Chapter 387 The Princess of Langya's Dance - I've Never Seen It Before
The banquet begins.
The main hall was filled with court officials on both sides. Xiao Yu walked to the throne with a tired look on his face, followed by Empress Song Zhuyi and Imperial Noble Consort Song Zhuran.
“Minister Chen,” Xiao Yu’s voice was somewhat weak, “this banquet is said to be held for Princess Nanli, but in reality it is also held for you.”
“Nanli has never had much contact with Dongling, so it’s a good thing that we were able to arrange your marriage with Princess Nanli.”
Chen Jie stood up, cupped his hands in a fist and faced the throne, saying, "Your Majesty, this humble subject thanks you."
"Your Majesty, I will certainly live up to your expectations."
Xiao Yu nodded in satisfaction. "Has Princess Nanli arrived yet?"
"Your Majesty, not yet," Wu Panpan replied softly.
Xiao Yu frowned slightly as he looked at the packed hall.
"This princess of Nanli Kingdom has quite the airs, daring to make all of us wait here." Someone noticed Xiao Yu's dissatisfaction and spoke up to criticize him.
Once someone spoke up, it was like a floodgate had been opened, and everyone chimed in, "This Southern Li Kingdom has only just risen to power, yet it's already so arrogant."
"I think this marriage alliance is a pretense, and the real purpose is to provoke us in Dongling by using a princess who is not a princess."
"Hmph, since the Southern Li are like this, the Eastern Ling need not be polite either."
"Lord Chen, why don't you step forward and say something?" someone shouted. "Didn't you fall in love with Princess Nanli at first sight?"
"Why does she look down on Dongling like this? Did you instigate it? Or is she just using you?"
Chen Jie, a man who has always been honest and kind, was able to marry the Grand Princess first, and then marry a princess from another country. This made countless people envious and jealous.
now,
Many people began to target Chen Jie.
"Lord Chen is forty years old now, isn't he? Does he really think he's like those teenagers or young men in their twenties?" someone said.
"I think it's not that they're interested in you, but that they're using you without you even realizing it."
Chen Jie did not respond, but simply made a mental note of each of the people who spoke.
Song Zhuran angrily rebuked, "There aren't even any people from Nanli Kingdom yet, and you're already fighting amongst yourselves."
"What? Do you have to belittle our own people and boost the morale of the enemy?"
As soon as Song Zhuran finished speaking, the entire hall fell silent.
"The Imperial Noble Consort is right, but it seems Lord Chen is quite popular with women. I have to say something about it." Pei Yanchuan said, then picked up his wine cup and took a sip.
If you think about it more deeply, Pei Yanchuan was deliberately saying that even Song Zhuran, one of the emperor's women in the harem, was speaking up for Chen Jie.
Song Zhuran wanted to speak, but Chen Jie's gaze swept over her, and she forced herself to hold back.
"Your Highness is joking. Your Highness is quite popular with women, but it is indeed rare to see someone as afraid of his wife as Your Highness."
“You’re wrong,” Pei Yanchuan said calmly. “It’s not that I’m afraid, it’s that I like being managed by my wife.”
Everyone...
Chen Jie smiled and said, "That's true, after all, the prince and the princess are seven years apart in age."
"Seven years is nothing. Isn't Lord Chen also twenty-three years older than that woman?" Pei Yanchuan's eyes held a hint of provocation.
"King Langya is mistaken. He is not twenty-three years old, but twenty-one. Princess Nanli is seventeen years old now," someone corrected.
Pei Yanchuan's lips curled slightly as he looked at Chen Jie, "Perhaps I've misremembered?"
Chen Jie clenched his fists tightly on his thighs and said nothing more.
"Wu Panpan, go and see what's really going on in the Southern Li Kingdom?" Emperor Xiao Yu said impatiently.
"yes."
As soon as Wu Panpan finished speaking, music started playing outside the main hall, and then a red ribbon flew in and wrapped around the roof beams of the main hall.
The other end of the ribbon,
A woman dressed in a red dancer's dress and wearing a veil flew in, holding a ribbon in one hand.
The dancers coming from both sides are geisha.
The woman landed lightly to the music, much like a swallow in flight.
The simple opening scene was enough to make all the men in the hall stare in disbelief, even Xiao Yu narrowed his eyes slightly.
No one in the entire Dongling Kingdom has ever danced so gracefully and beautifully.
It was like a celestial being descending from the heavens.
After the dance ended, the woman slowly stepped forward and bowed amidst the audience's fascination. "Yan Chenyu greets Your Majesty and wishes Your Majesty peace and happiness forever."
Only after Yan Chenyu's voice fell did everyone come back to their senses.
Xiao Yu snapped out of his daze and gently raised his hand, "No need for formalities."
"Thank you, Your Majesty," Yan Chenyu said. "Your Majesty, we were delayed on the way, which is why we are a little late."
"Therefore, I specially performed this dance to apologize to His Majesty and all the ministers."
A beautiful woman, dressed so lightly, had already made her point so clearly; what more could anyone say?
"It's probably the princess's first time visiting Dongling, so it's understandable that she might get lost sometimes. It's alright," Xiao Yu said.
"Please take a seat."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Yan Chenyu walked familiarly to Chen Jie's side.
After sitting down, she removed the veil from her face, revealing a bewitching face.
A slight smile appeared on her lips as she looked at Song Zhuran beside Xiao Yu, then slowly shifted her gaze to Jiang Wanning.
Jiang Wan Ning looked back calmly.
The two locked eyes in a fierce battle, but in the end, Yan Chenyu was defeated.
Yan Chenyu was unconvinced. She was not as good as Jiang Wanning when she was Jiang Wanru. Now that she had changed her identity and studied hard for many years, how could she be worse than Jiang Wanning?
Looking into their eyes, Song Zhuran had a thought forming in her mind.
“Your Majesty,” Song Zhuran’s sweet and gentle voice rang out, “the princess of Nanli Kingdom dances so well.”
"Your Majesty, I remember that Sister Jiang, or rather, the Princess of Langya, is also an exceptional dancer."
"How about we have Princess Langya dance a song as well?"
As Song Zhuran spoke, she leaned closer to Emperor Xiao Yu, "We can't let the people of this small country see the true nature of Dongling, can we?"
Xiao Yu thought this made sense and looked at Jiang Wan Ning, "I have never seen the Princess of Langya's dance before."
"I had no idea that the Princess Consort of Langya could dance."
"I only found out by chance," Song Zhuran said. "Before I entered the palace, I went to the Marquis's residence with my elder sister and saw it. Was it my elder sister?"
"My sister is mistaken," Empress Song Zhuyi said calmly. "I have never seen the Princess of Langya dance."
“It’s normal for you to have a bad memory now that you’re pregnant, but Ranran won’t forget,” Song Zhuran said with a smile to Jiang Wanning.
Jiang Wan Ning knew that Song Zhu Ran was doing it on purpose, because she had never danced before.
She simply doesn't know how.
However, if he said he didn't know how at this moment, it would be like slapping Song Zhuran in the face, just like slapping His Majesty in the face. He had to know how even if he didn't.
Song Zhuran wanted to see herself make a fool of herself.
"Sister Jiang? Stop hiding it, let us all see it, okay?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com