Chapter 49 Who will win?

This was the first grand palace banquet since the emperor and empress returned from Fengtian after the rebellion.

Several tables were arranged in order, and palace maids were coming and going. The Empress Dowager and the concubines were about to arrive in their sedan chairs. The Queen signaled everyone to get ready and wait outside the hall. She dismissed everyone and only took the Prince to the high pavilion of the Xuanhui Hall.

The prince was distracted, standing at the window of the high pavilion, staring down unconsciously.

The Queen knew what he was looking at, so she walked over to the Prince and looked at it from his perspective.

The long wind outside the railing blew up Qiandeng's hair and plain clothes. Her drooping cheeks and slender neck were like a white peony in the dark night, illuminating the hazy world and making people feel excited.

The Queen exclaimed in admiration, "The Changhua Palace has produced beauties in every generation. Forty years ago, the entire northwest army sang the praises of the Changhua Prince's elegance. Twenty years ago, the Grand Princess of Gao State fell in love with the Changhua Prince and pressured him to divorce his wife, but was unable to do so. Now, Lingling is growing up day by day, even more dazzling than her father and grandfather. Who knows who will eventually marry this stunning beauty of Chang'an?"

As she spoke, she studied the prince's gloomy face, and finally said, "Many of her fiancées have met with tragic deaths. Such is her fate. No matter what, this flower will never bloom in our Daming Palace."

The prince knew what the queen meant. He only murmured, "Why did my mother resolve this matter this way?"

"People have died everywhere in Daming Palace," the Queen said, unconcerned. "Besides, this was the prisoner's own choice. If he did something dishonest and can't avenge his master, he should be sensible and take responsibility for his mistakes."

Below, Cui Fufeng was walking down the jade steps, holding the brocade box containing the nine golden flowers in his hand, and turned back to gesture to Qiandeng.

The sunlight bathed their figures. They were two steps apart, but the breeze lifted the light gauze shawl on her body, occasionally brushing against his slender body like Hsinchu. Their entangled gazes were as ambiguous and vague.

It felt like a sharp-toothed insect was gnawing at his heart and lungs, causing both numbness and pain. The prince gripped the window frame tightly, his knuckles turning white from the tightness.

"Is the Queen Mother on the side of Auntie and Fuyu?"

"I don't take sides, nor do I care about right or wrong. I simply choose the most appropriate way to handle this matter." The Queen turned back and sat down in the pavilion, saying coldly, "No matter what the truth is, the dignity of the Imperial Aunt and the reputation of the future Crown Princess must be well protected. There's no need to make a big fuss over such a trivial matter."

The prince turned around, unwilling to watch Qiandeng and Cui Fufeng walk away. "Lingling's reputation, her life's destiny, is it just a small matter?"

"Yes," the Queen replied crisply, leaving no room for doubt. "Besides, you actually left your official duties to come to her for such a trivial matter, which also disappointed my mother."

The prince pursed his lips tightly and said nothing.

"You have seen that Lingling has grown up now. She is smart and decisive. She can break through the situation on her own even in a hurry. She doesn't need your help at all." The queen's voice turned cold. She raised her hand and tapped the window frame, isolating herself from everything outside.

"In comparison, you, the Crown Prince, disappoint my mother. Why did the Grand Princess and Changyi suddenly attack Lingling? It's naturally because you made a mistake and made them feel a sense of crisis. There can be no more turmoil in the court. The positions of the Crown Prince and the future Empress cannot be deviated. Staying away from Lingling is your best protection for her. Yan'er, my father and mother both hope that you can abide by the rules and stop revealing your thoughts that shouldn't be there, causing others to speculate!"

As the Empress Dowager and Consort Dowager's sedan chair approached, Qian Deng and the others were waiting quietly. Suddenly, they felt someone tug at their sleeves, followed by a child's low voice: "Sister County Master."

Qiandeng looked down and saw a child wearing a red fox fur coat emerging from behind him. The bright red fur hugged his cute, fair cheeks, making him extremely adorable. It was none other than Li Zi, the fourth son of Prince Guang.

