Yan Shu has inhabited Yongning Palace for three years without once glimpsing the emperor. While her rival concubines plotted relentlessly, she remained fixated on her gossip system—a treasure trove of palace scandals too delicious to ignore. Daily revelations kept her thoroughly entertained: illegitimate heirs, secret affairs, hidden mistresses—who had time to worry about an absent emperor? Everything shifts when she uncovers a bombshell: the seemingly invulnerable sovereign harbors a shameful secret that explains his conspicuous absence from the harem. Yan Shu's world tilts. Why was she summoned to the palace at all? Emperor Yu Wenlan carries two burdens since claiming the throne. His body has gradually betrayed him with an embarrassing affliction. Yet this curse came paired with an unexpected gift—he hears others' unguarded thoughts. Drowning in false smiles and duplicity, he grows increasingly detached, until a distinctive inner voice penetrates his isolation. What he discovers shocks him. This apparently demure young woman's raw, unfiltered musings assault his sensibilities daily. She critiques his condition with alarming candor, suggests dubious remedies, and somehow—impossibly—becomes his heart's sole treasure. Yan Shu ascends to Empress, oblivious to how her constant provocations captured him completely. A twist of fate, perhaps. A 1v1 comedic romance featuring mouthwatering cuisine and a couple equally cunning in matters of love. Chapters 63-65 contain sensitive content regarding false identities—reader discretion advised.