The Concubine's Survival Manual

Chapter 215

When it was getting late, Seventh Lady had already dressed up. According to Mrs. Xu's instructions, she dressed festively but not too grandly to cater to the scale of the banquet tonight.Xu Fengjia is even more familiar with it, and she is ready to dress early.

The young couple went to Leshan Juli to meet Mrs. Tai, and then went to Qingpingyuan to show Mrs. Xu. It happened that Duke Pingguo was also talking to Mrs. Xu in Qingpingyuan, so we all went out together. Xu Fengjia rode a horse, and Mrs. Pingguo Taking a sedan chair, and Seventh Lady taking a car, a group of people went to the gate of the palace and passed the famous stabbing. Naturally, someone guided the male and female relatives to enter the venue separately.

Qin Niangzi entered the palace a few times, and she always circled the east and west palaces, but this time it was different. The palace people led her all the way to Xiyuan, where she could be seen faintly on the Taiye Pond, and several dragon boats were slowly sailing. The surface of the water is sparkling, reflecting the bright moon in the sky, and the countless colored lights on the shore, it really feels like a fairyland in Langyuan for a while.

The Seventh Lady stood by the pool, and happened to meet the Second Lady, and the two smiled and nodded at each other, and then joined hands on the small sampan and ferried to the dragon boat. After everyone saluted, the second lady brought the seventh lady into the second seat and took a seat.

One after another, relatives of the concubines in the palace came in a few more, and no married woman entered the arena. When Qin Niangzi watched carefully, she saw a young married woman beside the queen mother, so she knew it was the young lady of the Niu family, and there was another concubine Niu Shu. A middle-aged man with an arrogant look on his face, the second lady introduced to her in a low voice, "This is Concubine Niu Shu's mother, the Empress Dowager's sister-in-law."

Not long after, the queen took Sixth Lady into the dragon boat, followed by several beauties and Jieyu.All the servants hurriedly stood up and prostrated, and saluted each other with Jieyu and the beauties. Everyone also returned the salute or nodded according to their ranks. When they were seated one by one, it was already the beginning of the festivities. "It's rare to be happy this year. There are several happy events in the court. The first is that Empress Xiao'an will be crowned as the throne. The second is that the eldest son of the emperor will be appointed to the East Palace. The third is that Concubine Niu Shu is happy. It is the Mid-Autumn Festival in previous years. For those of you who are celebrating the festival at home, this year I will invite all my close friends to the palace for a banquet, it can be regarded as a shame for my old lady to come to please your praise!"

She is worthy of being a character on the scene, and what she says is humorous and dignified, without the slightest bit of royal pretensions.Everyone covered their mouths and laughed, and said one after another, "Where is it, there is such a happy event, it is the joy of our Zhantian family!"

Another person laughed and said, "I didn't expect Concubine Niu Shu to send good news again, good news, good news!"

The seventh lady and the second lady looked at each other, and they both saw the surprise in each other's eyes: Concubine Niu Shu's birth came without a sound, maybe it's only a few days since she was pregnant, at least the two of them didn't know the news.

Seventh Lady glanced at the concubine again, but seeing that the concubine was calm and relaxed, she couldn't help wondering.Looking at Liu Niangzi again, I saw that Liu Niangzi pursed her lips and smiled at her, but she was not arrogant or impetuous. She calmed down a little, and then smiled and raised her glass again, echoing Madam Niu's words, "Let's raise our glasses to congratulate Empress Xiao'an It must be sealed!"

It is indeed very decent for the Niu family to come to congratulate Mrs. Zhou for being named, and Qin Niangzi couldn't help but regret slightly: If I knew it earlier, I would have dragged Mrs. Tai to the place even if it was delayed. It couldn't be more appropriate.

