Chapter 188
The Empress looked at him and said, "If you get married, you should make outstanding political achievements to win your father's favor. You have also seen that your third brother, Qi Huan, has gradually gained a foothold in the court."
"The Grand Secretary Zhong has made it clear that he wants to support your third brother, but your father just recently appointed him as the Grand Secretary."
"I heard that this morning in the court, Qi Huan recommended a county magistrate to be appointed as the Salt Transport Commissioner of Suizhou. His Majesty was very pleased. You must know how important the position of Salt Transport Commissioner of Suizhou is."
Her eyes were unfriendly, and her tone became increasingly sharp.
"When your second uncle was alive, most of the money used to recruit soldiers and manufacture weapons secretly came from here. Without the help of this position, even if we emptied the wealth of a poor but noble family, we wouldn't be able to last long, you know that?"
"Giving such an important position to your third brother's man—given all these signs, didn't you ever consider that His Majesty intended to depose you as crown prince and make Qi Huan take your place?"
Qi Heng stared at her blankly, lowered his head, and said in a voice that revealed a hint of restraint: "Mother, I know what to do. No matter how honest and upright a person is, he cannot be without weaknesses. This person is not fit to be the Salt Commissioner."
Hearing this, the Empress smiled with satisfaction. "That's more like it. Don't worry, your mother will not let you down. I believe you will not disappoint your mother."
"Yes, Mother."
………
Three days later, the invitation from the palace arrived as promised at the Murong Prince's residence.
Tao Tao stood in the yard, looking impatient and speechless. Seeing the potted plants covering the ground, she felt a headache coming on; they were so densely packed that they almost took up most of her yard.
If this continues, she might as well switch careers and open a flower shop.
When the flowers were first delivered, she was delighted to see the exquisite and beautiful crabapple and frost-resistant flowers. She wasn't indifferent to flowers and plants, but she didn't particularly like them either.
It's nice to receive flowers, especially since you don't have to take care of them yourself.
After she accepted them, she delivered them morning, noon, and night without missing a single moment, starting with two pots, then four, then six, each time more than the last.
But these flowers always turned out exceptionally beautiful, bright and fresh, with all sorts of patterns, so she couldn't bear to throw them away.
Most importantly, Rong'er said that these flowers are priceless and extremely precious, and are deeply loved by noblewomen and literati in the capital at that time.
Some of them are very special flower varieties that you can't even buy with money.
With that said, Tao Tao was even more determined to accept it, as it could be used as a bridge to befriend noble ladies someday.
"Princess, Princess! Look, someone has brought flowers again."
Rong'er excitedly ran in, and at the same time, the people behind her, each carrying a pot of flowers, carefully filed in one after another.
Their eyes scanned the ground for any remaining space where they could put the items, and Rong'er quickly pointed them out.
"This...this...six pots here, four pots there, it's just right."
Seeing so many flowers again, Tao Tao took a deep breath, rested her chin on her hands, and said helplessly, "Tell your master to stop sending flowers. We can't fit them all."
Not only will the yard not have enough room, but it will also attract a swarm of bees.
Even so, her eyes and brows clearly radiated a joyful and sweet smile.
I don't know what got into Duan Gan, he actually started sending flowers, and so many at once. Yesterday I told someone to tell him to stop sending them, and today there are two fewer pots.
It's just that there are two fewer pots, but it doesn't make any difference now.
Upon hearing this, the crowd exchanged glances. One of them, who seemed to be the leader, stepped forward and said, "Princess, we will convey your message. We will take our leave now."
She smiled slightly and nodded gently.
"Your Highness, this time the gift brought over includes a gold belt! It's so beautiful!"
"What gold belt?"
A surprised voice came from the side. She turned her head in confusion and looked in the direction of Rong'er's gaze. Just then, Granny Wu walked over with a watering can and smiled.
"It is a flower with red petals on the top and bottom and yellow stamens in the middle. The shape and color of this flower are like a minister wearing a red official robe and a gold belt. This flower is very precious. To cultivate this delicate flower, you cannot do it without a thousand and ten thousand kinds of care and skills."
"Fortunately, I spent some time in the Shouyue Garden in the palace before and learned a lot from the gardeners, otherwise these flowers would have been a real waste."
“Peony is not commonly seen at this time of year. I never expected that Lord Duan could find such a full and fresh golden peony. It shows how much Lord Duan cares for the county princess.”
In China, peonies symbolize romantic love and longing between men and women, which is why Granny Wu said that.
Tao Tao walked up to the peony, looking thoughtful, and nodded with a smile, "This flower is indeed beautiful."
"And what kind of flower is this?" she asked, pointing to the pot of green leaves, white flowers, and yellow stamens in front of her. It looked particularly fresh against the backdrop of many other brightly colored flowers.
Granny Wu said, "This is the Taiping Ruisheng Flower, a rare flower in Sichuan, symbolizing peace and prosperity. Moreover, the name of this flower was personally bestowed by the Emperor Emeritus."
"It is said that during that period, the Celestial Empire was in great turmoil. One day, the Emperor Emeritus saw this flower in a dream and believed that it could bring peace. So he named the flower. Later, the Celestial Empire won almost all its wars. Since then, this flower has become a true flower of peace."
"This flower looks unremarkable, but I never expected it to have such a story behind it."
Tao Tao reached out her fingertip and touched the white petal, a slight smile appearing on her lips.
She looked around, thinking that with so many flowers, it would take Wu Mama and Rong'er some time to tend to them, and apart from having someone come and clean the yard on weekdays, she didn't like too many people in the yard.
So she picked up the watering can from the side and began to water the flowers.
Suddenly, a person rushed in through the door; it was the butler.
"Princess, Princess! An invitation has arrived from the palace." He ran up in a sweat, panting heavily, afraid of delaying something important.
She raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of interest in her eyes, and asked, "Could it be that you're from the Empress's palace again?"
Before even taking it, Granny Wu could tell from the look of it which palace it came from and said, "Princess, this really is from the Empress's palace."
She stepped forward and took it with both hands.
Seeing this, Tao Tao said lazily, "Open it and take a look."
Upon hearing this, Granny Wu opened the invitation and looked at it, then looked up and said, "The invitation says that you are invited to a banquet at the palace tomorrow."
"Attending a banquet? What kind of banquet? A trap?"
She scoffed lightly, knowing without a doubt that the Empress's visit to her was no good.
"It was said that the ladies and noblewomen of various families in the capital were invited to Shouyue Garden to enjoy flowers and tea together."
Tao Tao squatted down, took a small shovel and loosened the soil in the flowerpot. While listening to her, she replied, "Then this Empress seems to have quite a bit of leisure time. Logically speaking, shouldn't she be very busy?"
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