reason
Ah Shi jumped out from the side and said, "Auntie can also send a table to His Majesty."
Why would I send it to him?
"After all, I did give my aunt some money as a reward."
"Alright," I clicked my tongue and gave in, "then I'll deliver it too, you go deliver it."
“Okay,” Ah Shi nodded, “I’ll go deliver it first and come back as soon as possible.”
“There’s no need to rush,” the prime minister said. “It would be good if you ate with your father and see if he asks you to stay.”
"Huh?" Ah Shi looked distressed. "But I'd rather eat with my aunt."
The prime minister rolled his eyes at him, saying, "You must always remember what your aunt will ultimately have to do."
“Oh…” Ah Shi replied dejectedly.
I quickly comforted him: "Don't worry, if he really invites you to stay, you can eat in the palace and then leave. If you happen to run into him, we can eat together. If not, your aunt will treat you to another meal next time. It's alright, your aunt is rich now."
"Okay," Ah Shi said with a smile, having been appeased, and set off first.
I also bowed to the Prime Minister and took my leave: "Uncle Prime Minister, I'll be going now."
"Hmm." He just grunted through his nose, not giving me a second glance.
When I arrived at the restaurant, I found that not all the officials from the Imperial Observatory had arrived yet, so I asked Wu Qing, "Wu Qing, has something happened? Why are we missing people?"
Wu Qing chuckled to himself, "Those who went with me to select gems during the day went back to the Imperial Observatory first to hide the gems, so they'll be a little late."
"Oh," I nodded, "Did you instruct them to remember to seal off the entire Imperial Observatory after they came out?"
“Hmm,” Wu Qing nodded, clearly having thought of that as well. “Everyone sealed off their own courtyards when they came out. Each person has different formations and sealing habits. If we really want to break through everyone’s seals and get into the inner courtyard, it will take at least several days. It should be fine.”
"Alright, then let's start the feast once everyone arrives. Eat and play to your heart's content. I've had the Ministry of Revenue book the entire restaurant for today."
“Okay,” Wu Qing nodded happily, “Thank you, Miss Xu.”
Baohe then ran over and jumped onto me, saying, "Xu Yi, I saw a young man making osmanthus candy when I was wandering around the restaurant. It smelled really good. I think he should make candy for me from now on."
“Okay,” I nodded, “Anyway, it’s still early for the banquet to start. You take me there first, and we’ll make the arrangements before coming back.”
“Okay,” Baohe nodded and led me toward the kitchen.
Because the entire restaurant has been booked out today, the restaurant owner is supervising in the kitchen.
I briefly explained the situation to them and asked them to send a box of osmanthus sugar to the palace regularly. I even paid them one hundred taels of silver. The shopkeeper declined, saying, "Miss, you're too kind. Osmanthus sugar doesn't cost much to begin with. Why do you need so much? Just give me ten taels of silver."
"Ten taels? How long can ten taels hold the sugar?"
The shopkeeper was very honest and immediately started calculating for me: "One tael of silver is one thousand coins, ten taels is ten thousand coins. Osmanthus candy outside costs five coins a box, and one box can last for about three days. With just ten taels of silver, young lady, you can guarantee sixteen years' worth of osmanthus candy."
Sixteen years? That's still too short. I handed him another hundred taels: "Sixteen years is too short. It must be guaranteed for at least one hundred years. Keep it. If there's any left over, consider it a tip for your restaurant's hard work. By the way," I pointed to the young man Baohe had his eye on and said, "We require that he make all these osmanthus candies, and he absolutely cannot cut corners."
"Oh?" The shopkeeper looked over and saw that it was his own son, so he declined even more: "That's my own son. It's rare for such a distinguished person to take a liking to my son. Since he's my own, the cost is even lower. Just give me fifty taels, and I'll make sure to supply you with enough osmanthus sugar for a hundred years, delivered every three days."
"Alright, since you say it's okay, then let's do it this way. If there are any changes later, just come to the Imperial Observatory to find me."
"Uh..." the shopkeeper hesitated, "I'm just a merchant, I'm afraid I'll have no chance of entering the palace..."
“Oh, yes,” I said, handing him a token from the Imperial Observatory. “Take this token, and the people in the palace will let you in.”
"Then, thank you very much, young lady."
I called to the shopkeeper, "Drip a drop of blood into it."
"Huh?" The shopkeeper was probably hearing about blood being dripped for the first time, and hesitated.
I patted him on the shoulder and said, "This token has runes inside. If your blood is dripped on it, no one else can use it. This way, we can both be at ease."
"Oh, oh," the boss nodded, quickly bit his finger and dripped a drop of blood into the wound, then looked up and asked me, "Then... my son..."
"Don't worry, as long as you are a member of your family, you can bring this token into the palace to deliver osmanthus candy."
"Okay, okay, thank you, young lady."
After this matter was settled, everyone from the Imperial Observatory arrived when we returned.
I raised my glass, walked to the center, and looked at the Imperial Observatory staff upstairs and downstairs, saying, "Mortals have short lives and cannot fathom the secrets of heaven. Fortunately, the Great Dao is forty-nine, and humans escape one of those. This glass of wine is to toast ourselves for being fortunate enough to glimpse a corner of the Heavenly Dao. Come, drink."
