The carriage soon arrived at the gate of the imperial city. After getting off the carriage, Jiang Qingqing couldn't help but look back at Xiao Linting.
The latter nodded slightly to her.
She also pursed her lips and smiled, then bent down and got out of the carriage, and got off the carriage with the help of Gan Yuan and Gan Lin.
Jiang Qingqing received the new information sent by Gan Lin yesterday.
She learned that as Emperor Qing grew older, the people of the Xu family began to have some feelings.
The eldest prince was born to Empress Xu, but from the time he was born until now, there has never been any mention of him becoming the crown prince.
The old man of the Xu family was worried that his eldest grandson would miss the chance to become the crown prince, so he had become agitated recently, and even considered looking for someone in the court to fight against the eldest prince.
Although the people of the Zhao family do not show any ambition on the surface, Concubine Zhao has a second prince. Now that there has been no news of appointing him as the crown prince in the Tianqi Dynasty for a long time, there have been rumors that the Zhao family is also eyeing the position of crown prince.
The Xu family was worried when they heard the rumor about the Zhao family.
Naturally, they immediately became opposed to each other.
"Your Highness, would you like to go directly to see His Majesty, or go to Kunning Palace to meet the Empress first?" Gan Yuan and Gan Lin accompanied Jiang Qingqing to the harem and asked.
Jiang Qingqing looked up at the palace road with red walls and green tiles, half-closed her eyes, and thought again and again.
"Let's not go to Kunning Palace, let's go directly to the banquet."
After saying that, Jiang Qingqing led a group of palace maids and walked slowly towards the direction of the palace banquet.
There were not many people in the palace banquet at the moment. Probably half of the concubines in the harem were chatting in Kunning Palace. People from the previous dynasty needed to go to the previous dynasty first to meet up and pay homage to His Majesty before coming to the palace banquet together.
At this moment, there were a few people sitting scattered around at the palace banquet.
Jiang Qingqing sat in her seat and looked around carefully, guessing that these people should be nobles in the envoys of various countries. They were too lazy to join in the fun and came to the palace banquet early to avoid the noise.
She looked around and her eyes fell on Han Qingyi who was sitting on the other side.
The wound on Han Qingyi's face was covered with a veil.
After the incident, she was detained by Emperor Qing and taken back to the Princess's Mansion. It was only later that Gan Yuan mentioned it casually that she learned that Han Qingyi was injured and had something to do with Tianqi, so Emperor Qing invited Han Qingyi to recuperate in Tianqi as the eldest princess of Li State until her injury healed.
This sincerity is quite good.
Hearing this, Han Qingyi even readily agreed.
Thinking of this, Jiang Qingqing's original guilty conscience was no longer there. She calmly looked away and began to play with the tassels on her palace dress to pass the time.
After Princess Dunming entered the palace, she did not go to any palace, but went straight to the palace banquet hall for the banquet.
The news quickly spread to every corner of the palace, and everyone who heard the news had different degrees of speculation in their minds.
Princess Dunming, who was loved by everyone, could be considered a child who was too young and naive when she was young.
But as Princess Dunming came of age, her actions gradually became more disciplined. Everyone began to observe this favored princess who had a double-edged sword.
"The Imperial Kitchen said that the osmanthus flowers were almost used up today, so they used jelly made with brown sugar. We knew that Your Highness chose the jelly because it would be cold, so we asked the Imperial Kitchen to cool the whole bowl in ice, which took some time."
Xiao Linting's low voice came from behind Jiang Qingqing.
She quickly turned her head to look behind her and saw a person with ordinary features but a pair of eyes that were bright enough to move people's hearts.
"Anyway, there aren't many people here right now, so it won't matter. I'll eat a few bites first."
Jiang Qingqing reached out and touched the bowl. It felt cool to the touch. Immediately, the corners of her mouth curled up and she took a few bites.
Sure enough, before she finished a whole bowl, Empress Xu from Kunning Palace came over with her concubines.
With the arrival of the guests, Jiang Qingqing could no longer eat the jelly, so she had no choice but to put the jelly in her hand aside reluctantly.
Seeing this, Xiao Linting stood behind her like an ordinary guard. Gan Yuan and Gan Lin quickly packed up their things and stepped aside.
Empress Xu walked into the main seat in the palace with a smile on her face. Jiang Qingqing stood up, bowed and greeted Empress Xu first, then nodded to the concubines one by one.
Accompanying Empress Xu were several concubines who were close to Kunning Palace. It was obvious that Concubine Zhao and Empress Defei were not among this group of people.
Not long after Empress Xu took her seat, almost at the same time, Concubine Zhao, dressed elegantly, walked into the palace banquet, accompanied by the concubines who were close to Chuxiu Palace.
After two waves of concubines arrived, most of the concubines with high status in the palace were in place.
Jiang Qingqing sat aside, listening to the conversation between Concubine Zhao and Empress Xu, which was fraught with tension.
About half an hour later, Emperor Qing led the officials into the palace banquet.
The emperor and empress sat in the main seats, and Jiang Qingqing's birthday banquet officially began.
To make up for the missing ceremony of the previous coming-of-age ceremony in the princess's mansion, Jiang Qingqing bowed to the emperor and empress, to the heaven and earth, in front of everyone. She received the emperor and empress's blessings and was given the hairpin. At this moment, Jiang Qingqing was truly an adult.
The eldest princess sat in the first seat at the bottom, and looked at Jiang Qingqing with satisfaction and relief as she sat back in the main seat.
There was singing and dancing, and the palace was filled with people celebrating Princess Dunming's coming of age and birthday.
At this moment, a eunuch from the palace came in in a hurry, carrying a memorial in his hand.
According to the rules, there is no need to consult memorials during palace banquets.
But generally speaking, only when the situation is urgent will the eunuch be forced to submit reports and memorials to Emperor Qing.
While taking a sip of fruit wine, Jiang Qingqing secretly looked at Emperor Qing's expression.
Emperor Qing was obviously in a good mood today, until his eyes fell on the memorial. As he read ten lines at a glance, his expression became more and more solemn.
Immediately afterwards, His Highness and several others walked into the palace banquet one after another, and the faces and expressions of the envoys from various countries immediately varied.
When Jiang Qingqing saw that something was wrong, she subconsciously turned around to look for a figure that could make her feel at ease.
Xiao Linting was standing behind her. He got the news much earlier than others. In fact, Xiao Linting got the information in the morning.
But seeing the little guy's rare panic, he still took a step forward, leaned down slightly, and whispered: "The ruler of Li State has changed. The new emperor is Han Qiming. His ascension to the throne is not very bright, but he is the new emperor of Li State after all."
The words were hesitant to be spoken, but Jiang Qingqing quickly understood the meaning.
Xiao Linting knew very well that Jiang Qingqing was a smart person, and she understood the meaning without him having to explain it too clearly.
The situation in Li State has changed. The expression on the face of the envoy of Li State looked unclear, but the expression of Han Qingyi, who was next to the envoy of Li State, was visibly solemn.
Jiang Qingqing's heart was slightly moved.