The Wandering God

24 Great Meal Fit For a Dragon's Son 2/3

饕餮大餐
Tāotièdàcān
Great meal fit for a dragon's son.
A sumptuous banquet.

At last the banquet came to a close, signaled by servants appearing with trays covered in sweets of all kinds.

Kageyama himself had always been partial to sweets, but could not eat them in large quantities. The sweet taste became meaningless if too much was consumed.

So after a small square of some green cake, and a steamed bun with red bean paste inside, Kageyama sat back to drink his wine and watch the goings on around him.

At her place, it seemed Ermi had been allowed to drink too much wine, as the girl's cheeks were rosy and she kept slipping to one side to lean against Liang'yi.

Beside her, Liang'yi also seemed to have drunk, and eaten too much. The Dachuo clutched at her much larger stomach, occasionally reaching out a hand to steady the swaying Ermi.

Sanyu, Ermi's younger brother, had disappeared.

Erli was sipping wine and looking at the goings on of those around her, much as Kageyama himself was doing. The fox hurriedly averted his eyes so as to not make eye contact.

At the main table, Xiangwu's place was empty, so Lady Lu's attention was now firmly fixed on Zhangyu. The Second Prince's face was serious as he nodded and replied to whatever it was his grandmother said to him, as though he was intent on her words.

Zhangyu's eyes, however, roamed over those assembled below. Kageyama could not help but notice that again and again they strayed to Ao, who had made up with Sanli and was once again laughing at something the troublesome prince had said.

Hmmm... this does not bode well....

Suddenly there was a great clatter beside him. He turned to see Ao had dropped her small silver spoon to her tray. In one hand she held a bowl of white almond pudding, a scoop carved out of the middle of the smooth white gelatinous mixture.

"Where did this come from?" Ao asked.

"The kitchens I'd imagine. Everything is made here, in the valley," said Sanli. "Why, what's wrong?"

Ao stood, her long goldfish robes brushing against the men beside her as she did.

"Where are you going?" asked Sanli, puzzled.

Instead of responding, Ao turned and strode off through the nearest doorway, causing several tray bearing servants to totter precariously to one side.

Sanli looked to Kageyama and shrugged. "I'll go after her."

"No," said Kageyama, rising, and motioning with one finger for Sanli to sit. "You two cause too much trouble together. Sit here and BEHAVE."

"Absolutely, Sho Sensei," Sanli chimed obediently, reaching for his wine cup.

Kageyama slipped through the door Ao had passed through, seeing the hem of her robe disappear around a corner.

"Girl, wait!" he called, hurrying after her.

Through the halls Kageyama followed Ao, agilely weaving past servants staggering under trays of food and trays of empty plates. The girl walked swiftly, her robe and long unbound hair flowing out behind her, and with the press of servants blocking his way Kageyama could not catch up to her.

Ao disappeared through the large double doors leading to the kitchens. Kageyama hurried to follow.

He pushed through the doors and narrowly missed colliding with two men carrying a giant bronze pot between them. Kageyama skidded to a stop, searching the chaos around him for Ao.