When Zhuang Yuyan woke up the next morning, the emperor was already dressed. Seeing her wake up, the emperor straightened his silver mouse cloak and said, "It's snowing outside. Don't go out today."

"It's snowing," Zhuang Yuyan stretched her head out and saw that the windows were tightly closed, but the room was warm, so she said, "Your Majesty, go to court without worry. I will be careful."

Feng Jin nodded and left Xihe Palace. Gao Dezhong, who was waiting, came to greet him and whispered, "Your Majesty, someone from Changtian Tower just reported that Qian Wanyi is ill and wants to see Your Majesty."

"If you are sick, please ask the imperial physician to come. I am busy with government affairs and will not be there for the time being," Feng Jin got on the imperial sedan chair with a blank expression, and did not even accept the reward for Changtian Tower. Gao Dezhong lowered his head hurriedly upon hearing this, knowing that Qian Wanyi was useless. It was obvious that it was useless for a woman to have only a pretty face. Look at Concubine Zhao, even though she was pregnant, she could still lead the emperor to go to Xihe Palace every day. That was called a trick.

Looking back at Xihe Palace, the eunuchs inside had already begun to sweep the snow, which made the palace seem lively and bustling. I don't know what Qian Wanyi was thinking. It was such a waste of her good looks.

In Changtian Tower, Qian Wanyi swallowed the medicine in her mouth with a bitter taste and looked at the eunuch who came in hurriedly: "Is the emperor here?"

"My lord, Eunuch Gao said that the emperor has been busy with government affairs lately and may not be able to come," the eunuch who delivered the message said this carefully and lowered his head.

"Busy with government affairs?" Qian Wanyi smiled bitterly and said self-deprecatingly, "The emperor can go to Xihe Palace every day. If I ask him to come to Changtian Tower next to Xihe Palace, I will be busy with government affairs."

After hearing these resentful words, the servants in the room knelt down in fear. The person who said these words should not have said them, and they should not have listened to them.

"Why are you all so scared?" Qian Wanyi looked at the people kneeling on the ground and sneered, "Get up, this is not Xihe Palace, there won't be so many people watching."

"Master, the Queen sent someone to bring you some tonic medicine," a palace maid said softly, standing outside the curtain. "The Queen said that you should have a good rest."

Qian Wanyi looked at the vague figure of the palace maid outside the curtain, and her expression became more and more indifferent: "Appreciate that person." What's a little tonic? Could it be that she still cares about such a little thing? Now everyone in the palace is circling around Zhuang Yuyan, even Concubine Shu Gui has to avoid her edge. The queen appreciates her little thing just because of her virtuous face.

The palace maids and eunuchs in the room shuddered inexplicably when they heard their master's sudden cold tone.

As soon as winter came to the capital, snow began to fall intermittently. Sometimes it snowed heavily at night, and the next day was a sunny day. The sun looked dazzling, but it didn't make people feel very warm.

Zhuang Yuyan stood at the door, looking at the sunlight shining on the white snow, exhaled a breath of hot air, and turned to Yun Xi behind her and said: "I heard that Qian Wanyi was ill a few days ago, so let someone bring some gifts down."

"Don't worry, your Majesty. Fubao has already asked someone to take care of this matter," Yunxi supported Zhuang Yuyan, "I heard that Qian Wanyi asked to see the emperor a few days ago, but was rejected by the emperor. I am afraid that she will blame you, your Majesty."

"Are there not enough women in the harem who resent me?" Zhuang Yuyan smiled, handed the soup pot in her hand, which was not hot enough, to Tingzhu next to her, and replaced it with a new one. "Their resentment towards me can prove that the emperor values ​​me. The women in the harem who have never been envied are the truly pathetic ones."

"I'm not afraid of her resentment, I'm just afraid of her not resentment," Zhuang Yuyan narrowed her eyes and looked in the direction of Changtian Tower, "People will do stupid things when they are resentful. Women who do stupid things will not be tolerated in the harem."

