The abandoned concubine who transmigrated woke up shouting "Long live the widow!"

The Empress Dowager put down the little doll she was holding. "Chen'er, why don't you and Xue'er stay in the side hall? We still have to walk to Jingwu Palace!"

"Mother, I still need to return to the manor. Xue'er's younger brother is still here, and Xue'er will stay to take care of you!" Ye Muchen said.

Hearing Ye Muchen say this, the Empress Dowager felt quite relieved. "The palace gates are already locked. Did you bring your waist token? Do you want me to give you mine?"

"Your son is with you! Mother, don't worry! You should rest early!" Ye Muchen bowed to the Empress Dowager and then turned to leave.

Jingxue still had something to say to Ye Muchen, "Mother, Xue'er will see the Prince off!" After saying that, she followed Ye Muchen out.

"Tomorrow, go back and have someone from my courtyard send some tofu to the palace around the end of Chenshi (7-9 AM). I'll have the nanny pick it up at the palace gate."

"Alright! I'll have the guards in the manor send it over! After all, it's food!" Ye Muchen said as he walked.

"Alright! Also, I don't know when I can go back from here. Could you send someone to protect An'an and Jingze? I'm a little worried about them! Tomorrow is the day Xiaoman and Liqiu enter the palace. Let Shiwu send them over!"

Ye Muchen glanced at Jingxue and said, "Just focus on taking care of Mother. I can handle all of this!"

"Yeah! Thank you!"

"Why thank me between husband and wife!"

Jingxue smiled, quickly moved her neck closer to Ye Muchen, and whispered, "He's a neighbor!"

Ye Muchen sighed helplessly. When would he, as a neighbor, be able to take a step forward?

After seeing Ye Muchen off, Jingxue began to soak the Empress Dowager's feet, instructing the nanny beside the Empress Dowager on how hot the water should be and how long to soak them.

Soaking it in water at about 40 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes is sufficient. Of course, in ancient times, the temperature was tested by hand, and 20 minutes was when a stick of incense was reduced to about one-third of its original volume.

The main reason is that the Empress Dowager is not young, and water that is too hot or water that is left for too long would not be good.

The Empress Dowager finally fell asleep under Jingxue's massage, leaving a night watchwoman behind, while Jingxue went to the side hall.

"Your Highness, hot water has been prepared for you. Please change and take a bath!" Two palace maids said respectfully, holding brand-new nightgowns.

Jingxue has her own change of clothes in her space, including outerwear.

"Put your things down and you can leave now! I'll call you when I'm done washing up!"

"Yes!"

Although it was Shou Kang Palace, the side hall was still a bit cold. Jingxue dared not use the charcoal brazier. After dismissing the two palace maids, Jingxue quickly went into her space after taking a bath and dried her hair.

Shou Kang Palace is too far from Qingyang Hall, where the emperor holds court. Otherwise, Jingxue would have stolen the emperor's jade seal and placed it in Prime Minister Zou's house. She would have liked to see how the old man would get away. Unfortunately, the two palaces are several 500-meter distances apart.

If she went herself, she would be discovered by the Golden Armor Guards. Although she could escape, it would still arouse suspicion, so Jingxue had no choice but to give up the idea and hope to have another opportunity in the future!

The Empress Dowager slept well through the night and felt much better when she woke up in the morning, but she was still a little weak.

After breakfast, Physician Fu arrived, and Jingxue began teaching the Empress Dowager some patting exercises.

There was a maid named Fang who served the Empress Dowager since she was a child. Seeing that the Empress Dowager seemed to be having some difficulty, Granny Fang suggested, "Your Highness, how about this old servant takes a picture for the Empress Dowager?"

Jingxue shook her head. "Granny Fang, you don't understand. The Empress Dowager herself patted these acupoints with her hands. In this way, not only were these acupoints unblocked, but the acupoints on the Empress Dowager's arms, wrists, and palms were also exercised. Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes 'where there is free flow, there is no pain; where there is pain, there is no pain!' Once all the meridians in the body are unblocked, the illness will be cured!"

