After the tension subsides, the banquet is just a banquet.
Inside the magnificent palace, music and dance filled the air, and fine wines and delicacies were continuously served by palace maids and eunuchs.
The group sat at their seats, clinking glasses and exchanging toasts, chatting and laughing merrily.
In an atmosphere of clinking glasses and exchanging toasts,
As a princess, Shang Changge's seat was very close to that of the crown prince, Shang Changze.
Anyone who toasts Shang Changze inevitably has to toast her in return.
As a result, Shang Changge drank a bit too much.
Seated upright in his seat, his long, beautiful almond-shaped eyes were now clouded with a hint of intoxication.
With his elbows propped on the table, his hand supporting his chin and cradling half of his face, he stared intently at the dazzling scene of power and wealth before him.
Qingyao was a little worried, but because it was a palace banquet and she was just a servant girl, she didn't dare to speak up.
He stopped adding wine for Shang Changge and ordered a palace maid to bring over a bowl of hangover soup.
"Royal elder sister."
Shang Changze walked over unnoticed, and Shang Changge spoke with gentle concern:
"Is Your Highness drunk?"
Shang Changge wasn't drunk, just slightly tipsy. Taking advantage of the flushed face from the alcohol, he pretended to be drunk and said:
“Aze? No, Aze wants to be the older brother.”
Shang Changge looked at Shang Changze's face, and slowly uttered the title as he addressed him:
"Big brother."
Shang Changze was startled, standing still with the wine jug in hand, looking into Shang Changge's eyes. A dull pain inexplicably welled up in his heart.
After a long silence, having calmed himself, he swapped his own wine jug for Qingyao's, speaking gently in both hands:
"Sister, you're drunk, you can't drink anymore."
He then instructed Qingyao, "The wine pot contains a hangover remedy that I had someone send over. Find a way to get my sister to drink a few cups to sober up."
"I will not go far. If you need anything, just have someone relay a message to me."
Qingyao, carrying the exquisite wine pot, breathed a sigh of relief and quickly nodded in agreement:
"Yes! Thank you, Your Highness."
Shang Changze hadn't gone far. Shang Changge watched as Shang Changze blocked Shang Rui, who was walking towards her, and laughed.
My handsome younger brother is such a thoughtful and good brother. He deserved to be called "big brother" just now.
Before the banquet began, Emperor Mingde said: "Important matters can be discussed later."
Since the matter could be discussed later, Emperor Mingde would not linger. Halfway through the banquet, he left with the Empress and others.
The rest was handled by Shang Rui, who was in charge of receiving the Southern Liang envoys, and the Ministry of Rites.
Once the Emperor and Empress left,
The atmosphere at the banquet became much more relaxed, and everyone started talking animatedly, making the banquet hall quite noisy.
Shang Changge found it too noisy.
He was about to take Qingyao out for some fresh air when he glanced at Xiao Ji's seat before leaving. Not seeing him, he raised an eyebrow.
Without delving into where Xiao Ji had gone, he greeted Shang Changze and then led Qingyao and the others away from behind the screen.
Outside the banquet hall, on a relatively secluded high platform.
The evening breeze in early October was a bit chilly, but it was perfect for dispelling the effects of a drunken stupor.
Shang Changge was enjoying the breeze, watching the stars and the moon when she suddenly heard a familiar sound of footsteps.
However, instead of heading straight for her as usual, they went to a corner below the platform.
Shang Changge immediately became interested, and after gesturing for Qingyao and the others to be quiet, he began to openly eavesdrop.
"What is it?" She guessed correctly; it was Xiao Ji.
"General Xie, you're here." It was a woman's voice.
She hadn't heard of Shang Changge, but she could roughly guess who it was.
Soon the woman's voice rang out again, filled with a low and restrained sorrow:
"General, please don't misunderstand. Lianyi had someone secretly invite you here for no other reason."
I just want to ask the general one question: why did you send someone to rescue Lianyi at Shayan, and why did you let Lianyi leave?
Hero saves the damsel in distress? A clichéd encounter, I get it!
