Chapter 25: Concubine Selection 1
After the apprenticeship ceremony, Xiao Jinyi handed Shen Shixu an invitation, "Ah Xu, there will be a banquet in the palace in two days, this is the invitation."
Shen Shixu took the invitation and said puzzledly: "The weather is still a bit cold now, the flowers have just budded, and there are no festivals recently. Why would the palace hold a banquet at this time?"
Before Xiao Jinyi had time to explain, Princess Kang Ning opened the conversation, "Hey, it's all about the Crown Princess. The Crown Princess that my sister-in-law had her eyes on before has problems. Her character is not good. How can a woman with such flawed character be worthy of being my future queen mother?
This means that the Crown Princess will be re-elected, and this banquet is held for the purpose of selecting the Crown Princess. As for inviting you, my sister-in-law thought that since we were looking for someone for the prince anyway, we might as well invite all the unmarried men and women in the royal family, and also invite other young talents from Da Gan.
Shen Shaoqing is young and promising, so he will naturally be on the invitation list. ”
Shen Shixu then understood why a banquet was suddenly held. It turned out that the Crown Princess had an affair and had a child with someone, which was discovered by the royal family.
"So that's how it is. But I have no plans to get married. It's nice to eat and drink there. Anyway, the food in the palace is world-famous, so it's worth a trip." Shen Shixu thought that after entering the palace, he would just stay in one place and eat snacks, and definitely not go there to interfere.
When Xiao Jinyi heard that he didn't want to get married yet, he couldn't help but feel happy. "I'll go when the time comes. I don't want to get married either. We can go together and have some free time."
High-ranking officials could rest for two days after attending court for ten days. Coincidentally, the day after Shen Shixu finished his rest period was the day when a banquet was held in the palace.
After the morning court session, Shen Shixu went to the Dali Temple to ask for leave, then returned to his own courtyard to change his clothes and got on the carriage arranged by Xiao Jinyi.
Xiao Jinyi was waiting inside early to see him come out. He took out a bowl of shredded pork noodles from the food box that he had been warming with his inner strength and pushed it to Shen Shixu.
"You just finished court, you must be very tired, eat something first to fill your stomach."
Shen Shixu didn't bother to be polite with him, he picked up the bowl and started eating. The chef of Prince Jing's Mansion had good skills and the bowl of shredded pork noodles was very good.
The noodles are as thin as silver threads, and the shredded meat is cut into thin strips. Even the soup base is chicken soup simmered over low heat, sprinkled with a few slices of chopped green onions, which makes people's appetite grow just by looking at it.
Shen Shixu ate without raising his head, and only put the bowl down after he had finished the last mouthful of soup.
"Your Highness, your chef is quite good!"
Seeing that he was enjoying the meal, Xiao Jinyi felt that he had taken the trouble to bring the noodles and there was no white discharge.
"If you like, come directly to my house next time. I will ask the chef to prepare some of his specialties for you. His grilled lamb chops are amazing." Xiao Jinyi took the opportunity to invite Shen Shixu to his house.
Shen Shixu didn't think much about it and agreed directly, "Okay, I'll go to your house for a big meal next time I have a day off."
The entrance to the Prince's Concubine Selection Palace is extremely lively today. Various carriages are parked at the Xuanwu Gate, and young ladies dressed in colorful clothes get off the carriages.
The weather was still a little cold and the women were weak, so they all wore cloaks of the same color. The sisters who knew each other gathered together hand in hand, greeted each other first, and then entered the palace talking and laughing.
The atmosphere was just right for a moment. After the carriage from Prince Jing's mansion stopped, the bustling area in front of Xuanwu Gate suddenly became quiet.
The young ladies covered their mouths with handkerchiefs and looked at the carriage of Prince Jing's Mansion cautiously with anticipation in their eyes.
After seeing the two people getting off the carriage, although they were puzzled as to why this year's top scholar came in the same carriage with Prince Jing, the appearance of two people with such outstanding looks together made the surroundings suddenly brighter.
"Your Highness Prince Jing and Mr. Shen!" All the noble ladies bowed to the two of them.
Xiao Jinyi ignored the noble ladies who saluted him and strode past them with Shen Shixu. Shen Shixu smiled and nodded to them.
Xiao Jinyi saw this scene out of the corner of his eye. After passing the group of noble ladies, he couldn't help but ask, "Is there anyone you like among those noble ladies?"
Shen Shixu felt a sour taste in Xiao Jinyi's tone, and replied with some doubt: "No, it's just that they all saluted me, I can't just leave them alone, right? This seems very rude, and their father may be my boss. If I don't give them face, wouldn't that be indirectly giving face to my boss?
This is a big taboo in the workplace. It's just a response to them, just a small matter. There's no need to be targeted for such a small matter. ”
When Xiao Jinyi heard Shen Shixu say that he didn't have anyone he liked, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up. In response to his concerns, he said directly and domineeringly: "Don't worry so much. From now on, everything will be up to your heart. If anyone wants to cause trouble for you, let them come to me."
Hearing his domineering words, Shen Shixu couldn't help but joked: "Tsk tsk, I am also a backer now. If I act a little unbridled in the future, don't think I'm annoying."
"How could that be? I will never find you annoying in my life." Xiao Jinyi said this in a very low voice so that only he could hear it.
Shen Shixu seemed to hear what he said, but he didn’t hear it clearly, “What did you say just now? I didn’t hear it clearly, can you say it again?”
"Nothing, you can act as wildly as you want, I'll protect you."
The two of them chatted and laughed as they came to Penglai Palace, where the men's banquet was held, while the women's banquet was held in Qinglian Pavilion opposite Penglai Palace. There was a bridge between the two palaces, connecting the two palaces.
Standing in Penglai Palace, one can overlook the scene of Qinglian Pavilion from afar. This not only avoids direct interaction between men and women, but also allows them to see each other's appearance clearly. It can be seen that a lot of thought was put into this.
Xiao Yuanqi had already arrived and was chatting with other people when he saw Xiao Jinyi coming. He quickly got rid of the people who were flattering him and walked towards Xiao Jinyi and Shen Shixu.
When Shen Shixu saw the prince coming over, he quickly saluted, "Your humble servant greets His Royal Highness, may His Royal Highness live a long and healthy life!"
Xiao Jinyi also bowed his head and saluted, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!"
Xiao Yuanqi held out his hands to help the two stand up, signaling them to excuse themselves, and then asked them to sit down, "You are finally here. I have been pestered by those people and listened to their flattery until my ears are callused.
Want to leave? My mother has issued a strict order, requiring me to stay until the banquet is over. Oh, it’s such a headache. ”
Xiao Jinyi saw that Xiao Yuanqi was not happy, and suggested: "Since my brother doesn't want to stay for long, then choose a princess as soon as possible, so that not only can you leave earlier, but we can also leave the palace earlier."
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