Chapter 35 It turns out she was still a royal lady
"..."
Yun Si paused in her act of bowing to Consort Shu.
Shen Qian frowned slightly, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes.
Did you mispronounce "Imperial Consort" just now?
Why does she still call Yun Si Princess Xiao?
Yun Si was no longer just confused, but had a vague idea of what was going on, and was somewhat shocked.
Along the way, three people called her Princess Xiao. The first two could be explained away, as they might not know about her divorce from Qin Ye, but Consort Shu could not possibly be unaware.
If she knew, why did she still shout like that?
Is it humiliation, or ridicule and sarcasm?
Won't.
Therefore, there is only one possibility.
"What's wrong?"
Consort Shu glanced at Yun Si, then looked at Shen Qian: "What were you two talking about? Why have you been so quiet since I arrived? Could it be that you've done something naughty?"
"Your Majesty."
Despite the turmoil in Yun Si's heart, she remained calm and composed on the surface. She gave a slight curtsy and said, "I am honored to be able to attend this grand Hundred Flowers Banquet today because of Your Majesty's great favor. Just now, Lord Shen told me to properly express my gratitude to Your Majesty for your kindness."
"oh?"
Consort Shu smiled and turned to Shen Qian, asking, "Lord Shen, is what Princess Xiao said really true?"
"Why, Your Majesty..."
Shen Qian probably guessed that possibility, and for a moment the gloom in his eyes was so intense that it was almost impossible to hide, but he immediately recovered.
He asked tentatively, "Does Your Highness call her Princess Xiao?"
This time, it was Consort Shu's turn to be full of suspicion.
"What's wrong with Lord Shen today? She is Princess Xiao, so if we don't call her Princess Xiao, what should we call her?"
She stared at Shen Qian suspiciously, half seriously and half jokingly saying, "I know about your past relationship with Princess Xiao, but that's all in the past, Lord Shen. Don't blame me for not reminding you that some people, once lost, can only be cherished in memory and should not be given any other thoughts."
After speaking, Consort Shu gave Yun Si a meaningful look.
When she turned to look at Shen Qian again, a warning glint appeared in her eyes.
She was warning Shen Qian that she could help him bring Yun Si out of the Xiao Prince's mansion, but if he caused any trouble and delayed the Prince of Jin's grand plan because of some personal feelings, she would not forgive him.
"Your Majesty is overthinking it."
Suppressing the emotions surging within him, Shen Qian said respectfully, "Your Majesty and I... have only a brother-sister relationship, nothing more."
Yun Si's red lips curved into a barely perceptible smile.
"That's good."
Consort Shu smiled gently again.
"Alright, the banquet hasn't started yet, you can wander around as you like."
Having said that, she ignored them and, surrounded by palace maids and eunuchs, walked gracefully toward the main seat.
As soon as Consort Shu left, Shen Qian suddenly pulled Yun Si towards a secluded spot in the garden.
A-Wu's eyes flashed with anger, but Yun Si gently shook her head, signaling her not to do anything rash.
This is the imperial palace. No matter how powerful A-Wu is, she cannot openly attack officials appointed by the court.
After the incident, Yun Si worried that she wouldn't be able to protect her.
Therefore, we must keep an eye on her from now on and not let her resort to violence at the slightest provocation.
Shen Qian pulled Yun Si behind a rockery, looked at her with a dark expression, and angrily questioned, "What do you mean? You and Prince Xiao never divorced. Are you lying to me?"
"I have no idea."
Yun Si broke free from his hand and said calmly, "Whether you believe it or not, I was also puzzled when I heard the Imperial Concubine call me that."
Qin Ye did indeed write a divorce agreement, and both of them signed it.
But Yun Si did not take the divorce papers with her.
Because Qin Ye had to take that divorce agreement to the palace and then remove Yun Si from the royal register.
So, does this mean Qin Ye didn't report it to the palace?
Is her name still on the Royal Jade Tablet?
A surge of excitement welled up in Yun Si's heart.
No wonder.
Shen Qian asked Consort Shu to send her this invitation, and Consort Shu would agree to help him.
If she has already been removed from the royal family, then she is truly the daughter of a disgraced official.
Even if Consort Shu wanted to help, it was against the rules. Helping Shen Qian would surely give others ammunition to criticize her and Prince Jin.
Consort Shu wasn't stupid; how could she possibly agree to that under these circumstances?
Yun Si suppressed her excitement, but frowned on the surface and naively guessed, "Could it be that the Imperial Concubine did this on purpose, just to humiliate me?"
