Traveling through troubled times: Princess disguises herself as a man and becomes a soldier to earn

The queen sat up from the bed, put on her shoes, walked over, lit the oil lamp, and the room soon became bright. The mother and daughter looked at each other and laughed unconsciously. Jiang Ning pulled the corner of his mouth.

"Mother, come and try it. I made it myself."

Jiang Li opened the food box and took out the fish wrapped in oil paper. He opened them one by one and the fragrance immediately wafted out, making people very hungry.

"Li'er, this fish looks... familiar. Where did you catch it?"

"Mother, you'd better not know this, or you'll be angry. Eat with your eyes closed. Taste it quickly. If you really want to know, I'll tell you after you finish eating."

The queen sat down, picked up a fish and took a bite. The fish skin was crispy and the inside was tender and delicious. There was no fishy smell at all. It tasted very good, different from ordinary grilled fish.

"Li'er, this is delicious. How did you make it?"

Jiang Li sat down and said proudly, "It's very simple. I prepared the sauce in advance. When grilling, I used a dagger to cut the fish open. This way, when I apply the sauce, it will penetrate into the fish and taste delicious."

"Can you taste a little bit of sweetness? I specially added honey to enhance the flavor. It's delicious and not greasy. It's much better than adding sugar."

"It's really good. I've never eaten a fish that tastes better than this. Li'er is thoughtful. Come and see what I have here. If you find anything you like, feel free to take it and play with it."

The queen looked at her with doting eyes. After all, her daughter was caring. Although Yu'er was filial, she never thought that he would bring her food in the middle of the night. If Li'er hadn't brought it to her, she would really go to bed hungry.

Seeing that she was enjoying the meal, Jiang Li's eyes flashed with a smile. She knew that her cooking skills were top-notch and the ingredients were really fresh.

After eating five in a row, the queen stopped, took the handkerchief beside her, wiped her mouth, and said with a smile: "Go and get your mother's jewelry box, and you can choose the one you like. If you don't have it, please don't hesitate to pick it."

"Tell me what kind of jewelry you like, and I can have someone make it for you."

Jiang Li waved his hand: "No need, mother. I don't like to carry those things. It's good to be simple like this. There's no need to put so many hairpins on your head, like a feather duster."

"Too ostentatious, too ugly, and my neck feels heavy and my head hurts."

The Queen heard this and said helplessly: "Okay, if you don't like it, I won't force you. But since you are here, why don't you talk about Mo Yuan? You just like him so much."

"For him, you are making trouble with your father. If your father wants to chop off your head, aren't you afraid?"

Jiang Li held his chin up, his eyes firm as he said, "No, it's not that Father is reluctant to kill me, it's that he can't. I won't accept it. If Father insists, I will definitely turn the palace upside down."

"But fortunately, my father still listens to my great-grandfather. You see, a few chopsticks will make him more obedient than anything else."

The queen sighed and said, "Li'er, tell me honestly what happened to the thunder. Was it really caused by the great-grandfather, or was it... you who did it?"

"Alas, I cannot hide it from my mother. It is indeed related to me. My great-grandfather is just an excuse. I don't want others to know it yet, so I am using my great-grandfather to force my father to clear the Mo family's name."

“Is that the power of the Venerable?”

Jiang Li blinked and said in a relaxed tone: "Yes, mother, do you want to take a look? It's actually very fun, but a little dangerous, so just don't touch it."

As he spoke, he stretched out his hand and a ball of light gradually appeared in the palm of his hand, flickering with light. It looked a little mysterious and dangerous.

The queen could not help but stare in amazement. She stretched out her finger and gently touched it. She felt a tingling sensation all over her body. It was a very special feeling. She quickly withdrew her finger and said, "Son, you are too amazing. If your father knew."

"I will be respectful to you in the future."

Jiang Li said politely, "Mother, I am very low-key and don't put on airs. Don't tell Father about this. I want to be free and don't want to be locked up and guarded. It's too boring."

"Okay, mother won't tell you, just do whatever you like, as long as you don't go too far."

"Hehe, the Queen Mother is still the best. As for the Emperor Father... that's just a bummer."

The queen covered her mouth and laughed softly, her eyes full of joy: "Well, from now on, I will count on you. As long as you are well, no one will dare to touch me or your brother."

Jiang Li grabbed her hand and said, "Okay, I will protect you from now on. If anyone bullies you, I will never let them go."

"It's getting late. Mother, please go to bed early. I will go back now."

"Your son will eat the rest. I fished it out secretly, so I must not let anyone know. I must destroy all evidence."

"Okay, you can take the rest back and eat it."

next day

The maid stumbled into the hall, knelt on the ground and stammered, "My lady, there's something wrong over there in the pool."

The imperial concubine coughed a few times and frowned subconsciously: "What do you mean? There are people watching over there, what can go wrong? Are there any dead fish? If they are dead, just fish them out."

"Don't bother me if you don't have anything to do. I have a headache."

"…Madam, all the fish in the pond are gone."

"What do you mean? How could he disappear? Where did the guard go? Call him in."

The imperial concubine sat up, feeling dizzy. Lan Xin hurriedly supported her and said, "Your Majesty, you are weak. Don't get angry, or you will hurt yourself. Even if something happens to the fish, we will tear it into pieces after we find out."

"Don't hurt yourself, my lady."

"Hoo, hoo, help me up. I want to go and see for myself. That is the pond that His Majesty built for me personally. There are fish in it."

Lan Xin saw this and took out her cloak, wrapped the person up, and stuffed a hot water bottle into her mouth: "My queen, it's a little cold outside, you can't catch a cold anymore, otherwise it will affect your offspring, hold the hot water bottle tight."

The imperial concubine had a gloomy expression on her face: "Well, take me there quickly."

When the two arrived, they saw that the pool was dead silent.

"Someone, come and fish it out for me."

"Yes"

A quarter of an hour passed, and still no one was found. The imperial concubine's face became more and more ugly, and she felt dizzy. She gritted her teeth and held on: "Someone, go find His Majesty and tell him that I am dying of illness."

"I don't believe that Your Majesty is so cruel as not to come and see me."

Lan Xin gave a wink, and soon a palace maid ran out. Not long after, Emperor Ming came with his men. He took one look at the pale and pitifully weak imperial concubine, and his heart softened.

"What's going on here?"

When the imperial concubine saw him coming, she fell to her knees and cried, "Your Majesty, I am guilty. I worked so hard to raise the fish in the pond you built for me. We will be able to eat them soon."

"In the end, we were all captured by the thieves. Not a single one was left. My heart is bleeding. Please, Your Majesty, stab me to death. I don't want to live anymore."