"Your Majesty, the Empress has entered the palace," the eunuch announced loudly.
Everyone knelt down, a rare act of kneeling and bowing. The emperor and empress both wore a slight look of pride on their faces, for they still held positions of power.
Just as the lord took his seat, a palace maid knocked on Su Lixia's door, saying that she could enter the hall.
Su Lixia nodded and got up to go to the entrance of the main hall. With a loud voice, she stepped into the main hall.
"Greetings, Your Majesty and Your Majesty the Empress. May Your Majesty and Your Majesty be well." Su Lixia performed the Central Plains etiquette, not a kneeling bow, but a simple greeting, though it was the most earnest Su Lixia had ever done.
Seeing this, the lord narrowed his eyes slightly, feeling that Su Lixia's behavior did not show him much respect, so he teased, "The etiquette in the Central Plains is indeed different from ours, not as elaborate as ours."
Upon hearing this, Su Lixia asked in confusion, and said, "In the Central Plains, only your humble servants bow to the Emperor. As the Emperor's daughter, I do not need to bow at all except for my coming-of-age ceremony. Since I do not bow to the Emperor, I will not bow to anyone else. I only bowed to him just now because of the relationship between our two countries, but I still bowed very seriously."
The lord's face darkened. Who hadn't heard what kind of person the Fifth Princess was? Now that she had said she wouldn't bow to the Emperor, she had given him a proper bow. What else could he say?
"I don't mean anything by it. I'm just curious because I'm different from others. Please take a seat, Princess."
Below, several ministers chuckled secretly, "This can be considered a disgrace to the family because of a little girl."
"Hey, we're all in the same boat, let's see who comes out on top."
The lord overheard a few words and felt extremely embarrassed. His small hands slowly clenched into fists. The empress reached out and patted his hand, signaling him to calm down. The lord glanced at her and nodded in agreement.
"Thank you, my lord." Su Lixia smiled slightly and then took her seat, which was opposite Yi Zexuan. Since everyone was to be in the superior position, they had to sit separately, one person per row.
"Serve the food, and let the singing and dancing begin!"
As the sounds began, the food was served, and the singing and dancing started.
"I had intended to throw a grand banquet for the princess, but I heard that she prefers a simpler affair. So please forgive any shortcomings in our hospitality today," the Empress said to Su Lixia.
Su Lixia shook her head and smiled, "How could that be? This is already very good. What else could we possibly eat?"
The Empress smiled and raised her cup in a toast to her. Su Lixia raised her cup and nodded to her. Both of them drank it down in one gulp.
Across from them, Xue Yurou noticed their movements and said to Yi Zexuan beside her, "Your Highness, it was clear from the previous garden party that the Empress took great care of the Princess. This time, she seems to be trying to curry favor with her as well. Not many people are on the Lord's side, but the Princess has powerful backing, and they may be trying to win her over."
"I think the same way as you. You are very observant and meticulous. Today you will stay with the princess. It is best if the princess does not take sides. Just don't let the empress sway people's hearts, as that would be detrimental to us."
Xue Yurou nodded: "Yes, but it would be good if the princess could be of use to us."
Yi Zexuan smiled slightly and said, "You don't know, there was another contract when we discussed it with His Majesty, but only the two of us know about it at the moment. I'm still waiting for his good news."
"Then Rou'er will wait with the prince."
Upon hearing this, Yi Zexuan turned his head to look at Xue Yurou, and reached out to hold her hand: "You have suffered a lot of grievances while following me all these years, and you will have to endure many more things in the future. However, once the grand plan is completed, I will definitely make it up to you properly."
Xue Yurou shook her head: "It's good enough to be able to stay with the prince forever."
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