On the day of the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet.
The sky was overcast early in the morning.
The Moon Palace was dimly lit.
Yuan Yao was half asleep when she felt the candlelight flickering and shadows moving.
The bed curtains were rolled up by the visitor.
Danqing had the palace maids bring in two clothes racks of skirts and placed them not far from the bed.
She asked gently, "Princess, you should dress more formally for today's birthday banquet."
Look at these little dresses, which one do you like best?
Yuan Yao barely opened her eyes and looked at the dresses on the shelf.
She didn't care much about food and clothing because she was always waited on hand and foot.
After looking around the shelves, she pointed to a delicately tailored, smoky blue dress embroidered with birds and fish: "Wear this!"
The colors are understated, the tulle skirt is flowy, it's comfortable to wear, and it's not flashy.
Danqing helped her wash up, and then picked out a pair of small embroidered shoes for her, embroidered with new lotus flowers.
Just as Yuan Yao was about to put on her shoes, she noticed a pair of shoes embroidered with small tigers in silver thread, which caught her eye.
She asked with a smile, "Why did you embroider glutinous rice balls on your shoes?"
Danqing smiled and said, "Does the princess like it? At this time, I drew the pattern and had the embroiderer embroider it stitch by stitch."
Just then, Tangyuan, who had drunk the milk, excitedly ran into the Moonlight Palace: "Aww..."
It sat excitedly at Yuan Yao's feet, its face full of anticipation.
"What? Want a hug?" Yuan Yao bent down and reached out to touch Tangyuan.
The glutinous rice balls have grown much bigger than when they first arrived.
The Ninth Prince assigned a secret guard to train it daily.
Moreover, it drinks three basins of milk every day and eats two pounds of meat in one meal.
A true little foodie!
Yuan Yao wanted to hug it, but she couldn't even lift it anymore...
Patting Tangyuan's head, Yuan Yao said, "Today, you should stay in Qianhua Palace and play. Another day, I'll take you out for some fresh air, okay?"
"Aww..." Tangyuan tilted her little head.
He looked puzzled.
Yuan Yao found it funny.
Tangyuan is clearly a little tiger, but sometimes she makes some funny gestures and expressions.
So cute!
Danqing glanced at the time and said gently, "Princess, it's time to have your meal. After that, we need to go to Renshou Palace."
"Um!"
After Yuan Yao finished her breakfast, she sent Tangyuan back to the courtyard, rewarded it with a piece of dried meat, and had the courtyard gate locked before leaving Qianhua Palace.
On the way to Renshou Palace, Danqing was a little worried: "It looks like it's going to rain again today."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao looked up at the sky.
Dark clouds rolled in, and every now and then a bolt of lightning would strike.
The thought of rain made her ask, "Is there still no news from Father?"
Danqing shook his head.
Yuan Yao's mood suddenly became heavy.
The Ninth Prince has been gone for a full ten days.
Did he encounter any danger during these ten days?
Also, when will he be back?
"well……"
Yuan Yao looked up at the sky and sighed softly.
Meixiang Courtyard.
As soon as Yuan Yao stepped into the courtyard, a palace maid hurriedly called out, "Greetings, Princess!"
Looking at the bruises under the palace maid's eyes, Yuan Yao felt a pang of heartache.
She asked, "Where is Yu'er?"
The palace maid replied, "Your Highness, Sister Yu'er has just finished resting and is now having breakfast."
Last night, they worked through the night in the kitchen.
In the early hours of the morning, when it was time to change shifts, Yu'er finally managed to get some sleep.
The Empress was exceptionally considerate and had already arranged two rooms in the courtyard for Si Shi Chun to rest in.
Although the rooms are all large shared rooms, they are sufficient for a temporary rest.
Soon, Yu'er came over with her apprentice and the shop assistant.
The group chatted and laughed, and seemed to be in good spirits.
Upon seeing Yuan Yao, Yu'er showed a hint of worry: "Why did the princess arrive so early?"
You're not fully recovered yet, and it's likely to rain today. Renshou Palace is not like Qianhua Palace; be careful not to catch a chill again..."
As she was speaking, a gust of wind swept by.
The morning breeze, carrying moisture, was exceptionally cool.
Yuan Yao pulled her sleeves up, revealing her small, fair hands in the wind, and said in a childish voice, "I wanted to come and be with you as soon as possible!"
She always felt uneasy if she wasn't there to watch over things.
Everyone's hearts melted at the sight of the soft and sweet little princess.
Everyone said in unison, "Don't worry, Princess, we will definitely work hard!"
Yuan Yao smiled, her eyes crinkling.
However, she knew that if she really wanted to encourage everyone, verbal praise alone wouldn't be enough.
Yuan Yao cleared her throat, her childlike voice unusually high-pitched: "Everyone must be on your toes for the next three days."
"Once the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet is over, everyone should come to me to collect their reward of fifty taels of silver!"
Fifty taels?
silver?
Immediately, the group of people were so shocked that they couldn't speak.
After rubbing his hands together for a while, one of the shop assistants finally mustered up the courage to ask, "Princess, is it fifty taels per person?"
“Yes!” Yuan Yao said in a childish voice.
Each person can earn fifty taels of silver after working for three days?
"hiss……"
Someone is inhaling the cold air.
Fifty taels of silver!
You should know that in the spring, they only earn five taels of silver a month...
Moreover, this is already a very high wage in the market!
Currently, no restaurant in the entire capital city can pay its waiters such high wages!
Fifty taels of silver as a reward is almost as much as their wages for a year!
A young palace maid, her eyes reddening with emotion, exclaimed, "My father is sick, and we're worried about not having enough money. This is wonderful! Fifty taels of silver is enough for my father's medicine for half a year!"
Is a family member sick?
Yuan Yao immediately said, "Whether you are a palace servant of Qianhua Palace or a worker of Sishichun, if anyone in your family is sick, you can come and tell me, and I can find you a good doctor."
If any medicinal herbs are missing, please let me know.
The palace maid wiped away her tears: "Thank you, Princess! You are such a kind person!"
Yu'er laughed and said, "Alright, you've cried so much, go wash up quickly, it's time to get to work."
The young palace maid blushed, wiped away her tears, and ran off to fetch water to wash her face...
Yu'er clapped her hands: "Let's get moving, according to the division of labor from last night."
Yuan Yao stood to the side watching, quite pleased.
After a month or two, Yu'er is now capable of handling things on her own.
With a little guidance, Yu'er would know how to do many things.
Desserts made in spring all year round are inseparable from milk.
Last night, a batch of milk was transported from the private residence to the palace.
This morning, another batch of freshly squeezed milk was delivered...
The milk from last night has been used to make yogurt.
This morning's milk needs to be used for whipping cream, etc...
The workload is enormous.
Yuan Yao stayed in Meixiang Courtyard for about half an hour when a member of the Imperial Guard came in to report: "Princess, someone from Huining Palace has come and says that they want the younger members of the palace to come and pay their respects and pray for blessings."
Huining Palace?
Yuan Yao frowned: "Who is it?"
The imperial guard said, "It was a young eunuch who called himself Afu. He said that all the juniors in the palace had to go."
Yuan Yao: "..."
That Empress Dowager really knows how to make things difficult for people!
After giving Yu'er a few instructions, Yuan Yao stepped out of Meixiang Courtyard.
Outside the courtyard gate, Afu stood boneless, sized up Yuan Yao, and then lazily asked, "Little Princess, are you feeling better?"
Yuan Yao took two steps forward, looked up, and stared directly into Afu's eyes: "Guess if I'm better or not?"
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