In the kitchen, Shen Shaoguang was making “Three Non-Stick” for Yuan.
She mixed egg yolks with cane syrup and starch, heated lard in a wok over high heat, poured in the egg yolk mixture, and continuously stirred while gradually adding more lard to achieve smoothness and the “non-stick” quality. In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the oil and egg mixture merged into one, transforming from pale yellow to a beautiful golden color, ready to be served.
The semi-liquid dish was fragrant, soft, tender, and sweet, with a slight chewiness – delicious and perfectly aligned with Mr. Cai Lan’s theory that the world’s most delicious foods are high in cholesterol.
Since Shen Shaoguang first made it, Yuan had fallen in love with this dish. Whenever there were leftover egg yolks, she would urge, “Young Mistress, could you make some ‘Three Non-Stick’?”
Considering Yuan’s build, Shen Shaoguang only agreed two or three times out of ten, so each time Yuan got to eat it, she was extremely excited.
Yu San didn’t eat such sweet, soft “children’s food,” and Chang didn’t want to compete with Yuan, just tasting a bit for courtesy’s sake, so most of it went to Yuan – though today Yuan was willing to share some with the calico cat Ming Nu.
Shen Shaoguang reminded her: “Don’t give it too much, it won’t digest well, and besides, it can’t taste sweetness.”
Yuan opened her eyes wide: “How does Young Mistress know it can’t taste it?”
Shen Shaoguang was stunned by her question, unconsciously glancing at Young Magistrate Lin sitting nearby. On her first visit to the Lin residence, she had argued with him about the “you are not a fish” question. Thinking of his serious expression then, compared to now…
While Yuan was still waiting for Young Mistress to explain the “I am not a cat” question, Shen Shaoguang, unable to explain, had to strike at the heart of the matter: “The ‘Three Non-Stick’ won’t taste good when it gets cold.”
Yuan quickly took the plate back to the kitchen.
The cat sat on the counter, eating the two bites of egg Yuan had shared with dignified restraint.
Looking at the cat, then at Young Magistrate Lin nearby, Shen Shaoguang shook her head and began calculating the midday accounts.
Today Young Magistrate Lin had come early, catching the tail end of lunch. His face showed signs of travel dust, suggesting he hadn’t eaten at the official kitchen. When Shen Shaoguang asked, this proved true, so she properly served him four dishes, soup, and fragrant rice.
One dish was Lotus Chicken Slices, made by mixing egg whites with minced chicken into a meat paste and cooking it in warm oil. Yuan had spotted the leftover egg yolks and thus the “Three Non-Stick” was made.
The cat finished the egg and stared at the tip of Shen Shaoguang’s brush. After a moment, it dipped its small paw in the ink like its owner and tried to make a mark in the account book.
Shen Shaoguang quickly grabbed its paw. Ming Nu first fearlessly met her gaze, then casually withdrew its paw and began grooming itself, acting like a proper rascal.
Helpless, Shen Shaoguang cleaned the ancestral cat’s paw, held it, stroked its face, patted its head, scratched under its chin, and rubbed its back, pampering it until it squinted its eyes and began to purr.
Lin Yan watched her coax the cat while eating, thought of something that made him lower his eyes somewhat embarrassedly, though his lips curved up.
Shen Shaoguang remembered something important and put the cat down to speak with Young Magistrate Lin.
Lin Yan looked up at her with a smile.
“There have been some baseless rumors circulating lately,” Shen Shaoguang told him about sayings like “when the toad is lazy, the world will rebel” and “burning heat in Bingxu, hardship in Dinghai,” adding, “People fear next year will truly bring ‘hardship.’ The grain shop people say some have already started hoarding food.”
Lin Yan nodded seriously.
Shen Shaoguang knew the capital prefecture should have officials specifically responsible for monitoring public opinion, but she wanted to mention it. Having peace without war or famine, and having secure meals to eat, was precious, and Shen Shaoguang hoped such days would continue as long as possible.
Having fulfilled her duty as a good citizen, Shen Shaoguang was about to leave. Two days ago, on her way back from the Lin residence, she had been captivated by Young Magistrate Lin’s beauty, and though she had deflected with jokes, she had wavered quite a bit. But when morning came and the sun rose, reason returned, and Shen Shaoguang quite heartlessly changed her mind, feeling grateful that she had deflected then. If she had gone along with it and made any promises, or even been so besotted as to hold his hand… Thank goodness, thank goodness!
To express her attitude of returning to the right path and regretting yesterday’s thoughts, Shen Shaoguang didn’t even glance at Young Magistrate Lin’s long, delicate hands when thinking of “holding hands.” Today Proprietress Shen had maintained a dignified, serious demeanor, never letting her gaze fall below Lin Yan’s neck.
“What does the young mistress think of this matter?”
Shen Shaoguang stopped and sat properly again. She was someone who clearly distinguished between official and personal matters, and now spoke seriously: “These prophecies, both auspicious and ominous, especially those concerning national fortune, are mostly not spontaneously generated by the common people but deliberately manufactured. The intent might be to create momentum for oneself, showing divine mandate and heavenly timing, or to disturb people’s hearts and create chaos for fishing in troubled waters. Looking at the current prophecies, they seem to be the latter. As for the former—”
Shen Shaoguang smiled slightly. During major festivals, the various “white phoenixes” and “qilin” auspicious omens reported from everywhere were far more common and representative than “Great Chu rises, Chen Sheng is king.”
