The prince longs for me every night after mastering thought-reading
Chapter 338 - 335: A Good Mother in-law Example, Dares the Dog Emperor! (Additional Update)

Chapter 338: Chapter 335: A Good Mother in-law Example, Dares the Dog Emperor! (Additional Update)

In the presence of the Empress, one must naturally listen to the Empress’s words.

Shen Chuwei felt she should be an obedient good child, and since she was not allowed to salute, she refrained from doing so.

"Concubine heeds the Empress’s words."

The Empress looked at her belly, which had grown larger than a few days before, took Shen Chuwei’s hand, and sat back down on the couch with her.

"Come, sit down and talk."

No sooner had Shen Chuwei sat down than she caught a whiff of a fragrant aroma. The Empress always brought her something to eat during each visit, all kinds of soups, and seeing Qing Ying carrying a food box, she knew this time would be no exception.

The Empress, pointing to the food box in Qing Ying’s hand, said softly, "This is Black Chicken Soup that I had the small kitchen stew for you. Try it."

Qing Ying cooperated and opened the food box, taking out the Chicken Soup and placing it in front of Shen Chuwei.

The Empress was afraid Shen Chuwei might not be accustomed to soups prepared by others, so she had specifically asked Chun Xi about her preferences to ensure the soup was prepared accordingly.

Because the Empress knew that pregnant women could be pickier than usual, sometimes craving food, and utterly averse to anything that didn’t suit their taste.

Qing Ying lifted the lid, and the rich aroma of Chicken Soup enveloped them.

Shen Chuwei, having just woken up and feeling somewhat hungry, smelled the fragrance and grew even hungrier.

She eagerly scooped up a spoonful of Chicken Soup and brought it to her mouth; the taste was slightly bland, but the lighter flavor made it more delicious.

The Empress watched Shen Chuwei eat with tender eyes and a gentle smile, and she was reminded of herself when she was pregnant.

"How is the taste? Does it suit your palate?"

"It’s very tasty," Shen Chuwei drank several mouthfuls of Chicken Soup and then picked up a chicken leg, taking a bite.

Eunuch Ren bowed as he entered to report, "Empress, Lady Chang is here."

Upon hearing this, Shen Chuwei looked up; her small hand came down from the table, tugging at her skirt to cover her pregnant belly, not wishing for Lady Chang to notice her pregnancy.

After the incident with the false pregnancy last time, even the gentle and generous Lanlan had shown to be just like the other women in the palace, resorting to schemes with heavy cunning, leading to the Empress’s disappointment.

"Why has she come?"

"This servant does not know," Eunuch Ren replied.

At that moment, Lady Chang stepped in with graceful strides. Having seen Eunuch Ren outside, she knew the Empress was in Xiaoxiang Pavilion.

Xiaoxiang Pavilion was even more impoverished than Xiyun Pavilion.

That the Empress would come to such a place was astonishing.

Lady Chang’s gaze fell on the two people on the couch and saw Shen Chuwei enjoying her Chicken Soup while the Empress sat on the right; the scene struck her as oddly heartwarming.

After such a long confinement, what tricks had she played to gain such affection from her aunt?

Suppressing her dissatisfaction, Lady Chang came forward and performed a courteous bow, "Auntie."

Lady Chang deliberately addressed her as "auntie" as a reminder to the Empress that she was her biological niece, and to let Shen Chuwei know that her relationship with the Empress was one of blood ties. No matter what Shen Chuwei did, she could not change that.

She then turned and bowed to Shen Chuwei, "Lady Shen."

Shen Chuwei just looked up briefly at Lady Chang, undisturbed by her thinly-veiled implications and continued to enjoy her Chicken Soup and the chicken leg.

The Empress surveyed Lady Chang and noticed that she had lost weight in the few days since she had last seen her. After all, she was her niece, and the Empress felt a twinge of pity.

"Lady Chang, how have you been lately?"

Lady Chang replied warmly, "Auntie, Lanlan has not seen you for several days and missed you terribly. Upon learning you were visiting Xiaoxiang Pavilion, Lanlan hurried over. It has also been some time since I last saw Lady Shen, so I thought I’d take the opportunity to stop by."

