The eldest princess naturally noticed the two exchanging glances. Imagine, so many people bowed their heads, not daring to look directly at the emperor's face, yet only one bold little girl kept staring at him.
The princess felt a little breathless. She looked at the girl's misty hair and flushed face, and wanted to facepalm. She hadn't expected Song Lingxi to be drunk.
Fearing that Song Lingxi might anger the emperor, the eldest princess secretly observed Xiao Jin's expression, only to find, strangely, that her emperor seemed to be in a very good mood.
The eldest princess was somewhat taken aback. She thought things had gone wrong. After all, Xiao Jin hated people who didn't follow etiquette, and her Heng'er had been punished with countless slaps for it.
Unexpectedly...
Thinking of this, the eldest princess narrowed her eyes, leaned close to Xiao Jin's ear, and whispered a reminder: "Your Majesty, shouldn't we go in and start the banquet?"
Xiao Jin didn't reply, but kept staring intently at Song Lingxi, his gaze moving from her eyes and nose to her glistening red lips.
His gaze was fiery, as if it could burn her, making Song Lingxi somewhat afraid. She was drunk and unsteady on her feet, so she grabbed the Prime Minister's wife's sleeve.
Seeing that she was unsteady, Xiao Jin hurriedly took a step forward, but only took it back when he saw that Song Lingxi had regained her balance.
Following his movements, everyone panicked, their thoughts racing, wondering what the Emperor had seen.
Only the eldest princess took all of this in stride, a cryptic smile playing on her lips, her eyes gleaming with an excited yet eerie light.
Xiao Jin withdrew his gaze and said in a deep voice, "I've come to keep my elder sister company. Please don't be shy, take your seats."
Everyone waited until he took the main seat before returning to their own places. There was a screen between the men and women, but there was nothing separating the people in the upper seats.
Therefore, as soon as Xiao Jin sat down, he could see Song Lingxi directly. His gaze couldn't leave her, and his original desire to see Xie Changling faded away.
When the prince consort offered him a toast, Xiao Jin simply nodded without even raising his glass, thus deterring some people from offering him a toast.
Song Lingxi ignored the interruption. She was pulled back to her seat by the Prime Minister's wife. As she became drunk, her head bobbed up and her body went limp, and she was about to fall backward.
This startled the Prime Minister's wife. If Song Lingxi were to fall over, it would be considered a breach of etiquette before the Emperor, and the Emperor would punish her for a grave offense of disrespect...
The Prime Minister's wife gestured for the maid to support her, and Song Lingxi leaned against her, barely managing to maintain her sitting position, her eyes slowly closing.
This scene was witnessed by many people. After all, Song Lingxi's appearance was truly eye-catching, and most people were kind-hearted, so they would only smile knowingly when they saw this scene.
Only a small number of people were extremely jealous of Song Lingxi's appearance, especially Song Lingyu, who had been waiting for her to make a mistake since she sat down, and now she finally caught her in one.
Song Lingyu bit her lip, her eyes flashing with an unreadable light. She picked up her wine glass, just about to get up and use the pretext of saying auspicious words to attack Song Lingxi.
Unexpectedly, the eldest princess, who had noticed this, gave a wink to the maid of the princess's residence behind Song Lingyu, and that person pressed down on Song Lingyu's body.
Song Lingyu felt the hand behind her, and her body stiffened. She knew it was the princess's person. She looked up at the princess and saw the warning in her eyes.
The princess's eyes were fierce, warning her not to act rashly. Even if Song Lingyu was unwilling, she could only give up.
The eldest princess warned her not for Song Lingxi's sake, but to prevent her younger brother from knowing her identity, since Song Lingxi was the young mistress of the Prime Minister's mansion.
This marriage was personally bestowed by the Emperor. If he had known this from the beginning, he might have backed down.
The princess gave a few instructions to the maid beside her, and the man walked to the Prime Minister's wife and spoke in a low voice.
"Her Highness the Princess noticed that your young mistress was not able to hold her liquor, so she specifically instructed me to take her away to rest, so as to avoid any disrespect before the Emperor and causing Your Highness to be punished by the Emperor as well."
The Prime Minister's wife hesitated. She didn't want Song Lingxi out of her sight. If something really went wrong, not only her, but her son Changling would also be in trouble.
She was about to refuse when the maid seemed to know what she was about to say: "Madam, please don't implicate His Highness."
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