Attending a banquet
Prince Duan, Shangguan Zeyu, took his wife, Xiao Yiqing, out for a spring outing, and they didn't return until evening.
After being "deceived" by the whirlpool of flowers, Jiang Yan fell asleep fully clothed.
He slept soundly until evening and still hadn't woken up.
In the past, this wouldn't have been a big problem, but today, a problem has arisen.
Jiang Yan was still half asleep when she heard Huang Ying's anxious voice.
She was very impatient. She was already angry when she arrived at this place that she didn't even like, and now she couldn't even get a peaceful night's sleep. Her tone immediately became unfriendly.
"What are you doing? Get away! Get away!!" He was still pulling the big red quilt covering him tightly with both hands.
"Master, the prince has returned and invites you to dine in the front hall."
"Go away, don't disturb my sleep." Jiang Yan didn't listen carefully to Huang Ying's words, just mumbled something, pulled the blanket over his head and went back to sleep.
Huang Ying was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. Ignoring the difference in status between her and Jiang Yan, she rolled up her sleeves and ripped off the blanket covering Jiang Yan's head.
Jiang Yan was now completely angry: "What are you doing?"
Ignoring her anger, Huang Ying said urgently, "Master, the Prince invites you to dine in the front hall."
"......What?" Jiang Yan was completely dumbfounded.
"Master, hurry up and get up to wash and dress, don't keep the prince waiting too long!" Huang Ying pulled Jiang Yan out of bed while she was still drowsy and started picking out clothes for her and preparing her for makeup.
Jiang Yan only came to her senses when she sat down in front of the bronze mirror and saw the reflection of a person she didn't recognize at all, but who was obviously a pushover.
"No! I'm not going!" He suddenly stood up.
"Master! Don't be stubborn! We absolutely cannot not go!!"
"Why not? Didn't we eat separately before? Why do we have to eat together today? Just tell them I'm sick and can't come!"
Jiang Yan was genuinely terrified. As a modern person, she knew nothing about ancient etiquette. Now she was going to have dinner with her husband, whom she had never met, the man she needed to rely on in this era, the man who could take her life at any moment. How was she supposed to handle this?
“Master, don’t you know the prince’s temper? If the prince orders you to go, you must go, no matter what.”
Jiang Yan couldn't help but recall what Wang Mama of the Liu family had said before she was married.
It is said that this Prince Duan is the younger brother of the current emperor, who is fifteen years younger than him, but they look extremely similar. Therefore, the current emperor dotes on him to an extreme degree, to the point of spoiling him. So, whenever he is unhappy, he takes it out on the people around him. It is said that he once killed three concubines in one night.
Three concubines!
Those were three precious lives!
When she first heard it, she only thought he was cruel and a cold-blooded bastard, but she didn't associate him with her.
But now it seems that she and he not only have a connection, but a very deep one. For example, if he killed three concubines in one night, wouldn't he also be unhappy and kill her?
“My lady, you can’t just stand there in a daze! You need to get ready quickly and go to the main hall to wait for the prince to arrive.” Huang Ying said, pulling Jiang Yan, whose mind was blank with fear, back to sit in front of the dressing table and carefully applying her makeup.
Jiang Yan knew that she really couldn't avoid it this time, so she suppressed her fear and asked.
"How should I address Your Highness later?"
Huang Ying didn't stop applying makeup, and said nervously, "My lady, you must remember, you absolutely must not refer to yourself as 'I' in front of the Prince and Princess! That's a grave disrespect! It could cost you your head!!!"
Jiang Yan felt a sudden chill run down her spine, and a wave of nausea instantly spread from her heart to her limbs.
She is a modern person, so it is perfectly normal for her to refer to herself as "I". However, in this feudal monarchy, "I" is a great disrespect to the king and royal power, and could really be beheaded!
She had previously thought that since "she" was just a concubine and hadn't even seen Prince Duan on her wedding night, Prince Duan must dislike "her" intensely, so he definitely wouldn't take the initiative to come looking for her.
As long as she doesn't actively seek him out or deliberately linger under his nose, she'll be perfectly comfortable. So she never considered seriously changing her address, even though Huang Ying kept reminding her, she didn't think it was a big deal.
But now it seems she was careless!
Whether she wants to change her mouth or not, she's determined to change it!!!
Huang Ying: "Master, you can just call him Your Highness and then follow His Highness's orders."
"Anything else?"
