In the imperial garden, the fragrance of flowers filled the air.
There weren't many flowers that bloomed in midsummer. Even if the imperial palace had diligent gardeners transplanting them, it would never be as full of flowers as it was in spring. Moreover, it was a hot day, so many flowers would wither after being exposed to the sun for a while. In order to set up a flower appreciation banquet, Imperial Consort Lu ordered the gardeners to put out a lot of potted plants and make it look like a cluster of flowers.
The sweet fragrance of the flowers attracted a lot of bees and butterflies. When Su Yu got off the carriage, he saw a swarm of bees and butterflies dancing wildly. He quickly pressed down the furry head on his lapel to prevent the cat from seeing the butterflies and running out to pounce on it.
The emperor was very dissatisfied with being pressed down. As soon as Su Yu moved his hand away, he immediately came out again.
Imperial Consort Lu sat in the pavilion in the middle of the garden. She was wearing a gorgeous red dress with gold and a pair of phoenixes holding pearls in her hair. She also had a pair of pearls in her ears. Her makeup was exquisite and she looked magnificent. Concubine De and Consort Shu sat next to her. The Zhao Yi officials sat on the periphery. The cairen stood on the left and right. Each of them had a cold and solemn expression, as if they were facing a great enemy. They didn't look like they were admiring flowers at all.
"It's just a fish seller. Is there a need for you to be so nervous?" Imperial Consort Lu coldly sneered, "In a moment, be more alert for this consort …"
"Consort Xian niangniang has arrived — —" When the eunuch guarding the moon gate saw Su Yu's carriage, he immediately shouted and interrupted Imperial Consort Lu's lecture.
When everyone heard this, they immediately sat up straight and looked at the moon gate. They took a deep breath and prepared their speech.
They ran out of breath, but no one appeared …
Shouldn't a fish seller be walking as fast as flying? Why are they walking so slowly?
"Consort Xian just received the imperial favor last night. Perhaps her body isn't feeling well." Consort Shu used a handkerchief to wipe her cheeks and cover the corner of her mouth that couldn't help but curl down.
Imperial Consort Lu's fingers that were holding the cup instantly clenched. The expressions of the other concubines became more and more unsightly. This Consort Xian must have done it on purpose. She originally wanted to give him a show of strength, but he beat her to it.
"Sauce, stop messing around!" Outside the door, Su Yu was negotiating with the cat in his arms. Worried that there would be more butterflies in the garden, he tried to let Furball sleep in his arms for a while. However, this fellow had already taken an afternoon nap and had no intention of sleeping again.
The fur on its head was messed up by Su Yu. Cat King was very dissatisfied. It grabbed Su Yu's lapel and climbed up, scratching Su Yu's neatly combed sideburns.
"Ouch!" Xiao Shun screamed and hurriedly went forward to tidy up Su Yu's hair. She was going to meet the Imperial Consort. If she was not properly dressed, she would be laughed at.
Su Yu reluctantly took the cat off her shoulder and stroked its fur. "Okay, okay. If you don't want to sleep, then forget it. Don't run around later."
An Hong-chul glared at him. Do you think I am a three-year-old child?
Seeing that Uncle Cat was unhappy, Su Yu smiled and kissed its messy head. "You also messed up my head. We are even now. Don't be angry. I will give you something good in a while."
B-Bastard! His Majesty the Emperor stiffened. He pursed his ears and looked around. In broad daylight, he actually dared to flatter her in public. He really had no shame!
Seeing that Furball in his hand was obedient, Su Yu held the cat in satisfaction and walked inside.
Bypassing the rockery, the garden instantly appeared in front of his eyes. Colorful dresses, colorful jewelry, and bright eyes made Su Yu almost lose his balance.
"Consort Xian is so ostentatious. You made us wait for a long time." Imperial Consort Lu flicked her long nails, her words full of dissatisfaction.
Su Yu was an imperial concubine. When he came, the lower ranked concubines had to stand up and salute him. At the same time, he also had to salute the imperial concubines. But Imperial Consort Lu was scolding him to his face. It was wrong of him not to respond, but if he did, he couldn't salute, and others would find fault with him.
The scene was a little awkward for a moment. A light breeze blew, and the fragrance of cosmetics wafted over. This made the Emperor's cat nose very uncomfortable. He immediately struggled to jump out of Su Yu's arms and rushed to the stone table in the pavilion in two or three steps.
"Ah — —" Consort Shu was startled and immediately screamed.
The Emperor, who was using his paw to wipe his nose with tea, was startled by the scream. He immediately knocked over the cup, wetting Imperial Consort Lu's gorgeous skirt.
Su Yu quickly ran over. "This little cat is naughty. Please forgive it, Consort."
Imperial Consort Lu's face was ashen. On the side, Concubine De recognized the cat. "Isn't this the Emperor's cat?"
"Consort Xian, you have guts. You actually dared to take out the sacred cat without permission!" Imperial Consort Lu waved away the palace maid who was frantically helping her wipe the tea away and coldly questioned.
This cat was very precious. Usually, they would only see it a few times from afar. Other than the Empress Dowager and the National Tutor, no one was allowed to touch it. Last year, a palace maid had tried to catch the cat and was beaten to death by the Empress Dowager.
"The Emperor is busy in the afternoon, so Wang Gonggong specially asked me to take care of it for a while." Su Yu saw that everyone recognized the sauce and inwardly sighed in relief. He was afraid that they didn't know the severity of the matter and would hurt the kitten.
