Why am I, a cook, always involved in cases?

It was drizzling and the palace walls looked picturesque.

Lin Zhiruo stood in front of the window of the imperial kitchen, her eyes piercing through the rain curtain, looking at the palace wall shrouded in fog.

An indescribable homesickness welled up in my heart, and my thoughts drifted back to the Zuixianlou, which was full of laughter and joy.

That was where she worked before she traveled through time and space. This place seemed to be ancient, but it was very different from the ancient times she remembered.

It may be another world, but the development process of this world is still in the feudal dynasty period.

"I really miss the leisurely time in Zuixianlou." She murmured softly, with a barely perceptible sadness in her voice.

In the imperial kitchen, the fire was burning brightly, the soup in the copper pot was boiling, and the kitchen knife was flying on the chopping board.

"Be careful with the soup, don't let it splash out," reminded the housekeeper, Madam Li.

The aromas of various spices intertwine in the air, painting a lively picture.

However, in this magnificent kitchen, Lin Zhiruo felt an indescribable loneliness.

Thinking of her father's personality in the Zuixianlou in the past, who was always so busy that he forgot to eat, she couldn't help but frown.

Later, she traveled through time and came to a willow alley, where she got a cheap father.

But fortunately, her cheap dad was pretty good to her.

And she...

But she's still a little cook...

I thought the days after crossing would be so dull.

But not long ago, while searching for a rare mountain ingredient, she accidentally fell into an elaborate trap.

Those who claimed to be powerful and loyal carried out kidnapping under the pretext of selecting royal chefs.

This is clearly a brutal and unreasonable act of kidnapping people.

On the surface, it was called a selection, but in reality, it was the imperial court's despicable act of forcibly abducting common women under the guise of selection, and thus entering the harem...

This blatant robbery filled Lin Zhiruo with indignation.

Having said that, if you look at it from another perspective, this job is not entirely without merit.

The court paid salaries on time every month, and the service period was no more than two years.

If you can survive this period of time, you will be able to return home.

From the perspective of making a living, perhaps it's not too bad.

It’s a pity that all of this is based on coercion, which makes it difficult for people to feel at ease.

For Lin Zhiruo, who used to be the head chef at Zuixianlou and lived a comfortable life, this was simply an unexpected disaster.

She originally ran a well-known restaurant, dealing with various ingredients every day and studying cooking techniques. That was the life she longed for.

What exactly is the purpose of those people?

Is it to please the powerful that they kidnap decent women?

Or did he forcibly abduct someone else to replace his own daughter?

These are no longer important to Lin Zhiruo.

Because no matter what the reason, it was an irreparable disaster for her.

If she hadn't suffered this misfortune, she would never have wanted to have anything to do with this deep palace backyard in her life.

Everything here made her feel uncomfortable, especially the pungent smell of powder from the palace maids.

Luxurious spices and exquisite clothes cannot hide the hypocrisy, and the smile on everyone's lips is like a carefully designed mask.

During the years of running the restaurant, Lin Zhiruo had long seen through a truth: the most poisonous thing in the world is a woman's smile.

This truth applies equally whether in the mansions of dignitaries or in the brothels of the city.

And in this harem, this kind of hypocritical smile can be seen everywhere, which is chilling.

She picked up the food box at her feet and walked slowly towards the back of the building.

Compared with the magnificent main gate, the inner courtyard looks particularly simple.

Next to a bluestone-paved pool, several eunuchs of indeterminate gender were concentrating on washing a mountain of tableware.

"Be careful, don't break the food box." The older eunuch Zhou Fu reminded the younger eunuch beside him.

The harem has always been a forbidden area for men. Apart from the royal family, only those who have lost their male characteristics can enter and leave freely.

Lin Zhiruo felt that this system was extremely absurd, but at the same time she had to admit that perhaps it was precisely this absurdity that allowed it to continue to this day.

She put down the food box and her eyes fell on the other food boxes neatly arranged in the building next to her.

Those were all washed and dried tableware. There was a wooden sign hanging on the handle of each food box, which not only had patterns of ingredients drawn on it, but also numbers marked on it.

"Miss, what do these words mean?" asked the little palace maid Guihua timidly.

There were many illiterate palace maids, after all, many of them were country girls who were abducted by force.

Although they received basic etiquette training before entering the palace, their literacy rate was still alarmingly low.

This is one of the evil consequences of excessive harem expansion. Although there are many people, their quality is getting worse and worse.

Although the current harem is not as large as that of the previous emperor's time, there are still two thousand concubines and palace maids alone.

Together with a considerable number of eunuchs, it became a huge family of 3,000 people.

Lin Zhiruo was just the lowest-ranking maid among them and didn't even have a rank.

For a woman who was forcibly abducted into the palace to make up the numbers, such treatment was understandable.

If she were as plump as a peony, or had skin as white as snow, she might even be appointed as a low-ranking concubine.

But she only had a healthy face covered with freckles and skinny limbs.

“It’s better to finish it as soon as possible.”

She picked up the food box with a plum blossom pattern and "17" written on it, and couldn't help but quicken her pace.

She hopes to return home before the rainstorm arrives.

This food box belonged to a low-ranking concubine. Although her residence was not as good as that of other concubines of the same rank, it was luxurious everywhere.

Judging from these details, Lin Zhiruo guessed that the owner was most likely from a merchant family.

Low-ranking concubines could only have two exclusive maids at most. Maids without an owner like Lin Zhiruo often had to help carry tableware.

Although these concubines had independent residences, they were located in remote areas and rarely saw the emperor.

As long as you get a chance to sleep with her, you can move to a better place.

If I could receive grace again, it would be a great thing that would allow me to reach great heights in one step.

Those concubines who did not win the emperor's favor and were past the marriageable age, if they did not have a prominent family background, were either demoted to maids or given to ministers.

The most dreaded thing is to be given a eunuch.

Lin Zhiruo knocked gently on the door.

"Just put it outside." Nanny Wang, the maid guarding the door, said in a cold tone.

Inside the room, Imperial Concubine Yuyao was lazily shaking her wine glass, and a rich aroma filled the air.

Her once stunning beauty now pales in comparison to the many beauties in the harem.

Recently, he has been staying indoors all day long and seems to have given up the idea of ​​vying for favor.

"How can anyone come to visit you if you lock yourself in your room all day?"

Lin Zhiruo shook her head secretly, turned around to get the food box from the next room, and returned to the washing area.

Although she did not enter the palace voluntarily, since she received the salary, she had to do her job conscientiously.

This is the way that the young cook Lin Zhiruo always deals with things.

She firmly believed that as long as she worked hard, she would be free one day.

I guess it won't really attract the emperor's attention.

Unfortunately, Lin Zhiruo's idea was still too naive.

Although she is only seventeen years old and has experienced many ups and downs in life, she still retains her irrepressible nature.

That is a strong desire for knowledge and a strong sense of justice.

In a few days, she will uncover the truth of a murder that shocked the harem!