Exile at the start? The princess is no ordinary woman.

Gu Nanzhi rolled around on the bed a couple of times out of boredom, then tried to close her eyes and fall asleep again, but by this time she was wide awake and no longer sleepy, and couldn't fall asleep anytime soon.

"Ahhh, Xiaobai, you can even upgrade your house into a spatial dimension! Wouldn't it be even better if you had internet access so I could have a bridge connecting me to people from my past life? Wouldn't that be even more fantastical?"

Forget it, forget it. Human greed is a bottomless pit. We should be content to live this long.

Oh, right, she's found something to do. Since she's awake and it's dark and windy, why not go get some more food?

We're almost at town, time to do some shopping, and of course, we'll need food.

With cheat codes readily available, why waste money on your own? Why not take a look at what ancient emperors ate and what the imperial kitchens stocked?

It's also good to experience what it's like to be an emperor, even though there's nothing like it now, it's still worth a look.

You can't just show up and take away someone's freshly cooked food while they're preparing it inside, can you? Just take the ingredients, and as for how to eat or cook them, that's up to you.

Without hesitation, Gu Nanzhi got out of bed, went to the walk-in closet, found a set of casual clothes, put them on, and went downstairs.

"Little White, Little White, get up and get to work!"

The ever-ready-to-go little white dog, upon hearing its owner's call, immediately appeared before its owner.

"Master, is there anything I can help you with?"

Since Xiaobai is a robot and doesn't need to sleep to replenish its energy, Gu Nanzhi felt no burden whatsoever when it called out in the middle of the night.

"Xiaobai, I can't sleep. Let's take a walk around the emperor's kitchen and see what the emperors ate in ancient times. Let's see if there's anything ready-made. If not, let's take all the ingredients so I don't have to pay for them myself tomorrow."

Xiao Bai seemed to roll her eyes. It seemed her master had to go and fetch something every night; if this continued, the space she managed would probably be overflowing with things.

"Okay, Master"

As Xiaobai responded, the scene before Gu Nanzhi's eyes changed in the next second. There was a stove, shelves full of ingredients, food storage containers, kitchen utensils, and so on. At first glance, it was just a normal, ordinary kitchen, only a little larger.

Wait, there's still smoke coming from the chimney? Someone's here.

Gu Nanzhi appeared silently in the imperial kitchen. After only a quick glance, she sensed something was wrong and immediately flashed back into her spatial dimension.

"It's already past midnight, and there's still smoke coming from the imperial kitchen. Are they just cooking so late? She didn't see anyone."

She thought for a moment, muttered a couple of sentences to herself, and then she understood.

Yes, this is the emperor of a country. The imperial kitchen serves him, ensuring that food can be served to him whenever he is hungry.

Thinking about it that way, it's not surprising that there was still smoke rising from the imperial kitchen late at night.

Whether there was smoke from a chimney or anyone was there, she couldn't let her trip be in vain.

"Xiao Bai, get ready to work! Remember to sort the ingredients that come in later."

"Okay, Master"

As soon as she finished speaking, Gu Nanzhi reappeared silently in the imperial kitchen. She moved quietly, making no sound, first checking to see if anyone was inside.

After carefully reading it through, she finally relaxed.

Great, nobody's here.

However, there were a few small stoves on the ground with charcoal fires inside, and food was still warming on them. Looking at this treatment, he muttered to himself again.

"Tsk tsk, as expected of the emperor, he always has food prepared so he can be summoned at any time. No wonder everyone wants to be the emperor; even something as trivial as eating has so many people going to great lengths to serve him."

She thought she was just here to collect ingredients, but she's really shown herself the treatment an emperor receives.

Gu Nanzhi continued working without stopping, lifting the lid of the dish warming on the small stove to take a look, but the next second a hint of disdain appeared in her eyes.

"Well, actually, this isn't necessarily a good thing. These dishes are good, but they've been kept warm for too long, so they're overcooked and don't taste very good."

Despite their initial disdain, the thought of storing it in their space was swiftly put into action.

"Fine, it's over now. I'll reluctantly accept it; it's not like I can't eat it."

After inspecting the place, it was time to get down to business. Gu Nanzhi went on a shopping spree in the imperial kitchen, grabbing everything edible.

Whether raw or cooked, it all went to her.

Finally, she even collected three small stoves from the ground. Small stoves are always needed, not just for food, but also for the charcoal she found. She'll just keep these things for now, so she won't have to worry about keeping warm in winter.

Just as she finished cleaning the imperial kitchen, the door was suddenly pushed open from the outside.

With a swift thought, Gu Nanzhi vanished from her spot, along with the last remaining items in the imperial kitchen.

The person who pushed open the door only saw a fleeting afterimage; already a bit groggy in the middle of the night, they thought they were seeing things.

A little dazed, he raised his hand to rub his eyes, and upon closer inspection, he saw that the once abundantly filled imperial kitchen was now completely empty.

Startled, he jolted awake, dropping the food he was carrying. He staggered to the threshold, his hoarse voice booming.

"A ghost...a ghost!"

Two eunuchs arrived together. The one who lagged slightly behind was also startled by the ghost the one in front had shouted, and a hint of reproach appeared in his eyes.

He scolded in the same hoarse voice, "Shut up! What kind of nonsense is this? What kind of behavior is this?"

The person who had fallen was somewhat brought back to their senses by the reprimand, but was clearly still shaken, recalling the fleeting shadow that had passed before their eyes as they pushed open the door, and the empty imperial kitchen.

He could only raise his delicate fingers, point towards the imperial kitchen, and stammer, "Your Highness, it's...empty, the imperial kitchen is empty."

The person who was being reprimanded was completely bewildered. Only then did they look in the direction the man was pointing, and sure enough, the imperial kitchen was empty, without a single ingredient left.

Startled, he loosened his grip and dropped the lantern to the ground. A thought flashed through his mind, and he immediately shouted outside.

"Help! Help! There's a thief! The imperial kitchen has been robbed! Help!"

In recent days, due to the theft case, although the nobles have suppressed the discussion and no one dares to mention it, there is a general sense of unease in the palace.

Despite the palace's tight security, thefts have occurred repeatedly, with the thieves appearing and disappearing without a trace, leaving no clues to this day. Yet, under these circumstances, the thieves have returned, this time stealing from the imperial kitchen.

Following two consecutive thefts, the palace guards increased their nighttime patrols, leaving virtually no gaps in security.

Therefore, the commotion caused by the first person shouting "ghost," combined with the subsequent shout, drew the attention of all the guards patrolling the area, who gathered around with knives.

Where is the thief?