Shang Changge's interest in gossip intensified, and she regretted not grabbing a handful of sunflower seeds when she came out.
He slowed his breathing and pulled his ears up higher, eagerly anticipating hearing more interesting and informative gossip.
However—
"That was a serious mistake on my part."
Xiao Ji's cold remark left Shang Changge completely bewildered, and Wei Lianyi was equally confused.
The hands that were nervously clutching the hem of her clothes loosened at this moment, and she stared blankly at Xiao Ji, whose tall figure stood out against the night sky.
"What do you mean by that, General?"
Xiao Ji's voice remained cold and devoid of any emotion, and the words he uttered were even more harsh and hurtful:
"This general did not know you were Wei Chu's sister at the time. If I had known..."
They won't let you leave; instead, they'll use you as leverage to blackmail Wei Chu.
Wei Lianyi felt as if someone had poured a bucket of cold water over her head on a freezing day, as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.
Wei Lianyi is Wei Chu's younger sister. The Wei family is a family of military generals. Although Wei Lianyi has never been on the battlefield,
But Wei Lianyi knew better than anyone what would happen if someone was used as a bargaining chip in a war between two countries.
Suddenly, a bleak evening breeze blew by.
Wei Lianyi shuddered, not even having the courage to look at Xiao Ji again.
He hastily left behind the words, "I understand, I'm sorry to have bothered you, General," and then staggered away, looking lost and disoriented, as if trying to escape.
...
...
Shang Changge, waiting to witness the big juicy gossip: ?
A question mark slowly appeared above my head. Gone? Just like that?
...
Okay, it's a little disappointing and regrettable that I didn't get to hear any gossip.
However, General Xiao's clear and decisive refusal, without any hesitation, is still commendable.
Very good, she appreciates it.
"Isn't the princess cold standing here?"
Xiao Ji appeared silently on the high platform at some unknown time and was walking towards Shang Changge step by step.
Caught eavesdropping
Shang Changge remained completely calm. She didn't believe that Xiao Ji, with his keen senses, wouldn't have noticed someone on the platform.
Therefore, her eavesdropping was an open and aboveboard act from the very beginning.
Shang Changge: "Cold."
On the high platform stood an octagonal palace lantern swaying in the autumn breeze, and the glow of a luminous pearl was projected from inside the banquet hall.
Shang Changge's bright smile remained unchanged, showing no regard for Qingyao and the others. In a good mood, she readily uttered flirtatious words:
"It's so cold, General Xiao, would you like to give me a hug?"
Without hesitation, Xiao Ji pulled the person into his arms, their scents mingling.
Seeing that Shang Changge didn't intend to ask anything, Xiao Ji sighed in frustration and took the initiative to say:
"I have nothing to do with Wei Lianyi. Everything I said just now was true."
"Not recognizing her as a person from Southern Liang, and not recognizing her as Wei Chu's sister, was indeed a serious oversight on my part."
Shang Changge's makeup was exquisite tonight; she would be returning to the banquet hall later.
Xiao Ji was not one to kiss casually, so a light, feather-like kiss landed on Shang Changge's fingertips, just like their first kiss.
The explanation is that the voice, having been steeped in strong liquor, becomes even more mellow and deep:
"So far, the only woman who has ever moved my heart is the princess."
Shang Changge greatly admired Xiao Ji's clear and decisive refusal just now, and she felt that she should learn from him.
then,
Shang Changge pressed one hand against Xiao Ji's hard chest and the other stroked Xiao Ji's handsome face. Their eyes met under the palace lanterns.
Her lips, as red as peony petals, parted slightly as she uttered a question that was hardly polite:
"General Xiao, would you be willing to fall at my feet?"
Shang Changge's method of expression wasn't very obvious, but Xiao Ji understood it.
His handsome face was no longer cold and stern. In an instant, he took Shang Changge's hand, which was pressed against his chest, and brought it to his lips.
He lowered his head, and his cool, thin lips placed a solemn and reverent kiss on the back of the woman's hand:
"It is my honor."
This sentence is almost an admission of submission.
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