Understanding what she meant by this subtle pause and playful smile, Lin Yan tried to keep a straight face but couldn’t help smiling.
Shen Shaoguang cleared her throat, “If the country were truly peaceful and prosperous, with favorable weather, such ominous prophecies and rumors wouldn’t spread easily, like seeds falling on sandy soil – they wouldn’t grow.”
Remembering she was speaking to the Young Magistrate of the Capital Prefecture, Shen Shaoguang added a caveat, “Of course, the country is peaceful now, it’s just that the weather hasn’t been quite so favorable, so these seeds of ominous prophecies have sprouted. When people with ulterior motives water and fertilize them, they grow into what we see now.”
Lin Yan wasn’t offended and said softly, “Regardless, when people’s hearts are unsettled and rumors spread, it’s our failure.”
Shen Shaoguang glanced at him – not shifting blame, not covering up faults, Young Magistrate Lin was indeed an official who took responsibility.
His attitude deserved even greater respect. Shen Shaoguang said earnestly, “Last year’s drought and the subsequent spring tax exemption did much to stabilize people’s hearts in the capital region.” Fish vendor Qu had mentioned this point.
“The later measures – reviewing prisoner cases, reducing palace food and vegetables, releasing palace maids – though opposite in purpose to these rumors and prophecies, used similar methods – fighting a ‘public opinion battle’ to stabilize people’s hearts.” Shen Shaoguang raised an eyebrow, “I wonder if there were similar rumors last year?”
Lin Yan nodded.
This further confirmed that the rumors were being manipulated by people with ulterior motives. “Actually, besides this counter-propaganda battle, I wonder if the court officials have considered making the matter of ‘prophecies’ public, explaining various phenomena, rather than using ‘auspicious prophecies’ to cover up and counter ‘ominous prophecies.'”
Lin Yan pondered for a moment, his expression becoming increasingly solemn, “I’d like to hear more.”
Shen Shaoguang, always carrying shadows of her previous life, briefly explained her view that science should dispel superstition, improve government credibility, and perfect rumor-dispelling mechanisms.
“The Master said: ‘The people may be made to follow it, but may not be made to understand it.’ Only by making the people understand can they avoid being troubled by these baseless rumors.” Shen Shaoguang finally found theoretical support for herself.
Lin Yan gazed at Shen Shaoguang. Since the Han and Wei dynasties through the Jin, most Confucian scholars had followed the “the people may be made to follow but not understand” school, believing that “common people can use things daily but cannot understand them.” They thought that people should simply follow orders without needing to understand their purpose. When Lin Yan first heard his teacher Ming Cheng explain this alternative interpretation of the divided sentence at the academy, it was quite enlightening. He never expected to hear it again from a young lady.
Shen Shaoguang instead smiled and sighed lightly: “I was being somewhat idealistic. This isn’t something that can be achieved in ten or twenty years, or even in one dynasty. I’m afraid—” Shen Shaoguang pressed her lips together, not continuing. She had just gotten carried away speaking. Enlightening the people was an extremely difficult and long process, and the current social environment didn’t allow for it.
Lin Yan thought for a moment and said seriously: “If we don’t try, there will never be a day when ‘they understand.’ We should just do what we can, and naturally, those who come after will continue the work.”
Shen Shaoguang was somewhat moved. He understood worldly affairs but wasn’t worldly, understood difficulties but wasn’t afraid of them. “The Young Magistrate is truly an engaged Confucian disciple.”
After saying this, Shen Shaoguang remembered the “Confucian disciple” exchange between them, and his lingering words “How can we know it’s impossible if we don’t try?”
Shen Shaoguang cleared her throat, and looked down, wanting to find a teacup to hide behind, but there was none.
Lin Yan laughed softly.
Afraid she might be annoyed, Lin Yan steered the conversation back to the rumors.
Discussing politics with a lady, with the lady he admired, was such a novel experience that Lin Yan felt somewhat proud. This is my A Qi, he thought, intelligent and wise yet careful and practical, upholding great principles while not being bound by small matters, skilled in cooking, talented in management, and capable of both refined conversation and political discussion…
The calico cat Ming Nu walked over and curled up beside Shen Shaoguang’s leg, not sparing a glance for Young Magistrate Lin, its former owner who had only held it twice.
Having finished discussing official matters, Shen Shaoguang picked it up and went through her routine of stroking its face, patting its head, scratching its chin, and rubbing its back. Ming Nu lay on Shen Shaoguang’s leg and graciously licked her hand.
Lin Yan had been quite happy seeing Young Mistress Shen holding the cat that bore his mark but now felt somewhat jealous.
Shen Shaoguang also sensed his jealousy and couldn’t resist teasing: “It seems Ming Nu doesn’t much like Lord Lin. In just these few days, it has forgotten you. Perhaps it’s because you were too busy with official matters to care for it.” She added a smug smile at the end.
That smile… Lin Yan felt as if his heart had been lightly scratched by cat claws: “The young mistress’s food is delicious, and you treat it well, naturally Ming Nu favors you.”
Teasing and provocative, yet met with sincere admiration?
Shen Shaoguang was delighted, smiling with narrowed eyes, “I’ll go see, there’s some double-layer milk pudding, I’ll bring some for my lord as an extra treat.”
Author’s Note: ① From He Yan’s “Collected Explanations of the Analects.”