Chapter 37 First Birthday Banquet
The Emperor carried the Fifth Prince all the way back to Yongshou Palace. He not only ordered the Imperial Household Department to restore the allowances for each palace, but also personally selected some precious gifts and made a long list. Eunuch Su personally led people to carry the gifts to the entrance of Yongshou Palace.
The new policy in the imperial harem, which lasted for less than ten days, ended abruptly and in a very unsatisfactory manner.
It seemed that Shen Meizhuang belatedly realized she had done something foolish amidst the scattered comments, and she stayed in the palace for several days in annoyance, refusing to go out.
The more I think about it, the more I realize that I was too hasty that day. But I didn't understand it at the time, and Huan'er was sitting right next to me. How could someone as intelligent as her not have guessed it?
Even if they were mindful of the Emperor and Empress's presence and couldn't make too much of a show of themselves, they could have spoken to them privately, which would have prevented them from incurring public wrath.
After entering the palace, everyone was scheming for their own interests, and they could no longer be as close and honest with each other as before.
In the following days, although the Emperor often ordered Su Peisheng to send things to Suiyuxuan, he himself did not set foot there again for many days. Instead, he resumed the practice he had before Zhen Huan gained favor, and the Emperor's favor was spread evenly throughout the harem.
Hongzhao's wish came true, and he could see that bright yellow figure in the Imperial Study every day.
No one brought up the previous incident again, so it can be considered over.
——
The Emperor and Empress sat cross-legged on the couch in Jingren Palace, chatting leisurely. The atmosphere in the palace was unusually relaxed.
Looking at the lush greenery outside the window, the Emperor flicked the jade beads in his hand and felt that the unbearable summer was about to arrive—"Consort Wan is pregnant now and is most afraid of the heat. It would be better to go to the Yuanmingyuan Garden earlier this year."
Yixiu smiled and agreed, "We've been making arrangements at the Yuanmingyuan, so His Majesty can depart at any time. The only question is whether the appropriate person has been chosen..."
Your Majesty said, "All the concubines who have children should go, and also bring Consort Hua, Consort Duan, Noble Lady Shen, and Consort An."
Yixiu respectfully replied, "Yes," and then jokingly said with a smile, "Consort Jing is the most reliable; it's reassuring to leave her to look after the house."
Once the Emperor and Empress finalized the date, all the palaces immediately began preparations.
As Hongzhao watched Xiao Dezi busily moving things around, he pondered his own task. Solving the problem was easy enough; a trusted imperial physician could easily diagnose it. However, Shen Meizhuang was young and proud at the time. Although she appeared composed and dignified on the outside, she was actually impatient and incapable of handling matters.
If such a temperament isn't toughened up, who knows how much trouble he'll suffer in the future.
Hongzhao suddenly remembered something he had never used before—a fake pregnancy pill.
He silently made up his mind.
——
Once inside the Yuanmingyuan, a banquet should have been held for the entire palace to enjoy themselves. Coincidentally, it also happened to coincide with the upcoming first birthday of Hongzhou and Wenyi, so they held a banquet together as well.
Because it was under the guise of holding a first birthday banquet for their child, Lü Yingfeng and Cao Qinmo sat in the first and second seats at the very front, while Consort Hua was third.
Hongzhao and Hongjin, dressed in festive attire, sat comfortably on either side of their mother. Lü Yingfeng sat at the head of the table, second only to the Empress, wearing a dark blue imperial concubine's robe. Her unusual attire was dazzling, with her hair ornaments adorned with kingfisher feathers and jade, complemented by pearls. Her overall demeanor was captivating.
This elegant and graceful woman was surrounded by children, and she was gently coaxing the even smaller baby in her arms.
Yinzhen couldn't take his eyes off her after just a quick glance. He loved watching Ying'er coax the child. Yingying radiated a gentle maternal glow. She was always cheerful and her voice was naturally clear and bright.
But his favorite was still that low, husky lullaby.
