Transmigration: The Little Chef Calls The Shots-Chapter 1432 - 251, Commandery Princess (48)

After repeated setbacks, Lin Yuan had completely lost interest in the various dishes before her, no wonder Xia Zheng didn’t like eating them—who would want to eat such fine-looking but tasteless food?

But when she looked up at the ministers across from her, and then at the ladies beside her, her eyes almost fell out of their sockets—why was everyone eating so happily? Could it be that their meals were different from hers?

She subtly turned to take a glance, all around her, front and back, everyone’s small tables had the same dishes! Peach and lotus, taro with carp, green steamed buns, but why did they all seem to be enjoying their meals so much?

Her eyes flickered, and Lin Yuan turned back to look at Lin Wei, Xiao He, and Xiao Linshuang.

Phew!

Lin Yuan finally breathed a sigh of relief, it seemed that she wasn’t the only one who found the food problematic!

Look at Xiao Linshuang’s face, as bitter as if she had eaten a gourd—how pitiful!

And the murmuring between Lin Wei and Xiao He, Lin Yuan distinctly heard Xiao He’s disdainful remarks that the food wasn’t even as good as what she could make.

Pursing her lips, Lin Yuan was about to put down her chopsticks, but as soon as she had almost put them down, Tian Hui leaned in to quietly remind her, "Even if you don’t like the food, you can’t stop now. If Your Majesty sees, he will think that the meal doesn’t suit your palate."

If it didn’t suit her palate, the Emperor would call her out publicly.

Tian Hui’s warning was clear enough, and so Lin Yuan had no choice but to pick up her chopsticks again. Now she finally understood why everyone seemed to be enjoying their meal so much—it wasn’t enjoyment, it was all an act!

However, as if the heavens were against her, just as she had slightly put down her chopsticks for a moment, she suddenly heard the Empress, seated in a higher position, speak up, "Is this young girl the County Master of Pingxi personally conferred by His Majesty?"

Being suddenly called out by the Empress made Lin Yuan’s heart skip a beat; all the rules that Aunt Chang had been drilling into her ears at every opportunity had unceremoniously deserted her.

She just stared with her mouth agape and eyes wide at the Empress seated above, panicking momentarily.

While buried in her meal, Su Qiuyu suddenly curled her lips, glancing happily in her direction.

Seeing Lin Yuan flustered, Consort Shu, sitting next to the Emperor, quickly picked up the conversation with a smile, "To answer Empress’ question, this girl is the County Master of Pingxi. Yuanyuan, won’t you come over and let Empress have a look at you?"

Tian Hui also secretly tugged at her sleeve. Lin Yuan then snapped back to reality, stood up quickly, and walked to the spacious area in the center of the hall. In her haste, she accidentally stepped on Tian Hui’s foot.

"Lin Yuan pays her respects to Empress, may the Empress be blessed with a thousand fortunes."

Although she was nervous, when Lin Yuan actually knelt on the ground, her body was wiser than her head, and her manners were more standard. She now felt grateful for Aunt Chang’s intense training back then. If it hadn’t been for those rules being deeply engraved in her bones, she wouldn’t have managed to avoid mistakes under such tense circumstances.

The Empress was clearly very satisfied with Lin Yuan’s proper etiquette, smiling and saying, "This palace has always heard His Majesty praising you. Seeing you today, you truly are an understanding, well-read, intelligent, and clever child."

Having said that, the Empress turned her gaze to Princess Anle by her side, praising her, "Anle is really fortunate."

After praising Lin Yuan, she turned to praise Princess Anle. Though it seemed abrupt, everyone present understood. It looked like the Empress also knew about Xia Zheng and the County Master of Pingxi’s situation—not only did she know but she also approved!

The people present looked at Lin Yuan with changing eyes.

Su Qiuyu looked up at the high and mighty Empress Su in disbelief, her eyes wide.

Yao Hanai was so angry she nearly snapped her chopsticks in half, hating that in such an occasion that despicable girl had still managed to steal the spotlight!

Ma Junying clenched her fists tightly on her lap, so hard that her knuckles had turned white.

Being praised so by the Empress, Princess Anle was overjoyed and looked at Lin Yuan with indulgent affection, nodding, "Thanks for your praise, Sister-in-law. Yuanyuan, won’t you express your thanks?"

By now, Lin Yuan had also calmed down, lowered her head slightly and said loudly, "Lin Yuan thanks the Empress for her praise, but Your Highness, you are the one who truly possesses beauty that could overthrow cities and states, and carries an air of grace and dignity."

The Empress was delighted, her smile revealing the fine lines around her eyes. She looked at the Emperor, "What a sweet mouth she has, Your Majesty. I like this girl, why not let her be my adopted daughter?"

Adopted daughter? The Empress’s adopted daughter?

If the gazes of everyone could turn into knives, Lin Yuan would have been shot into a sieve by now, especially by the likes of Su Qiuyu, Yao Hanai, and Cheng Yuexiu!

However, the words of the Empress obviously couldn’t come true now.

Consort Shu exclaimed in surprise and quickly spoke up, "If I had known that you liked this girl, Sister, I wouldn’t have taken her as my adopted daughter! Being an adopted daughter to the Empress is certainly much more honorable than being one to me!"

These words meant that Lin Yuan was already Consort Shu’s adopted daughter. In fact, the matter of Lin Yuan being Consort Shu’s adopted daughter wasn’t as widely known as her being the Third Prince’s sworn sister, but after all, it was within the palace, yet the Empress didn’t know, which showed that she really had been ill and recuperating in the palace these past years.

The Empress was startled and then smiled, "So this girl is already my sister’s adopted daughter? Ah, it seems I’m late again, always missing out on the best children."

At this moment, Lin Yuan keenly noticed the Empress’s gaze resting on Princess Cuiwei, who had been staring straight ahead and remaining silent the entire time.

Consort Shu also caught the hidden message in the Empress’s words and couldn’t help but sigh. How long will this mother and daughter continue to torment each other?

The Empress had to drop the notion of taking Lin Yuan as an adopted daughter, but as the Emperor was in high spirits today, and perhaps influenced by Consort Shu’s remark, he glanced at the assembled ministers with some pride and said, "The Xia Family Army has won a great victory in its first battle, and the Magistrate Pingxi has contributed a lot. Just now in the council hall, General Xia mentioned that during the battle, the Scouts used Lookout Mirrors suggested by the Magistrate Pingxi, which not only allowed for a clear view of the enemy’s troop deployments but also greatly ensured the Scouts’ safety. With this excellent tool, it’d be difficult for Dayong not to win, haha."

"Your Majesty is wise!"

All the officials in the hall congratulated him unanimously.

This time, the Emperor didn’t accept the officials’ congratulations, instead, he looked at Lin Yuan with a smile, "Previously, when I wanted to confer Magistrate Pingxi, you all felt it was inappropriate. Now, with a victory in the first battle, you have nothing else to say, right? Haha, today I am pleased, and so I hereby promise in front of all the officials that the day the Xia Family Army routs Xiliang will be the day Magistrate Pingxi is promoted to Commandery Princess."

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.

She had just been conferred as the County Master, and now with just a few words, she was going to be a Commandery Princess. How lucky could Lin Yuan get!