Chapter 410 Birthday Banquet 5
Before leaving, the emperor said to Jiang Huai, "I have heard that Marquis Wu'an has not attended court for a long time. His wife was nearly killed by the remnants of the Su family. I have Physician Mei take a good look at her. Marquis Wu'an should also return as soon as possible. There are still many things waiting for him to handle in the Ministry of Revenue. If he dares to take this opportunity to slack off and be lazy, I will not forgive him."
"Your Majesty, I will ensure that Jin Yan attends court as soon as possible," Jiang Huai said in a deep voice while kneeling on the ground.
The meaning is already very clear: the Emperor has decided to appoint Jiang Jinyan as Minister of Revenue, and the court officials can no longer raise any objections.
The emperor recognized Jiang Jinyan's abilities, and he also greatly favored Jiang Fenghua. As long as the Jiang family held power, Jiang Fenghua's position would be secure. Xie Shang was aware of this as well, which is why he appointed Jiang Jinyan as Minister. Xie Shang had also consulted with the emperor beforehand.
On the other hand, Imperial Censor Zhu's expression was quite unpleasant, and even many people in the court with more seniority than Jiang Jinyan looked grim.
Why did he get the position of Minister of Revenue so easily? It's already very displeasing that he was appointed as a Vice Minister.
The Emperor's bestowal of such an important position upon Jiang Jinyan, and the granting of the position of Minister of Revenue to the Jiang family, signifies that the economic lifeline of the Great Zhou Dynasty is in the hands of the Jiang family.
Jiang Fenghua unconsciously looked in the direction of Imperial Censor Zhu; his face must be turning blue with anger!
The master of ceremonies then announced, "The banquet begins. Please enjoy yourselves."
The Crown Prince and Crown Princess then raised their glasses together to exchange pleasantries with everyone, and everyone joined in wishing His Highness the Crown Prince a happy birthday.
The entire Imperial Garden became bustling with activity in an instant.
Soon the song and dance performance began. Learning from past mistakes, Jiang Fenghua did not ask the ladies to prepare any programs, in order to avoid a recurrence of the miscarriage. The dances and songs were all carefully choreographed by the dancers.
However, the ladies were all dressed up in their finest attire, hoping to use this opportunity to make the Crown Prince remember them.
Jiang Fenghua understood what everyone meant; now that they had entered the palace, they were not there to be mere decorations.
At this moment, everyone was waiting for the opportunity to be seen by the Crown Prince, even just for a glance!
At this moment, the concubines also mustered up their courage to offer wine to the Crown Prince. Zhao Yuntong even boldly stepped forward and said, "This concubine wishes Your Highness a happy birthday. May you have many more birthdays like this every year."
The seventh-rank Zhaoxun Wen Lu smiled radiantly and stepped forward with her wine cup: "This concubine wishes Your Highness many happy returns of the day..."
Immediately afterwards, Helan Yanran, Pan Nianru, and other concubines all said, "Your Highness, I wish you a happy birthday and good health..."
"Your Highness, I am your concubine..."
Shu Yan squeezed to the front, her shy face like a flower bud about to bloom, "This concubine also wishes Your Highness a happy birthday."
Jiang Fenghua glanced at the crowd and quickly made way for them.
In truth, Xie Shang was toasted by so many concubines, but he didn't even get a clear look at any of their faces. In front of everyone, he couldn't very well refuse, so he drank one cup after another.
He glanced at Jiang Fenghua, but she seemed not to see him. He then gave a forced smile and said, "I have received your good intentions. Now return to your seats!"
Only after the concubines left did Xie Shang catch his breath. He saw that the ministers were also drinking, making merry, and enjoying the singing and dancing, and he no longer felt embarrassed. He finally understood how difficult it was for his father to deal with the women in the harem, so he decided to stop holding the selection of concubines. He couldn't even recognize all of them.
So far, only Zhu Zhenzhen, Song Qing, Tang Qianran, and Gao Qingtong have been summoned to the emperor's bedchamber, and all of them have become pregnant. It has to be said that with a high-quality man like Xie Shang around, the royal family could have as many imperial offspring as they wanted.
