Chapter 520: The perfect combination of light and dark colors, the gentle breeze brings the heavenly fragrance
When Song Yuntang arrived at the pavilion, some people were playing the piano, some were painting, and some were holding a pen and thinking about poetry in their minds.
She had no intention of being in the limelight, and after paying her respects to the Queen, she just wanted to find a seat and sit down like most other ladies.
Zhuang Zihan, who was painting nearby, had already noticed her.
"Madam Xu, don't you want the Queen's prize?"
Song Yuntang's face showed no emotion. She folded her hands in front of her and turned to nod towards the queen.
"It's not that I don't want to, but with the pearls and jade in front of me, I know that I am not talented enough and have little knowledge. I don't have the ability, so I won't embarrass myself in front of the Queen."
Chen Yanhua smiled, looking like a peony in the sun, gorgeous, noble and elegant.
At the age of 28, there is still no sign of aging.
"Madam Xu, there is no need to be modest. Mr. Xu is both talented and knowledgeable, and Madam Xu must also be a kind-hearted person. Whether it is a lucky draw or not is not important. What matters is participation."
As she spoke, she glanced vaguely in the direction of the women participating in the competition.
Although he didn't say anything, his intention was self-evident.
Seeing this, Song Yuntang could no longer refuse.
She bowed towards Shen Yanhua.
"Then I will show my ugliness."
Chen Yanhua nodded indifferently, and watched Song Yuntang ask the maid beside him to get the drawing paper.
When she first met Song Yuntang, she felt that it was surprising that a girl from a farming family could have such appearance and temperament, and her words and deeds were not stingy at all.
Later I thought that the wife of the top scholar, influenced by her husband, must be different from an ordinary peasant girl.
Zhuang Zihan was the eldest daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion, and was conferred a noble lady at the beginning of the year after the selection. His Majesty valued the power of the Prime Minister's Mansion, and after the selection, he specially allowed her to go home to accompany her parents for a month, and then move into Yonghe Palace in early May.
In the past, concubines who had just entered the palace were given the titles of Yingying and Changzai.
Even if she was given the title of noble lady, it was only after she had served in the emperor's bedchamber.
Now, Zhuang Zihan has been conferred the title of noble lady before she even entered the palace, and was granted the main hall of Yonghe Palace as her bedroom. This kind of preferential treatment has never been seen before.
Zhuang Zihan is currently very popular and is naturally sought after by the ladies and young ladies in Beijing.
Moreover, she was already known as a talented woman in the capital.
In today's talent show, anyone with a little bit of discernment would not have surpassed her.
Zhuang Zihan does not hide her edge, and the Prime Minister's Mansion is high-profile and ostentatious.
But she is the mother of a country, and today is her birthday. She naturally cannot let the Prime Minister's Mansion and Zhuang Zihan overshadow her.
Otherwise, how can she, as the master of the harem, intimidate the concubines in the future?
Only Mrs. Xu is different.
Prime Minister Zhuang had previously tried to win over Lord Xu in front of His Majesty but failed. Madam Xu should be aware of this.
I don't know how talented she is...
At least, there is a grudge between the two of them, and she will not go easy on her in front of Zhuang Zihan.
And her face really makes people nostalgic.
Suddenly she remembered that His Majesty had specifically asked her to invite Madam Xu to the palace to attend the palace banquet. She had previously thought that His Majesty valued Madam Xu and had emphasized this.
But His Majesty has not left the palace recently, so he may not have seen Song's new face.
Is there anything special about her besides her looks?
Beside the Queen, the Imperial Concubine, dressed in a blue-purple palace dress, a golden hairpin on her head, and a violet jade pendant around her waist, smiled lazily, looking noble and beautiful.
"It seems that the Queen has miscalculated. Miss Zhuang is the most talented woman in our capital. In terms of talent, I'm afraid no one can compare to her."
Concubine Rong raised her eyes and glanced at the dignified and elegant Queen beside her, with a lazy look of watching a good show.
"Although Madam Xu looks different from an ordinary peasant girl, her background is there. The noble ladies in the capital have been educated by maids and teachers since childhood, and they are talented and intelligent. How can a mere peasant girl compare to her? She is just one more person to become Zi Han's background."
The mothers of Prime Minister Zhuang and Concubine Rong are cousins two generations apart, and there is some kind of relationship between her and Zhuang Zihan.
Zhuang Zihan entered the palace, so he must be on her side.
Concubine Rong and the Queen entered the palace at the same time, and they have been fighting for many years. The Queen, as the daughter of the Grand Tutor, was of noble birth and always looked superior. Now she was so happy to see her being humiliated.
However, Chen Yanhua did not take Concubine Rong's words to heart and remained calm and composed.
"It doesn't matter who wins. Since I've put up the stakes, I'm not a stingy person."
After a pause, she looked in the direction of Zhuang Zihan and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear, "Miss Zhuang is young and beautiful, and is favored by His Majesty. After she enters the palace, I'm afraid she will take away the favors of the sisters in the palace. But my sister and Miss Zhuang are distant cousins, so I don't think she will mind, right?"
As the queen and her father being the emperor's teacher when he was young, even if the emperor did not hold her at the top of his heart, he would still give her the most basic respect and recognition, and would come to her palace to eat and sleep on the first and fifteenth days of every month.
There are three thousand beauties in the harem.
Your Majesty is now in his prime and in good health.
Whether the other concubines can gain favor depends entirely on their own abilities.
There is no man who doesn't like colors.
When new people enter the palace, they are always favored more than old people.
Chen Yanhua glanced in the direction of Concubine Rong.
"If I were a younger sister, I would spend more time on myself and try to win the heart of His Majesty so that I could give him a prince or princess."
Speaking of the princes and princesses, it undoubtedly touched Concubine Rong's sore spot.
She originally had a child, a smart and lovely little prince, who died of a high fever at the age of two.
After that, she became pregnant again. The emperor was in great favor at that time, and she did not want to lose his favour, so she kept her pregnancy a secret and spent every night in his lover's presence. Eventually, her body could not bear it and the fetus died before the third month was over.
The emperor thought it was his fault that she had miscarried, and feeling guilty, he made her a royal concubine.
But since then, she has never gotten pregnant again.
He could only watch helplessly as the concubines in the palace became pregnant one by one.
Concubine Rong tightened her jade hands under her wide sleeves and dug her red nails into her palms, only then did she feel a little calmer.
After a while, the expression on his face finally relaxed.
She smiled.
"My sister is right. I will try my best."
The Queen glanced in her direction and said nothing more.
As time went by, the young ladies and girls present completed their talents one by one.
Upon seeing this, the Queen stood up, and with the help of the nanny beside her, led the ladies to linger around the easels and desks in the pavilion.
After viewing a few unsatisfactory poems and paintings, the ladies followed the queen and stopped beside a desk.
The slender jade fingers wearing armor stretched out and took the piece of rice paper from the table.
"Standing proudly on the tree branch, it overshadows all the other flowers; all the osmanthus and moss flowers try to imitate it.
The perfect combination of light and dark colors is stunning, and the breeze brings out the heavenly fragrance. ”
…
(Original Poetry)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