Everyone stood up and echoed, "Respect the Way of Heaven."
I raised my glass again: "Life is full of hardships and man-made disasters. This glass is to those predecessors who fought to uphold the right path, and also to ourselves who are still upholding it."
The crowd was moved, and a hint of sadness appeared in their eyes, but their voices became much louder: "Respect for our seniors, respect for ourselves."
I poured the wine again and smiled at everyone: "This last cup is my way of treating you all on behalf of the supervisor and on behalf of the mortal world. Eat and drink well, and call again if you need more."
Everyone laughed, their voices filled with joy: "Thank you, Supervisor, thank you, Miss Xu."
When I returned to my seat, I found Wu Qingbao and the others staring at me with bright eyes. I asked, amused, "What's wrong?"
Bao He jumped over first: "Xu Yi, you're too good with words! The way you just acted was even more like a supervisor than the supervisor himself!"
"What do you mean, 'even more upright than the chief supervisor'... What kind of adjective is that?!"
Wu Qing nodded: "From the moment Miss Xu took over the Imperial Observatory and started asking for money for everyone, to the few words she just said, everyone felt that they were being protected. She is indeed more upright than the Director of the Observatory."
“The Supervisor…” I said in a hoarse voice, head bowed, “The Supervisor has been trapped in the mortal realm for a long time…”
Thinking of this, I poured wine again and raised my cup: "The Grand Supervisor is a man beyond worldly affairs. He has been trapped in the mortal world for so long and has finally been freed. Let us toast him from afar."
“Alright,” Baohe Wuqing and Muli raised their glasses and clinked them with me with smiles: “To the Supervisor, and to you as well.”
"No, no," I quickly waved my hand, "I'm still far from being as good as the supervisor."
What followed was a rather boring banquet time, with everyone eating, drinking, and moving around, filling the entire restaurant with laughter and chatter.
Just then, the shopkeeper came over and told me that there was a young man outside who claimed to be the Crown Prince, and asked if we should let him in.
"The Crown Prince?" Mu Li frowned first.
I looked at the shopkeeper and asked, "How many people did he bring?"
The shopkeeper was stunned, his face full of surprise that he was really the Crown Prince. After a long while, he came to his senses and replied, "Alone."
“One person? Then he shouldn’t be here to cause trouble.” I looked at Wu Qing and Bao He and said, “Wu Qing, Bao He, come with me to greet the Crown Prince.” Then I looked at the innkeeper and said, “Please trouble the innkeeper to open a private room on the second floor and prepare another meal.”
The shopkeeper wiped the sweat from his brow and nodded, "Okay, miss, I'll go prepare it right away."
Muli also stood up: "Then I'll go to the private room on the second floor to wait for you, and make the tea while I'm at it."
“Okay,” I nodded, and led Baohe and Wuqing out. Once outside, I saw that it was indeed only the Crown Prince.
The person smiled at me, with that same standard smile: "Auntie."
"What brings you here, Your Highness?"
"I heard that the Imperial Observatory is hosting a banquet, so I've come to ask for a drink."
"Guests are always welcome," I said, stepping aside to make way for them. "Please."
Baohe and I were in front, with Wu Qing at the very back. The group went directly to the second floor via the stairs at the entrance.
Mu Li was making tea when he saw us arrive. He stood up and bowed to the Crown Prince, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness."
I gestured to the Crown Prince, "Sit down."
Once we were seated, Muli's tea was ready. The innkeeper was quick and served several cold dishes very fast.
For a moment, no one spoke, and the entire private room was filled with silence.
After the innkeeper had prepared and served all the hot dishes, he turned and left, and even closed the door for us.
I breathed a sigh of relief and greeted the Crown Prince: "Then... please, Your Highness."
"Thank you, please."
After we finished this round of drinks, I looked at him again and said, "You must have come here for something you want. Just say it."
“Auntie is very straightforward,” he nodded, “I would like to ask you a few questions.”
"What's the problem?"
"Aunt, I'm a ghost, and Ah Shi isn't born into the royal family. Does that mean the Great Qing Dynasty will die out in the next generation?"
It's not something that's hard to find out that Ah Shi isn't the emperor's biological son. I looked at him and said, "You could say that."
"Since the Great Qing Dynasty is already extinct, is there any point in trying to save it?"
"To be honest, from another perspective, it is indeed over, but a dynasty never ends just because the royal family is gone. The Great Qing Dynasty only lost its royal lineage; the people of the Great Qing Dynasty are still living well!"
"For ordinary people, they don't care who becomes emperor at all!" The crown prince's tone became sharp.
“Yes,” I nodded, “the common people don’t really care who the emperor is, but this emperor cannot affect their normal lives, much less rob them of their small hopes and fortune…”
"Heh..." He sneered, "So this is why Auntie would help Ah Shi, an outsider, but not me, a family member."
I took a leisurely sip of wine and looked at the Crown Prince: "It's still the same thing. Your mother buried you in the Hall of Light and you devoured her son's mind and took over his body. That's your own personal grudge. But what you want is the highest position. Naturally, you have to take many things that you don't have. That's why I have to stop you."
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