The wine banquet hosted by the Queen Mother was based on the grape fruit wine sent as tribute by the Liang Kingdom in the northwest, supplemented by medicinal delicacies made from rare medicinal materials sent by small countries this year.
The fruit wine is crystal clear and as red as blood. It looks gorgeous, fresh and moving. It smells mellow and tantalizing, and the smell is alluring. You can tell at a glance that it is the best wine.
No one of the concubines Jinzhi who lived in the harem all day had ever seen such a strange fruit wine, and the grape fruit presented with the fruit wine instantly grabbed everyone's attention and attention. The bright and ruddy fruit
Grapes make everyone excited.
The people who participated in the banquet were either princesses and princesses, or noble masters such as empresses, concubines, and concubines. Who didn’t eat delicacies from the mountains and seas, ginseng, snow lotus, etc. on weekdays? But no one had tasted the simple grapes.
No one had ever seen it before. Therefore, when the wine and fresh grapes were served, almost everyone's eyes shone with surprise.
Of course, Yang Xi is not included among these people.
She is a modern person. Although she has basically never drank alcohol in the past, she knows a lot about wine. Therefore, when she saw this thing, she did not find it strange.
"The princess seems to have seen this fruit wine before?" Next to her, Guiren Fu, who looked exactly like Queen Fu, asked softly.
Yang Xi was slightly startled and said: "It's just... I saw it with General Jie Xu in the past."
Jie Xu has been fighting in the field all year round and must have been exposed to a lot of cultures from various places. In this way, no one should be suspicious.
Sure enough, when everyone heard it, they thought it should be so.
"In that case, why not let An Ning tell everyone how to taste this fruit wine." As soon as the Queen Mother spoke, all the concubines began to support her.
Yang Xi couldn't resist the kindness, so she could only nod her head and said: "Then... An Ning will be embarrassed."
After that, she took the wine sealed in a special bottle from the palace maid, and said to the Queen Mother and the concubines: "It is the so-called luminous cup of grape wine, so for drinking grape fruit wine, the best cup is made of white jade.
A luminous cup, I wonder if there is such a thing in the palace."
"Of course there is." Queen Fu nodded slightly to the palace lady beside her, and the palace lady led the few people guarding outside the door to get the cup in a hurry.
There may be many things missing in the palace, but there will never be a shortage of jewels and jade.
Seeing this, Yang Xi added: "Although the wine has a mellow smell and an attractive fragrance, it will have a bitter taste in the mouth, and those who are not used to it will find it unpleasant."
Relying on the knowledge she learned in the etiquette class she took in college, she continued: "Before tasting wine, it is best for everyone to eat something to satisfy their hunger. The smell of alcohol is harmful to the body. Drinking on an empty stomach can easily cause stomach problems.
Partial discomfort...that is to say, you will feel nauseous and want to vomit."
So everyone followed her instructions and tasted the barbecue and pastries.
"Wait a minute, Your Majesty, this wine should not be eaten with fruit, as it will cause gastric irritation." She glanced at Fu Guiren picking up a piece of candied date cake, and said hurriedly: "Fu Guiren, um... before drinking wine
It’s best not to eat pastries that are too sweet, as this will dilute the taste of the wine.”
Hearing this, Mr. Fu had no choice but to put down the cake in his hand and said with a patient smile: "This wine is very particular."
Yang Xi just copied the knowledge in class. In fact, she was really a layman when it came to wine tasting.
She smiled shyly at Noble Fu, and saw that the ladies had already replaced everyone with white jade luminous cups. She carefully took out the cork that sealed the wine bottle, poured half a cup of wine into the luminous cup, put down the bottle, and held it.
Shi Ran walked past the Queen Mother and handed the cup respectfully: "Your Majesty, An Ning has caused a lot of trouble to the Queen Mother in the past few days. This cup is from An Ning to the Queen Mother to thank her for her care."
I learned this from TV. At banquets, toasting is a must, and the first person to be toasted must be the most powerful person at the banquet. Here, of course, the Queen Mother ranks first.
The toast was well learned, and the Queen Mother liked it very much. She happily took the wine glass and took a sip, then she furrowed her eyebrows slightly.
Yang Xi felt panicked and a little nervous. The Queen Mother was probably not used to the taste of this wine.
But she saw the Queen Mother slowly unfurling her eyebrows and a smile on her face. She took another sip of the wine and said, "This wine is bitter yet sweet, astringent yet mellow. It is bitter in the mouth, but it leaves a lasting impression on the lips and teeth."
Fragrant, it is indeed the best wine, good wine, good wine."
Yang Xi sighed secretly when he saw this. As the saying goes, accompanying a king is like accompanying a tiger. Although the Queen Mother is kind, she has been in the palace for a long time. She has seen so many tragedies in the palace, so this little girl is still a little nervous.
After staying in the palace for ten days, all I saw and heard was that the eunuchs and eunuchs in the palace were often beaten and punished with sticks and corporal punishment. Because of these things, the initial admiration for the Queen Mother gradually faded into awe.
Days like this are really not as good as one ten-thousandth of the carefree and carefree days at Sunset Palace.
Seeing that the Queen Mother was still tasting it, she couldn't help but said: "Although the wine is good, Your body is not suitable for drinking too much. After all, this wine is harmful to the body."
The Queen Mother just smiled slightly and didn't blame her for being nosy. "Okay, let's add another glass to Aijia, drink it, and then rest."
Yang Xi nodded and gave the Queen Mother another small cup. Then, she came to Queen Fu and said, "An Ning would also like to toast the Queen. I wish the Queen and Your Majesty will grow old together and be happy and healthy."
After that, he poured a small cup for the Queen, then returned to his seat, added another cup for himself, nodded to everyone, and said, "An Ning also wants to toast everyone, please."
The palace ladies behind everyone poured wine for the masters.
"The concubines also respect the Queen Mother and the Empress."
So, under the leadership of the Queen Mother and the Empress, everyone raised their glasses and tasted the wine. When the wine entered their throats, some frowned and some were surprised. However, because the Queen Mother praised it as a good wine after tasting it, no one dared to say a word.
This wine is not.
It was also the first time for Yang Xi to taste such a mellow wine, with very little bitterness and more of a good aroma, sweet and refreshing. She had occasionally had a few sips at banquets in the 21st century, but she had never drank it.
Having seen a wine that tasted so mellow, I couldn’t help but take a few more sips.
The ancient soil was pure, and the grapes produced were clean and pollution-free, so the wine produced was extremely fragrant and mellow.
The eldest princess was not here today, so she didn't have to face the face that looked exactly like her old self. She was in a good mood and drank two more drinks unconsciously.
After drinking two glasses of wine, the Queen Mother became too drunk, so she was helped back to the palace to rest by Lao Gong'e. Seeing the most majestic Queen Mother leave, the remaining people gradually began to feel relaxed and at ease, and the anger of the banquet became more intense.