"What did you say?" Imperial Consort Lu couldn't help but widen her eyes. The concubines who had been in the palace for several years were suddenly filled with jealousy. The Emperor actually gave his beloved cat to Su Yu to hold. It was clear to see how much he doted on Su Yu.
The new talents looked at the cat with mixed feelings. It was this cat that decided that Su Yu was sitting and they were standing.
His Majesty the Emperor used his wet paw to rub his nose and then rubbed it on Su Yu's clothes. Only then did he feel a little better. He looked around with dissatisfaction and saw that several women were wearing a thick layer of makeup. When they spoke, two catties of foam would fall out. He couldn't help but become angry. Did they want to kill the Emperor by wearing so much makeup?
There were four seats around the stone table. The last seat was naturally reserved for Su Yu, who was also an imperial concubine. Su Yu sat down with the cat in her arms and pulled up her sleeve to wipe the kitten's paw.
"Xian fei niangniang is quite fond of cats." Chen Zhaoyi said with a smile that wasn't a smile. It wasn't clear whether it was praise or sarcasm.
"Cats like the smell of fish. We can't compare." Consort Shu used a handkerchief to cover her mouth as she laughed.
"Isn't that so? I heard that Xian fei niangniang used to sell fish …"
Su Yu naturally heard the sarcasm in their words. But as a man, it wasn't good to argue with a group of girls, so she pretended not to hear. An Hong-chul slightly narrowed his eyes. So noisy!
Noticing that the great cat in her arms was showing signs of anger, Su Yu quickly took out a crab stick from her sleeve.
"Today we came to admire the flowers, not to talk about these things." Imperial Consort Lu saw that Su Yu didn't take the bait and secretly gritted her teeth. "Xian fei has just entered the palace and doesn't know many of the rules. This consort can't help but give a few pointers …"
The smell of crab meat dispelled the smell of cosmetics around the nose. The little cat subconsciously opened its mouth and bit the food that was brought to its mouth. The fresh and fragrant taste immediately filled its taste buds. His Majesty the Emperor's mood improved a lot. With the crab stick in his mouth, he glanced at Su Yu. Are you trying to curry favor with me so that I can help you solve these problems?
Previously, Su Yu had made the crab stick into the shape of a bone as a prank. Now, the little cat was holding a "meat bone" in its mouth and making an expression that said "I don't care for it." It was funny no matter how you looked at it. Su Yu couldn't hold it in and laughed out loud.
Imperial Consort Lu's face completely darkened.
The flower-admiring banquet ended on a bad note. In the first confrontation, the concubines all thought that Xian fei was very difficult to deal with. And Su Yu, who was focused on coaxing the cat, inexplicably won.
That night, Wang Gonggong sent someone early to inform that the Emperor would be coming to Ye Xiao Palace for dinner tonight. He also specially sent a pack of chili and told Su Yu to make a portion of boiled fish.
Su Yu held the chili and the corners of his mouth twitched. He had never heard of the Emperor bringing food to the harem. He always thought that when Wang Gonggong said "the Emperor likes to eat the dishes personally made by the concubines", it was something as high-end as "white fungus and lotus seed soup".
The concubines had a quota for their meals every month. Anything other than the quota would be deducted from their monthly stipend. Su Yu asked Yang Gonggong. He had a total of eighty taels of silver every month, so eating two grass carps shouldn't be a problem. It was just that he had to pay out of his own pocket to treat the boss to a meal, so it was still a bit painful.
When His Majesty the Emperor walked into Ye Xiao Palace, he heard that Su Yu was still busy in the kitchen. He raised his hand to stop the messenger and went to the kitchen to find him.
In the brightly lit kitchen, the fire crackled loudly. His Majesty the Emperor stood in front of the door with his hands behind his back. Seeing Su Yu busying around in the smoky kitchen, that warm feeling suddenly surged up again. Last time, it was in this kind of situation. When he said "let's go home", it gave him the idea of tying this stupid thing to his side forever. He would keep him like this and only allow him to cook for him.
"Greetings to the Emperor!" The palace maid helping in the kitchen suddenly discovered the Emperor standing in front of the door and hurriedly knelt down to pay her respects.
Su Yu was sweating profusely as he lifted the oil pan and prepared to pour the hot oil onto the fish. Being startled by this sudden movement, his hand slipped and the heavy iron pan tilted. The half pan of hot oil was about to splash onto his body.
"Out of the way!" A voice that was as pleasant as a cold spring suddenly appeared in his ears. Su Yu's vision blurred as the hot iron pan flew out. He had already been grabbed by the collar and flashed to the side.
Su Yu didn't know how the iron pan flew. He only knew that the Emperor was still grabbing his collar and carrying him like a little chick.
"Truly stupid to death!" His Majesty the Emperor was very angry. If it wasn't for him, this stupid servant would have become boiled fish!
Su Yu innocently blinked his eyes. If it wasn't for the Emperor quietly running over to scare people, he wouldn't have made a mistake. However, he didn't have the guts to say this out loud.
"Humph!" Seeing that Su Yu didn't speak, An Hong-chul coldly snorted and let go of him, "Finish cooking. Don't think that zhen will pity you just because you're looking at zhen like this."
Ah? Su Yu was stunned and secretly glanced at the Emperor's expression.
"What are you standing there for!" An Hong-chul felt a bit uncomfortable being stared at by Su Yu. His thin lips pursed into a line and he seemed to be even angrier, "If zhen doesn't watch you here, when will we be able to eat? Hurry up and cook!"
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