As soon as he entered the fourth floor, Su Yu was startled.
Unlike the bright second and third floors, the entire fourth floor was pitch-black without any light. The floor, pillars, and furniture were all made of black stone with golden sand. The slightly cold sunlight poured down from the hole in the middle of the ceiling, connecting with the light from the third floor and forming a pillar of light in the middle of the tower. Within the pillar of light, there were silk ribbons with tiny silver bells. The places where the pillar of light couldn't reach were pitch-black.
The National Tutor flicked his fingertips, and with a whoosh, the candles on the stone pillars instantly lit up. The candlesticks were shaped like coiling dragons, winding up the stone pillars. Hundreds of candles were lined up in order, and from the bottom, they spontaneously ignited.
Su Yu clenched the fish basket in his hands, and the mackerel in the basket flopped twice. No matter how he looked at it, this scene looked like a horror movie.
The candles on the eight stone pillars lit up at the same time, and the originally dark fourth floor suddenly became as bright as day, even overshadowing the pillar of light in the middle. Su Yu discovered that the reason why the fourth floor was so dark was because there were no windows. The eight walls were divided into eight stone rooms by stone slabs, and the stone doors were tightly shut, completely shutting out the light from outside the tower.
"Imperial Uncle, what is in these stone rooms?" Su Yu boldly asked.
"Offerings." The two words came out of the thin pink lips of the National Tutor. He glanced at the stone rooms, and a hint of mockery appeared in his cold eyes.
Offerings, offerings!
All kinds of terrifying scenes kept flashing through Su Yu's mind. Perhaps there were countless young boys and girls raised there, like lambs waiting to be slaughtered. Perhaps there were peerless beauties with tears in their eyes, and it was unknown where they would go tomorrow. Perhaps there were ninety-nine evil people's heads stored there, waiting to be burned as offerings to the heavens on the day of sacrifice …
The Imperial Family really did have many unspeakable secrets. Su Yu regretted following the National Tutor to the fourth floor. Today's matter couldn't be settled peacefully. He decided to speak less. The more he knew, the faster he would die. Once they knew what the sacrifices were, they would probably sign the blood contract.
The National Tutor looked at Su Yu with interest. His expression changed several times, and he slowly said, "The matter of offering is related to the fate of the nation. Since the first time I saw you during the consort selection, I could tell that you were very suitable to be an offering."
"Clang!" The fish basket in Su Yu's hand suddenly fell to the ground, and he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
You're perfect for a sacrifice, perfect for a sacrifice, a sacrifice … '
The calamity was coming, and the alien star was about to descend …
Are you sure? This matter concerned the fate of the nation …
The mackerel jumped out of the basket. Even though it had been out of the water for a long time, it was still alive and kicking. It tried its best to move its ugly body on the floor and opened its mouth to bite Su Yu's leg.
Su Yu took a few steps back. His hands and feet were cold. At this moment, the only thing he could think of was the emperor's handsome face. "As long as you're obedient, I won't tell anyone." That person had said that he would protect him. Where was he now? Did he have any hope of getting out of Anguo Tower alive? If he couldn't see him again in the future, how sad would he be …
The National Tutor slowly walked in front of a stone door and placed a white, almost transparent hand on the door. His beautiful voice sounded as if it was chanting from ancient times, "Let me show you, the ancestor's sacrifice."
The heavy stone door opened with a bang, and a dazzling light surged out from the door. Su Yu closed his eyes and summoned the courage to open them. He suddenly froze.
Behind the stone door was a spacious stone room. Inside, there were many black and gold shelves. On the shelves, there were countless … dried fish.
"Ka ka ka!" A strange sound came from under his feet. Su Yu looked down and saw that the mackerel was still trying its best to bite his leg. He raised his hand to pick up the fish and put it in the basket. Then, he walked over with it.
"Imperial Uncle, this, this is the sacrifice?" Su Yu's mouth twitched.
"This is only one of them," the National Tutor casually picked up a dried fish, elegantly tore off a small piece, and stuffed it into his mouth, "You can only see the rest after you sign the blood contract."
Su Yu held his forehead. The National Tutor's words, "You are very suitable to be the sacrifice", actually meant, "You are very suitable to help make dried fish." As for what was in the other stone rooms … he didn't have any hope.
In the center of the stone room, there was a black and gold stone table. On the table, there was an exquisite chopping board and a fish knife.
