Shen Tingsi knew that Jiang Li had promised the Queen Mother last night to have dinner with her this morning, but he was the one who didn't control himself and exhausted her last night. In order to let Jiang Li have a good rest, Shen Tingsi ordered the palace servants not to disturb her before the court this morning.

In addition, he also ordered people to come to Shoukang Palace to pass on the message to the Queen Mother, and to shirk the breakfast issue on behalf of Jiang Li.

When the empress dowager heard that Jiang Li was unwell, she was worried that she was having trouble acclimatizing to the climate in the imperial city. She was thinking of asking the imperial physician to go to Fengyi Palace to check on her, but it was Nanny Gui who woke her up with a word.

As expected, the Queen Mother sent someone to inquire and found out that Shen Tingsi had indeed stayed overnight in Fengyi Palace last night.

As someone who had experienced this, the empress dowager knew what the physical discomfort Shen Tingsi was referring to. Now that the imperial decree had been issued to confer the title of empress, Shen Tingsi and Jiang Li had completed the ceremony of husband and wife. Jiang Li could be said to be the empress dowager's confirmed daughter-in-law!

Facing the Queen Mother's teasing, Jiang Li blushed, and under the Queen Mother's expectant gaze, she called out, "Mother."

“Hey!”

Upon hearing this consonant, the Empress Dowager laughed so hard that she couldn't close her mouth!

"Why don't you take a rest? Si'er has already sent someone to inform me. There are not so many rules here. From now on, we can skip the morning and evening visits."

The Queen Mother looked at Jiang Li kindly, smiled and patted her hands.

If we were to say where the rules and etiquette are the most complicated, it would be the imperial palace. The empress dowager, who was first the mother of a country and then the empress dowager, naturally paid more attention to the rules and etiquette of the dynasty.

There is no order without rules. Rather than saying that the Queen Mother does not value these red tape, it is better to say that in her mind Jiang Li's health is more important than these rules and etiquette.

Rather than asking Jiang Li to come and pay her respects early in the morning, the Queen Mother would rather she could rest a little longer.

"Thank you, mother."

Jiang Li's eyes were full of smiles, and she kept calling her mother. Her words were so sweet that the empress dowager was so happy that she wanted to put all the good things in front of her for her to choose from.

The Queen Mother thought so and did so, asking the palace servants to take out all her treasured treasures.

"Li'er, come and see if there's anything you like. Your mother won't be able to use these things anymore. If you like them, take them."

As the most beautiful woman who caused a sensation in the imperial city at that time, the empress dowager has always loved beauty. The late emperor and the empress dowager had a harmonious relationship. Since the empress dowager entered the palace, she has been favored by the late emperor.

Knowing that the Empress Dowager loved beauty, the late Emperor once ordered people to search for all the beautiful red hairpins, jewelry, cloth and dresses in the world to make the beauty smile.

The most treasured things the Empress Dowager had were various head ornaments, red hairpins, and cloth of various colors and patterns. Now that she was old, she could no longer wear these things, so she treasured them all up. She felt particularly happy just looking at them.

Now that Jiang Li has come to the palace, the Queen Mother, who felt she had met her too late, wants to put all the treasures in front of her for her to choose from.

"Mother, these things are too precious. I can't accept them."

As the young master of Jiangnan, Jiang Li could tell at a glance how precious these things were and quickly declined.

Yesterday, she was overwhelmed by the gifts given by the Queen Mother. She couldn't accept any of these things! "Li'er, why are you still so polite to the Queen Mother? Do you think of her as an outsider?"

The Queen Mother feigned displeasure and scolded.

Jiang Li quickly explained: "My mother misunderstood. That's not what I meant. These things are all treasured by my mother. A gentleman doesn't take away what others love, so I can't accept them."

"Okay, okay, I know that's not what you meant. Li'er, these things are indeed treasured by me, but if they are left there forever, they will just become useless. It would be better to give them to the right person so that they can see the light of day again, right?"

Seeing that Jiang Li suddenly became nervous, the Queen Mother stopped teasing her and returned to her usual kindness and gentleness.

"But……"

Jiang Li was about to say something else when the Queen Mother interrupted her.

"Li'er, you may not know this, but your mother is quite knowledgeable about hair buns. Come, your mother will do your hair and makeup for you today."

The Queen Mother took Jiang Li's hand and led her to sit in front of the bronze mirror, while she stood behind her and took off her hair.

It was rare for the empress dowager to be interested in this, and Jiang Li did not refuse to spoil her mood. She sat obediently in front of the bronze mirror and let the empress dowager remove the red hairpin from her bun.

The palace maids could tell that the Queen Mother was genuinely happy at this moment, and they laughed along with her.

The empress dowager was very skillful. In a short while, she removed all the red hairpins on Jiang Li's head, and put her hair into a different bun. She also put on red hairpins and jewelry that matched her palace dress for the day.

"Okay, Li'er, come and see if you like it."

The Queen Mother held Jiang Li's shoulders and bent down to look at the peerless beauty in the bronze mirror with her.

Jiang Li looked at herself in the mirror and said generously, "My mother is so skillful. This is the first time I have combed my hair like this. It looks so beautiful!"

Hearing Jiang Li's praise, the Queen Mother's eyes wrinkled a little deeper: "How can it be that the Queen Mother is dexterous? It is obviously Li'er's natural beauty."

Looking at such a harmonious scene before them, Nanny Gui and Qingzhu smiled with their hands covering their mouths. This was exactly the scene they imagined of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law getting along with each other.

"Her Majesty the Queen, the meal is ready."

A palace servant came in and made a announcement, and then several eunuchs came in carrying food boxes and placed the meals on the table one by one.

"Are you hungry? Come and have your meal."

Jiang Li stood up, took the Queen Mother's arm, and sat down with her at the table.

Due to the extreme fatigue last night, Jiang Li slept until eleven o'clock. It was almost time for lunch, so the empress dowager specially ordered the imperial kitchen to prepare lunch early.

After the two of them sat down, Jiang Li subconsciously looked outside the hall, but did not see the person she wanted to see.

"Strange, it's already this late, why hasn't Si'er come back yet?"

The Queen Mother followed her gaze and muttered in confusion.

"My lady, would you like me to go take a look?"

Nanny Gui at the side spoke tentatively.

"No need. Maybe he just came back and has a lot of affairs to attend to. Let's not wait for him. Let's eat the pears first."

After the Queen Mother finished speaking, she put some dishes into Jiang Li's bowl and motioned for her to eat first. Jiang Li was indeed hungry, so she had lunch with the Queen Mother first.

Shen Tingsi, who was being naggled by the mother and daughter, was still sitting in the Golden Throne Hall. The ministers below were kneeling on the ground, and the atmosphere in the entire Golden Throne Hall was in a stalemate.

Shen Tingsi had already expected such a scene, so his expression did not change much.

The ministers knelt down and knocked their heads on the ground, waiting for Shen Tingsi to withdraw his order.

However, no matter what the ministers said, Shen Tingsi's attitude remained the same. Since the ministers wanted to waste time, he would stay with them.

Let’s see whether he can sit still or these old bones can kneel down!

"Your Majesty, please think twice. How can a daughter of the Jiang family, a concubine, be qualified to be the heir of a country?!"