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

Sun An stared wide-eyed at Li Fuquan in disbelief, momentarily forgetting to react.

This is his master, the master he has been calling for over ten years.

Although he secretly hoped to become the head chef of the imperial kitchen one day, he was only thinking about it after his master retired.

He admired and respected his master, always believing that their relationship was one of deep and unbreakable bond.

Enticed by the delicious aroma of the braised pork intestine noodles, he stayed by his master's side the whole time.

Unexpectedly, today, his beloved master pushed him out to take the blame.

"Sun An, why are you glaring at me? Just admit your guilt. I've advised you before that Madam Shen is so capable, she should be the head of the Imperial Kitchen. Just give up on that idea and admit your mistake. Maybe His Majesty will spare your life."

Li Fuquan shouted at the top of his lungs, acting as if he were a good master desperately trying to persuade his apprentice to admit his mistakes.

But if I admit to this mistake today, I'll lose my life.

In this life-or-death situation, Sun An no longer cared about having a master or not.

After all, it was Li Fuquan who chose to betray them first.

"Your Majesty, it is not I, this servant, who knows nothing. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"

Compared to Li Fuquan, Sun An's voice showed no sign of guilt.

He's not afraid of being investigated for things he hasn't done.

"Your Majesty, it was Sun An. This servant saw with his own eyes that Sun An added bitter almond powder to the flour. Since this matter involves Your Majesty's meal, this servant dares not protect this apprentice any longer. I beg Your Majesty to punish him severely!"

Li Fuquan directly accused Sun An to death.

He still harbored some resentment towards Sun An for being so ignorant.

If Sun Anruo is grateful for his years of upbringing and promotion, he should take the blame for him.

The emperor frowned, his eyes filled with impatience.

He's tired of seeing this dog-eat-dog drama.

With a wave of his hand, he said directly, "Alright, take these two away and have them beaten to death!!"

Beaten to death...

In an instant, Sun An's face turned ashen, and his whole body went limp.

Li Fuquan, who was standing next to him, was still shouting that he was innocent.

But who is the emperor? He holds the power of life and death and has no patience to listen to any grievances.

All he knew was that his anticipated market experience had been affected.

"Hurry up and drag him away, lest you spoil His Majesty's mood," Zhao Gou's sharp voice rang out.

Several eunuchs rushed forward and grabbed Sun An from both sides.

Sun An closed his eyes. He knew that this time it was over, really over.

He was ruined by his master!

In the palace, human life is ultimately as insignificant as an ant, and the truth of the matter is simply unimportant.

"etc!"

Just then, Shen Qing's voice suddenly rang out.

"Li Fuquan was the one who added the almond powder; Sun An is innocent."

To Sun An, the sound was like heavenly music.

He opened his eyes again, his gaze towards Shen Qing filled with confusion, expectation, and gratitude.

Madam Shen, I never expected that Madam Shen would actually speak up to save him?

He had said so many hurtful things before, trying so hard to squeeze Lady Shen out of the imperial kitchen, but unexpectedly Lady Shen was still willing to speak up for him.

How could he have been so stupid before, always helping that old bastard Li Fuquan?!

If Sun An's arms hadn't been held back by the eunuchs, he would have definitely raised his hand and slapped himself twice.

"Does Lady Shen want me to release Sun An?" the emperor asked, his smile returning as he faced Shen Qing.

"Sun An is an innocent man and should not have lost his life because of this."

The system's judgment is correct. Sun An only verbally provoked her and did not do anything malicious, so she shouldn't have lost her life so easily.

As for Li Fuquan, his death by caning was a consequence of his own actions.

It just goes to show that the saying goes, "A dog that bites doesn't bark."

"Since Madam Shen has said so, then we will listen to Madam Shen and spare Sun An."

"Today's braised pork intestine noodles..." The emperor was preoccupied with nothing but braised pork intestine noodles, completely forgetting about the rule that a monarch's word is law.

Shen Qing: "Once the flour problem is solved, I'll naturally be able to make braised pork intestine noodles."

"Good, good, then drag Li Fuquan away and beat him to death!!!" The emperor was overjoyed.

What does it matter if one imperial chef dies? As long as Madam Shen is willing to cook delicious food for him, it would be worth it if all these imperial chefs died!

Li Fuquan screamed even more horribly. Originally, there were others who would die with him, but now he was the only one who died.

Why is it that Lady Shen managed to persuade His Majesty with just a few words?

By the way, if possible... could Lady Shen also persuade His Majesty to spare him?

"Madam Shen, it's all my fault. I was jealous of you. Please, I beg you, plead with His Majesty for me! I beg you!!"

"I swear to God, I will behave myself from now on. Please save my life!"

Li Fuquan immediately shouted at Shen Qing.

This was his only hope; he was gambling on Shen Qing's kindness and soft heart.

The emperor turned to look at Shen Qing, clearly waiting for Shen Qing's decision.

As long as Shen Qing speaks up, the emperor will agree to Shen Qing's request.

After all, an emperor whose mind is filled with nothing but braised pork intestine noodles has lost his senses.

Under everyone's gaze, Shen Qing spoke up: "Your Majesty, please punish them according to the law."

She is kind-hearted, but that doesn't mean she will save just anyone.

A man like Li Fuquan, who dares to add bitter almond powder to flour today, would dare to add deadly poison tomorrow.

Such people will never feel remorse; they will only think that their plans were not thorough enough.

Next time, they will definitely do something even more vicious.

"Drag him away and have him beaten to death!" the emperor immediately shouted.

If he weren't worried about ruining Madam Shen's cooking mood, he would have killed all of these annoying imperial chefs.

Now he only needs Madam Shen as a cook.

His men moved quickly, and Li Fuquan's wails grew fainter and fainter.

All the imperial chefs present trembled and lay prostrate on the ground, not daring to lift their heads.

Li Fuquan served as the head of the imperial kitchen for decades. Every time the eunuchs saw him, they would bow and scrape before him.

But I never expected it to end like this.

All I can say is that people need to control their desires and their bad thoughts.

Those who do wrong will eventually face retribution.

"Lady Shen, when can you make braised pork intestine noodles?" the emperor asked impatiently from the side.

Shen Qing lowered his eyes: "I will set up my stall in an hour. Your Majesty can guess where I will set up my stall."

"Huh? Isn't it a market?" The emperor was taken aback.

Zhao Gou clearly said it was a market.

"It could be at a market, or somewhere else. Isn't this exactly the random stalls His Majesty wanted?"

The emperor immediately laughed: "Yes, yes, that's exactly the feeling."

"Lady Shen, I'll be leaving now. Please choose a place quickly; I'm sure I can guess it!"

The emperor was all smiles, while Zhao Gou looked dejected.

Didn't Madam Shen promise him to go to the market? If he goes somewhere else, how will he show Madam Shen the fruits of his labor?

Oh well, it's good that Madam Shen can set up her stall; it's better than nothing.