Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

One night in Suliu Hall.

The next day, although Wang Yuyan insisted on getting up to help Li Chengqian wash and dress, she was too weak to do so and was ordered by Li Chengqian to rest.

Now that the world is at peace, no one in the four seas dares to disobey the Great Tang.

It is precisely for this reason that the harem of Li Chengqian, the Crown Prince and the most central figure in this vast empire, has become a matter of great concern for the early followers of Li Chengqian's new policies in Chang'an Wude, Zhenguan, and even Taiyuan Prefecture.

Nowadays, the Crown Prince spends at least half of each month with his Crown Princess, Qian Yingying.

Meanwhile, Consort Li Xueyan gave birth to a daughter, and another Consort, Hou Qianya, is now pregnant and unable to serve the Emperor.

Besides the Crown Princess, the Crown Prince's recent favorites are mainly his concubine Wu Shun, Zheng Lizhen, a lady of the Zheng family of Xingyang, and other concubines such as the newly promoted Meng Yuyao of the Southern Six Zhao, Queen Kim Deokman of Silla, and the legitimate daughters of the Zheng family.

"Your Highness, I have prepared bird's nest porridge for you. Although state affairs are important, you must also take care of your health..."

Xiande Hall.

Li Zhi, holding a document sent by Lingnan Road, was both amused and troubled. It concerned a group of coastal villagers who had occupied a piece of land in Linyi with fishing boats and weapons such as harpoons and knives, and who were requesting the Tang Dynasty to grant them a land deed. He wanted to ask his elder brother, the Emperor, for his opinion.

Just as she was holding the documents and approaching, she heard Consort Zheng Lizhen's words as she walked in, and couldn't help but raise her eyebrows.

He silently sat down again.

He looked at his elder brother with an air of anticipation, as if watching a good show.

Even King Li Zhen of Yue, who was annotating a document, paused slightly.

He subtly pricked up his ears, lowered his head, but his eyes were fixed on his elder brother, as if he were watching a melon-eating spectacle.

Li Chengqian frowned.

"I am handling state affairs; the Xiande Hall is not a place for you to be!"

Consort Zheng's face turned pale, and with a mournful whimper, she knelt on the ground.

"Your Majesty, I was just worried about Your Highness's health. I heard that Su Liu Palace didn't even prepare breakfast for you this morning. I was concerned for Your Majesty, so I personally prepared a bowl of bird's nest porridge..."

Li Chengqian: "......."

To be honest, even when he had just gotten married, he never felt this headache. Since the birth of his heir, the women in the harem have gradually become unpleasant.

Especially Zheng Lizhen!!!

Li Chengqian's chest heaved, his eyes filled with displeasure, while Li Zhi and Li Zhen beside him lowered their heads, suppressing their laughter, their shoulders shaking incessantly.

Inhale...exhale...

Li Chengqian took a deep breath, recalling the memorial presented by Zheng Jiang, the head of the Zheng family of Xingyang, regarding the Tianzhu Peninsula, which he had seen today. It was indeed impressive, and they really needed their help there now.

Li Chengqian silently swallowed the rebuke that was on the tip of his tongue.

His eyes caught sight of his two younger brothers, who were engrossed in eating melons with great excitement, and a cold, sharp smile suddenly appeared on his lips.

"Oh~ Consort Zheng has been in the palace for almost two years, and this is the first time I've known you have such skills... Very good, bring it to me!"

Zheng Lizhen, who was originally filled with fear and resentment, suddenly became overjoyed.

Ignoring Wang De who was about to take the plate, he bypassed him and personally carried the bird's nest porridge to Li Chengqian.

Her beautiful eyes, though revealing subtle thoughts, gazed at Li Chengqian with affectionate tenderness as she served him his meal.

Not to mention Wang De, even Li Chengqian was speechless.

The Zheng family of Xingyang was a prestigious family, and in the past, they had produced empresses or imperial concubines.

