For how short and relatively easy this chapter is, it took way longer than I though it would. The reason is as simple as it’s embarrassing - I spent the last few days obsessively finishing the Ace Attorney games trilogy. Which would be utterly irrelevant on this blog, but did you know that aside from the main storyline, there are also two spin-off series of comic strips? One is Daily Life of Dali Court and contains one-shots about various characters, more light-hearted than the dramatic plot of the main manhua. The other is Alternate Universe and, as the title suggests, shows our beloved characters in various different worlds - some fairy tales, and also the Ace Attorney setting. Any ideas who got unlucky enough to be falsely accused of a crime? I might translate those one day, maybe for some special occasion.

Anyway! This chapter didn’t really have much, but it did have food, so let’s talk food!

I’m sure a lot of people are familiar with Chinese cuisine. What is it to you? Sweet-and-sour sauce? Spicy Sichuan dishes? Noodles?

Obviously, cuisine had changed significantly over the centuries that China existed. During Tang dynasty many sesonings and foods haven’t been imported yet (for example chili pepper, a vital part of so many of the spicier dishes nowadays, won’t be introduced to China until the 16th century). Still, some things remained the same: noodles have been around for thousands of years, rice was a major part of the diet of everyday folk.

Tang dynasty was one of the cultural peaks of Imperial China. That included food, of course! While tea existed before, it was in Tang dynasty that it became a widespread drink connected to various cultural activities. What we know of Tang cuisine comes mostly either from medical text or works of literature, but it can be surmised that people ate pork and chicken, millet, rice and bamboo sprouts as well as beans. Root vegetables, like radishes, while common, were regarded as “famine food” and not respected as much as cereals. As you can see, our cat protagonist is used to much more sophisticated foods than what is available in prison… but that’s something for the future chapters!