Chapter 115: The Whole Lamb Banquet

That day, Sun Ce was busy training the navy alongside Cheng Pu, Pan Zhang, Jiang Qin, and others, organizing the warships, when suddenly an invitation arrived from Emperor Liu Xie’s temporary palace.

The invitation explained that Liu Xie, having nothing better to do, had devised a new dish at the palace. It was said to be so delicious that he wanted Sun Ce, along with Zhang Hong, Zhou Yu, and their families, to come taste it.

This was the very first time Liu Xie had extended such an invitation to Sun Ce, breaking all precedent.

Although Sun Ce regarded Liu Xie as merely a tool, the man was after all the emperor—and a clever one at that. To extract more from him, Sun Ce knew he had to show some respect.

Moreover, there was something else in the invitation that piqued Sun Ce’s curiosity.

According to Liu Xie, the empress and the Qiao sisters had recently developed a fascination with martial arts and kept pestering him to teach them some techniques.

But Liu Xie couldn’t train them every day, and in his own words, he was just too lazy.

So he thought of someone—Sun Shangxiang, whose martial prowess was renowned in Wu County. Liu Xie often strolled through the marketplace, so he naturally knew of her.

Liu Xie’s request seemed perfectly reasonable to Sun Ce, but he couldn’t help but consider another possibility—whether he could use this opportunity to solve a problem that had troubled him for years.

There was also another matter: to strengthen his control over Emperor Liu Xie.

Once back at his residence, Sun Ce called one of his maidservants and gave her instructions.

“Go tell Shangxiang to accompany me tomorrow to the emperor’s temporary palace for the banquet. She must dress formally. The empress and the others have some questions about weapons and want to seek her advice. She must not be disrespectful.”

After the maid left, Sun Ce smiled slightly. He knew that normally Shangxiang would be reluctant to attend such an event, but if it involved martial arts, she would certainly go.

The next day, the temporary palace was bustling from early morning. Liu Xie had arranged a grand feast featuring lamb dishes, with the star attractions being lamb skewers and roasted leg of lamb.

After successfully experimenting with lamb skewers, Liu Xie realized that the saying “high-quality ingredients require primitive cooking methods” was indeed quite true.

In this era, lamb had virtually no gamey taste. When roasted, just a bit of coarse salt and a few common spices were enough to make it far more delicious than lamb skewers of later ages.

The key was mastering the right cooking time.

Armed with this knowledge, Liu Xie spent the following days perfecting roasted lamb chops and legs, the differences lying primarily in seasoning and timing.

After several attempts, he managed to roast both to perfection, which was precisely why he extended the invitation to Sun Ce.

After all, as emperor, if he couldn’t present a feast that amazed everyone, the banquet would hardly create a stir.

More importantly, Liu Xie’s main purpose was to win over Sun Shangxiang. Besides teaching martial arts, offering delicacies unavailable outside the palace was a significant lure.

“Your Majesty, such a method of roasting lamb could have remained a secret of the palace. Now, after this banquet, won’t all of Wu County know about it?” Qiao Feng, ever protective of intellectual property, worried that such a delicious creation, painstakingly developed by Liu Xie, might be given away too easily.

“So what if they know? Perhaps someone will make the lamb skewers even better. As long as we can eat them whenever we want, that’s what matters.”

Seeing Liu Xie’s generosity, Qiao Feng had no grounds to object.

“Your Majesty, what if Sun Shangxiang doesn’t come? Wouldn’t this whole arrangement be for nothing? If we miss this chance, it would be difficult to invite her again.”

“She will come. I may not fully understand what kind of person Sun Shangxiang is, but I know Sun Ce well enough. She might ignore others, but she must listen to Sun Ce. That is enough.”

Qiao Feng considered this and admitted Liu Xie’s reasoning was sound.

Liu Xie had gotten along well with Sun Ce, helping him devise many strategies and even saving his life. As long as it wasn’t something unreasonable, Sun Ce would give Liu Xie face.

Seeing Qiao Feng nod, Liu Xie checked the time and pondered briefly before instructing, “You sisters and the empress must cultivate a good relationship with Sun Shangxiang, so she will visit my palace often after today. Also, learn some martial skills from her. I have a feeling these will come in handy sooner or later. I do not want to be forced to leave you behind when I go to battle. You will only be safe if you can accompany me with strength.”

Qiao Feng, of course, understood the deeper meaning behind inviting Sun Shangxiang: Liu Xie truly wanted them all to gain self-defense abilities.

This was a twofold strategy—both to win over Sun Shangxiang, thereby keeping Sun Ce in check, and to have Qiao Feng and Fu Shou learn protective skills from her. Why wouldn’t they agree?

Liu Xie suddenly realized this plan was more than just twofold, but he didn’t dwell on it and smiled quietly to himself.

As the appointed hour drew near, the aroma of roasted lamb wafted through the palace. Liu Xie was quite pleased with the effect.

The first to arrive was Zhou Yu, who had tasted the lamb skewers before. Liu Xie didn’t know if the small delicacy was what drew him in first.

Zhou Yu was accompanied by a woman in her prime, exquisite in beauty and figure. If Liu Xie had to sum her up in a phrase, it would be “sensual but not vulgar, dignified yet alluring,” clearly a woman who matched Zhou Yu’s temperament.

However, compared to the Qiao sisters, this woman was on a different level altogether.

“Gongjin, are you still longing for the lamb skewers I roasted?” Liu Xie teased upon seeing Zhou Yu.

Embarrassed, Zhou Yu waved his hand and whispered, “Your Majesty, please don’t tell Bo Fu and the others that I’ve already tasted these skewers...”

Liu Xie understood Zhou Yu’s concern and smiled gently, nodding silently, keeping the secret.

The second arrivals were Zhang Hong and his wife. Clearly, Sun Ce did not want too many of his subordinates growing close to Liu Xie, so he only sent these two.