Baozi Xishi's Struggle

Everyone was making a lot of noise, but when they heard the imperial edict from the palace, they suddenly quieted down and stretched their necks to look outside.

Mr. Lu hurriedly ordered the butler to set up the incense table, and he led everyone out to welcome the guests.

Eunuch Zhou beside the emperor came in with a smile on his face, bowed to Old Master Lu and said, "Master Taifu, congratulations."

When Old Master Lu saw that Eunuch Zhou looked very happy and calm, he knew that the imperial edict must be about good things, and he felt relieved.

He hurriedly bowed to Eunuch Zhou in return and said with a smile, "Thank you, Eunuch Zhou. Congratulations to you."

When Eunuch Zhou saw that the incense table in the yard was set up, he cleared his throat and took out the imperial edict that he had been holding in his hand.

Upon seeing this, Mr. Lu quickly restrained his expression and took the lead in kneeling down.

Seeing this, Lu Lang hurriedly and quietly pulled Shen Yu's clothes, and the two walked out of the hall and knelt at the end of the crowd.

Eunuch Zhou glanced at the crowd and saw the newlyweds kneeling at the back. He smiled, then unfolded the imperial edict and began to read it.

"The Emperor, by the Mandate of Heaven, proclaims: Cook Shen Yuzhi, who takes care of the Empress Dowager's meals, is clever and thoughtful, and has devoted her efforts to teaching the soldiers cooking skills, teaching them according to their aptitude, and has accomplished a great deal."

"With his superb cooking skills, he helped the Queen Mother regain her health and comforted the soldiers who were homesick."

"In addition, the food list provided by Shen was of great help to the military's meals."

"I am very pleased, so I have appointed Shen Yuzhi as the Junior Minister of the Imperial Household Department and bestowed upon her a gold medal for her service in recognition of her merit."

"I hope you will continue to serve the court and live up to my expectations."

"Appreciate this."

After reading the imperial edict, Eunuch Zhou smiled and raised his voice to Shen Yu who was kneeling at the back, "Miss Shen, oh no, Lord Shen, come over and receive the edict."

Shaoqing of Guanglu Temple! The golden medal of walking in the palace!

Shen Yu was stunned.

Lu Lang was stunned!

The Lu family members kneeling on the ground were also dumbfounded.

The relatives and friends who came to the wedding banquet were all surprised and envious after hearing the imperial edict.

Miss Wanying stared in disbelief at Shen Yu, who was still kneeling there in a daze, her eyes almost spitting fire.

Seeing that Old Master Lu was standing there in surprise, Eunuch Zhou took a step forward, smiled and supported him, saying, "Old Master Lu, Madam Lu, please get up quickly."

"Congratulations, Master Taifu. Miss Shen is the first woman to be given an official position in our dynasty."

Lu Lang had reacted by now. He stood up, helped Shen Yu up, whispered a few words to her, and helped her straighten her long skirt to prevent her from tripping while walking.

Lu Lang stretched out his hand, Shen Yu smiled, and put his hand into Lu Lang's hand generously and naturally.

The two men joined hands and came to Eunuch Zhou from among the crowd who had already stood up and separated.

At this time, Shen Yu was still wearing her gold veil. She walked in front of Eunuch Zhou, knelt down steadily and saluted, and said in a clear voice: "My daughter Shen Yuzhi accepts the order. Long live the emperor."

Eunuch Zhou personally stepped forward and helped Shen Yu up.

When she stood firmly with the huge flower crown on her head, she placed the imperial edict and a small gold medal on a tray and handed them to Shen Yu. She smiled and bowed, saying, "Congratulations, Miss Shen, and congratulations, Lord Shaoqing."

Duke Zhou was often sent by the Emperor to the Empress Dowager's palace to deliver gifts and pay respects, so he met Shen Yu frequently during these days.

He stood in front of Shen Yu and said cheerfully, "Before I left the palace, the Empress Dowager called me over."

"The Empress Dowager said that if Lord Shen has free time in the future, he should go to the palace to visit her."

"This gold medal is what the Queen Mother asked the Emperor to give to Lord Shen, so that it will be more convenient for Lord Shen to enter and exit Kangning Palace."

"The Queen Mother also said that she missed the meals prepared by Lord Shen after getting used to them these days."

Shen Yu quickly agreed. Eunuch Zhou glanced at the people around him. Everyone knew what was going on and quickly stepped back.

But after a moment, there were only four people in front of the incense table: Eunuch Zhou, Shen Yu, Grand Tutor Lu, and Lu Lang.

Eunuch Zhou nodded with satisfaction, and lowered his voice and said, "Sir Shen, the emperor said that the food in our dynasty is very monotonous. A few days ago, the emperor received a memorial from Sir Yang, the governor of Ji'an Prefecture, who mentioned that Sir Shen had a unique way of managing the food."

"The emperor also called Magistrate Lu over to ask about it. He learned that thanks to your Fengnian Restaurant, the people of Anping County have had a much better diet."

"Especially the promotion of pork in cooking, Lord Shaoqing has made an indelible contribution."

"Today is the great day of Shaoqing and Xiaolu County Magistrate, so I won't disturb them."

"After three days of court service, the Emperor will allow you and your wife to enter the palace. Then we can discuss with the Shaoqing about the improvement of our court's diet."

Only then did Shen Yu realize that there was a reason why the emperor made an exception and conferred him an official position.

She and Lu Lang hurriedly responded respectfully. Eunuch Zhou then exchanged a few words with Old Master Lu, then left the Lu Mansion with his men and returned to the palace to report.

As soon as Eunuch Zhou left, the yard suddenly became lively again.

The little cook who was originally looked down upon by everyone for her humble family background, poor upbringing, frivolous manners, became a Shaoqing of the fifth rank in the blink of an eye with an imperial decree.

Although Guang? Temple was actually just an institution in charge of the palace's meals, it did not have any real power.

But in terms of official rank, she was much higher than her husband, the second runner-up in the imperial examination and a county magistrate of the seventh rank.

Regardless of whether they were being sincere or fake, everyone had smiles on their faces at this moment, and they all crowded in front of Mr. Lu and congratulated him loudly.

Old Master Lu listened quietly to what Eunuch Zhou said and had already understood the emperor's intentions.

Knowing that Shen Yu's cooking skills would indeed be beneficial to both the court and the people, they deliberately chose such an occasion with everyone present to confer an official title on Shen Yu in a high-profile manner.

Not only did he give the Lu family enough face, he also stood by Shen Yu openly and supported her.

These days, ever since Lu's relatives and friends learned that Lu Lang was going to marry the daughter of a merchant, a cook who ran a restaurant or an inn in a small county town, no one agreed.

Some people really felt sorry for Lu Lang, while others secretly laughed at the four boys of the Lu family for having ruined their brains by studying too much.

For a while, everyone came to the Lu Mansion and stood in front of Mr. Lu and Mrs. Lu, either to persuade or recommend young ladies from aristocratic families who they thought were more suitable for Lu Lang.

After being politely rejected, everyone openly or secretly laughed at Lu Lang for being blind and said that he shouldn't marry such a woman. The correct thing to do is to cancel the engagement as soon as possible.

Unexpectedly, when Shen Yu entered the palace, both the Emperor and the Empress Dowager praised her for her cooking skills and innocent heart.

Mr. Lu, who usually had a dignified look on his face, couldn't stop smiling. On the surface, he responded to everyone's congratulations humbly, but in his heart he was thinking happily: "Let's see who dares to look down on Xiao Si's wife this time."

"Master Shaoqing! Haha, good! It's really good!"