Li Yao touched her nose shyly and said sweetly, "My father is ill, and I promised him that I would make lotus cakes for him. Grandmother, I have already made three pieces, and I will give them to you to try."
As he spoke, Li Yao took the queen's hand and walked into the room. As soon as the queen sat down, Li Yao came running over with a small green porcelain plate in her hand. On the plate were three pink lotus cakes, which were crooked in shape and looked a bit ugly.
The queen took a bite and found the taste to be just average, but she still praised it: "It's delicious. How can you make lotus cake at such a young age?"
Li Yao's eyes curved as she said happily, "It was Aunt Chen who taught me. Aunt Chen's cooking is even better. Aunt Chen is so nice to Yao'er. She sits on the swing with me, teaches me how to write, and even finds out the wrong numbers in my account book and helps me correct them."
When talking about Shen Wei, Li Yao showed a happy smile, and her words were full of attachment and admiration for Shen Wei.
The queen frowned secretly when she heard this. Shen was playing and fighting with Yao'er. Could it be that she wanted to lead the child astray?
The two chatted for a while, and Li Yao put the lotus crisps into the food box: "Grandmother, Yao'er wants to send the remaining lotus crisps to father. They won't be crispy if they are kept for too long. Yao'er will come back to accompany you later."
The queen smiled happily and said, "Okay."
Li Yao carried the food box and happily left towards King Yan's main house. The queen's face darkened. She summoned the old maid who served Li Yao and asked her, "How did Shen treat Yao'er? I want to hear the truth."
The old maid answered truthfully, "Replying to the Queen, Shen treats Miss Yao very well. She will play with Miss Yao and urge her to study. The prince was poisoned and injured yesterday. Shen and Miss Yao waited for the prince in the front yard for an entire afternoon and left only after they were sure that the prince had returned safely... I have to say something very disrespectful, Shen treats Miss Yao much more attentively than the princess."
"Besides, the princess has been busy these days, and all matters concerning the prince's recovery are arranged by Shen."
It’s not the old lady’s fault for favoring Shen Wei. The old maids were sent by the Queen to the palace to take care of the three children, but they were often treated harshly and coldly by the Princess.
Chen Wei is smart, careful, kind and enthusiastic. Whenever she meets the old maids, she will take the initiative to greet them. She will also ask the maids to bring them some cool food and cloth to make new clothes. Shen Wei's kindness to Li Yao was also noticed by them.
The old lady naturally had to say good things to Shen Wei.
The queen was stunned. It turns out that all the meticulous recuperation work in Prince Yan's room: asking the servants to change the meals, wash the bed sheets, and kill the noisy cicadas, were all arranged by Shen Wei?
The Queen used to think that Shen Wei was only somewhat smart, able to remain calm in times of crisis and had management skills. Seeing it with her own eyes today, the Queen realized how excellent Shen Wei was. She remained calm in the face of major events and was considerate of details in small matters.
"Go take a look at Shen's yard." The queen was more interested in Shen Wei.
The Queen, along with Nanny Qian and several palace maids, headed for the Glazed Pavilion.
During this time, the queen passed by Liu Ruyan's Qixue Pavilion and glanced through the moon gate. She saw the snow-white door curtains swaying in the wind. Liu Ruyan stood at the door in a white dress, kneeling to greet the queen, her voice sounding like a dream: "My queen mother, how are you?"
Queen: ...
Luckily it was broad daylight! Otherwise the queen would really think it was a female ghost from somewhere, Amitabha!
The Queen passed by Zhang Miaoyu's Flower Fragrance Courtyard again, and from a distance she smelled a strong scent of meat. It seems to be an elbow, but also like fried meat, with a strong aroma.
Glancing through the Moon Gate, the Queen saw Zhang Miaoyu and her maid eating in the pavilion, enjoying the meal very much.
The Queen sighed.
The queen last passed by Liu Qiaoer's yard. The gate to the courtyard was dilapidated, and Liu Qiaoer was embroidering under the eaves. Her expression was calm and peaceful from beginning to end, as if she had seen through the world.
