A Foodie Transmigrated into the Palace

Chapter 783: Chapter 783 Rectification

Xiao Xizi hesitated before advising, ”Consort Xian, if we follow the rules, indeed, we are still short of three Palace Maids here!”

Xia Ruqing’s gaze turned cold. ”Don’t mention being short three; even if we were short thirty, I would be the one to personally select them! When did it become her turn to decide?”

Xia Ruqing flicked her sleeve and sat back down on the soft couch. Leaning to one side, she drank half a cup of tea, then instructed, ”Enough of that. Where have you arranged for those three Palace Maids? Bring them here for me to see. If they are fine, then so be it. But if not, I truly must go and find her myself!”

Xiao Xizi hurriedly answered, ”They have been arranged to sweep the back courtyard under Qiu Ye’s supervision. I will bring them to you right away, Consort Xian!” After speaking, he kowtowed and swiftly left.

「...」

”Your servants, Yuyu, Anan, and Lanlan, pay our respects to Consort Xian!”

The three Little Palace Maids looked quite young. At this moment, they were kneeling, respectfully kowtowing to her.

Xia Ruqing looked them over carefully but noticed nothing out of the ordinary. She simply smiled faintly. ”Are all of you from the Ministry of Internal Affairs?”

The one named Anan stepped forward with a smile and answered, ”In response to Consort Xian, all of us servants are new from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, selected by the Noble Consort to serve you. The Noble Consort also said... to make sure to serve you well!”

”Oh?” Xia Ruqing suddenly became interested. She slowly stood up and looked Anan over. ”You... you are called Anan, right?”

The Palace Maid seemed very pleased and smiled as she said, ”Yes! For Consort Xian to remember this servant’s humble name, I am endlessly grateful!”

Her surprised and delighted expression seems ironic to me. It’s just servitude—what is there to be so pleased about?! I can’t understand it. Xia Ruqing simply smiled faintly and put the thought aside. ”You have served at my Qingya Residence for a few days now. How do you find it?”

She had heard from Xiao Xizi that they had been assigned menial cleaning work in the back courtyard, which prompted her question.

The three Palace Maids exchanged glances secretly, and one of them, Lanlan, raised her head and said, ”This servant, Lanlan, pays respects to Consort Xian! To answer Consort Xian, who in the Harem doesn’t know that you are the Emperor’s beloved! You have also raised three Princes! Everyone in the Harem is hoping and waiting for an opportunity to bask in your favor. For us to be selected to serve Consort Xian is the fortune of our three lifetimes! I hope Consort Xian won’t despise this servant for being foolish!”

The way she spoke was seamless. Even I feel as if I’m about to be outdone, Xia Ruqing thought.

She chuckled. ”With such a clever mouth, no wonder the Noble Consort picked you!”

The Palace Maid named Lanlan immediately kowtowed. ”Consort Xian flatters me! The Noble Consort saw that we were diligent and willing to endure hardship, which is why she sent us here! I hope Consort Xian won’t find us unacceptable!” While Lanlan spoke, she kowtowed again.

Xia Ruqing laughed. ”Since you all are so keen on performing menial tasks, then be off with you! Where is Qiu Ye?” She turned her head to look outside.

”This servant is here!” Qiu Ye had been standing outside all along.

Xia Ruqing then instructed, ”Take them away! You no longer need to do menial work; I’m promoting you to a Second Class Palace Maid, specifically in charge of them! All the rough and arduous tasks under your supervision will be handed over to them!”

”Yes!” Qiu Ye responded.

The faces of the new Palace Maids changed, and two even looked like they wanted to flee in panic.

「...」

After sending off those Palace Maids, Xia Ruqing heaved a long sigh. She had finished observing them and now had a clear idea of the situation. ”Indeed, none of them are easy to handle!” she muttered.

Xiao Xizi and Zi Yue, standing by her side, tried to persuade her. ”Since it’s like this, Your Highness, you should hurry and send them away to avoid trouble!”

However, Xia Ruqing shook her head. ”If Noble Concubine Shih can send one batch in, she could possibly send in a second! There’s a saying that one can be a thief for a thousand days, but there’s no way to guard against a thief for a thousand days! Now... we are in the shadows, and the enemy is in the light; this is somewhat easier to control!”

Xiao Xizi, upon reflection, agreed, then added, ”Even so, we cannot just sit here and wait for disaster!”

Xia Ruqing looked at them both and then smiled. ”Rest assured!”

There’s a kind of loss called ’losing the lady and suffering a blow to the army.’ Noble Concubine Shih, surely you wouldn’t want to experience that, would you? Actually, sometimes, I truly can’t understand. A Noble Consort of high standing, controlling the power of the Six Palaces—she has everything she could want. Why does she insist on making things difficult for me? If it’s about losing favor, her loss of favor has nothing to do with me. The Emperor’s affections are beyond my control, right? Besides, so many others have lost favor; why don’t I see them creating havoc day and night? Others can endure hardship, but she can’t? Does losing favor mean death?

Xia Ruqing lay listlessly on the soft couch, flipping through a storybook. She imagined what would happen if she, too, lost favor one day.

With this thought, she looked around the room. What could happen? I have three sons! Who could do anything to me?!

Thinking this way, Xia Ruqing felt her heart swell with contentment. Good days are surely ahead, aren’t they? Who would make life difficult for themselves and choose to live a hard life? I aim for a comfortable life; even if I lost favor, I wouldn’t end up like Noble Concubine Shih, reaping no benefits and only managing to annoy others. Why forsake a perfectly good life for such troubles?

Perhaps due to exhaustion, she fell asleep while still flipping through the storybook. The soft couch, though not as warm as a bed, was laid with various furs and soft cushions. On top of that, she was covered with a newly issued goose-down quilt from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Xia Ruqing’s sleep was exceptionally sweet.

When she woke up, Zi Su was just bringing in a bowl of lotus seed porridge. ”Your Highness, this has just been freshly made by Chef Su. It contains fritillaria bulbs, red dates, white fungus, and rock sugar! It’s excellent for nourishing yin, moistening dryness, enriching the blood, and boosting qi!”

Xia Ruqing got up to wash her face, then brought the soup to her lips. After tasting a spoonful, she smiled. ”Not bad, you added honey, right? It’s so fragrant!”

”Yes! If Your Highness likes it, please enjoy more!”

Xia Ruqing then replied with a smile, ”Chef Su indeed does a fine job; her snacks and delicacies taste even better than the Imperial Chef’s! It seems I’m in for a treat! Right, the Emperor also said he would find me a kitchen maid from the Chuan Region, but I wonder when that will happen!”

Zi Yue, at the side, then advised, ”Your Highness, you should listen to the Imperial Physician and avoid eating too much spicy food!”

Xia Ruqing said, ”I didn’t say I have to eat spicy food, but the Chuan Region’s cuisine is quite interesting!” I wonder if it’s still the same as the modern version; I used to like it very much anyway. ”Let it be, let’s not talk about this! Tomorrow is New Year’s Eve; we must prepare well! We’ll set aside these matters of the palace for now and settle them in detail after the New Year!”

”Yes!” Zi Yue smiled brightly.

So Consort Xian has plans already! That’s good, that’s very good!

In Qingya Residence, there were three Princes, one master, and one small kitchen. There were indeed far too many people. Apart from those sent by the Emperor initially, there were also those temporarily assigned by the Ministry of Internal Affairs when she gave birth because there weren’t enough hands. And those given by the Noble Consort! The personnel affairs were quite chaotic.

It really is time for a thorough reorganization!