Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

The Queen asked the palace maid to bring some dried fruits and snacks for Shen Zheng to fill her stomach. Shen Zheng wanted to save space for lunch, so she only ate a little dried fruit.

In the eyes of the queen, it just didn't suit her taste.

"Take it away and bring some more up. Aren't they made in the style of Liuyang Mansion?" she ordered the palace maid.

Shen Zheng was sucking on the walnut shell between her teeth. She wanted to refuse but was afraid of offending the Queen's kindness. She could only watch as eight plates of dried fruit snacks were taken away. But a moment later, another eight plates of snacks were brought up.

The snacks on one of the plates were red and round, coated with sugar and filled with sesame seeds.

Her attention was immediately attracted.

Such advanced candied haws...are not available in Liuyang Prefecture either.

"Sesame candy." Seeing that she had been staring at the candy, the Queen smiled and said, "Liuyang Prefecture produces mountain reds. Lord Shen, do you like them? Don't be fooled by the small sesame seeds on top. They are very fragrant and have a unique flavor. Come and try them."

The palace maid handed over a pair of jade chopsticks.

When Shen Zheng used this pair of chopsticks to pick up candies, it was the first time in her two lives that she was afraid of dropping the chopsticks instead of the food.

Carefully putting the candy into her mouth, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The sugar coating is crispy and sweet, breaking into pieces when bitten. The hawthorn is soft, sticky and slightly sour, but after just a moment, the unique fruity sourness is neutralized by the sugar.

After the sesame seeds are chewed, the aroma of oil permeates the mouth, and it is indeed as the queen said, with a unique flavor.

Seeing how happily she was eating, the queen couldn't help but pick up one to taste. She then picked up another one. Just as she was about to praise her, dark clouds suddenly appeared in the sky and heavy rain poured down.

The sudden sound of rain startled everyone in the hall.

The rain came suddenly and was extremely heavy. When it hit the ground, it splashed up a large rain flower. In just a moment, a rain waterfall appeared on the eaves of the palace.

The Queen looked outside the palace with a worried look, "At this moment... His Majesty is probably on his way here. Ningqiu, bring a few more umbrellas to meet His Majesty. Hezhi, prepare two sets of clothes, shoes and socks for His Majesty, and ask the small kitchen to make more cold-repelling tea."

Seeing the worry in her eyes, Shen Zheng once again felt that true love is precious.

The relationship between husband and wife in ordinary families is as illusory as bubbles, let alone the emperor and empress who stand at the pinnacle of power.

Just as he was thinking about it, Eunuch Hong's voice came from the rain outside the palace: "The Emperor has arrived——"

The palace maids knelt upon hearing the sound, and just as Shen Zheng bent her knees, she was dragged by the Queen.

She was led by the queen towards the palace gate.

Today the emperor was wearing casual clothes and it suddenly rained heavily. Although he did not get wet, his clothes were inevitably soaked.

What surprised Shen Zheng was that he was holding a bow in his arms, a...compound bow.

After following the empress's salute, the emperor moved his sleeves and checked the composite bow from top to bottom before saying, "The rain came too fast. Fortunately, I came early. If it had come a moment later, it would have been difficult to avoid. Mr. Shen is here. Please help me check if the bow is damaged by the rain."

The compound bow he handed over was dry, so how could it look like it had been wet in the rain?

But Shen Zheng still took it.

The Queen smiled and said, "Your Majesty, the bow is in your arms, how can it be damaged? But you, would you like to change into dry clothes?"

The emperor thought for a moment and nodded, "I'll go change it. Let's serve the meal first. Shen Qing, take a good look. I haven't even pulled the bow since I got it."

After he entered the bedroom, Eunuch Hong came to serve him, and the Queen said, "This bow must have been sent by the Military Equipment Bureau. The Emperor was talking about it yesterday. It must be a treasure today."

Shen Zheng checked the bow parts while saying, "The adults in the Arms Supervisor are very careful. If it's just raining, the composite bow won't break. It's just that the bowstring and shaft need to be wiped after being rained on... and the shaft, even if it's made of fine iron, will rust if it's in a wet environment for a long time, so it needs to be replaced in time."

"Axle?" The queen heard the word "fine iron" and understood what she was talking about. "Iron tools will eventually rust..."

Shen Zheng pondered for a moment and said, "I will discuss this with the officials in the Ministry of Industry to see if there is a way to avoid rust when making steel."

That being said, stainless steel is actually difficult to smelt.

The necessary metal chromium has a higher melting point than steel, and the Ministry of Industry is busy trying to extract and reduce it from its ore.

After she carefully checked the bow from head to toe, the emperor changed his clothes and came over.

His first words were: "Is that all right?"

Shen Zheng nodded, "It's intact, your majesty, don't worry."

The emperor then called on Eunuch Hong to take down the bow.

Lunch was served in the main hall of Jingren Palace. In Shen Zheng's eyes, these dishes were divided into three categories: appetizers, main dishes and desserts.

And Eunuch Hong was not lying to her. There were literally dozens of dishes in total, but each one was very small, just the right amount for her and the emperor and empress to taste in terms of saltiness.

Perhaps because he was afraid that she would think the meals in the palace were extravagant, the emperor deliberately said, "If you were not coming, the queen and I would only have a dozen dishes."

Shen Zheng smiled faintly.

For the emperor and empress, a dozen dishes were not many.

After lunch, the palace maid brought fragrant mouthwash, which must have mint added to it, making it refreshing to the mouth.

The rain gradually stopped, and the dark clouds covering the dome were slowly pushed away by the breeze, revealing a bright corner of the sky.

Summer rain is like this, it comes quickly and urgently, and goes away even faster and urgently.

"Let's go to the Imperial Garden." said the emperor.

Eunuch Hong immediately imitated him: "In the imperial garden——"

This means letting the palace servants go and clear the area.

Shen Zheng understood that the emperor was ready to get down to business.

The breeze after the rain brought with it a unique freshness and moisture. The water stains gathered on the brick and stone road were swept away by the palace servants, and soon dried up for the most part as the wind blew.

Shen Zheng was walking with the emperor and the empress. When she glanced sideways, her eyes swept over the palace servants following behind them.

There are a lot more people than when they were in Jingren Palace, and most of the extra palace servants are quite old.

She suddenly didn't understand the emperor's intention.

Why was she summoned into the palace today?

Nearly two quarters of an hour later, the group arrived at the Imperial Garden. This was Shen Zheng's first time there.

Hundreds of flowers are vying for beauty and splendor. After the heavy rain, peonies are holding pearls, peonies are condensed with dew, and the wind splashes rainbow light. It is just as the rumors say - different scenery in each season, different at dawn and dusk.

The group stopped in front of Wanchun Pavilion.

After the palace maids served tea and snacks, Shen Zheng saw Eunuch Hong leading people to bring in the straw target.

The emperor took the composite bow, stood up and said to Shen Zheng: "Actually, I summoned you to the palace today because the queen wants to discuss something with you. You two can talk first, and I will go and test the bow."

The faint scent of flowers penetrated into Shen Zheng's nose, and he was slightly surprised when he heard it, "I wonder if the Queen is looking for me..."

The Queen pushed the candy plate in front of her and said with a smile, "It's just a small matter. After I told His Majesty about it, His Majesty insisted on summoning you to the palace to discuss it in detail. It's really..."