056. The Foodie Who Never Gains Weight

Le Qianxue saw him smile for once, and it warmed her heart.

Then she said, “Of course. As the saying goes, vengeance must be taken; don’t let regrets stain your life.”

Zhan Lianjing fell silent for a moment before replying, “That’s true. The shorter the time, the more one must avoid regrets.”

Le Qianxue nodded; that was precisely how she saw things. After all, this was her second life, and she intended to live it happily.

As dawn approached, Le Qianxue kept yawning. Seeing her like this, Zhan Lianjing allowed her to go back and rest.

She slept soundly until noon.

Having grown accustomed to life in the General’s Manor—where meals arrived at her table and clothes were handed to her—she woke up expecting food.

But she had forgotten she was now in the Imperial Prison!

She ruffled her hair in exasperation. There was certainly nothing good to eat in the prison, and it was all Zhan Lianjing’s fault!

But she hadn’t realized that worse was still to come.

“Qianxue…” Yuan Tianzi’s voice sounded weak. “It’s almost noon.”

“So what?” Le Qianxue frowned, sensing something odd about Yuan Tianzi.

He sighed and pointed toward Zhan Lianjing’s cell. “Prince Zhan says you must cook.”

Le Qianxue sprang up and nearly knocked Yuan Tianzi out.

“Me? Cook?” She was stunned. Her hands were meant for preparing medicine, yet now she was to cook?

At that moment, Le Qianxue felt an urge to strangle Zhan Lianjing. How could he be so ungrateful, making demands as he pleased!

What did he take her for?

Naturally, Le Qianxue refused. She hadn’t been happy about coming to the prison at midnight, and now she was expected to cook—absolutely not!

She snorted, “There’s a royal kitchen in the palace. Has he gone mad?”

Yuan Tianzi nodded in agreement, thinking Prince Zhan was deliberately making things hard for Le Qianxue.

Both he and Yin Susu knew Le Qianxue only knew medicine—the rest was beyond her.

“I tried to tell him, but Prince Zhan didn’t seem to hear a word,” Yuan Tianzi said helplessly.

Le Qianxue couldn’t be bothered to argue with Zhan Lianjing. “Then you stay and look after him. I’m leaving.”

Yuan Tianzi’s face changed. “Le Qianxue, how can you be so heartless!”

She hurried off, not wanting to linger and suffer.

She was the eldest daughter of the General’s Manor—what could Zhan Lianjing possibly do to her?

But as she was about to leave the prison, the commander stopped her, “Miss Le!”

Seeing their stance, Le Qianxue felt a foreboding.

“What is it? You won’t let me leave?”

“The emperor commands that Miss Le remain here to care for Prince Zhan until he leaves the prison!” The commander spoke solemnly. “If Miss Le wishes to go to the royal kitchen, I will send someone with you. Otherwise, you must not leave the prison!”

Le Qianxue was stunned, barely able to react.

Good heavens, this was house arrest!

And all thanks to that scoundrel Zhan Lianjing!

She gritted her teeth. “I’m an unmarried woman—must I stay in the prison? What about my reputation?!”

The commander sweated—wasn’t it rumored that Le Qianxue had once harassed Zhan Lianjing? With his looks, it seemed she was the one benefiting.

But he kept those thoughts to himself.

“Miss Le, you’re mistaken. Now all the citizens of the capital know Prince Zhan is unwell, and you and Doctor Yuan are here to care for him. Who would say a word against you? Everyone praises you!” The commander spoke smoothly.

Le Qianxue swallowed her anger, cursing Zhan Lianjing inwardly again and again.

So Zhan Lianjing really treated her as a maidservant.

She said, “I don’t believe the emperor truly wants me to stay. I demand to see him!”

The commander was firm. “Miss Le, there’s no doubt—the emperor insists. He also wants you to find a way to help Prince Zhan out of the prison.”

Then, in a low voice, he added, “The emperor is in a difficult position now. If you wish to earn merit, help Prince Zhan leave the prison quickly.”

Le Qianxue suddenly understood—Zhan Lianjing was locked in a contest of wills with the emperor!

If so, why drag her into it?

She pursed her lips, unwilling but helpless. “Take me to the royal kitchen.”

The commander’s eyes lit up; Le Qianxue had finally relented, making things easier.

Zhan Lianjing heard this and allowed himself a slight smile.

But he hadn’t expected that after Le Qianxue’s trip to the royal kitchen, the only thing sent was a plate of fruit.

The palace maid timidly explained, “Miss Le said she can’t cook, only cut fruit, so that’s all she could send.”

