After the emperor read her mind, the salted fish concubine effortlessly won the title of empress.

Chapter 233 Taking a Lazy Sleep

Li Yuanke caught her and lowered his head to kiss her.

The people below didn't dare to raise their heads.

Fortunately, Li Yuanke didn't hold on for long; after a few bites, he released her.

"What is this?"

Shen Shixi chuckled, "You've never seen one before, have you? This is a spinning wheel, used for spinning thread. The previous spinning wheels were single-spindle, which was extremely inefficient. This time, since we set up the Institute of Physics, I had the people there improve it by adding five spindles, increasing the efficiency fivefold."

Li Yuanke had Bai Ping demonstrate the procedure again, and once he understood what was going on, the two of them entered the hall together.

"There are spinning wheels for wool in Bingzhou, and that's how yarn is made. Cao Ruiyuan wanted the spinning wheels and yarn weaving techniques from the charity, which is why he joined forces with the Pei family to deal with me."

Textiles are closely related to clothing, and the interests involved are enormous. The Emperor could establish textile bureaus in the Jiangnan region. Firstly, this would allow for future trade; secondly, and most importantly, once maritime trade flourishes, control over the Jiangnan region cannot be relaxed.

Shen Shixi stopped there.

Li Yuanke held her in his arms. "This matter should be put on hold for now. The most important thing right now is the affairs of the court."

That is, the Pei family's affairs.

The Pei family is not a single family; they represent the old aristocracy, backed by a group of powerful officials from the previous dynasty. They are deeply entrenched in the court and wield immense influence.

Li Yuanke's reason for inspecting the border first was to put the military generals under his control.

Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.

Rough words are not rough.

What is the purpose of gaining an advantage in the court? It's nothing more than profit.

The interests that Shen Shixi mentioned were too great. In order to seize the interests of the royal family, court officials could join forces, and political enemies could become allies.

Before Shen Shixi had eaten, she had someone serve her food. In the small kitchen today, she ordered people to make eight-treasure duck and braised pork, both of which were common dishes she had eaten in her previous life.

She does want to eat braised catfish, but if she opens her mouth, her servants will have to run themselves ragged trying to get the catfish back to the capital alive. It's going to be incredibly wasteful and exhausting for everyone.

She also didn't want to be the subject of a poem in the future: "A rider in red dust brings a smile to the imperial concubine's face, but no one else comes but a catfish."

Both of them ate very comfortably. After the meal, they strolled in the small garden to digest. The moon was very round tonight, perhaps because too many people had been killed in the capital recently, as if it were shrouded in a layer of blood.

After walking around for a while, about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Li Yuanke pulled her to sit down in the pavilion and held her on his lap.

Two osmanthus trees were planted in the courtyard, their fragrance filling the air. The two embraced and kissed passionately amidst this intoxicating aroma.

After a long while, Li Yuanke, panting heavily, pressed his nose against hers and said, "You bastard, if I hadn't come, you wouldn't have come looking for me!"

Shen Shixi touched his face twice, pushed him away, and leaned on his shoulder. "Oh, I was afraid you'd think I didn't serve you as well as others, so I didn't dare to go looking for someone else."

Li Yuanke scoffed, "You're afraid of that?"

"Of course I'm scared!" She yawned. "Li Yuanke, what are you being so dramatic about?"

Li Yuanke said, "Han Xiao came to the palace to see me and said he wanted to marry your cousin."

"They've asked you to arrange a marriage?"

"No, she complained to me, saying that you gave your cousin a bad idea, telling her to find Han Xiao... Was this your idea?" Li Yuanke said, putting his arm around her.

Shen Shixi perked up and sat up. "Really? He actually dared to complain to you? Isn't he afraid I'll convince my cousin she absolutely won't marry him? Wait, what happened between them?"

Li Yuanke couldn't bring himself to say "borrow seed," and hesitated to speak.

[Wow, my cousin might have gotten pregnant? Good heavens, she's a real heroine! Han Xiao is quite sensible; who cares, as long as she gets pregnant, the rest is in her own hands.]