Yunxi and Tingzhu understood and didn't understand what was going on. But they soon stopped thinking about it because they found that the bright yellow imperial guards were heading towards Xihe Palace in the snow.

They seemed to understand what their master said. In this harem, nothing was more important than the emperor's favor. If the emperor could take his master to heart, then no matter how other women plotted, it would be useless. The emperor was the real master of this harem. If he really wanted to protect someone, no one else could do anything.

The eighth day of the 11th month was the annual Laba Festival. The emperor led people to offer sacrifices to the gods and ancestors, and held a banquet in the palace. The concubines and royal family members of high rank could attend the banquet. The royal family and officials who were valued by the emperor had already received the Laba porridge given by the emperor before noon. Those who attended the banquet at this time were also considered to be people with reputation in the court.

There were many rules and regulations at the banquet, so Zhuang Yuyan was granted special permission not to follow them and only appeared at the concubines' table when the banquet started.

The Laba porridge was very thick, and one could smell the sweet aroma from the bowl just by sitting there. The maidservant next to her tasted a mouthful with a spoon first, and after a while, Zhuang Yuyan picked up the spoon and started eating the porridge. Because there was a small heater under the tray holding the bowl, the porridge was still hot, but Zhuang Yuyan found it tasteless.

After having a child, she prefers sour and spicy food because she is afraid that the fetus in her belly will get sore. She also eats a small bowl of goose egg pearl soup every day, but these flavors are to her liking and better than this greasy pot of eight-treasure porridge.

She took a few spoonfuls of porridge as a token of her appreciation, and there was not much porridge left in the small bowl. It seemed that the person who arranged the banquet had already found out about her taste, and the porridge was probably just for her own good.

Putting down the white porcelain spoon, Zhuang Luyan took the tea presented by Tingzhu, rinsed her mouth with it, cleaned the corners of her mouth, then leaned back in her chair and waited for the banquet to end.

"But it's not to your liking?" Concubine Jiang Xian, who was sitting below her, saw Zhuang Yuyan's expression and asked worriedly in a low voice, "How about having someone serve you a plate of plums to appease your stomach?"

"It's okay, don't worry," Zhuang Yuyan smiled at Concubine Jiang Xian, "I just don't like to use sticky things. I'll ask the kitchen staff to make some new things when I return to the palace."

Concubine Jiang Xian also knew that this was a banquet and it was better not to show off, so she nodded and said, "That's fine. If Your Majesty is not feeling well, the Emperor will not have any objection even if you leave early. Just take care of yourself." Now that Concubine Jiang Xian was standing behind Zhuang Yuyan, she naturally didn't want anything to happen to Zhuang Yuyan or the child in her belly.

"I've already used some things before coming here, so I'm not hungry now," Zhuang Yuyan glanced at the emperor and empress sitting at the top, "It's snowing today, I'm sure the emperor won't keep us for too long."

After she finished speaking, she looked down the opposite side, where Mrs. Zhuang was sitting. Although she couldn't see her expression, she could feel that Mrs. Zhuang looked in this direction from time to time. Unfortunately, the original owner of the body had passed away, and this motherly love was gone.

The banquet was coming to an end. Feng Jian, who was sitting at the head of the table, stood up and looked at the officials below. He said in a deep voice, "It's getting late. Everyone, please go back."

Gao Dezhong, who was standing behind, took a step forward and shouted, "Kneel!"

All of a sudden, all the officials at the banquet knelt down. The entire hall was silent without a single sound. Zhuang Yuyan, who was exempted from kneeling by the emperor, stood aside with her head lowered, thinking with some emotion, this is the power of imperial authority.

"knock!"

"Knock again!"

"rise!"

"Long live the emperor!"

The court officials knelt down to see the emperor and his concubines off, then stood up and walked out slowly.

Mrs. Zhuang held her daughter-in-law's hand and looked towards the harem with some reluctance before getting on the carriage. "Empress Zhao is pregnant now. I wonder how she is living in the harem?" When Zhuang Wanmei entered the palace, that bastard was rampant for some days. Now both of them are dead, but her daughter is trapped in the quagmire of the harem.