Seeing this bright and beautiful child, Qian Deng couldn't help but feel a little relieved. She bent down and greeted him, "Young Master, are you entering the palace today?"

Li Zi nodded. "Yes, in two days, my father and I will be leaving for Luoyang. Today I came to say goodbye to the Empress Dowager and the Consorts. They invited me to have dinner in the palace, but I can run faster than them!"

After only a few words, the sedan chair stopped and the eunuchs helped the Queen Mother and the Concubine Dowager up the stairs.

Li Zi ran back to Empress Dowager Yang, Qian Deng bowed with everyone else, and the Empress also came out to greet them with the Crown Prince.

The banquet was filled with clinking glasses and elaborate celebrations. Every two courses, there was a round of toasts and prayers, first to the state, then to the martyrs. After congratulating the court on their victory over the rebels, there were also distant wishes for a prosperous rice and mulberry season next year...

When Madam Cui accompanied the Queen Mother down to offer a toast, she saw that Qiandeng, a child, did not understand the inside story of the banquet, so she hurriedly stuffed two handkerchiefs into her hands, hinting that since everyone else did the same, she did not need to be so honest.

Fortunately, Qiandeng's mother had passed away, and the palace had prepared vegetarian wine for her. With the guidance of Madam Cui, she could just drink a few sips and then feed it into the handkerchief, so she could still hold on.

When the banquet was about to end, the palace maids brought rose-scented soup. Everyone put their wine-soaked handkerchiefs into it to wash and wring them dry. After wiping off the sweat-soaked rouge, they looked at each other and smiled knowingly.

Qiandeng felt sad, thinking that her mother must have known about the ladies' private tricks, but she passed away before she had the chance to teach her, so she could only be taught by Madam Cui in secret.

She looked at Madam Cui who was accompanying the Queen Mother. Madam Cui was also concerned about her. She was chatting with the Queen Mother and the concubines while smiling at her.

Amidst all the luxurious splendor in the palace, only Madam Cui was so stunningly beautiful that she outshone all the other beauties.

Qiandeng nodded to her to express her gratitude, and then followed the other ladies in the audience to bid farewell to the concubines, and followed the palace maids out of the Xuanhui Hall.

The dark clouds that had been gloomy for the entire morning finally turned into fluttering snowflakes, which drifted down over the Daming Palace.

The mountains, rivers, and pavilions are covered with fine snow flakes, like fairy palaces and sacred pavilions, isolated from the mundane world.

When he reached the jade railing, Qiandeng couldn't help but look down.

The water of Taiye Lake lapping gently against the stone steps, and the broad, smooth bluestone shore was devoid of the female official's body. The eunuchs had already drawn water from the lake to wash away all traces of blood. If the snow continued to fall for a while, all traces would vanish forever.

The disappearance of a life is like the shimmering light on the water, which appears in an instant and disappears in a moment, and no one cares.

She stood by the railing for a long time, letting the cold snow fall into her hair and neck.

If she had not overturned the conspiracy charges in court today, would she be the one who disappeared from this world now?

At the very least, her name will be branded with a mark of shame, and the Changhua Palace will become a laughing stock of the world. She will never be able to face anyone again for the rest of her life.

The hatred that Princess Gao and Princess Changyi had for her would never be eliminated because of the death of this female official, and the Queen and the Crown Prince would no longer stand behind her.

In this storm that is bound to come, who can she turn to for help? Who can it be?

Her gaze unconsciously turned back to the hall, looking at Madam Cui who was surrounded by prosperity.

The Empress Dowager's niece, the wife of the Minister of the Court. A daughter of the Hongnong Yang family, renowned for its beauties, she married into the prestigious Boling Cui family and bore the then-premier, a son unrivaled in the world. Lady Cui exuded an air of untouched grace, a grace untouched by the vicissitudes of life, a glimpse into the tranquility of her life.

Qiandeng wondered in her heart, if she married Cui Fufeng, would she be able to have such a life in the future?

Can she cut off all the displacement, bid farewell to the suffering and sorrow, and have a peaceful and happy life like Mrs. Cui?