Chapter 191 Attending Consort Su's Birthday Banquet
Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Su kowtowed heavily to the ground again: "I beg Your Majesty for mercy! Although my daughter has made a mistake, it does not warrant this punishment. Cutting out her tongue is too cruel!"
Miss Su's face turned pale instantly, and she sat limply on the ground. Why was she so cheeky? She almost lost her tongue with just one sentence.
Madam Su rebuked Miss Su, saying irritably, "You wretched child, why don't you apologize to Miss Liu right now!"
As Madam Su spoke, she winked at Miss Su, who instantly understood. She quickly knelt before Liu Ye and said, "Miss Liu, I was wrong. I was rude and offended you. Please forgive my unintentional mistake!"
The Su family, including Prime Minister Su, all looked at Liu Ye with trepidation, fearing that she would continue to pester them. However, Liu Ye casually waved her hand at them and said jokingly, "Oh dear, look how scared you are. I was just saying it casually, joking with Miss Su. Hahaha, Brother Xuan, let's hurry up and go. If we don't go soon, Consort Su will probably be getting impatient."
King Xuan smiled and nodded, then swaggered away with Liu Ye. The officials' families who had been watching dared not watch the spectacle and quickly followed King Xuan away, leaving only the kneeling Su family members behind.
Prime Minister Su got up from the ground with a dark face and slapped Miss Su across the face: "I'll teach you to be so foul-mouthed. When we get back, I'll send you to a temple to be a nun. Humph, you disgraceful thing!"
Miss Su was kneeling when her father slapped her hard, causing her to fall to the ground. She covered her face and cried bitterly, feeling ashamed and unable to face anyone: "Waaah, I was wrong, I don't want to become a nun, waaah..."
Madam Su, feeling sorry for her daughter, helped her up from the ground and couldn't help but scold her, "Serves you right! You should have chosen a better place to act tough. This is the palace, not our backyard!"
Young Master Su and Second Young Master Su quickly helped their father walk forward, saying words of comfort to him. Madam Su pulled Third Miss Su along to follow.
Liu Ye and Prince Xuan have arrived at Consort Su's palace. Consort Su's palace is very luxurious and large, only slightly smaller than the Empress's palace.
The palace maids and eunuchs hurriedly came forward. Prince Xuan was arranged to sit next to the Crown Prince, and Liu Ye was arranged to sit in the front row of the female guests. There was a large empty space in the middle, which looked like there was going to be a performance.
Then, Prime Minister Su and his family arrived. The palace maids arranged for the women of the Su family to sit in the back row of the banquet. Princess Ruyi arrived next and sat in the first row of the female guests. All the concubines of high rank in the harem were present, while those of lower rank were not allowed to attend. All the seats were filled until the Emperor, Empress, and Consort Su, who had ascended to the throne, were missing.
The Crown Prince leered at Liu Ye across from him and said, "She is the younger brother's adopted sister. Is she betrothed to someone?"
King Xuan's lips twitched; he knew he would ask that: "Yes, they're already engaged."
The Crown Prince looked on with regret, reluctant to look away from Liu Ye's face. He looked at Prince Xuan with a forced smile and said, "Brother, we brothers must have a good drink today. Ever since you joined the army, we brothers haven't had a proper drink together. The wine served at my mother's birthday banquet today is a fine wine that I, your brother, finally obtained. It's called Plum Blossom Wine. It's a wine brewed by an old man using plum blossoms. It's been buried underground for five years. The aroma wafts for miles as soon as the bottle is opened. The taste is wonderful..."
King Xuan nodded perfunctorily and said, "Oh, then I'll have to drink more later."
"The Emperor has arrived! The Empress has arrived! Consort Su has arrived!"
Liu Ye quickly knelt down with the others, bowing her head and saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Your Consort Su."
