allonlinenovel Chapter 280 Flower Appreciation Banquet
Chapter 280 Flower Appreciation Banquet
Emperor Jing'an's affection for Zhao Yi had reached an extreme level, without any limits.
Just because he was Empress Yuanrong's nephew, Emperor Jing'an couldn't have done that, could he?
Consort Ling once suspected that Zhao Yi was Emperor Jing'an's biological son.
However, for the Duke's mansion to willingly raise Zhao Yi, it would be impossible without the Duke's blood flowing through Zhao Yi's veins.
Thinking of this, Consort Ling dismissed her suspicions.
Empress Yuanrong could not possibly have given birth to a child.
A palace maid asked, "Your Highness, will dinner be served according to the menu you prepared?"
Consort Ling's eyes suddenly turned cold. The scene in the Taiji Hall flashed through her mind, and a feeling of suffocation surged in her chest.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the humiliation in her heart, glanced at the palace maid, and said calmly, "Since His Majesty is not coming to Yanxiang Palace today, everything will remain the same."
The palace maid felt a chill run down her spine from that glance and retreated tremblingly.
Consort Ling's gaze swept over the palace's layout, every corner of which was arranged according to her former bedroom.
Empress Yuanrong died in childbirth that year.
In order to gain Emperor Jing'an's pity, she deliberately created the illusion of a difficult childbirth during her own delivery.
Having just experienced the tragedy of Empress Yuanrong, Emperor Jing'an felt even more pity for her when he saw her stepping into the gates of hell.
Especially after she successfully gave birth to the eldest prince, Emperor Jing'an smiled when he saw the child, as if the arrival of this child had a special meaning for him.
Emperor Jing'an not only rewarded her handsomely, but also bestowed upon her the Yanxiang Palace.
She wanted to regain Emperor Jing'an's favor, so today she specially instructed the palace maids to rearrange the palace, hoping that Emperor Jing'an would see a familiar scene, remember what happened back then, and feel some pity for her.
Consort Ling suddenly came to her senses after thinking about everything she had suffered in the Taiji Palace.
Over the years, she used the favor and relics of Empress Yuanrong to easily gain the favor of Emperor Jing'an, which led her into a dead end.
She was single-mindedly focused on winning over Emperor Jing'an's heart and gaining the power she desired.
Now she finally understood that even if Emperor Jing'an was temporarily favoring her, it was only because of Empress Yuanrong, and this favor was only temporary.
Because next time she will have to find another way to please Emperor Jing'an in order to gain even a little bit of pity.
For example, when Prince Yu committed a crime, Emperor Jing'an withdrew all his favors towards her.
Rather than pinning all their hopes on the favor of Emperor Jing'an, they should strive to achieve their goals through their own efforts.
After Consort Ling understood, she instructed Huichun, who was standing beside her, "Remove everything from the palace and rearrange it according to my preferences."
Huichun was taken aback: "All of them?"
"All of them." Consort Ling picked up the teacup on the small table, lowered her eyes, and took a small sip. "When a man's heart hardens, it's harder than a rock. If I keep clinging to him, it will only annoy him."
After watching it for a long time, she herself got tired of it and tired of it.
But this method worked.
Now that all of this is useless, what's the point of keeping it?
Hui Chun also recalled Consort Ling's experience in the Taiji Hall and cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, His Majesty wants to marry Princess Guangning to His Highness. What should we do?"
"I will naturally go along with His Majesty's wishes." Consort Ling slightly raised the corners of her lips: "The chrysanthemums I have carefully cultivated have bloomed. Go and invite Princess Guangning to the palace to admire the flowers."
Hui Chun had served Consort Ling for many years and knew her personality well. She knew that Consort Ling would not allow Princess Guangning to marry Prince Yu.
Whether Princess Guangning will marry Prince Yu or not depends on this flower-viewing banquet.
Sure enough, Hui Chun heard Consort Ling continue, "Invite the wives of officials of the third rank and above to the palace for a banquet; the more people, the more lively it will be."
Hui Chun should come down.
Consort Ling put down her teacup and said quietly, "We must ensure that the Duchess of the Duke's Mansion and Qi Chuyin, the granddaughter of General Qi, enter the palace."
Although Hui Chun was somewhat confused and didn't understand why Consort Ling emphasized inviting Qi Chuyin, she knew Consort Ling well enough to know that it must be for a reason.
Hui Chun composed herself and left the main hall to begin preparations.
-
Shen Qingtan returned from the palace, exhausted, and lay down on the daybed.
Seeing that she didn't look well, Zhao Yi couldn't help but think of how she had just experienced her first sexual encounter last night, and how she had returned to the Duke's Mansion from Xishan early this morning and then rushed to the palace.
She sat in the palace for an hour or two without getting a proper rest; she must have been exhausted.
Zhao Yi turned Shen Qingtan over so that she was lying face down on the couch and massaged her lower back.
Shen Qingtan's back was stiff from sitting for so long. The man massaged her gently, and the soreness dissipated, allowing her body to gradually relax.
"Tingxue said Pei Wuyan was beaten. Just find any excuse to send him away from the manor." Shen Qingtan said drowsily, "Prince Yu is a smart man. Once Pei Wuyan is expelled, he will naturally discard this pawn. Everyone in the capital is shrewd and no one will value Pei Wuyan."
After all, Pei Wuyan came to the capital under the guise of visiting relatives, but was driven out of the mansion by his relatives. Anyone with eyes could guess that he had offended the Duke's mansion.
Why would I offend the Duke's mansion for Pei Wuyan's sake?
“Unless Pei Wuyan is exceptionally talented, or someone can profit from him… unfortunately, he has neither.” Shen Qingtan turned over and said sleepily, “Maybe we can use Pei Wuyan as bait.”
"I'll take care of it." Zhao Yi pulled a thin blanket over her. "You should get some sleep."
Shen Qingtan was somewhat drowsy. After hearing Zhao Yi's words, she closed her eyes, hugged the thin blanket, and fell asleep.
In a daze, I heard Liuyue and Tingxue talking.
Shen Qingtan looked at the two of them sleepily, her voice tinged with laziness: "What time is it?"
"It's the hour of Xu (7-9 PM)." Liu Yue came to the bedside and helped Shen Qingtan sit up: "You've been sleeping for almost two hours."
Shen Qingtan held her dizzy head. The longer she slept, the more groggy she became, and the more uncomfortable she felt.
Tingxue handed over a glass of warm water.
Shen Qingtan drank a few sips of water from her hand to wake herself up: "You were just talking about the palace, what happened in the palace?"
"Consort Ling has sent someone to invite you to the palace for a flower viewing banquet." Liu Yue handed Shen Qingtan a gold-flecked invitation card: "The date is set for three days from now."
Shen Qingtan glanced at the post: "The Imperial Concubine is hosting a gathering...who will be attending?"
"The wives and relatives of officials of the third rank or above," Liu Yue said solemnly. "And Princess Guangning as well."
Shen Qingtan understood; this flower-viewing banquet was prepared for Princess Guangning.
-
A few days passed in the blink of an eye.
On the day of the flower viewing banquet, Shen Qingtan dressed up specially and took a carriage to the palace.
When the carriage arrived at the palace gate, Liuyue got off first and moved a wooden ladder to place it.
As Shen Qingtan stepped out of her carriage, she saw a luxurious carriage parked beside hers. Looking at the sign on the carriage, she recognized it as the carriage of Princess Guangning of Northern Qi.