Shen Mingzhu didn't know the reason, but she knew that the relationship between the Queen Mother and her maternal family was not close. When the Crown Prince was alive, they always had to meet during festivals, but the relationship between them was even more unfamiliar than that of strangers.
Especially after Shen Mingzhu became sensible, she didn't like facing that family full of power in their eyes.
The Queen Mother's background was not high. At that time, Shen Mingzhu's grandfather, in order to balance the forces of the princes, bestowed her in marriage to the late emperor. However, the two had a good relationship after marriage and could be regarded as being in harmony.
It's just... Shen Mingzhu had no impression of her mother's elder brother, her uncle. In her memory, it seemed that this man was extremely cowardly, but his wife was relatively strong.
Since the death of the Crown Prince, this family had never contacted her again.
What were they doing here now? Could it be that they saw that she was not disliked by the emperor, so they planned to climb up again?
A bit of irony could not help but appear in Shen Mingzhu's eyes. She said to Chun Tao, "Don't see them. Let them go."
Saying that, she followed the little maid who led the way to the kitchen. Before she got close, she smelled the fragrance coming from there.
"What are they doing?"
Shen Mingzhu stopped and stood there looking at the little maid in front of her and said, "What is the consort doing today?"
The little maid was startled when she heard this and quickly said to Shen Mingzhu, "This... This servant doesn't know either. She only knows that the consort killed two chickens early in the morning and found a lot of fresh medicinal materials, as well as some fruits and vegetables. She doesn't know what he is doing."
Shen Mingzhu subconsciously felt that Xie Lang must not be doing anything good.
But it really smelled good! It was like the smell of grilled meat!
After hesitating for a moment, Shen Mingzhu still followed the trembling little maid to see what Xie Lang was up to.
In front of her was a small courtyard. It looked delicate. Taking a closer look, she didn't know when the house inside had been demolished and all kinds of precious flowers and plants had been planted. Along the way, several small pavilions had been renovated.
Shen Mingzhu slightly raised her eyebrows. As soon as she entered, she smelled the smell of fire and smoke.
No way, this was really the smell of grilled meat?
She saw Xie Lang in a corner. There were several racks in front of him. His hair was pulled up high and tied into a long ponytail. Hanging down, it carried a bit of youthful spirit.
Shen Mingzhu had never seen Xie Lang like this before. She subconsciously froze at the door for a moment before she came back to her senses and slightly widened her eyes.
"Why don't you come in?"
Xie Lang saw Shen Mingzhu standing at the door and raised his eyebrows with a smile. "Come quickly. What are you looking at?"
Chun Tao followed behind Shen Mingzhu. As soon as she saw the things in Xie Lang's hands, she frowned and said, "Your Highness, you were injured yesterday. You can't eat these things."
Shen Mingzhu was so greedy that she couldn't hear these words. When she heard this, she directly retorted, "It's okay. This princess will only take a bite."
After saying that, she was about to take the red willow skewers in Xie Lang's hands.
"Wait wait wait."
Xie Lang took a brisk step back and looked at Shen Mingzhu with a half-smile. "This is really not for you to eat. What you eat is next door."
Shen Mingzhu: "..." Hm?
She stopped and looked at Xie Lang. "What do you mean?"
Xie Lang raised his eyebrows and looked at Shen Mingzhu. "Chun Tao is right. At least the things in my hands today, you can't touch a single bite. But the things next to you are all prepared for you."
Only then did Shen Mingzhu react. She turned her head and saw that there was actually a stove set up on one side.
"You..." Shen Mingzhu's face was complicated. She didn't know what to say to Xie Lang for a moment.
How could someone set up a stove in such a courtyard!
Shen Mingzhu took another look and saw that there were all kinds of flowers in this courtyard. It didn't look messy, but looked orderly. At a glance, it made people feel comfortable.
"Why did you make grilled meat in such a place and even set up a stove?"
There was no way to hide the surprise in Shen Mingzhu's tone. She looked at Xie Lang with a complicated expression and didn't even care that she couldn't eat these delicious things today.
When Xie Lang heard this, a bit of a smile could not help but appear in his eyes. He said to Shen Mingzhu, "Then do you want to eat?"
"Eat!"
Chun Tao, who was standing on one side and wanted to say something but stopped, "... "
Seeing Shen Mingzhu sit down, Xie Lang casually handed the red willow meat skewers he was holding to the servant to continue roasting. Then he turned around and walked to the stove, opened it, and took out the steamed meat that had been warmed there for an unknown amount of time, as well as some medicinal meals that looked extremely healthy.
After putting the things in front of Shen Mingzhu, Xie Lang got up and walked around behind the stove. He reached out and took the cloth handed over by the maid. He wrapped his hand and took out a clay pot from an unknown position. He put it in front of Shen Mingzhu and then opened the lid.
In an instant, the fragrance of the medicinal materials mixed with the strong fragrance of the chicken soup and rushed into Shen Mingzhu's nose.
"Hiss..."
Shen Mingzhu was smoked by the oncoming heat and immediately took a step back subconsciously. She said to Xie Lang, "Then this princess will eat these today?"
Xie Lang put down the lid and served soup for Shen Mingzhu. When he heard this, he looked up at her and said, "What else?"
Shen Mingzhu's eyes went straight to the grilled meat.
It wasn't that the things in front of her were not fragrant. It was just that Shen Mingzhu had been hungry for a long time. When she saw these things again and smelled the overbearing fragrance of the grilled meat, she couldn't help but drool greedily.
"These."
Shen Mingzhu pointed at the grilled meat in the servant's hand and couldn't help but frown. "This princess also wants to eat."
When Xie Lang heard this, he couldn't help but smile. He said, "It's okay. You can watch me eat."
Shen Mingzhu gritted her teeth and took the chicken soup in Xie Lang's hand. She took a sip and became even more greedy.
The people around Shen Mingzhu were all servants in the palace. They rarely made some heavy-tasting things for fear of ruining their stomachs.
"Is it fragrant?"
Seeing Shen Mingzhu bury her head in eating the medicinal meal in front of her, Xie Lang immediately became energetic. He said to her, "Let you smell it."
When Shen Mingzhu raised her eyes, she saw Xie Lang standing in front of her with a red willow skewer of meat. He shook it. The meat was sizzling and there were some oil flowers on it. It looked so fragrant that Shen Mingzhu couldn't help but swallow her saliva.
She might as well do it all at once!
Shen Mingzhu directly reached out to take it, but she didn't get it at all. Instead, she touched Xie Lang's hand.
[Hehe, let's see if Shen Mingzhu dares to do things on her own next time?]
[Starve her to death! Starve her to death!]
Shen Mingzhu gritted her teeth and looked at Xie Lang. "Are you childish or not?"
When Xie Lang heard this, he couldn't help but laugh. He looked at Shen Mingzhu and said, "Am I not childish?"
Shen Mingzhu was choked by his straightforwardness. She was stunned for a moment before she continued, "No! Give this princess a bite!"
Xie Lang was different from Shen Mingzhu. His movements were straightforward and clean. Now, as soon as Shen Mingzhu walked quickly, she looked like she was limping. She chased after Xie Lang.
"No, Shen Mingzhu."
Xie Lang frowned and stopped. He handed the meat skewers to the guard on one side and then grabbed Shen Mingzhu. "Don't chase. What if you pull the wound?"
Shen Mingzhu looked at Xie Lang. She really didn't want to emphasize who was the source of this matter.
The two of them stood there. Shen Mingzhu stared straight at Xie Lang. Just as she was about to open her mouth, she heard someone suddenly come in at the door. Chun Tao behind her suddenly turned around and gasped.