their attitudes were more natural and not restrained.
The family heads and descendants of the small and medium-sized families were a little nervous.
Everyone invited to the banquet had arrived.
Xiao Hanzheng and Shi Qingluo walked in from the door.
Then, Prince Yi and the others also came in from a side door in the backyard.
Liang Yujun looked at Liang Yulin and said with a fake smile, "My royal brother is here too!"
"Since my royal brother is here, how can I not be here?"
The people present basically knew that Prince Yi had come to Northern City, but not many people had seen him.
Now, they were all stunned to see Prince Yi, who was dressed in a white brocade robe and had an extraordinary and elegant temperament.
It was said that Prince Yi was good-looking, and today he was really too good-looking.
Among everyone who was present, only Xiao Hanzheng's appearance could match Prince Yi's, and the others were all inferior.
Everyone greeted Prince Yi again.
"You're welcome, everyone," Liang Yulin said with a warm smile.
"Brother, let's take the plates and pick something nice to eat." He turned to Liang Yujun.
Liang Yujun had already heard Shi Qingluo's introduction of what a buffet was, so he nodded. "Alright!"
Thus, the two of them went to pick out the dishes together.
Liang Yulin seemed to be more used to it.
He often went to the kitchen to help Kong Yuelan do things, even washing vegetables and carrying plates.
He seemed to be at ease.
Liang Yujun picked up the plate and went to get some food for himself.
After all, he had never held his own plate before, and usually, when he ate, there would be a maid serving him.
Liang Yulin picked up some food and waved at Shi Qingluo. "Qingluo, introduce us to the special dishes."
He did this to show that he was closer to his future daughter-in-law and also to let his daughter-in-law introduce some dishes to give Madam Tu a good slap in the face.
"Sure!" Shi Qingluo walked over with a generous smile.
"There are thirty-eight cold dishes here. This is white meat with garlic paste and three slices of cold salad...
"These are the hot dishes. There are a total of 68 dishes. This is red plum pearl incense, Buddha's hand, a golden scroll, mushroom duck feet...
"The desserts are here. There's a total of..."
Because she was the one who set the menu and planned the recipe, she was the main taste-tester, so she was very familiar with every dish.
Not only did she introduce the names of the dishes, but she also highlighted some of the special dishes.
Everyone was shocked when they heard this.
Shi Qingluo really had some tricks up her sleeves for this banquet.
Previously, Shi Qingluo had said that Madam Tu's 38-dish banquet wasn't that great, and they were still wondering how many more dishes she could make.
Who would have thought that not only did she make hundreds of dishes, but she also divided them into different types?
The key was that they didn't know most of the dishes.
Shi Qingluo continued to introduce more than 20 spicy dishes.
"This is a dish made from a vegetable called chili left behind by my master. It's a little spicy at first, but people who enjoy this flavor will find it more and more delicious as they eat it.
"Those who really can't eat spicy food don't have to force themselves."
Spicy rabbit head, spicy chicken, mapo tofu, dried pot shrimp, hot and sour carp, etc. It was guaranteed that those who liked spicy food would feel good eating it.
Shi Qingluo's peers were quite receptive to chili, so she expected a large number of people to request it at the banquet today.
Liang Yulin chuckled. "I like to cook with chili. It really has a unique taste."
As he spoke, he even took the initiative to put a few spicy dishes on Liang Yujun's plate. "Imperial brother, try some too."
What could Liang Yujun do? He could only accept it. "Alright, then I will taste it."
"There's also roast suckling pig, roast squab, roast whole sheep, roast quail, and sliced roast duck upstairs.
"There will also be people dedicated to cutting and slicing it. If you want to try it, you can go and get it."
Shi Qingluo then pointed to a table by the wall. "That's the sauce table. You can choose the sauce according to what you like.
"If there's anything you don't know, you can ask the serving maids."
"In that case, I won't disturb your meal," she said.
She and Xiao Hanzheng brought the two princes upstairs with some dishes.
The patriarchs of the aristocratic families also followed them upstairs.
Many of the family heads or disciples of the small and medium-sized aristocratic families chose to sit downstairs.
Shi Qingluo had set up seats on both the upper and lower floors to separate those of high and low status.
The main reason was that they were afraid that everyone would be unable to relax when they were together, so it would be more comfortable to eat on separate floors.
Of course, if someone of a lower status had to show up in front of Prince Jin and the others, he would be the one who would be embarrassed.
There were also some light dishes upstairs, but they were mainly desserts and juice.
There was a special table at the front, where three people who were good at cutting were slicing roast ducks.
There was no roast duck in Daliang yet, so when someone served it together with the dipping sauce that the maidservant brought, the guests were immediately conquered by its deliciousness.
There was also the roasted suckling pig, which had a ruddy color, crisp skin, and tender meat.
It was fragrant but not greasy.
The grilled quail was tender, and even the bones were crispy.
When one bit into it, it was crisp and delicious.
Prince Jin's personal attendant carried a plate and placed it in front of the two princes.
The two of them had the highest status, so they sat at a table alone.
No one else dared to join them.
Liang Yujun tasted them one by one. "They're not bad."
Shi Qingluo's previous recipes had enabled Secondary Consort Hua's restaurant to earn a lot of money.
He didn't expect her to make so many dishes.
The key was that every dish had a different taste.
Even he, who usually didn't have a good appetite, didn't stop eating.
Liang Yulin chuckled. "That's true. Look at whose daughter-in-law is hosting the banquet."
Liang Yujun was speechless.
This was the first time he realized that his younger brother could be so thick-skinned.
He raised his eyebrows. "Whose daughter-in-law is she?"
Liang Yulin pointed at himself. "Of course it's mine."
Liang Yujun's face didn't turn black, but Xiao Yuanshi's, who was sitting in the corner, did.
This shameless Prince Yi hadn't even married Kong Yuelan yet, so how could Shi Qingluo be his daughter-in-law?
This time, Xiao Hanzheng had invited the various aristocratic families and officials of Northern City to the banquet.
As the deputy governor, Xiao Yuanshi was naturally invited as well.
As for whether he would come or not, it was Xiao Yuanshi's business.
He hadn't bothered with Kong Yuelan recently because his plan had been foiled several times by Xiao Hanzheng after he was put into a gunny sack.
Furthermore, Prince Yi had arrived in Northern City.
However, he still came after receiving the invitation.
He wanted to see if his bad daughter-in-law would be embarrassed by the Tu family.
However, when he saw Shi Qingluo's innovative buffet and the variety of dishes, as well as the fact that almost everyone was eating so hard that they couldn't even lift their heads, he realized that the dishes were not only visually appealing, but also delicious.
Even he couldn't go against his conscience and say that it was bad to eat.
He knew it.
Shi Qingluo had not only avoided making a fool of herself by serving these dishes at the banquet, but she had also ruthlessly slapped Madam Tu in the face.