Why do these two brothers love to send beauties?
Chapter 63: Why do these two brothers love to give beauties?
The Third Prince sat down and raised his glass: "This prince offers a toast to His Majesty. Thank you for taking the time to come to the banquet."
"You are too polite, Third Prince." Chu Huaibei raised his wine glass, clinked it with his, and drank it all in one gulp.
The third prince put down his empty wine glass and poured wine for Chu Huaibei himself.
This was beyond Chu Huaibei's expectations, but it was okay for the prince to pour the wine himself. Only their father could afford it, but she couldn't.
"Third Prince, please forgive me for embarrassing you. Please let me pour the wine."
Chu Huaibei stretched out his hand to stop the wine jug from falling, and gently stopped it and placed it on the table.
"Okay then. This prince won't be polite."
The third prince glanced at the beauty standing beside him, and the beauty gently filled the wine glass, quietly stepped back two steps and waited aside.
"Your Highness has guarded the borders of Daxia and has made great contributions. This prince would like to offer you another toast."
"This is my duty. You are too polite, Third Prince."
After finishing his drink, the Third Prince waved his hand to the singing girls in front to begin their music. For a moment, the banquet hall erupted in a perfect fusion of wind and string music. The music wasn't the melody of opulence, but rather a sense of resilience and fortitude. It was truly pleasing to the ears; the Third Prince wasn't sure if he liked it himself or if he had guessed her preferences.
Seeing that the Third Prince didn't say anything and went straight to the point, Chu Huaibei buried her head and started eating. It happened that she hadn't eaten enough at the Second Prince's place before.
The Third Prince, like the Second Prince, was waiting for Chu Huaibei to ask, so he could steer the conversation to what he wanted to say. After waiting for a long time, he noticed the food on the table dwindling rapidly, and his fingers gripping the wine glass stiffened for a moment.
What's going on? Didn't Second Brother let anyone eat properly? Why is the King of Zhenbei still eating so much here? It's already past noon!
As a prince of noble status, or any important figure in Daxia, when inviting people of lower status than himself to a banquet, there is a rule that everyone tacitly abides by, that is, the person attending the banquet will take the initiative to talk to the host so that what the host wants to say can be said in a natural way. Since they have agreed to attend the banquet, they are mentally prepared to do things for others.
But Chu Huaibei was different. In the North, she was the most powerful person, so it was only when others took the initiative to talk to her that she had to worry about it. Furthermore, after becoming Chu Huaibei, she still had the concept of equality from her previous life in her bones. She never felt inferior to others, so of course she didn't care about these empty things.
If you have something to say, just say it directly. Don't be hypocritical and don't be too nervous.
The princes were used to being dignified, and when they met Chu Huaibei, who was so unrefined, they couldn't change their mindset immediately and almost got themselves hurt.
Chu Huaibei ate half of the food on the table and finally felt about 70% full. The dishes were exquisite and delicious, but the portions were a bit too small. Maybe the Third Prince didn't eat either. Leaving half for him should be enough.
"Third Prince, this pleasure boat has beautiful scenery, pleasant music, and delicious dishes. Thank you for your hospitality. This is my first time here."
Chu Huaibei put down his chopsticks and began to prepare to say goodbye. This third prince was just like the second prince, he had something to say but didn't say it, so she would just slip away.
"As long as Your Highness is satisfied, I am afraid that I am not entertaining you well enough."
The Third Prince came to his senses and felt like he had kicked cotton. Seeing Chu Huaibei finally set his sights on the singers, he asked, "Your Highness, what do you think of the performances of these singers?"
"Hmm? Not bad, it sounds nice."
"Then I, the prince, will give these singing girls to Your Highness. I hope Your Highness will not despise me."
"Hmm? No need. I am just an ordinary person. Giving these people to me would be a waste of talent. Third Prince, you should keep them for yourself."
What's going on with these two brothers? Why do they both love giving women away? The second prince directly pointed out that they were just bed warmers and gave one, but the third prince went even further and wanted to give away a whole bunch! Does their emperor know that his sons are acting so outrageously?
"Why is it that Your Highness is unwilling to accept even this small token of appreciation?" The third prince's upturned mouth corners flattened a little.
"Third Prince, I must return to the Northern Territory tomorrow morning. I will be riding as fast as I can back to the military camp, and I won't stop for a moment. These women, let alone whether they can ride horses, would probably be dead even if they were to ride in a bumpy carriage all the way back to the Northern Territory. They are all darlings. I beg you, Third Prince, to spare their lives."
Chu Huaibei was really convinced. Perhaps in the eyes of the powerful, the lives of servants were not important.
When the Third Prince offered to send someone off, the singing girls had already stopped playing their instruments and looked up at the King of Zhenbei. Just looking at the King of Zhenbei and the fact that there was no mistress in his mansion, it was the best place for people like them.
But after hearing King Zhenbei say that they would not stop all the way to the northern border and the journey was long, and that the situation King Zhenbei described would really happen, several weaker singing girls turned pale.
"I appreciate the Third Prince's kindness, but I must leave for the Northern Territory early tomorrow morning and have some things to pack. I apologize for not being able to continue your company. I will take my leave now."
Chu Huaibei didn't want to waste time with him anymore, so he just said goodbye and retreated. It was hard to tell what these princes were thinking, trying to get close to her, a powerful general in the northern border. Did they think their own life was too long, or hers was too long? It was really unlucky.
"Your Highness, the ship hasn't docked yet. We need to wait a while. Why don't we sit down and talk for a while?" The corners of the third prince's mouth were completely flat.
