Hidden matchmaking banquet
This isn't my territory, so I need to keep a low profile.
Fu Zhiqiao reminded herself in her heart, and then naturally smiled and replied, "His Majesty does value alcohol. Since alcohol is no longer my private property, there are some things I cannot reveal too much. However, I can tell you about the uses of alcohol. I'm sure you all know that alcohol can reduce high fever. In addition, alcohol has other wonderful uses. For example, if you are accidentally scratched, you can apply alcohol around the affected area to prevent the wound from becoming infected."
"Really?" Everyone listened intently. They only knew that alcohol could reduce high fever, which was why it had caught His Majesty's eye. They never imagined that alcohol had other uses.
"That's true. You can also wipe your hands with alcohol after touching filth to clean them and prevent diseases from entering through the mouth."
"Alcohol has many uses, but it is flammable and cannot be disposed of carelessly. That's why His Majesty keeps it in the medical clinic for the physicians to store and use," Fu Zhiqiao patiently explained the uses of alcohol and how to use it.
Everyone listened intently.
After hearing her explain the precautions for using alcohol, the ladies were still eager to ask more questions.
Fu Zhi Qiao quickly stopped her: "That's all I can tell you about alcohol."
Everyone immediately understood.
Alcohol is something His Majesty values highly; how can the secrets within it be fully revealed to others?
Fu Zhi Qiao is now the Crown Prince's wife and has been favored and personally rewarded by His Majesty. When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, she will naturally become the Princess Consort.
Some shrewd people are already thinking about how to build a good relationship with Fu Zhi Qiao.
Seeing Fu Zhiqiao surrounded by ladies and young misses, Wang Yiqiu teased Zuo Murui: "Murui is so lucky to have married such a capable wife. We are all so envious."
After all, she was his daughter-in-law, and Fu Zhiqiao's praise made him feel proud.
"Stop criticizing me. What's wrong with your good fortune? You already have grandchildren, what are you envious of me for?"
Zuo Murui's words struck a chord with Wang Yiqiu. With her husband's stable career, her son's bright future, and her adorable granddaughters, her life was becoming more and more comfortable.
The two exchanged a smile, everything understood without a word.
At this moment, a maid came to report that a stage was being set up in the garden, and asked all the ladies to move over. If there was any music they wanted to hear, they could request it first so that the opera troupe could prepare in advance.
Upon hearing that they could request a performance, the people who were originally in the house went to the garden in twos and threes.
The room was almost empty in an instant, making it feel much more spacious.
The Duke's mansion was hosting a banquet with a large number of guests, including many maids and servants from the ladies, young ladies, masters, and sons. If every guest's maid and servant could enter the main hall, then two more main halls wouldn't be enough to accommodate them all.
As soon as Yinxing entered the inner courtyard of the Rongguo Duke's Mansion, she was pulled away by the maids to have tea. Zuo Murui was afraid that Fu Zhiqiao would not recognize people, so she asked Zhang Mama to accompany her to help her recognize faces. At this moment, only Zhang Mama was serving Fu Zhiqiao.
Looking around, Fu Zhi Qiao spotted a few familiar faces: Dong Yuting, the wife of the second young master of the Duke's mansion, and Madam Wei from the Ministry of Works' mansion; both were members of her Fu Yun Pavilion.
In this situation, she couldn't very well stand up and greet people, so she could only sit in her seat and quietly drink her tea.
When she looked up again, she saw a pretty woman with slightly round cheeks smiling at her.
Fu Zhi Qiao turned slightly to the side, and Granny Zhang approached her and whispered, "This is the eldest son's wife, Madam Wu, whose name is Cui Shan."
The eldest son of the Duke's mansion is Sun Lixuan. Fu Zhiqiao knew that Xie Zhuo was on good terms with Sun Lixuan, so she took the opportunity to sit next to Wu Cuishan.
Wu Cuishan knew the relationship between her husband and the young master, so she spoke without restraint, "The whole room became much brighter as soon as the young master's wife walked in!"
Women in the Great Wei were very reserved, and Wu Cuishan's direct attitude left Fu Zhiqiao at a loss for words. She smiled shyly.
