Chapter 10 Happy New Year, Chen Jiaojiao!
Because it was the first day of the Lunar New Year, countless noble ladies from Kunyi Palace came to pay their respects. As soon as Shen Yujiao entered the inner palace, she mustered her energy to prepare to receive the guests.
Seeing that she had been running around so much that morning, the Empress thought of telling her to go to the side hall to eat something to fill her stomach, but the announcements of the arrival of visitors kept coming one after another, so she could only pat Shen Yujiao's hand helplessly to comfort her.
Seeing the Empress's tender expression, Shen Yujiao was momentarily stunned. She hadn't expected the Empress to be worried about her health.
During the Lunar New Year, entertaining relatives and friends and hosting family banquets are already difficult enough to eat and sleep well. Moreover, there are even more royal etiquette and rules. Not to mention her, even the Empress herself might not be fully rested.
If the leader who is in charge doesn't complain of being tired, how can a deputy general who is just playing a supporting role be the first to back down?
Thinking this, Shen Yujiao smiled sweetly at the Empress, indicating that she was fine and could still manage. Seeing this, the Empress said nothing more, and the two women tidied themselves up and went together into the main hall where guests were to be received.
On the day Shen Yujiao paid her respects to the Emperor and Empress after her marriage, only the Emperor's children and close relatives of the royal family came. Today, however, those who came to offer New Year's greetings included not only them, but also the wives of high-ranking officials who had attended the sacrificial ceremony this morning.
Shen Yujiao, standing beside the Empress, was like a real new bride, being introduced to all her relatives and friends by her mother-in-law. Everyone who entered Kunyi Palace was a guest, and Shen Yujiao only needed to maintain her demeanor and smile, acting as a new bride should.
Dignified, elegant, noble, and well-mannered, every female relative who came to offer New Year's greetings could utter different compliments. Chen Yujiao stood aside with a slight nod, always adopting the attitude of the Empress. She seemed to have thanked all the compliments, but in reality, she was emptying her mind while intermittently memorizing a few pleasant words, waiting for auspicious phrases to say when she visited other people's homes in the future.
What is New Year's greeting? It's nothing more than asking, "How are you?", "How is your family?", "How are your elders?", "How are your children?", and when a group of women are together, they'll add a few more things: "Your hairpin is so pretty!", "Your earrings are so pretty!", "Your bracelet is so pretty!", "Your makeup is beautiful too."
After seeing off the last female relative, even the Empress looked somewhat tired. The palace maids set the lunch table, but although the Empress and Shen Yujiao were hungry, they didn't eat much. They only ate a little before ordering the food to be taken away.
The Empress had a rare break at noon, so she simply removed her hairpins and lay down on the couch. Meanwhile, Chen Yujiao rested in the side hall without touching her clothes or jewelry. When Mu Jin entered, she saw that their Crown Princess had fallen asleep sitting up, with a maid standing beside her, looking completely bewildered.
When she woke up from her afternoon nap, Shen Yujiao turned her stiff neck and sighed that she had indeed degenerated. In her senior year of high school, she could fall asleep one second and stand up and recite classical Chinese texts without batting an eye the next.
Even though her clothes and jewelry were perfectly in place, Mu Jin still tidied them up again. The afternoon program was to watch a play, and for such an event, all the women of the family were dressed in their finest attire. As a result, Shen Yu Jiao's headdress became even heavier, making her increasingly worried that she might develop cervical spondylosis after the New Year.
The opera was to be performed at Yile Garden, where the largest stage in the Summer Palace was set up. Shen Yujiao helped the Empress to her seat and then sat down in the seat closest to the Empress.
She wondered if it was just her imagination, but unlike the meeting with guests in the morning, even though there were many people here, she felt like someone was watching her.
So, while listening to the opera, she chatted with the Empress, pretending to be focused on the plot on stage. In reality, however, her eyes would scan every corner of her surroundings to observe things. Occasionally, when she met the gaze of someone, she would feign surprise and then give a polite smile.
