Soon, eight dishes, a soup and a snack were neatly placed on the table, along with a pot of waxberry wine and a pot of lychee paste water, which whetted one's appetite at first sight.

Princess Jingyang scanned them one by one, with surprise in her beautiful eyes, "Ati, did you do all this?"

Tao Ti smiled, and Qing He quickly said for her, "Yes, mother, these were all made by my cousin's wife. She is amazing!"

Princess Jingyang nodded continuously, glanced at Tao Ti with admiration, and after taking her seat, she said to Zhang, "You have a really great daughter!"

Zhang had a complicated expression and smiled awkwardly. Her eyes fell on the large table full of high-quality dishes. She began to wonder: When did her daughter's cooking skills become so good?

The last time we met, some of the snacks that Ati made could perhaps be explained as something she cooked up in her spare time, but this table of dishes was no less sophisticated than those made by the palace's chefs, and it was impossible to make them without a certain level of skill.

Tao Ti didn't know what Zhang was thinking. She felt hungry just by smelling the aroma, so she quickly urged everyone to start eating. "Aunt, mother, Qinghe, eat quickly. The food won't taste good if it gets cold."

Princess Jingyang was not a greedy person. After drinking a bowl of bird's nest with rock sugar and snow pear, she was not very hungry. But now, she suddenly had a strong appetite for the table of dishes in front of her.

She rinsed her mouth with a cup of tea, then picked up the chopsticks and reached for the bright red braised pork.

The preparation of this braised pork is similar to other braised pork dishes, except that quail eggs are added to the dish. The fried quail eggs are golden and round, and look like small ingots, so it is named ingot braised pork.

The princess first picked up a piece of braised pork with thin skin and tender meat. The braised pork was bright red and trembling when she picked it up, and was full of fragrant juice. When she put it into her mouth, it was soft, glutinous, tender, fat but not greasy, and melted in her mouth. The salty taste and fragrance were just right, and the meaty aroma was mixed with the light sweet fragrance of rock sugar, which was particularly mellow.

"It's crispy but not broken, fragrant and glutinous but not greasy. Good, this braised pork tastes really good." Princess Jingyang commented and picked up a quail egg and put it into her mouth.

The quail eggs have absorbed enough of the rich soup; the egg whites are smooth and delicate, while the egg yolks are soft, glutinous and salty, and very flavorful.

The eldest princess liked this dish very much. She ate three pieces of braised pork in a row before she was slightly satisfied and reached out for other dishes with her chopsticks.

Qinghe scooped a large spoonful of beef stew with potatoes and poured it over the crystal clear white rice.

I learned this habit of watering the rice when I had Gong Bao Chicken with Tao Ti last time.

The stewed potato cubes melted together with the thick soup and fully soaked the rice. Qinghe scooped up a spoonful of the rice and put it into his mouth. The soft and glutinous potato exuded a strong fragrance, and the abundant starch gave people a great sense of satisfaction. The more you chew, the more fragrant it becomes. The beef and potatoes complement each other, blending into an extremely delicious aroma.

"This beef is so tender, tender and crispy, with a smooth texture."

Qing He praised it with enjoyment. He just finished eating and scooped another spoonful. "I can eat two bowls of rice with this dish."

Seeing the little girl eating happily, Tao Ti was also happy. She picked up a piece of osmanthus duck and put it in the bowl. The duck meat was sweet and tender, and there was a faint aroma of osmanthus wine in her mouth. The more she ate, the more she became addicted.

"Ati, what's the name of this dish? It looks very interesting." Zhang pointed at a dish of golden fried dumplings and asked curiously.

Tao Ti narrowed her eyes and smiled, "This dish is called Waist Wrap Wan Guan."

Several people at the table became interested and asked, "Why is it called this?"

Tao Ti picked up one and said, "I'm opening a shop, so I want to cook for a good omen. And look at this dish, the quail eggs are wrapped with noodles. When the noodles are fried, they are golden, just like a pile of golden money wrapped around your waist. This layer of golden noodles wraps the white of the quail eggs, and when you bite it, the white is wrapped with gold, which means that gold and silver will continue to come, and wealth will roll in."

After hearing this, several people also found it interesting. They picked up one with their chopsticks, dipped it in ketchup, and started to taste it.

The outside is fried golden and crispy, but the inside is tender. Although it is not extremely delicious, it has a unique flavor when paired with the sweet and sour tomato sauce.

Several people were eating and chatting at the table. Seeing Zhang and Princess Jingyang chatting and laughing happily, Tao Ti put aside her worries and started eating.

After the meal, all four of them were exhausted.

Princess Jingyang waved her hands repeatedly and sighed, "I haven't had such a good meal in years. Ah Ti, I can't come to your Yaoguang Palace anymore. If I come a few more times, my waist will get thicker."