Although Qin Niangzi also received palace banquets before, most of them were held during the New Year's Eve, which was stipulated by the rules of the Ministry of Etiquette, and it was just a story given according to the law. It was the first time for her to have such a small banquet with the nature of a family banquet. participate.The atmosphere was actually not solemn, and the wives were not too grandly dressed. They talked and laughed freely with each other, which looked like a banquet. It's just that the wives were a little more careful when they spoke.

Starting from the Queen, everyone toasted to the Queen Mother and the others in order. Because the Seventh Lady was the youngest one present, she was the last to go down to the ground to toast. The water waves are as vague as the sound of a fairy. When everyone looked at it, it turned out that across the water, there was a flower boat with a number of celestial maidens dancing in the air.

Even the Empress Dowager watched it for a while, and when she came back to her senses, she smiled and praised Liu Niangzi, "Concubine Ning is really talented, and she arranged it so well! Even an old clapper like me can see it."

Although Qin Niangzi knew well that the Empress Dowager was narrow-minded, but just looking at her words and deeds, she really couldn't see the real character of this person at all.

The sixth lady is still always charming and naive, "Ning Concubine also went to visit Taihu Lake with her parents when she was in the south of the Yangtze River, and saw a lot of romance on Taihu Lake. It can be seen that the country is rich and the people are strong, and the enjoyment of the common people, even us in the palace. Can't compare to it."

This is a coincidence, the praise is the prosperous age, the empress dowager and concubine can't help being overjoyed, even the empress is smiling. "Concubine Ning can really talk!"

Qin Niangzi thought of the fierce conflict between her and Xu Fengjia on the Taihu Lake back then, and she felt a sense of time for a while. She was out of her mind for a while, and when she saw the queen mother turned around, she bowed her head to toast the queen mother.The old man was still on the flower boat outside and drank carelessly, and Seventh Lady moved up to Concubine Xu and toasted her respectfully, "Auntie, please drink this cup."

Concubine Xu smiled and taught a five or six-year-old boy beside her, "Come, call me cousin."

Only then did Seven Lady realize that the concubine actually brought King An with her, and quickly untied the purse beside her. "We met for the first time, and my cousin sister-in-law doesn't have anything good to give you..."

The little boy blinked his big eyes, and looked at Concubine Xu timidly. Seeing Concubine Xu smiling and nodding, he took the purse, and said crisply, "Thank you, cousin."

Seventh Lady offered another toast to the Empress, and when she came to Concubine Niu Shu, Concubine Niu Shu said with a smile, "The elders don't dare to resign when they give you wine. Forgive me for favors, so I won't drink it tonight." Seventh Lady also smiled and nodded, Turned to Liu Niangzi.

This time, Qin Niangzi was taken aback.

Liu Niangzi put in a lot of effort to dress herself up today.

With her appearance, she can stand proudly above everyone even without makeup. Six Niangzi never pays attention to dressing up. Although she loves jewelry and makeup, she seldom watches her dress up seriously.Even in the draft, it is just a step-by-step process, and it is not outstanding when it comes to carvings and decorations.

Tonight, Seventh Lady found out that Sixth Lady also had such a city, and she was able to hide such a peerless appearance deep in her boudoir.It turned out that her eyebrows were embellished with powder and daisy, and her cheeks were covered with rose rouge, so she was so shockingly beautiful.

With her appearance, and after such careful makeup, she can be worthy of the four words of "overwhelming country and beautiful city", and only then can she be worthy of the flowers in the eyebrows and the golden hairpin in her hair.If she and herself were not sisters, Qin Niangzi would definitely praise her appearance.

When the eyes of the two met, the astonishment in her eyes was not concealed at all, and Liu Niangzi had already caught her eyes.

A smugness flashed in Liu Niangzi's eyes, and when she opened her mouth, she was still so innocent, "Seventh sister, why are you in a daze? Come, we get together a few times a year, just drink this cup to the brim."

Without waiting for Seventh Lady to answer, she raised her neck and cleared the wine in the glass, and two blushes suddenly lit up on her flower-like delicate face, and when Seventh Lady saw it, she couldn't help being a little jealous: Sixth Lady's beauty , in all her life, only Feng Jin can compete with her.