The obsequious members of the imperial family, the flattering ladies-in-waiting, the indifferent imperial concubines, the nodding sisters-in-law, Yongjia rolling her eyes at her, and Yong'an sitting in the corner.
There seemed to be nothing special about it. Shen Yujiao shook her head vigorously, thinking that she must have been too tired these past two days, and that she had even caused people to hallucinate.
Several plays were performed on stage in turn, and the wailing and clattering made Shen Yujiao's head throb even more. The play only ended when the emperor of the previous dynasty finished his performance. After the empress said a few polite words, she dismissed everyone and sent them back to their respective residences.
Finally, she said to Shen Yujiao, "You've had a long day, so I won't keep you for a meal in the palace. I suppose the Crown Prince's party has ended, so you should go back to the East Palace with him."
Throughout the entire day, this was the only time Shen Yujiao's smile was truly genuine.
In her heart, she exclaimed, "You are truly wise!" But on her face, she appeared both moved and apprehensive. Before leaving, she inquired about the Empress's health, and only then, with the Empress's compassion, did she lead her sisters-in-law in kneeling to pay their respects.
After the opera ended, the princesses headed towards the main hall of the imperial palace, the route the princes always took when leaving the palace. At the beginning of the new year, it was considered auspicious for the couples to travel together.
However, Shen Yujiao didn't quite understand why everyone was standing in the open space in the cold wind. Looking at her sisters-in-law's eager expressions, she only hoped that Jiang Chen would come out soon so that she could go back sooner.
Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long. When they saw the princes walking towards them in the distance, all the princesses except Shen Yujiao wore smiles. However, as the princes drew closer, Shen Yujiao sensed something was amiss.
Who was the leader? Why was he staring at her? As the distance between them continued to shrink, Shen Yujiao's heart pounded faster and faster. Just as the person was about to get close, she unconsciously took a few steps back.
"Your Highness."
Suddenly, someone stepped forward from behind, causing Shen Yujiao to subconsciously turn her head to look. She saw a woman in a dark blue palace dress walk up and drape a cloak over the woman's shoulders. The two were talking about something, and although the woman looked familiar, she couldn't quite place her.
"What's wrong?"
At this moment, Jiang Chen walked up to her. Seeing that she was staring blankly at the two people beside her, he reached out and touched her cheek affectionately. He felt that her cheek was a little cold and thought that she was cold. So he took off his fox fur collar and wrapped it around her neck.
"Who are they?" Shen Yujiao looked away and stared at Jiang Chen's fingers as he tied her ribbon.
"The Crown Prince and his wife, Prince Huan." Jiang Chen answered casually, focusing on straightening her fur collar before turning her around and walking back.
Shen Yujiao was half-embraced by Jiang Chen and took a few steps forward. She wanted to look back again, but as soon as she turned her head, she met the gazes of the two people. Shen Yujiao's heart skipped a beat, and she raised her hand to grab Jiang Chen's clothes.
Noticing her unusual behavior, Jiang Chen leaned closer to her in a seemingly affectionate manner and asked, "Are you still cold?"
“Jiang Chen,” Shen Yujiao’s hands clenched tighter and tighter, “I remember now. This afternoon when we were watching the play, that Princess Huan kept staring at me. And when we were serving tea earlier, she was the one who made things difficult for us.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Chen glanced around discreetly and saw that the Prince Huan and his wife were indeed staring at them. He frowned and quickened his pace, putting his arm around Shen Yujiao.
"Consort Yao's adopted son?" Shen Yujiao looked at Jiang Chen in disbelief. "How come it's Consort Yao again?"
"Keep your voice down," Jiang Chen reached out and took Shen Yujiao's cloak, draping it over his own outer robe. He then poured a cup of warm water from the teapot, turned around, and handed it to her, saying, "Why are you so agitated?"
