Chapter 92 Longevity Festival
The ninth day of the second lunar month is Wansheng's birthday. On the eighth day, people pay homage to Changling and Xianling. On the ninth day, Zhu Zhanji first goes to Fengxian Hall to pay homage to his ancestors, then goes to pay his respects to Empress Dowager Zhang, and finally goes to Fengtian Hall to accept congratulations from ministers and envoys.
The emperor and his court officials had grand banquets, while the empress dowager and concubines had small banquets. After Zhu Zhanji attended the banquet of the previous dynasty, he had to come to the harem again.
Today is a major festival, and the concubines are all dressed up as beautiful as flowers, with graceful and elegant figures. They all come forward obediently to pay their respects, undoubtedly trying to attract Zhu Zhanji's attention.
Zhu Zhanji was naturally pleased with the concubines' efforts and said, "The material you are wearing is quite unique. Although it is thin, the color is not dull. It looks quite different from the previous ones."
Concubine He Hui smiled and said, "This is the cloth that His Majesty Shunde brought back earlier. He said it was a gift from the imperial farm. Although it is woven from cotton, it is very flowing and the colors are dyed brightly yet elegantly. It is very pleasing to the eye. This cloth was given to you by all the palaces, and I and others thought of cutting it up to make clothes to celebrate Your Majesty's birthday."
On the Wansheng Birthday, Concubine Sun finally had the chance to reunite with her son in a dignified manner. She held Zhu Qizhen in her arms and refused to let go, her heart and eyes filled with her child. However, when she suddenly heard Zhu Yuhuan's name, Concubine Sun's hand trembled, and the golden knife she had been using to tease her son fell. Fortunately, the knife was still in its sheath, otherwise it would have been unlucky to see blood.
She hurriedly looked at the people around her and realized that the clothes they were wearing seemed to have been prepared together, and her heart tightened.
Concubine Hui said that it was discussed by the concubines, so how could she not know?
Rui Lan, who was standing nearby, hurriedly picked up the golden knife and held it in her arms, whispering soothingly, "Your Majesty, please be patient. This is a gift from the Emperor. It was given to the eldest prince during his birthday celebration. You must be careful."
Concubine Sun forced a smile and was relieved to see that Hu Shanxiang was only wearing her usual auspicious attire and there was nothing special about her.
After feeling relieved, Concubine Sun looked at Ruilan and asked, "Didn't His Highness send it to us?"
Ruilan felt a little embarrassed and ashamed, and whispered, "I did give it to you, but I really didn't know about the concubines making clothes together."
Concubine Sun knew that the concubines were ostracizing her, and she was helpless and could do nothing but said to Ruilan, "Don't worry about such a small matter."
The concubines did not dare to show their displeasure to the Imperial Concubine in public, but they were very cautious in private. Especially when they saw that Imperial Concubine Sun had tried every trick to dethrone the Empress but still managed to dominate the Emperor, the concubines became even more distant from her.
Look, Concubine Sun's son is already the Crown Prince, so why is she still monopolizing His Majesty? These low-ranking concubines all rely on bearing children for His Majesty to save their lives.
Only then did Concubine Sun understand the difficulties faced by the Queen. She really wanted to have another child to accompany her, but she did not have complete control over which palace the Emperor went to. She could invite the Emperor to come, but she could not ask him to leave, right?
The one who was originally favored has now become a target. Even if such a small matter is told to His Majesty, what will happen? It will only make these concubines target her, the imperial concubine, even more.
Therefore, Concubine Sun could only "swallow the bitter herbs in silence, unable to express her pain".
On the other side, Zhu Zhanji looked Concubine He Hui up and down and said with a smile: "This dress has some of the charm of Southern Zhili. It seems that Huanhuan's spinning machine is really good. Now it can weave cloth and make clothes."
Seeing his daughter dare to bring cloth into the palace to give to the concubines, he knew that Zhu Yuhuan was probably going to do cloth business, or even clothing business. The so-called sending of cloth was just to make his business famous.
Thinking of this, Zhu Zhanji looked around but didn't see his daughter. He couldn't help but ask, "Why can't I see the princess?"
Seeing him like this, Empress Dowager Zhang smiled and said, "This girl is very clever. She said that she would let you see Tongtong's birthday gift first, and then she would come to celebrate the birthday."
There were many people coming to celebrate the birthday today, and there were countless birthday gifts. They had all been put away long ago, so Zhu Zhanji naturally did not look at them one by one.
Zhu Zhanji uttered a perplexed "oh" and had Princess Yongqing's birthday gift presented. It turned out to be a scroll. Wang Jin and another young eunuch carefully unfolded it before Zhu Zhanji. It contained a painting of immortals, depicting at least fifty or sixty of them, including a goddess, both graceful and majestic. The painting was filled with numerous, small figures, each with a distinct expression and attire, demonstrating the immense care and attention that went into preparing this gift.
Zhu Zhanji saw that some of the brushstrokes on the painting were childish, while others were sophisticated. He knew that this painting was not completed by Zhu Youtong alone. He did not expose his mistake, but just smiled and said, "Not bad, not bad. Tongtong is indeed gifted. This immortal is painted vividly."
Zhu Youtong stood up proudly and introduced generously: "Some of the immortals above were painted by me, and some were painted by my mother, but the colors were chosen by my sister and me! The colors chosen by my sister are all beautiful!"
Zhu Zhanji smiled and said, "Then Daddy will have to think carefully about how to reward you, mother and daughter."
Hu Shanxiang quickly stood up and said, "This is a gift for Your Majesty, why do I need Your Majesty's reward?"
"Rewards should be given for merit, and punishments should be given for fault. Only when rewards and punishments are clearly defined can there be law and order." Zhu Zhanji waved his hand to signal Hu Shanxiang to sit down, and then he said to Zhu Youtong, "Why don't you see your sister?"
Wang Jingang hurriedly had the scroll put away and said with a smile, "Your Majesty, the princess is already in the palace."
Without the scroll in front of him, Zhu Zhanji saw that his daughter was already standing in the hall. Just looking at her clothes, Zhu Zhanji couldn't help but show a look of surprise like everyone else.
Zhu Yuhuan was dressed like a fairy in a painting, with a cinnabar mole between her eyebrows and her hair styled in a high bun, imitating the ancient style of a fairy with two braids, adorned only with a few winter jasmine flowers. Her red dress and blue skirt, feathered cape, and knee-length skirt, were all perfectly fitted. She wore a golden locket at her chest, and a necklace of rings and pendants dangled from her waist, occasionally tinkling. Adding to the glint of her colorful silk beads, she exuded a graceful and gorgeous demeanor. If there was a difference from the painting, it was the two long swords Zhu Yuhuan held in her hands.
As soon as the band struck up, Zhu Yuhuan struck a sword flower. This performance was unlike the usual banquet music; it was sonorous, powerful, and passionate. Zhu Yuhuan followed the drum beats, his movements flowing and graceful yet commanding. The more rapid the music, the more constant the sword flashes and afterimages swirled throughout the hall. The swords danced like silver snakes, swooping down like meteors, stirring even those unfamiliar with swordsmanship. Not to mention her flowing dress; her every movement sent the hem of her skirt swirling like clouds, giving her a certain air of immortality.
When the song ended, Zhu Yuhuan put away her sword. Only a few strands of hair remained on her cheeks, and her clothes were not a bit messy, which showed how skilled she was in this dance.
Zhu Yuhuan is usually a straightforward and efficient person, but today he is even more energetic than before, and everyone is stunned for a moment.
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