Because the mourning period for the Empress Dowager had just ended and the three-month mourning period was not yet over, the banquet was not held on a large scale.
Apart from imperial relatives, only officials of the third rank or above were allowed to bring their families to participate.
The banquet was held in the Imperial Garden.
Early on, many people entered the palace by imperial decree.
The men's and women's seats are still set up at opposite ends.
After noon, the sun gradually became less intense.
From afar, the sounds of string and wind instruments could be heard coming from the artificial lake in the Imperial Garden...
The sound of their laughter carried far.
The palace servants serving the meal shuttled back and forth. When they saw the Ninth Prince carrying Princess Yuan Yao arriving late, they all bowed their heads in greeting.
The Ninth Prince wore a dark blue robe embroidered with silver cloud patterns, and his long black hair was tied up with a silver crown with wings, revealing his slender neck.
Even so, the radiance of his face was not diminished.
Upon seeing the Ninth Prince from afar, everyone at the banquet fell silent.
As he walked past, the young eunuch announced in a high-pitched voice, "Your Highness has arrived! Princess Yuan Yao has arrived..."
Immediately, everyone at the table stood up and said, "Greetings, Your Majesty."
Yuan Yao was a princess personally appointed by the emperor, a first-rank official. Those of lower rank than her had to bow to her.
This gesture won over many people.
These days, news of Yuan Yao bringing food and medicine to support the Ninth Prince at the Huai River ahead of the court has already spread throughout the capital.
No matter who was looking at her, Yuan Yao always smiled sweetly.
"Little Yao'er!"
A voice came from behind.
Yuan Yao turned around and saw Jiang Chengyan, along with Huairou and Huaiyao, who had come with him to the men's section to look for someone.
"Yao'er..."
Upon seeing Yuan Yao, Huairou's eyes welled up with tears.
The three walked up to the Ninth Prince and bowed.
The Ninth Prince responded indifferently and put Yuan Yao down: "Don't go too far, and don't eat anything indiscriminately."
Yuan Yao obediently replied, "Yao'er understands!"
"Go ahead." The Ninth Prince curled the corners of his lips.
Yuan Yao then turned to Huairou and others.
As soon as she took her little hand, Huairou said, "Yao'er has lost weight."
"Have you really lost weight?" Yuan Yao asked, blinking.
Everyone who sees her says she's lost weight.
But when she looked in the mirror, she found that there was no difference!
Huaiyao snorted: "I told you to go to the Huai River! It's flooded and plagued by epidemics there every day. If you don't lose weight, who will?"
"Jiang Huaiyao, can't you speak properly?" Jiang Chengyan scolded with a stern face.
"Mind your own business!" Huaiyao stuck out her tongue.
Jiang Chengyan glared at her.
Huairou said helplessly, "Alright, it's a wonderful day, Yao'er is back, we should be happy, no one is allowed to make a fuss."
Huaiyao and Jiang Chengyan exchanged glances, giving each other a look of disdain.
Huairou opened her arms wide: "Yao'er, let your sister hug you."
"Okay!" Yuan Yao stretched out her little hand and rushed into Huairou's arms.
Huairou was enveloped in a light, pleasant scent of pear blossoms.
She picked Yuan Yao up, her eyes slightly red, and said with heartache, "Yao'er has lost weight; she's even lighter than before."
Yuan Yao is most afraid of her gentle older sister crying.
She pulled him into her arms and said with feigned delight, "Wow! Does that mean I can eat and drink to my heart's content?"
"puff……"
Before Huairou could shed a tear, she swallowed it back with laughter.
Looking at the white dumplings, Huaiyao felt a pang of sadness.
After hesitating for a moment, Huaiyao said, "Yuanyao, come here and let me hug you. I want to see if you've really lost weight."
Weigh?
Yuan Yao was both amused and exasperated.
Huaiyao also has a stubborn personality.
If you want to hug her, just say so!
She pulled Huairou out of her arms, opened her arms, and walked towards Huaiyao: "Don't drop me!"
Huaiyao frowned immediately: "Yuan Yao, are you looking down on me? Among all the princes and princesses, this princess is the strongest, okay?"
"Yes, yes, Sister Huaiyao is the strongest!" Yuan Yao couldn't help but laugh.
Huaiyao reached out and lifted her up tightly.
That hug lasted for quite a while.
Seeing that Huaiyao was reluctant to let go of Yuanyao, Jiang Chengyan stared blankly.
What happened to the promise to weigh it carefully?
Women are all liars!
Jiang Chengyan utterly despised Huaiyao.
After a while, Huaiyao blinked hard, put Yuanyao down, and said in a muffled voice, "I'm dying of thirst! I'm going to find some water!"
As she spoke, she walked towards the women's section without looking up.
“Huaiyao…” Huairou looked at Huaiyao’s back and felt a little helpless.
Just now, she noticed without realizing it that Huaiyao's eyes were red.
He clearly misses Yuan Yao and can't bear to part with her, but he's stubborn and keeps saying no...
Huairou took Yuan Yao's small hand and said gently to Jiang Chengyan, "I'm taking Yao'er to her seat. I'll come find you later."
Jiang Chengyan nodded.
He also wanted to hold Yuan Yao.
Unfortunately, there were many people here, and it wasn't appropriate for him, as a prince, to hold Yuan Yao in public...
The women's seats were behind the screen.
When Huairou led Yuan Yao there, the Empress, Consort Lin, and others had already arrived.
The wives of princesses, dukes, marquises, and other wives and daughters of ministers were all seated according to their rank...
Yuan Yao still greeted him politely first.
Upon seeing her, the Empress smiled and beckoned, "Yao'er, come forward and let me take a look at you."
Yuan Yao obediently walked over: "Your Majesty the Empress."
The Empress took her small hand and asked softly, "You've traveled such a long way, are you tired? Did you encounter any danger on the Huai River?"
Yuan Yao obediently replied, "Your Majesty, I rested after returning to Qianhua Palace and I'm not tired now."
We encountered many dangers while traveling along the Huai River, but fortunately, we got through them all...
She casually mentioned some of the things that happened on the Huai River.
It talked about the people afflicted by the plague, about the floods, and also about some interesting stories about the Huai River...
The women at the table were completely engrossed in listening.
Wow, the outside world is so colorful!
Although the capital city is large, life is monotonous, with everyone living the same routine day after day. Compared to the outside world, it's incredibly boring...
After talking for a while, Yuan Yao inevitably became thirsty.
The Queen said considerately, "Please take a seat first. The food won't taste good if it gets cold."
Yuan Yao obediently replied, "Okay."
After she took her seat, she realized that today's banquet, in addition to various delicacies and desserts, was actually made with seasonal spring ingredients!
She glanced at the Empress with delight.
The Empress is so kind! She's finding all sorts of ways to send her money!
The Empress met her gaze, and a gentle smile appeared on her lips.
After the trip to Huai River, Yuan Yao is now able to eat normal meals and vegetables, except for foods that cause her allergies.
Before she knew it, she had eaten quite a lot.
At that moment, a rather loud exclamation came from near the entrance to the banquet hall.
Yuan Yao looked up in confusion.
A large, fluffy, white object rushed toward her.
Yuan Yao's eyes widened with delight: "Tangyuan!"
The next second, the big white ball rolled into her arms and knocked her down.
A warm, rough feeling came from my face.
Tangyuan is licking her face!
"Awooo..."
Tangyuan licked Yuanyao while excitedly twisting its body and pawing at her with its chubby paws, looking utterly aggrieved.
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