Chapter 222 Gift Giving
He Ling woke up with a dry mouth and throat. She opened her eyes groggily, her vision still a little blurry.
What comes into view is the familiar roof of Weiyang Palace, only now it is tinged with the afterglow of the setting sun by the light filtering in from the window lattice.
[Hmm... I fell asleep? When?]
Oh, right, the Empress poured me a cup of tea, but I don't remember anything after that.
He Ling rubbed her throbbing temples, trying to recall.
But the fragmented memories were hard to piece together, and another kind of shame slowly rose up from the soles of my feet.
[Oh my god, I actually fell asleep in the Empress's palace, and slept so soundly!]
That's incredibly rude!
He Ling instantly regained her senses and hurriedly sat up, looking around.
Jiang Huan was sitting not far away, still holding the two knitting needles and a ball of yarn in her hands, knitting slowly and steadily.
"Your Majesty..."
He Ling quickly got up, her voice hoarse from just waking up: "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to doze off. Next time, next time you can just wake me up!"
Jiang Huan looked up at her upon hearing the sound, a gentle smile on her face.
"Awake? Did you sleep well?" She put down what she was holding and pointed to the teapot on the table. "Have some water to soothe your throat. It's alright."
He Ling was flattered and quickly thanked her, saying, "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness."
She walked to the table, poured herself a glass of water, and gulped it down, finally relieving her parched throat.
Just then, the long-silent electronic system voice, carrying a weak sense of relief after surviving a catastrophe, delivered a powerful accusation.
"Host! Host, you're finally awake!"
"The host has encountered a deadly threat. The source of the threat: Jiang Huan!"
"This target harbors strong malice towards the host. It is strongly recommended that the host stay away from Jiang Huan immediately!"
He Ling paused slightly in her hand holding the water glass.
Does Consort Zhuang harbor ill will towards me?
[System, are you out of your mind? Stop dragging me into this! The Empress is so good to me, giving me water and letting me rest.]
[You just said I was trying to increase my intimacy with the Empress, and now you're saying she has malicious intentions? Can't you be serious?]
I think you're addicted to sowing discord!
He Ling rolled her eyes, scoffing at the system's warning.
She felt that the system was completely broken and that not a single word it said could be trusted.
"Host! Please trust the system! The system has detected that Jiang Huan attempted to eliminate you; this is extremely dangerous!"
"Please move away immediately! Repeat! Move away immediately!"
The system's electronic voice carried an unprecedented urgency, attempting to awaken He Ling's vigilance.
He Ling's head was throbbing from the noise, and she couldn't help but yell back in her mind.
[Trying to eliminate me? What a joke!]
"Your Majesty is so gentle and beautiful, how could you possibly want to kill me?"
I was perfectly fine while I was asleep; nothing seemed wrong.
[System, eat fewer poisonous mushrooms. Look, you're even hallucinating.]
Jiang Huan took a sip of tea, and as she listened to He Ling's conversation with the system, a subtle smile appeared on her lips.
A primary school student tattled on someone.
Unfortunately, He Ling chose to succumb to her "beauty".
Jiang Huan stood up, walked to the display cabinet next to her, and took down a small gift box wrapped in elegant brocade.
The box is small, square, and looks very delicate.
"Consort Ling".
Jiang Huan, holding the gift box, walked up to He Ling with a gentle smile on her face.
"Thank you for teaching me how to knit a scarf. I really like it. This is a small token of my appreciation for you."
He Ling was flattered and quickly accepted the gift box with both hands.
"Your Majesty is too kind. It is my honor to be able to teach you. I dare not accept such praise."
"Take it," Jiang Huan smiled. "It's nothing valuable, but I'm sure you'll like it."
[A gift from the Empress?! I'm already looking forward to it!]
He Ling felt a surge of joy, and the frustration brought on by the system just now vanished.
"Thank you for your generous gift, Your Majesty!" She hurriedly curtsied, her face beaming with a happy smile.
"It's getting late, you should head back soon," Jiang Huan said gently.
"Yes, I'll take my leave." He Ling hugged the gift box and then left Weiyang Palace with light steps.
Jiang Huan breathed a sigh of relief as she watched He Ling's figure disappear through the palace gate.
They've finally left.
This girl is simple-minded, but she was terribly screwed over by that lousy system.
Jiang Huan glanced at the sky; it was almost time for dinner. She turned and went straight to the small kitchen.
Her gaze swept over the dazzling array of ingredients on the shelves, as she made her plans.
Huo Lin seems to be quite busy lately.
He spends all day in the imperial study reviewing memorials, and I don't even know if he eats on time.
I saw him yesterday, and he seemed to have lost some weight. He needs to eat more to regain his weight.
Jiang Huan thought for a moment, then walked to the cutting board with fresh meat on it and picked up a piece of good beef tenderloin.
The flesh is bright red with fine texture, clearly indicating it's a top-quality product.
Hmm, this one is pretty good.
She placed the beef on the cutting board, picked up a sharp cleaver, and with a flick of her wrist, deftly began slicing the meat.
Thinner, even thinner, so it's tender when you cook it in the hot pot.
Then, she picked up a few pieces of fresh lamb leg meat and sliced them thinly as well.
The lamb was tender and fresh, and he seemed to like it quite a bit, but the gamey smell needed to be removed properly.
Green vegetables, cabbage, tofu, mushrooms...
Hmm, the bamboo shoots are also quite good this season, fresh and crisp.
She selected several seasonal vegetables, washed them clean, chopped and broke them as needed, and neatly arranged them on several blue and white porcelain plates.
Oh, and the soup base.
Jiang Huan walked to the stove and looked at the big pot.
The clear broth was too bland, and he didn't seem to be able to handle the spiciness of the spicy broth.
Then let's make a hot pot with two broths, one side with a rich and flavorful broth, and the other side with a slightly spicy and appetizing red broth, so he can eat whichever he wants.
She started making the broth. On one side was a clear broth made from old hen, pork bones, and ham, skimming off the foam to keep only the essence. On the other side was a red oil broth made from butter, broad bean paste, chili peppers, and various spices, which was fragrant and spicy but not overpowering.
Hmm, this smells nice.
Jiang Huan leaned closer to smell it and nodded in satisfaction.
She then took out a few small bowls and began to prepare the dipping sauce.
Once everything was ready, she took out a specially made double-layered food box with grooves on the bottom layer to securely hold the clay pot containing the divided hot pot.
Done!
Jiang Huan picked up the heavy food box and walked briskly towards the Imperial Study.
The afterglow of the setting sun cast a long shadow of her, and the enticing aroma wafting from the food box drew frequent glances from the passing palace servants.
Just as Jiang Huan approached the Imperial Study, she heard a furious rebuke coming from inside.
"Useless! A bunch of useless trash!"
Huo Lin's voice was clearly irritated.
"What utter nonsense is this memorial? The refugees are gathering outside the city, which may cause trouble. I suggest they be directly incorporated into the army as forced laborers, or driven away a hundred miles away?"
"Drive them away? Drive them where? Let them fend for themselves, or let them gather into bandits?"
"And this too! Saying that popular unrest is caused by hunger and cold, and that killing one to warn a hundred will appease the people? That's utterly absurd! Is their head filled with grass?!"
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