Rejected Beauty Practices the Villain Play-Chapter 875 - 851: The Daily Life of the Empress
After Fengyu met Fang Lingjun, she had been feeling down, losing her appetite even for dinner. Xie Xun had thought she would be happy after seeing Fang Lingjun, but unexpectedly, she was so gloomy. When returning to the palace, the inner chamber was quiet, and neither Qiuxiang nor Chunlu were there to attend. Fengyu was the only one there, half lying and dozing off. She usually had a pretty good spirit at night and rarely slept this early. Xie Xun walked quietly, changed his clothes, washed his hands, and then entered the inner chamber.
Fengyu groggily opened her eyes and was surprised to see Xie Xun, only then realizing that it was already completely dark. She had unknowingly slept for a long time. Xie Xun helped her sit up and smiled, asking, "Are you hungry? Qiuxiang said you’ve slept for an hour and didn’t have dinner. Are you in a bad mood?"
"Not really, just feeling sleepy!" Fengyu playfully cuddled him, leaning lazily in his arms, unwilling to get up. Xie Xun kissed her temples gently, coaxing her, "Well, I’m hungry. Ayu, will you accompany me to eat a bit?"
How could she refuse? Qiuxiang was also happy to hear this and immediately pulled Chunlu to begin bustling about. The small kitchen had always kept the food warm, waiting for Xie Xun to return to coax Fengyu into eating something. Due to the hot weather, the pots Fengyu loved were no longer prepared, and the dishes were very light and refreshing. Only when Xie Xun came for a meal would they prepare meat dishes. Xie Xun had a large appetite and loved meat, but even he couldn’t handle it during such a hot season. Therefore, the kitchen prepared cold noodles. The noodles were cooked, cooled in water, and topped with shredded cucumbers and egg, poured with a special broth, and topped with cooked peanuts, braised beef, and incredibly tender beef pieces. The broth was iced, making it Xie Xun’s favorite summer dish, refreshing and cleansing; he could eat two big bowls, but wouldn’t allow Fengyu to have any.
The emperor and empress’s diet was relatively simple, never extravagant or wasteful, something the Imperial Kitchen was initially not accustomed to. After all, by protocol, an emperor’s meal included dozens of dishes, but Xie Xun found this wasteful. However, it wouldn’t do to dismiss him with just a bowl of noodles. So the kitchen would make their favorite side dishes, such as Fengyu’s favorite sweet-and-sour fish and autumn bamboo shoots, as well as Xie Xun’s favorite meatballs and beef and lamb chops. The rest were fresh seasonal vegetables paired with a pot of soup made by simmering big bones with lotus root, bamboo shoots, and leg meat. Even the smell made Fengyu feel hungry.
However, she merely felt hungry from the aroma and couldn’t actually eat much, mostly watching Xie Xun eat. Xie Xun noticed her recent lack of appetite.
"The kitchen made things you love; your appetite’s not good lately. Has the Imperial Physician seen you?"
"I’ve had a peace pulse examination every three days, all checked. It’s normal to have a poor appetite in hot weather. Every summer, I can’t eat much." Fengyu eyed Xie Xun’s bowl of cold noodles, particularly envious, but due to her cold constitution, Xie Xun didn’t allow her to indulge. He was strict about her eating cold fruits and vegetables too.
"Even if you can’t eat much, you should have a little; an empty stomach isn’t good. They say you hardly ate lunch, only cried all the time."
"Qiuxiang is becoming more disobedient, telling you everything."
"They are concerned about you," Xie Xun said, serving her a bowl of soup. Fengyu slowly drank it, and Xie Xun quickly finished a bowl of cold noodles, eating quickly yet gracefully, and asked the Imperial Kitchen to bring him another bowl. With him finishing such a large bowl of noodles, Fengyu hadn’t yet finished her soup.
Xie Xun asked, "What did Fang Lingjun say to make you so sad?"
"She’s going to Sannan after marrying Dugu Jing. Are you sending Dugu Jing to Sannan?" Fengyu asked, not meddling in Xie Xun’s decisions, but could not help feeling sad about the separation.
Xie Xun had guessed the reason, "I plan to send Lin Xiao and Dugu Jing to Sannan. There are no strong countries around Beining, only small states on the northwestern border occasionally making incursions, but they’ve settled down and now pay tribute obediently. Dugu Jing has no place to show his prowess. I can’t send him to Ningzhou or Zhongzhou, so I can only send him to the south to guard Sannan. He will command at least ten thousand Beiman soldiers to enter Sannan, and in the future, they’ll settle there, relieving some pressure off the twelve regions and quickly integrating the Beiman into Beining. I’ve already discussed this with the cabinet, and privately with Dugu Jing. We’ll announce it after his wedding. Many generals in the Ningzhou faction are dissatisfied; I’ll have to send someone to appease them one by one."
Fengyu nodded, "The Ningzhou generals must be displeased. They’ve followed Marquis Zhenbei Mansion through thick and thin for years and returned to the Capital City with you, loyally. Now, with Sannan stabilized, the lucrative post of guarding it is given to their longtime adversary Dugu Jing. If I were a general, I’d be upset too; it’s only natural. They can accept the Beiman surrendering but cannot accept Prince Jingbei and Duke Wu’an receiving such favor. Personally, I also think, I know you and Dugu Jing are worthy opponents and admire each other. You should restrain yourself a bit; your favoring him too much will lead to dissatisfaction among the military, considering you’re now the emperor, not just a leisurely young marquis."
A monarch cannot treat others according to personal preferences.
"Alright, I’ll heed your words and be mindful."
Fengyu mused, alright, being mindful and not doing it again sound much alike; he listens but may not take it to heart.
"Fang Lingjun following Dugu Jing to Sannan doesn’t need to upset you too much. During the holidays, the capital will summon the stationed military generals back. She will return to the capital with Dugu Jing to reunite with you."
"I’m just a bit sentimental, thinking how wonderful it would be if we were eleven or twelve again, carefree with our greatest worry being the assignments from our tutor. Occasionally we’d have little spats with noble girls, living gently and smoothly, sticking together every day, never to part."
"If you remained eleven or twelve, we wouldn’t have met, right?" Xie Xun teased. If not for the magical Soul Suppressing Pearl, he and Fengyu indeed would’ve had little interaction. Fengyu wasn’t the type he favored, being prone to acting feeble and innocent, and they wouldn’t have had the opportunity to meet privately. To him, Fengyu might have just been the sister of his sister-in-law. He would treat her like a sister too, and once Marquis Zhenbei Mansion encountered trouble, the Feng Family and Marquis Mansion might have severed ties. If not for Fengyu accompanying him all the way, he might not have so smoothly returned to the Capital City.
Fengyu thought a little, "That’s true too!"
The two chatted idly while eating, quickly finishing the second bowl of cold noodles. The kitchen lessened the large beef pieces, only putting a few tiny beef bits, worrying that Xie Xun might overeat.
Seeing him eat so well, Fengyu felt a bit tempted, "I want some too."
"It’s too cold!"
"I have no appetite, just want to eat!"
"...Alright, just a small bowl!" Xie Xun took a small bowl, gave her half of his share, with a bit of sour sauce in the noodles, especially appetizing. Fengyu quickly finished the small bowl, and seeing her watery eyes, Xie Xun softened unexpectedly, letting the kitchen bring her another bowl.
Unexpectedly, this little indulgence led to an incident at night.
