65. Jealousy

◎A stinking maggot hiding in the dark◎

Chapter 65

It was a happy event that the prince was restored to his princely title, and the emperor specially allowed him to celebrate in his own residence. Jiang Qiuye then worked with the housekeeper Fu Shu to organize a banquet.

From the time the Prince Qi's Mansion was first established until now, there have only been two banquets, one for a wedding and the other was this one.

That night, Man'er Qiu had given her such a profound shock that she still couldn't forget it. Jiang Qiuye, who had been a lazy person, began to take charge of the household affairs, using her busy schedule to calm the guilt that kept welling up in her heart.

The entire courtyard was renovated, and many flowers and trees were moved in. Many houses that had been abandoned for too long also needed repairs. Although no one lived there, so many people came to the Prince Qi's Mansion for banquets. Now she was the prince's consort. With her vulgar personality, how could she let people think that the Prince Qi's Mansion had fallen into such a state of decline?

The main courtyard of the palace had no name. After some thought, she asked someone to make a plaque with the name Guihongyuan and hang it up.

"The wild geese, startled to fly home, form no words, leaving the branches and falling leaves in the deepest autumn." The person who wrote this poem must have longed to find a place to return to, just like her. Although she is not Qiu Ziye, she has now roughly found this place to return to, and it is home.

On the day of the banquet, she discarded her favorite pink dress and donned a sapphire-blue brocade dress, the kind worn by a princess, with wide sleeves and five linings. Even before she took a step, she was sweating. But for the sake of her noble reputation, these minor hardships were nothing.

She wore a pair of gold bracelets with deer patterns on her wrists, her hair was combed into a high bun, and she wore several gold peony hairpins and gilded hairpins. Unlike her previous beauty, she now looked even more elegant and noble.

She spent the entire morning getting dressed. When Ji Ci finished his morning chores and returned to his room, he wanted to kiss his beautiful wife, but was sternly refused. She had spent a long time on her makeup, and since she was the main seat today, she had to be the most stunning. If he ruined her makeup, there would be no time to reapply it.

Today, she had specially arranged for servants and maids to take each newly arrived guest on a tour of the palace, showcasing its current grandeur. She planned to take a seat herself, waiting for everyone to finish touring the palace before coming to see her. She would then act like a hostess, observing the group of unworldly women below, while remaining calm and composed, appearing even more impressive.

The banquet was divided into separate sections for men and women. Seeing his wife's promotion from Princess of the County to Princess of the Crown Prince, he was filled with joy and excitement, yet also with a touch of vulgar squeamishness. Her competitive spirit wasn't too obvious, but it was also endearing. Not wanting to spoil her spirits, he could only go to the men's section alone to entertain the guests.

Now the temperature was gradually rising. When she finally arrived at the women's reception room with the support of Mingyue and Jinhong, she had already sweated a lot. Fortunately, her face was fine and her makeup was not smudged.

But when she opened her collar and smelled it, the faint smell of sweat covered up the perfume she had used when bathing. Seeing that the guest had not finished touring the palace, she asked Mingyue to help him get the perfume sprinkled on his clothes immediately.

The women entered the hall one by one, bowing deeply to her and presenting her with gifts. Jiang Qiuye thought to herself that her outfit was truly remarkable, nobler than the heavens. None of these young women, all vying for attention, could compare to her, and the older ladies were no match for her youthful charm.

The wife of the Duke of Liang presented her with a pair of golden armlets, modestly explaining that her family had nothing good, so she had found bracelets made by this master craftsman. She accepted them with a smile, chuckling twice, saying, "It's no problem, it's no problem. There are many such things in the palace. Madam, just do your best."

The wife of Duke Liang looked a little embarrassed, chuckled twice and sat down.

Minister Lin's daughter looked at Jiang Qiuye's gorgeous clothes and flattered her, "Princess, this dress is so finely crafted, it's embroidered with gold thread from Hunan. I wonder which embroiderer made it?"

After hearing this, she immediately expressed embarrassment, "Oh, which embroiderer is this? I don't know. After all, there are too many clothes like this at home and I can't wear them all. I was in a hurry today, so I dressed up casually. If Sister Lin likes this kind of embroidery, I will pick a few pieces for you."

Minister Lin's daughter Li Dao said, "No, that's not necessary." She was instantly speechless. This was the dress for the princess, and she wouldn't dare wear it even if it was given to her.

Jiang Qiuye's mood became complicated until he met Zhao Wan'er.

Compared to her gorgeous outfit today, Zhao Wan'er seemed as clear as water, wearing a simple moon-white brocade dress, without any hairpins, only an orchid in her hair, and a burst of orchid fragrance floating in the air in the spring valley.

Although Zhao Wan'er was dressed simply, her every move and gesture revealed an air of nobility, which was different from her temperament that was deliberately embellished with material possessions.