"Won't."
Shen Qian secretly despised Yun Si's stupidity, but this also dispelled some of his doubts about her.
"Who is the Imperial Concubine? Why would she bother to humiliate someone like you..."
He swallowed back what he was about to say, and instead said with a dark expression, "A-Si, do you see I wasn't wrong?"
“Prince Xiao is an utterly despicable man. He used despicable means to force you into his household, but he didn’t treat you well. He harmed your family and left you with no one to rely on. Now that you want to escape him, he agrees on the surface, but in reality, he is still keeping you trapped in the palace. If you still don’t listen to me, hurry up and escape from that cage. In the future, I’m afraid I will be willing but unable to protect you.”
Yun Si's fingers tightened suddenly.
"good."
After a long silence, she finally spoke with difficulty: "I will think about it carefully."
Upon hearing this, Shen Qian's expression softened, and he regained his gentle demeanor.
"A-Si, I'm doing this for your own good. Make a decision as soon as possible, and I'll wait for your news."
"Um."
Yun Si nodded obediently, and the two of them came out of the artificial hill and then went their separate ways in two different directions.
Only after he had walked far away did Yun Si stop and turn around to look.
A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips.
She glanced down at her hands.
A trace of red powder remained on the edge of her fingertip, which she gently wiped away.
Holding her hand comes at a price.
“A-Wu”.
Awu stood to the side, her gaze fixed on another direction of the artificial hill, her expression solemn.
Yun Si approached her and followed her gaze: "What are you looking at?"
Someone is eavesdropping.
"ah?"
"So fierce."
A-Wu turned to look at Yun Si, patted her chest, and said, "I can't beat her."
Someone that A-Wu couldn't beat was just eavesdropping on her conversation with Shen Qian.
Yun Si suddenly had a bad feeling.
"Did you see who it was?"
Ah Wu was about to nod, but then, for some reason, she suddenly stopped moving, only rolling her eyes before shutting her mouth and remaining silent.
All right.
Yun Si stopped asking.
She probably guessed who it was.
If nothing unexpected happens, this will be confirmed soon.
Perfect timing, she also had something she wanted to ask him.
When the appointed time arrived, the Hundred Flowers Banquet officially began.
Yun Si and A Wu originally intended to find an inconspicuous place to sit. Since there were many people present today, as long as they deliberately kept a low profile, they would not be noticed.
All she needed to do was keep an eye on Jiang Wanning, and if she noticed anything amiss, she should intervene immediately to prevent Prince Jin, Qin Su, from succeeding and to prevent Qin Ye from having any contact with Jiang Wanning. That would be enough to achieve her goal for the day.
"The Prince of Jin has arrived, and the Princess of Jin has arrived."
As the eunuch announced the arrival, Prince Jin and his wife slowly approached.
Qin Su was dressed in a crimson brocade robe, with a jade belt at his waist inlaid with a large pearl. The pearl shimmered as he walked, dazzling the eye.
He had a handsome face, but there was an arrogant look between his brows that made him seem somewhat frivolous.
His chin was slightly raised, and his gaze swept over everyone with an innate sense of superiority, as if everyone present was inferior to him.
Princess Jin lagged half a step behind, dressed in a bright red palace gown, her head adorned with jewels that swayed gently with her steps.
She had a pretty face, but her smile seemed somewhat stiff.
Whenever the Prince of Jin turned to speak to her, she would reflexively show a gentle smile, but if you looked closely, you would find a deep weariness hidden in her eyes.
"There's no need for such formalities, everyone."
The Prince of Jin waved his hand casually, his voice so loud it was almost shrill.
He strode toward the main seat, the gold cloud patterns on the soles of his boots shimmering in the sunlight. He deliberately strode heavily with each step, as if to make everyone notice his arrival.
As he passed by Yun Si, the Prince of Jin suddenly stopped and lingered on her for a moment, as if he had just remembered her.
"Isn't this your fourth sister-in-law? It's been so long! What are you doing sitting here? Where is your fourth brother? Didn't he come with you?"
He asked a bunch of questions, and without waiting for Yun Si's answer, he continued, "The seat in front has been reserved for him. Fourth sister-in-law, you should sit there, so that others won't say that my mother has neglected you."
"..."
Yun Si lowered her eyes and bowed: "What my elder brother says is true. It was my oversight."
That's good.
Everyone saw her.
Yun Si wanted to give him a good whack.