"I won't delay the Third Prince's interest in boating. I have my own way to get ashore. Goodbye." Chu Huaibei bowed and walked to the first floor with Lu Shun and Eleven.
Back on the deck, Chu Huaibei noticed a small boat trailing behind him, with ropes piled on it. It must have been an emergency response unit arranged by the boat crew in case someone fell overboard. Gauging the distance, he realized he could definitely use that boat to get back to shore.
"Eleven, you and I will each grab one of Lu Shun's arms, and we'll jump onto the small boat behind us, and then let it dock."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Thank you for troubling the prince and the eleventh brother." Lu Shun was a little embarrassed. He had practiced Kung Fu in the military camp. He could kill the enemy, but he didn't have the ability to practice Qinggong, which required training from childhood...
"It's okay, Eleven, let's go."
Chu Huaibei saw the right moment, grabbed the person and jumped down.
The people on the boat were surprised by the guest's sudden leap, and the boat began to shake violently with the sudden weight of three people. The boatman frantically tried to steady the boat.
"Please ask the boatman to come to the shore." Chu Huaibei took out a piece of silver from his arms and put it into the boatman's hand.
"Yes, I'll go to the shore right away." The boatman took the silver and put it in his arms, then began to row the boat towards the shore.
As soon as they reached the shore, the three of them immediately disembarked and headed back quickly. They returned to the pleasure boat, got their horses, and rode back to Feng's house.
Eleven didn't know if the Second Prince had sent anything, but the Prince had nothing on him when he left, so he presumably had confiscated it. He should report back to the Master about the Third Prince sending the singing girl. The Master had plenty of ways to punish him for being so fond of giving women away.
After Chu Huaibei returned to Feng Mansion, she went to the main hall first. Sure enough, her grandfather and others were waiting for her to come back.
"Grandfather, uncle, second uncle, Huaibei is back. Don't worry, nothing is wrong."
"Well, that's good. Sit down and rest for a while." Feng Jijiu said.
"Okay, okay. Uncle, do you know that the second and third princes sent women to the homes of court officials?" Chu Huaibei thought for a moment and turned to ask.
"That's true. Most of them are singers and dancers given as rewards during banquets. What's wrong with that?" Uncle Feng knew that wealthy families had the habit of giving concubines to each other. It had been going on for hundreds of years, and everyone was used to it and was not surprised.
"Oh, I just want to ask, among these concubines who are sent back and forth, whose child will it be owned by if one of them becomes pregnant?" Chu Huaibei began to speak shockingly.
"Ahem, this kind of thing won't happen. Most of the concubines have drunk the sterilizing soup." Uncle Feng saw that his nephew really didn't understand the ins and outs. It seemed that no one in the northern border dared to ask to send anyone into the palace.
Oh, the vast majority, that means there's still a small chance. Tsk, these court officials are so unrefined. I wonder if there's any bloodline confusion happening in those court officials' backyards. I can ask Hu Zhi's people to help investigate. If there is, hey, give them a surprise gift package.
"So that's how it is. Huaibei knows. Do your two uncles have such concubines in their backyards?" Chu Huaibei didn't consider himself an outsider and asked directly. If there were, the Feng family would also investigate.
"Ridiculous! This kind of thing wouldn't happen in the Feng family." Feng Jijiu directly put an end to Chu Huaibei's speculation. The two uncles rarely showed awkward expressions on their faces.
"With all these concubines being sent back and forth, there's no guarantee there might be undercover agents among them. It would be best if there weren't any in the mansion."
"A man from the Feng family will only take a concubine when he is over 40 and has no children. Look at our family, which is full of men, so naturally we don't have concubines." The eldest uncle had a strong sense of survival. He had already considered the consequences of Huaibei's remarks about concubines being known by his wife, Luo, and was busy clearing himself of suspicion.
Chu Huaibei had never known about this Feng family custom, and his mother had never mentioned it. It was a rare occurrence in ancient times, giving one a significant advantage in marriage. No wonder his three cousins were able to marry daughters of officials several ranks higher than their own, and with such good dispositions, they weren't the type to be overly picky.
"I see. Very good, very good. Grandfather taught me well. This is the first time Huaibei has heard about the situation at home. I hope that my eldest and second uncles will not take it to heart."
"It's nothing, don't worry about it." The two uncles replied at the same time.
"Good morning, old master. Upon hearing that the prince has returned home, the madam has begun preparing dinner. It is almost the end of the afternoon. The madam invites everyone to the dining hall for dinner."
It was the mother from my grandmother's yard who came over and called everyone to move to the dining hall for dinner.
"I got it. I'll be right there. Go down first." Feng Jijiu stood up and gestured for them to go to the dining hall together.
Chu Huaibei originally wanted to help his grandfather, but he saw that his three cousins did not move at all. It seemed that this was not a habit in his family. It also indirectly showed that his grandfather was in good health. He went home and talked about it with his mother to reassure her.
Everyone moved to the dining hall, but unexpectedly the eldest cousin was still there. They thought she would go back to her husband's house in the afternoon. It seemed that this eldest cousin was very favored in both her husband's family and her parents' family.
After greeting each other and taking their seats, Chu Huaibei noticed that the dishes tonight were even more sumptuous. Her grandmother truly loved her. This reminded her of her grandmother in her previous life, who would share any delicious food equally between her and her brother, never showing any partiality.
After dinner, Chu Huaibei stayed by his grandmother's side, dressed in colorful clothes to entertain her, making the old lady laugh non-stop. His four nephews watched in fascination, eager to take out pen and paper to copy down every word their uncle said, striving to learn the essence so that they could also make their ancestor happy.
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