At night, Li Qiji arrived at the Cold Palace and sensed that the atmosphere was somewhat strange. He pulled Guan Zhiyue aside and asked her questions.
"Yue'er, why do I feel like there's a very oppressive atmosphere in the Cold Palace today?"
Guan Zhiyue looked puzzled, then burst out laughing, "Hahaha, you mean this? It's all Xiao Tuantuan's fault."
Li Qiji was surprised, wondering what had happened in the Cold Palace while he was in the Imperial Study.
"What's wrong? Has Xiao Tuantuan gotten into trouble again?"
Guan Zhiyue nodded, "Yes, and it's even related to Qi Shang!"
Li Qiji was even more shocked. How did this get involved with Qi Shang again?
"Qi Shang, you've been to the Cold Palace?"
Guan Zhiyue nodded, and gently sat down, her belly protruding.
He chuckled and said, "Qi Shang came to the Cold Palace after court today and told me he was leaving the palace to establish his own residence. We chatted for a while."
"Then when he arrived, Xiao Tuantuan smelled the pure dragon aura."
He seized the opportunity to pin Qi Shang down, taking advantage of the situation where he couldn't hide his ears while stealing a bell.
Then, in front of all the palace servants, he was given the drug to drink.
"Qi Shang said his innocence was ruined, and then Xiao Tuantuan said she wanted to marry him, hahaha..."
Guan Zhiyue laughed as she spoke, she was having a blast.
Upon hearing this, Li Qiji immediately said, "I think Xiao Tuantuan and Qi Shang are a good match."
"Why not just grant Xiao Tuantuan's wish? It would make up for the warships she provided us."
Guan Zhiyue was horrified and quickly stopped her, saying, "Don't do that. Let them handle their own relationship issues. Let's not get involved."
"But now that you mention it, I also think that Xiao Tuantuan and Qi Shang are a good match, especially since they are both so cute and adorable."
"It's not a bad thing to pair them up, but we should let them decide for themselves."
After hearing what Guan Zhiyue had said, Li Qiji didn't say anything more.
Then, as if remembering something, she changed the subject, saying, "These palace maids around you are all quite old, aren't they?"
"Isn't someone of your age about to leave the palace?"
Guan Zhiyue turned her head to look at Li Qiji, sizing him up with a suspicious look. "Are you bored? Are you going to start playing matchmaker?"
"Don't talk nonsense, I'm very busy every day!"
"Oh, so you're still eyeing my palace maids?"
Li Qiji said with a smile, "Isn't it because quite a few of us aren't married yet?"
"Think about it, aren't your eldest and second eldest brothers already approaching twenty? And what about Qi Shang, and Chief Minister Su?"
There's also a hermit named Shanliuxian who's incubating eggs at the Zhanxing Temple. These people are all already past twenty, and still all bachelors!
"These are all my old playmates."
I wonder if Yue'er would be willing to act as a matchmaker for them?
"If Yue'er could do this great and sacred thing..."
"Then I truly must repay Yue'er properly."
Guan Zhiyue raised an eyebrow and looked at Li Qiji, saying, "I feel that you're talking about more than just these people."
"Tell me, who else are they?"
Li Qiji laughed and said, "As expected, you couldn't hide it from my Empress!"
"Hehe, of course there are also the sons and daughters of the ministers."
And Ji Shang and the others who have followed me through thick and thin.
Upon hearing Li Qiji's words, Guan Zhiyue just wanted to roll her eyes to the sky, inwardly cursing, "Fuck your mother, do you really think I'm the matchmaker?"
"I'll find them wives? And what's in it for me?"
"If this is a good choice, then it must be absolutely top-notch."
If I end up with a miserable couple, wouldn't I be condemned by the world? This is a dangerous profession!
"No way! This is a high-risk job!"
How could Li Qiji let Guan Zhiyue refuse? He quickly said, "Oh dear, Yue'er, you've misunderstood!"
"Actually, this is quite simple. It's not about you finding a match."
Instead, they'll use your name to send invitations to officials of the fifth rank and above in the capital, and hold a flower-viewing banquet.
"You just need to take the lead; you don't need to do anything else. Just let them pair up on their own."
"Besides, don't you have so many fun games? Let them make games and then..."
Guan Zhiyue propped her head up and looked at Li Qiji, saying, "Aren't you afraid that inviting so many people will lead to some trouble?"
Although she had never participated in this kind of thing, she had read a lot of stories about palace intrigue and domestic power struggles.
The most likely places for accidents to occur are all kinds of banquets.
Li Qiji said, "Let's issue the order first: whoever causes trouble on the day of the banquet will have their entire family stripped of their official positions."
Guan Zhiyue listened to Li Qiji's words, but instead of saying anything, she gave him a gesture that said, "You're amazing?"
After the two agreed, they would hold a grand founding ceremony three days later.
The first flower-viewing banquet held in Guotai Ming'an was only open to the families of officials of the fifth rank or above in the capital.
They can only bring one legitimate son and one legitimate daughter, and the daughters must be at least twenty and sixteen years old, respectively.
Nothing was said that night, and the next day...
The moment the invitation was sent out, the officials in the capital were in an uproar.
As a result, all the jewelry shops, cosmetics shops, and fabric shops in the capital were in an uproar.
The beauty salon opened by Guan Zhiyue and Lan Shanqi
The lights were on day and night, and the technicians kept saying they needed to rest.
Unable to bear it any longer, Rosamund Kwan also went to help with a beauty treatment for a whole day.
Everyone knows this is the Emperor's will; those in the know understand that the Emperor is using the Empress's name to arrange marriages for his trusted associates.
The oblivious lower-ranking officials thought the emperor was choosing a concubine.
Everyone was putting in their best effort, but they were all complaining that the flower-viewing banquet was too rushed, starting in just three days.
They usually plan to do it a month in advance, so it seems like this time they're going to launch a surprise attack!
When the Empress Dowager learned of this, she was overjoyed. She knew the real reason why the Empress and the Emperor had held this flower-viewing banquet.
She was very happy that her second son had not yet married a princess, let alone taken a concubine, so she was also very anxious.
"Yue'er, you'll have to work hard at this banquet."
I've sent Granny Fan and Granny Jin to assist you. What is it you need?
I just told the two of them to do it; they're both experienced.
Empress Dowager Xin took Guan Zhiyue's hand and personally helped her sit down.
Guan Zhiyue said with a smile, "That's great! The nannies around Mother are all seasoned veterans. At first, I was quite worried..."
Such a large banquet is beyond my daughter-in-law's ability to manage.
Now that we have the Empress Dowager's right-hand women, it's like adding wings to a tiger!
Empress Dowager Xin smiled, her face crinkling with happiness, after hearing Guan Zhiyue's words. She gently patted Guan's hand and said, "You, you always tease me."
"Very well, then your mother will grant you wings and make your wishes come true."
"Thank you, Mother. You are the best, otherwise I would have given up."
"Hahaha, you little rascal, Granny Jin, look at this child, he's still so lovable. You all must take good care of the Empress these next few days."
Granny Jin and Granny Fan quickly knelt down and said, "Yes, we will obey the Empress Dowager's decree."
Guan Zhiyue chatted with Empress Dowager Xin about other things, and then, at night, she led the two of them from Cining Palace toward the Cold Palace.
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