This morning's breakfast was prepared in the small kitchen of Yilan Hall.
After Ming Hua took her seat at the food table, she looked at the ginger-infused brown sugar glutinous rice balls and the ginger-shredded sweet wine egg custard set before her, her delicate brows slightly furrowing.
She caught the pungent aroma of ginger wafting toward her and wrinkled her small face in disgust, looking at Qingyun before her with confusion.
"Why is my breakfast different from His Majesty's today, and why does every dish have ginger in it? Go and change it for me right away—bring me the same as His Majesty's!"
The thing she hated most in all her life was bitter, spicy ginger. Last night, she had only forced herself to pinch her nose and down the ginger soup because the pain had left her with no other choice.
Before Xie Chongyuan was a breakfast of two steaming baskets of soup-filled buns, a plate of crispy, golden fried pastries, and several fragrant steamed meat cakes.
Though she had eaten her fill at Yanfu Palace last night, her monthly flow had come in the night, and the pain in her lower abdomen had been so unbearable that she had vomited up all her evening meal.
Then, to ease the pain, she had drunk copious amounts of ginger soup. Now her mouth felt tasteless and flat, and looking at the fragrant, juice-laden soup buns before Xie Chongyuan, she found her mouth watering.
Qingyun, who was attending to Ming Hua's hand-washing, explained softly: "Last night, Imperial Physician Li said that because Your Grace has consumed too many iced treats these past days, cold qi has accumulated in your body. Your constitution is cold and weak, which caused the abdominal pain during your monthly flow. From now on, your meals should incorporate more warming, nourishing ingredients to gradually regulate your condition."
Nuanxue ladled several ginger-infused brown sugar glutinous rice balls into the white porcelain bowl beside Ming Hua's hand, smiling gently as she coaxed in a warm voice: "Last night, we specifically consulted Imperial Physician Li. Ginger is warming in nature and dispels cold from the surface. Adding more ginger to your daily meals is the best and fastest way to eliminate the cold qi accumulated in Your Grace's body."
"Your Grace, please bear with it for a while. After some time, when your next monthly flow comes, you won't have to suffer as you did last night. The kitchen has made these ginger brown sugar glutinous rice balls quite delicious—the flavor isn't at all harsh."
"No! No!" Ming Hua pushed the white porcelain bowl farther away, refusing in a coquettish voice, then instructed: "My body is already fine now. After drinking so much ginger soup last night, just smelling ginger now makes me want to throw up! Go change it for me at once!"
Ming Hua had been doted on by her entire family since childhood. When she was willful, no one could do anything about her—others could only compromise for her sake.
Qingyun and Nuanxue naturally knew just how difficult it was to persuade their young mistress once she became stubborn. The two exchanged a glance, sighed softly, and were about to relent and call for a palace attendant to change their mistress's breakfast.
But who would have thought that at this moment, Xie Chongyuan, who had emerged from the inner chamber and taken his seat on the cushion across from Ming Hua, would see this scene, furrow his brow tightly, and with a cold face and deep voice, rebuke her: "Huahua, don't be difficult!"
"Good medicine tastes bitter. Since this food is beneficial to your health, no matter how unpleasant it tastes, you must endure and eat it. Otherwise, next month when your monthly flow comes, you'll still suffer from this unbearable abdominal pain."
Xie Chongyuan thought of how his young wife had been delicate and weak last night, her face pale, clinging to his chest like a pitiful, sickly little kitten, and his expression unconsciously turned grave.
He inspired awe without needing to raise his voice. Having fought for years on battlefields of flashing blades and mountains of corpses, and now occupying the supreme position, holding the power of life and death over all subjects under heaven—
He now exuded an aura of majesty that brooked no defiance. It was no wonder outsiders found him stern and harsh, capricious in mood. The mere darkening of his expression was enough to create an overwhelming sense of pressure that made one's blood run cold.
Hearing Xie Chongyuan's icy command, Ming Hua turned to see his gloomy expression and was so frightened that her rosy lips parted slightly, frozen for a moment.
