Zhu Yuanzhang when he was poor, never had enough to eat, at the age of 17 years old, he and his parents died in the plague, homeless, forced to his hometown of Huangjue Temple as a small monk, in order to have a mouth to eat. However, soon his hometown had a famine, the temple incense fell, he had to go out to make money. In the meantime, he went through the vicissitudes of human life, and often could not get a bite of food for a whole day. Once, he did not ask for three days in a row to something, hungry and angry, fainted in the street, after a passing old woman saved and brought home, the only piece of tofu and a handful of spinach, red roots and green leaves together, pouring a bowl of leftover porridge to cook, fed to Zhu Yuanjin ate. Zhu Yuanzhang after eating, the spirit of a great boost, asked the old lady just ate what, the old lady in bitterness, jokingly said that it was called "Pearl Emerald White Jade Soup". Later, Zhu Yuanzhang defected to the Red Turbans and became the emperor, and tasted all the delicious food under the sun. Suddenly one day he was sick, nothing to eat, then remembered when begging in his hometown ate "pearl jadeite white jade soup", immediately ordered the imperial kitchen to do to him to eat. That the imperial kitchen has no choice but to use the pearl, jadeite and white jade into together, boiled into a soup offered, Zhu Yuanjin taste, think it is not the taste, a gas will be the imperial kitchen killed, and let people find a chef in his hometown to do. The chef is very smart, he thought: the emperor since the real "pearl jadeite white jade soup" is not interested in, I might as well come to an imitation to try my luck. Therefore, he will be a fish dragon instead of pearl, to red persimmon pepper cut strips instead of Fei (Fei for red jade), to spinach instead of Jade (Jade for green jade), tofu filling instead of white jade, and pouring the fish bone soup. After the dish was presented, Zhu Yuanzhang ate it and felt that it tasted great, the same as the old lady gave him, so he ordered the chef to be rewarded. The chef got the reward money, then sue home, and the emperor Zhu's favorite dish to the father and mother in Fengyang.