"Mom, I told you earlier that the food cooked by my cousin's wife is so delicious." Qinghe smiled and took small sips of the lychee water. This refreshing drink, which is slightly cool and sweet, is simply the most comfortable thing to drink on a hot summer day.

Zhang drank a few cups of Yangmei wine, her face flushed, she was tipsy, and in a good mood. She had been chatting happily with Princess Jingyang before dinner, and she continued chatting now.

Everyone was having fun in Yaoguang Palace, but it was dead silent in Jinyun Palace.

Pei Lingbi lay straight on the bed like a corpse, her face was pale, her eyes were sunken, and she looked extremely haggard.

The palace maids did not dare to step forward to persuade her. Her mood was very unstable. If she was not satisfied with the slightest thing, she would either beat or scold her. It was very scary.

Pei Lingbi stared at the aquamarine curtain with embroidered vines with her hollow eyes, and kept repeating in her mind the words that Queen Zhou had said to her when they parted last night -

"Lingbi, you have to handle this matter by yourself. You must not involve the Zhou family and your brother... Don't be resentful or feel wronged. You have to remember that the Zhou family and your brother are your lifelong support."

"Marrying Sanlang is just a temporary solution. Don't worry, you can marry him first. If you don't want to be his wife, I will tell him in private that I won't let him touch you."

"You should be patient for now. When your brother ascends the throne, I will immediately ask him to issue an edict to allow you to divorce. Then I will find a good marriage for you and make you the most honorable eldest princess."

"It won't take too long, don't worry, it won't take more than three years at most. Within three years, your brother will definitely be able to sit on that position! You should bear this grievance for now. In the future, your mother will repay Jingyang, Qinghe, and Taoti for all the shame you have suffered today!"

Every word and sentence echoed in Pei Lingbi's mind over and over again, from night to day, from early morning to dusk.

She hated it, resented it, was unwilling to accept it, her tears were almost dry, but she was powerless to do anything.

She knew that she was now a discarded chess piece, but she could only obey her mother's arrangements and place her hopes on the Zhou family and her brother.

She could only hypnotize herself over and over again, telling herself that if she could just endure these three years, everything would be fine.

The palace maids who were guarding outside the palace could not help but shudder when they heard the shouting that sounded like a laugh, but not a cry, but not a cry coming from inside the palace.

They looked at each other and asked: Has the Second Princess suffered such a huge blow that she has gone crazy?

………

The gorgeous sunset filled the sky, and Pei Yan returned to Yaoguang Palace under the setting sun.

Tao Ti was just seeing Princess Jingyang and the others off. When they met in front of the flower-filled courtyard, they all stopped.

After the greetings, Princess Jingyang called Pei Yan aside and said she had something to tell him.

Tao Ti took a quick glance, then looked away and sent Zhang out first.

In the corridor near the flower garden, Princess Jingyang resumed her dignified and serious image as an elder, and said to Pei Yan with a look of satisfaction, "Yan'er, A Ti is a very good girl. She is good-looking, a good cook, has a good personality, and a good heart. Most importantly, she has feelings for you."

Pei Yan raised his handsome face and smiled slightly, nodding his head and saying, "Well, A-Ti is very good, and I, your nephew, have always known this."

Princess Jingyang glared and said, "A woman's sincerity is very precious. You must treat her well. Do you understand?"

Pei Yan said seriously, "Aunt, don't worry, I will never let her down in my life."

Jing Yang was still very confident in her nephew's character. She raised her hand and patted his arm, saying with satisfaction, "Remember what you said today."

As she spoke, she seemed to remember something and frowned, "Come to think of it, you and A Ti have been married for half a year, why is she still not pregnant? You two should also save your energy and work hard to have a child. If A Ti gets pregnant, and we have the first grandson of the emperor, the arrogance of the Zhou family will be directly reduced by half, and they will not dare to be as presumptuous as they are now!"

Pei Yan, "..."

Seeing him remain silent, Jing Yang suddenly realized something. A Ti looked rosy-cheeked, ate well, and slept well. She looked like a fertile person. There had been no movement for more than half a year. Could it be that his nephew was not in good health?

The more she thought about it, the more she felt it was possible. She raised her hand and touched her nose, looking like she wanted to ask something but didn't know how to. After a moment of awkwardness, she coughed lightly and said, "Yan'er, your aunt has a secret recipe for having a child. It's a local recipe from Linxi. It's quite effective. If you need it..."

Pei Yan's eyebrows twitched twice, and after a moment of silence, he said in a low voice, "No need."

…

That night, the wind was clear and the moon was bright. After taking a bath, Pei Yan and Tao Ti lay down on the bed together.

