On the fifteenth day of August, Ning Yuxi will take Cheng Zhao, Cheng Yao and Shu Yun to the Queen's Fengluan Palace to pay their respects this morning, because today is the Emperor's birthday banquet, and after paying their respects, they will go directly to the Qingzheng Hall.
Other concubines who had children also had to bring their children with them.
On the way, Ning Yuxi met Concubine Xian who came with the third princess. After the two exchanged greetings, they went to the queen together.
The third princess is now much more cheerful, white and plump, with delicate eyes and eyebrows. When she saw her, she bowed in a formal manner and called her Empress Yi very familiarly.
On weekdays, she and Concubine Xian often go out together, and often bring their children with them. The Third Princess is the same age as her Concubine Cheng Zhao, and the two children are very familiar with each other.
Cheng Zhao greeted them warmly: "Hello, Empress Xian, hello, Third Sister."
The group came to the Queen's Fengluan Palace. Almost all the concubines were there. It looked much more lively today, with ten more children.
Even Concubine Xin and Noble Xiao, who were under house arrest, came out. Ning Yuxi looked at Concubine Xian in confusion, meaning that they were still under house arrest, so why did they come out?
At that time, the emperor asked Concubine Xin to reflect on her mistakes behind closed doors, and did not specify how long she would be under house arrest. She was released when she was released. However, the emperor asked Concubine Xiao to be under house arrest for three months. Now, less than two months have passed. How could she be released?
Xianpin was more informed than she was, so she said indifferently, "It was the Empress who asked the Emperor for mercy, saying that the Emperor's birthday would not be complete without everyone present. Concubine Xin's confinement until now was sufficient, and Concubine Xiao has been in a depressed mood recently.
The fetus is slightly unstable, and the imperial physician said it needs to be moved around more often and not kept in one place all the time. The Empress, concerned for the Emperor's heir, has also asked the Emperor to release it as well."
Ning Yuxi nodded and said no more.
Soon the Queen arrived with the eldest prince and the second princess.
The eldest prince, whom I hadn't seen for a long time, looked much weaker. His skin was very pale, the kind of sickly pale, and his small body was very thin, as if he could be blown down by a gust of wind.
It was summer now and everyone was wearing very little, but he was still wearing several layers of clothes.
Ning Yuxi withdrew her gaze and saluted with everyone else.
All members of the royal family and close ministers would be present at today's banquet. The Queen first gave instructions on various matters of concern. Finally, she turned her gaze to the eldest princess, who was sitting alone.
"Shu Yan, you are the emperor's eldest daughter and the eldest sister of all the princes and princesses. You must take good care of your younger brothers and sisters at the banquet today."
The eldest princess slowly stood up and replied, "Yes, mother, I will definitely take good care of my brothers and sisters."
The Queen nodded in satisfaction, and then suddenly asked, "Mother, I heard that the birthday gift you prepared for your father, Shuyan, was a picture of eternal longevity that you embroidered yourself. I'm astonished that you are such a skilled embroiderer at such a young age."
The eldest princess' heart skipped a beat. She had prepared the birthday gift in secret to surprise her father. How did the queen know that her birthday gift was an embroidered picture of eternal life?
"Your Majesty, your compliments are too much. I can't call my embroidery excellent; it's just barely acceptable. I have nothing of my own, so I had no choice but to embroider something myself for your father as a token of my filial piety."
"You are too modest, child. The Zhu family's painting of eternal life is magnificent and majestic. It is not easy for you to embroider it."
After a pause, the Queen continued, "Your birthday gift is precious, but you must be careful not to make any mistakes."
The eldest princess' heart tightened again, and she couldn't help but frown. What did the queen mean by this?
"Your Majesty is right. I will always be careful."
The queen smiled and said, "Well, that's good." After that, the queen turned around and talked about other things.
Ning Yuxi looked at the eldest princess whom she had not seen for a long time. She looked more stable, with proper manners. Apart from her figure and appearance, she did not look like an eight-year-old child at all.
On that day, she instigated the Queen and the eldest princess to fight each other, but unexpectedly, the Queen was tricked by the eldest princess. After that, she hoped that the Queen would come to her senses and deal with the eldest princess, but she never thought that after all these days, the Queen did not take any action.
But what did the Queen mean by that? Why did she emphasize the eldest princess's embroidery? Was there something wrong with the embroidery? Or did the Queen want it to fail?
No, if the Queen really wanted to do something, wouldn’t she make the eldest princess defensive by saying this?
She couldn't figure it out, so she didn't bother thinking about it anymore. She would know it soon anyway.
After what happened before, she didn't believe that the Queen would let the eldest princess go so easily, so she just waited for the Queen to take action, and then she would take advantage of the situation.
After the Queen's party left, everyone moved to the Qingzheng Hall. The banquet was scheduled for noon, and people would be entering the palace one after another soon. As the host, they had to go there first.
The banquet officially began at noon.
In order to avoid incidents like the fire at the previous banquet, she kept all the children under her nose, just to be prepared for the worst.
Soon it was time to present gifts. When it was the eldest princess' turn, Ning Yuxi watched intently as the eldest princess held a rolled-up embroidered picture in her hands and respectfully presented it to the emperor.
"This son uses this embroidered picture to respectfully wish your father good health and a long life."
After he finished speaking, Song Qu stepped forward, took the embroidered pattern, gently unfolded it and presented it to the emperor.
At this time, the eldest princess standing by was still a little worried. Although she checked the embroidery again and again and confirmed that there was no mistake, the queen's words always made her uneasy.
The emperor looked at the embroidery and his expression softened. "Shu Yan is very thoughtful. The Zhu family's longevity painting is very difficult to draw. It's really not easy for you to embroider it."
The emperor then signaled Song Qu to turn around and show the embroidery to everyone present, which immediately won him a lot of applause.
Ning Yuxi also saw the embroidery. Although the embroidery skills were a bit immature, she still managed to capture about 70% of the charm of the picture, which was truly rare.
It was not until the emperor ordered his men to collect the painting and reward the eldest princess that she finally felt relieved.
The banquet continued. Just when Ning Yuxi thought that nothing would happen today and the banquet would end smoothly, a faint noise came from outside the hall.
Just as she was wondering, Concubine Xian, who had just taken the Third Princess out to change clothes, returned. She said to Ning Yuxi with a serious face, "Concubine Xiao was knocked down. I'm afraid the child can't be saved."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