"Everyone, please rise." Liu Ye quickly followed the others and obediently sat back down. She quietly raised her head and curiously looked at the emperor in the main seat. She saw that the emperor was wearing a dragon robe, was thin and gaunt, with a face full of wrinkles. He had very little hair, just a thin layer covering his head, tied in a knot, much like a Taoist's hairstyle. He was not good-looking either, somewhat like the skinny monk in The Deer and the Cauldron. His shrewd eyes darted around in their sockets, making him look a little unsettling.
Liu Ye looked away with a disgusted expression. The old emperor was so ugly. She then secretly glanced at the empress, who happened to be looking at her as well. She grinned, revealing eight small white teeth, looking lively, playful and cute.
The Empress smiled and nodded at Liu Ye. This girl was truly a lucky star for the mother and daughter. If things went well today, she would definitely treat her well.
Consort Su glanced at the Empress, then looked at Liu Ye with a half-smile: "I am very pleased that Miss Liu has come to wish me a happy birthday. I heard that you and your sister had a little disagreement just now. Hehehe, I must have a good talk with her later. Miss Liu didn't take it to heart, did she?"
Liu Ye smiled nonchalantly and said, "No, I don't hold grudges at all. Besides, Miss Su has already knelt down and apologized to me, so I'm even less likely to hold a grudge. Consort Su, please rest assured, I'm a very magnanimous person."
Liu Ye's words immediately sparked a flurry of discussion among the guests in the hall. Those who didn't know the situation quickly inquired with those who did to find out what had happened.
Consort Su nodded with a stiff smile. "You little hussy, you talk too much," she thought. "Miss Liu is so generous. Dingxiang, please take good care of Miss Liu!"
Dingxiang, Consort Su's personal maid, glanced at Liuye with disdain and said, "Yes."
The Emperor then looked at Liu Ye, whose exquisitely beautiful face caught his eye and stirred up inappropriate thoughts: "Who is this Miss Liu?"
Consort Su was about to speak with a wicked smile when the Empress interrupted her: "Miss Liu is Xuan'er's adopted sister, and I have also adopted her as my goddaughter. After Consort Su's birthday banquet, I also plan to hold a family reunion banquet to add some joy to my palace."
Upon hearing this, the Emperor withdrew his gaze from Liu Ye with a look of regret. He couldn't touch the Empress's goddaughter; wouldn't that be incest? He immediately laughed it off and said, "Very well, the Empress's goddaughter is my goddaughter. I must give her a little gift. Dequan, reward her."
Despite feeling disgusted, the Empress clung to the Emperor's arm and said coquettishly, "Your Majesty, just bestowing a reward isn't enough. You must give our goddaughters a title, so they won't be called lowly commoners and insult us along with them!"
Consort Su was startled; that wretched woman was up to no good again!
The Emperor frowned unhappily, and was about to ask what was going on when Consort Su stopped him by grabbing her other arm: "Your Majesty, I also think the Empress is right. Please give Miss Liu a title. With a title, no one will dare to bully her. I like her very much too."
Consort Su interrupted, successfully making the Emperor forget what he was about to say: "Hmm, my beloved consort is right. Then let's bestow upon my goddaughter the title of... Princess Wushuang. What does the Empress think?"
The Empress nodded with satisfaction: "I think it's good, so let's go with Your Majesty's suggestion."
The Empress then looked at the bewildered Liu Ye and said, "Liu Ye, why don't you hurry over and present your father's favor to him?"
The young lady sitting next to her nudged Liu Ye's arm and whispered, "Princess Wushuang, you should hurry up and express your gratitude."
Liu Ye snapped out of her shock and hurriedly walked to the center of the hall, knelt down and kowtowed: "Thank you for your grace, Father Emperor and Mother Empress. Your daughter wishes you a long life, as long as the heavens, to be 20 this year and 18 next year, to live a long and healthy life, to be rich and healthy, to never grow old, and to be forever young and vigorous."
The Emperor was overjoyed. This girl had such a sweet tongue; everything she said was exactly what he had been dreaming of. "Hahaha, well said, well said. My dear daughter, rise. Hahaha, what you said sounds like a birthday greeting. Today is not my birthday, but Consort Su's. Tell me about it when it is my birthday. I really enjoy listening to you speak."
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