Wu Cuishan was very enthusiastic and asked her where her ancestral home was. After learning that she was from Qingzhou, she asked her if she was used to the climate and environment of the capital. Fu Zhiqiao answered her questions with a smile.
The two had only exchanged two sentences when a childish voice came from the doorway: "Mother!"
The girl, about four or five years old, had her hair tied in two buns. Behind her followed a nervous-looking nanny, who was holding a little boy in her arms. The nanny quickly explained, "The eldest young lady and the young master are both clamoring for the young mistress, so I had no choice but to bring them here."
As soon as she finished speaking, the child in her arms reached out towards Wu Cuishan, struggling to leave the nanny's embrace.
The little boy became well-behaved as soon as he was in Wu Cuishan's arms. He looked to be one or two years old, and his mouth opened and closed, making "ya ya" sounds, clearly indicating that he couldn't speak yet.
The little girl was already well-mannered. She first went to pay her respects to the Duchess of the Duke's Mansion before returning to Wu Cuishan's side, where she rested her head on Wu Cuishan's knees and looked at Fu Zhiqiao with her head tilted to the side.
"These must be the eldest daughter and the young master!" Fu Zhi Qiao said, taking out two pendants and handing them to the siblings.
The pendants were made of red string in the shape of a ruyi knot, with animal shapes made of gold hanging from the bottom of the knot. The rabbit shape was given to the girl, and the goldfish shape was given to the boy.
"You're too kind, Princess Consort!" As soon as the child appeared, Fu Zhi Qiao immediately took out a gift, which must have been prepared in advance. Wu Cui Shan felt very comfortable with Fu Zhi Qiao's respectful treatment of her.
"Just call me Zhi Qiao." Wu Cuishan had a straightforward personality, and Fu Zhi Qiao had a good impression of her.
“Okay, Zhi Qiao, you can call me Cui Shan from now on.”
The girl looked at Wu Cuishan with a puzzled expression, unsure whether she should accept the pendant.
"Rong'er, why don't you quickly thank the Crown Princess?"
Rong'er was extremely well-behaved. She accepted the gold rabbit pendant, turned to Fu Zhi Qiao, and bowed, "Thank you, Your Highness!"
Wu Cuishan replied with a smile, "The girl is called Rong Jie'er, and the boy is called Shun Ge'er."
Hearing her mother call her name, Rongjie nodded in a similar manner, "Yes, I am Rongjie!"
Rongjie was young and loved to imitate her mother, acting like an adult. Fu Zhiqiao found it amusing and decided to tease her. In no time, she made Rongjie blush.
Zuo Murui glanced at Fu Zhiqiao and happened to see her playing with the two children.
The two children giggled as she amused them. Judging from Fu Zhi Qiao's appearance, she seemed to be someone who liked children and had a way with them. Perhaps their wish to hold their grandchildren would soon come true.
With Xie Zhuo as the father and Fu Zhi Qiao as the mother, the child's appearance is bound to be outstanding. Just thinking about being surrounded by her grandchildren in the future, Zuo Murui's smile deepened, and she looked forward to it even more.
She doesn't care whether it's a grandson or a granddaughter, she just wants one to come quickly!
*
It's almost lunchtime.
A maidservant approached Wang Yiqiu and reported that the stage in the garden had been set up and the kitchen was ready, so dishes could be served at any time.
The younger generation in the Rongguo Duke's Mansion invited the largest opera troupe in the capital to perform a play called "Longevity of Pine and Crane" to celebrate the old lady's birthday.
Wang Yiqiu got up and invited everyone to go to the garden, saying that they could have a meal and listen to the opera at the same time. While organizing everyone to walk to the garden, she sent someone to invite the old lady.
The Duke's mansion's garden, though not as large as the Prince's mansion, was still extremely spacious, easily accommodating more than a dozen tables. A canopy of shaded curtains was also erected in the garden to block out the sunlight, allowing guests to dine in peace.
Men and women sat at separate tables but not in separate areas, and guests of all ages and genders gathered in the garden to dine.
The male and female guests' tables were separated only by a screen, which blocked their view but did not affect their conversation at all.
