"Miss Sang's makeup today is quite unique. How come I've never seen it before?"

Sang Jiang: ...

Does the empress think she's too beautiful and stealing her thunder? Besides, I don't think I've ever seen her before, so why is she looking at me like I'm a love rival?

When Sang Rui heard Sang Jiang being praised, she surprisingly didn't feel jealous; instead, she looked on with amusement.

The First Madam rose and respectfully bowed to the Empress.

The Empress was startled and hurriedly said, "What do you mean by this, Prime Minister's wife? Please get up."

"Your Majesty, I have failed in my duty to discipline my daughter and dare not rise. This rebellious daughter has offended you. It is all my fault for neglecting her upbringing."

Sangjiang: ? ? ?

Is this the beginning?

The Empress looked at the First Madam with a bewildered expression: "What do you mean by this?"

The First Lady lowered her head even further: "This humble woman did not know when this rebellious daughter painted this peony between her eyebrows. It is all this humble woman's fault! Please punish me, Your Majesty!"

All eyes immediately turned to Sang Jiang's forehead.

Sang Ruo kept twisting the handkerchief in her hand and trying to wink at the First Madam, but the First Madam's attention was entirely on Sang Jiang and she didn't even glance at her.

The Empress also stared at Sang Jiang's brow for a long time.

Seeing that the atmosphere was just right, Sang Jiang gracefully stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I have not offended you. And the flower on my forehead is not a peony. The peony is the king of flowers, so only you can paint it. The flower on my forehead is a cherry blossom."

As soon as she finished speaking, everyone's eyes turned to her again.

The First Madam was also taken aback; she hadn't expected Sang Jiang to say something like that at this moment.

The Empress raised an eyebrow at her: "Tell me about it."

“Your Majesty, please look closely. Although the peonies and cherry blossoms are drawn similarly, each petal of the cherry blossom has a notch, but the peony does not. Each petal on my forehead has a notch.”

The Empress Dowager became interested upon hearing this and, before the Empress could speak, said directly, "Come here and let me take a look."

Sang Jiang nodded and walked to the Empress Dowager with composure under the gaze of everyone.

"That's true, but your drawing is quite beautiful. How did you draw it?"

Sang Jiang smiled slightly and said, "Your Majesty, I used a brush dipped in cinnabar to paint it. I call it a flower ornament."

"Huadian, hmm, quite interesting. The color of your lip rouge is also quite unique."

"This was made by me."

"Madam Prime Minister, you have raised a daughter who is intelligent, kind-hearted, and skillful. What crime have you committed? Get up now."

While the Empress Dowager looked at her makeup with great interest, she also couldn't help but glance at the Empress with a hint of pride.

Sang Jiang quickly realized that the Empress Dowager wasn't interested in her at all; she was interested in anything that could suppress the Empress.

Upon hearing this, the First Madam could only force a smile and grit her teeth as she returned to her seat.

"Someone, prepare a seat for the Fourth Miss. You can sit next to me today."

Sang Rui looked at Sang Jiang with a hint of jealousy and resentment in her eyes.

Sang Jiang curtsied and thanked the emperor.

Looks like today's delicious food and wine are going to be a bust again.

The empress also gave an awkward laugh, which prompted everyone to begin the banquet.

The crowd then offered another round of toasts and flattery.

Sang Jiang knew her alcohol tolerance, so she only took a small sip each time.

She looked at the delicious food in front of her and really wanted to devour it, but she knew that if she did, her image as a starving wolf would be known throughout the entire Dongchen Kingdom the next day.

After everyone had finished toasting, the Empress spoke up: "Madam Prime Minister, there is another joyous occasion in your household today..."