Finally, after throwing in all the seasonings, Su Qingwen took another taste.
"Oh my god..." Unable to hold back, she spat out all the food in her mouth. Even Su Qingwen herself couldn't help breaking out in a cold sweat. What an otherworldly taste! It was truly too strange. She guessed that Hua Yueye would have the same reaction later.
Humph, there's going to be a good show now.
A satisfied smile curled up on Su Qingwen's lips. She quickly walked towards Hua Yueye's imperial chamber.
At this moment, Hua Yueye was sitting with his head down in front of the desk, as if deep in thought or perhaps reminiscing.
Looking at his appearance, Su Qingwen couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.
"Your Majesty, I know you haven't been eating for the past few days. Why don't you come and have something?" At this time, Li Ruhua pushed open the door and walked in.
"I'm not hungry." Hua Yueye didn't even bother to lift his eyebrows as he replied.
"Please have a little. It's all ready." Li Ruhua now understood very well what it felt like to offer one's hot face to a cold buttocks. She let out a sigh and said somewhat helplessly.
"Alright." This time, Hua Yueye finally gave her an affirmative answer. He slightly raised his eyes, glanced at Li Ruhua, and frowned. Li Ruhua had been coming around especially frequently these days. What on earth did she want?
"Xiaocui, bring up the food." Li Ruhua was naturally overjoyed to have the opportunity to show herself in front of Hua Yueye. She showed a smile and waved to the door.
Upon hearing the order, Xiaocui immediately carried the so - called "Man Han Quan Xi" they had prepared early in the morning and placed it in front of Hua Yueye.
These days, Hua Yueye had been so lost in his thoughts of Su Qingwen that he had almost lost his appetite and hadn't eaten. Seeing them suddenly prepare so much food, his face darkened instead.
"Li Ruhua, I can't possibly eat all this by myself. You've prepared a bit too much. It's really a waste."
"This..." Hearing this, Li Ruhua stood there somewhat awkwardly, not knowing how to answer his question.
"Forget it. Don't let it happen again." Hua Yueye didn't want to entangle with her any longer. He gave her a cold look, quickly lowered his head, and took a bite of the crab - meat ball in front of him.
Just one bite, and Hua Yueye's brows knitted tightly into a small "chuan" character.
This expression didn't seem right. Li Ruhua looked at Hua Yueye somewhat doubtfully, not understanding what had happened.
"Your Majesty, is the taste not to your liking?" She took a step forward and nervously stared at Hua Yueye's expression.
"This taste..." Hua Yueye's mouth twitched violently, and his eyes were full of helplessness. "It seems your cooking skills aren't that good. Forget it, I'm not hungry anymore. Take all this food away."
"Hahaha." Seeing this, Su Qingwen really couldn't hold back anymore. She squatted down, covering her stomach. It was really too funny. Li Ruhua must be extremely surprised.
"Your Majesty, you can't be joking, right? I've always been good at cooking." Li Ruhua opened her eyes wide and looked down at the food she had painstakingly prepared. She felt extremely aggrieved. Hua Yueye was just too picky not to say a single good word about her food.
Asking Xiaocui for a pair of chopsticks, Li Ruhua reluctantly took a bite of the dish she had made.
"Ugh..." It was sweet, spicy, bitter, and astringent all at the same time. What kind of taste was this? It was truly too unpalatable. She herself couldn't believe that this unappetizing thing was made by her.
"So, you'd better not cook in the future. Isn't this just wasting food?" Hua Yueye sized her up and said unhappily.
"Your Majesty, this..." Li Ruhua looked at the food on the table in disbelief. Cold sweat dripped from her forehead. She wanted to say that this food wasn't made by her at all, but after thinking carefully, such words were really unconvincing. Maybe Hua Yueye would cause more trouble for her.
She took a deep breath and had to suppress all her unwilling emotions. She helplessly admitted her mistake: "Yes, it's all my fault. I won't do it again."
"Go down." Hua Yueye lowered his head. A deep yearning appeared in his eyes. After tasting Li Ruhua's "dark cuisine", he suddenly thought of the cake made by Su Qingwen. Although the taste was just so - so, he had really been very happy that day.
At the moment of leaving, Li Ruhua looked back at Hua Yueye reluctantly. He was looking down at Su Qingwen's portrait, with a faint smile on his lips. His eyes were full of tenderness and yearning.
Fine, was that woman really that attractive? Was she really worth his unforgettable love!
Li Ruhua was really filled with hatred. She tightly clenched the hem of her skirt and quickly left.
Seeing this, Su Qingwen felt extremely delighted. She smiled satisfactorily and said, "Serves her right for trying to seduce Hua Yueye." After saying this, Su Qingwen followed Li Ruhua out to see what else she would do.
The night grew darker and darker. The lights were in full bloom. The dancing flames on the candlesticks illuminated the room. Hua Yueye stared intently at Su Qingwen's portrait, motionless.
The light on the candlestick seemed to flicker for a moment. Hua Yueye immediately came back to his senses, put away the portrait, quickly stood up straight, and looked coldly at the door.
A black figure quietly sneaked into the room. Seeing Hua Yueye, he immediately bowed down and said, "Greetings to Your Majesty."
"Alright." Seeing that it was his own man, Hua Yueye put away his vigilant expression. He leaned back slightly, squinted his eyes, sized up the man in front of him, and asked, "Have you found out anything?"
"Reporting to Your Majesty, on the day Concubine Xian was poisoned, there was indeed a person who entered the imperial kitchen. However, the princess seems to have misseen. It wasn't a little eunuch." The man lowered his head and replied seriously.
"Have you found out who the person is?" Hua Yueye raised his eyebrows and asked suspiciously.
"It's a woman. She should have disguised herself as a little eunuch to cover her tracks." The man lowered his head and thought for a moment, then continued, "Moreover, she deliberately dressed up as Xiaozai, the little eunuch beside Eunuch Gao, on purpose for the princess to see, thus creating a misunderstanding."
"Just as I thought." Hua Yueye sneered. Gao Quan wasn't such a careless person. And in the court, Gao Quan seemed so just and upright, so calm. It really wasn't him.
"Did that person leave any evidence?" Hua Yueye squinted his eyes and asked sharply.
"Yes. Your subordinate carefully searched every corner of the imperial kitchen and found this earring. This style of earring is not common. It should not belong to an ordinary maid." As he said, the man took out an earring from his bosom and respectfully placed it on Hua Yueye's table.