Zhao Wan'er presented Jiang Qiuye with a simple orchid hairpin and said with a charming smile, "Congratulations to the prince and princess on today's banquet. The prince has been honored as a prince, and everyone is delighted." She covered her mouth with her sleeve and laughed out loud, "My cousin has loved orchids since he was a child. I'm sure he'll be delighted to give me this orchid hairpin."

Jiang Qiuye immediately felt a surge of anger in his heart, and his entire body felt uncomfortable. In that moment, he suddenly felt ashamed of himself. Compared to Zhao Wan'er's simple everyday clothes, his own attire seemed completely useless.

She was talking about Ji Ci Ai Lan, how could she not know that Zhao Wan'er clearly revealed her identity as her childhood sweetheart.

She also sensitively noticed the emotional changes of the female relatives below. When Ji Ci was mentioned, everyone looked at Zhao Wan'er secretly.

After Zhao Wan'er finished her ceremony, she found a secluded corner to sit down, but she became the focus of everyone's attention.

Lady Liang smiled and said, "I heard that Lady Lou has been personally distributing porridge and charity at the city gate since she returned to Shengjing. She is truly a great person."

Zhao Wan'er smiled faintly and said humbly, "Madam, please don't laugh at me. The Great Jin has been affected by war. Although my cousin has made outstanding achievements over the years, there are still many refugees who have been left homeless by war and famine. My heart aches for them. The palace is also trying to cut back on expenses. Although I am a woman, I still hope to contribute my modest contribution to the Great Jin and the court."

These words aroused everyone's approval and they nodded in praise.

Jiang Qiuye's smile was stiff, he gave away porridge, helped others, and cut costs...

This seemed to be a mockery of her, she loved vulgarity and had a vicious heart. She never did things like giving out porridge and charity, which was a waste of time and thankless.

Zhao Wan'er's behavior is completely opposite to hers. One has to admit that Zhao Wan'er and Ji Ci are really a perfect match.

Zhao Wan'er was a quiet person, sitting quietly in a corner, only replying a few words when someone asked her a question. Although her words were just a few, they were full of the grace and elegance of a noble lady.

Jiang Qiuye lost interest in the second half of the banquet. She was not interested in the wooden duck shooting activity that was originally held for the female members of the family, but she was too hot in her clothes to move, so she just sat aside and watched them compete.

Zhao Wan'er also took the stage. Although her archery skills were not good enough in the eyes of Jiang Qiuye, they were indeed amazing in the eyes of this group of young ladies from wealthy families.

"We only knew that His Royal Highness Prince Qi's archery skills were once renowned throughout the lands, but we never expected that Lady Lou could also achieve unwavering accuracy."

Zhao Wan'er's ears blushed with embarrassment. She lowered her head and smiled, "No way. My archery skills are only for fun at banquets. I can't fight on the battlefield or kill the enemy."

She glanced at Jiang Qiuye, who was sitting beside her with a fake smile, and asked, "Princess, don't you want to play?"

"You guys have fun. I seem to be feeling a little unwell today. I'm afraid of spoiling everyone's fun, so I'll leave first." Jiang Qiuye pursed her lips and rubbed her forehead, as if she was regretful. After arranging the next activities, she was supported by Mingyue and Jinhong and left. The heavy clothes and headdress made her walk very slowly.

Her thoughts seemed to return to Man'er Hill. Zhao Wan'er was low-key and charitable, and compared to herself, she was really a good match for Ji Ci. On the other hand, she was just a little liar, vain and false, like a stinking maggot hiding in the darkness.

She sent Mingyue and Jinhong away and wandered around the mansion alone, looking at every flower and tree in the mansion, all of which were added by her and were extremely valuable and needed special care.

She knew Ji Ci disliked extravagance and never indulged in luxuries in his daily life, but it seemed as if he had spoiled her, and the longer she spent with him, the more her true nature became apparent. If it were the same as before, she would have been frugal in every way just to cater to his preferences, just like before.

What happened to her now? Why is it like this?

"Fairy girl—"

Jiang Qiuye turned around and saw that it was indeed the King of Wei.

She didn't dislike Ji Sang, nor did she want to use him. Firstly, he was a useless prince, of little use. Secondly, he was a simple-minded person, and she didn't want to deceive him too much.

"Zhongzhi, you should call me Auntie Huang."

Zhongzhi is Ji Sang's courtesy name. Now that she has become his elder, she naturally can no longer behave like before and has to act like an elder.

Ji Sang was truly disappointed when he heard this. "Yes, Auntie." He pursed his lips and glanced at her gently. "Is Uncle Emperor good to you?"

Jiang Qiuye smiled and said, "He is very good to me. He is the best person to me in this world."

Ji Sang hung his head, but quickly cheered up. "Since the emperor's uncle treats you well, then I am relieved. It's a pity that you and I are not destined to be together in this life. I can only wish the emperor's uncle and aunt a happy and carefree life together."