"The Prince of Yan's Mansion was not like this before." The Queen held her forehead with her handkerchief, her temples throbbing with pain.
The Prince of Yan’s mansion was once filled with flowers and his wives and concubines were beautiful and full of vitality.
The Yan Palace is now so lifeless that even a fight cannot be started. The queen was in a trance and thought she had come to the cold palace.
If the Prince of Yan was just a prince all his life, it would be a good thing if his wives and concubines in the palace were harmonious and the harem was peaceful.
But Prince Yan will sit on the lofty supreme throne in the future. The prince's mansion and the harem are completely different from the Qing Kingdom's harem. New people with their own thoughts will flock to the harem to erode and compete for favor.
Women like Liu Ruyan and Zhang Miaoyu will be eaten up to nothing sooner or later.
However, the Queen could not tell the Princess that the Prince of Yan might become Emperor in the future, as the overall situation was uncertain and there was a fear of unexpected changes.
"Your Majesty, the Glazed Pavilion is ahead." Madam Qian reminded softly.
The queen's eyes lit up.
The Glazed Pavilion is a structure of pavilion courtyards, which looks like a beautiful painting from a distance. The two guards in front of the door were in high spirits and had sharp eyes. Two colorful fish lanterns were hung on the eaves, there were no weeds in front of the door, the flowers and plants outside the yard were neatly trimmed, and even the stone road was smooth.
Compared to the lifeless Kunyu Courtyard, Chen Wei's Liuli Pavilion looks full of vitality.
When Shen Wei learned that the queen was coming, she had already brought the maids and eunuchs to greet her at the door. The late summer sun was shining brightly. Shen Wei was wearing a green dress, looking fresh and beautiful. She stood at the door in a charming manner, which was very pleasing to the eye.
"Greetings to Her Majesty the Queen." Shen Wei led the servants to pay their respects, with graceful manners.
The queen was very satisfied and said, "It's hot, I'm tired, come sit in your yard."
It was a great honor for the queen to come to her courtyard, and Shen Wei respectfully invited the queen in.
The queen walked through the moon gate and entered the courtyard of the Glazed Pavilion. The yard is spacious, with lush flowers, plants and trees arranged in an orderly manner. The queen also saw two lush green vegetable fields with purple eggplants hanging heavily under the leaves.
"This is the lotus mint herbal tea that I made recently. Please have it, Your Majesty." Chen Wei brought a cup of tea. The tea was clear and had a light fragrance.
In order to ensure that it was non-toxic, Shen Wei took a sip to test the poison herself.
The queen took two sips. There were ice cubes in the tea, which made her feel cool and refreshing, and the taste was also very fragrant. The queen drank half of the cup before putting it down.
His eyes swept across the main house of Liuli Pavilion.
The carpet in the room is light white, there are lotus buds in the vase on the wooden table, and the hibiscus flowers outside the window are in full bloom. The whole house is elegant and chic, and very comfortable.
The maids and eunuchs who served Shen Wei also performed their duties and did things in an orderly manner. These eunuchs and maids were full of energy, had rosy cheeks, and were very polite and considerate. Even when the queen arrived, they were not at all flustered or nervous.
It is enough to show that Shen Wei is good at controlling her subordinates.
On the wooden table next to the queen was a half-opened medical book "Huangdi Neijing".
The Queen asked, "Do you know some medical skills?"
Chen Wei lowered her head in embarrassment: "Replying to the Queen, I don't know medical books. It's just that the prince was poisoned and injured, and I want to look through the medical books to find out if there is any way to keep healthy."
She is "deeply in love" with Prince Yan. When Prince Yan is injured, Shen Wei must maintain her affectionate personality and consider Prince Yan everywhere.
The queen smiled and suddenly changed the subject: "You are smart and ambitious, and Yuan Jing likes you. Shen, have you ever thought about replacing the princess and becoming the mistress of this palace?"
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