The Zhou family's villa is indeed not far from Xiangguo Temple, but the villa is so large that its area is unknown. If the King of Qin said that he just happened to be passing by and heard the laughter and noise, so he came to take a look out of curiosity, then he was just lying through his teeth.
The crowd glanced at Prince Chen, and many guessed that he had come for Prince Chen.
Prince Chen's birth mother is the current Empress. Although she is the second Empress, she has enjoyed the Emperor's favor for many years because she was a former concubine of the Prince Chen and is very beautiful. As a result, Prince Chen and Princess Xuanci are also very favored, even subtly overshadowing the original Empress's legitimate son, Prince Chu.
If we're talking about who dares to challenge King Chen now, it's only King Qin.
And they both shared a common interest: beautiful women.
If half of the beauties in the capital city of Tokyo are in the Chen Prince's residence, then the other half must be in the Qin Prince's residence.
The anecdotes about these two princes vying for a beauty were known throughout Tokyo.
Not only did everyone think this way, but Prince Chen also clearly thought so. However, he had other plans today and did not want to clash with Xue Shen and ruin things, so he gave a forced smile, cupped his hands, and offered his seat to Xue Shen.
Xue Shen accepted it without hesitation, nodding slightly and saying, "I don't like poetry. You guys have fun, I'll just watch the fun."
After he said that, no one dared to invite him again, since this was a fearsome figure that even the Prince of Chen dared not easily provoke.
Musicians played string and wind instruments, and a maid placed a wine vessel into a leaf-shaped tray on the water's surface. With a gentle push, the tray carried the wine vessel downstream.
Whoever the wine cup stops in front of must drink a cup of wine and then compose a poem.
Shen Youying didn't want to attract attention, so she sat at the end with Xie Qinglan. After the young men and women in front of her had finished their lively discussion, the tray slowly floated to her.
She drank some wine, composed a poem, and then sat down with her eyes lowered, pretending not to notice the scrutinizing gazes.
But someone wouldn't let her off the hook. Zhou Zhenrong, holding a wine cup, said crisply, "Miss Shen is known for her talent, so why is your poem so perfunctory today? I even praised you highly to my cousin, Prince Chen!"
Shen Youying raised her eyes and met Chen Wang's gaze. She lowered her eyes and said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "I have only read a few books in my spare time. It is nothing to boast about my talent. Miss Zhou is too kind."
"Second Miss Shen is being too modest. Those who know you will praise your humility, but those who don't will think you disdain playing with us." Zhou Zhenrong first launched into a barrage of sarcastic remarks, then clapped her hands and laughed: "How about this, Second Miss, compose another poem, and if you can't... you can punish yourself with a cup of wine, how about that?"
After Zhou Zhenrong finished speaking, she raised her chin, and immediately a maidservant understood and carried a wine cup to Shen Youying's side.
This is almost an obvious humiliation.
Xie Qinglan's face was full of anger, and he was about to speak when Shen Youying pressed down on his arm, so he could only swallow his anger.
Shen Youying picked up the wine cup and drank it all in one gulp, then turned the cup upside down on the tray: "Then I'll punish myself with a cup."
Now that she had punished herself, Zhou Zhenrong had no more excuse to make things difficult for her, and she immediately pouted in boredom. When her gaze swept across to Prince Chen opposite her, the two exchanged a glance, Zhou Zhenrong covered her lips and smiled, then turned her head to join in the merriment with the others.
Because of the penalty wine incident, whether intentionally or unintentionally, the wine cup never floated to Shen Youying's face again.
Shen Youying and Xie Qinglan ate fruit and chatted quietly, enjoying their time together.
As the banquet drew to a close, perhaps due to the lingering effects of the wine, Shen Youying suddenly felt a little dizzy. Just as she was about to get up to clear her head, a maid carrying wine happened to pass by behind her, and the two bumped into each other, causing the wine pot to tip over onto Shen Youying's dress.
The maid turned pale with fright and repeatedly apologized. Shen Youying did not want to make things difficult for her, so she kept quiet and quietly told Bailuo to go to the carriage to get spare clothes. She then said to the maid, "It's alright, take me to the changing room."
The maid was extremely grateful and quickly got up to lead the way for her.
Xie Qinglan originally wanted to go with her, but just then a wine cup floated in front of her, and she couldn't get away. She could only pull Danzhu aside and say, "You have to take good care of your young lady. Zhou San is full of bad intentions, so don't let her do anything bad."
Danzhu nodded, using her body to shield Shen Youying from the wet hem of her skirt, and followed the maid to change her clothes.
The villa was quite large. The maid led them around for quite a while before stopping in front of a quiet courtyard. She said softly, "Second Miss Chen, we've arrived."
Shen Youying looked around, sensing something was amiss. This courtyard was too secluded. But she was dizzy and only managed to stand with Danzhu's support, so she couldn't think too much. She could only grip Danzhu's arm tightly and gently shake her head: "Danzhu..."
She had just called out when she felt the body she was leaning against suddenly go limp, and she slumped over, but was caught by the maid beside her just before she fell.
The maid helped her to the courtyard: "Second Miss Chen, you've had too much to drink, go and rest first."
The other person's arm was strong, and the hand gripping her arm was like an eagle's claw. Shen Youying couldn't break free at all. She struggled to turn her head and saw two male servants carrying the unconscious Danzhu into the next side room.
She herself was forcibly taken into the main house by the maid.
The room had no windows open, was brightly lit by candlelight, and had a sweet, warm fragrance wafting in the air. Shen Youying's dizziness worsened, and she could barely see people; all she could see were heavy shadows.
The faint sound of a door being locked could be heard, along with the distorted voice of a maid: "Go and invite Prince Chen."
Prince Chen...
The name sent a shiver down Shen Youying's spine. She realized that this was probably all a deliberate scheme. She bit her wrist hard, using the pain to stimulate her increasingly drowsy mind, and struggled to get out of bed. She staggered to the table and reached for the teapot.
Fortunately, there was tea in the teapot. She didn't care about being dignified and poured the tea onto her sleeves, then haphazardly covered her face with her trembling hands, trying to clear her head.
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