Yonghe had no choice but to bite the bullet and turn around.

"Lord Lin, what a coincidence." Yonghe himself felt his eyelids twitching.

How embarrassing! Some people just can't be mentioned. And wouldn't you know it, we've run into each other again.

Lin Xiangzhi smiled and said teasingly, "Why does the princess hide whenever she sees me? I'm not a jackal or a tiger, am I that scary?"

Princess Yonghe blushed slightly when her thoughts were exposed.

She pointed to the wall in front of her. "No, there was a cat under the wall just now. I wanted to pick it up, but it jumped over the wall and ran away."

For the first time in his life, Yonghe lied, looking into the distance and avoiding eye contact with Lin Xiangzhi.

Lin Xiangzhi acted as if he hadn't seen anything and said to himself, "Xiangzhi still misses his childhood when he could often go to the Prince's Mansion with his mother to enjoy flowers and feasts. There was no strict separation between men and women, and he could play in the garden with the Emperor and the Princess."

Yonghe composed himself. "Lord Lin just came from the Emperor's place, what's there to miss?"

"The honey-roasted goose from Zuixian Pavilion may suit the princess's taste. If she likes it, I will send some more to the palace another day," said Prime Minister Lin, glancing at the palace wall.

On the other side of the palace wall was what appeared to be the Jingyang Hall, which contained historical records and documents, and was frequented mostly by officials from the Ministry of Personnel.

The cat wouldn't go to the imperial kitchen unless it was the main kitchen. Besides, the palace wall was at least eight feet high, and there was nothing to stand on at the foot of the wall, so the cat couldn't possibly climb over it.

Lin Xiangzhi realized that the princess was indeed avoiding him.

"So that roast goose was sent to the palace by you. No wonder it's different from the one from the imperial kitchen."

That day, Chang Le was busy returning to the palace to share the roast goose with Jing'er. She sent a palace maid to deliver the roast goose to Yonghe Palace. No one reminded her, and the maid did not mention who delivered the roast goose.

Ordinary food could not enter the palace, so Yonghe simply assumed that the imperial kitchen had produced a new product.

"Thank you, Lord Lin. You are busy with official duties, so there is no need for you to make the trip. I have something to discuss with my elder brother, so please proceed, Lord Lin."

"Princess, please go ahead with your business."

Lin Xiangzhi bowed respectfully.

Watching Yonghe's departing figure, Lin Xiangzhi's face lit up with joy.

The princess not only liked roast goose, but also cats.

...

When Su Jin returned home from his shift, he found Jiang Shuyue waiting for him in the warm pavilion.

"Sister, the Emperor is preparing to hold a selection of concubines."

Su Jin walked over, lifted his robe, and sat down opposite Jiang Shuyue.

"He is the ruler of a country. It's only a matter of time before he holds a selection of officials. It has nothing to do with us. You should just go about your business."

Jiang Shuyue spoke calmly as she pulled a brown paper envelope from her bosom.

"This is evidence that Liu Yuantao framed your uncle. Go to the yamen to file a complaint later."

Su Jin's hand trembled slightly as she took the envelope. "Father can finally clear his name. Sister, you've worked so hard."

Seeing Su Jin's nostrils flaring, Jiang Shuyue patted the back of his hand to comfort him, "A-Jin, don't get excited. This is a happy occasion. We'll celebrate properly once your uncle is cleared of his name."

How could A-Jin not be excited? Her father had been hoping for this for many years, asking his friends to find evidence, but ultimately he failed.

Jiang Shuyue withdrew her hand and said, "Sister only moved her lips; it's all thanks to Cangyun and the list provided by the Emperor."

Su Jin calmed his excited emotions and picked up the teapot to add some hot tea to the teacup in front of Jiang Shuyue.

"Would you like to stay for lunch today, sister? I'll go and draft the complaint. Please take a look at it later to see if it's appropriate."

Jiang Shuyue nodded, "Go ahead."