"Today, I'll show you how to use internal energy to kill fish." The National Tutor threw the dried fish aside and took out a jade bucket carved with complicated cloud patterns. He picked up an inch-long jade knife.
The jade knife was as thin as a cicada's wing, and the handle was carved with a lifelike jade dragon. When held in the slender white hand of the National Tutor, it complemented each other and was very pleasing to the eye.
Taking a mackerel from Su Yu, the National Tutor turned the thin knife in his hand and quickly cut a hole in the spine of the fish. He pinched the belly of the fish with one hand and channeled his internal energy into the palm of his hand.
Even though Su Yu was a layman, he could still feel the fluctuation of internal energy. "Hualala", he saw some black liquid spurt out from the knife and sprinkle into the white jade bucket.
Su Yu leaned over to take a look. The black liquid exuded an unconcealable stench. No wonder "Su Yu's Cookbook" emphasized that internal energy should be used to get rid of the smell of blood. If this thing wasn't removed, it couldn't be eaten.
The National Tutor threw the fish in his hand into the air and flipped the jade knife between his fingers. His hands formed a complicated and gorgeous seal like a magician. Before Su Yu could see what was going on, the fish's head had been chopped off and its gills had been removed. Its bones and flesh had been separated.
Su Yu was stunned. After a while, he said, "Imperial Uncle, I forgot to remove the hair."
The National Tutor stopped wiping his hands with a silk handkerchief and slowly looked at the fish with black hair. His long eyelashes trembled slightly. After a moment of silence, he said, "Kill another one."
This time, other than getting rid of the smell of blood, the rest of the steps were done by Su Yu. It wasn't difficult for Su Yu to remove the hair with boiling water, remove the gills, and separate the bones and flesh automatically. Although the mackerel didn't look very attractive, the meat of the fish looked very good. The recipe said that after roasting it, it would taste like roasted suckling pig. He couldn't help but be eager to try.
Because he was afraid that the fire would smoke the offerings, the National Tutor took him out of the stone room and found a charcoal basin outside. Then, he took out some seasoning from nowhere and sat on a black and gold stone chair. He supported his chin with one hand and watched Su Yu roast the fish.
The mackerel meat was fine, white, and tender. It was slightly pink. When it was roasted over the charcoal fire, it quickly turned brown. Su Yu carefully sprinkled seasoning on it. He made a dish of barbecue sauce and brushed it on repeatedly. According to the recipe, it could be roasted to the taste of "suckling pig", so he brushed a layer of honey on top.
After brushing the honey, the fish began to sizzle with oil. An indescribable fragrance spread out.
The National Tutor slowly opened his slightly closed eyes. The silk ribbon in the middle of the hall suddenly made a crisp silver bell sound.
Su Yu was shocked. There were only two people in the tower, him and the National Tutor. There was no wind on the fourth floor. How did the bell sound? In this gloomy Anguo Pagoda, anything could happen. Su Yu suddenly turned his head and saw that the silk thread was swaying left and right. Two furry kittens were hanging on it, wobbling as they climbed down.
The golden kitten reached out quickly and hooked its claws on the silk ribbon to move down quickly. The yellow and white kitten was not so good. It was hanging on the ribbon and didn't know what to do.
"Sauce!" Su Yu ran over in surprise and raised his hand to catch the kitten that was jumping down. He didn't expect that the kitten that he hadn't seen for a few days was on the fifth floor of Anguo Tower.
"Meow …" The little fat kitten wanted to cry but had no tears. It asked the National Tutor for help.
The National Tutor glanced at it and stood up. He picked up a pair of jade chopsticks and elegantly tasted the fish that Su Yu had just roasted. He had no intention of helping his poor nephew.
"Meow!" The golden kitten in his arms suddenly struggled to jump onto the table. The little fat kitten stopped meowing and jumped down directly. It rolled on the ground and stumbled over. It grabbed the National Tutor's snow-white clothes and climbed up.
"How is it? Does it taste like suckling pork?" Su Yu took the sauce and sat down. He also tasted it and was stunned.
It was different from any fish that he had ever tasted before. This flavor was very rich, like roasted suckling pig. But it was also different from real pork. The fish was tender but not greasy. It melted in the mouth. After swallowing it, the taste of seafood was still left in his mouth. It was delicious!
His Majesty broke away from Su Yu's hand and jumped onto the stone table. He slapped his younger brother who was trying to bite the fish directly. He wrapped his tail around Su Yu's wrist and pulled him onto the roasted fish. "Stupid slave, why are you still not serving me?"
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