After giving birth to her first child, Jiang Fenghua has been recuperating and is not in a hurry to get pregnant again. Recently, Xie Shang has been visiting her palace frequently, and she has not taken any contraceptive measures. It was Xie Shang's idea to ask her if she had recovered her health, as if he wanted her to have another child. She doesn't know what he means, but he is very proactive in this matter.
A woman offered her a toast, but he suddenly stopped her. Jiang Fenghua smiled awkwardly, "I haven't been feeling well lately, and the imperial physician advised me not to drink alcohol. Please eat and drink well, Madam."
The woman said, "The Crown Princess's health is of utmost importance," and then withdrew, as if she wanted to cultivate a good relationship with the Crown Princess so that when her daughter was eligible for the imperial concubine selection, the Crown Princess could take care of her.
Jiang Fenghua smiled slightly at Xie Shang and said softly, "This concubine will offer a toast to Your Highness, wishing you boundless happiness and longevity."
Upon hearing this, Xie Shang spat a mouthful of wine directly onto her face. "Am I that old?"
Jiang Fenghua gritted her teeth and practically squeezed out the words "Xie Shang, you did this on purpose" through clenched teeth.
Those around them turned to look at them. Xie Shang's expression turned slightly cold, and a fierce glint flashed in his eyes. Everyone pretended not to see it. They only saw the singing and dancing on the stage and stared at the stage as if they were blind.
At this moment, the child was still in the arms of Feng Jingyuan and others. Granny Wang was also serving on the side and wanted to step forward to help, but she was stopped by the Crown Prince's eyes. For a while, no one stepped forward to help.
Xie Shang also set aside his princely status and personally took a handkerchief to wipe her cheeks, his movements gentle and meticulous.
Jiang Fenghua had put on exquisite makeup today, but it came off when he wiped it off. Luckily, she had a good complexion, and even without makeup, she was no less beautiful than any of the young ladies from prominent families present.
Xie Shang couldn't stop smiling, his expression both flirtatious and wanton. "I apologize to Ruan Ruan. It really wasn't intentional. Please don't be angry in front of everyone."
Jiang Fenghua wore a polite smile. "Your Highness didn't do it on purpose. Your Highness did it intentionally."
To everyone else, this little incident was just the two of them flirting. The Jiang family's current status was not unfounded; the Crown Princess played a significant role in it.
Meanwhile, Madam Zhu and Zhu Yiyi sat properly at the banquet. Zhu Zhenzhen did not come out to participate. Madam Zhu's face was not good. She felt sorry for her daughter because the Crown Prince favored the Crown Princess so much. Madam Zhu unconsciously clenched her fingers.
Zhu Yiyi stared in Xie Shang's direction, as if she was determined to win him over. Whether she would get a spot in the next round of the selection depended on how much trouble Zhu Zhenzhen caused in the palace.
No wonder Zhu Zhenzhen is deeply in love with the Crown Prince, who is so handsome and dashing every day.
In contrast, the Crown Princess is stunningly beautiful, but as the saying goes, "Good flowers don't bloom forever, and good times don't last forever."
The Crown Prince is still young and has not yet ascended the throne. Once he becomes emperor, he will gradually lose interest in the Crown Princess. She lowered her eyelids, concealing her ambition and sharpness, and was as obedient as a little white flower that was submerged in the crowd.
In her heart, even if the Crown Prince dotes on the Crown Princess, it won't last. No man will love a woman forever; men are all fickle.
With so many concubines in the Eastern Palace, doesn't the Crown Prince still favor them all? He just likes Jiang Fenghua a little more.
Meanwhile, Feng Jingyuan and Jiang Rumeng were also very shrewd. Ever since Ruan Ruan was betrothed to the royal family, the Jiang family knew that Ruan Ruan's future path would not be easy, and they also told her not to stand out. However, she ignored their words.
Now that His Highness the Crown Prince dotes on her so much, I wonder if it's a blessing or not.
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