Chapter 287 Princess Pingyuan
Fifty years ago, the Wei family of the Duke of Chengen's mansion was just an insignificant little family.
When the late emperor was still a prince, the head of the Wei family sent his most beautiful daughter to the Eastern Palace, where she became the lowly Consort Wei.
In addition to the Crown Princess, the Eastern Palace at that time also had a concubine, two ladies-in-waiting, and three ladies-in-waiting, all of whom were beautiful and virtuous.
No one expected that the late emperor would fall in love with Consort Wei, showering her with favor over the next three years, transforming her from a consort into a concubine of the crown prince.
After the Crown Princess died in childbirth, the late Emperor ascended the throne and defied public opinion to appoint Consort Wei, whose family background was not prominent, as Empress.
For decades afterward, Empress Wei remained favored and her position remained unshaken, even as more and more beauties entered the palace.
With the birth of an empress who became the mother of the nation, the Wei family rose in status and became a highly sought-after member of the imperial family in the capital.
The only regret was that Empress Wei only had one daughter, Princess Pingyuan, which was a shared sorrow for her and the late emperor.
The late emperor originally intended to give the baby prince born to a concubine to Empress Wei to raise, but Empress Wei declined, saying she couldn't bear to separate the concubine from her child.
As the late emperor grew older, his sons, who had come of age, schemed against each other to seize the throne. In a fit of anger, the late emperor demoted them all to commoners and sent them to guard the imperial mausoleum.
When the late emperor fell seriously ill and was unable to handle state affairs, Empress Wei's faction fully supported the current emperor's ascension to the throne.
After the late emperor's death, with the assistance of Empress Wei's faction, the current emperor successfully ascended the throne.
During the mourning period, Empress Wei followed the late emperor in death, and Emperor Jinghe was filled with immense grief.
In recognition of Empress Wei's assistance, Emperor Jinghe not only granted Princess Pingyuan a fiefdom, making her the first princess to have a fiefdom since the founding of the dynasty, but also bestowed upon the Wei family the title of Duke, which would be hereditary for three generations.
Therefore, even without Empress Wei, and even without any particularly outstanding members of the family, the Wei family was still a force to be reckoned with in the capital.
The residence of the Duke of Chengen was extremely large, and its scale and layout far exceeded those of ordinary duke's residences.
Without a servant to guide them, nine out of ten people visiting the Duke's mansion for the first time would get lost.
Song Zhihang had been here several times and was quite familiar with the Cheng'en Duke's Mansion. Walking side by side with Xu Jinnian, he pointed to the giant golden dragon spouting water across the waterside pavilion and exclaimed:
"Among all the noble families in the capital, only the Duke of Cheng'en's mansion has such a grand gesture."
Is that giant golden dragon head made of real gold, or is it the work of a famous craftsman, worth a million taels of silver?
Following the direction Song Zhihang pointed, Xu Jinnian looked at the dragon head that reflected dazzling golden light in the sunlight and gave a very brief evaluation: "Not bad."
It's unclear whether this praises the Golden Dragon Head or the Cheng'en Duke's Mansion's extravagant spending.
Song Zhihang didn't care and said jokingly, "It's pitiful, really. The entire wealth of the Marquis of Yongyi's mansion is not even as much as this faucet that spews water every day."
Xu Jinnian offered a half-hearted consolation: "Me too."
Song Zhihang laughed heartily, patted him on the shoulder, and didn't look at the golden dragon head again.
Led by a maid, the two arrived at the Duke's mansion's reception area. As soon as they entered, several familiar faces came up to greet them: "Lord Song, Lord Xu."
These people were all newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) who stayed in the capital to serve in government positions, including the second-place finisher in the same category.
However, the gray-haired runner-up seemed to be neglected, sitting alone in an inconspicuous corner, watching the commotion from a somewhat dazed perspective.
Xu Jinnian and Song Zhihang exchanged a glance, tacitly understanding each other's thoughts, and then smiled in response to the person who came forward to greet them.
After exchanging a few brief pleasantries, the two walked straight to the seat of the runner-up.
Seeing the flattered look on Song Zhihang's face as he made the second-place finisher, Song Zhihang politely asked, "I wonder if we two have the honor of sitting at the same table as Lord Meng?"
Lord Meng quickly stood up and invited, "I couldn't ask for more, Lord Song and Lord Xu, please!"
The two sat down, and before the maid could serve tea, Song Zhihang picked up the teapot and poured two cups of tea himself.
Upon smelling the aroma of the tea, he smiled and praised, "This is top-grade tribute tea, truly excellent."
The finest tribute tea is extremely rare; only twenty catties are sent to the palace each year, yet the Duke of Cheng'en's mansion uses it to entertain guests.
Lord Meng only thought the tea tasted good, unaware that it was a top-grade tribute tea. Upon hearing Song Zhihang's words, he couldn't help but gasp in surprise.
As expected of the Duke of Cheng'en's mansion, it is truly a place of great favor from His Majesty.
Thinking of this, Lord Meng became happy again, feeling that being neglected earlier was not worth mentioning.
Seeing his sudden joy, Xu Jinnian and Song Zhihang were quite understanding.
Lord Meng came from an ordinary background, and it was only through the collective efforts of his entire clan that he gradually rose to where he is today.
If he hadn't been among the top scorers in this year's imperial examinations, he wouldn't have had the chance to attend the Spring Banquet at the Duke of Cheng'en's residence.
However, for Lord Meng, participating might not necessarily be a good thing.
The three chatted while drinking tea, without actively engaging in conversation with other guests.
The others wanted to come over and chat with Xu Jinnian and Song Zhihang, but seeing that they were laughing and chatting in a harmonious atmosphere, they didn't want to disturb them.
Xu Huaining had been secretly observing Xu Jinnian, and seeing that he completely ignored everyone else, she couldn't guess what he was thinking.
Xu Jinnian noticed the two strange gazes and looked up when Xu Huaining looked over again.
Caught red-handed, Xu Huaining's heart skipped a beat. He suppressed the urge to look away, forced a smile, and raised his teacup to Xu Jinnian in a distant toast.
Xu Jinnian indifferently withdrew his gaze, met Song Zhihang's questioning eyes, and said lightly, "I saw a disgusting rat."
Song Zhihang believed it and clicked his tongue: "Even the rats in the Duke's mansion are bolder than those outside. They dare to parade around with so many people here."
The double entendre was completely misunderstood by Lord Meng, who subconsciously nodded in agreement: "That's right."
Xu Jinnian remained silent, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.
The venue for the Spring Banquet held at the Chengen Duke's Mansion was adjacent to the garden, which was extremely large and bisected by an artificial stream.
Male guests are served on the left and female guests on the right. This is both polite and makes the atmosphere more lively.
Xu Jinnian didn't pay attention to the female guests; he was thinking about bringing Sheng An some newly published storybooks from the capital when he returned.
Just then, a loud announcement came from the entrance: "Princess Pingyuan has arrived—Princess Shanmin has arrived—"
As soon as the words were spoken, the people of the Duke's mansion escorted two women dressed in gorgeous palace attire as they entered.
The male and female guests on both sides stood up solemnly, straightened their attire, and bowed their heads in greeting after confirming that everything was in order: "Long live Your Highness!"
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