Chapter 17 The VIP Attending the Banquet? Which VIP is coming?
Because of the agreement made three days later, Fu Mingzi has been unusually calm these past few days. The person who used to be carefree and unserious has suddenly become bitter and resentful, lost in thought, which is frightening to anyone who sees him.
Luo Xing, in particular, always felt that Fu Mingzi was up to something, and every day he would stare at Fu Mingzi with his gleaming eyes to see if he was planning something.
Zhou Xiaoyan remained unusually calm, seemingly unaware of Fu Mingzi's difference. Even when Fu Mingzi deliberately sighed in front of him, he remained silent.
Later, Fu Mingzi herself felt a little strange. Did Zhou Xiaoyan care about her or not? If he cared, there was no reason why he wouldn't have noticed her differences. If he didn't care, he was so considerate in everything he did, which made Fu Mingzi's heart burn with anger.
Finally, Fu Mingzi couldn't hold back any longer and spoke first: "Does Your Highness know about the banquet at Prince Cheng's residence tomorrow?"
Zhou Xiaoyan raised an eyebrow: "Is this what you've been worried about these past few days?" He actually already knew the answer, but he asked on purpose, always finding Fu Mingzi's sighing and lamenting in front of him these past few days rather endearing.
"That's right." Fu Mingzi's face immediately fell. "I'm not young anymore, and my father is forcing me to attend this kind of banquet. I'm truly suffering." Fu Mingzi pretended to cry, but her eyes were fixed on Zhou Xiaoyan, wanting to see his reaction to this.
Zhou Xiaoyan remained calm: "I see."
At this moment, Fu Mingzi didn't know whether she felt more disappointed or more annoyed.
He didn't actually want to bring up the marriage in front of Fu Mingzi, like an ostrich burying its head in the ground, as if nothing would happen if he didn't mention it.
However, when he was troubled by this matter, Zhou Xiaoyan turned a blind eye. Fu Mingzi couldn't help but want to test his reaction to see if he felt the same way about her as he did when he treated her so well.
This idea was ultimately thwarted at this moment, as Zhou Xiaoyan didn't care at all.
Fu Mingzi lowered her head like a defeated dog, looking dejected.
Zhou Xiaoyan looked at him, a hint of a smile in his eyes: "Why is Fu Qing in such distress? Is it because you don't want to get married?"
"I only want to marry the person I love!" Fu Mingzi suddenly raised her head, looking intently at Zhou Xiaoyan.
His eyes seemed to be burning with fire, and Zhou Xiaoyan couldn't say the teasing words he had originally planned. Yes, he had forgotten that although Fu Mingzi had a thousand faults, he would never wrong himself. In his previous life, he didn't like him, so he never got married.
"Does Your Highness think I'm too naive?" Seeing Zhou Xiaoyan's stunned expression, Fu Mingzi thought he didn't agree with her, and asked with some grievance.
Zhou Xiaoyan chuckled lightly: "No." He looked at Fu Mingzi with a solemn gaze: "Fu Qing's pure heart is beyond my reach."
Upon hearing the compliment, Fu Mingzi immediately perked up, feeling a little shy: "Actually, it's not as good as Your Highness makes it out to be, it's just, it's just, hahahahahaha..."
Looking at his bright smile, Zhou Xiaoyan felt a faint smile appear in his usually cool eyes.
This person seems to have always been like this, growing wildly, impossible to suppress or defeat. It's just a pity that he met me in his previous life and ended up with such a terrible fate.
Because Fu Mingzi had to attend a dreadful banquet at Prince Cheng's residence the next day, he left the palace immediately after his martial arts class without returning to the West Third Palace.
As Zhou Xiaoyan watched him leave, Wei Baocheng beside him said softly, "Why didn't Your Highness tell Young Master Fu that you would also be going tomorrow?"
Zhou Xiaoyan lowered his eyes, touched his thumb, and said softly, "I'll go tomorrow and I'll know. Why bother saying more?"
Wei Baocheng smiled and said, "Your Highness is right."
"Find out the thumb ring that Fu Qing gave me last time. I'm going to Prince Cheng's residence tomorrow to ask for it," Zhou Xiaoyan suddenly said.
Wei Baocheng was startled and looked up at Zhou Xiaoyan. At this moment, Zhou Xiaoyan had already turned his gaze away from the thumb and was staring straight ahead with a sharp look in his eyes.
"Yes." Wei Baocheng suppressed the question that had risen to his throat and answered in a low voice.
**
As the emperor's nephew, Prince Cheng still enjoys the emperor's favor. In addition, he is older than the other princes and is the eldest in his generation of the imperial clan. He is also kind and gentle, so the other princes give Prince Cheng face and respect this older cousin very much.
As for Prince Cheng himself, although he looked honest and kind, he was very sensible and considerate in his dealings with people. Therefore, this banquet was held on a day off, and all his brothers, whether favored or not, received an invitation.
However, both the Crown Prince and the Second Prince politely declined, as their focus was now on the court and they had no time to fool around with Prince Cheng.
Of the remaining princes, only the fourth and fifth princes responded. Those younger than the fifth prince were too young for this occasion.
Even so, Prince Cheng grinned from ear to ear upon hearing this. Such a great honor was certainly something to be proud of.
However, Fu Mingzi was unaware of this. These past few days, he had been thinking that if he met Miss Yang, he must make his feelings clear to her and then let the Yang family back down on their own.
