Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

"How have you all been?" Shen Qing raised the corners of her mouth, smiling brightly.

Everyone present was stunned.

How did such a glamorous Lady Shen suddenly appear?

"Shen... Madam Shen??" Zhao Cheng rubbed his eyes in disbelief, his face already showing joy.

"Good heavens! It really is Madam Shen! Madam Shen is back!!"

"Madam Shen is finally back! We'll have some new and exciting food again!"

"Madam Shen, you're finally back! I've missed you so much!"

"..."

Exclamations of surprise rang out, and the diners were overjoyed.

Although they queued up at Zhiweixuan every day to buy food, Zhiweixuan only sold four kinds of food, and even if they were very delicious, they were getting a little tired of them.

Of course, being full doesn't mean it's bad.

For example, someone might love instant noodles, but if they eat instant noodles every day, they won't be able to eat anymore.

But if I don't eat it for a while, I'll miss it.

So when they saw Shen Qing, they all got excited, and their anticipation for the new food reached its peak.

Zhao Cheng was a true foodie. After his initial shock, his gaze was fixed on the two grilled sausages in Shen Qing's hand.

"Madam Shen, what's this new food? It smells amazing!"

"This is a grilled sausage." Shen Qing said, taking a bite as she chewed. The aroma of oil filled the air, making it look incredibly tempting.

"Only 100 grilled sausages are available today, one per person, priced at 100 coins."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Cheng exclaimed, "Good heavens, there are only a hundred sticks! That's not nearly enough to go around!"

He dashed to the front, shouting, "Madam Shen, I want one!"

"I want one too!"

"Hurry up, hurry up, get in line! This sausage smells amazing!"

"..."

The other diners also became anxious and quickly formed a queue, afraid that they wouldn't get a turn.

The commotion grew louder and louder, and soon it reached Zhiweixuan.

At this moment, Pei Yuan and his coachman were standing in line in front of Zhiweixuan Restaurant.

Suddenly someone shouted.

"Madam Shen is back! Madam Shen is back to sell grilled sausages!"

"One hundred servings of grilled sausages, they're at the Zhiwei Restaurant next door, let's hurry and line up!"

"Hurry, hurry!"

Looking at the queue in front of him, Pei Yuan made a quick decision: "Let's go and queue up at Zhiwei Restaurant."

He had traveled a long way just to eat the food that Madam Shen had made herself, so he couldn't linger here.

Yesterday, the servants in the manor made a dish according to the recipe left by Madam Shen. He reluctantly tasted it and found it to be quite good. He was no longer so resistant to eating.

However, the food prepared by the servants was far inferior to the food prepared by Madam Shen herself.

He now particularly enjoys the feeling of being so tempted that his mouth waters; only the food made by Madam Shen herself can give him this feeling.

Pei Yuan strode along, but as he walked, he realized something was wrong; all the diners who were running were overtaking him one by one.

If that doesn't work, he'll have to run.

With a thought, he took off running.

The drivers behind were stunned.

No, that's the high and mighty Prime Minister, how come he suddenly started running?

The Grand Secretary is usually so elegant, but now he looks like a starving ghost rushing to grab food.

"Sir, please wait for me! Please wait for me!"

The driver had no choice but to run after him.

They finally got into line, one after the other.

Pei Yuan was lucky; he soon arrived at the front of the line.

"Two sausages," he said hastily.

"One per person." After Shen Qing finished speaking, she looked up and realized it was Pei Yuan. "You've come to Ping'an County too."

She remained calm and showed no remorse for leaving without saying goodbye.

"I came here specifically to buy food."

Pei Yuan emphasized the words "specially," then pointed to the coachman behind him: "One for me, one for him, it doesn't break your purchase limit rules."

Shen Qing nodded, accepted the money, and began grilling sausages.

Even though Pei Yuan is the high-ranking Grand Secretary, when he comes to her Zhiwei Restaurant, he is just like any other diner. He has to queue up and abide by the purchase limit.

The charcoal in the stove was glowing red-hot, and the sausages sizzled on the wire mesh.

Pei Yuan only smelled an extremely domineering aroma of burning, a wild fragrance that directly invaded his entire nasal cavity.

The aroma of meat, fat, and spices intertwine like a rough rope, making one's mouth water.

"Two grilled sausages," Shen Qing's voice rang out.

Pei Yuan snapped out of his daze, took the sausage, and without a second thought, popped it into his mouth.

The moment the teeth cut in, the outer layer of the sausage casing, which was roasted to a golden brown, split open, and the meat juices hidden inside gushed out, hot and fragrant.

"Hiss~"

It was scalding hot, but it smelled so good that Pei Yuan couldn't bear to spit it out.

He, who had been anorexic for so many years, never imagined that one day he would be unable to bear the thought of food.

Once it wasn't so hot anymore, Pei Yuan began to chew.

The meat chunks gently bounced between your teeth, the pork's savory flavor intensified with each chew, and the oil kept oozing out, mingling with the aroma of spices, filling your mouth with fragrance.

Swallow it in one gulp, and the aftertaste is endless.

In the blink of an eye, the sausage was finished, and the skewer on which it was threaded was even licked clean.

Pei Yuan then picked up the second sausage.

The coachman swallowed hard. "Sir, didn't you say yesterday you were going to bring food back for Lord Yan?"

"Oh, I forgot."

Pei Yuan finished speaking expressionlessly and immediately took a bite of the second grilled sausage.

Driver: "..."

This was clearly intentional.

And it smells so good, he really wants to eat it too!

I'm starting to not want to be a rickshaw driver anymore...

......

The imperial court is in complete chaos today.

The Grand Secretary did not attend court!

The emperor usually didn't hold court, and everyone was used to it. After all, the emperor only knew how to eat, drink, and have fun, so there was no point in him attending court.

But today even the Grand Secretary is not attending court.

The officials felt a chill run down their spines.

But only Yan Wenli knew what was going on.

The Prime Minister, who should be in charge of the cabinet, neglected important military and national affairs and went to Ping'an County for dinner. Who would believe that?

"His Majesty has said that there is no one in the harem, so we must select beauties from all over the country. The total number should be at least one thousand. All of you departments should discuss this and get it done as soon as possible."

A sharp sound rang out.

This is the voice of Gao Quan Hong, the chief eunuch.

The chief eunuch was essentially the emperor's personal steward and messenger, holding the power to approve imperial edicts.

The emperor now has no interest in politics, and many memorials are approved and stamped by Gao Quan Hong, so his power is no less than that of Pei Yuan.

With Pei Yuan absent today, he has become even more arrogant.