Chapter 218: Bo Qiaohui 30
After seeing off the Grand Empress Dowager, Guan Tao began to stir again in his seat. His beautiful almond-shaped eyes deliberately feigned innocence, but he couldn't wait to show off his scheming: "The Grand Empress Dowager truly loves you. She even takes care of the Emperor's harem affairs on your behalf. It's a pity that my brother has been childless for two years since he ascended the throne, despite being under the yoke of such a domineering Empress like you."
"It's a pity that you can stop the beauty I sent, but you can't stop my mother from choosing a concubine for her son." She said as she looked at Dou Yifang, "Didn't you ask your uncle to choose a rare and good man? Sooner or later, she will be sent to the Queen to see. Why not call her here today so that we can appreciate this beauty too."
Bo Qiaohui sat at the foot of Dou Yi's room. Hearing this, she held the teapot steady. She first brewed tea for Empress Dowager Dou before casually saying, "Really? Then I'll have to take a closer look. Your Majesty's vision is always much better than the Princess'."
Dou Yifang felt helpless. Her son's childlessness naturally worried her. However, as Qiaohui had said, none of the concubines selected from the palace or the beauties found in Guantao had caught her son's eye. Most importantly, her daughter always chose those with ulterior motives, causing unrest in the harem. With no other options, she took matters into her own hands and asked Dou Changjun to find her a kindhearted, clean-cut young man.
Firstly, she had experience with childbirth, and secondly, she wouldn't disobey the Queen if she had a child. However, even if she had said this in private, the Queen might not have been happy with it. Now that her daughter had said it out loud, it seemed as if she was resentful of the Queen and deliberately trying to embarrass her in public.
"She is just a poor child. Seeing how docile and well-behaved she is, I took her into the palace to stay for a while."
"She can please the Queen Mother, and that's her strength," Qiao Hui said calmly. "It would be nice to meet her, and it would also add some color to our banquet."
Seeing that she didn't seem really angry, Dou Yifang nodded in agreement and ordered Rong'er to bring the person over.
When Rong'er brought the person over, everyone present was stunned. This person was holding a zither, half covering his face. His clothes fluttered as he walked, and he had an unconventional aura. A faint fragrance emanated from wherever he walked.
"Your humble servant pays homage to the Empress Dowager. May your Majesty be blessed with everlasting happiness."
The sound was like the tinkling of bells and the bursting of cold springs, and some of the concubines present even felt their scalps tingle. When they looked again, she had already finished paying her respects to everyone, holding her zither, and was now sitting next to Princess Guantao.
"Huai Xu, why are you wearing a veil?"
Guan Tao pulled her affectionately, smiled and said, "Our Queen wants to see what a rare beauty you are."
Li Huaixu had kept his head slightly lowered since entering, not looking directly at the Empress, only catching sight of her gorgeous phoenix robe. Upon hearing Guan Tao's question, he replied, looking in the direction of her hand: "It's just that I'm having some difficulty acclimatizing myself. I'm worried my appearance will be damaged... and it will offend the nobles."
When Li Huaixu's eyes fell on the queen's face, which was like a banished fairy and a secluded orchid in the valley, his tone paused unconsciously. Although he tried to cover it up in time, Bo Qiaohui still noticed it.
Just a quick glance and Bo Qiaohui knew she was lying. Beneath the veil was a flawless beauty.
Bo Qiaohui also understood her thoughts, which can be summed up in four words: rare goods are valuable.
Freshness is always useful to an emperor. Besides, this new beauty is only slightly inferior to his own in quality.
What a pity.
Her eyes glanced at the lyre in the other person's hand.
If the character setting is good, it will be like Nianhulu and Zhen Huan. If the character setting is bad, it will be like a car accident scene.
If she were the original and authentic version and still alive, the other party would have found another way if they were smart. However, judging by her momentary panic, could it be that she was acting on her own initiative and pretending to be cool before she had collected all her information?
This shouldn't be the case. Dou Yifang brought people here without giving them any career planning or anything?
In fact, Dou Yifang did it, but she positioned Li Huaixu as an honest concubine who was obedient and could give birth to offspring for the emperor.
Li Huaixu was very grateful to Dou Changjun for helping her and her daughter when they were down and out. But for herself and her daughter, she was unwilling to be just a puppet controlled by others.
From childhood to adulthood, her beauty and talent had given her immense confidence. This time, she entered the palace with her sights set on the highest position. In Li Huaixu's view, with her beauty and wisdom, it was only a matter of time before she would be favored by the emperor. She was willing to repay the Dou family's kindness by treating the empress well, but that was all.
Although she heard a lot of news about the queen from the empress dowager after entering the palace, Dou Yifang was a kind person and would not comment on other people's appearance casually, not to mention that there was no need to do so.
Secondly, Li Huaixu knew that the queen was a member of the Bo family and became queen with the help of the Empress Dowager, so naturally he didn't think that her appearance could surpass his own.
Never mind, I don’t rely on these external things to win.
Li Huaixu ignored the slight jealousy in his heart, held the zither tighter with his bare hands, and his fingers coincidentally scratched the strings.
"Huai Xu, why did you bring Lu Qi here as well?"
Dou Yifang's attention was indeed attracted. She looked at the beautiful guqin in her arms and asked with some confusion.
Li Huaixu stood up and saluted, his voice cold and clear: "I heard that the Queen Mother was holding a banquet here, so I brought a zither to accompany the ladies, but I didn't expect that no one would dance."
"Huai Xu is absolutely right. Such a beautiful platform should be entertained with singing and dancing." Guan Tao looked at Qiao Hui with ill intent. "The Empress Dowager's rendition of 'Chang'an Song' was truly magnificent. Your Majesty, you are also a daughter of the Bo family. I imagine your dance will be even more wonderful. How about you perform a piece to liven up the atmosphere for us?"
Le Chi behind Bo Qiaohui was furious. Originally, the dance was nothing special. Singing and dancing were now popular in the Han Dynasty, and many nobles could express their feelings through a dance. It was just that Guan Tao's words were harsh, as if the empress were a dancing girl for their own amusement.
Before she could speak, Qiao Hui's indifferent voice rang in her ears, instantly extinguishing the anger in Le Chi's heart: "I can dance, and I'm good at it."
"only,"
"She deserves it."
It was clearly a question, but coming out of the Queen's mouth, it carried an inexplicable air of superiority and indifference. It was as if Li Huaixu was nothing more than an ant in her eyes, unworthy of even a perfunctory response.
"Your Highness and I have no old grudges. Why must you humiliate me like this?" Li Huaixu saw that the Queen ignored her completely and the eldest princess beside her was only focused on watching the show. She felt even more ashamed and angry. "If Your Highness is worried that my music is not worthy of your dance, why don't I play a piece first and let everyone here judge it?"
"If I can catch the Queen Mother's eye, I'm sure you won't refuse me."
"Why bother talking so much? Just play music."
Bo Qiaohui even lifted up her skirt to cover her mouth and nose, and yawned gracefully, which made Li Huaixu so angry that he fell backwards.
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