Lu Chimo smiled and nodded at him, then poured in too much oil, quickly smashed some garlic and ginger, and once the oil was hot, he put the fish in and fried it until golden brown on both sides. Finally, he threw in the smashed garlic and ginger.
The technique was very clean, efficient, and skillful.
Looking at Feng Muting's side, he was still struggling with the fish scales. Because he had chopped off the fish head, his hands could only be placed on the fish's body, making it very difficult to scrape off the scales.
Su Fuliu shook her head as she watched Feng Muting frantically trying to do something: "Your Highness... let me do it?"
Chapter 258 Your Highness, is what you made edible?
Feng Muting had never faced such an awkward situation.
If Su Fuliu were to do it, he would lose all face.
But if he were to take over himself, he would have no face to save.
However, although both would result in losing face, if he came himself, he would be fulfilling his promise to Su Fuliu.
He didn't want Su Fuliu to think he was a person who broke his word and backed down when faced with difficulties.
Even if the food he made wasn't very good, at least he put his heart into it.
He said he would cook a meal for Su Fuliu, and he kept his word.
That should do it.
As for whether it tastes good or not, that's not something he can control.
"No, Ah Liu, just watch from the side. If I do anything wrong, just point it out." Feng Muting continued to scrape the fish scales. After finally finishing, he started to remove the gills. It took him a long time to clean the fish.
Su Fuliu quickly brought over a basin of water and asked Feng Muting to put the fish in the water to wash it.
Although Feng Muting was flustered, Su Fuliu didn't say anything, but tried her best to help him.
The four of them spent half a day busy in the kitchen.
Of course, Bai Yulang said he was there to help out, but Lu Chimo did everything perfectly, and he didn't need to help at all. At most, he just helped with the firewood.
Su Fuliu had a tougher time. Although Feng Muting was in charge of cooking, Su Fuliu was responsible for cleaning up afterward.
Unfortunately, Feng Muting's finger was cut by the knife.
But at the same time, he was very lucky; he only suffered a small cut.
Because if he hadn't reacted quickly, he would have lost his fingers.
After Lu Chimo perfectly prepared the three dishes Bai Yulang had mentioned, Feng Muting also prepared two dishes: a fish soup and a stir-fried potato shred.
However, Lu Chimo's three dishes were easy to identify at a glance, and they were all delicious and visually appealing.
As for the two dishes that Feng Muting made, you probably wouldn't be able to tell them apart without knowing their names.
Fish soup might be easy to spot, since there's a fish head inside.
But the stir-fried potato shreds turned into ink-stained potato shreds.
It's completely black, so it's definitely a bit burnt, but the reason it's so black is mostly because too much soy sauce was added.
Bai Yulang had been holding back his laughter from the beginning, but when he saw Feng Muting's efforts to make these two dishes, he couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter: "Your Highness, is what you made edible?"
Feng Muting shot him a sharp look, and he immediately shut up.
Su Fuliu hurriedly said, "Your Highness's first time cooking, and to achieve such results is already quite impressive. I remember the first time I cooked, my face was completely blackened by the smoke."
Bai Yulang shook his head: "I don't believe it. Brother Liu is obviously a skillful person. Even if it's his first time cooking, it certainly won't be more outrageous than what the prince did."
Su Fuliu glanced at him and secretly winked at him, signaling him to stop talking.
He was trying to make amends for Feng Muting when Bai Yulang completely overturned his plans.
Bai Yulang awkwardly shut his mouth and silently moved closer to Lu Chimo.
After thinking for a moment, he went against his conscience and said, "The dishes Your Highness makes may not look appealing, but they might actually taste delicious!"
Su Fuliu quickly followed his words and said, "Yes, I also think that the two dishes that Your Highness made must taste very good."
Feng Muting didn't speak, but stared at the two dishes he had made, then at the three dishes Lu Chimo had made beside him. He sighed inwardly and said, "How about A-Liu eats the dishes made by Physician Lu? I'll just throw this away..."
Su Fuliu immediately went over to stop him and said, "This is a dish that Your Highness painstakingly prepared for me. How can it be thrown away? I haven't even tasted it yet."
"...No need to taste it, you can tell just by looking." Feng Muting wanted to take back what he said earlier; he didn't have any talent for cooking.
Su Fuliu shook her head: "Didn't His Highness say that food made with love is the most delicious? Doctor Lu's cooking must be very good, but I believe His Highness's cooking is just as delicious!"
Chapter 259 Almost Lost His Soul
After Su Fuliu finished speaking, he picked up his chopsticks and looked at the "ink-stained potato shreds" in front of him. He couldn't help but swallow, and anyone who didn't know better would think he was drooling over the delicious food.
But everyone present understood that it wasn't just craving.
Just as Feng Muting was about to stop Su Fuliu again, he saw that Su Fuliu's chopsticks had already picked up the shredded potatoes.
Su Fuliu, who originally only intended to try a single shredded potato, was afraid that this would embarrass Feng Muting. If that were the case, he might as well just say he wouldn't eat it. Since he was going to eat it, he should at least make it look like he was eating it.
So he picked up a big mouthful of shredded potatoes and put it in his mouth.
