Upon hearing this, the music playing at the banquet suddenly paused for a moment.
Shen Wangshu rested his chin on his hand, smiling as he played with the jade wine cup in his hand.
She seemed indifferent, and indeed, she didn't really care.
Because the person she cared about, her mother, remained silent, as if she hadn't heard anything.
Only the handsome man with his hair tied up in white jade looked bewildered, staring blankly at her.
All eyes were on Shen Wangshu, who was smiling beautifully.
After a moment of silence, a soft sob came from beside Shen Wangshu. The incomparably beautiful young man knelt before her, his body trembling, as if he were terrified and heartbroken.
When he looked up at Shen Wangshu, it seemed that Shen Wangshu was the only person in his eyes.
Looking into those dark, star-like eyes, Shen Wangshu saw a woman with long hair tied up high with a gold ring, a stunningly beautiful face, and a carefree, unrestrained smile. She wore a long, gorgeous robe, exuding unparalleled elegance.
"Does Your Highness dislike me?" he asked, his eyes filled with tears, a sight that evoked pity.
It's a pity that it's all show and no substance.
She's good-looking, but she's just a spendthrift woman who only knows how to eat, drink, and have fun.
She chuckled, reached out a finger to lift the boy's chin, and looked at him with a smile.
"Of course you are beautiful, but it would be a real pity if you were only allowed to enter my palace."
"Your Highness?"
The beautiful woman's voice carried a hint of seduction as she said, "Your beauty is unparalleled even in the harem. The Noble Consort wishes to have you serve me, but I am a filial son. How can I enjoy such a peerless beauty for myself without presenting her to my mother?"
She watched as the boy's snow-white face slowly turned red as he stared at her intently. Her gaze, however, shifted to the Empress above, who showed some interest. She smiled and said, "This is all the Prince's good intention. If Mother Empress does not accept it, wouldn't that be letting down the Prince's hard work? Mother Empress has always cherished the Prince, and should also cherish his good intentions."
"Your Majesty!" A hint of urgency flashed across the exquisitely handsome man's face.
Shen Wangshu forcefully turned the boy's face toward the Empress above.
"Whether you become my concubine or His Majesty's confidante, enjoying unparalleled favor in the harem, the choice is yours," she said softly to the young man with a smile.
She concealed the surging disgust in her eyes.
Of course she knew this boy.
This is the exceptionally handsome young man carefully selected by Lady Lin. He is naturally charming and has bewitched the owner of this body to the point of almost losing her mind, to the point that she no longer attends court, thus causing her reputation to plummet.
Everyone is saying that the two princesses of the deceased Emperor Fengjun were quite different. The eldest princess was both talented in literature and martial arts, but the third princess was a useless person who was all show and no substance. She only knew how to enjoy herself and couldn't even distinguish between good and bad.
This world is a world where women are revered, and women hold a very high status, while men's status is far lower than women's, much like a reversal of other worlds. In this world, women's physical abilities are indeed much stronger than men's. Not only are women the ones who fight, farm, study, attend court, and rule the world, but even the men can only stay at home, embroidering, managing the household, or helping their wives and raising their daughters.
They are physically weak, like delicate flowers that need to be cherished. They even consider fragility as beauty, fair skin as desirable, and beautiful faces as the epitome of beauty.
Women have similar tastes; they like gentle, handsome men, and they especially like those who are shy and demure.
But Shen Wangshu didn't really like it.
She rarely comes to a world where women are respected, so... although she thinks it's normal for women to be respected, it's really hard to accept seeing men speaking and laughing softly with delicate fingers.
However, all the men in this world are clean-shaven and beardless; otherwise, if a bearded giant were to wear a revealing palace dress and be all over the place with his fingers gesturing wildly, Shen Wangshu would vomit his dinner from the night before.
.
Although gentleness and tranquility are considered beautiful in men, few men would dress too extravagantly. Some men from scholarly families would also wear normal clothes, simply tie up their long hair, and look like elegant gentlemen.
However, this composed man lacked the typical affected mannerisms of men in this world, and was therefore considered rigid, boring, and lifeless, unlikely to be favored. Take, for example, Shen Wangshu's biological father, who, despite being from a scholarly family and usually dignified and serene, never received the Empress's favor and ultimately died of depression in the palace.
The Empress's favorite was the beautiful and charming Consort Lin.
Thinking of this, Shen Wangshu couldn't help but smile.
Unfortunately, Consort Lin was of low birth, being a palace maid. Therefore, even after the late Emperor Feng passed away, she could only remain as a Consort and could not advance any further.
He came from a humble background, which naturally affected his second daughter.
If the Third Princess hadn't brought this upon herself and secretly betrayed her own elder sister, the Empress's position wouldn't have fallen to the Second Princess.
Thinking of the Third Princess from her previous life, Shen Wangshu felt that she was not innocent.
This woman came from a very good family. Because the Emperor died young, she was raised by the eldest princess as if she were her own daughter. However, she loathed the eldest princess, thinking that the eldest princess was scheming and despicable, and that she didn't care about family ties for the sake of the throne. She even went so far as to cruelly persecute Lin Guijun and her father, which was utterly immoral.
She was also bewitched by the several handsome young men that Consort Lin had given her. With the influence of her pillow talk, she felt even more sorry for Consort Lin and came to believe that the eldest princess was a vicious person.
When the eldest princess repeatedly pressured Consort Lin and the second princess, she stepped forward and stood in front of them, forcing the eldest princess to hesitate and act cautiously.
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