Chaos in the Chu Palace

Chapter 85 Chrysanthemum crab roe (2)
As soon as she finished speaking, the empresses of several palaces laughed coaxingly.Mrs. Liu Guo couldn't help it either, and scolded with a smile: "You girl, you usually see you are gentle and gentle, why are you so naughty today, ouch, I laughed to death..."

Ouyang Ruo backed away with a smile, not annoyed, touched her eight-month-old belly, and said no more.Mrs. Liu Guo did things neatly, and decided on the time and place in a few clicks.

Seeing that they had made arrangements, Ouyang Ruo waited until they had all retreated before returning to "Yunxiang Palace".

There were golden chrysanthemums on both sides of the road, very bright and eye-catching. Ouyang Ruo became interested when he smelled the fragrance of chrysanthemums floating in the air, so he asked the maid to pick some, picked some good ones, and made flower ointment as usual.

When she arrived at the palace, Wan Hui saw her coming, so she hurriedly waited on her.Ouyang Ruo told her what Mrs. Liu Guo meant.Wan Hui frowned and said: "Your Majesty, I don't want to go, there is never a good banquet, and what if..."

She spoke halfway and then stopped, Ouyang Ruo looked up and saw that a few court ladies came in to serve.

Ouyang Ruo also let them serve.

When they retreated, Wan Hui continued: "Besides, if the empress goes to the banquet, if she is not used to eating, wouldn't it be more cumbersome? According to slaves, it is better to have less things than to have more things."

Ouyang Ruo thought about it too, now that she is eight months pregnant, it would not be worthwhile if something happened, so she hesitated and said: "What should I do? If not, if Mrs. Liu Guo thinks that I am taking Joe, After all, this is the first time she has held a banquet in the harem, and if she doesn't go, it will really be dishonoring her. It will be bad if she remembers us again because of this matter. "

Wan Hui also sighed, and could only say: "Then it's enough for the maidservant to stay with the empress for a while, and the maidservant will take a few bites at that time, then leave. The slaveservant will prepare a few dishes to bring over, and the ones at the banquet will not suit my appetite." Don't be afraid..." She waited to say more.

Ouyang Ruo let out a sharp "ah".Wan Hui was taken aback, and quickly said: "What's wrong with your mother? Is there something uncomfortable? Do you want to call the imperial doctor to see?"

Ouyang Ruo collected himself, waved his hands, and said as if thinking of something: "It's nothing, aunt, I have thought of a way to try to find out who is Mrs. Liu Guo's eyeliner in our palace." Hui Er said a few words.

After hearing this, Wan Hui was both worried and happy: "What your mother said is very good, what if that person doesn't move? Didn't we cast the net for nothing? Besides, if Mrs. Liu Guo used other methods to deal with your mother, we will It’s also impossible to guard against.”

Ouyang Ruo smiled and said: "Don't be afraid, she has always been cautious. If something happens to the palace in her place, the emperor will be the first to ask her to blame. She will not touch this bad luck."

Wan Hui nodded and acted according to plan.

On that day, it was the evening of the first day of August. Ouyang Ruo dressed up early, wearing a long dress of smoky blue embroidered with hundreds of flowers and dark patterns, and a light-colored gauze of the same color. Usually, it's just a bulge in the abdomen, which adds a bit of beauty in pregnancy, and the lightness and etherealness of the past are gone.

When Ouyang Ruo went out of the inner room, Wan Hui carried a basket of food boxes and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, this time I'm going, the servants are afraid that your Majesty's appetite won't suit you, so I specially prepared a lot of side dishes, and your Majesty will also take them with you?"

Ouyang Ruo opened it and looked, and found that they were all his favorite food. He raised his head and smiled and said, "My aunt has a heart, but don't let Mrs. Liu Guo see this food box. If you don't know, you may think that this palace dislikes her food. Woolen cloth."

Wanhui closed the food box with a smile and said, "Where is it? It's just that the mother is picky during pregnancy. If she is not used to eating, she is not hungry. The mother must not be hungry at this time."

Ouyang Ruo nodded, looked at the sky, and then went out.

Wan Hui made the arrangements properly, and there were three or four court ladies behind her, all of whom were old people who served Ouyang Ruo on weekdays.Ouyang Ruo glanced at them, and said to Wan Hui, "You can see clearly. Auntie, those people, pay more attention."

