Many noblewomen were invited to Jue Luo's birthday celebration. These women were mostly wives of high-ranking officials and rarely had time to get together. They were also busy preparing for the occasion, so Jue Luo's birthday became a gathering for many of them.
In addition, the Fourth Prince's wife will definitely return that day. They each brought their own socialites, so they must have come for the Fourth Prince's wife.
Before they even reached the entrance of the old house, they saw many carriages parked there. Fei Yanggu and the others immediately understood that these people were all there for Qingyan.
As juniors, Yin and Qingyan would certainly attend Jue Luo's birthday celebration. Many noblewomen received invitations from Jue Luo and expressed their intention to ensure uniformity. They also instructed their daughters to dress smartly and carefully select their headdresses over several days before coming, as Jue Luo's wife would likely select one or two young ladies for the Fourth Prince to keep at the birthday banquet.
The women they selected for the imperial concubine selection were mostly from the better families, with the best ones reserved for the palace.
"Father, why is it so lively?" Qingyan couldn't help but wonder how many people her mother had invited.
Fei Yanggu glared at him and immediately understood the preparations of the Jue Luo clan.
"Little darling, forget everything the women say later. We don't need women entering our mansion!" Yin said to her solemnly.
These people were probably going to introduce the young women to Qingyan. He smiled coldly; for the young women to be out and about before the selection process was an opportunity to offend the royal family. The young women who would emerge were unlikely to be the most carefully cultivated talents by their families.
"Huh?!" Qingyan was a little confused, but seeing that many girls were secretly glancing at Yin, she understood everything.
In fact, he hoped that Lady Jueluo would step in to stop it. Even the Empress Dowager and Consort Tong decided that they would not send any more young ladies to their residence for the time being.
"Princess, you've finally arrived. Madam and many other ladies are waiting for you." The nanny beside Jue Luo came out and saw Qingyan standing next to Yin. She thought to herself that Qingyan hadn't grown up in the mansion and wasn't really close to Jue Luo.
Princess Qingya got married and sent birthday gifts from Mongolia. When they arrived, they made many women from the local court envious.
"Yes, Su Peisheng, have Xiao Su carry the burial goods to Mother's place together!" Qingyan didn't miss the look in the nanny's eyes. Perhaps, the strained relationship between Jue Luo Shi and her was largely due to the interference of these nannies.
Therefore, it was difficult for Qingyan and the Jueluo clan to reconcile. Sometimes, just when they had made peace, the servants would start saying unpleasant things, and the Jueluo clan would immediately succumb to their provocations.
"Little darling, I'll go with you!" Yin was worried that Jue Luo Shi might make things difficult for Qing Yan. He thought it would be better to go with her. With him there, everyone's attention would be focused on him, and they would probably ignore her.
Just as Fei Yanggu was about to stop him, he figured out Yin's idea and agreed immediately. The women couldn't wait to see the prince.
When the two men appeared in the flower hall, the court ladies all fell silent and looked at the girls they had brought, hoping that they could leave a good impression on Yin. In this way, Yin could ask Kangxi or Consort Tong for girls to be selected for the imperial concubines, and their wishes could be realized directly.
“Mother-in-law, Xiao Guai and I have come to wish you a happy birthday! Recently, Xiao Guai has been quite pregnant, and I was worried that something might happen, so I ordered that we close the door to guests.” Yin looked at Du Jue Luo Shi. Recently, a lot of trouble had been caused by this lady.
"Fourth Prince, this humble woman dares not accept such praise!" Seeing Yin's respectful manner, Lady Jue Luo quickly stood up, bowed respectfully, and dared not be presumptuous again.
Qingyan smiled, taking all the responsibility upon himself.
As soon as she entered, Jue Luo's expression turned sour. She knew in her heart that her mother would definitely make things difficult. Since Yin had said that, even if Jue Luo was in a bad mood, she could not say anything more.
As soon as she finished speaking, all of Jue Luo's words of condemnation were choked in her throat, and the court ladies were even more frightened and dared not speak anymore, for fear of being blamed by Yin.
The Fourth Princess's gaze did not fall on the socialites around her, but rather on the Fourth Prince. The couple's relationship was so good that there was no way to sow discord between them.
"Fourth Prince, you go to the front first, you can also wish your mother a happy birthday." Qingyan noticed the strange looks in the eyes of the socialites and spoke directly to Yin.
"Alright, Sulan, you take good care of the Fujin here!" Yin gave a few more instructions before leaving.
As the socialites watched the Fourth Prince leave, they all regretted not having made a better impression on him.
"My dear, these ladies are all skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. They have also prepared some performances to celebrate Mother's birthday." Lady Jue Luo was very happy. The young ladies who were to perform a dance to celebrate were only at the level of the Princess Consort of Prince Shi.
Qingyan frowned; this was preparing to push the Ulanara clan into the eye of the storm.
“Mother…” Qingyan stood up, looking at Jue Luo’s calm face, her heart ached even more, “Your rank is not that high!”
Qingyan had to follow the rules. Among these socialites was the legitimate daughter of an imperial censor. If they went home and said anything, the imperial censors would definitely put all the blame on her. To be honest, she really couldn't bear that responsibility.
Jue Luo's face darkened. Her rank was not high enough, but Xiao Guai's position was acceptable. As her mother, she could not enjoy the same treatment as Daiyu. Moreover, her approval of these socialites performing dances would actually gain the support of the court ladies.
"Fourth Princess Consort, Lady Ulanara also gave birth to you and raised you. On her birthday, you can be a little more unrestrained!" The Imperial Censor's wife realized that this was the Fourth Princess Consort's weakness, so she quickly tried to flatter her.
The Jue Luo clan was instigated by the servants and ultimately chose to stand on their side. The women felt that the money spent was indeed worthwhile, as the old mansion was a sieve, and servants could betray them at any time.
Fei Yanggu didn't intend to interfere anymore. Those people were all arranged by the Jue Luo clan. As long as they didn't bring disaster to the family, he would let the Jue Luo clan make the decisions. In addition, Xiao Guai had gotten married, and her reputation in the royal family was much better than at home. He was really moved.
"Heh, madam, you must be the wife of an imperial censor, right?" Qingyan glanced at the woman who was about to cause trouble and couldn't help but sneer inwardly. "Is this how imperial censors operate, applying double standards?"
As soon as she finished speaking, the flower hall fell silent. Qingyan had seized the opportunity to retort to the woman.
"This servant... dares not!" The Censor's wife quickly knelt on the ground; this was clearly tarnishing her master's reputation. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
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