The Empress said, "Please sit and talk."

"Thank you, auntie." Lady Chang gracefully took her seat, maintaining the poise and elegance befitting a lady of her standing.

Shen Chuwei sat cross-legged, with her sleeves rolled up, eating in an inelegant manner, which could be said to be in stark contrast.

However, Lady Chang maintained her dignified and graceful demeanor, as if only pleasing herself, since no one was looking at her.

The Empress’s gaze fell upon Shen Chuwei, seeing her enjoy her meal with relish, a gentle, tender smile unwittingly appeared at the corner of her lips, "I should stew some Ginseng Soup next time; this child looks so thin."

Shen Chuwei slurped her soup and gnawed on a chicken leg, inevitably making noise as her spoon hit the bowl.

Lady Chang heard it and, holding a handkerchief to her mouth, said, "Lady Shen really disregards the minor details."

The underlying message being, she lacked manners and grace.

Shen Chuwei had just taken a bite of the chicken leg when she heard this; she lifted her head to look at Lady Chang, "Thank you for the compliment."

The Empress couldn’t help laughing out loud at her words, "Lady Shen is enjoying her meal too much, not everyone can do that."

Lady Chang: "...." Clearly lacking manners and breeding, yet the aunt was praising Lady Shen? Who would eat soup and chicken legs like that, so unseemly?

"Indeed, no one could do it like Lady Shen, I certainly couldn’t."

"You have different temperaments, of course you couldn’t do it like Lady Shen," the Empress said, looking at Shen Chuwei, who by then had almost finished the soup and was down to the last bit of the chicken leg, leaving only a bone.

She wiped her mouth with a satisfied look, using a handkerchief.

"Lady Shen has a good appetite." A good appetite meant a healthy body, beneficial for when the time came to give birth.

Lady Chang clutched the handkerchief tightly in her hand, watching her aunt, who had always been fond of her, now only have eyes for Lady Shen.

How had she been bewitched by Lady Shen, just like Xiao Jinyan? There was nothing desirable, so why had her aunt also fallen under Lady Shen’s spell?

Lady Chang noticed the chicken soup and feigned surprise, "Isn’t Lady Shen grounded? How come she still has chicken soup? If the Emperor finds out, I’m afraid there would be another punishment."

Being punished by the Emperor to be grounded would greatly reduce one’s meals; not even be able to taste meat, let alone such nourishing Black Chicken Soup.

Clearly, Lady Shen had managed to get her hands on it secretly; the Empress would definitely be furious if she knew, and the Emperor would surely punish her severely.

The Empress huffed, "This is what I brought over for Lady Shen to nourish her body. What does it matter if the Emperor knows? Let’s see what he could do to me."

The Empress thought herself savvy; even if she took Shen Chuwei out now, she wouldn’t be afraid of the Emperor.

If the Emperor knew Shen Chuwei was carrying his grandson, he would be overjoyed.

Shen Chuwei gave a thumbs up in the dark. The Empress was truly an Empress, strong and firm! Only the Empress dared to defy the Emperor.

And only she dared to prevent the Emperor from seeing his own grandson... even though the grandson was not yet born.

Lady Chang’s face darkened slightly upon hearing this, the aunt had actually sent Black Chicken Soup to Shen Chuwei for nourishment?

What merits did Shen Chuwei have?

The Empress remained seated for a while but then left.

Lady Chang stood up to see the Empress off, taking the opportunity to ease their relationship.

"Aunt, my mother sent some fine tea, would you like to come and taste it?"

At this time, with the Empress’s attention on her grandchild, she felt she could make some little clothes for him and have the Imperial Workshop make a Life-preserving Lock.

Lady Chang waited a long while without a response from the Empress, then raised her voice and called again, "Aunt?"

The Empress looked at Lady Chang, "I have other matters to attend to, I must be going."

Before Lady Chang could even speak, the Empress had walked away, leaving her feeling angry and annoyed.

On her way back to Fengyi Palace, the Empress saw Yun Xianbai playing with Yinyin under the scorching sun in the Imperial Garden.

This time, instead of taking a detour, the Empress held her head up high and walked past with her chest out.