Chapter Sixty-Nine: Setting Up a Banquet
As night fell, the palace was brightly lit, and the melodious sounds of string and wind instruments echoed throughout.
To welcome the delegation from the neighboring country, a banquet was held in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Palace lanterns were hung high inside the hall, and civil and military officials and concubines from the harem took their seats in turn.
Jiang Huan was seated on the imperial steps, next to Huo Lin, while Consort Jia sat on the other side.
"The delegation from the northern desert has arrived—"
As the eunuch's high-pitched voice rang out, a group of envoys dressed in foreign attire slowly entered the hall.
The princess at the head of the group wore a fiery red dancing dress, and a thin veil covered most of her face, revealing only a pair of exquisitely painted eyes.
Her eyes sparkled with a captivating allure, instantly seducing most of the people in the hall.
"What a beauty!" a minister below murmured in admiration.
“The veil half-concealing her face adds to her mysterious charm,” another person chimed in.
[Tsk, what a charade.]
Amidst the chorus of praise, a voice filled with utter disdain clearly reached Jiang Huan's ears.
Her eye makeup was a mess, and her clothes made her look like a brightly colored rooster, so dazzling it made my eyes dizzy.
[What kind of taste do these people have? My Great Liang is doomed!]
Jiang Huan paused slightly as she reached for the pastries, and subconsciously looked at Huo Lin.
Huo Lin sat upright on the dragon throne, his profile appearing particularly hard under the swaying palace lanterns. His thin lips were tightly pursed, exuding imperial majesty, as if those childish grumbles from just now had never come from his mouth at all.
That straight man is at it again.
The princess's eye makeup was clearly the result of careful work, but it ended up looking like a mess on the emperor.
If the princess knew the emperor's true feelings, she would be furious.
Jiang Huan smiled slightly, her gaze towards the princess filled with pity.
"Ayina greets the Emperor of Great Liang."
The princess bowed gracefully, her voice melodious yet carrying a hint of arrogance.
Huo Lin nodded slightly, his expression indifferent: "Princess, you have come from afar, there is no need for such formalities."
Ayina straightened her back and glanced at Jiang Huan without making her eyes notice.
Before she came, she had inquired about the situation and heard that the new emperor of Daliang was very fond of Consort Zhuang.
Upon investigation, it was discovered that she was born into a seventh-rank noble family, and apart from being somewhat attractive, she was just a grain of sand in this vast imperial city.
They are not worthy of being compared to themselves, who represent the noble bloodline of diplomatic relations.
There's something even more unbelievable: it seems that Consort Zhuang gained the Emperor's special favor because of her culinary skills.
They're just a small, insignificant family; all they know are things that aren't presentable.
A barely perceptible hint of disdain flashed deep in Ayina's eyes.
She turned her attention back to Huo Lin and smiled.
"Having heard that the Emperor of Great Liang is wise and mighty, Ayina specially performed a dance to express her respect."
Ayina bowed slightly and then retreated to the center of the hall.
The musicians who came with the envoys immediately stepped forward to replace the original palace musicians.
The music paused for a moment, then the drumbeats began again, and the figure in the middle started to move.
Ayina's fiery red skirt fluttered up and down, like a burning flame.
Each of her glances was precise and undisguisedly flirtatious, directed directly at the young emperor on the throne.
The veil fluttered slightly with her movements, and a faint smile could be seen at the corner of her lips.
The dance was captivating; the hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone held their breath, their eyes glued to the dancing flame. Even Consort Jia was mesmerized.
Only Huo Lin.
He seemed detached from everything, oblivious to the beauty before him, his attention entirely focused on Jiang Huan beside him.
As for Jiang Huan, she is currently struggling with a thin-shelled walnut.
She frowned slightly and used a lot of force, but the walnut shell didn't budge.
She'd seen plenty of song and dance performances and had absolutely no interest in them.
On the contrary, she didn't believe it about this walnut!
Unwilling to admit defeat, she increased the force again. Jiang Huan remained silent, focusing solely on finding ways to crack the walnuts.
The delicate fingertips were quickly marked with red marks, but the walnut remained stubbornly closed.
What kind of servants are they? Didn't they know to peel all the shelled parts beforehand?
These little hands are all red.
[Aren't walnuts just being unreasonable? Can't they just open their shells on their own?]
Jiang Huan was full of questions.
Brother, do you think these are clams? You think they'll open up once they're cooked?
The next second, a large, well-defined hand reached out and took the walnut from her hand.
Huo Lin pinched the walnut with his fingers and applied a little force, and the walnut shell cracked open.
He deftly flicked away the remaining shell fragments with his fingertips, placing the whole, plump kernels into the small dish in front of Jiang Huan.
All movements were fluid and seamless, performed in one go, and seemed perfectly natural.
"Eat."
Jiang Huan was stunned for a moment, then looked up and met Huo Lin's deep eyes, which seemed to hold a faint smile.
An indescribable flutter instantly struck Jiang Huan, and her cheeks flushed red at a visible speed.
"Thank you... thank you, Your Majesty."
Jiang Huan quickly lowered her eyelashes and, under Huo Lin's scorching gaze, picked up a walnut kernel and put it in her mouth.
What's wrong? Why is my heart beating so fast?
Calm down, the Emperor only helped peel a walnut.
Don't be so spineless!
This subtle movement would have been difficult to detect in the noisy hall, but it was clearly seen by Princess Ayina, who had spun to the front of the imperial steps and was about to cast another seductive glance at the emperor.
Her last spin in the dance came to an abrupt halt halfway through.
Those eyes, painted with an alluring and seductive style, instantly filled with disbelief and a sense of humiliation at being publicly shamed.
Her all-out dance moves and meticulously crafted glances couldn't compare to that woman's unpeelable walnut.
The music filling the hall seemed to freeze for a moment.
Those eyes that were originally captivated by the princess's dance involuntarily followed Ayina's gaze and focused on the throne with a puzzled look.
The air seemed to freeze.
Ayina stood frozen in place, her fiery red skirt losing its previous lively flutter.
As the music faded, the eyes of everyone in the hall darted back and forth between Ayina and the throne, and whispers buzzed like mosquitoes.
Ayina's fingertips dug deeply into her palm, but the pain couldn't suppress the surge of shame and anger in her heart.
She, the most noble princess of the northern desert, had never been treated so coldly before.
Ayina's eyes darkened slightly. She ignored the unfinished dance steps and walked straight toward Huo Lin, who was standing on the steps above the palace.
She picked up the wine pot in front of Huo Lin's desk and poured two cups of wine.
"Your Majesty the Emperor of Liang," she said, her voice deliberately husky and alluring.
“Ayina has come from afar and is deeply honored to see Your Majesty’s countenance. With this cup of wine, I offer my humble toast to Your Majesty’s boundless blessings and wish that the diplomatic relations between our two countries will last forever and our friendship will endure.”
She held the golden goblet high with both hands, her posture humble and graceful, but her gaze was intensely fixed on Huo Lin without any attempt to conceal it.
The air was taut, like a fully drawn bowstring, awaiting the emperor's response.
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