Huang Ying: “You should answer whatever the prince asks. If the prince doesn’t ask, you don’t need to speak. I think the prince invited you to the front hall for dinner today because it must be about our trip to sweep the tombs tomorrow. He will definitely inform the concubines in the other courtyards, and there will be quite a few people.”
"You mean, this concubine is beneath the Prince's notice?"
Huang Ying suddenly became anxious: "That's not it. It's just that the other concubines will definitely rack their brains to attract the prince's attention. If you don't take the initiative, the prince probably won't notice you immediately."
"I see, then this concubine understands." Jiang Yan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She reassured herself again and again, telling herself it was nothing, just going out for a meal. Her face wasn't exactly stunningly beautiful; she was just another face in a crowd, not someone who would attract attention.
Besides, that Prince Duan has seen all kinds of women. Whether it's a princess or a concubine, they're all more attractive than "her." All she needs to do is be obedient and hide herself as much as possible.
After Huang Ying finished dressing up Jiang Yan, she took Jiang Yan to the front yard.
When they arrived, the lights were already on.
Because this is a royal residence, and the residence of the most favored Prince Duan in the entire Zhou Kingdom, the courtyard is as bright as day even with the lamps on.
Jiang Yan walked closely behind Huang Ying, paying no attention to the changes around her. The fear of Shangguan Zeyu that she had just suppressed was now raging in her heart like a raging flood, making it impossible for her to feel at ease or calm for even a moment.
After another turn, Jiang Yan couldn't take it anymore and called for Huang Ying to stop.
"What's wrong, Master?"
"This concubine suddenly has a headache and cannot attend the banquet."
"...Why do I suddenly have a headache? Could it be..." Before Huang Ying could voice her suspicions, a voice as melodious as a lark's rang out from the exit on their right.
Huang Ying was taken aback at first, then quickly whispered in Jiang Yan's left ear, "The Prince's most beloved Lady Wang has arrived."
Jiang Yan looked over upon hearing the sound and saw that Concubine Wang, supported by a maid, had walked up to them.
She had a pointed mouth and monkey-like face, but her skin was very fair, which made her cherry lips appear even redder and her willow-leaf eyebrows even darker.
"It's Consort Liu! What a coincidence!" Madam Wang smiled radiantly, her voice so sweet it could melt a person's bones.
Jiang Yan didn't say anything, but just stared at her calmly.
Huang Ying quickly smoothed things over, saying, "Madam Wang, your floral dress is so beautiful! You look like a fairy of flowers."
Madam Wang proudly raised her chin towards the air: "What do you mean by 'similar'? I am a fairy, okay?"
"Yes, yes, Madam Wang, you are the Fairy of a Hundred Flowers. I misspoke."
"Consort Liu, let's go together," Madam Wang said haughtily, then swayed her slender waist and walked in front.
She said she would walk with Jiang Yan, but in reality she walked very fast, as if she were riding on wheels of fire, afraid that Jiang Yan would catch up with her.
Jiang Yan stared at her speechlessly for a while, then helplessly continued walking.
Huang Ying spoke in a voice only she and her servant could hear: "Master, Madam Wang was once the top courtesan in the Yihong Brothel in the capital. She was skilled at playing the pipa. I heard that the Prince brought her back after hearing her play the pipa piece 'Ambush from Ten Sides'."
"Oh, really?" Jiang Yan replied casually.
Huang Ying: "Indeed, Master, you are skilled at playing the zither and certainly understand music better than Madam Wang."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yan broke out in a cold sweat and even forgot to walk.
Playing the zither?
How could she possibly play the zither?
She's never even seen a zither, so what's with talking about playing it?
Is she going to play the zither for Prince Duan from now on?
But she doesn't know how to play the zither at all!
Huang Ying noticed that she hadn't followed, so she went back and asked, "Master, what's wrong?"
Jiang Yan tried her best to suppress her panic and fear: "Who else did you tell about my ability to play the zither?"
"I haven't mentioned this to anyone, what's wrong, Master?"
"That's good. I don't want a third person in the Prince's mansion to know."
"......Why?"
"You talk too much," Jiang Yan said deliberately coldly.
This was to dispel Huang Ying's doubts, after all, it was "Liu Ruyi" who could play the zither, not Jiang Yan.
She certainly didn't want someone to make her perform on stage just because she could play the zither; to her, that would be no different than having a knife to her throat!
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