Fu Zhiqiao glanced around the crowd a few more times and noticed that most of the ladies attending the banquet today had brought their children. It was understandable that the ladies and young ladies dressed up for the banquet, but what was rare was seeing all the young gentlemen dressed up as well.
The ladies of each family brought their daughters of marriageable age to make an appearance, ostensibly to celebrate the old lady's birthday, but in reality, to find suitable husbands for their own children.
Wu Cuishan glanced around, leaned close to Fu Zhiqiao's ear, and whispered, "Did you see that young lady in the peony pink dress? She's General Luo Zhenhai's niece. She'll be of marriageable age in two years, and the General's wife specially brought her out for a matchmaking. After all, she's an unmarried girl, and she has to be mindful of her reputation when she goes out. She basically doesn't see any men outside the family, so whenever there's a banquet, the young masters and ladies of each family are brought out by their elders."
Oh, so it's a disguised matchmaking event.
Guests invited by the Duke's mansion were all wealthy and powerful. Among them were many sons and daughters of high-ranking officials. When high-ranking officials were related by marriage, it was undoubtedly a powerful alliance.
The ministers in the court were divided into factions. In addition to being loyal to His Majesty the Emperor, they also had to carefully choose sides for the sake of their own careers, and then select suitable candidates from their respective factions to add another boost to their families.
At this time, the banquet had not yet started, and the ladies of each family were gathered together chatting enthusiastically.
Wu Cuishan was also the mistress of the Rongguo Mansion, and she needed to entertain other guests, so she couldn't be with Fu Zhiqiao all the time.
Fu Zhiqiao expressed her understanding.
No sooner had Wu Cuishan parted from Fu Zhi Qiao than several ladies came over to inquire about who Fu Zhi Qiao was. When they heard that Fu Zhi Qiao was already married and was the newlywed princess of the Prince's mansion, they all showed expressions of regret.
Wu Cuishan was both amused and exasperated by this.
On the other side, Fu Zhiqiao found a slightly secluded pavilion to get some fresh air, and Granny Zhang stood beside her, fanning her.
Seeing that Fu Zhi Qiao was not making friends with the ladies and young misses of various families, Granny Zhang disagreed a bit, saying, "The Princess Consort should take this opportunity to get to know more people."
Knowing that Granny Zhang meant well, Fu Zhi Qiao simply said that she was a little tired and wanted to rest for a while.
Seeing this, Granny Zhang didn't say anything more. She stood on tiptoe to look at the situation in the garden and said, "The old lady hasn't come out yet. I estimate the banquet won't start for another quarter of an hour. I'll go get some snacks for you to have a snack."
Fu Zhiqiao nodded.
After Granny Zhang left, Fu Zhi Qiao was left alone in the pavilion.
Just as Fu Zhiqiao thought she could have some peace and quiet by herself, a series of footsteps approached from afar.
"Princess Consort!" The person greeted Fu Zhi Qiao warmly upon seeing her.
Fu Zhiqiao recognized her as Song Fangfei, whom he had met at Zhou Miaosi's residence.
After their last parting at the Qin residence, Song Fangfei specifically asked her husband about the Lady of Ming'an County. After learning about Fu Zhiqiao's experiences of using grain to provide disaster relief and using alcohol to prevent and treat the plague, Song Fangfei greatly admired her and had always wanted to get to know her, but unfortunately, she had not had a suitable opportunity.
Song Fangfei's maternal family and her husband's Liu family had no connection with the Prince's Mansion, so she couldn't just send an invitation to their door. Unexpectedly, she met Fu Zhiqiao at the Rongguo Duke's Mansion today. Song Fangfei's eyes lit up and she quickly walked to her side.
"Greetings, Madam Liu." Facing the enthusiastic Song Fangfei, Fu Zhi Qiao felt a little awkward. She glanced at the lady who had come with Song Fangfei and asked, "And this lady is?"
"Look at me, I forgot to introduce her." Song Fangfei feigned annoyance. "This is the mother of Hanlin Compiler Zhao, the third-ranked scholar Zhao Junhui. Have you ever heard of Lord Zhao's wife?"
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