There was also a soft couch in the room. Although it looked spacious, it was usually used by maids on night duty. How could Ren Yaoqi let Xiao Jinglin sleep on it? He quickly said, "Let's live together."
Xiao Jinglin naturally wouldn't let Ren Yaoqi sleep on the bed, so Ren Yaoqi was very pragmatic. Xiao Jinglin wasn't a sentimental person either, so the matter was settled.
Pingguo was working with Hongying and several other maids to carefully check the bed when the princess's maid Su Jin came over and said that the princess wanted to ask the princess to come over to tell her something.
After Xiao Jinglin went to see the princess, Ren Yaoqi thought for a moment and called Sang Zhen over, asking her to check on the Ren family members and see where they were being accommodated. She also told her to tell the eldest wife that she was being accommodated with the princess. She had only brought Apple and Sang Zhen onto the carriage, while the rest of the maids and servants were on another carriage. Now, she had no choice but to ask the eldest wife to arrange for those people.
After returning from a trip, Sang Zhen informed Ren Yaoqi that the eldest wife had arrived with several of the young ladies of the Ren family and had been accommodated in the guest rooms outside, a little way from here. Old Madam Ren had also come to Yunyang City, but had not come to the Hot Spring Villa, instead staying in the Yunyang City villa. The eldest wife also told Ren Yaoqi to be careful in his conduct and to send someone to let her know if he needed anything.
Shortly after Sang Zhen returned, Xiao Jinglin also returned. He didn't show any signs of emotion, but Ren Yaoqi suspected that Xiao Jinglin had been scolded by the princess for a previous conflict with Xiao Wei. Xiao Jinglin didn't say anything, so Ren Yaoqi didn't ask.
Many people came to the banquet for the daughters of wealthy families. Yanzhou had a geographical advantage, so the conditions for the daughters of wealthy families who came to attend were more relaxed. Other prefectures did not issue as many invitations as Yanzhou, so the attendees were all truly wealthy daughters and ladies from wealthy families. Even so, there were still about one or two hundred ladies in attendance.
Many young masters from prominent families also came, but they weren't staying at the Yanbei Palace's hot spring villa. Fortunately, there were many villas near Sun Moon Spring, many of which were owned by these aristocratic families. They had been fully occupied for the past few days. It was said that several young masters from the Ren family had also come, but since the Ren family didn't have a villa nearby, they were staying at the Qiu family's villa.
The Yun family was very experienced in arranging such grand banquets, so before noon they had arranged for everyone to come.
Because the Qianjin Banquet is a disguised matchmaking event, the first day is a time for prospective families to socialize and test each other's abilities, with the daughters of various wealthy families making themselves known. The second and third days are a time for the young ladies to compete for attention and fame. It's said that over the years, daughters who have managed to shine at the Qianjin Banquet have found good husbands.
People continued to arrive, paying their respects to the princess. She picked out important families. Xiao Jinglin, impatient to mingle with the ladies, hid with Ren Yaoqi under a bodhi tree in the side courtyard, reading. The princess sent people to check on her several times, but then left her alone.
The two of them also ate lunch in the side courtyard. The princess had brought the palace's chef with her, but Xiao Jinglin disliked the chef's bland cooking and had apparently sent him away. During the meal, Hongying brought over two large food containers. Besides the specialty dishes from several major restaurants in Yunyang City, there were also snacks like duck blood soup, lotus root starch meatballs, and pot stickers.
The wide variety of species left Ren Yaoqi amazed.
Xiao Jinglin was very pleased to see Ren Yaoqi's stunned expression, but said calmly, "You're my guest. I have to think of ways to make sure you have something delicious to eat and drink. The dishes made by the chef my mother currently employs are, as my master said, so bland that you can't even eat a bird."
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