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

Chapter 166 Liking Men
Shen Qingwan explained earnestly, "Rice wine stewed duck is good for clearing heat and stimulating the appetite. Your Majesty, why don't you try it?"

Emperor Yuanwu took a bite and realized that he really couldn't taste any rice wine in the cooked duck: "This is truly amazing."

Shen Qingwan smiled faintly, "It's not that magical. Actually, His Majesty can have the Imperial Kitchen include all the ingredients used in the dishes when they announce them next time. That way, His Majesty will know exactly what his food is made of."

"for example?"

such as……

Shen Qingwan paused, then pointed to the plate of tomato and pork trotters on the plate and said, "For example, this can be called 'Tomato, Soy Sauce and Sugar Stewed Pork Trotters'."

Emperor Yuanwu:? ? ?

"Is there white sugar in this dish?"

Shen Qingwan: ...

"The sugar is just to make cooked tomatoes less sour. It's not only used in sweet dishes; some spicy dishes also have sugar added. Besides sweetness, sugar can also enhance the flavor."

Emperor Yuanwu:...

He felt he was good at many things, except when it came to food...

But that doesn't matter, as long as his queen is good at it, he can just focus on eating.

Emperor Yuanwu did not want to dwell on this issue any longer, because the more he said, the less he would know about it.

As an emperor, this feeling made him very uncomfortable. He still preferred to be in control and manipulate the overall situation. So Emperor Yuanwu simply changed the subject, "It's cold today, Empress, please eat quickly so it doesn't get cold later."

Shen Qingwan nodded, "Your Majesty should eat more. All the dishes on this table today were specially prepared for Your Majesty."

specially!

When those two words passed by his ears, he found them exceptionally pleasant.

Just one second.

"These are all good dishes that can clear heat, detoxify, reduce internal heat, and relieve dryness."

Emperor Yuanwu:? ? ?

Emperor Yuanwu raised his eyes and glanced at Shen Qingwan. No matter how he looked at her, he felt that the Empress's words today were a bit sarcastic.

Could it be because he just received a letter from Mobei that Moganxie wants to send his sister to the palace?
Or perhaps it was the two noble ladies sent to the palace by Prince Xiang and Prince Rui?
Regardless of the reason, he felt incredibly pleased to see Shen Qingwan eating heartily, as if she were venting her anger.

Perhaps it was because he had been staring at Shen Qingwan for a while that she paused, her hand holding the chopsticks faltering, and she looked up in the direction of Emperor Yuanwu.

Their eyes met by sheer coincidence, and Emperor Yuanwu lowered his gaze somewhat awkwardly.

Shen Qingwan was quite puzzled as to why he was behaving so strangely today, and kindly reminded him, "Your Majesty, it's getting late, let's have dinner."

It is late?
He felt that there was still plenty of time.

"Is the Empress urging me to eat so urgently because she has some other intention towards me?"

Emperor Yuanwu suddenly spoke, causing Shen Qingwan to choke violently and cough as she drank the fish soup.

She had just felt that Emperor Yuanwu was acting strangely today, both in his speech and his eyes, but she never expected that eating wouldn't shut him up.

To utter such treacherous words in front of so many people in the palace.

Shen Qingwan used almost all her strength to stop coughing. "What is Your Majesty saying? Didn't the Imperial Household Department say that Your Majesty has already chosen a concubine tonight?"

Emperor Yuanwu was slightly taken aback. He had just chosen the nameplate before coming to Kunning Palace, and came directly here after that. Moreover, no one had informed Shen Qingwan of this matter after he arrived.

She still found out.

Could it be that she has always been particularly attentive to his affairs, especially regarding whose palace she stays in every night?
This seems to explain why Shen Qingwan spoke in a sarcastic tone when he first arrived.

Emperor Yuanwu seemed to be in a better mood. "Empress, guess whose concubine I chose?"

He didn't know why, but seeing Shen Qingwan jealous of other concubines always made him feel happy.

"It should be Consort Shen or Consort Xia. After all, they are newly entered concubines, and they were personally sent to the palace by Prince Xiang and Prince Yao. They are outstanding in appearance and will surely be favored by the Emperor."

"It is indeed one of the two of them. Empress, can you guess whether it is Consort Shen or Consort Xia?" Emperor Yuanwu continued to ask with great interest.

Shen Qingwan was speechless; even a table full of delicacies couldn't shut the emperor up.

Did Emperor Yuanwu talk a bit too much tonight?

She didn't want to guess, and was too lazy to guess.

However, since Emperor Yuanwu had asked, she couldn't very well avoid answering. After thinking carefully, Shen Qingwan slowly said, "It should be Consort Shen."

Emperor Yuanwu:...

It really is... Consort Shen.

"How did the Empress guess it?" Emperor Yuanwu asked curiously.

Shen Qingwan: ...

She actually guessed right.

Although she was completely unaware, she still pretended to put down her chopsticks.

"Actually, it's not hard to guess. Your Majesty, think about it. Consort Yao was sent from Prince Yao's residence, right? What kind of person is Prince Yao? He has many wives and concubines. When it comes to women, men definitely understand men better. Your Majesty also thinks Consort Yao is quite good, doesn't Your Majesty? And then there's Prince Rui and Prince Xiang. Prince Rui is still unmarried. He doesn't even know what kind of woman he likes, so how can he understand what kind of woman other men like? Although Prince Xiang is a bit older, he was young once too. So I guess it must be the woman sent by Prince Xiang who is more to Your Majesty's liking. Your Majesty should go to Consort Shen's palace first."

Emperor Yuanwu:...

Actually, he just flipped through it casually and didn't think much about it at all.

However, after listening to Shen Qingwan's analysis, it did seem to make some sense.

but……

"However, how do you know that Prince Rui doesn't have someone he likes? What if the person he likes is already married, which is why he hasn't married yet?" Emperor Yuanwu said casually.

"Your Majesty, do you believe me?" Shen Qingwan didn't shy away at all, raising her eyes to look directly at Emperor Yuanwu. Her gaze was unwavering, making Emperor Yuanwu feel somewhat uncomfortable.

"This..." Emperor Yuanwu was speechless for a moment.

"The Emperor is very fond of Consort Li. Even after all these years, he has not forgotten her. However, the Emperor's harem is never short of women. Today there is Consort Shen and Consort Xia, tomorrow there will be the Princess of Mobei. Even though the Emperor has always reserved a place for Consort Li in his heart, for the sake of the country, the Emperor still has to marry many women into the palace to continue the lineage. Liking someone is one thing, but it doesn't mean that if you have someone you like, you can't marry other women."

Emperor Yuanwu broke up the original owner's engagement with Prince Rui and forcibly married her into his household because of the phrase "auspicious clouds riding a phoenix".

He himself can't do it, so how can he expect others to have pure love?

"He hasn't married all these years, either he has a physical disability, or he simply doesn't like women and prefers men..."

(End of this chapter)