Chapter 1 — Bowl of Noodles Save the Lungs

In the third month of entering the palace, I was assigned to deliver meals to the palace leaders. The beautiful ladies in the room all mocked me: "If you step through the cold palace gate, you will be unlucky and you will never meet the Emperor in your whole life." I didn't pay attention to them, but my eyes suddenly flashed through each line of comments: [What do they understand, that person in the cold palace is the female general who is about to return to the world!] [The Dog Emperor still has to rely on her mother's house to fight the enemy, the female lead should quickly come out and hug her thighs!] I picked up the food box and pushed open the shabby door of the cold palace. The cruel and evil queen rumored to be wearing a plain white robe, leaning against the wall of the well, was so thin that only a handful of bones remained. I swallowed my saliva, opened the food box, and brought out a bowl of hot stewed chicken noodles. "My lady, I know you don't want to live anymore." I carefully pushed the bowl of noodles over, "But this bowl of noodles was stewed by an old hen to make broth all night long. Even if you go on a journey, can you make a full ghost?" The Queen gave me a cold glance, and a quarter of an hour later, she drank so much that there wasn't even any noodle water left. I breathed a sigh of relief. It was good to be able to eat. Being able to eat meant being able to hug my thighs. "Niang Niang, do you still want to eat? I'll go work for you again." "Actually, I also know how to make malt rolls, banh mi, char siu noodles with fresh fish and shrimp, and southern and northern delicacies. I've learned a little, let's see what you want to eat." 01 Empress Tham Van Am put down the bowl, her eyes fell on my face. She was extremely skinny, even though she was wearing old, tattered clothes, the coldness in her eyes still made people panic. "What is your name?" Her voice was hoarse, carrying the dryness of someone who hadn't opened her mouth for a long time. I obediently knelt three meters away from the stone table, bowing my head. "Slave To Duong." Tham Van Am let out a very light cold laugh. "People from outside are afraid of even getting close to this door. You are just a young lady who just entered the palace. Not only did you dare to enter here, but you also bribed me with old hen's soup." "Say, who sent you here? Dieu Quy Phi, or Trieu Canh?" Trieu Canh is the famous name of the reigning Saint. Tham Van Am dares to call the Emperor's name directly, it seems that the rumors are not exaggerated. This queen, who came from a family background, no longer had half of her feelings for the Emperor. I raised my head and looked straight into her eyes. "Your highness, no one sent me here." "This maid is just a beautiful girl from a lowly background, has no power or influence, and cannot compete with those noble ladies, nor does she want to compete for the Emperor's favor." "This maid exchanged her entire inheritance for this old hen, because I know that your parents are still bleeding blood fighting on the border, Your Majesty. Sooner or later, I will have to rely on the Tham family." "Your highness will not stay in this cold palace for the rest of your life." I paused for a moment, my tone sincere. "This slave wants to make a bet, using this bowl of noodles, in exchange for when the Dong Son reappears, she will give me a roof to protect me from the rain and wind." The stream of comments flew past my eyes: [Damn, let's play straight.] [The female lead is so brave, putting her practical intentions on the table. always.] [Playing coy in front of smart people means you want to die, this is a great move!] Tham Van Am stared at me for a long time. Having been banished to the cold palace for half a year now, she has gotten used to seeing the hedges falling down and hearing too many false words of love. I'm afraid this is the first time I've seen someone talk about clinging to power and authority in such a fresh and eloquent way, with such eloquent arguments. "You want to find a roof to protect you from the rain." Her eyes slowly scanned the wind-vented walls around her, "But right now I am also living there."