But who has the initiative depends on who.

If Du Hanyun knew that her cousin thought this way, she would cry, because the initiative was now clearly in Han Xiao's hands.

Li Yuanke couldn't understand it. "Why didn't you let your cousin marry Han Xiao? Why did you have to come up with this idea?"

"What's so great about getting married?" Shen Shixi rolled her eyes at him. "Isn't it better to live alone?"

"Then why did you let your cousin have a child with Han Xiao?"

"Not wanting a man doesn't mean not wanting children. What kind of strange idea is that? Isn't it normal for a woman to want to have her own child?"

Is it normal to not have a father?

"That's hilarious, Li Yuanke. You have so many sons and daughters, does it make a difference whether they have a father or not?"

"You bastard, how dare you speak to me like that? If it weren't for me, would they even be considered princes and princesses? At least I gave them a title!"

That makes a lot of sense. In an era with such strict order, status and titles are indeed very important.

"Ugh, you're so annoying! What business is it of yours with my cousin? Han Xiao, really, it's such a small thing, why are you making such a fuss about it!"

She cupped Li Yuanke's face in her hands and kissed him, saying, "Li Yuanke, a moment of passion on this night is worth a thousand pieces of gold!"

"If you've been thinking about it, why don't you come to me?"

"Oh, you only think of me when you come and not when you don't? Don't flatter yourself. I wasn't thinking of you at all!"

Li Yuange was furious. He pinned her to the stone table and kissed her, but Shen Shixi kicked him, saying, "It's cold, so cold!"

Li Yuanke quickly picked her up and carried her back to his palace.

After soaking in the hot spring pool for a while, they started playing on the tatami mat next to it.

It was mid-September, and the weather was turning cooler. The hot spring inside the palace was filled with steam, so it wasn't cold.

The two had been estranged for some time, and Li Yuanke had no intention of stopping.

Shen Shixi was also crazy, pressing him down on the bed and kissing him relentlessly.

Li Yuanke looked up at the ceiling, his strong arms wrapped around her waist. His chest was thick and broad, with a thin layer of pectoral muscles that was very sexy. The muscles on his arms were bulging and the lines were smooth. His abdominal muscles were clearly defined as he exerted force.

Shen Shixi was nibbling at his abs, his tongue sweeping across his V-line.

Li Yuanke endured the torture as if he were being tortured, his whole body drenched in sweat.

"You bastard, are you trying to suffocate me?"

……

The two got into bed, and while they were sleeping, they couldn't help but fight again. It lasted a long time, and by the time they finished, it was almost dawn.

Fortunately, there was no morning court session, and the two slept soundly.

Li Yuange felt a tightness in his chest and was woken up by the pressure. Without even opening his eyes, he picked her up and tried to straighten her up, but ended up grabbing her feet. For some reason, Shen Shixi ended up sleeping on the other side of the night, her feet almost touching Li Yuange's face.

Li Yuanke got up, pulled her back, and held her tightly in his arms.

Outside the door, Bai Ping mustered up all her courage and called out, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"

Shen Shixi was still asleep, so Li Yuanke asked, "What is it?"

Bai Ping said, "The Empress Dowager has summoned you."

Shen Shixi woke up, annoyed. "What's wrong so early in the morning?"

Bai Ping glanced outside and saw that the sun was high in the sky. "Your Majesty, it's past Chen Shi (7-9 AM)."

That means it's already past nine o'clock.

"It's not noon yet!" She had no choice but to get up, sitting on the bed, her morning grumpiness still quite strong. "What is it? Did you tell me?"

Lan Ying came in and said, "Your Majesty, there have been rumors circulating in the palace these past few days, which have reached the Empress Dowager's ears. The Empress Dowager ordered the Empress to investigate, and it turns out that the rumors originated in Zhaoyang Palace, and that Ting Yu spread them."

Shen Shixi was a little confused. "What rumor? Did Tingyu say it?"