Chapter 1131 Counterattack
Mingda returned to his seat, but the King of Yizhou chuckled and said to the Queen Mother, "Your Majesty, I don't know, but this young lady looks very familiar to me. Wasn't that legendary young doctor who's been going around lately visiting the palace to take the Emperor's sister-in-law's pulse? I've seen her from a distance before, and she seems to look just like her."
The Queen Mother said "Oh?" and turned to look at Zhou Man.
Zhou Man glanced at Mingda, then immediately stood up, stepped out of the line, and knelt. After bowing once, she straightened her back and smiled sweetly, saying, "Your Majesty, I, your daughter Zhou Man, did go to the palace to see the Queen."
The King of Yizhou laughed and said, "Mingda is truly filial. He even specially invited the emperor's sister-in-law's doctor to the birthday banquet."
The smile on the Queen Mother's face faded.
Upon hearing this, Mingda also stood up and knelt beside Manbao, quickly saying, "Grandmother, there are few girls my age in the palace. I met her when I went to visit my mother in Lizheng Palace. We got along very well and became close friends. That's why I invited her to sit with me. I didn't give her any special treatment just because she's my mother's doctor."
Mingda paused and said, "If we talk about the person who treats the Queen Mother, isn't the most important one still Dean Xiao of the Imperial Hospital?"
The emperor smiled and nodded repeatedly, "Indeed, Dean Xiao has done a great job in treating the empress. I see that the empress's condition has improved significantly in the past few days. He deserves a reward. Someone, send a table of food to the Imperial Hospital and tell them that it's from me to reward Dean Xiao."
The emperor paused and then smiled and said, "Mother, I remember that Xiao Yuanzheng's mother is over seventy years old this year and is also a long-lived person. Why don't you send her a bowl of longevity noodles to try?"
Upon hearing this, the Queen Mother nodded repeatedly and said with a smile, "It's only right. She's old and didn't come to the palace today. We should invite her in another day to discuss the art of health preservation. Someone, send a bowl of longevity noodles to Xiao Yuanzheng's home, and pick up some longevity peaches."
After finishing talking with Xiao Yuanzheng, the emperor waved to Mingda. Mingda immediately stood up, lifted her skirt and trotted forward to sit next to her father.
The emperor reached out and stroked her hair, laughing. "I know you have a good relationship with Zhou Man and are filial to him, but your health is the best way to show your filial piety to your parents. You are weak and can't sit for long. Later, you will take Zhou Man to play in the garden. You are not allowed to drink, understand?"
After giving his instructions, the Emperor turned to look at the Empress Dowager and asked with a smile, "Mother, are you going to enjoy the singing and dancing and let them have fun? Let Zhou Man check your pulse. Her playing with Mingda is a relief for us patients."
The Queen Mother laughed and said, "Nonsense! My family is all healthy, how could there be any sick people? But please check your pulse, it's still good."
She then looked at Zhou Man, who was still kneeling with his head bowed, and raised her hand slightly, saying, "Okay, child, get up quickly. My granddaughter has been weak since she was young. Look back and remind her if she does anything wrong."
Manbao agreed and stood up.
She raised her head slightly and looked upwards, meeting Mingda's eyes. They both winked at each other secretly, very playfully.
The emperor happened to see it, smiled helplessly, patted Mingda's hand, and asked her to go down and sit in her seat.
Bai Shan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Manbao sitting back next to Mingda. But before he could even finish his sigh of relief, the Fifth Prince, who was sitting in front of him, stood up, grabbed him, and smiled up at him, saying, "Grandmother, Mingda has friends, and I have friends here to celebrate your birthday, too."
The Empress Dowager just said "Oh" when the Emperor interrupted her and said, "Old Fifth, stop messing around. The banquet is about to start."
"Just open it. You won't let me serve the food, Grandmother. Please take a look at my friend."
The Queen Mother also liked the Fifth Prince very much, so she gave the Emperor a reproachful look and said, "That's right, you let them have the banquet while I was talking to the children. Why are you yelling at them?"
The emperor glanced at Bai Shan who was being held by Lao Wu, smiled, ignored them, turned around and asked Gu Zhong to order the banquet to begin.
Gu Zhong agreed with a smile, took a deep breath and shouted loudly, "The banquet is about to begin."
Then the musicians in the palace began to play, and the dancers filed into the center of the hall and began to dance to the music.
The palace servants waiting outside began to enter in an orderly manner, carrying dishes. They served the emperor and the empress dowager first, then the empress, and then the crown prince and the King of Yizhou...
A set of bowls, chopsticks and cups were placed in front of Manbao. The lids of the dishes that were served had been removed. The dishes were still warm and fragrant. The colors of the dishes were also very exquisite. They looked delicious, but Manbao's mind was not on eating at all.
She stared at the Fifth Prince and Bai Shan across from her.
Bai Shan shook her head slightly, and she sat in her seat, but her back was very straight.
The fifth prince pulled Bai Shan out and stood him in front of the Queen Mother. He asked with a smile, "Grandmother, what do you think of my friend?"
The Queen Mother squinted her eyes and saw that the two were about the same height. She smiled and said, "She is prettier than you."
The Fifth Prince pouted and turned to take a closer look at Bai Shan. Seeing that Bai Shan lowered his head slightly, he leaned in to take a closer look. Then he shook his head and said, "Grandmother, you lied to me. How can he be prettier than me? I look like my cousin Yang."
The emperor was drinking and almost spit out a mouthful of wine.
The Queen Mother also laughed heartily and said happily, "Where is Lord Yang? Come and see if your nephew looks like your son."
Bai Shan couldn't turn his head to look down, but Man Bao turned his head and looked down openly, and saw a man sitting at the table, bowing and smiling, saying: "The nephew looks like his uncle. The fifth prince said he looks like Changbo, so there is probably some resemblance."
The Queen Mother laughed and said, "You, you are as shameless as Xiaowu. Changbo just looks like his mother. What does it have to do with you?"
She looked at Bai Shan seriously and nodded, "This child is really good-looking. Whose child is he?"
Bai Shan bowed and replied, "I am from the Bai family in Longzhou."
"Longzhou?" The Queen Mother thought about it seriously and then smiled. "That's a good place. Who is Bai Jing of Longzhou to you?"
Bai Shan said: "He is my great uncle."
"Oh," the Queen Mother nodded with a smile, "then where are your father and grandfather employed now?"
The fifth prince interrupted and said, "Grandmother, his father and grandfather were both meritorious officials of the imperial court. He was admitted to the school by patronage and took the Imperial Academy exam himself."
The Queen Mother was slightly stunned, then nodded repeatedly, praising him: "Studying is good, study hard, and serve the court like your father and grandfather in the future. Xiaowu, you must study hard with your friends."
The Fifth Prince smiled and said, "So, Grandmother, can all my friends sit at the table with me?"
He turned around and pointed at Bai Cheng and Yin Huo and said, "They are both from the Imperial College and are my friends."
The Queen Mother glanced at the King of Yizhou and nodded helplessly to the Fifth Prince, saying, "He's your friend. You have the final say on his freedom. But you can have fun if you want, but don't mess around."
"Don't worry, Grandmother, I won't act recklessly again."
The emperor swallowed the wine, finally avoiding choking and embarrassment. He put down the glass, looked at Lao Wu, and said with a smile: "Hearing you say that, your friend is quite impressive. What book have you read now?"
The next update will be around 8pm
(End of this chapter)
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