I have to get in the rain here.” I shook my head: "Your majesty is a tiger lost in the plain, this slave was born into dirt and mud." "When I was seven years old, I encountered a severe drought. Because of half a stale dumpling, I had to fight with a stray dog to eat, and almost had my neck cut off." "At that time, I understood a truth, as long as the human being is still alive and the bones are not broken, one day I will be able to stand up." I looked at her thin wrist. "Your majesty has wind. Bone general, how can one starve to death in this four-square skylight!” Tham Van Am's fingers moved slightly. She looked at the clean, empty bowl on the table. After a long while, she closed her eyes. "Tomorrow, I want to eat puff pastry." The heart hanging in my throat finally completely lowered to my stomach, and my eye sockets somehow felt a little hotter. It's delicious, it's sure to work. I replied loudly: "I understand, I will definitely bring it tomorrow!"02 Early the next morning, I took a wooden card to Ngu Thien room to receive the cold palace's rations. The cold palace's food has always been leftovers and soup, but today when I left, there were no leftovers. The eunuch in charge, surnamed Vuong, was holding a cup of hot tea and glanced sideways at me. "Miss Su, that's not smart, today the Ngu Thien room's food is lacking, Concubine Dieu Quy's appetite is not good, the Emperor has already instructed, up and down the whole palace must give priority to Duc Tu palace." "And that lady in the cold palace... hmm, a waste, even one or two meals of hunger can't kill you, come again tomorrow." A few young ladies. The assistant manager next to him chuckled. I lowered my eyes, there was nothing surprising, this was the exploration and provocation of Concubine Dieu Quy. She knew that Tham Van Am was about to rise up, and did not dare to directly send someone to poison her, so she used this method of using a blunt knife to cut her flesh, wanting to erode Tham Van Am's spirit and body until death. I'm too lazy to use money to buy this momentary peace, what I need is a fatal blow. I walked up to Cong Cong Vuong, lowered my voice, my tone was calm but each word was clear. "Your Majesty, before entering the palace, I heard people say that the war in the North is tense, the Rou Nhien army has broken three cities in a row." "The Emperor last night sent out twelve golden tokens in a row, summoned old General Tham back to the capital to arrange them." Cong Cong Vuong's face stiffened, his hand holding the teacup stopped in mid-air. I continued to look at him: "The whole Shen family is loyal, but covers up the most shortcomings." "The Duke today cut off food from the cold palace. If this matter were to be transmitted to the previous court, old General Tham would know that his daughter was banished to the cold palace. In this deep palace, there is not even a single piece of stale food to eat." I smiled slightly: "The Duke feels that, in order to comfort the Tham family, will the Emperor borrow the head on the Duke's neck for temporary use?" Cold sweat poured out on the Duke's forehead. He is not a fool, Concubine Dieu Quy is favored, that is the matter of the harem. But if the pre-dynasty country was shaken, even ten Dieu Quy Phis would not be able to save the life of a slave like him. "You, stop talking ambiguously!" His voice trembled. I took a step back and bowed respectfully. "I don't dare, I'm just an errand boy. If the servant has said he doesn't have it, then I'll go back to the palace to report." "I'll say, Princess Dieu Quy understood that the state treasury was empty, forced her to fast, to pray for the blessings of the front-line soldiers." "Stop!" The Duke jumped up, the tea splashed on the back of his hand without even bothering. wipe. He gritted his teeth and forced out a sentence through his teeth: "Go to the kitchen later, bring the newly slaughtered evil chicken and a small basket of noodles to pack for To Tu Nu!" When I carried the full box of food back to the cold palace, Tham Van Am was standing below

eaves. Today she combed her hair, and although she was still wearing a simple white dress, her back was straight. I put the fulan cake and hot evil chicken soup on the table. She looked at the bowl of soup, without moving her chopsticks, but asked me: "What did you get in exchange?" I honestly recounted what happened in Ngu Thien room, the comments passed by. [The female lead does not have a holy mother, nor does she have golden hands, completely relying on her brain and the intelligence gap to fight the information war.] [Communicating with someone whose mouth is in the right place is truly the most comfortable.] After listening quietly, Tham Van Am quietly took off the jade bracelet that had half of it cut off from her wrist, throwing it on the table. "This bracelet is not worth money, but it is a relic my ancestors left me. The old maids in the palace all recognized it." She looked at me, His voice was cold, but it exuded undeniable strength. "Take it, if anyone dares to stand in your way in the future, just hit him in the face with this." "If something happens, I'll take care of it."03 With Tham Van Am's promise, the days I served in the cold palace gave birth to a little confidence. I changed all kinds of ways to nourish her body. Her spleen was weak, so I cooked medicinal porridge. At night she developed a cough, so I took tangerine peels and snow pears, stewed them, brought them to the bedside and fed her each mouthful. I never say long words or ask kindly, I just do practical work. Half a month passed, and the blood color finally appeared on Tham Van Am's face, and her eyes, which were originally dead and quiet, gradually regained their light. But, there are always people who cannot see others living well. Late that evening, while I was drinking water in the yard, the palace door was kicked open. Grand palace maid Thuy Lieu next to Dieu Quy Phi led two mothers and proudly walked in. "Oh, this cold palace of the late queen, seems to be even more fragrant than our Duc Tu palace." Thuy Lieu covered her nose and walked closer with a disgusted look on her face. Tham Van Am sat inside the window, not even lifting her eyelids. I stood up and stood in front of the super monster. Thuy Lieu assessed me and laughed harshly: "Are you the kind of girl who willingly resigned herself to exile and ran to serve the poor girl, Miss To? You really don't know how to behave." "Your highness has a good heart, remembering that the weather is getting colder, so she specially gave her some clothes to protect her from the cold." As soon as she finished speaking, the mother behind her threw a bundle of luggage to the ground. The bundle of clothes opened, inside were all old and moldy clothes, and even a eunuch outfit with suspicious blood stains. "The noble lady said, since the late empress has repented in the cold palace, she should know what status she has." "Wearing these things, very worthy of her." Thuy Lieu covered her mouth and laughed. I looked at the dirty clothes on the ground, not angry, but instead sighed. "Auntie Thuy Lieu, you are guilty of great disrespect." Thuy Lieu's face changed: "You are so bold, relying on you, you still dare to make up stories to defame your wife?" I looked straight at her, "The current Queen Mother worships Buddhism the most, and often teaches the harem to accumulate virtue and practice good deeds. Princess Dieu Quy, as the head of the royal concubines, not only does not sympathize with the Queen Mother, but on the contrary, also brings these impure things." "If the Queen Mother knew, during the month of fasting to pray for the Emperor's blessing, you would do this kind of harsh thing, harming the royal family's virtue." I took a step forward and pressed, "Miss Miss. I feel like the Queen Mother will punish you, or will she drag out her incompetent servant aunt to vent her anger?" Thuy Lieu was so angry that her face turned pale and she raised her hand. "You dare threaten me!" She slapped me hard in the face.