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

Chapter 278 Other Ideas
Emperor Yuanwu looked up at her in surprise, and snorted out a single word, "Hmm?"

"However, for lunch I'd like stir-fried mutton, chrysanthemum fish, and stir-fried shiitake mushrooms with tea tree mushrooms. I wonder if His Majesty would like any of these?" Shen Qingwan asked tentatively.

Emperor Yuanwu neither said yes nor no, but his expression was indeed much better than before.

Shen Qingwan: ...

Got it!

It seems that Emperor Yuanwu did indeed want to try some of the dishes she ordered!

As the two were talking, the imperial kitchen staff began bringing over the dishes one after another, quickly filling the plates to the brim.

Shen Qingwan and Emperor Yuanwu sat facing each other in front of the food tray.

She thought that Emperor Yuanwu had come over without announcing himself and had overheard her and Su Tianhe's conversation "by accident." It wouldn't be a problem if he had heard the whole thing, but she was afraid that he hadn't heard everything and might have misunderstood it out of context. If she wanted to have a peaceful life in the harem, it wouldn't be a good thing if she had any grudges with the emperor in front of her.

Shen Qingwan hesitated for a few seconds, then picked up a piece of mutton and placed it on the plate in front of Emperor Yuanwu. "Your Majesty, try today's mutton; it's quite delicious."

Whether it was her imagination or not, she felt that Emperor Yuanwu was in low spirits today, or even that he had something on his mind.

Could it be because she didn't announce herself when she came in and overheard her instructions to a palace maid?

Not to the point.

If it weren't for this...

Shen Qingwan seemed to have other ideas in her mind.

She slowly withdrew her hand, pretending to be nonchalant, and after serving Emperor Yuanwu some food, she began to eat herself.

Emperor Yuanwu stared at the piece of mutton in his bowl for a while, then looked up at Shen Qingwan for a moment before slowly putting down his chopsticks.

He leaned back in his chair, staring intently at Shen Qingwan sitting opposite him.

She first took a sip of soup, picked up some tea tree mushrooms, ate a slice of lotus root, and scooped a spoonful of tofu soup...

Emperor Yuanwu:? ? ?

Whether he felt that the emperor's favor should be distributed equally to all women depended on the empress.

Although she only ate a bite of each dish, she made sure to take care of every single one on the table.

Is this why the food in her palace was so delicious?
She would try any dish sent from the imperial kitchen, whether it was good or not.

Unlike his usual self, if there was anything about the dish in front of him that he found displeasing, he would not take a single bite and would even instruct the imperial kitchen staff not to serve that dish to him again.

As Emperor Yuanwu watched, he noticed that after taking a bite of mutton, she ate several more pieces in a row, and in no time, the plate of mutton was empty.

Is this mutton really that delicious?
Emperor Yuanwu's eyes gradually darkened, and his gaze slowly shifted from Shen Qingwan's face to his own bowl.

The plate of mutton on the plate was finished, and now only the last piece remained in his bowl.

Just as Emperor Yuanwu was about to pick up his chopsticks to taste it, he saw Shen Qingwan stand up and extend a pair of chopsticks toward him.

Emperor Yuanwu: ??? Emperor Yuanwu's eyes darkened, and he asked in great confusion, "What is the Empress doing?"

Shen Qingwan paused. She originally wanted to say, "Since the Emperor isn't eating, why don't she eat it for him? It would be a shame to throw away such fresh mutton."

Seeing the displeased expression, he changed his mind before he could finish his sentence. “I was thinking that I had just put a piece of meat on His Majesty’s plate, but not only did he not eat it, he put his chopsticks down. He probably didn’t want me to put food on his plate. I was just trying to make amends by putting that piece of mutton back on His Majesty’s plate so that His Majesty could pretend that nothing had happened. If he doesn’t eat enough for lunch, he might not have any energy in the afternoon.”

Emperor Yuanwu clasped his hands in front of him, his eyes dark and unreadable, and asked with a puzzled look, "Isn't it because this mutton is so delicious that the Empress finished the whole plate on the plate and wasn't satisfied, so she's eyeing this piece in my bowl?"

Shen Qingwan: ...

Shen Qingwan swallowed hard, her face showing the embarrassment of being exposed. She sat back down on the stool with a slight awkwardness, and saw Emperor Yuanwu pick up the chopsticks in front of him, put the last piece of mutton in his mouth, chew it twice, and swallow it.

She put down her chopsticks, feeling utterly hopeless.

If she had known, she wouldn't have bothered him by putting that piece of mutton on his plate. He wouldn't have finished the whole plate and still felt like he was missing a bite.

Emperor Yuanwu said with a look of relish, "The Empress really knows how to order. This stir-fried mutton is indeed tender and delicious, and there is not a trace of muttony smell."

"There's no gamey smell because the imperial chefs added a lot of scallions, ginger, garlic, and star anise when they made this dish. It's not that there's no gamey smell, but rather that the smell is masked by the flavors of these ingredients," Shen Qingwan said, tugging at the corner of her mouth.

Looking at her resentful expression, Emperor Yuanwu's troubled mood instantly vanished.

With so many women in the harem, there were bound to be many disputes, but this was the first time in all these years that Emperor Yuanwu had ever seen anyone get so angry over a piece of mutton.

"Is the Empress unhappy?" Emperor Yuanwu laughed heartily.

Shen Qingwan: ...

Shen Qingwan secretly grumbled to herself, "Is it really necessary to be this happy just because I ate a bite of mutton? Anyone who didn't know better would think that the other one had miraculously survived and triggered her laughter."

Emperor Yuanwu glanced at her, and for some reason his mood improved considerably. He picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of fish, and put it in his mouth. "If I remember correctly, this chrysanthemum fish dish was also ordered by the Empress."

Shen Qingwan: ...

She was now certain that Emperor Yuanwu had not come to Kunning Palace for lunch, but rather to steal her food.

"Indeed, the fish is fresh and tender, with a smooth and melt-in-your-mouth texture. Paired with the fragrance of chrysanthemum, it's oily but not greasy, and it's really quite good." Emperor Yuanwu said, picking up another piece.

Chrysanthemum fish uses grass carp. Grass carp tastes delicious, but it has too many bones. Only the upper and lower parts of the belly are boneless.

Emperor Yuanwu had just picked up two pieces of fish with his chopsticks when, by sheer coincidence, he took both pieces of meat from the belly of the fish. If you said he didn't do it on purpose, even he himself probably wouldn't believe it.

"I'm glad Your Majesty is pleased." Shen Qingwan picked up the teacup beside her and took a small sip.

Emperor Yuanwu, remembering how Shen Qingwan had tasted every dish, decided to try them all himself.

There were indeed a few dishes that he would never normally eat, but now he found them to be quite delicious.

However, after tasting a bite of each dish on the full plate, Emperor Yuanwu was stuffed.

He took the handkerchief Wu Jixiang handed him, wiped his lips, and said with great satisfaction, "The Empress really knows how to arrange meals. There's lamb and fish, which is quite delicious."