The rules for the welcoming banquet were complicated and solemn. By the time the singing and dancing began, an hour had already passed.
Jiang Qingqing stared at her tired head, sat in her seat, and occasionally sipped fruit wine to pass the time.
The difficult days passed little by little, and when people inside and outside the hall began to take their leave, Jiang Qingqing also learned to be smart and took her leave from the noisy palace.
Today's main characters are Xiao Linting, the Xiao family army, and the new recruits supported by the Xu family.
Jiang Qingqing left the palace and returned to the princess's residence. She had just taken off her heavy palace clothes and washed up. When she walked out feeling relaxed, she saw a tall and slender figure in the backyard.
She crossed her arms over her chest and walked to the door frame, leaning against it, tilting her head slightly, and said loudly: "The emperor's uncle is not at the palace banquet, but standing here like an idiot. If they can't find the emperor's uncle, won't they be anxious?"
"I left the banquet on the pretext that I couldn't hold my liquor," he replied simply.
Jiang Qingqing's smile deepened. "Gan Lin, go to the kitchen and bring some hangover soup to the emperor's uncle."
Then he turned and went into the house.
Although she didn't say whether she was invited or not, Xiao Linting took the initiative to follow her into this familiar house and sat down at Luohan **.
Jiang Qingqing poured a cup of tea and handed it to the emperor's uncle. Even though they were separated by a small table, she could smell the aroma of alcohol coming from Xiao Linting from time to time.
"What did my father give my uncle as a reward when he returned to the capital this time? Now that my uncle is not a child anymore, there should be some beauties in the reward for you, right?"
Jiang Qingqing held her chin with her elbows resting on the small table, and looked at the little uncle in front of her with a sly smile.
"You rewarded me with ten thousand taels of gold, but not a woman." He seemed to be drunk, and spoke slowly, "But your majesty mentioned to me that the gold can be used as a betrothal gift to marry a princess in the future."
When Xiao Linting said the words "marry a princess", a rare feeling of unhappiness surfaced in Jiang Qingqing's heart.
Her smile faded a little.
"Then the uncle is going back to the capital this time, so he should be preparing to propose marriage to his sweetheart, right?"
"It's not the right time yet, don't rush." Xiao Linting stared at the girl in front of him with burning eyes and spoke ambiguously.
Jiang Qingqing curled the corners of her lips. She ignored Xiao Linting's gaze and just thought he was talking nonsense when he was drunk.
"I'll ask Nafu to come and take you back to the palace. Your uncle will be busy in Beijing for several days, so you'd better not disturb him to rest."
After saying that, Jiang Qingqing grabbed the wrist of the master Xiao Linting, and the other party obediently followed her force and stood up, but she did not walk towards the side room in the yard. Instead, after being pulled out of the yard by Jiang Qingqing, she closed the hanging flower gate in the backyard without hesitation.
Xiao Linting was standing on the flower path, separated from the door, and behind him was Jiang Qingqing, who was leaning against the door.
He seemed drunk but was extremely sober.
He wanted to take advantage of the drunkenness to confess his true feelings, but the words came to his lips many times, but he didn't dare to say them.
If you scare her, you won't even have the chance to be a subject in the future.
He raised his hand and touched the door, his voice a little hoarse from the alcohol, "Your Highness, please have a good rest."
After saying this, he turned around with a sober look and quietly left the princess's mansion through the back door.
——
In the following days, Jiang Qingqing began to visit the Princess's residence frequently, and she accompanied the Princess to meals and watch plays with a clear conscience, looking very busy.
Xiao Linting returned to the capital, and before he had even had a few days' rest, he asked for permission to attend the morning court, resuming his habit of attending the morning court five years ago.
People in the capital thought that the Xiao family would take a few days to recuperate after returning to the court. But who knew that Xiao Linting not only did not rest, but after the morning court, he began to participate in the court affairs crazily, even more at ease and unpredictable than five years ago.
Xiao Linting returned to Beijing and attended morning court for five consecutive days to participate in government affairs.
Five days later, it happened to be the holiday of the month.
Jiang Qingqing's princess mansion was rarely crowded and lively again.
Some time ago, by chance, Princess Qi Yang met her fiancé whom she had never met before. What happened afterwards was just like the fancy stories in the storybooks. The two fell in love at first sight, and then secretly developed feelings for each other. When she voluntarily confessed her identity, she found out that the other was her fiancée/husband.
Jiang Qingqing sat in the main seat, looking at Princess Qi Yang's happy expression, she was also happy for Princess Qi Yang from the bottom of her heart.
"I came here to say goodbye to you." Princess Qi Yang said suddenly while sitting in the first seat.
Her fiancé was exactly what she wanted, so there was no need for her to find any excuses to stay in the capital. She simply followed her father back to her fiefdom.
There were only two close friends, Jiang Qingqing and Princess Qi Yang, in the main house in the backyard. Princess Qi Yang naturally wouldn't be so reserved in her words.
"I have found my happy partner, how about you? Back in Kunning Palace, you mocked the Princess of Li for not getting married after such an adult life. Look at yourself, apart from the scandal with the guy from the Chi family, what other men do you have around you?!"
Princess Qi Yang looked at Jiang Qing Qing with disappointment and was about to lecture her when Yan Luo from the courtyard hurriedly walked into the house.
"Your Highness, something terrible has happened. The Crown Prince has been reported by the Supervisory Officer in three memorials, saying that the matter of the gambling house on the second floor of Lin'an Pavilion had not been settled, and the Crown Prince had secretly taken over the gambling house in Lin'an Pavilion. The amount of money he collected and the means of debt collection were even more brutal than the ones we used to manage it."
When Yan Luo saw Princess Qi Yang was there, she knew she was not an outsider, so she simply finished what she wanted to say in one breath.
"Hasn't the eldest prince always been the most gentle? How could he do such a thing?!" When Princess Qi Yang heard the news, she was shocked and didn't understand.
Jiang Qingqing had the same idea.
Yan Luo shook her head and frowned tightly as she said, "This time the eldest prince was held back by the Xu family. It was the Xu family who had evil intentions. They were jealous of the income from the gambling house on the second floor of Lin'an Pavilion and thought that if they collected the debts roughly, they might get the money back quickly, so they were a little unscrupulous."
Jiang Qingqing sighed, and then she asked, "What does the emperor mean?"
Yan Luo pursed her lips and said, "This is no small matter. Once it is exposed, other things will probably snowball. After this petition was submitted, countless similar petitions were submitted to us to bully the people and seize the land."
The implication is that the Xu family is likely to be in big trouble this time.
"I remember that the Xu family is very powerful now, how come..." Princess Qi Yang was a little confused.
Jiang Qingqing lowered her eyes and played with her fingertips, her expression solemn, but she said casually: "This is something that the Zhao family has been eyeing. I'm afraid the emperor's uncle has a hand in this matter, otherwise this matter wouldn't have fermented so quickly."