Zhan Lianjing’s face darkened; he hadn’t imagined Le Qianxue truly couldn’t cook!

But he refused to believe she was so useless. “Tell her, whatever I eat, she eats.”

The palace maid hurried off to relay the message.

Meanwhile, Le Qianxue was in the royal kitchen, arranging a fruit platter for herself and Yuan Tianzi—it looked beautiful and was ample for two.

But when the palace maid returned with news, Le Qianxue was taken aback. She had hoped to have the imperial chef make her something delicious, but…

This Zhan Lianjing was ruthless!

Unfortunately, she really couldn’t cook.

She wouldn’t dare eat anything she made herself.

At last, Le Qianxue thought of a solution and quickly had the staff prepare ingredients.

By afternoon, the palace maid returned to the prison with a new dish.

This time, it was a pot of stewed soup, rich in ingredients, and as soon as the lid was lifted, a fragrant aroma wafted out.

Zhan Lianjing glanced at it. “Did Le Qianxue make this herself?”

The maid replied, “Yes, though the chicken was butchered by the chef. But all the medicinal herbs and steps were handled by Miss Le herself.”

Le Qianxue had made a medicinal stew—she only understood things related to herbs.

She mixed the herbs together, tossed them in, and let it simmer for two or three hours. Simple and convenient.

What the maid didn’t mention was that Le Qianxue had almost burned down the royal kitchen while adding firewood, and didn’t notice the pot was dry, nearly ruining it entirely.

Now, the imperial chefs treated Le Qianxue like a deity, afraid she’d destroy the kitchen.

Zhan Lianjing tasted the soup and nearly spat it out.

“Sweet?!” He almost choked; it was his first time tasting such a medicinal soup.

The maid was startled, realizing Le Qianxue must have mistaken sugar for salt!

Such a blunder…

The maid was speechless, simply hoping Zhan Lianjing wouldn’t get angry.

But he drank the soup with a darkened expression.

The maid breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhan Lianjing asked, “Where is she?”

“She’s still in the royal kitchen,” the maid replied. “I noticed Miss Le loves pastries and insisted the chef make some for her.”

Zhan Lianjing frowned—hadn’t they agreed she wasn’t allowed to eat?

But as he looked at the chicken soup, his expression softened. “Fine. Let her bring the pastries back here. Tell her if she so much as steals a piece, I’ll pull out one of her teeth.”

The maid was terrified; Prince Zhan truly was cold and ruthless, even thinking of tooth extraction as punishment.

Soon, his cell was laden with plates of pastries in every style.

Le Qianxue sat upright, not daring to move—since Zhan Lianjing hadn’t taken the first bite, how could she?

The two remained at an impasse.

Le Qianxue had barely eaten all day; her stomach was rumbling.

She couldn’t help but ask, “Prince Zhan, are you going to eat or not? If you don’t, I’ll eat them myself.”

She did love sweets, especially palace pastries—they were delicious.

Zhan Lianjing saw her nearly drooling and finally said, “Do you see how far I am from the table? How could I eat?”

Le Qianxue was momentarily speechless—there was indeed a gap, and Zhan Lianjing couldn’t possibly get out of bed.

She smiled, “Why didn’t you say so sooner? I’ll bring them to you.”

She took a small plate, selected several pastries, and placed them before Zhan Lianjing.

Le Qianxue concealed her temper before Zhan Lianjing; she couldn’t afford to offend him and needed to curry favor.

He accepted the chopsticks. “You brought back so many—can you eat them all?”

“I certainly can,” Le Qianxue replied.

“Won’t you get sick of them?” Zhan Lianjing frowned.

Le Qianxue said, “Of course not. You don’t eat just one kind. After a piece of osmanthus cake, switch to chestnut cake, alternate flavors—it’s perfect.”

Without further ado, she sat down and prepared to eat.

The palace pastries were indeed wonderful, and Le Qianxue delighted in them.

Zhan Lianjing’s plate held only four pieces, and he ate slowly.

The first time he looked back, half the pastries remained.

The second time, only six were left.

The third time, Le Qianxue had finished the last piece.

He even felt her gaze linger on his plate.

Zhan Lianjing was speechless. “Were you a starving ghost in your past life?”

“How awful to say ‘starving ghost’!” Le Qianxue was indignant. “I simply enjoy pastries, that’s all.”

Zhan Lianjing turned away. “You’re just greedy. In the future, someone could lure you away with a piece of sugar.”

Le Qianxue laughed. “Of course not! But I do hope my future husband can make all kinds of sweets…”

In her previous life, Le Qianxue had thought the same.

And she was the type who could eat as much as she liked without gaining weight, eating to her heart’s content!