Is this all the legitimate daughter Zheng Jiang raised?

Li Chengqian didn't know what to say, but he still politely picked up the bowl and tasted it. The bird's nest porridge, which was fresh and fragrant with a touch of spices, made him instantly certain that it was definitely not the work of Zheng Lizhen.

It must have been done by someone else.

"Hmm! I didn't expect Consort Zheng to have such skills. Not bad, although not as good as that guy Chu Dahai, it's still quite impressive..."

Zheng Lizhen tried to put on a reserved smile, just about to thank Li Chengqian for his praise.

The next second, Li Chengqian changed the subject.

"Perfect timing. The Eighth and Ninth Princes haven't had their meal yet either. My dear Consort, why don't you do me the trouble of preparing a portion for my two younger brothers as well?"

Li Chengqian's ambiguous smile and gaze made Zheng Lizhen's heart skip a beat.

"Your Majesty..."

"My beloved concubine has concerns?"

Zheng Lizhen: "......."

Seeing that their elder brother was clearly trying to take this opportunity to punish them for watching the show, Li Zhi and Li Zhen quickly tried to refuse.

However, Li Chengqian was, after all, the crown prince, and his gaze immediately fell on Wang De.

"Wang De, you go with Consort Zheng to prepare a bowl of bird's nest porridge for Prince Yue and Prince Jin as well, so they can also taste Consort Zheng's cooking. You personally oversee the process..."

Wang De smiled and bowed, saying, "This servant obeys your command."

Zheng Lizhen followed Wang De nervously.

However, Princes Li Zhen and Li Zhi were even more uneasy than him: "Your Majesty, Zheng Lizhen is hardly someone who knows how to cook. She looks like she's never lifted a finger in the kitchen... Aren't you pushing your younger brother into a fire?"

Li Chengqian chuckled, crossing his legs and completely unconcerned.

While eating the bird's nest porridge made by the imperial chefs in the palace, he casually flipped through the documents in front of him.

"We won't eat you to death, don't worry..."

Just as Li Zhen and Li Zhi had feared, things were going as Consort Zheng had hoped.

Under Wang De's smiling gaze, Zheng Lizhen, who was already in a state of confusion, became even more flustered in the kitchen of her own palace, sweat pouring down her face.

The maids standing nearby could only do their best to help according to the steps the imperial chefs took to make bird's nest porridge, based on their own memories.

"Eunuch Wang, this kitchen is smoky and filthy. Why don't you rest outside?"

Zheng Lizhen asked tentatively, while simultaneously pulling out a gold ingot from who-knows-where.

Wang De's smile grew even wider as he took the gold.

then......

"This old servant is a eunuch; who could be more defiled than me? His Highness ordered me to keep watch here, and I dare not slacken my efforts. After all, this is food for the two princes..."

Zheng Lizhen: "......."

The final result, naturally, was a complete mess.

Despite Zheng Lizhen's various pleas and inducements, Wang De finally presented the two bowls of "carefully prepared dishes" to the King of Yue and the King of Jin.

"Hehe, you've made quite a bit, haven't you? After all, she's the eldest daughter of the Zheng family of Xingyang..."

Li Chengqian asked with a smile, and Wang De hurriedly took out two gold ingots from his sleeve.

"Alright, alright, take what's yours. Buy some property as soon as possible so you can have a good retirement in the future."

Wang De's face immediately lit up with even more joy. After repeatedly expressing his gratitude, he stepped aside.

"Your Majesty~" Li Zhi and Li Zhen looked just as mournful as Zheng Lizhen had before. They couldn't possibly associate the two bowls of dark stuff in front of them with bird's nest porridge.

Zheng Lizhen, on the other hand, used feeling unwell as an excuse to avoid coming to Xiande Hall.

"You'd better finish dealing with all these documents in front of you, or I'll have someone heat up these two bowls for you tonight as your dinner!"