A smiling man's voice was heard: "Everyone, please keep your body straight. Today is the Queen's birthday, and it is also a family banquet. Please feel free to do so, don't be too formal."
Although the tone is very gentle, the person who said this is the emperor. Who dares to be really "casual"?
In the huge main hall, in addition to the concubines, the princes and princesses, and the people from Duke Dingguo's palace, there were at least thirty or forty people. If we also count the maids and eunuchs standing aside, there would be about sixty or seventy people.
.It was very lively with talking and laughing before, but when the emperor came in, it suddenly became quiet.
The concubines could not say anything at will, but they all looked at the emperor.
Ye Qinglan took advantage of the action of standing up and quickly looked up.
A man wearing a shining dragon robe immediately caught his eye. The most noble man in the Western Song Dynasty was nearly fifty years old, of medium height, not too tall, but he had a strong aura and deep and bright eyes, which made people dare not look straight.
Visual appearance is secondary.
Ye Qinglan didn't dare to stare and quickly withdrew his gaze.
After the emperor sat down, he chatted cordially with Duke Ding and his wife. On such an occasion, even Gu Xinian had no chance to interrupt, let alone Ye Qinglan and Gu Xiyu. What they had to do was to be honest.
Just stand upright and look like a decent and dignified lady.
Queen Gu was naturally in a very good mood at this time. The emperor valued her natal family so much and gave her a lot of dignity. As a queen, she was naturally full of face.
Concubine Zheng sitting beside her had a smile on her face, but a hint of gloom quickly flashed through her eyes.
She entered the palace a few years later than Queen Gu, but she was very ambitious. When the prince was two years old, she gave birth to the third prince. Over the years, she has been prosperous in the harem, competing with Queen Gu, and fighting openly and secretly. In recent years, she has been fighting openly and secretly.
Over the years, due to the discord between the third prince and the prince in the court, she and Queen Gu barely maintained a superficial harmony, but in fact they were trying their best to overpower each other.
This time, it was Empress Gu's birthday. The emperor specially allowed everyone from the Dingguo Palace to enter the palace. This was a supreme honor. The joy in the corners of Empress Gu's eyes and brows was extremely dazzling in the eyes of Concubine Zheng.
However, no matter how unhappy she felt, she would never ask for trouble by talking too much at this time. The prince was mediocre in talent and addicted to women. On the other hand, her son was shrewd, capable, smooth in dealing with things, and was much more popular than the prince...
…
Concubine Zheng thought so, and the smile on her face suddenly deepened a lot.
Queen Gu had been paying attention to Concubine Zheng's every move from the corner of her eyes, and when she saw her smiling deeply, she couldn't help but snorted secretly in her heart. Concubine Zheng has been paying more attention to her son than her mother in recent years, because the third prince has won the favor of the emperor. Along with Concubine Zheng
Her status has also risen with the tide. When she is proud of herself, she will inevitably have some thoughts that she shouldn't have. However, with her here, the ideas of Concubine Zheng and the third prince will never succeed...
Queen Gu's eyes flashed slightly, and she calmly considered the countermeasures.
The luncheon started soon.
The emperor led the princes and princes to sit together. On the other side, Queen Gu was naturally the leader. Five tables were set up in total. When dining in the palace, the seating position is very particular. Those who can sit at the same table with Queen Gu.
There were only Mrs. Sun and Mrs. Zheng. Although Concubine Zheng was a noble concubine, she did not have the qualifications, so she could only sit with several other concubines of higher rank. The concubines of lower rank automatically sat together.
The Crown Princess Mo was sitting at the same table as the third imperial concubine Luo Miaoyin. Shen Qiuyu was just a concubine of the Crown Prince and had no qualifications to attend. However, the Crown Prince doted on her very much and brought her into the palace specially. At this time, Shen Qiuyu naturally sat next to the Princess Mo side of the body.
Ye Qinglan and Gu Xiyu were led by the daughter-in-law and sat down with the two little princesses in the palace.
The two princesses are still young, about seven or eight years old. They basically have nothing in common with them, which saves them the trouble of socializing and entertaining.
The dishes in the palace are very exquisite, the presentation is excellent, and the taste is naturally first-class.
Ye Qinglan had already learned how to eat well. Although she ate politely, her movements were very neat. In a short time, her stomach was mostly full. Gu Xiyu had no appetite, so she stopped using her chopsticks after only eating a few mouthfuls.
Ye Qinglan had almost finished eating and began to look at the actions of the people at the next table.
Mo and Luo Miaoyin had already stopped using their chopsticks and were muttering something in a low voice. They looked very friendly. Shen Qiuyu sat quietly aside, with almost no chance to interrupt.
I don’t know what Shen Qiuyu and Gu Xinian said after she and Gu Xiyu left. Shen Qiuyu didn’t come over until the luncheon was about to begin. Also appearing with him was the Crown Prince. However, Mrs. Mo didn’t say a word. I asked a lot of questions, and even smiled and said a few words of concern.
To be a royal daughter-in-law, you really have a lot of skills.
Ye Qinglan's eyes paused for a moment on Shen Qiuyu's face, and then moved to Luo Miaoyin's face.
