Chapter 88 Drunk
In less than two quarters of an hour, Yun Wan returned to her seat. By then, the palace banquet was already halfway through and the atmosphere was lively.
Suddenly the sound of the orchestra stopped, replaced by the exciting sound of drums, and in an instant the dancer in the center of the hall began to dance with light and graceful steps.
Among them, the dancers surrounded by the crowd danced the most gracefully, twisting their waists to the beat of the drums. The colorful dance skirt barely wrapped around her body, and a thin veil covered most of her face, leaving only a pair of charming and alluring eyes exposed.
At the banquet, many men were so attracted by this scene that they stared at it intently.
Unfortunately, the leading dancer stared at the emperor on the throne from beginning to end, and her thoughts were obvious.
Seeing this, many people present secretly cursed her as a "fox".
Concubine Shu's face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and she stared at the dancer.
Where did this bitch come from? How dare she ruin her life?
Could it be the imperial concubine?
She subconsciously looked in the direction of Concubine Li, and saw that her expression was cold, but she couldn't figure out what was going on.
Concubine Li didn't speak, but Concubine Xian beside her spoke curiously: "Your Majesty, this dance looks quite good to me. It's magnificent and very novel. I wonder what kind of dance it is?"
After the dance was over, the enchanting dancer in the lead stepped forward lightly, her voice as sweet as a nightingale saying, "Your Majesty, what I am performing is the Xuanzhi Dance, which originated from the Western Regions."
Concubine Li said leisurely, "Xuanzhi Wu? This is the first time I've heard of this name. They say that dances from the Western Regions are bold and varied, and today I see that it's indeed true."
She looked up, smiled, and asked, "What do you think, Your Majesty?"
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone pricked up their ears, curious about Emperor Jingxuan's attitude towards this charming dance and the dancer.
The dancers in the audience were beating their hearts like thunder, and the opportunity to soar to the sky was just around the corner.
She suppressed her excitement, her beautiful eyes full of light.
Emperor Jingxuan raised his eyelids, glanced at the crowd below, and said two words in a tone as calm as water:
"generally."
As soon as those words were spoken, the hall fell silent, and many people looked at the dancer with a gloating look.
The dancer felt aggrieved and looked at Emperor Jingxuan with her charming eyes, crying and complaining.
She casually pulled off her veil, revealing a delicate face. She said with a hint of resentment, "I'm so bold as to ask Your Majesty what I think is wrong with my dance. Please point it out, and I'll correct it later..."
This soft voice made many people's ears numb and their hearts tingle with pity.
For example, Yun Wan touched her slightly itchy ears and her eyes couldn't help but fall on the dancer.
"Are you questioning me?"
The cold voice was mixed with strong displeasure, and Emperor Jingxuan had no expression on his face.
The dancer was stunned. This was completely different from what she had imagined.
Under the cold gaze of Emperor Jingxuan, her legs went weak, her face showed fear, and she trembled and said, "I dare not!"
Emperor Jingxuan: "No rules, drag him away."
In a single thought, the dancer's life or death is determined.
At this moment, everyone seemed to be poured with a bucket of cold water, especially those who were in a state of anxiety and felt that His Majesty did not know how to be gentle with women. They immediately quieted down.
They almost forgot that His Majesty was not interested in women, let alone being gentle and considerate towards beautiful women.
Regardless of everyone's thoughts, Emperor Jingxuan said coldly: "Continue."
After a while, the wind and string instruments started playing again, and the banquet became lively again.
The ruthless treatment made Concubine Shu unable to hide her gloating expression and she felt extremely happy.
She berated him, "You ignorant foxy girl, you deserve it!"
"What do you think, sister-in-law?" she turned her head and asked.
Yun Wan did not comment on the dancer's behavior, but only said, "Your Majesty is wise and powerful."
In fact, she was still frightened by Emperor Jingxuan's cold appearance.
Concubine Shu found it quite boring.