"Yes, yes, this old servant understands!"

On her first attempt, the Empress Dowager managed to persevere. Although she didn't run or jump, she had been pampered for many years and had people to serve her in everything. It took her nearly an hour to complete the whole set of exercises, and she broke out in a lot of sweat.

Originally, Granny Fang wanted to give the Empress Dowager a bath, but Jingxue stopped her and simply had Granny Fang dry her off with a cloth.

Jingxue told the Empress Dowager to go and have some warm water to rest, and then went to the kitchen.

In the morning, Granny Fang had already brought back the tofu; there was half a slab of it!

The kitchen of Shou Kang Palace had six cooks, as well as several maids and eunuchs who did odd jobs.

Upon hearing that Princess Zhan was going to teach cooking, several cooks put down their work and wanted to learn. Jingxue didn't hold back either, and rolled up her sleeves to teach and explain at the same time.

Actually, making home-style tofu is very simple. Just stir-fry pork belly until the oil is rendered, add some ginger to sauté until fragrant, then add hot water, cut the tofu into small pieces, put it in, and stew until cooked.

Jingxue specifically instructed the cook not to add scallions when making tofu, otherwise it would reduce the nutritional value of the tofu.

They also explained which foods to avoid pairing with tofu.

Since it was her first time doing this, Jingxue explained the steps and precautions in great detail.

Jingxue noticed that there were already potatoes and fresh bok choy in the kitchen, which Qin Jing must have brought in.

When the tofu was almost done, she added two small bok choy.

The bright green bok choy and tender white tofu, served in a white porcelain soup bowl, look incredibly appetizing.

Jingxue also made a cold tofu dish for the cooks and palace maids. She didn't think much of it; it was a very simple dish. But it moved them deeply, and they all knelt down to express their gratitude.

Those were dishes personally prepared by the Princess Consort!

Jingxue rolled her eyes. Sigh! She always inadvertently forgot that this was ancient times, and the hierarchy and etiquette were ingrained in these people's bones.

Because the kitchen here doesn't have starch, dishes like braised tofu and pan-fried tofu can't be made yet.

Jingxue taught the cooks how to collect starch. For lunch, besides two tofu dishes (one cold and one hot), Jingxue also made a stir-fried potato and chive dish. The other dishes were prepared by the cooks.

The noodles and pastries in the Empress Dowager's palace were the best, and there was even a simple oven in the kitchen.

The Empress Dowager ate quite a lot at lunch, which relieved her palace servants, as the entire Shou Kang Palace was on edge the day before when the Empress Dowager fainted.

The Empress Dowager was also in a good mood! Although she didn't say much, she was very satisfied with Jingxue. This child was not pretentious or affected, and she could even cook for her herself, which was truly rare. She only hoped that Chen'er's health would improve, otherwise it would be too unfair to this child.

In the afternoon, the Queen arrived, bringing great news!

When Jingxue heard the news that the Emperor's Consort De and Consort Wang were both pregnant, she thought to herself that the Emperor's rotten cucumber was still quite effective!

The Empress Dowager was also moved by this good news. "Empress, this is truly wonderful news! You must take good care of them and ensure a smooth delivery so that our royal bloodline can continue and our offspring can flourish. You will be a meritorious official!"

"Yes, Mother! This is my duty. Please rest assured and take good care of yourself!" the Empress replied gently.

"Oh dear! I feel much better after just one day, all thanks to Xue'er. Xue'er is truly a lucky star! Look, good things have been happening to you ever since you entered the palace!" The Empress Dowager said to Jingxue.

Jingxue: This good thing has nothing to do with me? It's your big son who's amazing!

But she couldn't say it out loud: "Mother, this is not Xue'er's achievement, but your great fortune and the blessing of Heaven!"