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

Minister of Rites Zhou Chongdian stepped forward shakily: "Eunuch Gao, His Majesty selected a batch of beauties to enter the palace just half a year ago. Is it too frequent to select again now? It's a waste of resources and manpower..."

"His Majesty is already tired of the women selected half a year ago," Gao Quan Hong interrupted Zhou Chong Dian. "The Ministry of Rites will take the lead, with the Ministry of Revenue cooperating. We must select one thousand beauties within a month."

Yan Wenli's heart skipped a beat as he listened. Where in the national treasury was there any money left?

They'd barely raised the money to build the palace when they started holding a beauty pageant. Wasn't that just giving him a hard time?

"Eunuch Gao, the national treasury is empty, this beauty pageant..."

"When His Majesty wanted to build the palace before, you also used the empty treasury as an excuse. How is it now? The construction of the palace is progressing smoothly, the money is plentiful, and there is no need to cut the budget."

"Therefore, you don't need to make excuses to decline this beauty pageant. Besides, as the Minister of Revenue, if the national treasury is short of money, it's your fault for not managing it properly. You can't delay His Majesty's affairs."

Gao Quan Hong shut Yan Wenli down with his first words, and conveniently pinned all the blame on Yan Wenli.

Yan Wenli was inwardly groaning. Good heavens, the lack of silver in the national treasury was all his fault?

It's like blaming the latrine for not being able to poop.

What does it have to do with him? He's just in charge of money, he doesn't create money out of thin air. The national treasury doesn't have any money, so what does he care about?

Don't they even look at where all the taxes collected from various places go?

They're either in Gao Hongyuan's pocket or in the emperor's private treasury.

Yan Wenli wanted to curse, but he didn't dare.

If that damned eunuch were to slander the emperor, his life might be in danger.

"Alright, it's settled then. We must select the most beautiful women from all over the country. To ensure the beauty pageant goes smoothly, the palace will also send people to supervise it."

Gao Quan Hong made the decision immediately.

Yan Wenli and Zhou Chongdian exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with despair.

People from the palace were sent out, meaning that the eunuchs would go to various places to accompany them.

This will undoubtedly bring misfortune to countless women in ordinary households.

But they didn't dare to disagree at all.

With Pei Yuan gone, there was no one left who could rival Gao Hongyuan.

As soon as the court session ended, several people began to discuss the matter with furrowed brows.

"What's wrong with the Grand Secretary? Why didn't he attend court today?"

"Without Pei Yuan keeping an eye on him, that damned eunuch surnamed Gao is getting more and more outrageous!"

"If all else fails, let's hurry to the Pei residence and inform the Grand Secretary."

"..."

Yan Wenli, walking behind, couldn't help but interject upon hearing these words: "What's there to notify us about? Pei Yuan might not even be back in the capital yet."

"What? Where did Lord Pei go?" Zhou Chongdian asked hurriedly.

He was the Minister of Rites, but he really didn't want to participate in a beauty pageant.

This is a thankless task, and you're likely to be criticized by the people below.

"We went to Ping'an County for dinner."

"Huh? Why did you go to Ping'an County for dinner?"

"That's because Madam Shen went back to Ping'an County," Yan Wenli said.

To be honest, he wanted to just leave this mess behind and go back to Ping'an County to enjoy some delicious food.

Yan Wenli's shout shocked everyone present.

Minister of Works Xin Heng: "What? What did you say? Madam Shen has returned to Ping'an County? When did this happen?"

Prince Chun: "Madam Shen is gone? Does that mean it will be difficult to enjoy her delicacies in the future? Oh dear, hot pot, spicy strips, snail rice noodles... Why is my life so miserable?"

Duke Lu: "Is Madam Shen, who makes hot pot, gone? Does that mean we can eat hot pot anywhere in Ping'an County now?"

"..."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Zhou Chongdian frowned. "We're talking about serious matters. How did we end up talking about food? Is eating more important than national affairs?"

Others: "..."

