The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 241 The Older Generation

Hearing her words, the Empress Dowager's smile deepened. "That's perfect. Come and have breakfast with me."

As soon as Shen Qingwan sat down in front of the food tray, Zhang Mama served her a bowl of red date, longan, and millet porridge. As she placed it in front of her, she added, "The Empress Dowager loves to dine with the Empress. The Empress Dowager says that when she sees the Empress enjoying her food, her own appetite improves."

Shen Qingwan: ...

Shen Qingwan swallowed hard. She couldn't help but feel that what Zhang Mama said wasn't a compliment, but rather a way of saying that she... could eat a lot!
Her expression instantly became somewhat indescribable. Just then, the Empress Dowager also spoke up, "Being able to eat well is a blessing. I like to see the Empress eating heartily, rather than those pretentious concubines who eat only small bites and then say they can't eat anymore after a couple of bites."

Shen Qingwan: ...

She truly admired the Empress Dowager's skill in subtly insulting people. She wouldn't reveal who the pretentious concubine in the Empress Dowager's words was.

Anyway, the Empress Dowager disliked Consort Xian the most. Back then, in order to please her father, the Empress Dowager must have dined with her alone quite a few times.

"If Mother Empress likes it, then your daughter-in-law will come and dine with you whenever she has time." Shen Qingwan smiled charmingly. She looked at the stir-fried ham and greens on the plate, which looked very refreshing. She picked up a piece with her chopsticks and put it in the Empress Dowager's bowl. "Mother Empress, please try this. The ham is fresh and fragrant, and it is most delicious with sweet porridge."

"Very well." The Empress Dowager's smile deepened. "Then I'll have a taste."

Watching the Empress Dowager lower her head and eat the porridge in her bowl, Shen Qingwan also picked up the spoon on her side. She scooped up a spoonful, and after just one sip, she felt that the porridge tasted a bit strange.

Shen Qingwan was taken aback and glanced down at the porridge in the bowl. Although it was sweet porridge, the ingredients looked a bit strange, as there were black sesame seeds in it.

It's not that you can't put black sesame seeds in sweet porridge, but putting them in whole like this is really unusual. And the taste... she felt it was a bit different from the porridge she usually drank.

The Empress Dowager, seeing that she was staring intently at the porridge in her bowl, asked in confusion, "What is the Empress doing? Is there something unclean in this porridge?"

Shen Qingwan shook her head repeatedly, "No, the porridge is delicious. I was just curious about the black sesame seeds in the porridge. I rarely see people putting this in porridge, but the taste is indeed quite unique."

Shen Qingwan felt that something was off about the porridge, which might be related to the black sesame seeds in it.

Hearing her words, the Empress Dowager smiled with relief. "So that's what the Empress meant. Of course, we didn't add it when cooking the porridge. But Prince Rui sent so much Dong'e donkey-hide gelatin last time. I don't like that stuff, and I felt it would be a waste if it spoiled after a while. So I had them put a few pieces in the porridge when they cooked it. Once it's cooked in the porridge, you can't taste the donkey-hide gelatin. In the end, we didn't let Prince Rui's thoughtfulness go to waste."

Shen Qingwan: ...

Shen Qingwan almost lost her senses when she heard the Empress Dowager's words. Indeed, the older generation has its own ideas.

They've clearly made donkey-hide gelatin into something like a dessert to give people a better taste experience.

The Empress Dowager still felt it wasn't thoughtful enough, so she put her directly into a pot to cook porridge.

She felt that the food she racked her brains to make every day in the palace was utterly inadequate! When it came to tinkering with food, she had to look to the older generation; their ideas were truly ingenious.

"It's really thoughtful, and it tastes pretty good too." Shen Qingwan took another sip, and this time she finally realized that the strange taste she had just noticed was not black sesame, but rather the taste of donkey-hide gelatin.

Now that I know what it is, it doesn't seem strange anymore.

"If the Empress finds it delicious, she shouldn't drink too much. Drinking too much of this stuff can cause internal heat," the Empress Dowager said with an unusually serious expression.

Shen Qingwan: ...

She thought the Empress Dowager was going to say, "If you like it, drink more."

Shen Qingwan felt that the Empress Dowager was actually quite cute at times and not as difficult to get along with as she had imagined.

She couldn't understand why the concubines in the harem were so afraid of her.

"Mother, there is actually another matter I wish to discuss with you today." Shen Qingwan paused, "If you think what I said is wrong, please pretend that I never came today."

"Your Majesty, please speak freely. I truly consider you my own child, so there's no need for so many concerns." The Empress Dowager patted the back of her hand. "Even if there are any improprieties, I won't take them to heart."

With the Empress Dowager's words, Shen Qingwan breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yesterday, when I heard that Consort Xi was pregnant, I was truly happy for her. But when I returned to the palace to sleep, something else came to mind." Shen Qingwan hesitated for a moment. "I carefully calculated the time of Consort Xi's birth. From now on, there are still nine months. But in nine months, the Third Prince will be at the age where he's running around everywhere and is the most difficult to manage. I'm not targeting anyone in particular, but I feel that children are inevitably playful, and pregnant women are not very mobile. If the two of them bump into each other, even though Consort Shu lives in Yonghe Palace, she and Consort Jin will be managing the six palaces together, so they will inevitably have more contact on a daily basis. Better safe than sorry... Perhaps I'm just overthinking it!"

Upon hearing Shen Qingwan's words, the Empress Dowager's kind eyes visibly trembled.

From the moment she learned yesterday that Consort Xi was pregnant until now, she had only been happy. If the Empress hadn't brought it up, she really wouldn't have thought of it.

Pregnant concubines in the harem are only wary of those with malicious intentions who might tamper with their food or belongings to cause them to miscarry. But who would consider a child taken from the palace to visit another household? However, this is indeed... something to consider.

The Third Prince was just a child, a two-year-old who didn't understand anything. I was afraid that someone would take advantage of his ignorance and lure him into "accidentally" bumping into Consort Xi's stomach.

The Empress Dowager slowly raised her head, her kind smile replaced by a serious expression. "The Empress is very thoughtful. Even I didn't think of this. It's all thanks to the Empress."

"Your Majesty is too kind. Perhaps it is just my daughter-in-law worrying unnecessarily. Consort Jin is virtuous and kind, and she is good at raising her children. She would never allow such a thing to happen in Xianfu Palace," Shen Qingwan said calmly.

"Consort Jin is of upright character, but there are so many maids and eunuchs serving in Xianfu Palace. It's possible that they are all like Consort Jin. The Empress is very thoughtful. Let's not even talk about whether someone might have such intentions. Since she has considered this, she must take precautions. The Emperor's offspring are already few. Regardless of whether Consort Xi is my cousin or not, since she is pregnant, we must do our best to protect this child. The continuation of the imperial line is the foundation of the nation. The Empress is very sensible..."

(End of this chapter)