Chapter 226 New Year's Eve
Their family backgrounds varied, and those who were talented, beautiful, and virtuous enough to be crown princesses would naturally not do such things that would lower their status. Those who came all had one or two strengths and thought they could compete for the positions of concubine or high-ranking lady. At this moment, the crown prince ignored everyone, and they united like never before.
"However... Princess Chang Le is the Crown Prince's cousin. If she wants that position, wouldn't she have the advantage of being close to him?"
I don't know which young lady was the first to think of this question and ask it so bluntly.
After a moment of silence, one of the dozen or so girls denied it, saying, "How could that be? Princess Chang Le takes the surname Qi from the Princess, instead of being registered under the Prince Consort's side. That means she shares the same surname and clan as the Crown Prince. If they were to marry, His Majesty and the Empress would definitely not agree."
It's unclear how many people were convinced by this, but they lost interest, offered a couple of agreeing remarks, and then dispersed.
Two short days passed quickly, and before we knew it, it was New Year's Eve family dinner night.
This banquet was different from the previous two days; only a few close relatives of the emperor and empress were invited to attend.
Since there weren't many people, there was no particular regard for seating arrangements. A dozen or so adults sat around the large round table, while a dozen or so younger people sat around the small round table next door.
Qi Yuxuan thought the Crown Prince would sit with the Emperor and Empress, but she didn't expect him to come and sit with his younger siblings as well.
Since she had already come, Qi Yuxuan had no choice but to rise and bow along with the princes and princesses.
However, Qi Minying was originally sitting to her left and Qi You was sitting to her right. In the blink of an eye, Qi You was picked up by his good brother and placed in the empty seat next to him.
The prince, who was unusually dressed in a red casual outfit, explained, "This is the windy spot, Ayou, please sit a little further inside."
Qi You, still feigning ignorance, could only laugh merrily, not daring to refute.
What could he say? The position the Crown Prince had placed him in was still a hot spot, wasn't it? He finally understood that the real intention was not what it seemed.
Qi Minying wrinkled her nose. Seeing that Qi You had already sat next to Qi Wenyue, she was a little unhappy. Who knew if Qi Wenyue would bully her brother later?
It's been almost a year since she returned to the palace. On one hand, she's busy catching up on all the lessons she'd missed, and on the other hand, she's busy protecting Qi You from being bullied by the people in the palace.
Qi Huan is one, and so is Qi Wenyue.
These two are the same kind of people, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, and she experienced it firsthand as soon as she returned.
Qi Wenyue had been confined to her quarters for a long time. She had recently gotten engaged and was to be married after the New Year, which was why Prince Duan had brought her to the palace for a banquet. Looking at her now, she seemed much more gloomy, her cold gaze sweeping across everyone's faces until it stopped on Qi Yuxuan beside her.
Qi Minying frowned and coughed lightly.
Qi Wenyue's gaze slowly shifted to her, and she probably understood the intention behind her warning. A mocking smile appeared on her lips.
Qi Minying gripped the fruit drink cup tightly in her hand.
Qi Yuxuan was puzzled by the Crown Prince's decision to move Qi You, who was sitting comfortably, so as to sit next to her. However, considering that she was the one who had made the mistake first and lacked confidence, she softened her tone and whispered:
"Look, I'm wearing a jade hairpin today."
"Yes, it looks good on you, and it suits you."
Qi Yuxuan: "..." She didn't want to hear this.
"The Emperor has arrived! The Empress has arrived!"
A voice rang out from outside, and everyone immediately stood up and bowed. In addition to the footsteps of the Emperor and Empress entering, they also heard a silvery laugh.
"You always tease me! That was so many years ago!"
The newcomer's voice was like a nightingale's song, but it sounded completely unfamiliar to everyone. The princess and the younger generation of the imperial family were all sitting here. Who was this person who had such an honor to accompany the emperor and empress in?
After everyone had risen, those present were able to clearly see the true face of the young girl who had been accompanying the Empress.
She was a young girl dressed in a light purple Shu brocade with cloud patterns. Her skin was as white as snow, her eyes were bright and charming, and a light brown mole on the tip of her nose added a touch of vibrancy to her delicate and lovely face.
Qi Minying was the first to speak, asking, "Mother, who is this?"
The Empress then patted the girl's hand kindly and introduced her:
"This is your maternal grandfather's fourth daughter, Bai Mingluan. She's only seventeen years old. According to the order of seniority, you should call her cousin. She went to Sichuan with your uncle's family when she was ten years old. You were too young then to have seen her or remember her."
Bai Mingluan then smiled and curtsied to the Crown Prince and the princes and princesses, the jade pendants at her waist jingling, accompanied by her sweet but not cloying, silvery voice:
"Mingluan pays her respects to the Crown Prince. Several years have passed since we last met. I wonder if my cousin, the Crown Prince, still remembers the promise we made to each other?"
All eyes turned to the Crown Prince, who remained calm and composed, saying, "I don't remember."
Bai Mingluan's smile remained unchanged: "It doesn't matter if you don't remember, cousin. Mingluan remembers. We'll go catch up with you when we have time later."
Fourth Prince Qi Huan realized what was going on. He glanced subtly at Bai Mingluan and the Crown Prince. Such a beautiful and charming cousin, brought in by the Empress herself, wasn't this a clear indication that the Crown Prince wanted to take her in in order to consolidate the position of the Bai family's Crown Prince faction?
He immediately lost his appetite for the banquet. It was hateful that his mother's maternal family, the Zou clan, had declined generation after generation, and now the most promising member was a merchant! He had even lost the imperial merchant position that his mother had schemed for. He was truly useless!
If the Zou family could produce outstanding talents generation after generation like the Bai family, they wouldn't be in this situation where he is ridiculed for his maternal grandfather's decline to the point of going into business.
Beside Bai Mingluan, the Empress was initially smiling as she looked at the younger generation at the Crown Prince's table. However, when her gaze fell on Qi Yuxuan beside the Crown Prince, or more precisely, on the phoenix-headed jade hairpin she was wearing, the Empress's smile gradually disappeared.
That was what she gave to the Crown Prince a few days ago.
The Crown Prince said that holding a selection of candidates would be too wasteful of resources and manpower. He also said that he already had someone in mind, but it was too early. He wanted to stabilize the situation in the court first and wait until later to get married.
The Empress then suggested that both sides compromise by giving the Crown Prince the jade hairpin, instructing him to give it to any suitable girl he found, so that she would know which family the girl belonged to and be careful not to marry her off to someone else first.
However, this day came too quickly and too suddenly. She looked at the hairpin on Qi Yuxuan's head, and then at the Crown Prince whose gaze kept falling on Qi Yuxuan. She braced herself against the armrest of the chair to keep from falling.
She absolutely would not allow the Crown Prince to bear the infamy of marrying a sister of the same clan and surname.
“Mingluan, go to your cousin’s table. There are young people there. Go and talk to them.”
Bai Mingluan's face flushed red, as if she were a little embarrassed:
"But I only know my cousin, I don't know any of my other cousins... So can I sit next to my cousin, the Crown Prince?"
The Empress smiled and nodded: "Of course, Jun'er is your cousin, how could he not take care of you? Go ahead."
As soon as the Empress finished speaking, a palace servant brought a chair forward, intending to place it between Qi Yuxuan and Qi Jun.
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