Many people had already arrived at the banquet, but they were all members of the royal family. It seemed that this welcoming banquet was probably a family dinner.
At first glance, the Crown Princess and her husband sat on the throne, with a three-year-old boy beside them. The Crown Princess was gently teasing the child, while she was talking to the Fourth Princess, Wei Qingye.
The Third Princess was a step ahead of Wei Wangqing and was already sitting with the Third Prince, who was a child of the Jiang family, the family of the Third Princess's father.
Wei Wangqing hasn't been idle these past two days. At the very least, he needs to understand some important figures and the current situation in the capital, lest he get caught up in other people's struggles without knowing anything.
The second princess died shortly after birth, before she could even be named. This Lord Lu was also a pitiful person. His family was not prominent, and he was only a fifth-rank official. In this capital city where powerful and wealthy people were everywhere, he was really not a big shot. He was also at the bottom of the general election.
Fortunately, she was quite beautiful, so not long after entering the palace, she received the emperor's favor and became pregnant with his child. Unfortunately...
But later, through a combination of luck and skill, he encountered the Empress in the palace, which reminded His Majesty of their past love and made him feel pity for her, which led to the birth of the Seventh Prince, Wei Xiaoqing.
Therefore, seeing the Seventh Prince sitting alone, he looked rather pitiful, despite being only eleven years old.
The Fifth Prince, looking arrogant, was talking to the Eighth Princess. As if sensing Wei Wangqing's gaze, he turned and gave her a defiant look. Then he went back to whispering to the Eighth Princess.
Hmm, they must be saying bad things about me.
Wei Wangqing followed the eunuch to his seat without looking to the side.
At this moment, a palace servant called out, "Prince An has arrived, Princess An has arrived, and the Lady of the County has arrived."
The middle-aged woman approaching was still stunning, exuding both heroic spirit and gentle grace. A contradiction existed, especially since she was the only non-royal prince in the current dynasty.
The Empress's ascension to the throne was a bloody affair. Many of the princesses were injured or killed, and the few who remained intact were not capable of wielding any power and were sent to their fiefdoms by the Empress.
This person, who is not of royal lineage, was able to be granted the title of king despite his different surname, and remain in the capital with such power; this speaks volumes.
The young lady behind her resembled her mother quite a bit, both in temperament and appearance.
Huh? This lady? Her appearance is so much like a modern, well, tough guy?
Bronze skin, a strong physique, a high-bridged nose, and deep-set brow bones—this appearance is probably…
Sure enough, did you see the Fifth Prince's disdainful look? In a matriarchal world, such appearance would be considered an anomaly.
Interestingly, the Seventh Prince seems quite fond of this Lady of the County; look at how much he smiles. Sure enough…
"Brother Xiangrong, Brother Xiangrong, you're here! Come and sit down!" Wei Xiaoqing hurriedly beckoned Nan Xiangrong to sit down.
Wei Wangqing took a sip of tea. Xiangrong, Nan Xiangrong, it's a very nice name.
The Crown Princess rose and exchanged a few pleasantries with Prince An before walking toward Wei Wangqing.
Wei Wangqing rose and bowed: "Prince An."
"This must be the sixth princess. She has a certain Buddhist serenity about her."
"Perhaps it's because I've copied so many Buddhist scriptures over the years that I've also acquired some of the scent of incense."
"Hmm, not bad." Prince An glanced at Wei Wangqing a few times and then fell silent. It's unclear what Prince An meant by "not bad."
Just then, the Eighth Princess was seen walking in this direction, holding a pastry in one hand and a teacup in the other.
He stumbled.
Oops, I fell.
Of course, if Wei Wangqing hadn't dodged, he probably would have fallen on top of Wei Wangqing. Now, he's covered in tea and crushed pastries, looking quite disheveled.
"Waaaaah, you bad woman, bad woman! I don't want you to be my sister! You only bully me! Waaaaah!" Tch, the Fifth Prince can only use a child.
"Get up first," Wei Wangqing said coldly.
"No, I won't get up. Fifth Brother is right. You're a bad woman who only hurts the people around you. Waaah!"
Seeing this, the Third Princess quickly came over. "Little Eight, what kind of behavior is this? Have you forgotten all the etiquette you learned? Get up and go change your clothes right now."
After saying that, she glanced at the Fifth Prince cryptically. This Fifth Prince was really going too far; he even dared to use my sister.
The Eighth Princess could only stand up with a pitiful look on her face: "Third Sister, you bullied me too, boohoo." After saying that, she covered her eyes and ran away.
The Fifth Prince stepped forward, feigning concern: "Sixth Sister, Little Eight is still our youngest sister. It's one thing for you to make him fall, but why won't you even help him up?"
"I caused him to fall?" Wei Wangqing looked up at Wei Wuyan.
"Yes, if Sixth Princess hadn't dodged, how could Eighth Princess have fallen?"
"Ha!" Wei Wangqing sneered, "If I hadn't dodged, that cup of tea would have been spilled on me. Or is this what Fifth Prince wanted?"
"you……"
"Alright, everyone, say less. We're all sisters, what kind of behavior is this?" The peacemaker, the eldest daughter, was at it again.
"Sixth Brother, you're the same. Eighth Brother is still young. Why don't you give in to her a little?" As expected, she still protects her younger brother.
Wei Wangqing was about to say something.
"His Majesty has arrived."
Everyone quickly stood up and bowed.
The Empress said, "Everyone, please rise. This is a family banquet, so there's no need for formalities. It's also a welcome dinner for Xiao Liu."
After Wei Wangqing got up, he noticed that besides the Empress, there was another man beside her, who also seemed to be quite favored. He was probably Jiang Shijun, the father of the Third and Eighth Princesses.
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