"Don't worry, mother. I went to the Guangning Marquis's residence to attend a banquet a few days ago. The women present were very polite to me. It was because of the noble status of Concubine Zhao that they gave me some face." The daughter-in-law of the Zhuang family helped the old lady get on the carriage, and she also got on the carriage with her, holding the curtain for the old lady so that she could see the direction of the harem. "Now that the queen is pregnant and is loved by the emperor, mother should rest assured."

"The emperor's heart is hard to predict. Who knows what will happen tomorrow if you are favored today? The hearts of people in the harem are complicated. Your Majesty is simple-minded. She was neglected by the emperor for a period of time because of this. I am afraid..." The old lady couldn't say anything unlucky, so she could only sigh, "Put down the curtain. The more I look at you, the more uncomfortable I feel. As long as Your Majesty is safe, I don't ask for anything else."

The daughter-in-law of the Zhuang family lowered the curtain as she was told and tried to comfort her mother-in-law. When she entered the palace, the sister-in-law had already entered the palace and was said to be not gentle. When the news that she was ignored by the emperor spread, everyone in the palace was terrified, and one of her father-in-law's concubines even took pleasure in the misfortune. Later, the sister-in-law was favored again and the concubine died, and the palace finally became peaceful.

She understood her mother-in-law's worries. Although her sister-in-law was now a concubine and pregnant with a prince, serving the emperor was like serving a tiger. If she lost his favor, she would be doomed.

The group returned to the manor and received the emperor's reward early the next morning.

Although the rewards were not much, the one who came to announce the decree was the emperor's close eunuch, and he was accompanied by people from Xihe Palace. After receiving the decree, everyone in the Zhuang family was so happy that they invited people to have tea and stuffed their pockets.

Fu Bao looked at Lord Zhuang and Madam Zhuang who were sitting with him, and said politely, "Lord Zhuang, you don't have to be polite. Before I came, the queen asked me to tell you that the queen is fine. Lord and Madam don't have to worry. Please take care of yourselves."

Madam Zhuang wiped the tears from her eyes and said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. Please convey our regards to us, Your Majesty. As long as Your Majesty is well, we will be satisfied."

Fu Bao saw that Madam Zhuang's eyes were red, so he comforted her a few more times. The eunuch who was sitting next to him was Gao Dezhong's apprentice. He was smiling all the time and didn't show any arrogance. He stood up and said, "I heard that there is a plum tree in Master Zhuang's garden that is growing very well. I wonder if someone can take me to see it?" This was an opportunity for the few people to talk in private.

Lord Zhuang hurriedly asked Young Master Zhuang to accompany him personally, led the man to the garden, and stuffed a very heavy purse into his pocket.

The people in the Zhuang family were very well-behaved and did not ask Fubao anything that he shouldn't have asked. They only asked about Zhuang Yuyan's daily life, whether anyone in the palace was in trouble, and whether the baby in her belly was healthy.

Fu Bao answered them one by one, and then added: "The emperor stayed at the empress's place last night, saying that the empress had not seen her parents for a long time, and that it was not easy for you to raise the empress. This morning, he sent someone to announce the reward and specially let me accompany you. This is the emperor's grace."

Madam Zhuang stuffed a stack of banknotes into Fubao's hands and said, "It is a blessing for you that the Emperor values ​​you. The whole Zhuang family thanks the Emperor for his grace. Please give these banknotes to you, my Lord. The palace has a lot of expenses, so please don't put yourself in a difficult situation." Although she knew her daughter had everything she needed, she always wanted to give her daughter more things so that she would feel at ease.

Fubao had no choice but to answer. After talking for a while, Fubao stood up and said, "My Lord, Madam, I should go back to the palace. It's not good to stay here for too long."

Lord Zhuang and Madam Zhuang had no choice but to personally see the group off. Looking at the carriage going away, Madam Zhuang's tears flowed again.