Chapter 227 Affection
Qi Jun raised his hand to stop the palace servant's actions. His jade-like, noble chin slightly lifted as he looked at an empty seat opposite him, his tone unusually authoritative:
"Why make such a fuss when there are vacancies?"
The Empress was clutching the handkerchief under her sleeve tightly; how could Jun'er not understand her good intentions?
Bai Mingluan smiled readily in agreement:
"Alright, cousin is right. I was being stubborn. Being able to spend the New Year in the palace is already a great honor and blessing for me. Even if my cousin, the Crown Prince, asked me to sit outside, I would be more than happy to accept it."
Only after these cheerful and witty words made the Emperor and Empress laugh heartily did she walk towards the table of the younger generation.
After the elders had drunk several rounds of wine, Qi Wenyue suddenly stood up, raised her glass and smiled: "I would also like to toast Princess Chang Le. I was ignorant and offended many people in the past. I hope that Princess Chang Le can be magnanimous and not hold it against me anymore."
Qi Yuxuan frowned; these words felt like she was being roasted over a fire.
Just as she was about to get up, the crown prince pointed two fingers at the table beside her.
The Crown Prince is going to stand up for her?
Qi Yuxuan saw it, but ignored it, stood up straight, her eyes already filled with tears, and her voice tinged with grievance:
"Cousin Wenyue, we're family now, why are you saying such things? Are you deliberately trying to distance yourself from me?"
The Emperor, Empress, and the Eldest Princess all looked over curiously, while Prince Duan gave Qi Wenyue a warning glance.
Qi Wenyue never expected the other party to be so shameless, not only refusing to take the bait but also trying to smear her. She could only suppress her displeasure and said slowly, "How could that be? Cousin, you're overthinking it."
Qi Yuxuan: "Yes, there has never been any discord between me and my cousin Wenyue. It was just some petty people trying to sow discord. Fortunately, my cousin came to her senses and pulled back from the brink, so as not to damage our relationship. Don't you agree, cousin?"
In just a few words, Qi Yuxuan's petty remarks were changed to Qi Wenyue being stupid and easily instigated. The group of peers at the table all understood the usual behavior of these two. Although they despised Qi Wenyue in their hearts, almost everyone smiled and tried to smooth things over, as if both of them were right.
Only Bai Mingluan, an outsider, looked around, puzzled, and then laughed heartily:
"It's better to clear up the misunderstanding than anything else. Both of you are so beautiful and charming that they make people happy just by looking at you. If it were me, I wouldn't want to make either of you angry or upset."
After these words were spoken, the room fell silent.
The Empress just said that Bai Mingluan is seventeen, older than Qi Wenyue and Qi Yuxuan. It's one thing if she doesn't know their ages, but why did she presume to call them "sister"? Does she think that these two princesses look older than her?
Qi Minying spoke first: "Cousin Mingluan, these two older sisters are fifteen and sixteen respectively, both younger than you."
Bai Mingluan looked surprised: "Oh dear, it's my sister! My bad, my bad, I was too blind to recognize her. I'll punish myself with three cups!"
As he spoke, he stood up, took the wine pot from the palace servant, and poured himself a drink.
Qi Wenyue was initially annoyed that she thought she was doing it on purpose, but now she couldn't lash out.
Qi Yuxuan glanced discreetly at Bai Mingluan, who was trying to attract attention, but remained silent.
She wants to be in the spotlight, fine, but only if she doesn't use herself as a stepping stone.
After finishing her drink, Bai Mingluan looked at the wine pot in her hand and muttered loudly, "Wow, the wine in the palace is so mellow and fragrant. In comparison, the wine I drank in Shu before was as bland and tasteless as water. What a pity..."
Immediately, someone's curiosity was piqued by her unfinished question: "What's a pity?"
Bai Mingluan smiled at the man, revealing her teeth: "Isn't it a pity that we can't drink such fine wine once we leave the palace?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Qi Huan raised an eyebrow at the Crown Prince with a mischievous grin: "Not at all, not at all. If Miss Bai marries the Crown Prince, wouldn't she be able to drink such fine wine every day? I've heard that the Crown Prince has several jars of rare and exquisite wines in his collection. Perhaps Miss Bai will even have the honor of drinking some..."
The crown prince didn't even glance at him.
Bai Mingluan blushed and pursed her lips shyly.
"Cousin Crown Prince, what fine wine have you hidden away? May I come to the Eastern Palace to drink with you? I have a high alcohol tolerance; I can drink a thousand cups without getting drunk!"
When the topic of drinking came up, the prince's gaze inadvertently fell on the young girl beside him.
As Qi Yuxuan ate the food in her bowl, she noticed the Crown Prince's gaze out of the corner of her eye. She stared back at him openly, but her cheeks puffed out, making her look less serious.
The Crown Prince resisted the urge to pinch his cheek, and as if he had just heard Bai Mingluan speak, he glanced at her and said, "No."
Seeing that the Crown Prince had repeatedly disrespected his cousin Bai, everyone realized that the King of Xiang was in love, but the goddess was not.
Bai Mingluan shrugged and said with a huff, "Cousin Crown Prince is too stingy. Even His Highness the Fourth Prince has said so, and you still won't admit it."
Your Highness the Fourth Prince?
Qi Yuxuan and Qi Minying exchanged a glance, both seeing in each other's eyes that it was indeed true.
Just now, Bai Mingluan said that she did not know the people at the table, and no one introduced Qi Huan before he spoke. Yet she was able to accurately name the Fourth Prince. It is clear that she had made ample preparations before coming. Her statement that she only knew the Crown Prince was just to sit next to the Crown Prince.
Qi Minying looked at her elder brother, the Crown Prince, with a hint of schadenfreude, only to see him frown, looking somewhat impatient.
Bai Mingluan would occasionally bring up topics to talk to the Crown Prince, but he would either ignore her or just utter a word or two in a perfunctory manner.
After several rounds, the group of people at the table stopped eating and stared at the young lady and the prince. They had only ever heard of men pursuing women, never of a beautiful woman pursuing a prince. This was quite a novel thing.
After eating and drinking her fill, Qi Yuxuan leaned back in her chair, and she and Qi Minying each held a cup of fruit tea to aid digestion, sipping it slowly while exchanging glances.
"Hawthorn is cooling in nature, so drink less of it."
The crown prince suddenly spoke, and the scene fell into dead silence again.
Qi Yuxuan stared at the hawthorn and tangerine peel tea in her hand, then looked at the longan and herbal tea in Qi Minying's hand, and realized that the Crown Prince was talking about her.
"yes……"
The prince was unusually long-winded: "Someone, bring her a bowl of wolfberry leaf and pork liver soup."
Qi Yuxuan shifted her body and shrank to the other side: "...I, I can't drink anymore."
"Pfft—" Qi Minying couldn't help but wave the tea in her hand at her in a showy manner.
The next instant, the Crown Prince's calm, unwavering eyes turned to her.
Qi Minying stopped laughing, buried her head in her teacup and pretended to drink tea, blinking her big, round eyes rapidly.
Crown Prince: "Bring a cup to Princess Min-young as well."
The Crown Prince spoke in a clear, resonant voice, with a hint of a smile, enunciating each word clearly:
"I've been watching you two all night, your eyes are bloodshot. Drink some more, it'll help your eyesight."
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