Wan Hui nodded and made a comparison: "Your servant knows."

The group of people walked slowly towards the Palace of Yanxi Palace.

When they arrived at Yanxi Palace, Ouyang Ruo was carefully supported by Wan Hui and walked in.I saw Mrs. Liu Guo's palace servants lined up on both sides of the palace gate.When they saw Ouyang Ruo coming, the one who led the way, the one who ran errands to report, and the one who helped to carry things, were very orderly, with neat heads and faces, and it could be seen that Mrs. Liu Guo was well admonished.

Ouyang Ruo was first led into a large warm pavilion, where the concubines who came early sat, all dressed up as charmingly as in spring, and they all put on thin shirts to take advantage of the heat of the last few days of late summer.Ouyang Ruo went up to see the ceremony one by one, and the concubines saw her humble attitude, although they were jealous that she was pregnant, they didn't feel too embarrassed, and they all returned the ceremony one by one.

Ouyang Ruo's beautiful eyes were like waves, she turned around and did not see Mrs. Liu Guo, so she went to Zhang Fang and sat down beside Zhang Xiaoyi, and asked with a smile, "Can Zhang Xiaoyi see where Mrs. Liu Guo has gone?"

Zhang Fang is wearing a goose yellow pleated dress embroidered with marigolds today. She is thin and fair complexion. This goose yellow suits her very well, showing a bit of a girlish and naive attitude.The chrysanthemums on the long skirt are also very suitable for the occasion.

Seeing Ouyang Ruo's inquiry, she smiled quickly and said: "My maidservant saw that Mrs. Liu Guo was busy in the back garden. She thinks this banquet is very important to her. She will do everything by herself."

Ouyang Ruo nodded, looked at her attire and said with a soft smile, "Zhang Xiaoyi is very beautifully dressed today. If the emperor sees it, he will definitely like it."

Zhang Fang's face was reddish, she glanced at Ouyang Ruo's stomach, then lowered her head and said, "How can a concubine be blessed with the blessing of Empress Rou Fangyi?" Ouyang Ruo patted her hand lightly, and her hand became warmer and warmer. It made Zhang Fang's hands cold.

Zhang Fang looked up at her, but seeing Ouyang Ruo's gentle smile like a spring breeze, her heart moved slightly, and she stopped talking.

After a while, all the concubines and masters of the palaces came over.There was so much space in the room that there was almost no room to sit, so the maids and nurses had to stay outside.

Everyone just felt strange that Mrs. Liu Guo hadn't come yet.

Just as he was talking, Mrs. Liu Guo came late. Ouyang Ruo looked up. She was wearing a six-panel long dress with alizarin red embroidered birds competing for spring, and a pale gold gauze with gold trim. Her neck is elegant and fair, and her crisp breasts are set off by this red color, which brings a touch of charm to her usual gentleness.

She wore a spirit snake bun on her head, and wrapped it up with a very thin gold thread. Next to her were two golden phoenixes holding pearls in her hair, and several long green hairpins inlaid with cat's eyes.Looking from a distance, she is very majestic, but Ouyang Ruo looked at it coldly, she looks like a queen.

When she saw several mature concubines, she also frowned slightly, knowing that they must be a little unhappy, but now that the empress is not here, and the harem respects the Liu family, naturally no one dares to say anything.

Mrs. Liu Guo walked in with a smile, and all the concubines saluted her together, and Ouyang Ruo also supported her body and gave her a little blessing.Mrs. Liu Guo waited for everyone to get up before she hurriedly smiled and said: "Get up, I have put a lot of thought into this banquet, but I was still busy just now, and I really shouldn't have made you sisters wait for a long time. Come on Come, let's all sit with me." She said as she walked out first.

Ouyang Ruo slowly followed behind, and Zhang Fang saw that she was inconvenient to move, so she followed her and helped her.Ouyang Ruo glanced at her briefly, and said with a smile, "Thank you Zhang Xiaoyi."

Zhang Fang smiled slightly, but said nothing.

Everyone went with Mrs. Liu Guo, and Ouyang Ruo followed behind, but they saw that they were not going to the main hall, but to the garden of "Yanxi Palace".

Ouyang Ruo was puzzled, Zhang Fang suddenly said, "Go to the garden to have wine? It's a good idea."

