Chapter 937 The Drunkard's Intention Is Not to Drink
A Mid-Autumn Festival banquet was supposed to be held in the palace, but the Empress Dowager had passed away not long ago, the Empress was pregnant and about to give birth, and the northern army had not yet returned to the court, so the palace banquet was canceled. Instead, the hottest topic in the capital, apart from Zhu Xiyan, who was innocently implicated in the previous cheating case, was who would win the first place in the imperial examination after the final exam.
Some students who had already established their reputations for talent each had their own supporters. The powerful officials in the capital and the children of aristocratic families who had not been implicated before were also full of confidence. Many teahouses and taverns in the capital even set up gambling games.
Among them, Li Chi and Huang Hong, students from Rongsheng Academy, Jin Shengyu, who is also from Jiangnan, and a young man named Feng Yian from the Feng family's branch are the most likely to win the championship.
Although Tang Ning was in the palace, she was aware of the discussions outside. She even heard from Yue Jian that Xue Ru had someone secretly place a bet on Li Chi.
Hua Wu said with a smile: "Madam, Madam Ru has bet two thousand taels of silver on Li Chi. I think she is quite optimistic about him."
Tang Ning glanced at the little girl who was holding back a smirk and said, "Aru is optimistic about Li Chi, but she is more interested in the money she can earn from him. Besides, Aru has also placed a bet on Huang Hong."
Ever since she was crowned empress and entered the palace, and Xiao Yan left the capital, almost all her energy has been involved in the court. She has had no time to take care of the academy for a long time. On the contrary, Xue Ru spends most of her time in the academy except for business matters. She went to school with Li Chi and others, so naturally she knows their abilities better than anyone else.
Tang Ning could see that Xue Ru probably didn't have any other thoughts about Li Chi, at least there was no love between them at the moment. In her mind, she made the bet just to make some money with the help of Li Chi, and she had no other thoughts.
But Hua Wu...
Tang Ning poked the little girl's forehead with his finger: "If you have time to make fun of A-Ru, why don't you talk about yourself."
Hua Wu covered her forehead: "What's wrong with this servant..."
"What's going on between you and the young marquis of the Qi family?"
"What's going on?"
Tang Ning raised an eyebrow: "I heard that you two went to the imperial kitchen to eat and drink for free, and even fed a raccoon at the Flower and Bird Bureau..."
Hua Wu muttered bewilderedly, "What do you mean by free food and drinks? It's because Old Madam Qi's birthday is coming up, and because of the Empress Dowager's funeral, there can't be a banquet. Old Madam Qi likes the snacks from the imperial kitchen, so Young Marquis Qi wanted to take some back to give to Old Madam to please her."
"But the Imperial Kitchen isn't open to everyone, and he didn't dare disturb Her Majesty's peace for such a small matter. He heard from somewhere that Her Majesty had granted me special permission to eat in the Imperial Kitchen at any time, so he came to me to exchange some snacks for her."
After the death of the Empress Dowager, the national mourning was not required to last three years because the battle in Beiling was at a critical juncture. However, according to old customs, the residences of nobles, dignitaries and court officials in the capital were not allowed to hold banquets, entertainments, weddings or receptions within a year.
Although there were exceptions, some common people and merchants outside the palace would still hold small banquets, but no one with an official title dared to do so, for fear of being impeached by the censor.
Tang Ning didn't comment on Hua Wu's statement. He just raised an eyebrow and asked, "What about the raccoon slave?"
Hua Wu looked even more wronged: "That raccoon slave was just an accident."
The cat was originally raised by the concubines in the deposed emperor's harem. Those concubines later threw the cats away when they lost their power. That day, when he and Marquis Qi came out of the imperial kitchen, the cat bumped into their legs.
They felt sorry for the cat and treated its wounds, but they didn't know that they were pestered by the little guy.
"It was a life after all, so the young marquis and I sent it to the Flower and Bird Bureau. But who knew it would lose so much weight in just a few days after not eating or drinking."
"The people at the Flower and Bird Department said that the raccoon had become very defensive after being abandoned. If we didn't take care of it, it would probably starve to death. When Young Marquis Qi heard about this, he felt sorry for the raccoon and wanted to take it back to the Marquis' Mansion to take care of it after its injuries healed. I've only visited it a few times for him."
She was a maid in the palace. Although the Queen loved her, she also knew her limits.
The queen is pregnant now, so there is no way she can raise a cat by herself. Moreover, although she has been asked by Marquis Qi to visit the cat servant at the Flower and Bird Bureau several times, she always stood far away from him through the cage.
Hua Wu's eyes were round and her face looked aggrieved:
"I know that Your Majesty likes cleanliness and needs to be more careful when she is pregnant. Therefore, every time I return from the Flower and Bird Bureau, I will change clothes and wash my hands before coming to serve Your Majesty. I will definitely not bring anything that I shouldn't bring."
"I will never harm the Empress. Who is this gossipy person who said bad things about me to the Empress? How despicable..."
As she spoke, her eyes almost turned red.
Tang Ning was just teasing the little girl, but she burst into tears after just a few words. Hearing that she was so aggrieved, she changed the subject and thought that someone had reported her. She didn't think about the love affairs between men and women at all. Tang Ning was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
"Okay, okay, I just wanted to ask, why are you still crying?"
Tang Ning beckoned Hua Wu to squat down, and rubbed her head with his hand: "You only liked food before, and I've never seen you like cats and dogs. I'm just curious why you suddenly like raccoon slaves. No one said anything bad about you."
Hua Wu said pitifully: "Really?"
"Really? Besides, even if someone did say something, I wouldn't believe it."
Tang Ning pinched her round face and laughed at her: "You are already Aunt Hua Wu, why do you still like to cry so much? Aren't you afraid that those little palace maids will see you and laugh at you later?"
Hua Wu puffed up her cheeks: "They dare!"
The little girl stared with her eyes, pretending to be fierce, but her round little face was still more adorable.
She reached out to wipe away her tears, and whispered under Tang Ning's mischievous gaze, "I don't usually cry, I only do this to Your Majesty. I'm usually very dignified..."
Yue Jian came in with a tonic soup and said with a smile, "I can testify that what Hua Wu said is true. She only acts like a spoiled child in front of the Empress. She is usually very fierce."
Tang Ning laughed out loud when he heard that.
Hua Wu's cheeks flushed and she snorted at Yue Jian.
The little girl ran out to wash her face. Yue Jian came over with something and said with a smile, "Cang Lang was worrying for nothing. He even sent a message asking me to help him keep an eye on this girl, but she didn't seem to be able to figure it out at all."
Tang Ning laughed: "She hasn't gotten it yet, but the young marquis of the Qi family has."
The Qi family holds the title of marquis. The old lady Qi has a good relationship with the old lady Fu. When she was notorious in the capital, the old lady of the Qi family was one of those who spoke up for her. After Xiao Yan came to power, Marquis Qi was also given important positions. The Qi family now has a high status.
Although Madam Qi's birthday banquet cannot be held on a large scale, it is fine to have a small gathering of relatives in the mansion. If it is really because of Madam Qi, it will not be difficult for the Qi family to ask for an imperial chef to go to the Qi family.
Besides, Madam Qi comes from a very good family and has seen all kinds of good things. How could she be greedy for the snacks from the imperial kitchen?
What's the point of liking the things in the imperial kitchen and feeling sorry for the poor cat slave? It's clear that the kid from the Qi family has ulterior motives.
He must have heard from somewhere that Hua Wu had her permission to enter and leave the imperial kitchen freely to get food, so he came to her house on purpose using this excuse. He almost said directly that he wanted to kidnap her little girl.
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