The carriage galloped all the way to the palace. There were guards waiting at the palace gate. They took over from the coachman outside and drove the carriage with the two of them to the harem.
The venue for today's meeting was chosen to be in the harem, which also meant that not many outsiders would show up.
The outsiders also refer to those powerful ministers or eunuchs. I think the only people who will appear today are members of the royal family.
The atmosphere inside the carriage was really oppressive.
Ever since Chen Ruyi told Jiang Huan that they had entered the palace to discuss the marriage between Pang Manman and Chen Ruyi, Jiang Huan never said a word again.
She just stared at the uppers of her shoes, as if her whole body was focused on that pair of shoes.
Jiang Huan gently stroked the jade bracelet on his wrist. His whole mind was wandering, as if he couldn't exactly stay in one place.
Also, he changed the engagement contract privately. Although it was reasonable and the emperor agreed. However, after all, Pang Manman and Chen Ruyi still had a verbal engagement. If the Pang family insisted on cashing out this engagement, then he would also have to do so.
There was no choice but to let Pang Manman in.
What's more, Chen Ruyi is the future emperor and the proud son of heaven. It is not surprising that he has a harem of three thousand.
Jiang Huan, a person who wants to be a princess or even a queen in the future, shouldn't be so stingy.
However, Jiang Huan always felt that she felt particularly uncomfortable. For a moment, she didn't know whether the strange feeling was for Pang Manman or Chen Ruyi's intention to marry another woman and enter the Prince's Mansion.
Yes.
The carriage slowly stopped, and Chen Ruyi, who had been resting with her eyes closed, also opened her eyes.
He stretched out his hand to Jiang Huan and said seriously, "We're here."
The midday sun shines through the corner of the car curtain and shines on Chen Ruyi's profile, softening his outline a lot. It seems that most of the uneasiness and anxiety in Jiang Huan's heart have disappeared for no reason.
She raised a bright smile, put her hand on Chen Ruyi's palm, nodded and said, "Let's go."
This time the emperor chose the place where he urgently called for an interview, in the palace where Concubine Ru was originally.
After Concubine Ru's death, her palace was changed into a place where the emperor and the queen met their royal blood relatives.
Concubine Ru was extremely wealthy during her lifetime, and her palace was decorated with dazzling golden light. Even the bead curtains were made of luminous pearls. In the darkness, this bead curtain could illuminate this corner.
According to the maid who served Concubine Ru, the reason why the curtain was made of luminous beads was because Concubine Ru was afraid of the dark. If she didn't see the light at night, she would suffer from heart disease. Therefore, the emperor also specially approved it.
Yes, the bead curtain was strung together, which is why it still remains today.
Jiang Huan's eyes couldn't help but move to the bead curtain. These splendid decorations were quite comparable to those in the Prime Minister's Mansion.
From this point of view, the prince's residence is much more elegant.
Jiang Huan shook his head and whispered in Chen Ruyi's ear, "No matter how I look at it, I always think it's better in the Prince's Mansion. The smell of copper here is weird."
Chen Ruyi smiled lightly, but the smile disappeared in the next moment.
Jiang Huan followed his gaze and saw that those standing not far away looking at the two of them were the current Emperor Chen Yan and Queen Chen Su.
The two of them were not wearing dragon robes and phoenix crowns today, and they looked a little more approachable. Before waiting for the arrival of the prince and his wife, they were talking about everyday things, and they looked like an ordinary couple.
Already.
If this is not the imperial palace.
Jiang Huan knelt down and saluted respectfully, and Chen Ruyi also said hello with her before moving to the mahogany glazed table.
It's very cold outside today, but a lot of charcoal was lit inside the house. Although there was no smoke, it was already very warm inside, making people feel comfortable.
The palace maid stepped forward to serve Jiang Huan and take off her robe, then brought her salt water to rinse her mouth, and finally brought up the plates of pastries.
The palace originally served delicious old-fashioned pastries, but today, all the dishes on the table were new-style ice-skin pastries.
The skin is thin and soft, and the filling inside is also a whole piece of fruit pulp, paired with the high-quality newly brewed jam. When you take a bite, the pastry seems to split in your mouth. Jiang Huan couldn't help but smile after tasting it.
"It's fine if you like it. Du'er previously told the imperial chef who was preparing for the disaster relief meeting to prepare some new-style pastries. At first, I and the emperor were a little worried that you didn't like to eat them, but now it seems that they are useless worries.
"Chen Su smiled softly, as if she were a noble lady who cared about her mother, without any hint of the aggressiveness and hostility she had at the previous banquet.
She gave the order to the palace man, who then came closer with the teapot. The boiling hot tea was poured on the tea leaves. The fragrance of the tea overflowed, and Jiang Huan couldn't help but relax a little after smelling it.
From the moment she stepped into this room, she had a lingering sense of tension. Jiang Huan had always been unable to suppress that tension, but unexpectedly, it had subsided a lot now.
She squinted her eyes and took a sip of tea. The scalding heat flowed into her throat, and she finally calmed down completely.
"I came here today to discuss the marriage between Pang Manman, the legitimate daughter of the Pang family, and Ruyi." Chen Su saw Jiang Huan relax and got straight to the point.
Immediately afterwards, I saw two more figures coming in from the door.
The leader was Chen Du, who was dressed in fine clothes. His long hair was tied high. Before entering the house, he handed his bow and arrows to the eunuch. He also brushed off the mud from the soles of his shoes and entered the house covered in wind and frost.
Chen Du must have just returned from the training ground. The back of his hand was even roughly bandaged. There was blood seeping out of the coarse cloth. It was extremely painful just to look at it.
Jiang Huan couldn't help but take a second look at Chen Du's wounds, and was about to ask him to go see the imperial doctor first when he heard a delicate female voice coming from behind him, "It's best to take care of the injury on the Third Prince's hand!
This looks like a minor injury, if it was caused by inflammation, the hand would be rotten."
Pang Manman was dressed very delicately today. She wore a green coat, a lotus skirt of the same color, and those two little buns. It looked like Pang Manman was a smart little sister. How could she think that she was an unreasonable daughter?
The eldest lady's.
Pang Manman took out a bottle of golden sore medicine from her sleeve and thrust it into Chen Du's hand forcefully. She reminded, "Third prince, please remember to use it. This is the best golden sore medicine from the Pang family."
In the end, she still ran to the emperor's side childishly. First she said hello, and then she took Chen Yan's arm coquettishly.