Chapter 124 Palace Banquet
"I told you to wear an extra coat, but you refused to listen. Be careful not to catch a cold..." Wang kept chattering, reaching out to straighten her wrinkled dress and pull her thick coat together.
"Don't you have to dress brightly for a palace banquet? It's definitely warm in the palace, so you won't be cold."
Song Lingyi looked at the gloomy sky.
I thought it was good that it was snowing, as I had never seen snow in my previous life.
…
The streets are deserted. It is not yet closing time, but many businesses have already started to pack up their stalls and go home early to reunite with their families.
In the carriage with the flag of the Duke of Jin's Mansion hanging on it, Song Lingyi stared at the swaying curtains. The closer the carriage got to the imperial city, the more anxious she became.
Lu Ling, who was standing by, noticed her absent-mindedness and said bluntly, "You're about to enter the palace, aren't you happy, cousin?"
"Don't worry, cousin. The Queen is kind and gentle, and the Crown Prince is a gentle, open-minded and tolerant gentleman. Didn't he support you before and deal with Wang Jin and the others..."
"Just follow us later and pay your respects to the Empress from afar, and then you'll be able to get through tonight's palace banquet." Lu Yu thought that Song Lingyi was a little uncomfortable as it was her first time in the palace, so she said several words of comfort in a gentle voice.
Little did they know that Song Lingyi had been to the palace before and had even met Queen Shen.
What she was worried about was not being rude in front of the royal family.
Last time in Yongning Palace, Xiao Mingyi's attitude was still ambiguous. She was afraid that Queen Shen's control would be useless to him.
The words "gentle" and "gentleman" are all disguises. We have lived with him in Hutouzhai before. He is just a wolf in sheep's clothing. Only the civil and military officials believe that he is a humble and gentle monarch.
While I was daydreaming, the carriage stopped with a whoosh.
The two little cousins impatiently lifted the carriage curtain, and outside they saw the majestic and magnificent green tiles and red walls.
The sky in deep winter seemed to be coated with a layer of gray filter. The eaves of the buildings on both sides extended outward like wings, and carriages entering the palace drove into the tall and deep vermilion lacquer palace gate.
The vast sky makes everyone look as small as an ant.
After hesitating for two breaths, Song Lingyi slowly stepped out of the car. Before she could stand still, a familiar sharp voice suddenly rang in her ears. She raised her head and looked to the right. The young eunuch who had sent her to the East Palace last time was greeting the elders of the Lu family warmly.
The young eunuch caught a glimpse of Song Lingyi getting off the carriage and immediately stepped forward with a flattering smile: "All is well, young ladies."
The people in the palace are the best at changing their attitudes according to the situation. He saw that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince liked the girl from the Song family, so naturally he had to curry favor with her.
"Ladies and girls, please follow me to the North Palace."
According to the rules, before the banquet began, the civil and military ministers of the previous dynasty had to go to Xuanzheng Hall to meet the emperor first, but the emperor was recuperating in the palace this year, so the ministers changed their route to meet at Mingde Hall; and the female relatives of the official family had to go to the North Palace to pay homage to Empress Shen, and then be led to the table by the eunuchs.
Half an hour later, Song Lingyi met Empress Shen and Princess Changyang, whom she had not seen for a long time, in the main hall of Yongning Palace. The hall was crowded with people wearing gorgeous pearl and jade clothes. The female relatives were either flattering or smiling, and the atmosphere was very lively.
Queen Shen sat in the first seat, dressed in an elegant phoenix robe and a dazzling pearl crown. Occasionally, she looked up and quietly gazed at the young girls who came to the center to pay their respects.
The Crown Prince had not yet appointed a Crown Princess, so the female members of the family put in all their effort to leave a good impression on Queen Shen. They all dressed up gorgeously, a scene of beauties competing for beauty, which made the three sisters of the Lu family look a little plainer.
The three sisters followed Wang and Wen to pay their respects. Song Lingyi kept her brows lowered, trying to reduce her presence.
Princess Changyang, sitting in a side chair, held a teacup and glanced at Song Lingyi briefly with a frivolous look, a hint of sarcasm in her eyes. "It's been a while since I've seen you, Sister Song. Why are you dressed so plainly for the banquet in the palace today? You're not even as formal as you were for your engagement banquet."
The eyes of all the women in the hall were focused on the goose yellow figure.
Mrs. Wen frowned slightly and smiled faintly, "Princess Changyang, you're joking. The dress Lingyi is wearing is a gift I brought her from Lizhou. She likes it very much and she wore it today to show her respect for the palace banquet."
Queen Shen, who was talking with several princesses and ladies in front of her, heard the movement in front of the screen, turned her head and cast a glance. She wanted to call Song Lingyi forward to talk, but it would be too conspicuous, so she gave up the idea.
Song Lingyi followed the elders to the side chair and sat down. Seeing that Queen Shen did not pay much attention to her, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"This princess is really weird. She's meddling in everything, even my cousin's clothes." Lu Ling's mouth was even more chatty than Lu Yu's, and she kept mumbling, "I think she's jealous of my cousin—"
Before he could finish his words, Song Lingyi stuffed a piece of cake into his mouth and whispered, "Speak less. This is Yongning Palace, not Lizhou."
"..." Lu Ling blinked, chewed the cake, and said nothing more.
As the sun set, Queen Shen and her female relatives went to Xuanhe Hall for a banquet.
In the bleak winter wind, the Xuanhe Hall with its stacked brackets is brightly lit and filled with warm fragrance.
A group of officials and their families attended the meeting in turn. The seats of the Duke of Jin's Mansion were near the high platform. Song Lingyi sat upright behind the table with her brows lowered, and chatted with her two cousins from time to time.
Soon, the ministers who had finished their audience also entered the banquet one after another.
Pei Zhao was wearing a light crimson official robe with a gold belt and a long-legged Luofu hat today. He looked like a slender green bamboo growing naturally in a clear valley, with an outstanding demeanor and becoming even more handsome.
As soon as he saw Song Lingyi at the table, a gentle smile appeared on the young man's lips.
Normally, the seats of the Lu and Pei families were next to each other, but this time it was strange that the Pei family's seats were arranged opposite each other, and the two families were almost separated by a galaxy.
Before the banquet began, Pei Zhao finished greeting the Lu family elders and sat next to Song Lingyi for a while. The girl smiled happily and handed him the untouched tea. "It's cold outside, right? Have a cup of hot tea to warm yourself up."
"It's just a cup of tea, and every table has it. Why do you have to drink it together? Isn't that corny?"
Lu Qian had entered the table at some point and appeared behind the two of them like a ghost, with a gloomy face and the coldness of the winter night wrapped around him. Even his eyes seemed to be filled with bone-chilling coldness.
Song Lingyi turned around and glared at him: "Why do you care so much?"
"I haven't touched this tea yet. What's the problem with giving it to Brother Jianzhi?"
Lu Qian pursed his lips and said indifferently, "He took my seat, and I'm not allowed to say a word?"
"Then you can sit across from me." It's just a seat, so what difference does it make where you sit?
This was said as a matter of course, which made Lu Qian laugh. He glanced at her and said, "Why don't you sit across from me?"
Song Lingyi frowned.
For some reason, I felt that talking to Lu Qian was like bickering between elementary school students, meaningless and childish.
"Don't be angry." Pei Zhao spoke in time to calm Song Lingyi's emotions, his tone gentle, "Young Master has always been outspoken. Second Uncle has already taken his place, and it's time for me to go back."
"Tsk." Lu Qian rolled his eyes in disdain.
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