Chapter 12 Chapter 12 No Fate for Her
In mid-February, the spring breeze caresses the willows, turning green. The February breeze is like a pair of scissors, and everywhere is filled with the singing of birds and the dancing of swallows, a scene of vibrant colors. Dajin welcomes its annual Hundred Flowers Festival.
The princess's mansion held a banquet of hundreds of flowers, and all the ladies and women in the capital received invitations, inviting them to come and celebrate the God of Spring.
When Li Rong entered the room, he saw groups of brightly dressed women gathered not far away. He felt unhappy and his pace quickened significantly.
Men rarely attend such gatherings of boudoir girls, let alone a prince of a country. His visit this time was merely to discuss important matters with his husband, a coincidence.
The sharp-eyed woman had already seen the handsome man walking in front of General Zhao Wen coming towards them. Although he was not wearing the five-clawed python robe that symbolized the crown prince's status, everyone more or less guessed his identity.
Just imagine, Zhao Wen was the princess's husband, and also a well-known right general in the court and the country. When the world was in chaos in his early years, he relied on his unexpected military talents to help Emperor Hui'an seize the throne, and made great contributions.
Apart from the emperor and the prince, who else could walk in front of him so arrogantly? On the other hand, Zhao Wen, who was following behind him, had a slightly lowered face with a look of respect.
Therefore, this person must be the prince without a doubt.
One after another, people knelt on the ground and saluted: "Your Highness, your Highness, is greeted by your humble servant." The people behind them, seeing that something was wrong, did not bother to think before kneeling down as well.
The lakeside, buzzing with chatter just moments ago, suddenly fell silent. Li Cheng paused, his gaze darting forward, meeting the gaze of a woman whose eyes were as radiant as autumn water.
It seemed that she didn't expect him to see her. The woman was stunned for a moment, then quickly lowered her head and dared not look again.
Li Chengyuan looked at her furry head, his lips curled up slightly, then quickly retreated. He said calmly, "Get up."
Li Luohua walked forward in a red dress and noticed that her brother's eyes passed over Liang Hanzhang intentionally or unintentionally. Her smile deepened and she grabbed his arm and acted coquettishly: "Brother, after we finish the business, don't be in a hurry to leave. I still have something important to discuss with you."
Li Cheng nodded slightly and was about to walk forward. Zhao Wen, standing behind him, glanced at his wife with a piercing gaze, his brown eyes filled with a hint of resentment. Fang followed the Crown Prince as if nothing had happened, heading towards the council hall.
Li Luohua:
Did she offend him in any way? As for looking at him like a nagging woman, she had no idea how this man pretended to be so dignified in front of the generals of the three armies.
It was not until the bamboo-green shadow gradually moved away that the crowd began to discuss: "This is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
"How could the prince be so handsome?"
"He was standing in front of me just now. He looked so scary that I didn't even dare to look up at him."
"I don't know who the future Crown Princess will be, and I don't know which family in the capital will have this great blessing."
Even though Liang Hanzhang wasn't paying much attention, these words still trickled down to her ears. She raised an eyebrow, feeling quite impressed. This prince truly seemed like a fallen immortal. Who knew which woman he would marry as his consort in the future?
"Didn't they say that the Eastern Palace took in a concubine not long ago? I heard that she was just a maid. I don't know what kind of seductive tricks she used, but she actually became a successful woman!" Someone was indignant.
"Hey, keep your voice down," someone used their elbow to remind the woman who was talking too much, "Feng Yi is also invited to the Hundred Flowers Banquet. I heard that the princess values him very much. You'd better not bring bad luck upon him."
"Why, am I afraid of her?" The woman suddenly raised her voice, attracting the attention of people around her.
"The princess is a descendant of the royal family, and I naturally respect her immensely. But that vixen, who clearly used seductive tactics to gain entry to the Eastern Palace, is of low status and uncouth. Shouldn't I speak up?"
As he said this, he looked at Liang Hanzhang provocatively and snorted coldly.
Chunfen was furious when she heard this and could not help but step forward to seek justice for the empress. However, Liang Hanzhang pulled her back halfway and said, "Don't cause trouble."
"Your Highness!" Chunfen was filled with righteous indignation. "She is clearly bullying Your Highness. How can I bear this?"
Although she and Xia Zhi had spoken ill of Feng Yi behind his back, she said it was her business. If an outsider looked down on their queen and dared to belittle the Eastern Palace like this, she would not tolerate it!
"Be patient and you will have peace."
"But..." Chunfen was about to say something else, but Liang Hanzhang grabbed her sleeve, frowning and shaking her head. She had always known Fengyi was a coward, but she had never expected that even after being bullied to this extent, the Empress would still try to keep the peace.
It's true that there's no way to support a wall with mud.
Chunfen was full of anger. He looked at Xiazhi and then retreated angrily.
The one who openly criticized the Eastern Palace's Fengyi was Zhuang Yue, the legitimate daughter of the second wife of the Boyi Marquisate, known as Yue Niang. The Boyi Marquisate was a noble family that had risen to prominence in recent years. Because the eldest wife of the Zhuang family sacrificed her life to save the emperor from imminent danger, the emperor, in recognition of their loyalty, bestowed upon them the title of Boyi Marquis, a title that would be passed down for three generations.
