Chapter 292: Plea
This time, not only Concubine Jiang's face was stiff, but even the Second and Fourth Madams' faces were stiff as well.
Empress Xu was a virtuous and kind queen. As a queen, she was always frugal and never wasteful. Normally, she would not hold a palace banquet once a year, and would only invite the wives of officials to the palace. However, when there was a serious drought in Xuzhou and Changzhou and the emperor was in a bad mood, she held a banquet. It was indeed not like Empress Xu's character to hold a banquet. It was most likely, as the prince guessed, that she was calling on the wives of officials to donate money for disaster relief.
It's not for selecting a princess for Prince Yu, but for disaster relief. This palace banquet is not much fun. When the noble ladies gather together, they are bound to compare with each other. They are the wives of Prince Jingyang's Mansion, so their donations must not be less than others. It will bring shame to Prince Jingyang's Mansion. Isn't this just rushing into the palace to spend money?
Concubine Jiang said, "Then I still won't enter the palace..."
Before she could finish her words, the princess glanced at her, and Concubine Jiang's mouth seemed to be blocked by something, and she couldn't utter a single word.
She had just been clamoring to go to the palace, but now that she knew the reason for going there was to donate money, she didn't want to go anymore. As a concubine, she not only didn't take the princess seriously, she also had no sympathy for the disasters in Xuzhou and Changzhou.
The fourth wife said, "No news has been leaked. Most people would not wear silver or money when entering the palace. I'm afraid the prince is just being suspicious."
Chen Tang didn't say anything, but just touched the hairpin on her head, and the Fourth Madam reacted. The lady didn't carry any money with her, so she might have a lot of things to exchange for money. Just a rough calculation of the jewelry she was wearing showed that it was at least two thousand taels. It would be fine if she donated one or two items, but if she donated all of them, she would be in great pain.
The fourth wife said, "There's something going on in the North Courtyard. I'll go back first and go directly to the gate later."
After the fourth wife left, the second wife and Concubine Jiang also left.
When we enter the palace, we will know what they are going to do when they return.
Change jewelry.
Obviously, she felt that Xie Guimo's guess was reasonable. If she really had to make a donation when entering the palace, she wouldn't feel so bad about donating jewelry she didn't like.
Chen Tang and the princess rode in a carriage, while Concubine Jiang and the second wife also rode in carriages with their daughters. The carriages entered the palace unimpeded.
There was a banquet in the palace today, and there were a lot of people entering the palace. The horse ranch was noisy and lively. When Shen Tang got out of the carriage, he saw Princess Jinde and Shen Ran. Shen Ran waved at Shen Tang. Princess Roujia also came, as well as the wife of the Minister of Works and Miss Zhao.
The princess was talking to Princess Duan, Princess Jinde and the others, while Chen Tang, Shen Ran and Princess Roujia were walking towards the Imperial Garden, talking and laughing.
They arrived relatively late, so there were even more people in the Imperial Garden. It was already autumn, and the weather was not so hot, but the garden was just like midsummer, with clusters of flowers and no sign of autumn.
The ladies from wealthy families were having a great time, but only Princess Cheng'an was seen; Princess Gu'an was not there.
Princess Gu'an was not around in her previous life, and how could Empress Xu not punish her for being forced to do such a stupid thing?
Chen Tang accompanied the princess to pay a visit to Queen Xu. Queen Xu was all smiles when she saw the princess and Shen Tang. A few days ago, Chen Tang entered the palace and helped Queen Xu avoid being plotted against by Concubine Ye. It was Xie Guimo who reminded her about the disaster relief so that she did not fall into the trap set by King Qi. He even reminded her about holding a palace banquet, but it was hard to guard against.
Prince Jingyang spared no effort to help Prince Yu, but it was their own people who held them back. Queen Xu felt grateful but also ashamed.
After Chen Tang bowed, he said, "I came here just now, but I didn't see Princess Gu'an. Did the Queen punish her by confining her to her room?"
The question was asked so abruptly that not only did Empress Xu fail to react, but all the noble ladies also looked at each other.
Didn’t we just say that Princess Gu’an was unwell and was recuperating in her own palace, so she couldn’t attend the palace banquet? Why was she under house arrest?
Princess Gu'an must have made a mistake to be under house arrest. It was too late for Empress Xu to hide it. How could the Princess of Jingyang be so stupid as to ask Empress Xu in front of so many people...
Queen Xu knew that Chen Tang and Xie Guimo were on her and Prince Yu's side, so they definitely didn't say that to humiliate her, and they certainly didn't say it casually. Queen Xu said, "Gu'an was not thoughtful in what she did, so I will punish her by confining her to her house for half a month as a punishment."
Chen Tang said, "Princess Gu'an is kind by nature, and this banquet was held because of her, but she was confined and cannot attend. Isn't the Queen trying to erase her kindness?"
Queen Xu really couldn't figure out what Chen Tang was going to do. In front of so many people, she couldn't ask directly, so she could only look at Chen Tang. Chen Tang said bluntly, "Can I ask for a favor for Princess Gu'an?"
Everyone: "..."
Is the Princess Consort of Prince Jingyang too confused about her own identity?
The Queen punished her own daughter, and she pleaded for Princess Gu'an. She took herself too seriously.
Even the princess frowned and shook her head at Chen Tang. As a result, Queen Xu said, "I am too harsh. Since the Princess of Jingyang is begging for mercy, let Gu'an go."
The noble ladies looked at each other in bewilderment.
Does the Princess Consort of Prince Jingyang have such a high status in front of Queen Xu?
Also, why is this banquet hosted by Princess Gu'an? Isn't it for selecting a concubine for Prince Yu?
And the Crown Princess of Prince Jingyang also said that house arrest would erase the kindness of Princess Gu'an. What is going on?
Those noble ladies felt like they were being scratched by a cat in their hearts.
Chen Tang greeted Queen Xu and left the pavilion after saying just a few words. Chen Ran and Princess Roujia accompanied Chen Tang to appreciate the flowers. Princess Gu'an came over and looked at Chen Tang in confusion, "Why are you pleading for me and my mother?"
She already knew that she was doing bad things to her brother.
Her mother punished her by confining her to her house, but she had no complaints.
Chen Tang looked at Princess Gu'an, "Princess, don't you want to redeem yourself from your mistakes?"
How could she not think about it? She was regretting it so much.
Princess Gu'an asked, "Do you have a solution?"
Chen Tang motioned Princess Gu'an to come closer to his ear and whispered a few words. Princess Gu'an's eyes opened wide, and the clear stupidity in them gradually dissipated, shining.
No wonder the Queen Mother praised the Princess Consort of Prince Jingyang so highly and asked her to come to her, obviously to help her.
Today's palace banquet was for no other purpose. Before the ladies had finished touring the Imperial Garden, the banquet began and Empress Xu invited everyone to take their seats.
When I arrived at the banquet, I looked at the pastries on the table and found them to be more shabby than ever before.
Those ladies from noble families couldn't believe that this was a palace banquet hosted by the Queen.
Empress Xu said, "This palace banquet was held hastily and was not well prepared. I am sorry for the delay. When the disasters in Xuzhou and Changzhou are over, I will definitely hold a palace banquet and invite everyone to come to the palace for some fun."
Concubine Ye said, "This palace banquet was indeed held in a hurry. I wonder why the Queen held this palace banquet?"
She planned it all behind the scenes, but pretended to be ignorant of it in public. Empress Xu's face turned visibly colder. She had no place to vent her anger. If someone dug a trap for her, her daughter would be stupid enough to jump into it.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