Just then, a palace maid came to add more wine. When she smelled the aroma, her expression brightened: "Is this laurel wine?"
The palace maid nodded while holding the wine jug. "Your Majesty, yes, the wine opened this year is the laurel wine brewed during last year's Mid-Autumn Festival."
Concubine Shu asked her to pour herself a glass. Yun Wan looked over and saw the clear goose-yellow wine, which exuded a faint laurel fragrance.
Concubine Shu tilted her head and asked, "Have you ever drunk laurel wine?"
Yun Wan shook his head.
"Since I haven't tried it yet, I'll try it today if I have the chance."
Concubine Shu signaled to the palace attendant: "Fill her up."
Yun Wan frowned, "Your Majesty, I appreciate your kindness, but I've never been a good drinker. I'm afraid I might lose my composure after getting drunk and cause trouble for you."
She was telling the truth. Yun Wan's alcohol tolerance was indeed not good, and she never liked to drink.
Concubine Shu was unconcerned: "It's nothing serious. This laurel wine is not strong, but tastes mellow and refreshing. It won't make you drunk. You can rest assured, sister-in-law."
"It would be inappropriate not to drink laurel wine during the Mid-Autumn Festival."
Huipin, who was sitting to her right, was a wine lover. She had already finished half a pot of wine at the banquet. Seeing this, she looked disdainful and said, "Madam Shufei is right. Why is Madam Lu being so reluctant? It's just a glass of wine."
After saying that, she drank the wine in the glass in one gulp.
Seeing her so bold, Yun Wan picked up the wine glass, sniffed it under his nose, and then took a small sip.
Concubine Shu curled her lips: "How?"
Yun Wan: "It tastes really good, like drinking fruit wine."
Concubine Shu: "I didn't lie to you, did I? Then have another drink."
After drinking the last three cups, Yun Wan's face turned flushed. Fortunately, the wine was not intoxicating and did not make her dizzy.
Yun Wan only drank three cups and then said she would not drink anymore. Seeing this, Concubine Shu and her companions did not try to persuade her to drink more, but just drank on their own.
Now that he had some free time, Yun Wan sat in his seat in a daze, his hands supporting his chin, his eyes gradually becoming unfocused as he stared at the center of the hall.
Her cheeks were burning, as hot as a branding iron, and her eyelids felt as if they weighed a thousand pounds. She covered her lips and yawned, feeling a little bored.
Fuling: "Aunt, your face looks so red, are you drunk?"
Yun Wan shook her head: "I'm not drunk, just a little hot and stuffy, and I can't breathe."
And I'm very sleepy.
Fuling whispered, "The banquet will last for another hour. Why don't we go back first?"
Yun Wan glanced at the banquet and disagreed: "It's too conspicuous. Go ask if there are any hangover pills or something. If not, forget it."
Fuling responded and hurried out.
Yun Wan waited for half an hour but Fuling didn't come back. He wondered if she was delayed on the way.
She wanted to ask someone, but she was so sleepy that she couldn't speak a coherent sentence.
Concubine Shu turned around and saw her blushing face. She was immediately surprised: "What happened to my sister-in-law?"
Yun Wan smiled at her and said, "I'm sorry, I lost my composure."
Seeing this, Concubine Shu felt guilty, "I didn't expect my sister-in-law to have such a low alcohol tolerance. It's my fault."
"This place is quite far from Changchun Palace. I will have someone prepare a sedan chair to take you back."
"Chun Tang, quickly help Madam Lu and get her into the sedan chair..."
“..........”
She said a lot with her mouth opening and closing, which gave Yun Wan a headache. In a daze, she was helped into the sedan chair, and the slight bumps made her consciousness even more confused.
Half asleep, half awake, a palace maid helped her into the house and onto the couch.
Yun Wan felt the softness beneath her body and the pleasant scent on the bedding. She couldn't hold on any longer and gradually fell asleep.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com