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

Chapter 327 Lively
Zhen'er suddenly stopped in her tracks. "What's wrong, Your Highness?"

"No need to call her yet. Help me change my clothes. I'm going to see the Empress Dowager."

Although Zhen'er didn't understand, she still did as she was told. Since the day she was punished to kneel, she seemed to have become much more composed than before.

She would never complain if she did something wrong or said something wrong, even if the Empress wanted to punish or beat her.

But because the Empress felt sorry for her, she invited the imperial physician for her, which caused the Empress to be gossiped about behind her back, keeping her awake for several nights. The Empress was so good to her, and she vowed that she would never cause trouble for the Empress again because of herself.

When Shen Qingwan arrived at Cining Palace, the Empress Dowager was standing in her bedchamber, looking at the flowers in the backyard from afar.

"What is Your Majesty looking at? You seem so engrossed in it." Shen Qingwan walked to the Empress Dowager's side and said softly.

"Spring has arrived. We've been talking about spring all the time, but the weather hasn't warmed up yet. It's only these past few days that the weather has improved and I can really feel that spring has come." As the Empress Dowager spoke, her gaze never left the flowers in the backyard.

Shen Qingwan followed her gaze and looked over, momentarily at a loss for words.

She remembered those flowers; it was she who suggested growing them in the courtyard because the Empress Dowager had a persistent cough that wouldn't heal.

Shen Qingwan couldn't tell for a moment whether the Empress Dowager was attached to the flowers or to the person who had given them to her. If she remembered correctly, the Empress Dowager seemed to have told her that the flowers were given to her by the late Emperor.

The Empress Dowager was the luckiest woman in the late emperor's harem. After her son ascended the throne, she lived a life of luxury and ease. No matter how much blood she had stained her hands before, it would be washed away little by little with the passage of time.

"Mother, the Imperial Kitchen sent a lot of fresh beef and mutton to your daughter-in-law today. I thought that since the weather is warmer, I might as well take the children out for some roast meat. It's cold and the children can't come out. I guess they're all cooped up in the palace all day and are getting restless."

The Empress Dowager listened to her words and smiled kindly, "Children love excitement. Yesterday I heard that the Third Prince was ill, and I wonder how he is today?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this morning, Consort Shu sent someone to say that the Third Prince's high fever had subsided before the Emperor went to court. I guess Consort Shu was exhausted these past two days and even fainted yesterday. Now that the Third Prince is better, she can rest assured. It would be better to let her rest well and visit her at Yonghe Palace later."

"The Empress is very thoughtful." The Empress Dowager patted the back of her hand twice, very pleased. "The Empress just said that she wanted to have barbecue tonight, but it has already been arranged."

"It's not all arranged yet," Shen Qingwan said softly. "I was thinking that eating alone wouldn't create much of a festive atmosphere. Roast meat is more fun when there are more people around, so I thought I'd ask Mother what she thinks. If Mother is willing, I'll have someone move all the prepared food to Cining Palace so we can have dinner together."

“What’s the point of just the two of us eating? Since that’s the case, let’s invite the emperor over too. It’ll be more lively with more people.”

"Since we've summoned the Emperor, why not bring the children along as well? The Emperor is always busy with state affairs, and the children think of their father every day."

"Then let Consort Liang bring the Second Prince and Consort Zhen bring the First Princess together." The Empress Dowager smiled, her eyes crinkling, clearly in a good mood.

However, she only mentioned the Second Prince and the Eldest Princess, without mentioning Jiang Wenlan. It's clear that although the Empress Dowager didn't say it, she was still somewhat wary of Emperor Yuanwu's continued dislike of the Eldest Prince.

"Then after the prince comes down from the study, I will have someone bring the eldest prince over as well, Mother."

Shen Qingwan spoke in a calm tone, without any deliberate reminder, as if she were talking about something that couldn't be more ordinary. However, when the Empress Dowager heard this, her eyelids twitched imperceptibly, and she then said, "Alright, let's do it the way the Empress says."

"Yes, Mother." Shen Qingwan curtsied. "Then I will have someone prepare. I will go to Yonghe Palace to see Consort Shu later. I will tell you about the Third Prince's condition later so that you can rest assured."

When Zhang Mama arrived at the Hall of Mental Cultivation to announce the matter, Prince Rui was unexpectedly present.

“Your Majesty is biased. You have such a good dinner of roast meat, but you have left your brother out and only invited Your Majesty.” Prince Rui seemed to complain. “This chess game is not interesting. After Your Majesty finishes the game, there is roast meat waiting for you. When I return to my residence, I can only pass the long, lonely night with a jar of fine daughter’s red wine and a plate of peanuts.”

Emperor Yuanwu raised his eyes and glanced at him. "Since you feel lonely, why not take two beautiful concubines? There are quite a few young women in the capital who are in love with you, Prince Rui."

"My royal brother always teases me." Prince Rui laughed self-deprecatingly. "Which young woman in the capital doesn't want to enter the palace and become my royal brother's darling? Who would even look at a carefree prince like me who roams the world?"

Emperor Yuanwu glanced at him and said, "If you had stayed in the capital like you have this year, why would you have to worry about not having a few beautiful concubines in your household?"

“Your Majesty, please stop joking with me. I should think this over carefully. Your Majesty left me to have barbecue with Your Majesty’s wife. I don’t even know what I’ll eat tonight…” Prince Rui said, raising an eyebrow and glancing at Emperor Yuanwu.

"Alright, since it's the Empress Dowager's banquet, you may come with me." Emperor Yuanwu shook his head with a chuckle.

"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager only invited my brother. I hope my presence there won't disturb your meal," Prince Rui said sullenly.

"Go if you want, don't go if you don't." Emperor Yuanwu said, standing up. "If you don't go, I'll go by myself."

When Emperor Yuanwu and Prince Rui arrived at Cining Palace, Shen Qingwan had just had a barbecue grill set up, and several eunuchs were sitting on stone benches nearby, skewering the meat as instructed by Shen Qingwan.

"What's going on?"

Following Emperor Yuanwu's voice, Shen Qingwan turned her head and immediately saw Prince Rui standing next to Emperor Yuanwu. She was stunned for a moment, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, but it was only for a very short time before her face was adorned with her usual smile. "Why did Your Majesty arrive so early? The children haven't even left the study yet."

"I heard that the Empress was going to come up with something new tonight, so I thought I'd come early. But I never expected it to be so interesting." Emperor Yuanwu said as he walked toward the eunuch skewering meat with bamboo sticks. He asked, puzzled, "Since it's roasted meat, you can just put it on the grill. Why did the Empress have the meat cut into small pieces and skewered? Isn't that redundant?"

Faced with Emperor Yuanwu's question, Shen Qingwan calmly replied, "Your Majesty, I would like to ask you, where is the best place to roast meat?"