The Zhuang family's fortune rose because of the eldest wife, but Zhuang Yue always boasted that she was a noble lady from a marquis's mansion, and her words acted as if her father was the marquis of a baron's mansion, with an air of superiority and scornful looking at others.
Li Luohua naturally heard these words as well, and said to everyone with a smile without changing his expression: "You all must be tired of standing, please take a seat quickly, the Hundred Flowers Banquet will start soon."
The ladies all knelt down in thanks. As the crowd was heading towards the waterside pavilion, for unknown reasons, a scream suddenly rang out from the crowd, and then with a "splash", someone fell into the water.
The crowd erupted in a commotion. Some were terrified, others stood by, clapping and cheering. Li Luohua watched the woman gradually lose her strength underwater, then ordered a skilled maid to dive in and rescue her, while dismissing the guards and eunuchs standing guard on the shore.
It is still February, and although the temperature has risen a lot, the water in the pool is still freezing cold. Ordinary people would be frozen to the point of unbearable cold if they fell into the water, let alone Yue Niang, a delicate girl in the boudoir.
When she was pulled out of the water, she was already unconscious. Everyone was horrified to see Zhuang Yue in a state of disarray, her gold hairpins and jewelry scattered to nowhere, her hair stuck to her chest, and her face pale.
The fence on the shore was not low, and if Yue Niang had not climbed up on purpose, the chance of her falling into the water would have been extremely small.
Looking at the princess who was chatting and laughing with Fengyi without changing her expression, everyone knew what was going on and no longer dared to talk about Fengyi's background.
Liang Hanzhang knew that the princess was standing up for her, and a warm feeling flowed through her heart. She expressed her gratitude sincerely: "Thank you, Princess."
"Oh, I've told you so many times, don't call me princess, it's so distant." A smile flashed across Li Luohua's lips, and he coaxed, "Call me sister."
Liang Hanzhang: “…”
"Mother's going around coaxing people to call you sister again," Zhao Yu said, her hands clasped behind her back like a little adult. Her face, resembling Princess Changping, leaned into Liang Hanzhang's arms, her dark eyes rolling around as she excitedly said, "Aunt, give me a hug!"
Seeing the little boy opening his arms towards her with anticipation, Liang Hanzhang followed her instructions and held him in her arms. She could still vaguely smell the milky fragrance on the little boy.
During this period, she often visited the princess's mansion. Although she didn't learn anything else, her relationship with the young master Zhao Yu became better and better.
Li Luohua glared at him, pulled the troublesome little guy out and handed him to the servant beside him. He pressed his body tightly against Fengyi and refused to let go, demonstrating to his son: "My aunt is mine, don't even think about taking her away from me."
Liang Hanzhang: "..." She was used to seeing these two childish mother and son.
Zhao Yu was forced to the ground. He straightened his clothes like a little adult and said angrily, "My mother is bullying me. I'm going to tell my father!"
"Go and complain, and see if your father dares to intervene," Li Luohua sneered and frightened the child, "It won't be of any use even if you complain to your grandmother, so you'd better go back and practice writing calligraphy."
The young master recalled the countless times he had complained to his father, but all to no avail, and knew that his mother was telling the truth. In this family, his mother held the highest position, unshakable by anyone, not even his father.
But she was still angry in her heart, and said bitterly: "Auntie is not yours, she is uncle's!" Then she made a face at her and ran out with a smile.
Looking at the little thing's back as it ran away, Li Luohua laughed and scolded: "This little beast."
Seeing the undisguised envy in Liang Hanzhang's eyes, she smiled and said, "Okay, stop looking at me. When you and your brother have a child, let me have one to play with." Although she got married early and had children early, she was definitely not capable of taking care of a child.
It was fine to coax and tease the child occasionally, but if she was asked to be around the child all day, she couldn't do it. Fortunately, the child didn't need to worry about it herself. The child's father was also considerate and capable. Zhao Wen took care of the child himself. If he didn't have official duties on weekdays, he would even take care of the little one by himself, including bathing and feeding him.
A truly loving father.
Li Luohua thought about this, and then thought of the man's eyes full of resentment, and suddenly he felt annoyed. What was he complaining about? Wasn't it just because he didn't let him do what he wanted last night?
How could a princess like her behave like that? Besides, it was already late at night, and if she continued to act like that, the Hundred Flowers Banquet would be disrupted. If she couldn't get out of bed, she would be humiliated throughout Chang'an.
It has always been her job to be served by others, and she has never been the one to serve others! If you want that kind of posture, wait for the next life!
Liang Hanzhang withdrew her gaze. Li Luohua had said this teasing remark many times, and she had long been accustomed to it. She no longer felt shy and embarrassed as she did at the beginning.
Besides, she would be happy to be close to the prince.
She was envious because she envied the young master's favor from the bottom of her heart. Because she often visited the princess's residence, she had seen the prince and Zhao Wen together several times. She was delighted to see the great general, a dignified military commander, actually pick up a spoon and feed Zhao Yu personally, his expression full of love, without a trace of impatience.
Such scenes were rare, not only among nobles but even among ordinary people. In the eyes of many, children were merely a symbol of the continuation of their family line, and they were neglected after birth. When they grew old, they would complain that their children didn't appreciate the grace of their parents.
She had never met her biological parents, but she assumed they were of that kind. Otherwise, how could they sell her off so easily?
The joy of family and the love of parents are probably not meant for her.
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