Chapter 1803: Rest
Lord Tang knew that he would definitely not be able to compete with an lord who had a higher rank than him, nor would it be easy to compete with an lord who was older than him, so he sat there without moving.
When Gu Zhongyi said it was time to rest, the emperor got up and went to the back of the hall to rest.
Ministers headed by Lord Wei Zhilao Tang also left the hall one after another.
Manbao was not very experienced. She was just sitting there waiting for the lunch that Gu Zhong had mentioned. However, she saw Lord Tang and Lord Yang taking out snacks from their sleeves and eating them. She was startled and asked, "Isn't it time for lunch?"
Lord Tang said, "You have to wait for them for at least another half an hour."
They were extremely hungry by now.
When Manbao heard this, he took out his own snacks and started eating, "It took so long."
Lord Yang smiled and said, "With so many people here, it's natural to go slower."
Manbao thought about it, then got up and went out to change clothes.
Lord Tang wanted to say that she would not be able to find a place, but then he thought about the differences between men and women and it was hard to say.
Manbao glanced at the adults who were walking out of the hall one after another, and went directly to the back of the hall to find Mingda and Changyu. Since it would take about half an hour, why rush?
Manbao actually strolled all the way to the harem in his official uniform, and the eunuchs and palace maids passing by didn't think there was anything wrong at all.
Everyone probably thought she was here to visit Mingda Changyu, and even gave her directions, "Princess Changyu is in Princess Mingda's palace."
Manbao went to look for Mingda, who happened to be sitting on the couch reading a book. Changyu was bored and playing sandbags with the palace maids. When she saw Manbao coming, she immediately lifted her skirt and ran to her side, asking with a smile, "Why did you wear your official uniform to play with us today?"
Manbao said, "I'm not here to play with you."
Mingda also put down his book, looked her up and down, and said with a smile: "Shouldn't you be in the front of the court today?"
Manbao said, "Waiting for lunch."
Chang Yu was surprised, "It's already this late and you haven't eaten yet?"
Mingda had already instructed the palace maid, "Help Master Zhou change his clothes."
Then he said happily, "I have some soup cooking in my small kitchen. How about I ask them to make you a bowl of noodles?"
Manbao hesitated, "That's not good. I was thinking about having the working meal in the palace."
According to Lord Tang, such opportunities are rare, at most two or three times a year, which is very rare.
Mingda, who had been hanging out in the front hall since he was a child, covered his mouth with his hands and smiled, "That's fine, I'll ask them to give you a little less noodles, you can eat it first to warm your stomach."
Manbao thought her smile was strange, and after a suspicious look at her, he nodded, "Okay."
The three or four snacks she brought with her were as good as nothing. She could no longer get enough sleep and could not afford to skip food and drink, otherwise she would not grow taller.
Manbao turned around and went to change clothes with the palace maid. When she came back after washing her hands, he didn't bother to be polite with Chang Yumingda. He lifted up his official robe and sat on the couch, exhaling and saying, "Going to court is really tiring."
Chang Yu pulled out a plate of dried fruit and ate it while curiously asking, "Didn't you say last time that you were mostly dozing off during court meetings?"
"That's because I have nothing to do," she said. "In the past, I rarely got to speak during their political discussions. Aside from some interesting things, most of them were boring. But this time, I also have a memorial to submit, and I have to face the questioning and interrogation of the ministers. So naturally, I also want to listen to how other ministers submit memorials and how they argue back, or maybe find fault with others and fight back when they find fault with me."
Man Bao said, "That's why I was so tired. Oh, I regret it now. If I had known better, I would not have dozed off on weekdays and listened more often. I wouldn't have been so nervous this time. The teacher is right. If you don't study hard on weekdays, even if you sincerely pray to the Heavenly Venerable, it will be useless when the exam comes."
Mingda and Changyu couldn't help laughing when they heard this and made fun of her.
The kitchen brought a bowl of noodles and a plate of side dishes.
The broth is ready. The small kitchen has to make snacks and also has to keep some small steamed buns that Mingda wants to eat, so the dough is always resting and can be added after kneading.
Although Mingda said that a small bowl would be enough, the cook didn't dare to just put in a little.
The palace has always been a place where more is better than less. If there is really more than can be eaten, the servants can clean up the food or throw it away.
Manbao sat down at the table and took a chopstick of noodles. He was surprised to see not only an egg but also a handful of green vegetables. "There are green vegetables too."
Mingda didn't understand this, so he looked at the palace maid beside him.
The maid laughed and said, "Prince Gong had this brought into the palace. He said it was from Tangquan Manor in the suburbs. He thought the Empress and the Princess had weak stomachs and there weren't many leafy vegetables in the palace, so he specially had it brought from the manor just for the Empress and the Princess."
Mingda said, "Third brother is so considerate."
Manbao also nodded, then asked, "I haven't seen him for half a month. The last time I saw him, I felt that he hadn't lost weight. Has he gained weight in the past half month?"
Mingda carefully recalled the third brother he had seen the other day and nodded, "I hadn't noticed until you mentioned it, but he seems to have gained some weight."
Manbao said, "Don't feed him too much meat. Although we harvest in autumn and store in winter, we can't store too much meat. Since the farm can produce vegetables, he should eat more vegetables and less meat."
Mingda nodded.
The maidservant beside her said, "...Princess, your spleen and stomach haven't been very good lately, so you don't eat much meat. It seems that all our share of meat in the palace has been given to His Royal Highness Prince Gong."
Everyone: ...
Manbao glanced at Mingda, then at Changyu, then lowered his head to eat noodles.
After sending Manbao away, Changyu sighed and said, "So Third Brother didn't send me any vegetables because I like meat and you can't eat much meat."
She said that Third Brother has always been considerate and would always give Mingda something even if it was less.
Mingda simply stood up and said, "Let's go and see Third Brother."
Manbao had eaten and drunk her fill, and walked into the main hall with a bulging belly. When she entered, Lord Tang and Lord Yang had just gone out to change clothes. Seeing Manbao strolling back leisurely, they couldn't help but stop and asked, "Did you go back to Chongwenguan?"
How dare you be so bold? You're holding a grand court meeting here.
Manbao shook his head and said, "Chongwen Hall is too far. I'm going to the back to find Princess Mingda. Do you want to change clothes? Go ahead, go ahead."
Brother Tang: ...
He stared at her mouth and asked, "You not only went to change clothes, but also had lunch?"
Manbao felt a little embarrassed and said with a smile: "I just had a small bowl of noodles."
Not to mention Lord Tang, even Lord Yang didn't want to pay any attention to her and just turned around and left.
As they walked, Lord Tang sighed with Yang Heshu, "Who said it's inconvenient for women to be officials? She has it much easier than us. If the two of us were to become close friends with a prince like this, and even go to his palace to change clothes and eat during our free time, not to mention what would get out, just our position would become a problem. Would she have a problem?"
Yang Heshu laughed and said, "Gender is innate and cannot be changed."
Lord Tang sighed.
(End of this chapter)
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