There was no one else in the warm room; the master and servant sat chatting.

At this moment, Jiang Shuyue missed modern cell phones terribly.

If only I had a mobile phone, I could watch videos or read a novel for a while and my mind wouldn't wander.

"Miss, the birth date on that notice is exactly the same as yours. Does the Emperor want to summon you to the palace?"

As the carriage passed through the bustling street, the crowds made it difficult to move, and the carriage traveled very slowly. Qiuju overheard people discussing the contents of the notice.

Jiang Shuyue glanced towards the door. "Don't make a fuss. It might be a coincidence. He said he wouldn't force me."

"If others knew my birth date and time, they would think I was coveting the position of Empress. In the Jiang family, no third person should know."

Qiuju nodded hurriedly, "This servant understands, Miss, please rest assured, this servant will not even tell Gao Mu."

As Qiuju spoke, she picked up a melon seed and put it in her mouth.

"Click!"

The hand that was holding the melon seeds froze at the corner of his mouth.

Did you bite your tongue?

Seeing Qiu Ju's eyes widen as if she had been put on pause, Jiang Shuyue asked with concern.

Qiuju spat out the melon seeds along with the juju, "No, Miss, have we forgotten that besides Jiang Zhengming and Madam Yang, there is another person who knows your birth date and time?"

"A midwife?"

“No, the midwife is probably no longer alive,” Jiang Shuyue denied the guess.

"Miss has forgotten Master Huiyuan."

This time it was Jiang Shuyue's turn to be stunned. "I had forgotten about that."

What's going on here? Master Huiyuan went to the palace to tell the emperor's fortune and even found out that his own birth chart was most compatible with Xiao Jingzhao's.

Is her mission to save all living beings not enough? Does she also have to enter the palace and share pickled cucumbers with others?

No, this is non-negotiable, even though that devilishly handsome appearance and height were exactly her criteria for choosing a partner in her previous life.

Thinking of how he busied himself with sowing seeds in the harem like a stud, she felt that he was filthy from head to toe.

She couldn't accept it; even if fate wanted to take back her space, she wouldn't accept sharing a husband.

She couldn't help but feel sorry for the women in the imperial harem.

With three palaces, six courtyards, and seventy-two concubines, and countless beauties, the favored women only got a few days a month, not to mention the talented women and so on.

They didn't see the emperor for a whole year; it was like living the life of a widow.

Seeing Jiang Shuyue's varied expressions, Qiuju couldn't help but ask, "Miss, do you perhaps think that Master Huiyuan's compatibility analysis is quite good?"

"Pah! I'm perfectly healthy, I don't want to live like a widow."

Seeing the young lady's terrified expression, Qiuju burst out laughing.

She glanced towards the door and saw that Su Jin hadn't come over yet.

Lowering his voice and with a mysterious expression, he said, "Miss, those who practice martial arts have bodies that are different from ordinary people."

Jiang Shuyue glared at Qiu Ju, "So what if he's different from ordinary people? Can he still favor ten or eight women in one night? Even if he has such a strong waist, an iron rod would have to be ground into a needle. No, I think he's dirty."

When no one else was in the room, the master and servant would have rather daring conversations.

Before Qiuju got married, she didn't buy any fire-avoidance charts; all her wedding knowledge was taught to her by Jiang Shuyue herself.

Thanks to the internet age of her previous life, her first time with Xiao Jingzhao was hazy and has no reference value; she can still follow the script.

Seeing the young lady's disgusted expression, Qiuju couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle.

“Miss, I was referring to Young Master Nangong. I think that since he has no parents, if you were with him, no one would be sending people into his room, which would save you a lot of trouble.”

Qiuju leaned forward and said, "Don't let his slender build fool you. He's not as robust as the Emperor. This morning, he was practicing with Gao Mu, and I saw that he was quite agile. He doesn't look as frail as he appears."

Jiang Shuyue: "..."

Is this girl even worth keeping? She's only been married two days and she's already turned yellow.