Chapter 333: A Trick at the Banquet
In the warm banquet room of Kunning Palace, a charcoal fire burned brightly, casting a crimson glow across the room. A mountain of candied fruit lay on the long rosewood table, and steam rose from a golden pot of wine. The eunuchs and palace maids stood at their service, their hands hanging down, their breathing even lighter.
Xiaoyanzi was reclining on a cushioned chair, wearing a pomegranate-red floral dress with white fox fur trimming the collar, chatting and laughing with Ziwei. Ziwei, wearing a moon-white cheongsam, was fiddling with a pearl bracelet, glancing across at Falcon from time to time, a smile in her eyes.
Yongqi sat next to Xiaoyanzi. His dark blue dragon robe made his features look even more handsome. He was whispering something to the twelfth prince Yongji with a faint smile on his face.
Zhihua sat at the bottom, wearing a light blue cheongsam with orchids embroidered on the hem and a jade hairpin on her hair. Seeing Xiaoyanzi and Yongqi looking at each other and laughing from time to time, her fingers holding the teacup quietly pinched into her palm.
She put down her teacup, stood up and bowed, her voice as gentle as a spring stream: "Your Highness, Princess, and all the masters, I have just learned a new pipa piece and would like to play it to liven things up for everyone. Is that possible?"
Qianlong was talking to the Empress Dowager when he heard this and said with a smile, "Oh? Since you have a new idea, play it for me."
The maid quickly brought the pipa, and Zhihua sat down with it, her jade fingers lightly plucking the strings, and the clear and melodious music began to flow. She played a lingering tune, and her eyes kept glancing towards Yongqi, as if filled with unspeakable affection.
When she reached the climax of the piece, her wrist suddenly twisted and a pipa string broke with a "bang". She screamed and her body swayed. The pick in her hand flew out and landed squarely in the teacup in front of Xiaoyanzi. The splashing tea wet Xiaoyanzi's cuffs.
"Ouch!" Zhihua hurriedly stood up, her lake blue skirt sweeping across the foot of the stool. "Princess, please forgive me! I didn't mean to do that. This string... this string suddenly broke..."
Xiaoyanzi looked down at her wet cuffs, a small dark spot stained the pomegranate-red material. She raised her eyes, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Concubine Concubine's zither skills are quite unique. Not only did she break the string, but the pick also flew over with such precision to say 'Greetings'. It's even more skillful than any opera troupe's."
"I really didn't mean it..." Zhihua's eyes were red, tears welling up on her eyelashes. When she looked at Yongqi, her eyes were full of grievance, "Prince, please believe me..."
Yongqi frowned and said in a flat tone: "It's just some tea spilled, it's okay. Since you made a mistake, please go back to your seat." Although his words were gentle, his eyes were cold, and he obviously saw through this clumsy trick.
The old Buddha twisted her Buddhist beads and said calmly, "At a palace banquet, it's better to be dignified. If the string breaks, just replace it, or don't play it at all. There's no need for all this empty formalities."
Zhihua's face turned red instantly. She stood there in a dilemma, and the handkerchief in her hand was almost torn to pieces.
Xiaoyanzi wiped her sleeves with a handkerchief and said slowly, "If Concubine Consort wanted to show off her skills in front of the prince, she wouldn't have to resort to such tactics. Yongqi has seen excellent zither performances before. Back then, when I played 'The Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix' in Shufangzhai, it was much more lively than this, right, Yongqi?"
Yongqi couldn't help but smile as he recalled the past: "Yes, the sound of your piano could attract all the birds in the imperial garden."
Ziwei also laughed: "That's right, the string that Xiaoyan broke back then was much thicker than the one you have today."
Everyone laughed, and the atmosphere in the warm room became lively again. Zhihua stood there, her lake blue cheongsam looking faded, her face red and white, so embarrassed that she wanted to find a hole to crawl into.
Qianlong glanced at her and said in a deep voice, "Since you can't play it anymore, sit down and have some snacks instead of standing there."
"Yes..." Zhihua bowed, lowered her head and returned to her seat, her hands shaking as she picked up the chopsticks.
Little Swallow winked at Ziwei, and they both smiled secretly. The snow outside the window had stopped falling at some point, and moonlight shone through the lattice, falling on the golden brick floor of the warm room, shining like a layer of broken silver.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
