She paced back and forth in the small kitchen, her eyes scanning the various ingredients. Suddenly, she spotted a piece of pig liver and became excited, exclaiming repeatedly, "I've got it! I've got it!"
She decided to make pork liver porridge. Without hesitation, Xu Yuehuai scooped the pork liver out of the water and then soaked it in clean water and salt.
She immediately started a fire and prepared to cook porridge while roasting pine nuts.
She brought over a small pot for cooking porridge, then selected some whole grains, rinsed them briefly, put them into the pot, and added water to simmer.
On the other side was a large iron pot containing two large spoonfuls of sand, two large spoonfuls of salt, and some spices.
Once the porridge was just starting to boil and bubble, she rinsed the pig liver clean, cut it into small pieces, and put it into the bowl.
As soon as the large iron pot on the other side started to smoke, she poured in the pine nuts and stir-fried them for a few seconds. Soon, the aroma filled the entire kitchen, making everyone feel refreshed.
The pork liver congee on the other side was almost ready. Seeing this, Xu Yuehuai quickly added a little salt to enhance the flavor, then removed the firewood, covered the pot, and let it simmer for a while.
Everything was ready quickly, and Xu Yuehuai hurriedly served the pork liver porridge and pine nuts while they were still hot to Consort Jia.
Consort Jia was initially looking forward to Xu Yuehuai cooking for her, but she didn't expect that what Xu Yuehuai brought her was pork liver porridge.
A fishy smell immediately reached Consort Jia's nose, and she instantly felt nauseous.
Consort Jia waved her hands repeatedly, refusing decisively, "Take it away! I don't want to drink pork liver porridge. Ah Yue, you're such a good cook, make me something else to eat, anything but pork liver porridge."
"Auntie, don't underestimate this pork liver porridge. It's full of nutrients and is very good for the fetus to absorb," Xu Yuehuai quickly explained. "Besides, Jinzhan just said that your body is weak and you should nourish it properly. This pork liver porridge is mild and can't compare to those highly nourishing foods, but it will slowly regulate your body. It's a rare and valuable food."
Xu Yuehuai naturally knew what Consort Jia liked to hear these days. As soon as she heard that it was good for the child in her womb, she stopped talking and took the bowl from her.
However, she was still somewhat apprehensive about the pork liver congee; looking at the congee was like looking at poison.
Seeing that she was still hesitant, Xu Yuehuai added insult to injury, saying, "Do you really want your child to die in your own hands? Then I'll just take it away."
After saying that, he immediately took the pig liver porridge away and threw it away.
These words did have an effect, as Consort Jia slapped her hand away.
Then he picked up the porridge, pinched his nose with one hand, and poured it down his throat like he was drinking poison.
Seeing this, Xu Yuehuai was both amused and exasperated. She thought that the pork liver porridge shouldn't be this bad. Although it did have a slightly fishy smell, it shouldn't be consumed in such an unusual way as Consort Jia.
Consort Jia released her grip on her nose after swallowing, but she smacked her lips, seemingly savoring the taste.
"It tastes pretty good, surprisingly without any fishy smell, just a bit bitter," Consort Jia murmured to herself, surprised that the taste wasn't what she had imagined.
Xu Yuehuai had already anticipated this, but she just smiled and didn't say anything. Then she picked up the pine nuts and handed them to Consort Jia.
"Aunt, you can try some more of these pine nuts," Xu Yuehuai said, handing them over.
Consort Jia took a bite and gave it a thumbs up, praising it repeatedly: "Delicious, delicious!"
Xu Yuehuai smiled with relief and breathed a sigh of relief. In her opinion, the most important things for a pregnant woman are her mood and appetite. As long as these two things are met, the fetus will naturally be healthy.
That evening, Xu Yuehuai pulled Jinzhan aside and asked, "Jinzhan, why is Consort Jia in this condition?"
"Princess, the imperial physician said that Consort Jia is probably too worried and her mind is troubled, which is why she looks like this." Jinzhan said, her brows furrowing slightly.
This worried Xu Yuehuai a lot, since she had just started bleeding slightly, which was not a good sign.
“Princess, Consort Jia needs to relax more,” Jinzhan reminded her from the side, “but she shouldn’t be active for too long, otherwise I think it might be dangerous.”
Xu Yuehua frowned slightly after hearing this, it seemed that she needed to think of some special methods.
It should be a relaxing and light exercise, otherwise it will definitely hurt the child.
"Alright, I understand. You all should go to sleep too." Xu Yuehuai had been lost in thought and for a moment forgot that it was already late at night. After she came to her senses, she hurriedly told everyone to go and rest.
"Yes, Princess." Jinzhan and Yinhu replied and then went back to their rooms to rest.
But Xu Yuehuai remained deep in thought for a long time after the two left, and only fell into a deep sleep when it was almost dawn.
The news spread through the palace early the next morning.
It was said that Shen Yitang, the daughter of the Minister of Revenue, had been favored by the Emperor and was even directly granted the title of Noble Lady Shen. This news spread like wildfire throughout the palace and beyond.
Xu Yuehua felt more at ease after hearing this. After all, if Shen Yitang was officially appointed, then Bai Yiyi's problem would be solved. At least she wouldn't be pestering him to marry her in a few days.
She breathed a sigh of relief, but Consort Jia, on the other side, was furious after hearing about this. She smashed the teacup in her hand to pieces and cursed, "That vile Consort Min, she's impotent and tries to pull these kinds of tricks. It's infuriating!"
Jinzhan couldn't dissuade her, and seeing her like this, she hurriedly went to call Xu Yuehuai.
Consort Jia was indignant about this, but when Xu Yuehuai entered, she found that Consort Jia was still angry and quickly comforted her, saying, "Your Majesty, the most important thing right now is to save this child. It's not good for him if you keep getting angry like this."
After Xu Yuehuai finished speaking, Consort Jia's eyes became much clearer. She touched her belly and said, "Yes, my child. I can't get angry so easily anymore."
"Don't worry, Aunt. With me here, I will make sure your child is born safely." Xu Yuehuai said, looking at Consort Jia with a determined expression, and Consort Jia was naturally even more determined.
She was relieved and took several deep breaths to calm herself down before continuing to eat.
Xu Yuehuai breathed a sigh of relief and quickly told Jinzhan to sweep up all the broken pieces on the ground, making sure no one got hurt.
Jinzhan agreed and began sweeping the floor, but Hengniang suddenly ran over and said, "Your Highness, Princess, something terrible has happened! That Consort Shen's maid, Babao, has come to Anfu Palace again."
Upon hearing this, Xu Yuehuai frowned. "Those who come here with ill intentions don't come with good intentions," she thought. "She definitely has ulterior motives."
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