This Luo Miaoyin's appearance is not outstanding at first glance, but now that she takes a closer look, she feels that she is very attractive. She has a gentle and dignified smile, and she is the kind of virtuous woman no matter how you look at it. Why didn't Gu Xinian marry her like in his previous life? ?
"What have you been looking at her for?" Gu Xiyu noticed Ye Qinglan's absent-mindedness and asked in a low voice.
Ye Qinglan smiled tentatively and said: "I have heard of her name a long time ago, but today is the first time I see her, so I am inevitably a little curious. By the way, Cousin Xiyu, have you ever heard Cousin Gu mention her?"
Gu Xiyu was stunned and asked in confusion: "Why does the elder brother mention her?" This question is very strange.
After Shen Qiuyu got married, Gu Xinian fell ill. When he woke up, he seemed like a different person. He never mentioned any woman, including Shen Qiuyu. As for Luo Miaoyin, he never mentioned it. Mentioned it.
Ye Qinglan coughed and replied vaguely: "Nothing, just asking."
Gu Xinian was so cold and heartless that he didn't even mention his wife in his previous life. I don't know what happened in the previous life that made the couple feel like strangers in this life... It doesn't seem appropriate to say this. At least, Luo Miaoyin I still have some feelings for Gu Xinian...
Strange, why does she keep thinking about the past between Gu Xinian and Luo Miaoyin?
Ye Qinglan took a deep breath and pushed the chaotic thoughts out of her mind.
After the luncheon, everyone moved back to the flower hall behind the main hall. As soon as Gu Xiyu entered the flower hall, she felt two scorching eyes staring closely at her.
Gu Xiyu's heart tightened and she glanced over secretly.
The young man who was staring at her closely was Shen Changan who she met by chance in the garden.
He is so rude. Don't you know that it is rude to stare at a girl who has not yet left the court? Gu Xiyu thought to herself and quickly looked away.
The palace maids were busy serving tea and various fruits, and then the sound of silk and bamboo music sounded, and a group of singers and dancers came out gracefully.
After Ye Qinglan sat down with Gu Xiyu, she noticed the man with shining eyes diagonally across from her. She couldn't help but laugh in a low voice: "Cousin Xiyu, look, Shen Changan has been staring at you!" It's obvious that Shen Changan has been staring at you! There were so many beautiful singers and dancers, but Shen Changan could only stare at Gu Xiyu non-stop.
"Young disciple!" Gu Xiyu uttered three words angrily, and her pretty face became unusually tense.
Ye Qinglan burst into laughter. I have known Gu Xiyu for so long, and I have never seen her look so angry!
Gu Xiyu felt a little embarrassed by her smile, and two faint red clouds appeared on her white jade cheeks.
Shen Changan, who had been staring at her, felt as if his heart was pounding so hard that it was about to burst out of his chest. On impulse, he took advantage of the break of the dancers to get up and walk over.
The emperor and queen were all there, as well as everyone from Duke Dingguo's palace. Shen Changan didn't dare to be too reckless. He quietly exited the flower hall, walked around in a big circle, and emerged from behind Gu Xiyu and Ye Qinglan.
"Sister Gu!"
A very sudden voice sounded from behind, anyone would be startled. What's more, Gu Xiyu has never been a brave person, so she shrank reflexively.
Ye Qinglan took Gu Xiyu's hand without thinking, gave her a comforting look, and then looked at the visitor dissatisfied: "Mr. Shen, why don't you just sit there and watch the singer dance, why are you coming to us?"
Shen Changan is notoriously bad-tempered and impatient. If another woman scolded him like this, it would be strange for him not to fall out. But this girl is the good sister of his sweetheart, so he has to put up with this idle talk. .A man is a real man, he can bend and stretch!
Shen Chang'an comforted himself in his heart, and then laughed: "I was rude to Sister Gu in the garden before, and now I come here to apologize to Sister Gu." He said "Sister Gu" in a very affectionate manner.
You are really thick-skinned!
Ye Qinglan teased with a half-smile but not a smile: "Mr. Shen, are we familiar with you? If I remember correctly, we just met you for the first time today! I'm afraid it's not appropriate to call me sister Gu!"
Shen Changan's face had already been developed in his youth, and he had been in the military camp for several years. He didn't take this indifferent sarcasm to heart at all, and grinned: "This is the first time we met this morning, This is the second time now. We are already familiar with each other. What’s more, Gu Xinian and I have known each other before, so it’s not an exaggeration to call her Sister Gu.”
If it weren't for the inappropriate timing and location, Ye Qinglan would really want to cheer for Shen Changan!
This is what you have to do when chasing girls. You have to approach them shamelessly before talking to them. There is truth in the saying that a strong girl is afraid of stalking a man.
It's a pity that she has to stand by Gu Xiyu's side now. Gu Xinian has repeatedly warned that Shen Chang'an must not get even closer to Gu Xiyu. She can only say with a straight face: "Cousin Xiyu, don't you?" I'm used to meeting and talking to men. If Mr. Shen doesn't want to make cousin Xiyu unhappy, he'd better respect himself."
What is self-respect? He has not known what these two words mean since he was three years old. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