Because of these feelings, Fu Mingzi didn't sleep well that night. She was still dozing off when Song Yan dragged her out of bed early in the morning.
"My goodness, it's getting late. The lights are already on in the main wife's room in the backyard. You can't sleep any longer."
It was still dark outside, and the early spring wind was still a bit chilly.
As soon as Fu Mingzi got out of bed, she shivered, turned around, and reached back to wrap the blanket around herself again.
"Alright, alright, hurry up and prepare the water." Fu Mingzi yawned again and waved his hand impatiently.
The maidservants brought water into the room and helped Fu Mingzi wash up. They then brought her clothes that had been warmed up the night before and helped her get dressed.
After he finished tidying up, Madam Wen, the first wife, also sent someone to inquire.
Fu Mingzi waved his hand, wrapped himself in a crane cloak, and went out the door.
Logically speaking, the weather shouldn't be so bad as to require wearing a crane cloak, but for some reason, there's been a sudden chill in the air today. The wind was biting cold early in the morning, which is why the maids in Fu Mingzi's courtyard took out their cloaks.
As soon as they stepped outside, a gust of cold wind blew, making their faces sting. Fu Mingzi, with his fiery temper, didn't feel anything, but his servant Songyan was freezing and kept stamping his feet as he walked.
When they arrived at the second gate, Madam Wen had already come out and boarded the carriage. Fu Mingzi quickly went up to greet her: "Sister-in-law, Mingzi is late."
"It's alright. It's cold today. Are you dressed warmly?" Madam Wen's gentle voice came from inside the carriage.
Fu Mingzi smiled and said, "Of course I'm dressed warmly."
"Then let's go."
Having received the instructions, Fu Mingzi waved to the coachman, mounted his horse, and rode out of the central gate of the Duke of Jingguo's mansion towards the Prince of Cheng's mansion.
Because the Prince Cheng's Mansion holds a flower banquet every year, it has become a major event in the capital's social circles, and every family considers it an honor to receive an invitation from the Prince Cheng's Mansion.
So once Fu Mingzi left the Duke's Mansion and got onto Zhuque Avenue, he saw carriages and horses from other wealthy and noble families heading towards the Prince Cheng's Mansion.
It seems this flower banquet will be quite grand, Fu Mingzi muttered to herself. In that case, finding a suitable opportunity will be really difficult. But there's no need to worry, maybe the Yang family and her own family will create opportunities for them. Fu Mingzi curled up the corners of her mouth with a bit of smugness.
When they arrived at the gate of Prince Cheng's mansion, Fu Mingzi realized that the scale of this flower banquet was not just "not small," but "extremely large." He was a little dumbfounded. The carriages stretched from the street in front of Prince Cheng's mansion all the way to the main street. Just how many daughters were eager to get married, and how many young men were unable to find wives?
Hearing the commotion, Madam Wen lifted the curtain to peek out. Seeing so many people, she raised her eyes slightly and asked, "Could it be that a distinguished guest is coming this time?" Madam Wen was, after all, the matriarch of the household, and she handled matters of the inner quarters with remarkable precision.
Fu Mingzi, on the other hand, was somewhat confused: "A distinguished person? Which distinguished person is coming?"
Before Madam Wen could answer, a man who looked like a steward greeted them with a smile: "Is this the Fifth Master and the Heir Apparent's wife from the Duke of Jingguo's Mansion?"
Fu Mingzi didn't understand, but she still nodded.
The man's smile grew even brighter: "Fifth Master and the Lady of the Heir Apparent's presence is an honor to our humble abode. Please come this way, and I will lead you inside."
Fu Mingzi glanced at the long queue and asked in surprise, "Don't we have to queue?"
The man smiled and nodded: "Your esteemed residence need not accept such treatment. This way, please."
Fu Mingzi suddenly realized why the people in line looked unfamiliar to him. It turned out that those with connections had taken shortcuts and gone in early, while these ordinary families had to wait outside.
Fu Mingzi wasn't the type to be pretentious. Upon hearing this, she naturally greeted the coachman and followed the manager forward.
Their blatant queue-cutting behavior attracted a lot of attention. Those who were queuing obediently either stared at them, looked indignant, or lowered their heads cautiously. Fu Mingzi had seen all sorts of people.
As they passed one of the carriages, a woman's clear voice suddenly came from inside: "Why can they cut in line while we have to wait? Isn't that too unfair?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Fu Mingzi looked over. The carriage curtain was blocking his view, so he couldn't see what was inside. He only heard a noise, as if someone had covered someone's mouth.
Meanwhile, outside, the sound created an awkward atmosphere. People around quickly averted their curious gazes, lowered their heads, and held their breath, as if they didn't exist.
The steward, however, remained remarkably composed, still wearing a smile on his face. He even politely cupped his hands towards the carriage, saying, "So that Miss may know that our household has a relationship with the Duke of Jingguo's mansion. Our Princess Consort always thinks of speaking with the Heir Apparent's wife, which is why she instructed this servant to come out and greet you. If there has been any neglect, please forgive us."
The words were spoken softly, but the attitude was anything but. In short, it was a matter of saying, "We have neglected you, but we will not change. You should adjust your mindset."
"Manager, you're joking." A woman's voice came from inside the carriage. It sounded gentle and kind, but there was always a hint of panic in it. "Children talk nonsense without thinking. We should apologize for disturbing you all. Please forgive us."
A note from the author:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com