Then, like a startled little rabbit, she trembled and shrank back, her moist, apricot-shaped eyes casting a timid glance at Xie Chongyuan before she answered in a small voice: "Yes… this concubine knows her fault…"
She carefully picked up the white porcelain spoon beside her, lowered her head with furrowed brows, pouted her lips in grievance, and then, forcing herself to endure the pungent ginger smell, scooped up one ginger brown sugar glutinous rice ball and took a bite with visible distaste.
These past days, Xie Chongyuan had always been gentle and considerate with her, always speaking to her in soft, tender tones. She had never heard him speak to her so coldly, with such an unyielding, commanding tone, so harshly.
She had been the center of attention since childhood, and no one had ever spoken to her so fiercely before.
Though she knew his words were born of concern for her, hearing his fierce tone and seeing his cold expression made her both afraid and wronged.
He was too fierce—a completely different person from the gentle, considerate Xie Chongyuan who had been so tender with her these past days.
Seeing his young wife frightened, trembling like a startled, cowering little rabbit, her expression seeming terrified of him, Xie Chongyuan also realized his tone had perhaps been a bit too heavy.
A wave of regret washed over him. Fearing that the young lady would henceforth be afraid of him and never grow close to him again, his expression immediately softened, and he hurriedly explained in a gentle tone, "I only wanted Huahua to take good care of herself, which is why I spoke a bit sternly. I was not scolding Huahua."
Hearing Xie Chongyuan's gentle explanation, Ming Hua's grievances instantly dissipated.
She looked up and asked in a pitiful, small voice, "Then can Your Majesty not be so fierce with Huahua in the future? Huahua is afraid when Your Majesty is this fierce…"
Xie Chongyuan now understood just how delicate and pampered his newly enfeoffed Noble Consort truly was. Not only was she frail of body, but merely speaking a bit more seriously than usual already counted as being fierce toward her.
If the young lady were to see him furiously interrogating the court officials in the imperial hall, or cutting down enemy soldiers on the battlefield, she would likely faint from fright.
In the past, he had detested such delicate, pampered women, finding them nothing but trouble. But now, watching the young lady's reddened eyes, her dark, watery apricot-shaped eyes filled with grievance and fear, he felt no annoyance—only endless pity and remorse.
"I did not mean to be fierce with Huahua. I only wanted Huahua to be obedient, to take these medicinal meals to regulate your health so that next month you need not suffer again," Xie Chongyuan said, his heart softening at the young lady's pitiful expression, his tone carrying a hint of coaxing.
With a trace of doting affection he himself had not noticed, he let out a helpless, soft sigh and gently compromised, "If Huahua truly dislikes the taste of ginger, then I shall have all the breakfast dishes changed."
"I will have Imperial Physician Li write up a few more medicinal meals without ginger and send them over later. But as for iced treats, there will certainly be none for the time being. Can Huahua promise me that?"
Although Ming Hua was somewhat upset about Xie Chongyuan's cold expression earlier, she still remembered that last night, he had summoned his personal Imperial Physician Li to attend to her, and had stayed up all night without rest to care for her.
At this moment, hearing Xie Chongyuan explain and coax her with such gentle, soft words, she immediately forgave him for speaking to her so fiercely earlier.
Upon learning she would not have to eat the detestable ginger meal before her, Ming Hua's worried, aggrieved little face instantly brightened. Her eyes curved into crescents as she smiled like a blooming flower, and she answered in a very obedient voice, "Alright! As long as I don't have to eat this awful ginger, Huahua can promise anything!"
Qingyun and Nuanxue, who had been standing nearby thinking that someone had finally come to rein in their willful mistress, watched as their mistress merely reddened her eyes slightly and made even the emperor yield. The two exchanged helpless smiles.
They felt both helpless and delighted.
Helpless, because even the emperor could do nothing against their mistress—it seemed that henceforth, no one in this world could ever control her. Delighted, because the emperor doted on and indulged their mistress so thoroughly.
Xie Chongyuan watched as the young lady finally revealed her usual lively, charming smile, and inexplicably felt a weight lift from his chest, an unconscious smile of doting forming on his face.
Knowing the young lady craved the two steaming baskets of soup dumplings before him, he pushed them all in front of her. "I know Huahua craves these, so I'll give them all to Huahua to eat."
