Upon hearing Eunuch Yao's shout, the ministers who were walking around and talking in the main hall returned to their seats.

"The banquet is about to begin!" Zhao Zhongquan shouted again.

"Your Majesty, the Empress has arrived!"

Upon hearing that the emperor and empress had arrived, the ministers who had just sat down stood up again.

Wearing a yellow dragon robe, Yun Beiye slowly walked into the main hall, his gaze sweeping over everyone, and he nodded slightly.

He was followed by the Empress, Consort De, and Consort Chen.

Empress Zhaoyuan wore a palace dress embroidered with large peonies, her skin was fair and her lips were bright red.

Consort De wore light makeup and a brocade robe with azure cloud and pearl patterns and peacock patterns. Her smooth, black hair was half-draped.

Consort Chen wore a brocade robe woven with colorful flowers and butterflies, and an outer cloak embroidered with pink and blue peony patterns. She looked so delicate and beautiful that she seemed to be able to squeeze water out of her skin. She was as beautiful as a flower.

Although the ministers below all had their heads down, they were also stealing glances at the new concubine who had just appeared before them.

After the emperor and empress were seated in their seats, everyone immediately bowed and shouted, "Long live the emperor! Long live the empress! Long live the empress!"

Yun Beiye sat in the main seat, gesturing with both hands. Empress Zhaoyuan sat beside him, while Consort De and Consort Chen sat to his left and right respectively.

The concubines of lower rank had already taken their seats early, with their sons sitting beside them.

"My beloved ministers, please rise." Yun Beiye raised his hands and spread them in front of him, indicating that the ministers should rise and take their seats.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" the kneeling crowd shouted in unison. After they finished speaking, there was a rustling sound as the ministers straightened their clothes and sat down at their seats.

At her first birthday banquet, Yun Duoduo sat on a small chair. Her small chair was placed in the very center of the main hall.

At first, she felt a little uncomfortable and felt uneasy being stared at. But later, she adjusted her mindset. Today, she was the protagonist, and protagonists are meant to be watched by the audience.

She smiled at everyone, "Let's do a good job today."

Before the banquet began, when the ministers entered Anqing Hall, they placed the gifts they had brought beside Yun Duoduo.

There were pearls from the South China Sea, jade from Xining, beautiful jade from Yunnan, gemstones from the northern frontier, and all sorts of strange and wonderful trinkets, piled up around Yun Duoduo, forming a small mountain.

Yun Duoduo nodded and smiled at each of the guests who came to give gifts, her smile radiant and her voice soft and sweet as she said, "Thank you so much."

With so many valuable things, she's practically begging for a piece of her newfound wealth!

If these jewels and jadeite could be transported back to modern times, she would definitely be a billionaire!

"Tonight is the first birthday banquet of my beloved daughter, Princess Yun Duoduo. My dear ministers, this is my beloved daughter!" Yun Beiye said, as he proudly picked up Yun Duoduo and walked around the venue, receiving praise from the ministers and envious glances.

"His Majesty is truly blessed!"

"Master Duoxue!" Yun Duoduo replied with a smile.

"The little princess speaks so well?!" A minister exclaimed, raising his wine cup in surprise.

"The little princess is so cute!"

"Congratulations, Your Majesty! This little princess is clearly very intelligent!"

At first, Yun Duoduo responded politely to the compliments, but later she just nodded and smiled.

Yun Beiye listened to the praise with satisfaction. He walked around once and then again to make sure that everyone present saw Yun Duoduo before returning to his seat and putting Yun Duoduo back in the chair.

Seeing that it was almost time, Consort De instructed the palace servants to prepare for the music to begin.

The candlelight flickered inside Anqing Hall as musicians and dancers came up and began to play music and dance.

The atmosphere instantly became cheerful.

After the dance ended, the palace servants cleared the cold dishes from the table and began serving hot dishes one after another. Yun Beiye and the ministers chatted idly.

“Your Majesty, I have something to say, but I’m not sure if I should.” A thin official with a hooked nose and small eyes stood up from his seat.

"If it's unrelated to the first birthday celebration, there's no need to talk about it." Yun Beiye waved his hand. He looked at the man's unfriendly expression and serious tone, and had a bad feeling.

Recently, some ministers have been submitting memorials that are utterly incomprehensible. Instead of addressing important matters, they have been impeaching the little princess, which is utterly absurd.

"Your Majesty, I am deeply humbled. The little princess is only one year old and she can already speak. She must be extraordinary." The minister said with a sincere expression.

"Extraordinary?! That's probably a compliment, but why did he stand up at this moment and ask, is this person an ally or an enemy?"

Yun Duoduo couldn't quite figure out the person's intentions, so she frowned and pursed her lips, unsure whether to speak up.

"But I ask you, my fellow colleagues, whose child can speak in complete sentences at such a young age?" Lin Biaolian, the Vice Minister of Rites, raised his voice and looked around at everyone present.

"Let's not talk about the child anymore, let's talk about me. I heard from the wet nurse that I didn't start speaking until I was one year and eight months old." Lin Biaolian patted his chest.

"In my opinion, there must be something fishy about this!" Lord Lin said righteously, and as soon as he finished speaking, the court officials began to discuss among themselves.

Yun Beiye stared at Lin Biaolian, his eyes filled with malice.

First there was Grand Historian Zhen at the 100-day celebration, and now there's Lin Biaolian at the first birthday banquet. They really don't let the little princess off the hook at all!

These ministers are actually using my daughter as a scapegoat!

"Lord Lin, the little princess is exceptionally intelligent, and with the daily guidance of the Empress Dowager, myself, and all the sisters in the harem, she has achieved such remarkable results. Lord Lin's words seem to disregard the hard work and dedication of myself and all the sisters in the harem," Empress Zhaoyuan said, standing up. One could hear that Empress Zhaoyuan was suppressing her anger.

"Besides, the little princess is a royal princess. You can't learn it yourselves, so you blame others for being too smart," Empress Zhaoyuan sneered.

After hearing Empress Zhaoyuan's words, some of the ministers present nodded in agreement.

"Even if the little princess is exceptionally intelligent and speaks early, what does it mean if she can recite poems?" Lin Biaolian countered.

[Can he recite poems? How does he know he can recite poems?]

Yun Duoduo subconsciously glanced at her three imperial brothers; only her three brothers knew about this matter.

"In my opinion, the little princess is a witch who has already incurred the wrath of Heaven," Lin Biao said aggressively.

Yun Duoduo still had a smile on her face, but her two little fists were already clenched tightly under her sleeves.

"If Your Majesty entrusts the little princess to my care, the locust plague in the south will surely be resolved!" Lin Biaolian said righteously.

【Amitabha Buddha, you're really good at bragging!】