Only then did Ouyang Ruo wake up.Sure enough, following the rounds and eight turns of the palace people, it suddenly became clear in a blink of an eye, and saw that the place where the original rockery pool had been moved, and only a large open space was vacated.

The open space is full of chrysanthemums of various colors, winding back and forth, and the flowers are used to cut small open spaces of different sizes. The top is paved with wooden boards, and then there are mats and wine tables. People sit on it, surrounded by people. It is really a pleasure to enjoy flowers while eating wine.Ouyang Ruo carefully looked at these precious chrysanthemums, which seemed to have been moved in the past few days.I couldn't help but sigh in my heart that Mrs. Liu Guo acted quickly.

The original stone paths were also dismantled, and only crystal clear and round cobblestones were used to pave the path for two people to walk through, winding and extending to various seats.

Lanterns are hung high on all sides, and many lanterns are hung with thin threads on the heads. From a distance, it looks like a galaxy of stars, shining like daytime.

The concubines just sighed blindly.Ouyang Ruo also praised Mrs. Liu Guo for her ingenuity in her heart.Zhang Fang suddenly said in a soft voice: "I don't know how much money and labor will be spent to renovate the garden in a few days?"

Upon hearing this, Ouyang Ruo looked at her slightly sideways, and sure enough, she saw her frowning slightly.Ouyang Ruo knew that her parents passed away since she was a child, and she and her elder brother Zhang Qiu depended on each other for life. Although they belonged to a family, but their family was in decline, they must have experienced a lot of hardships, so they sighed.

Ouyang Ruo's heart moved slightly, but he just pretended not to hear it.Seeing that the goal of surprising everyone had been achieved, Mrs. Liu Guo showed pride on her face.Lead the way first and lead all the concubines to the table.

The banquet is divided into four tables, the main table is Mrs. Liu Guo and the concubines who used to be in the Hou Mansion.The rest of the tables are concubines from other palaces with smaller positions.On the left of Ouyang Ruo is Mrs. Xu. She has a slightly sarcastic expression on her face, but she is too willing to talk too much.Seeing that Ouyang Ruo was at peace, she opened her mouth and said in a low voice: "There are no tigers in the mountains, and monkeys are kings. Look at her shaking today."

Ouyang Ruo watched the waiter next to him fill a glass of water and wine for her, and then smiled and said: "Xu Xiuyuan, don't underestimate this monkey, she is more genuine than a tiger. Be careful not to be bitten by a tiger, and fall headlong on this monkey." hand."

Xu snorted and didn't speak.Ouyang Ruo raised his head slightly, and saw that Mrs. Lin also had an expression of being overwhelmed.She laughed secretly in her heart, Mrs. Liu Guo was beautiful on the surface, but in fact she had already made many enemies in the harem.

Mrs. Liu Guo saw that all the concubines were seated, she stood up and toasted to pray to the emperor and the queen's happiness and health.Everyone raised a glass with her.Ouyang Ruo's lips were slightly stained with wine, and when he looked up, he saw Mrs. Liu Guo was in high spirits, and the golden gauze on her body reflected the light, shining golden light. Among them, she was the most dazzling, with a hair on her head. The root of the phoenix is ​​swaying in golden steps, shaking under the lamp, like a real phoenix, about to fly into the sky.

The so-called fire cooking oil is nothing more than icing on the cake.Ouyang Ruo sighed slightly, Madam Liu Guo is now the most honorable moment in her life.

After everyone prayed, Mrs. Liu Guo clapped her hands lightly, and saw the maids filing in, each holding a gold plate, the aroma of the dishes wafted out, combined with the fragrance of chrysanthemums all over the garden, it was very attractive.

After waiting for half a day, everyone was already hungry, and the dishes were delicious, so they were naturally happy to open their chopsticks.Ouyang Ruo was already half full before he came, so he was naturally not hungry, so he ate slowly.

Mrs. Liu Guo laughed and said Yan Yan, many young masters came forward to flatter and toast, she would not refuse anyone who came, and after a while, a blush appeared on her face.

After drinking for three rounds, a dish of steamed crabs was served. Everyone was waiting for this dish, so they couldn't help complaining that it was late.Mrs. Liu Guo said with a smile: "I know that you sisters are slanderous. Although this crab is good, it is cold in nature. If you eat too much, you will get a rash, so I will serve other dishes first, and wait for everyone to drink wine before serving. , otherwise don’t blame me if all of you have stomach problems.”