"It's getting late—I must attend the morning court. There are also some memorials that piled up last night, so I won't be able to join Huahua for lunch today. After breakfast, Huahua should go back to bed and sleep a while longer."
"If your body still feels unwell, Huahua must remember to have the palace attendants go to the Imperial Medical Bureau to summon Imperial Physician Li for another consultation. Huahua must not endure any discomfort silently."
Ming Hua looked at the soup dumplings Xie Chongyuan had pushed toward her and swallowed, then said with a charming smile, "State affairs are of utmost importance—it's fine if Your Majesty doesn't come to accompany Huahua. Your Majesty barely ate anything for breakfast, so after court, remember to eat something before attending to government matters!"
Hearing the young lady use his own words to advise him, Xie Chongyuan's thin lips curved upward, and he chuckled, "Alright, I'll come tomorrow to have lunch with Huahua!"
But the very next morning, villagers from a hamlet on the outskirts of the capital gathered in droves before the Chengtian Gate, crying out for justice.
The commoners accused the local county magistrate of embezzling tax revenues, seizing civilian farmland, and oppressing the people—a case that implicated numerous officials and involved an enormous amount of corruption and bribery, shocking the entire court.
Upon hearing of this case, Xie Chongyuan flew into a rage and immediately ordered the Censorate, the Ministry of Justice, and the Court of Judicial Review to conduct a thorough investigation.
The case had far-reaching implications, involving many high-ranking court officials and aristocratic families, and was inextricably linked to the several imperial clansmen who were watching covetously from the sidelines.
After court was dismissed, Xie Chongyuan kept several trusted ministers behind in the Zichen Palace to discuss matters, and they did not disperse until nearly lunchtime.
He was overwhelmed and furious, wishing he could immediately get to the bottom of the case and give the suffering commoners justice. He then summoned the Dragon Shadow Guards, intending to send more men to investigate in secret.
Seeing the sun high in the sky and thinking that the young lady was probably still waiting for him to come for lunch, he sent Li Youfu to the Yilan Hall to inform the young lady that he would be too busy handling this case in the coming days to accompany her for lunch.
Ming Hua still remembered that Xie Chongyuan had told her a couple of days ago that he preferred the cuisine of Qianxi. To thank him for taking such good care of her last night, she had specially ordered the Imperial Kitchen to prepare many Qianxi dishes for Xie Chongyuan to try at today's midday meal.
When she heard Li Youfu's arrival announced, Ming Hua, who had been sitting happily by the small pond waiting for Xie Chongyuan to come for lunch, showed a flicker of disappointment on her face—but it vanished in an instant.
"I understand. Matters of state take priority. Please inform His Majesty that if he is busy with government affairs in the future, there is no need to specially come and accompany me for meals."
Li Youfu had risen to his current position in the palace by being exceptionally shrewd, and he caught the fleeting disappointment in Ming Hua's eyes.
He smiled ingratiatingly and reassured her, "Though His Majesty is busy with state affairs and cannot spare the time, you are still the one he worries about most in his heart."
He then ordered the young eunuchs behind him, each holding a sandalwood lacquered brocade box, to step forward, and flattered her further, "These fine donkey-hide gelatin and ginseng were sent by His Majesty's order for your nourishment, Noble Consort."
"And this Seven-Colored Streaming Light Glazed Flower Cup, tributed by the Kingdom of Zhua Wa yesterday—His Majesty knew that Your Noble Consort would surely love such exquisite and beautiful things, so he sent it to Yilan Hall for your enjoyment and amusement."
Ming Hua couldn't take her eyes off the dazzling glazed flower cup. She truly loved it, and the trace of disappointment in her heart instantly vanished. She happily began her midday meal, planning to go to the imperial garden in the afternoon to pick some flowers for arranging.
Days passed leisurely, and before she knew it, it was mid-May when the summer heat was just beginning to show. In the small pond of Yilan Hall, within barely half a month, waves of lotus leaves surged and the pond was filled with blooming lotus flowers.
Ming Hua lay sprawled on the small canopy boat that she had ordered the Imperial Workshop to make for her some days ago, listlessly scattering fish food into the water, feeding the several plump, adorably silly koi fish.
