The Empress Wants To Be Deposed!

Chapter 7 Part 1: Put it on again!

Song Jinning met Li Chengxuan's surprised gaze, and she subconsciously sat up straight.

But then she thought about it, she needed to pretend to be a lady in front of Empress Dowager Song, but why would she need to pretend to be a lady in front of Li Chengxuan?

This person was very tired of her in his heart, and she doesn't need him for anything, so she could do whatever she wants. 

It is better for Li Chengxuan to think that she is not doing well, so that he will depose her sooner. 

As a result, the back that had just straightened immediately fell back. Her sitting posture was worse than it had been before. 

Li Chengxuan accidentally caught a glimpse of her sitting posture, and he was truly surprised.

After being surprised, he immediately frowned.

Although Song Jinning was born in a noble family, she did not have the etiquette training that aristocrats should have. As a child, she was very arrogant and domineering, not to mention having extremely rude mannerisms that were definitely the opposite of a lady.

Seeing her this time, he looked at her several times, and felt that her temperament seemed to have changed a lot from that of her childhood.

When he came with her to pay respects to the Empress Dowager just now, he saw that she was generous and docile, and thought she had really changed.

But she was just pretending! As soon as Empress Dowager Song left, she immediately revealed her true colors.

Li Chengxuan turned his head in disgust.

It seemed as though his eyes would become dirtier if he looked at her more.

Song Jinning clearly saw the disgust in his eyes, but she was not annoyed, in fact she was happy. 

She remembered the novel "How my sister-in-law became my empress". At the beginning of the story, Li Chengxuan was a cold emperor. 

She still remembers the description of Li Chengxuan in the book. It was the classic novel male lead traits: indifference, dominance, paranoia, etc. 

However, Li Chengxuan is only 18 years old now, and he has not yet become the cold emperor he was in the book, so Song Jinning can still see what he is thinking by looking at his face and eyes.

But what does this have to do with her? She was just a passerby in this person's life. In two or three years, she would wave her sleeves and leave, and then never see him again.

She stretched out her hand and took a cup that was on the side table, opened the cover, and while slowly sipping the tea inside, she looked at the furnishings of Shoukang Palace.

It took about half an hour before Empress Dowager Song returned.

After coming back, she continued to talk endlessly.

*

Soon enough, it was time for lunch. 

If this is a normal family, having one's nephew or brother for dinner, it would be a normal thing. 

But this is the palace and the two people Song Shao will be eating with are the Emperor and Empress Dowager. 

So this is not just 'lunch', but a great honor worthy of two lifetimes. 

Song Shao hurriedly knelt down to give thanks.

Ater a short while, servants and eunuchs came to serve food.

From the plates, to the utensils, to the food itself, Song Jinning felt that it was too ostentatious.

As for the dishes, it's probably because Song Jinning has followed her father's tastes over the years, that she felt that these royal dishes are lacking in taste. 

After sitting down and tasting a few dishes, disappointment surged in her heart.

But after thinking about it, she understood why.

One of the rules in the palace, that even if it is just food, the ‘royalness’ cannot be lacking. In short, the more precious the ingredients, the better. This greatly limits the performance of the royal chefs.

Secondly, if the chefs make new food, they also have to worry about their masters not liking their food. With this in mind, who would dare to create different food?

It means making more mistakes, and that is not good. 

Lastly, how is it possible for the masters to eat only one or two dishes? This is the Forbidden City, anyone with standing would eat at least ten dishes at a time. 

If it’s a particularly high ranking master, more than a dozen dishes have to be made during a meal.

What's more, how many masters are there in the palace? There are just too many. 

So these imperial meals must be prepared early in the morning, so with just one order of the master, the food will come running. 

In order to ensure that the pre-made imperial meal is still hot when it arrives in front of the master, it must be kept in a cage for heating, or warmed with hot water. In this way, no matter what the dish is, it would still be hot and ready for eating. 

If it's someone else, this royal meal would be fine, but Song Jinning has an expert foodie for a father….

Song Jinning raised her eyes and looked at her brother. Although no expression can be seen on his face, it is still obvious that the meal is not to his taste. 

So after sitting still a little bit, Song Shao got up and told everyone that he will be leaving for Yunnan tomorrow. 

Empress Dowager Song was naturally reluctant for him to leave, but with the previous emperor's decree, she was helpless.

She had to nod and agree.

Song Shao knelt down to say goodbye to Empress Dowager Song, Li Chengxuan, and Song Jinning.

Song Jinning felt very uncomfortable.

Knowing that she shouldn't come after him, but seeing Song Shao turning away, she still got up and said to Empress Dowager Song and Li Chengxuan, "Auntie, Your Majesty, Chenqie has a gift to give to her brother.”

For the Empress Dowager, these two are her relatives. One is her nephew and the other is her niece. 

Moreover, Song Jinning is now married, and Song Shao will be far away from her from now on. Empress Dowager Song doesn’t know when they will meet. Why won’t she let them say goodbye?

So she immediately nodded in agreement.

As for Li Chengxuan, he naturally has no reason to object.

Song Jinning got up and walked out of the hall with Song Shao.