Holding the soft body in his arms, Pei Yan couldn't help but think of the words his aunt said when she left. His face was buried in her soft neck, and the tip of his nose was filled with the faint fragrance of her body.

Breathing became hot and rapid.

His hands gently clasped her waist, his eyelashes drooped slightly, and he was considering how to naturally bring up the idea of ​​"having a baby".

It has been almost two months since the two of them expressed their feelings to each other. She should be ready, right?

Pei Yan's tall nose gently stroked the soft skin of her neck, and his voice was hoarse, "Ati..."

Tao Ti came back to her senses in a daze, "Ah? Your Highness, what's wrong?"

Pei Yan's eyes darkened, and he tightened his hand on her waist. His tone was a little unpredictable, "You look absent-minded. What are you thinking about?"

At this point, he felt the person in his arms stiffen for a moment. Then, she slowly turned around, facing him, raised her fair little face, and said in a tone that seemed a little embarrassed and worried, "Well, it's about my mother."

"Um?"

Tao Ti bit her lip, hesitated for a while, and finally said, "My mother suddenly told me in the afternoon...she wanted to divorce my father."

To be honest, when Zhang suddenly pulled her aside and said this in the afternoon, she was completely stunned.

In her mind, divorce is a very common thing in modern times, but in ancient times, divorce for women was rare and very troublesome.

Not to mention Zhang’s identity.

But Zhang was very calm, and her usually serious face was filled with fearless seriousness. "I have already mentioned it to your father. Although he doesn't agree now, I told him to give him a month to think about it. If he still doesn't understand after a month, I will find a way to make him agree."

Taoti asked, "Mother, why do you want to divorce?"

Zhang's eyes were filled with deep sorrow, and she whispered, "I have no feelings for him anymore. Instead of hating each other, it's better to say goodbye. Anyway, you are already married, and the prince loves you so much, so mother has nothing to worry about."

Taoti, "..."

It turned out that the couple was not getting along.

But it's true. If it were me, and my husband had so many concubines and had so many children, I would have exploded a long time ago!

It was not easy for Zhang to endure for so many years.

…

Thinking back, Tao Ti put her face in Pei Yanhuai's arms and whispered, "My mother wants to divorce. I support her, but I'm still a little worried. Divorce is not an easy thing. I'm afraid she will be wronged."

Pei Yan also recovered from the shock he had when he first heard the news.

He vaguely guessed the reason why Zhang proposed divorce at this time -

The Yongwei Marquis's residence was close to the Zhou family and gradually distanced itself from the Eastern Palace. Between power and interests and his wife and daughter, the Yongwei Marquis chose power.

But Zhang chose her daughter over her husband.

Pei Yan's deep eyes were filled with dark colors. It was better for Zhang to get divorced. Then, he wouldn't have to be too troubled when he settled the affairs of the Yongwei Marquis' Mansion in the future.

At least even though her father died, her mother was still there with her, which was better than losing both her parents. She would be less sad.

He closed his eyes, rested his chin on Tao Ti's soft hair, and gently stroked her back with his broad palm, comforting her, "Don't worry. Since you support your mother-in-law's divorce, then as a son-in-law, I will do my best to help and facilitate this."

Feeling his breathing so close to her, Tao Ti's anxious mood gradually relaxed.

She hugged Pei Yan's waist, rubbed her face against his sturdy chest, and said softly, "Let's wait and see after a month. Let them solve it themselves for now. If my father still doesn't agree by then, we can think of a way."

Pei Yan kissed her cheek and coaxed her softly, "Well, go to sleep."

…

After two rains, the hot weather cooled down a bit.

At the end of July, Emperor Zhaokang read out the decree to marry Pei Lingbi to Zhou Shaohui, the third son of the Zhou family, at a court meeting.

The left prime minister Zhou Pinglin thanked him with great gratitude, and the ministers who were unaware of the truth congratulated him one after another.

Two days later, Emperor Zhaokang issued two edicts in succession:

One was to let Prince Yu inherit the title and go to Luoyang Prefecture to serve as a governor that day.

An imperial decree stated that the Left Prime Minister Zhou Pinglin was unwell and needed to stay at home to recuperate. Zhou Pinglin was relieved of his duties in managing the six ministries and the power was handed over to the Right Prime Minister.

For a while, there was an uproar in the court, and everyone was unsure of Emperor Zhaokang's attitude.

A few people who knew the inside story became uneasy. Is this a warning? Or are you really going to be cruel to the Zhou family?

That night, Zhou Pinglin returned home and beat his good-for-nothing third son severely with a cane.

However, the popularity of these two decrees did not last long before they were overshadowed by another exciting event:

By August, the Rongdi delegation entered Chang'an.