Yixiu saw all of this, but maintained the dignity of the empress on the surface. What she was thinking in her heart is unknown.
"Consort Duan has arrived!"
A eunuch's call to arms drew everyone's attention, and Hongzhao also craned his neck to look outside.
A lady in a mica-colored auspicious robe walked in slowly, supported by her maid. Her graceful demeanor clearly indicated that she was no ordinary person. In Hongzhao's opinion, Consort Duan's appearance could indeed rival that of Consort Hua, but her current sickly complexion and poor health made people overlook her beauty.
It's a sad story that a bowl of medicine caused the deaths of two daughters of military families.
One can only say that an emperor is indeed an emperor.
Consort Duan glanced around at everyone, and paused for a moment when she saw Zhen Huan. She quickly composed herself and said softly, "Congratulations to Your Majesty on gaining another beauty."
There were only two elderly people in the palace who had seen Empress Chun Yuan. Yi Xiu naturally knew what she meant by those words, and her smile was quite meaningful: "You haven't seen strangers for a long time, yet you still retain the same eye you had back then."
Hongzhao deliberately turned his head to secretly observe his father, and indeed saw a fleeting look of guilt in his eyes. Just as he was about to think about it, he saw an even more obvious impatience following closely behind.
He now truly understood that the imperial family was the most ruthless place.
"The last time I saw Hongzhou and Wenyi was when they were a month old. They've grown so much in the blink of an eye." Hearing her weak tone, she seemed to need to pause for a few words.
Jixiang opened the box, and Consort Duan slowly took out two items from it: a jade pendant carved with auspicious clouds and an exquisitely crafted silver necklace, which she gave to Hongzhou and Wenyi respectively.
"Then I thank Consort Duan on behalf of the children." Seeing that Consort Hua's expression was really unfriendly, Cao Qinmo did not dare to speak at this time, so she had to step in to smooth things over.
Lu Yingfeng entered the manor late and didn't see Consort Duan many times. Therefore, Consort Duan glanced at her a few more times, her gaze sweeping over the two adorable children, a hint of envy flashing across her face.
He gave a gift but didn't stay long, claiming he wasn't feeling well before leaving the banquet.
As soon as she left her seat, Lü Yingfeng heard Consort Hua muttering, not in much a low voice, "If you're weak, don't come out and bother people. It'll only bring bad luck."
He could only shake his head helplessly. Their affair had been the subject of much gossip in the Prince's mansion back then, and now it was an even more complicated mess.
After watching so many banquets, all the same old string and wind instruments became boring. She could only quietly coax her three children to pass the time, hoping that this tedious period would end soon.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Consort Wan, dressed in a bright green auspicious robe, quietly returning from the back door, her skirt still damp. Since the Yuanmingyuan Garden was surrounded by water, I figured she was just a young girl who wanted to have fun and had gone off to splash in the water somewhere, so I didn't pay any attention to her.
Cao Qin, having received Hua Fei's signal, stood up with a smile and addressed the Emperor: "Your Majesty, I am thinking that although the singing and dancing today are magnificent, how about we think of something more relaxing?"
She was clearly prepared to say this; the banquet was boring, but the Emperor had become somewhat interested and allowed her to explain the rules.
"Write down all the sisters' strengths and draw lots. Whoever draws a particular strength will come out to entertain the guests. What does Your Majesty think?"
Although Hongzhao knew this was aimed directly at Zhen Huan, he still couldn't help but tap the system—"Brother System, do I have enough points to exchange for that skill?"
"That's enough." The system was quite indifferent, but in reality, his points were already in debt, so he was lucky that the system was generous.
Once the games started, everyone got excited.
The Empress drew the calligraphy prize and, without hesitation, wrote two different "longevity" characters with both hands on the spot, presenting them to Hongzhou and Wenyi respectively.
Cao Qinmo touched down further, "This belongs to Consort Xin... Please, Your Highness, play the konghou and perform a piece."
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