After the toast was over, the empress took the initiative to issue orders again, and everyone was very open, talking and laughing at everything, even Concubine Niu Shu drank two minutes of wine, Qin Niangzi saw it, and couldn't help frowning secretly: According to what she said You know, pregnant women are best not to drink alcohol, why Concubine Niu Shu...

At this time and this place, of course it is not suitable to ask this question, Qin Niangzi reluctantly suppressed the doubts in her heart, laughed and played with everyone.Not long after, someone shouted again, "The emperor greets the empress dowager and the empress dowager with a toast."

Following this sound, I saw another dragon boat on the lake slowly approaching, and all the palace people immediately rushed forward, and covered the screen that had been prepared in front of the wife's seat, so as to avoid it.

The queen stood up first, and all the wives immediately stood up with a thud.Only the queen mother and concubine still sat high on the table, sitting peacefully.Seventh Lady took the risk to look at the screen in front of the table, and couldn't help feeling a little regretful in her heart: This thing is very strong, with intricate patterns, covering all the scenery behind the screen. It is obviously too difficult to see the emperor's sky.

After a while, only the sound of light footsteps came in from outside the cabin, followed by a quiet and cool voice.

"I ask my mother and concubine how they are."

The queen mother smiled and said, "The emperor is here - sit down!"

It was the queen's voice again, "The concubine has seen the emperor."

Although all the wives were at the table, they still saluted like a rite and shouted, "The concubine has seen the emperor, and the emperor is well."

The emperor chuckled and said in a low voice, "Hi, get up, it's a rare and beautiful day, so don't be so restrained."

Just by listening to this person's voice, one can guess his demeanor, it must be good.There was a touch of majesty in this voice, but more of it was an indescribable sense of exhaustion. If she didn't know how powerful he was, Qin Niangzi would never have imagined that the owner of this voice was the one with the weak crown. In the year of [-], the Ninth Five-Year Lord played with a smart person like the old man in the palm of his hand.

The emperor toasted the empress dowager and the concubine, and toasted the empress again, saying, "Although the husband and wife of the country have not yet arrived, my sister-in-law is here, and I also want to toast a glass of wine. My wife and brother are away on an expedition. It is my reason that you separate your husband and wife. , This glass of wine should be an apology."

The second lady hurriedly bowed out, received the emperor's wine, and said she did not dare, "It is his blessing that Liquan can serve the country..."

After being so polite, he entered the banquet.The emperor asked again, "Fengjia's daughter-in-law is here tonight?"

His tone was relaxed and polite, and he was a little more intimate than when he mentioned Sun Liquan, which showed that he had a good relationship with Xu Fengjia.Concubine Toffee laughed, "Yes, tonight's Mid-Autumn Festival, it's our fault that we let the young couple separate for the festival."

The emperor also chuckled. "Well, that's right, I would like to respect Fengjia's daughter-in-law too. Your husband was a rare young hero who opened up the territory of Great Qin. He and I have known each other since we were young, and our relationship is extraordinary." He paused , and said, "I heard that you have a very good heart and love to help the weak and the poor the most. This is a good thing. Come, let me toast you!"

Qin Niangzi knew it well, the last sentence was about the past between her and Feng Jin.She stepped out of the screen with a low eyebrow, fell on her knees, drank a full glass of wine, and then thanked, "I dare not be praised by the emperor..." It was nothing more than polite formulas-but from the beginning to the end, she only saw Emperor's boots.

When Seventh Lady returned to the back of the screen, the emperor smiled and said, "Speaking of which, I have respected the orders of the two families tonight. Although one is named Xu and the other is named Sun, they are both daughters of the Yang family. Mr. Yang is drinking on the dragon boat now. It's Jade Mountain that's fallen, and it's not interesting for a family to look at each other from a distance on the Taiye Pond."