The warm touch soothed Shen Yujiao's mood a little, but she still couldn't help but say, "When we first met, during the tea ceremony, those two sisters-in-law looked at me with dislike. I thought it was because Princess Yongjia had been spoiled since childhood, but now it seems that they are clearly ganging up to bully me!"
"Is there a feud between the Empress and Consort Yao, or between you, the Crown Prince, and Prince Huan?"
"Is there a difference?" Jiang Chen crossed his legs and leaned back. "One is the empress, the other is a favored concubine, one is the legitimate son, and the other is the eldest son. They were originally in a relationship where they couldn't stand each other. I guess you just happened to come here and became the target of their tantrums."
Shen Yujiao understood this principle perfectly well. She was just wondering what kind of entanglement these people had before they arrived, that they didn't bother with any formalities at all.
"Alright, from now on we'll just avoid them. Come here."
A fragrant aroma wafted over, and Shen Yujiao instantly forgot her resentment. She sniffed, turned her head, and saw Jiang Chen and Mu Jin each carrying a bowl of beef noodles. Her eyes immediately lit up, "Wow!"
Two large bowls of beef noodles lay in a tea-colored broth, with several large slices of beef laid out on the sides. The noodles were sprinkled with scallions and there wasn't a trace of oil on them. The aroma alone was enough to make one's mouth water.
"When did you prepare this?" Shen Yujiao asked, holding the bowl of noodles and blinking her starry eyes at Jiang Chen.
Seeing that she had calmed down over a bowl of noodles, Jiang Chen said with a smile, "Mu Jin said you haven't eaten much all day. I also didn't eat well before. This noodle dish is warming and won't cause indigestion. Eat up. I know you don't like cilantro, so I didn't ask anyone to put any on you."
"Um......"
Looking at the bowl of noodles, Shen Yujiao was suddenly moved. She had never lifted a finger since she was a child. When her parents were not around, Jiang Chen would cook for her. Perhaps even Jiang Chen understood her taste preferences better than she did.
Just as she was getting emotional, she saw the largest piece of beef in her bowl fly away. She looked at Jiang Chen in disbelief, only to see him grinning irritatingly: "Are you going to eat it or not? I've already eaten it even if you don't."
"Jiang Xiaochen! Give me back my beef!"
After a noisy dinner, the two of them went to bed early again. They had been working non-stop for two days and their bodies were already starting to give out. It was a pity that this kind of life would continue until the fifth day of the Lunar New Year.
"Just thinking about going to the opera again tomorrow is giving me a headache."
"I'm not much better than you. We drank from day to night. A bunch of young masters, all weak but addicted. The Emperor loves to see such lively scenes of brothers."
"Have you been drinking?"
"I drank a few sips, and then poured the rest out."
"Don't come back drunk, I can't take care of you at all."
"......"
The two lay on the bed with their eyes closed, chatting idly. After some time, Jiang Chen heard no more movement beside him, turned his head and saw that the blanket had been kicked off halfway and he was asleep.
"well--"
Jiang Chen sighed resignedly, got up and covered Shen Yujiao tightly with the blankets. Only after confirming that she hadn't kicked off the blankets again did he lie back down with peace of mind.
In the stillness of the night, Jiang Chen lay for a while before drifting off to sleep. Just before his mind settled, he suddenly remembered something, tucked the blanket around him again, and mumbled, "Shen Jiaojiao, Happy New Year..."
A note from the author:
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Thank you to everyone who clicked in and added this to their favorites. This is the first story I've started since I started writing it. I don't know if I'm doing it wrong, but this story hasn't received much attention since I started writing it. But no matter how it performs, I will finish this story seriously and I promise I won't abandon it. Currently, I update according to the rankings, at a fixed time of 9:00 PM (I didn't set a timer today). Welcome everyone to let it grow.
Also, if you have any opinions or suggestions, please feel free to leave them in the comments section. I'd love to interact with you all in the comments!
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