She had hidden herself in a corner, but she didn't expect this man to have such good eyesight that he still noticed her.
Yun Si had no choice but to bite the bullet and, under the curious gazes of many, led A Wu to the table reserved for her and Qin Ye.
Along the way, she saw many familiar faces.
Among them were the siblings Shen Qian and Shen Yu. Lin Shuyan sat with Shen Yu, and Shen Yu stared at Yun Si with resentment, as if she wanted to say something, but was stopped by Lin Shuyan next to her.
Lin Shuyan, on the other hand, gave her a friendly smile.
Shen Qian looked unwell, as if he was enduring some kind of pain, and a fine layer of cold sweat had appeared on his forehead.
Yun Si didn't look at them much and continued walking forward with a dignified and slow pace.
At that moment, she felt a strong gaze upon her.
She didn't need to look to know who it was.
It's Jiang Wanning.
strangeness.
She and Jiang Wanning had no prior interaction, and this look in his eyes didn't seem very friendly to her.
Further ahead, there were other strange looks, but Yun Si ignored them.
We finally arrived at our destination.
The fourth table on the left.
"Prince Lin, Princess Lin has arrived, Prince Xiang has arrived."
Just as Yun Si sat down, the eunuch's voice came from outside again.
Prince Lin is the second prince, Qin Huai, while his wife is a concubine's daughter from his mother's family.
The Prince of Xiang is Qin Feng, the third prince.
As is widely known, Qin Huai and Qin Feng are twins born of the same mother, both being daughters of Consort Hua.
However, both were princes, but the second prince, Qin Huai, was not favored by Consort Hua. As a result, the current emperor did not pay much attention to him, which led to his development of a weak and incompetent personality, and his lack of ambition and competitiveness.
In contrast, the Third Prince Qin Feng was pampered by Consort Hua since childhood, and had everything he wanted. He was truly a golden prince.
Unfortunately, like Yun Si, he was sickly.
But precisely because of this, he not only received all of his mother's love, but the emperor also showed him special affection and care, and would visit him frequently.
Following the announcement, Yun Si looked towards the entrance.
Prince Qinhuai and his consort entered slowly.
Qin Huai wore a light blue brocade robe with only a plain belt around her waist, which contrasted sharply with the Prince of Jin's jeweled attire.
He had a handsome but thin face, and he walked with his head down, making it difficult to see his face and expression.
"Second brother's clothes..."
Prince Jin sized up Prince Lin, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes. He deliberately raised his voice and sneered, "Could it be the same set that Father Emperor bestowed upon you three years ago?"
Upon hearing this, Prince Lin froze, then hurriedly cupped his hands in a respectful bow, the movement so large it nearly knocked over the teacups on the table: "Great...Greater Emperor, please forgive me, Your Majesty..."
The Princess Consort behind him immediately stepped forward to steady the swaying teacup, then lowered her head and returned to her original position.
Yun Si noticed that when she held the cup, her wrist turned almost imperceptibly half a circle, an angle that would just prevent the tea from splashing onto the Prince's robes.
She may seem timid and submissive, but she is actually quite shrewd and clever.
Those who marry into the royal family, if they do not have a powerful family background to rely on, then they can only rely on themselves.
This Princess Consort of Lin must be the kind of person who can only rely on herself.
Immediately following behind was Prince Qin Feng of Xiang, who leisurely waved his folding fan.
The Prince of Xiang wore a moon-white brocade robe, with a medicine pouch hanging at his waist. His face was pale and handsome, and a beauty mark at the corner of his eye added to his dashing appearance.
He walked with unsteady steps, occasionally coughing lightly, unable to conceal his air of arrogance.
Yun Si withdrew her gaze, glanced at Jiang Wanning who was drinking tea alone not far away, then looked at Prince Jin who was chatting and laughing with several young gentlemen, and finally focused her gaze on the empty seat next to her.
The emperor had six sons in total. Currently, the eldest, second, and third sons have arrived, and Qin Ye is the fourth son. In the previous life, only the four of them attended the Hundred Flowers Banquet.
Because the fifth prince was always in the military camp, while the sixth prince, who loved freedom, was often not in the capital, making it difficult even for the emperor to see him.
I wonder if Qin Ye will come again in this life?
"His Highness Prince Xiao has arrived."
Just as I was thinking about this, I suddenly heard the eunuch's announcement.
Yun Si immediately looked toward the entrance of the banquet.
At the same time, several other gazes also turned in that direction.
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