"Why is Eunuch Li here?" The young man's gentle voice brought Eunuch Li and others back to their senses, and also let Yu Tanqi and others know that someone had come to the palace.
Eunuch Li quickly smiled and said, "I am here to convey the Empress's oral instructions. Ten days from now will be New Year's Eve. The Empress has invited Miss Yu and the Crown Prince to the palace to observe the New Year's Eve together. She has also asked me to bring rewards for the Crown Prince and Miss Yu."
Behind him, there were two long lines of palace maids and eunuchs, all holding things in their hands.
The royal family of Wanjin State always invited some royal relatives and nobles to the palace to stay up all night on New Year's Eve. One reason was to show their affection for these people, and the other was to better control them.
After Madam Jiang passed away, Jiang Shi would go to the palace to stay up every New Year's Eve.
Yu Tanqi came this year. As his fiancée, Empress Zhang naturally would not let her spend New Year's Eve alone in the Wu'an Marquis Mansion.
After Eunuch Li delivered the Queen's oral instructions, he asked the palace maids and eunuchs to put down their rewards. As he turned to leave, he couldn't help but look back.
Prince Jiang, who was always elegant and self-possessed, now had his black hair and green clothes covered with ice and snow, but he seemed not to notice. He lowered his eyes and gently brushed away the white snowflakes on the green-clothed girl's hair.
The snowy scene was cold, but the boy’s expression carried the warmth of the first melting snow.
Eunuch Li seemed to see the Marquis of Wu'an and his wife.
They were a perfect couple that everyone envied, but unfortunately, the ending was not very good.
He sighed softly, hoping that Prince Jiang and Miss Yu would have a good outcome.
…
Not many royal relatives and nobles were able to enter the palace to stay up on New Year's Eve. After the palace banquet began, Yu Tanqi looked at a woman in blue palace dress sitting among the concubines with some astonishment.
Jiang Shi noticed her surprised expression and gaze, and followed her gaze while whispering, "Tan Qi, what's wrong?"
Yu Tanqi retracted his gaze and whispered, "I wonder if I'm seeing things, but why does the concubine in the blue palace dress look so much like the Prime Minister's daughter, Yan Qingyu?"
Jiang Shi said, "You are not mistaken. She is the Prime Minister's daughter, Yan Qingyu. She entered the palace after the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet and is now Empress Hui, one of the Four Concubines."
"How could she become an empress in the palace?" Yu Tanqi could not hide her astonishment.
Yan Qingyu is only eighteen years old this year, five years younger than the eldest prince, and the emperor is older than her father. How could she enter the palace and become a concubine?
Jiang Shi's eyes flickered slightly, and he whispered, "I don't know either."
There were some things he couldn't tell her in public.
Since ancient times, power struggles have always resulted in countless sacrifices.
Prime Minister Yan chose to rely on Yun Xuan, and Yan Qingyu, as his daughter, naturally could not escape the fate of being a chess piece and spy.
The former dynasty and the harem are closely related. After Concubine Wang falls out of favor, there must always be a new favorite concubine in the harem.
Yan Qingyu is of noble birth, young and beautiful, and is a very suitable candidate.
At the seat for the concubines, Yan Qingyu, dressed in a gorgeous palace dress with only simple and elegant pearls and jade in her bun, sat upright, but her eyes could not help but look in the direction of Jiang Shi who was sitting at the seat for the court officials.
She stared blankly at Jiang Shi and Yu Tanqi leaning against each other and talking in low voices.
The people of Wanjin are open-minded. Since the appearance of Lan Luozhu, there have been fewer restrictions on women. There are also female officials in the harem, and they have ranks like in the previous dynasty. Therefore, it is not immoral for engaged couples to get along too closely.
However, there are very few engaged couples like Yu Tanqi and Jiang Shi who live under the same roof before getting married.
But Yan Qingyu knew that Jiang Shi had always been self-disciplined and polite, and would never do anything out of line.
When Yu Tanqi looked up at him, Yan Qingyu lowered his eyes somewhat embarrassedly, picked up the wine glass on the table and drank.
Mu Yue, the personal maid beside her, quickly reminded her in a low voice: "Your Highness, you are holding a wine glass."
Yan Qingyu closed his eyes and whispered, "I know."
She raised her head and drank it all in one gulp, as if she wanted to silently swallow all the unspeakable bitterness and pain.
Yun Xuan was sitting next to Jiang Shi and Yu Tanqi, and was looking at them subtly.
Not many ministers and their families were able to enter the palace for the New Year’s Eve banquet every year, but Jiang Shi and Yun Xuan were frequent guests.
This magnificent palace trapped countless people. It was the shackles of the princess's freedom, but also a dream that could make people ascend to heaven overnight.
In the past, Jiang Shi sat alone, occasionally looking at others with envy in his eyes, but tonight, he only had eyes for the girl next to him.
Yun Xuan looked at Yu Tanqi, his slender fingers casually stroking the wine glass in his hand.
The girl had a pink face and curved eyebrows. She showed no sign of timidity in front of him and had a sweet and innocent smile.
Because of her appearance, Jiang Shi is no longer alone.
He sent his only sister away, and now he is the one who is alone.
Yun Xuan pursed his lips into a straight line, his expression hinting at mockery.
Gao Xianyue looked at Yun Xuan who was alone, then looked at Jiang Shi and Yu Tanqi.
A happy smile appeared at the corner of her lips.
She couldn't help laughing when she thought about Yun Shu, who had always been at odds with her, being sent out of the capital.
There were rumors in the capital that Yun Shu was sent out of the capital to Jiangnan for recuperation because she had a strange disease, but Gao Xianyue did not believe this reason.
This seemingly indifferent King Yun is not as aloof and aloof as he appears to be.
Yun Shu thought that her biological brother doted on her very much, but now he sent her out of the capital, away from power and wealth?
Even the man she wanted but couldn't get only had eyes for another girl.
Gao Xianyue's eyes flickered when she looked at Jiang Shi.
There have been rumors in the capital recently that Jiang Shi is in good health now and is very popular in the Imperial College, with some of the charm of the Marquis of Wu'an.
If Jiang Shi's health really recovers, he will be able to take part in the next imperial examination and be on the list.
Moreover, he already had a title that he had inherited, and the emperor was very fond of him. I'm afraid that after he became an official in the court, his path to promotion would be very smooth.
Gao Xianyue's breathing quickened slightly, and she clenched her sleeves tightly.
Although she is just a princess, she also has her own ideals and ambitions.
She was not the empress's legitimate daughter. Although her mother, Concubine Shu, was one of the four concubines, she was not favored, and as a result, she was also not favored.
Although she grew up in luxury, she was not willing to just find a husband and have children when she reached a certain age. She wanted supreme power and status, so that everyone would look up to her.
Therefore, her husband must have high power and status.
A year later, Gao Xianyue will be eighteen years old.
The emperor's daughter will never have trouble finding a husband. She usually looks for a husband after she turns eighteen. Concubine Shu is already looking for a husband for Gao Xianyue.
But Gao Xianyue didn't like any of the so-called young talents that Concubine Shu was looking for.
They were either the legitimate youngest sons of dukes, marquises, or earls, or the legitimate sons of scholarly families or military families. They were of a status that allowed them to marry princesses, but they had no rights at all. Instead, they had to rely on Gao Xianyue for power and wealth.
Although the Wanjin Kingdom did not have an explicit rule that the son-in-law could not serve as an official in the court, the emperors had always refused to give the son-in-law important official positions, so those who could marry the princess were legitimate sons who could not inherit the family business.
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