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

Kunning Palace.

The Empress sat high on a soft couch, her brows slightly furrowed, while servants below reported to her.

"Your Majesty, that Madam Shen's name is Shen Qing. She is from Ping'an County. Her father was the owner of a restaurant. He died unexpectedly a few months ago. After that, Madam Shen started selling food at a stall. Later, she opened a shop and a new restaurant, which attracted people from all over Ping'an County."

"She also participated in the culinary competition held by the manager of Jinquelou Restaurant. Although she didn't win first place, she was better than the best. Many ministers in the court have eaten her food. His Majesty and the Crown Prince have both lined up in front of Zhiwei Restaurant. Even the corner of the Imperial Seal was broken at the entrance of Zhiwei Restaurant."

"besides......"

The people below became increasingly cautious, none daring to look up at the Empress's expression.

There's always a feeling that the empress is about to unleash her fury at any moment.

"What else?" The Queen's voice was laced with gritted teeth.

"...As soon as she entered the palace yesterday, His Majesty appointed Lady Shen as the head of the Imperial Kitchen, granted her residence at the Jade Pavilion—no, it's now renamed the Delightful Delicacies Pavilion—and even bestowed upon her the peacock feather gauze that had been presented as tribute..."

The servants' voices began to tremble; the atmosphere was like the calm before a storm, terrifying indeed.

"Jade Pavilion, peacock feather gauze..." the Empress gritted her teeth.

Biyuxuan is where the master lives. What kind of decorum is it for a cook to live there?

There was also peacock feather gauze, two bolts of which were presented as tribute by the vassal state. All the concubines in the harem wanted them, but they ended up being won by a cook.

This is absolutely ridiculous!

This Lady Shen is truly remarkable.

Suddenly, the Empress thought of someone.

"I remember that Consort Li pleaded with His Majesty many times for the peacock feather gauze. If she finds out..."

Consort Li was arrogant and spoiled. She was the emperor's most favored concubine and had always been at odds with the empress.

The servant immediately understood the Empress's meaning: "Your Majesty, rest assured, this servant will take care of it right away."

"Go." The Queen's brows relaxed considerably.

She often sat on the sidelines and watched the tigers fight.

Consort Li was beautiful but foolish. Relying on her good looks, she became arrogant and disregarded the Empress.

This time, it's a good opportunity for Consort Li to deal with this Lady Shen.

......

Imperial kitchen.

The imperial chefs stared at each other in disbelief, their faces filled with shock.

Even Li Fuquan's eyes flashed with disbelief.

Today, he originally intended to tamper with the ingredients and cause some trouble for this Lady Shen.

Unexpectedly, Madam Shen was going to make braised pork intestine noodles.

Braised pork intestines with noodles? Such a low-class dish, he doesn't even need to lift a finger, and Madam Shen is probably going to be in trouble anyway.

"Otherwise, let's change the food. The palace has plenty of ingredients, all kinds of delicacies. We don't need to use pork intestines..." Wang Erdan said thoughtfully.

It wasn't that he didn't trust Madam Shen, but rather that this fatty intestine was really not a good thing. Only poor families outside the palace would buy it to eat. Even ordinary eunuchs and palace maids in the palace wouldn't want to eat it.

Giving this to His Majesty is like playing with his life.

"Yes, Madam Shen, you should try something different."

"Pork intestines are fishy and taste terrible, please don't think about it."

"You must think this through carefully. Even the dogs in the palace wouldn't eat pork intestines."

"..."

The imperial chefs all tried to dissuade him, their faces full of worry.

They had been looking forward to Shen Qing's delicious food today, but when they heard it was braised pork intestine noodles, they all lost their enthusiasm.

If it were egg noodles instead, they would have a slight sense of anticipation.

But they really couldn't look forward to braised pork intestine noodles; just thinking about the smell of pork intestines made them feel nauseous and want to vomit.

Not to mention that His Majesty would have to eat it.

Despite everyone's persuasion, Shen Qing remained unfazed: "I'll make braised pork intestine noodles."

Everyone: "..."

This Lady Shen won't listen to anyone's advice.

"Oh dear, braised pork intestine noodles, our capable steward will surely make them delicious. Perhaps His Majesty will be pleased and reward us with more." Sun An's sarcastic voice rang out.

The best reward would be to have someone beheaded!

Therefore, the plan he had discussed with his master was no longer necessary; it was this Lady Shen who had brought this upon herself.

Just then, a eunuch rushed in, looking very aggressive, to report:

"Her Highness the Imperial Concubine has decreed that Lady Shen will be in charge of her lunch today. Any mishap will not be tolerated!"

Imperial Concubine?

Shen Qing's eyes lit up.

Good heavens, it's come to her doorstep! She was just worried about not having a breakthrough.

"Don't worry, sir. I will send someone to deliver lunch to the Imperial Concubine's palace as soon as it is ready."

The eunuch said arrogantly, "Her Highness the Imperial Concubine said that Lady Shen must personally deliver the lunch."

Go in person?

Well, I've got nothing better to do anyway.

She possesses unparalleled martial arts skills, so there's nothing to be afraid of.

"Okay, I'll send it over as soon as it's ready."

As soon as the eunuch left, everyone around looked at Shen Qing with worried expressions.

The fact that Consort Li sent someone here is clearly not a good thing.

Everyone in the palace knows that Consort Li is the emperor's favorite, and she is also arrogant and jealous. She probably sees Lady Shen as a rival for his favor.

"Madam Shen, you've moved into the Treasure Pavilion and received the Peacock Feather Gauze. I'm afraid Consort Li is..." Wang Erdan reminded her from the side.

Shen Qing interrupted directly, "It's alright, let's start making the braised pork intestine noodles."

Wang Erdan: "..."

Madam Shen is truly a calm and ruthless person.

"Hurry up and make some braised pork intestine noodles. Take it to Consort Li. She'll be delighted if she eats it," Sun An said gleefully from the side.

Who was Consort Li? She had eaten countless delicacies, and for her, fatty intestines were an insult.

He didn't even need to guess; if Consort Li cried and made a scene in front of His Majesty, Lady Shen's head would be chopped off.

Oh, right, or perhaps there's no need for Consort Li to cry and make a scene; simply serving the pig intestines to His Majesty would be enough to enrage him.

Today we'll just have to wait and see what happens.

"Consort Li will surely be pleased to eat it," Shen Qing said confidently, calmly accepting Sun An's words.

"Xiao Wang, get ready, let's process the pork intestines together."

Wang Erdan quickly followed behind Shen Qing.

It has to be said that Madam Shen is really calm and not afraid at all.

Now that things have come to this, he can't persuade them otherwise, so he can only try his best to help.

The most important ingredient in braised pork intestine noodles is the pork intestine.

Processing the large intestine is the most crucial step, and also the most time-consuming.

"Xiao Wang, watch this. First, we'll turn the fresh pig intestines inside out, scrape off the fat from the inner wall, and then rub them with flour and salt. Like this, we need to rub them at least three times, inside and out."