Eating is really important.

The key point is that they don't have the final say on matters of national importance.

......

Pei Yuan went to Ping'an County, which took two hours round trip. Including the time spent queuing, he only ate two grilled sausages in the end.

But he felt it was worth it, and he enjoyed the meal; it was the kind of happiness that comes from having his appetite satisfied.

I want to go again tomorrow.

The carriage stopped at the entrance of the Pei residence. As soon as Pei Yuan stepped off the carriage, he saw a group of officials rushing towards him.

Leading the way was Yan Wenli, his eyes full of anticipation: "Your Excellency, what delicious food did you bring me? Four Delicacies Soup or stinky tofu? Is it instant noodles? What flavor?"

"Lord Pei, did you see Lady Shen in Ping'an County?" Prince Chun shouted from behind.

"Has Madam Shen started selling any new food?"

Only Zhou Chongdian remained behind, his face contorted with bitterness: "My lord, His Majesty is holding another beauty pageant!"

"Madam Shen has opened a new restaurant, and today she's selling grilled sausages," Pei Yuan said, his tone carrying a hint of boasting.

"Grilled sausage? What's a grilled sausage?"

"It's a bit like a sausage, but it tastes better and is more fragrant. When you bite into it, it sizzles with oil and your mouth is full of meaty flavor."

When the topic of grilled sausage came up, Pei Yuan unusually spoke a few more words.

Yan Wenli hurriedly asked, "Where are my sausages? Where are the sausages you brought me?"

"Oh, I forgot."

Yan Wenli: "..."

He had been looking forward to it for so long, all night long, and the entire morning court session was filled with anticipation.

The result was simply that I forgot.

"By the way, I'll be going again tomorrow, but I can't bring you any. There's a limit to the number of sausages." Pei Yuan added.

That's practically killing someone by breaking their spirit.

Yan Wenli's foodie heart was completely broken.

"I'll go with you on weekdays; I'd like to try the grilled sausages too," said Prince Chun, who was standing nearby.

He decided to take the young prince Nangong Yao and the princess with him.

Yan Wenli: "Prince Chun, you're not attending court anymore?"

"I can't interfere in matters of the court, so there's no difference between going or not going. I might as well not go at all."

Prince Chun was the emperor's younger brother, born of the same mother.

When the emperor first ascended the throne, he killed all his brothers, leaving only Prince Chun alive.

This was mainly because Prince Chun was law-abiding and didn't get involved in court affairs much; of course, he didn't dare to get involved.

Anyway, now when he goes to court, it's just a formality; most important matters in the court are decided by Pei Yuan and Gao Hongyuan.

Upon hearing this, Yan Wenli was extremely envious and his heart was filled with longing.

I want to eat it, and I want to go there.

His eyes darted around, and he said to Xin Heng and Zhou Chongdian beside him, "How about we skip court tomorrow?"

Xin Heng: "There's nothing urgent at the Ministry of Works today, so I can ask for leave."

Zhou Chongdian's eyes widened: "Are you crazy? Our Ministry of Rites and your Ministry of Revenue are currently dealing with the important matter of His Majesty's beauty pageant, and so many people are skipping court. Is this really alright? Besides, what kind of 'broken intestines' must they go all the way to Ping'an County to eat?"

"Hey, you can say whatever you want, but watch your tone. You can't attack the food!" Yan Wenli immediately retorted.

He added, "We can all pretend to be sick and skip court. Besides, the beauty pageant is such a troublesome matter. Let's just postpone it and skip court to show our attitude."

"Will this... work?" Zhou Chongdian asked doubtfully.

He just wants to resolve the beauty pageant issue as soon as possible; otherwise, he wouldn't have rushed to the Pei residence to wait for Pei Yuan.

"I think this method is feasible."

Suddenly, Pei Yuan spoke up.

Zhou Chongdian was dumbfounded: "Lord Pei, are you serious?"

"Um."

Zhou Chongdian: "..."

Why did he feel that this was a bit too frivolous?