Only then did the concubines understand, and they all praised Mrs. Liu Guo for her carefulness.While everyone was talking, a servant trotted over from a distance and whispered a few words in Mrs. Liu Guo's ear.

Mrs. Liu Guo was overjoyed, and hurriedly followed her out.

Seeing her leave the table, everyone guessed who came.

After a while, Mrs. Liu Guo came with the emperor, and several people followed behind the emperor.

The concubines were shocked and hurriedly left the table to bow down. Ouyang Ruo was heavy but had no choice but to bow down respectfully. Zhang Fang and Zhang Xiaoyi beside her saw it and hurriedly helped her.

Ouyang Ruo smiled gratefully at her.At this time, the emperor had already approached, and everyone hurriedly shouted long live.Chu Huotian approached and said with a smile: "Get up, this is a family banquet, there is no need to be formal."

Everyone got up, and Ouyang Ruo got up slowly, supported by Zhang Fangyi.

Chu Huotian scanned the faces of the crowd, stopped on Ouyang Ruo, smiled slightly, and said, "Ruo'er, come here and sit with me."

Ouyang Ruo felt that everyone's eyes were shooting at him, so he had no choice but to bow his head and bless him: "My concubine, thank the emperor Long En." After finishing speaking, he went forward.

Seeing this, Mrs. Liu Guo hurriedly supported Ouyang Ruo and led her to Chu Huotian's right head and said with a smile: "The emperor loves sister Ouyang, and all the ministers and concubines are jealous."

Chu Huotian only smiled faintly: "She is inconvenient, so naturally she needs to take care of her more, Ruyu, why are you jealous?" Mrs. Liu Guo gradually smiled when she heard him call her boudoir name with a gentle face.

Chu Huotian said softly to Mrs. Liu Guo: "Today, I just left three of this year's No. [-] picks to enter the palace to enjoy the chrysanthemums. I heard that you have a banquet here, so I brought them here. Just set up a few seats.

Mrs. Liu Guo quickly said yes, and hurriedly asked the palace servants to prepare.He also ordered singing and dancing to dance on the temporary small stage in front of him.For a while, there was singing and dancing, and the banquet became lively again.

Ouyang Ruo is also very curious about who this year's champion is.Chu Huotian seemed to know what she was thinking, and smiled in her ear: "I am really happy these few days, I finally found a stunning talent, and I don't have to worry about no one to help me anymore. Ruo I must have seen him too."

Ouyang Ruo said with a smile: "The emperor likes to let his concubines guess, but his concubines don't guess, and they will see later." Chu Huotian just smiled lightly and remained silent.

Ouyang Ruo looked outside, and saw palace people holding palace lanterns, brightly lit, winding like fire snakes, those people gradually approached, and the first one was a red robe and black gauze double-winged hat, with star-like eyes and a romantic attitude. The fiery red robe was worn on his body, jumping like a flame like a demon, and against the elegance of his whole body, people couldn't take their eyes off it.

Ouyang Ruo's eyelids twitched when he saw it, and he quickly lowered his head.

The man came forward with a smile on his face, bowed to Chu Huotian and said: "Thanks to the emperor's grace, the new champion Cha Boqing and several fellow Jinshi scholars pay respects to all the ladies, and wish all the ladies, eternal youth, happiness and health."

The concubines seldom saw foreign ministers, and now that Chu Huotian brought these three people here, it can be seen how satisfied the emperor is with them.They laughed and got up to salute the three of them.

Seeing him smiling happily, Ouyang Ruo was heartbroken and turned her head as if she didn't see him.

Chu Huotian didn't check, just smiled and said: "Then the three of you can sit beside me." Ouyang Ruo hurriedly bowed to retreat when she heard the words, Madam Liu Guo was very proud, thinking, even if she was favored again, Still can't sit still.Thinking about it, he asked the palace servants to arrange a seat for Ouyang Ruo.

Suddenly, Third Young Master Zha bowed deeply to Chu Huotian and said: "The emperor has a request. The empress Rou Fangyi is pregnant. If you retreat because of the reason, I really can't bear it." .And ask the emperor to let Rou Fangyi sit next to the emperor, and the ministers will accompany you to the next seat."