All eyes turned to him.
Bai Yulang couldn't help but ask, "Brother Liu, how is it? Isn't it incredibly awful?"
Su Fuliu swallowed the shredded potato, her expression slightly uneasy, but not very obvious.
Feng Muting knew it must taste terrible; Su Fuliu was only controlling her expression to save face for him.
Otherwise, if it were Bai Yulang, he would have definitely thrown down his chopsticks.
"It's alright, just a little too salty and a little too bitter. For Your Highness's first time cooking, it's really quite good," Su Fuliu replied.
Bai Yulang looked at him in disbelief: "Really? I don't believe it at all. There's also fish soup. Brother Liu, would you like to try some fish soup?"
Su Fuliu nodded: "Of course I'll try it."
As he spoke, he took a spoonful of fish soup and drank it.
The three people in front of him were all sharp-eyed. Although Su Fuliu was trying very hard to suppress her nausea, they still noticed.
Feng Muting reached out and grabbed Su Fuliu's wrist: "That's enough, you've tasted it. Let's eat the dishes made by Doctor Lu. I'll take these and throw them away."
Su Fuliu looked at him. As long as Feng Muting's two dishes were even remotely palatable, he could eat them.
However, the first two bites he took almost made him lose his mind.
So he was powerless to help; he couldn't risk his life for this "love."
He had already tasted a bite of each dish, so it wasn't a waste of Feng Muting's good intentions.
So, after hearing what Feng Muting had to say, he nodded and said, "Okay."
Feng Muting was somewhat annoyed to see that Su Fuliu had agreed to his request instead of stopping him as she had done before.
However, what frustrated him was not anything else, but his own "amazing" cooking talent.
All he could do was pick up the two dishes he had spent half a day preparing and throw them away.
When he returned, Su Fuliu had already served him rice and gestured for him to come and sit down to eat.
This was the first time the four of them had eaten together at the small square table in the kitchen.
Lu Chimo put some food into Bai Yulang's bowl: "These were all ordered by Yulang. Yulang, try them quickly and see if you are satisfied."
Bai Yulang smiled and nodded, then started eating: "Wow, senior brother, you really are a hidden talent! These dishes are all so delicious, you're practically a culinary god!"
"I'm glad you're satisfied, Yulang." Lu Chimo smiled and put more food into his bowl.
Su Fuliu glanced at Feng Muting, who was still somewhat sullen, and then put some food into his bowl: "Your Highness has been busy for so long, you must be tired, please eat quickly!"
Feng Muting looked at the food in his bowl and became even more depressed.
Seeing his reaction, Su Fuliu could only coax him, "Why isn't Your Highness eating? Are you too tired to move and want me to feed you? Oh dear, really. Alright then, Your Highness, open your mouth, ah—"
Chapter 260 Wait, is this still the same volatile prince who strikes fear into the hearts of everyone?
Su Fuliu picked up a piece of dried bean curd and brought it to Feng Muting's mouth. Feng Muting immediately laughed and ate the bean curd.
When his loved one fed him, he suddenly felt no longer depressed.
He pointed to the three delicacies of the earth and said, "I want to eat this too."
"Okay, okay." Su Fuliu coaxed Feng Muting like a child, and then fed him another plate of stir-fried potatoes, green peppers, and eggplant.
Bai Yulang suddenly felt that the food in his bowl no longer tasted good. He looked at Feng Muting and said, "Huh, is this still the same irritable prince who makes people tremble with fear? He actually needs my brother Liu to coax him?"
Feng Muting glanced at him: "What's it to you?"
Bai Yulang choked.
Lu Chimo was afraid that Bai Yulang would blurt out something inappropriate, and he also knew that Bai Yulang was envious, so he quickly picked up a piece of boneless meat from the belly of the fish and fed it to his mouth, saying, "Yulang, have a taste?"
Bai Yulang immediately laughed, then snorted at Feng Muting before happily opening his mouth to eat the fish that Lu Chimo fed him.
Feng Muting had no time to argue with Bai Yulang right now. He was very happy that Su Fuliu was coaxing him like this.
"Ah Liu, don't just feed me, eat some yourself too. Come on, it's my turn to feed you." With that, Feng Muting prepared to serve Su Fuliu some food.
Su Fuliu shook her head: "I'm not very hungry, Your Highness, please eat."
“We’ve been busy for so long, and now we finally have a meal. You’ve only eaten a few bites. How can you not be hungry?” Feng Muting asked. This was not in line with Su Fuliu’s usual foodie ways.
Su Fuliu smiled and said, "I'm really not hungry, Your Highness, please eat."
Feng Muting looked at him and thought that Su Fuliu was probably too tired from working so hard, so she didn't have much of an appetite.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel a little guilty.
After finishing their meal, Lu Chimo and Su Fuliu were the first to stand up and prepare to clear the table.
Feng Muting quickly said, "Aliu, sit down for a while, I'll take care of it!"
Bai Yulang also said, "Senior brother, you and Brother Liu have worked hard. You should rest. The prince and I will take care of the tidying up."
He really didn't do anything, so it's only right that he helps tidy up now.
Feng Muting had been busy for a long time, but he hadn't achieved anything significant.