Chapter 293 Hundred Days Banquet

After all this time, it was time for Shen Bin's little princess' hundred-day banquet.

After several months of care, the little princess has grown a lot, and her hair is much thicker than before. She looks very happy in her festive red and gold dress.

The last time Princess Zhaoning held a hundred-day banquet, it was not a big deal because her biological mother had passed away. But the little princess did not have this concern, so many royal relatives were invited to the hundred-day banquet this time.

Naturally, this also includes Prince Hong and Prince Rui.

Yunqin understood that holding a grand ceremony was actually meant to bring honor to Concubine Shen and the Shen family.

However, compared to the last New Year’s Eve palace banquet, there were many more empty seats for concubines this time.

Although Defei had been released from house arrest, Huo Jinchi kept her in the palace under the pretext of temporarily managing the six palaces.

So, Yun Qin sat at the table closest to the front, of course, not as high as Shen Danying. She was the mother of the little princess, so she naturally sat next to the emperor.

As for the Queen Mother, she naturally claimed to be ill and did not attend.

This certainly had no effect on the atmosphere of the banquet. In the center of the hall, dancers in gorgeous dance costumes fluttered their sleeves and moved their lotus steps lightly.

Everyone was toasting each other, chatting from time to time, with happy smiles on their faces.

Everyone seemed happy, at least on the surface. The queen even had a rare smile on her face, and she seemed to like the little princess very much.

During this period, he had someone bring Zhaoning out to meet his little sister.

As usual, Yunqin prepared a gold item for the little princess, a small gold lock. This time, she remembered not to favor one over the other, so she also prepared some small gadgets for Zhaoning and the eldest prince.

Zhao Ning was just going along for the occasion. Mainly, she was afraid that the eldest prince would be sad without his mother by his side in such a situation.

The eldest prince was naturally sad, but when he took the small purse handed to him by Yun Qin, he still smiled at her and said, "Thank you, Concubine Xi."

Yun Qin wanted to touch his head, but in front of so many people, she did not reach out her hand, "Your Highness is too polite."

The interaction between the two was seen by everyone.

Prince Hong suddenly smiled and said, "Empress Xi is very kind to the eldest prince."

Everyone had heard about Yun Qin's accident last time, and how could they not know about such a serious matter as Concubine De being confined to her house?

First, Concubine Xi got into trouble, and then Concubine De was put under house arrest. It is obvious that this matter is closely related to Concubine De.

But now Yun Qin acted in a friendly manner towards the eldest prince, which inevitably made people feel a little weird, and even suspected that she had ulterior motives.

Most likely it was done for the emperor to see.

Everyone present had this idea to some extent, but only Prince Hong dared to say it out loud.

Everyone knows that the Emperor respects Prince Hong the most.

Yun Qin didn't expect him to speak at this time, but she didn't panic. She smiled lightly and said, "It's just some small things. I prepared them specially because the eldest prince and Princess Zhaoning like them. I'm sorry to make you laugh, Prince Hong."

Her words were humble and reasonable, and she even explained herself a few words.

It's just to make the children happy, there's no need for them to think so much and be so serious about it.

Huo Jinchi naturally heard the conversation between the two. He looked at Yunqin and said, "Don't be too accustomed to the child."

It sounds like an accusation, but it is actually a defense.

He also expressed his attitude that he was not averse to Yun Qin being close to the eldest prince.

Yun Qin raised her eyes to glance at Huo Jinchi, then lowered them and said softly, "Your Highness, don't bother with that."

This scene made Prince Hong's previous words seem even more inappropriate.

Everyone couldn't help but secretly look at Prince Hong's expression.

Prince Hong kept smiling, "That's great." It was as if he had just sighed.

Maybe she didn't understand it before, but Yunqin has already reacted now.

He just wanted to remind the emperor so that he would be on guard against him.

I really don’t know how bad my reputation has become outside.

But Hawking thought more than she did.

Prince Hong suddenly spoke, which was two signals.

One was that the old aristocratic forces behind Concubine De were already dissatisfied with his cold treatment of Concubine De.

Second, as the biological mother of the eldest prince, Concubine De was now under house arrest and on the verge of losing favor, which began to make some people feel uneasy.

The royal heir is the head of the nation, and now Hawking Chi has only one son, the eldest prince.

This made the court officials have many thoughts...

This little episode did not affect the atmosphere of the banquet.

As the glasses were clinking, the banquet had already entered the second half.

Prince Rui, who had been silent, stood up to toast Huo Jinchi and casually asked about the Queen Mother's health.

Finally, he asked, "Can we go visit the Empress Dowager?"

"My mother is happy and quiet, so forget about the visit. I will bring my fourth brother's greetings."

Prince Rui asked just out of courtesy and said nothing more. He said a few words of blessing and sat down without attracting the attention of those present.

Only Yun Qin looked at him more, because he was the only one in the hall, and asked about the Queen Mother's condition.

It seemed as if the others didn't notice that the Queen Mother was not in the palace. It seemed that the discord between the Emperor and the Queen Mother was already known to everyone.

Prince Rui was extremely perceptive. Before Yun Qin looked away, he had already noticed her and looked towards her with a smile in his eyes.

Yun Qin was very drunk on New Year's Eve and did not remember calling him "Prince Rui" or even meeting him.

But Prince Rui still remembers it. He remembers the night when the wind blew the lantern and the candlelight flickered...

Including the time on New Year's Eve, this was the second time she was caught. Yun Qin was somewhat embarrassed. She smiled at him and then pretended to look away naturally.

I didn't take this matter to heart.

In order to please the guests, Yunqin also drank two glasses of wine. The alcohol made her face a little hot, and the air in the hall seemed to become stuffy.

Seeing someone quietly leaving the banquet and going out for some fresh air, Yun Qin couldn't help herself and left the hall holding Dan Xue's hand.

With the experience from last time, she did not walk far this time, but just stood in the corridor not far from the hall.

Blowing in the cool evening breeze, Yun Jing finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Her back was a little stiff from acting so pretentiously at the banquet.

Sitting down with the help of the railing, Yun Qin fanned herself gently with a round fan. She glanced over and found that the view from where she was sitting was very good.

From here you can see everyone entering or leaving the hall.

Seeing Prince Hong and Princess Hong walking into the hall together, Dan Xue couldn't help but sigh:

"It is said that Prince Hong and Princess Hong have a very close relationship. Today I see that it is indeed true."

Yun Qin looked over and saw Prince Hong carefully holding his wife's hand, and holding a lantern in his other hand to illuminate the steps beneath her feet.

The eunuchs and palace maids standing by could only watch, as it was indeed not something a prince would do.

"The Emperor is also very good to the Empress." Dan Xue smiled again.

Yun Qin knew that she was talking about what Huo Jinchi had said for her in the hall just now.

Although she could solve the problem herself without him, it did save her a lot of trouble.

Dan Xue saw the smile on her master's face and smiled softly, saying casually: "I wonder what it would be like if Prince Rui married a princess."

This surprised Yun Qin, "Prince Rui hasn't gotten married yet?"

You have to know that Prince Rui is several years older than the emperor. In this era, it is not just a matter of late marriage and late childbearing, it is simply a fantasy.

It is estimated that his fame outside is no less than that of General Han Yue, who cooked and ate quivers.

Seeing her so surprised, Danxue knew she had misunderstood and quickly said, "Although Prince Rui has not yet married a principal wife, he already has a concubine and two maids in the mansion."

Yun Qin nodded suddenly.

This is normal...