Harem Daily Life

Mu Yu said righteously: "Mrs. Shu, you have made three big mistakes today. First, you plotted to murder the legitimate princess and refused to admit your mistake; second, you talked about the queen irresponsibly, spoke rudely, and showed lack of moral character; third, you openly slandered and damaged the reputation of me and the queen. Your Majesty, please punish us severely!" Mu Yu looked at He Linzhang.

He Linzhang looked at Shu Cairen as if she were an idiot. If she wasn't a member of the Shu family, she would have been dragged away and beaten with a stick.

Shu Cairen was not afraid of what Mu Yu said at all. In her opinion, everyone at the scene had seen the intimate interaction between the Queen and Island Master Mu, and Queen Tao's weakness had been exposed without a doubt.

"Hmph, Your Majesty will not listen to your nonsense, Your Majesty..."

"That's enough!" He Linzhang scolded, "Why don't you go back and reflect on your actions!"

Not punishing her and merely letting her go back to reflect on her actions was already done for the sake of the Empress Dowager and the Shu family.

Shu Cairen scratched her ears, thinking she was hallucinating. "Your Majesty, what did you say? You said you wanted me to reflect on myself? But it's the Queen who was involved with the man outside! The Queen even flirted with Island Master Mu right in front of you..."

Shu Cairen was about to say that Mu Yu was deceiving the emperor, but the Queen Mother stepped forward and slapped her in the face: "You ignorant thing, I told you not to cause trouble after you came here, but you ignored my words!"

The Queen Mother was so angry that she felt that Concubine Shu had brought shame to the Shu family today!

Shu Cairen covered her face, really unable to understand the current situation. What she didn't understand even more was that it was the Queen who had violated the rules, so why was she the one being blamed?

When Xiao Tang saw Shu Cairen standing there in a daze, he quickly stepped forward to support Shu Cairen: "Cairen, let's go!" A wise man would not suffer a loss in front of him. It was obvious that no one at the scene stood on Shu Cairen's side!

Xiao Tang and Xiao Xinsheng dragged Shu Cairen away, and the pond was finally quiet.

Mu Yu coughed lightly, looked at the Queen Mother, and touched his nose: "Um... Queen Mother, your hand... does it hurt?" If that slap just now had not been given, Shu Cairen would probably have been beaten with a stick today.

The Queen Mother glanced at him and said, "I'm sorry that Master Mu has laughed at what happened today." After that, the Queen Mother pulled Yunuo over and said, "Nuo'er, go back with the Empress Dowager. You've been wronged today."

The Queen Mother no longer wanted to fish, so everyone put away their fishing rods and went to the Queen Mother's East Courtyard.

Today, Mu Yu and the Queen Mother's group landed three large fish, weighing a combined 10 pounds. Tao Yanyan's group caught one large and one small, also weighing 6 or 7 pounds. Only He Linzhang's group finally caught one, but it escaped, leaving them with nothing. Tao Yanyan and the imperial chefs slaughtered all the fish and prepared a feast. Dinner was served, filling the entire table.

The Queen Mother's mood had improved by now. There were several children sitting around her to make her happy. Looking at the table full of fish-related dishes, she couldn't help swallowing.

"Wow, this fish ball soup looks delicious. Xiaobao, let the Empress Dowager serve you a bowl first." Fish balls have no bones in them and are most suitable for babies.

"This boiled fish fillet is spicy and refreshing. You kids shouldn't eat it. Try this fish fillet in tomato sauce. It's prepared the same way but is more suitable for children."

"This dish seems to have never been seen before. Is it a new one developed by the Queen?" The Queen Mother looked at Tao Yanyan, who shook her head: "Your Majesty, this dish was not made by me, but by Island Master Mu."

Everyone looked at Mu Yu at the same time. Mu Yu said proudly, "I heard that the Queen Mother likes to appreciate delicious food, so I personally cooked this dish today. It's called Fried Fish. The fish is cut into small pieces, marinated, fried, and then coated with sauce and grilled. It's crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. It can be eaten alone or used as a topping for noodles. It has a unique flavor."

The method of making the dried fish that Tao Yanyan usually makes is actually similar, but this fried fish dish contains sugar, which makes it salty and sweet, and is more popular with children than the spicy dried fish she makes.

The Queen Mother tasted one piece and instantly fell in love with the taste. She couldn't help but eat another piece.

"No wonder the Queen's cooking skills are so good. I was wondering how a lady from a noble family could have such good cooking skills. Now it turns out it's all thanks to you."

Tao Yanyan felt guilty for a moment, smiled and said nothing.

The whole family had a lively fish feast, with laughter and chattering in the ears, as if what happened by the pond in the afternoon had disappeared into thin air and no one remembered it anymore. However, it was not so easy for Shu Cairen.

"Why on earth?" Shu Cairen couldn't understand. "Queen Tao even took Island Master Mu's arm and acted like a spoiled child right in front of His Majesty, yet His Majesty turned a deaf ear to her! Why is this happening?"

Xiao Tang had already applied a facial mask to Shu Cairen's face, and the swelling had mostly subsided. Without a close look, you couldn't tell where she'd been beaten. She hesitated, then said, "Cairen, could there be some other relationship between Master Mu and the Queen that we're unaware of? For example, maybe they have adopted a foster father or daughter?"

Otherwise, it is really impossible to explain why Queen Tao treated Island Master Mu like a father and daughter, and the Queen Mother and His Majesty were not surprised, and even several princesses and princes did not show any surprise.

Shu Cairen narrowed her eyes. "Humph, has she won over Island Master Mu so quickly? This is the first time she and Island Master Mu have met!"

Shu Cairen found it difficult to accept this idea, because behind Mu Yu was Penglai Island, a very powerful force. When she accompanied the Queen Mother on Penglai Island, she had thought about winning over Penglai Island for her own use, but failed. She did not want the Island Master Mu to form an alliance with Queen Tao at once, which would undoubtedly add an arm to Queen Tao and become the largest force behind Queen Tao.

"No, this matter must be clarified. Maybe... maybe they are deliberately putting on an act in front of me, and there is actually no connection at all." Shu Cairen was unwilling to give up. She called Xiaoxin over and said, "Go and investigate. Bring some money to bribe the Queen Mother's people. You must find out the true relationship between Island Master Mu and Queen Tao."

Xiaoxin had no choice but to withdraw the money and go down to do the work.

As for the Queen Mother, after everyone had left, Eunuch Qin stepped forward to massage her shoulders and advised, "Your Majesty, there's no need to be so angry over a single Concubine Shu. You've long known that Concubine Shu isn't on the same page with you. If she acts up in the future, just ignore her and save yourself the grief."

The Queen Mother sighed softly, "I just didn't expect her to be so foolish. Knowing that the Emperor loved Yunuo the most, she actually tripped Yunuo. Knowing that the Emperor had no eyes for her, she still approached him. Today, the Queen has already given her a way out, but she still refused to give in and left quickly. In the end, you see, the Emperor didn't punish her for my sake, but I had no choice but to step in and wake her up!"

"Haha, everyone has their own destiny. The Queen Mother is trying to save her, but she may not understand." Compared with a beating with a stick, a slap in the face is of course lighter, but Shu Cairen may not understand the Queen Mother's painstaking efforts.

"Forget it. I can save her once, but I can't save her every time. This kind of idiot is really annoying."

The Queen Mother went to rest soon. In the middle of the night, she vaguely felt as if someone came in. She was too sleepy to open her eyes. When she woke up the next day, she found a small bottle of ointment next to her pillow.