Chu Huotian was right when he thought about it, he looked at Ouyang Ruo with affection and said: "Yes, Rou Fangyi is not inferior to men in learning, and she has a lot of real opinions when we talk."

When Ouyang Ruo saw Chu Huotian's boast, everyone's eyes turned to him, and he hurriedly said with a smile: "The emperor has praised you absurdly. The concubine is a little girl. She can't understand state affairs at all. If the concubine has Liu Mrs. Guo is only as talented as she is. The emperor should let his concubine sit under Mrs. Liu Guo."

After Ouyang Ruo finished speaking, she hurriedly walked to Mrs. Liu Guo, who smiled and said: "Really, isn't it just the position, the emperor is hungry, let's eat first and then talk about state affairs."

She pulled Chu Huotian to talk about some good dishes in detail, she laughed like pearls, and everyone's attention was attracted to her again.Only then did Ouyang Ruo quietly breathe a sigh of relief.When she looked up, she saw Third Young Master Zha looking at her with a half-smile.Ouyang Ruo was slightly annoyed, and gave him a quiet look.Unexpectedly, he seemed happier.

Ouyang Ruo had something on her mind, picked up a few chopsticks, called Wan Hui over, and whispered a few words in her ear.Mrs. Liu Guo was careful and hurriedly asked what was the matter.

Ouyang Ruo smiled awkwardly: "The concubine wants to eat some appetizers, but I don't have a good appetite recently."

Mrs. Liu Guo raised her eyebrows, said oh, and said courteously: "Why don't I ask the palace people to prepare?"

Ouyang Ruo hurriedly said: "No need, the concubine has already asked the people in her palace to prepare it, just a few cold dishes. The concubine will be fine after eating a few chopsticks. It's no trouble."

Mrs. Liu Guo smiled when she heard the words: "Then, if Sister Ouyang manages it herself, I won't interfere much. Just ask what you want to eat."

Ouyang Ruo quickly agreed.

Wan Hui took several cold dishes and placed them in front of Ouyang Ruo one by one.Ouyang Ruo picked up a few chopsticks for everything, and while eating, he heard Chu Huotian continue to talk with the three of them.

The concubines below were restrained, so they didn't dare to talk and laugh loudly, only the three of them could be heard asking and answering with the emperor in the whole garden, chatting very vigorously.

Ouyang Ruo was eating when she suddenly heard a loud and clear voice saying to her: "Weichen would like to ask what kind of side dishes are in front of Empress Rou Fangyi. Seeing that the dishes are exquisite, I also want to go back and ask the cook at home to learn how to cook them." .”

Ouyang Ruo was taken aback for a moment, seeing that Third Young Master Zha got up and asked him respectfully.She was slightly annoyed, but she had to force a smile and said: "They are all snacks from Huadi. I was picky during pregnancy and wanted to eat home dishes, so I picked a few dishes and ordered the palace people to cook them."

Chu Huotian looked over at the prestige, looked at it, it was really exquisite, and laughed: "Zha Zhuangyuan may not know that Rou Fangyi is from Huadi, and her cooking skills are very good. Sometimes I feel that the royal chef in this palace Nothing compares to her."

Ouyang Ruo smiled modestly.Third Young Master Zha let out a groan, and continued to look at Ouyang Ruo. Ouyang Ruo had no choice but to say: "Today's banquet was prepared by Mrs. Liu Guo. These dishes in this palace are just appetizers. If Mr. Cha likes to study cooking skills. This palace Write a few good words to Mr. Zha’s cook some other day, and do as you want.”

Third Young Master Zha smiled slightly, bowed and said, "Thank you, Empress Rou Fangyi." Ouyang Ruo felt relieved.She sat for a while, then got up and quietly asked Mrs. Liu Guo for leave and left.

When he was leaving, he turned around and saw that Chu Huotian was still chatting with them with a focused expression.Ouyang Ruo had something on her mind, so she helped Wan Hui out of Yanxi Palace.

Wan Hui whispered a few words in her ear, Ouyang Ruo nodded, and was waiting to get on the chariot, when a person strode out.Ouyang Ruo didn't pay attention, but the man stood in front of her, bowed and said: "My minister Cha Boqing has taken the liberty to come here, please forgive me."

(End of this chapter)