The emperor just doesn't treat everyone equally, and it's none of my business!

Time flies when you have something to do. On the day of the Queen's birthday, Gu Shijin did not go to pay his respects to the Queen, but got up early to prepare a cake.

Cakes taste best when they are made fresh on the same day.

In the previous month, Gu Shijin was already very familiar with how to make cakes, so he made it very quickly today. The fruits had already been prepared yesterday.

"It's done." Gu Shijin looked at the finished cake and nodded with satisfaction.

"My lady, is this the cake?" Xingyue looked at the cake with some curiosity.

During this period, the young lady has been tinkering in the small kitchen every day, saying that she wants to make a birthday cake, but Xingyue has never seen the real thing. This is the first time she has seen it.

"Yeah, this is the birthday cake."

"It smells nice. The emperor will definitely like it." Xingyue said.

Gu Shijin smiled. It didn’t matter whether Lu Junze liked it or not. She liked it very much anyway.

"Isn't this cake a little too boring?" Gu Shijin murmured as he stared at the cake.

It’s a fruit cake, so there’s nothing else on the surface of the cake except fruit, and it does look a little off.

Gu Shijin walked out of the small kitchen, took a stroll around Chenhua Palace, and set his sights on the roses in Chenhua Palace.

These roses were sent by the palace maids at Lu Junze's request. There were many varieties and various colors. After the careful care of the servants in the greenhouse, they bloomed very beautifully.

"Xingzhu, go and cut down three red roses. You need the ones that are full and blooming." Gu Shijin said.

"Yes, my lord."

After cutting the roses, Gu Shijin asked Xingzhu to clean the branches, and then inserted three roses on the cake.

Gu Shijin then nodded with satisfaction. Very good, it looks much better now.

"My lady, you have a very good eye." Xing Zhu praised.

"Okay, remember to put more ice cubes in the small kitchen. It's too hot and the cake will easily go bad." Gu Shijin reminded.

Xiao Linzi smiled and replied, "Don't worry, my lady, I will personally watch over it and ensure that there will be no problems with the cake."

"Thank you for your hard work, Xiaolinzi."

Today's palace banquet is different from usual ones. Today, envoys from foreign countries are present, so they have to be more polite.

"My lady, let me help you dress up." Xingyue said.

"it is good."

Gu Shijin was wearing the lavender palace dress made of dragon silk material. The headdress on her head was also exquisite and gorgeous. In short, it was very suitable for her status as a concubine, and it also showed the great country style of Daxia.

For so long, Gu Shijin's outfit has been simple and elegant. This is the first time she has dressed so exquisitely, which is eye-catching.

"My lady is so beautiful." Xingyue exclaimed sincerely.

Gu Shijin's appearance is exquisite and elegant. After dressing up like this, she looks noble and elegant, and extremely beautiful.

Xingyue: "My lady, you should dress up more in the future."

The young lady used to be too plain.

Gu Shijin smiled. She always knew that she had a good appearance, but most of the concubines in the harem were dressed gorgeously and dazzlingly, so there was nothing wrong with being plain.

Besides, Gu Shijin was afraid that his neck couldn’t bear wearing a bunch of jewelry on his head every day.

Just like now, even though he wasn't wearing anything special on his head, Gu Shijin already felt his head was very heavy.

Gu Shijin admired the queen for this. The queen's phoenix crown weighed more than ten pounds. Would her neck be fine if she sat on it for a whole day?

Gu Shijin shook his head. He realized that being in a high position also comes with responsibilities, and it is not that easy.

"My lady, Concubine Ning is here." At this time, Xing Zhu came in to report.

Gu Shijin was stunned and said quickly: "Let Yue'er come in quickly."

"Yes, my lord."

"Sister Jin." Today, Concubine Ning was wearing a dark blue palace dress. The heavy color made Concubine Ning look less lively and more stable.

This is in line with her character in the palace.

"Yuer is here." Although Gu Shijin didn't know why she came at this time, he was still very happy.

"Sister." After sitting down, Concubine Ning pursed her lips and looked at the palace maids around her.

Gu Shijin understood, "You all go down first. Xingyue, go and bring Yue'er a bowl of sour plum soup."

"Yes, my lord."

After everyone left, Concubine Ning whispered, "Sister, I discovered something important."

"What's the matter?" Gu Shijin saw that she looked serious and guessed that it was probably not a trivial matter.

Concubine Ning was a little hesitant, not knowing whether she should say it or not. She felt that if she said it, it might harm Sister Jin.

"Yuer, if you have something to say, just tell me. There are only two of us in the room. If it's a big deal, we can just pretend we don't know."

"Do you believe my sister?"

Concubine Ning glared and said, "Of course I believe you, sister!"

Gu Shijin smiled slightly, "That's it, tell me, what did you find?"

"Sister, I went to the imperial kitchen today and found that there was something wrong with the shrimps there. Those shrimps must have been fed a drug that can cause diarrhea in mild cases and death in severe cases." Concubine Ning lowered her voice, "And I heard from the eunuch in the imperial kitchen that those shrimps were to be used in today's palace banquet."

This is not the season when shrimps are in season, but if the royal family wants shrimps, we can definitely get them.

After hearing what Concubine Ning said, Gu Shijin's expression became serious. This matter was not simple, and it should not be a struggle in the harem.

To put it bluntly, the struggles in the harem are all for the purpose of gaining the emperor's favor, status and power, and having children, although some people's methods are indeed a bit unsavory.

But what Concubine Ning said, even if it was accomplished, it would not cause any waves in the harem, and the main consequence would still be on the previous dynasty.

You know, today's palace banquet will not only have ministers and concubines, but also envoys from other countries. These envoys represent their countries and come to Daxia to celebrate the birthday of the emperor of Daxia. If something goes wrong at the palace banquet of Daxia, the consequences will be disastrous. At the very least, it will undermine the diplomatic relations between the two countries, and at worst, it will lead to a war between the two countries.

No matter what, the common people are the ones who suffer in the end.

Moreover, once things succeed, the responsibility for this matter will be on Daxia, and any decisions made by other countries will be reasonable.

"Yuer, how do you know there's something wrong with the shrimp?" This matter was very important, and Gu Shijin had to ask clearly.

Concubine Ning sighed, leaned close to Gu Shijin's ear, and whispered, "Sister Jin, actually my medical skills are not good, because I learned poison."

"I'm better at using poison than Doctor Song." Concubine Ning couldn't help but show off.

Doctor Song wanted to compete with her in poison, but he was tricked by her twice. Humph.

It seems to be true that he is better than Doctor Song.

"Yuer, you..."

"Sister, Doctor Song can solve the shrimp problem." Concubine Ning said. She didn't want to reveal that she could poison people.

Gu Shijin nodded, "Okay, I understand. I'll do it. Yue'er, you go back first."

"Goodbye, sister."

After Concubine Ning left, Gu Shijin called out the secret guard that Lu Junze had left in Chenhua Palace, relayed the matter to the secret guard, and asked him to tell Lu Junze immediately.