On the boat's carved ebony food table sat a plate of osmanthus sugar cakes that Ming Hua usually loved, but the plate had been sitting there for a long while, still perfectly arranged, untouched.
For the past half month or so, both the harem and the court had been discussing the major corruption case that had implicated numerous high-ranking officials.
After court sessions these days, Xie Chongyuan had been summoning the ministers responsible for the case to Zichen Palace every day to deliberate until dark.
Xie Chongyuan's thunderous wrath had been fierce—over the past half month, all ministers involved in the case had, according to the severity of their crimes, been successively imprisoned, exiled, or executed along with their entire families. In a short time, nearly all key positions at court had changed hands.
Since parting with Xie Chongyuan after that morning meal, Ming Hua had not seen him again for the past half month.
But during this time, Xie Chongyuan had from time to time sent Li Youfu or Li Shun'an to deliver rare treasures or nourishing supplements to her, and a few days ago he had even sent Imperial Physician Li to take her pulse once more.
These past days, Ming Hua seemed to have grown accustomed to Xie Chongyuan coming to Yilan Hall every day to accompany her for lunch. Now that he hadn't come for many days, even though the same dishes she loved were still served daily, she somehow felt she had no appetite.
Back home in the past, her elder brothers or her parents would always have someone by her side. Since entering the palace, though Xie Chongyuan was busy, he had still accompanied her for lunch almost every day.
Now that Xie Chongyuan hadn't come for many days, Ming Hua felt that Yilan Hall had become quiet and desolate whenever she ate.
She was probably a little homesick.
Just then, Nuanxue brought over a pot of iced green plum drink. Standing by the shore watching her mistress, who had been gloomy for days, she smiled and said, "I heard that the corruption case is nearly concluded. I reckon within a day or two, His Majesty will be able to come accompany you every day like before."
"Please don't be so downcast, Noble Consort. I've kept this pot of green plum drink chilled in the ice chest for quite a while. His Majesty previously instructed that you may only have iced treats once every ten days. It's so hot today—if you don't drink it soon, the green plum drink won't be cold anymore."
Ming Hua flushed with embarrassment and flung a large handful of fish food into the water, then glared at Nuanxue, who was talking nonsense, and retorted indignantly, "Nonsense! Where am I being downcast?"
Qingyun, who was fanning Ming Hua nearby, teased, "Noble Consort, stop feeding them—if you keep going, these koi are going to be stuffed to death."
"If you miss His Majesty so much, why not go to Zichen Palace yourself and see him? I hear the case is nearly wrapped up now—even if you go, it surely won't disturb His Majesty!"
At these words, Ming Hua's little face flushed crimson, and she tried to argue, "Who—who said I miss him? I—I'm not missing him at all! How can you be so shameless as to say such things!"
"Yes, yes, Noble Consort isn't," Qingyun said. She knew well her mistress's proud, stubborn, and easily embarrassed temperament.
These past days, the young lady had boredly fed three batches of koi to death in the small pond—wasn't it precisely because she wasn't used to having the emperor by her side, coaxing her, and because she missed him?
Qingyun thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "A few days ago, the Noble Consort prepared that large table of Qianxi dishes, hoping to thank His Majesty for his care of her, but His Majesty was tied up with state affairs and never got to taste the Noble Consort's thoughtful gesture."
"With the weather as hot as it is now, His Majesty has been laboring over state affairs these past days, and his heart must be deeply troubled, with no appetite for food or tea."
"These past few days, the lotus seedpods in this small pond are at their finest. If the Noble Consort were to pick some now and have a bowl of lotus seed soup made, then personally deliver it to the Zichen Palace for His Majesty to taste something fresh, that too would be a gesture of the Noble Consort's thoughtfulness!"
Ming Hua knew that Qingyun had seen through her little scheme and was trying to coax her into going to the Zichen Palace to find Xie Chongyuan.
She felt a bit embarrassed and annoyed, but she truly wanted to go.
The young lady furrowed her delicate brows, hesitated for a moment, then lifted her chin slightly and put on a deliberately proud air, saying, "Very well, then!"