Amid the singing and dancing, someone whispered to Concubine Wu Lifei, "Does Concubine Wu Lifei have any newcomers this year that you're interested in?"
Concubine Wu Life looked up and saw that the person who spoke was Concubine Xian beside her.
The virtuous concubine did not look as virtuous and gentle as her title suggested, nor as straightforward and innocent as her fifth prince. Instead, she looked somewhat bold and capable.
Wu Lifei smiled when she heard this, leaned close to her ear, and whispered, "There aren't many men of marriageable age who haven't married yet. Among them, the top scholar is of a lower birth, but those with higher family backgrounds aren't ranked high either."
After saying this, she sighed slightly: "After all, this matter is not up to me. The princess has reached the age of marriage. I am looking for someone for Ruxuan, and the Queen Mother is also keeping an eye on her for the princess. This matter still depends on the Queen Mother's opinion."
Not far away, Princess Pingzhang and County Master Anle were sitting next to each other. They had probably just been arguing over some trivial matter, and at the moment, they both had stern faces and ignored each other.
The virtuous concubine smiled and said, "Sister, you are eyeing the number one scholar, but I think a young lady might be more interested in the third place scholar."
Concubine Wu Life looked at Princess Pingzhang with loving eyes, but also a bit of worry: "I just hope that no matter who her husband is, he can let her stay in Huajing, then I will feel at ease."
Perhaps it was because their two princes, one of whom was of foreign descent and the other was born slow to speak, had nothing to do with the position of crown prince, so the relationship between the two was unusually harmonious in the harem.
Seeing Concubine Wu Lifei's worry, Concubine Xian said, "It would be better to decide on the son-in-law soon. The envoys from the Northern Di are coming soon, claiming to be negotiating peace, but who knows what price Dayong will have to pay for this?"
At this point, seeing that the atmosphere had eased, Concubine Ge raised her glass, smiled slightly, and said to the emperor, "Your Majesty, today is a great day for the Qionglin Banquet. Although there are singing and dancing, it lacks some flavor. Your Majesty, it has been a long time since you heard Yuan Hui play the zither. Why not let her play a piece today?"
The emperor was still thinking about the incident of the palace flowers and was full of suspicion towards Ge Yuanhui. He suspected that Ge Yuanhui was colluding with the Song family, or in other words, he suspected what the Ge family wanted to do by creating this auspicious sign.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "If the imperial concubine wants to hear it, then please tell her."
Ge Yuanhui felt extremely guilty and did not dare to meet the emperor's gaze. She felt that the emperor was like the calm before the storm, which made her feel a little breathless.
But the matter of playing the piano was arranged by her aunt long ago, and she had practiced this piece for a month. Now that His Majesty had spoken, she could only calm herself down.
Concubine Ge said to Yunshuang, "Bring me the Phoenix's Tears."
The emperor said, "Your Highness's qin skills were the best in the past, and this piece of music, 'Yin Feng Ti', was given to you by me."
Concubine Ge smiled gently and said, "The sound of the zither Yinfengti is clear and crisp, like the shattering jade of Kunshan. I love it very much. Now I want to see if Yuan Hui can control this zither."
After the Phoenix Crying quilt was placed, Ge Yuanhui stood up and stepped forward, bowing politely: "Your humble servant Ge Yuanhui greets the Emperor and Empress, and the Empress Dowager. Yuanhui is humble and humble."
Ge Yuanhui still had a gentle and generous smile on her face, and every move she made was full of grace. The floral foil on her forehead was shining. She just stood there, without doing anything, yet she was already so stunning that it was beyond words.
This made everyone present, especially the Jinshi who met Ge Yuanhui for the first time, feel dazzled.
Others were whispering, "Is this Ge Yuanhui, the rumored most beautiful woman in Zhonghuajing?"
"I used to think such a reputation was an exaggeration, but today I see it's well-deserved."
"Not only that, she is of noble birth. She is the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Dingguo and the niece of the Imperial Concubine."
"With such bearing and appearance, even a god descending to earth would be no better than this!"
Amidst all the attention, Ge Yuanhui did not feel proud for the first time. At this moment, she felt as if a knife was hanging over her head, making her feel uneasy.
But the emperor suddenly clapped his hands and said, "Good!"
This sound frightened Ge Yuanhui, who was already feeling guilty, and made his heart tremble. However, the emperor did not show any abnormality. Instead, he seemed to be in high spirits. He said, "If you play well, I will reward you."
Then he added, "I have always been clear about rewards and punishments."
The words "rewards and punishments are clear" almost made Ge Yuanhui kneel down on the ground with his legs weak, but Concubine Ge thought that the emperor was very satisfied with Ge Yuanhui, and she felt happy in her heart.
"Yes..." Ge Yuanhui sat down hesitantly and raised his hand to play the piano.
The sound of the zither that attracts the phoenix is as clear as water. When plucking, the sound flows out from the fingertips like running water, which makes people intoxicated for a moment.
But those who were familiar with music quickly noticed something was wrong.
Xue Zhiyi sighed quietly: Ge Yuanhui's heart was in turmoil. The piano music, which was always stunning, was mixed with empty noises. There were even several places where the rhythm was disrupted.
Concubine Ge was originally still observing her son's reaction. Today's performance was not only to make the already famous Ge Yuanhui famous again in front of these newcomers in the court and let everyone remember Ge Yuanhui's name to make his future path to becoming the queen smoother, but also to let her son open his eyes and see clearly who is the most worthy of the position of Princess Gong.
But this time, Concubine Ge heard something wrong, and her delicate eyebrows couldn't help but frown: This is not the level that Yuan Hui should have.
She glanced at the emperor secretly, but the emperor, who was well versed in music, did not show any displeasure on his face. Instead, his face was still full of admiration. This abnormality made Concubine Ge feel uneasy.
However, who would be willing to save the Duke's Mansion's face at this time?
But An Zhaoyi and Ge Guifei were already at loggerheads, so how could they miss this opportunity?
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