While talking, his voice went far away, and finally lowered a bit: It seems that he doesn't intend to respect the orders of other families.

The seventh lady and the second lady immediately became the target of public criticism. Both of them watched their eyes, noses, noses and hearts, and only heard the concubine laughing, "Your Majesty forgot, even you yourself have a daughter from the Yang family to serve you. Tonight, Mrs. There are four Yang family members on the liquid pool!"

Usually, I don't think that when the concubine said this, everyone felt that the Yang family was so honorable, it was really frightening.The two red-hot mistresses of the Duke's Mansion, one the elder of the first-rank court, and the other a concubine of the second rank... Even the Niu family and the Sun family, it seems that they are not so prominent.

The emperor seemed to be taken aback, and then smiled, "No, speaking of it, besides our Tian family, the Yang family is the most numerous on the lake tonight. Come, Concubine Ning, drink this cup to the fullest, and congratulate you Yang family on your success tonight. It was a reunion in the Forbidden City!"

Immediately afterwards was Liu Niangzi's innocent laughter, "The emperor's boast, we can't bear it, father is nothing more than a daughter. The only son, who is still studying hard at home, is not as good as Uncle Niu , Uncle Niu, there are two couples on the Taiye Pond tonight, and the couple share the same pool of water!"

It is true that two generations of Niu's couples entered the palace to accompany them, and Liu Niangzi's boast tickled the empress dowager's itch, and her laughter spread behind the screen, showing joy. "Concubine Ning is really good at talking, come, I'll reward you with a glass of wine."

The emperor also laughed and said, "Looking at Ning Pinxia's dimples, I'm afraid it's not—"

There was a sudden pause in his words, as if he hadn't really seen Liu Niangzi's beauty until then, and it took a while before he received it slowly, "I'm afraid I'm too drunk..."

There was no one talking during the banquet, and after a while, the queen smiled and said, "Your Majesty is so dumbfounded by Concubine Ning! Why, Concubine Ning is so beautiful tonight?"

Everyone laughed, and the emperor also laughed and said, "I think Concubine Ning's eyes are bright after drinking, but she has an awe-inspiring and inviolable demeanor, very similar to..."

His voice weakened again, and the concubine's voice came in. "Am I right? This year, you have to be loose and loose. It's the best thing to watch the moon and drink a little wine this Mid-Autumn Festival. Seeing the emperor's appearance, he worries about state affairs all day long. I'm afraid he has never Pay attention, there must be a beauty like Ning Bin by your side!"

Qin Niangzi's heart suddenly became clear: The concubine probably took great pains for tonight's banquet, and had already made arrangements.

She tasted Liu Niangzi's drunken state in her heart again, and then she suddenly realized.

The emperor's eyes are as sharp as torches. To a certain extent, the well-dressed Liu Niangzi and the young Feng Jin do have something in common: the beauty of these two people has reached the extreme of publicity.

The emperor toasted the queen mother with another glass of wine, and told the queen a few words, "The deeper the exposure, the queen pays attention to adding clothes, and pay more respects to the queen mother, mother concubine and the elderly." Then the dragon boat got out.Everyone took away the screen, continued to drink and have fun, and waited until the third watch before going ashore and leaving the palace one after another.

After the banquet was over, all the concubines got on the chariot and returned to their residences. Only the sixth lady had just gotten off the boat when she was intercepted by two teams of maids on the shore and picked up another small sampan. A big dragon boat standing alone in the lake.

The seventh lady and the second lady walked together on the brightly lit stone road, and everything was quiet, except for a few cicadas singing lonely on the treetops.She tightened her cloak tightly, and looked back at the pitch-black pool of Taiye, suddenly she felt cold all over her body, and the alcohol all over her body was swept away.

She said softly, "Second Sister..."

The words were just out of the mouth, and Qin Niangzi forgot what she said next.

She shook her head and sighed softly, caught up with Er Niangzi, walked arm in arm with her, and quickened her pace while murmuring.

(End of this chapter)