She was startled, defeated by Ji Sang's optimism, "Yes, we will. You are not young anymore, it's time to choose a little princess and start a family."

"Well, let's talk about it later. I still love crickets the most." Ji Sang sighed and took out an oil-paper bag from his arms. "This is the peach blossom cake that the chef in my mansion made today. I originally wanted to give it to the Queen Aunt."

Seeing this, she took it and said, "Then I would like to thank Zhongzhi."

…

As dusk fell, Jiang Qiuye was already taking a bath. The clothes he wore today made him look exhausted.

Ji Ci walked into the room and noticed the oil-paper bag on the table, but he didn't pay too much attention to it. He heard the sound of water in the bathroom and went straight over.

The tub was filled with mist, and he could see the faint presence of her butterfly bones on her back, which stirred a spring in his heart. He stepped forward, hugged her from behind, and kissed the small red mole behind her ear. As she shuddered, he moved to her lips, and slowly moved to her neck. Suddenly, she yawned, her eyes squinting so tightly that she could hardly open them.

"What did you do today? Why do you look so tired?" he couldn't help but ask.

"I didn't do anything, I just found that hosting a banquet is really tiring." Especially when she was walking around in that outfit, and seeing Zhao Wan'er, a feeling of inferiority came over her, and she really had no intention of doing that with him.

Seeing this, Ji Ci paused, slid his fingers across her beautiful back, and asked, "Are you done washing?"

Jiang Qiuye just said "hmm", and he reached out to carry her out of the bathtub, dried her body, dried her hair, and then carried her back to bed.

She lay down on the bed, sighing helplessly. Although she was extremely sleepy, she felt that if he wanted to, as his princess, she had to cooperate. At the same time, she also hoped that he would be happy because of her. So she raised her arms and wrapped them around his neck, yawning.

But she didn't expect to hear Ji Ci laugh softly, take her hand, take a clean piece of clothing beside her and put it on her.

Helplessly said: "In your heart, am I such a beast?"

Jiang Qiuye was stunned and shook her head, only then realizing that she had misjudged his thoughts. After helping her put on her pajamas, he changed into his own, lay down on the bed, turned off the lights, and held her in his arms.

He touched her head and couldn't help but leaned over and kissed the top of her head, "Okay, go to sleep."

"Yeah." Jiang Qiuye felt warm in her heart. She raised her head and gently bit his chin, then huddled in front of his chest.

Ji Ci felt an itch on his chin, so he raised his hand and rubbed it. He suddenly thought of the oil paper next to the candle when he turned off the lights.

Curiously, "By the way, what's that package you put on the table?"

Jiang Qiuye had already closed her eyes, her consciousness was hazy, and she casually said, "It's peach blossom cake, sent by the King of Wei."

King Ji Sang of Wei?

Ji Ci frowned, and suddenly remembered that she once called him Brother King Wei, and that brat called her Fairy Girl. He was about to lower his head to ask, but found that she had already fallen asleep, her little mouth slightly open, revealing a few white teeth, small and cute.

Never mind, that was before they got married. Now she is Ji Sang’s aunt.

He reached out and pulled the corner of the quilt to cover her shoulders, then hugged her and fell asleep.

…

Susu was furious at the banquet today, watching Jiang Qiuye's face, which looked down on everyone. She had been fuming at the banquet, never expecting that double-faced bitch to actually marry Prince Qi and become his consort.

After becoming the princess, the bitch completely changed her style. She wore the best and used the best things. The frugal Prince Qi did not stop her when he saw her messing up the palace.

She was originally the one who proposed marriage to Prince Qi, but her chaste lady couldn't pull off such despicable seductive tactics. It turned out that even the elegant and graceful Prince Qi was attracted to this unscrupulous playboy in his bed.

It wasn't until Qingling leaned over and whispered something in her ear that she was shocked. "Really? Did you see it with your own eyes?"

Qing Ling nodded and said, "I was far away and couldn't hear what they were saying, but I could see clearly that the King of Wei gave her a package."

Susu lowered her eyes, she really couldn't believe that this bitch had become a princess, and she even didn't let the King of Wei go, and she was pulling and tugging with him, and giving and taking things privately with him.

She bit her lip tightly and said, "Although we know that bitch is so fickle, we have no evidence. Qingling, find a way to continue to secretly monitor that bitch. I don't believe that we can't get evidence of her infidelity!"

"Yes, girl."

Susu began to worry again: "But, there are people guarding the front door of Guihong Courtyard. How can we keep an eye on her at all times?"

Qing Ling smiled and said, "Don't worry, young lady. I have a way. There is a dog hole behind Guihong Courtyard. Although it is a little small, it is just right for my size to fit into."

Susu couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh. "Okay, okay, I'll leave it to you. When this is done, I will definitely reward you handsomely."