bayedsolid Chapter 221 The Farce of the Palace Banquet
Chapter 221 The Farce of the Palace Banquet
"Princess, Eunuch Zhang has arrived," Bei Yi gently knocked on Wen Yuxia's door and reported in a low voice.
Wen Yuxia, who was half-lying on the bed after her afternoon nap, engrossed in reading a storybook, frowned slightly upon hearing this. Today is Xia Yichen's birthday, so why is Eunuch Zhang not in the palace but here with her?
Slowly rising and washing up, Wen Yuxia went to the reception room. As soon as Eunuch Zhang saw her, he said urgently, "Princess, please come to the palace with this old servant!"
Wen Yuxia said with a faint smile, "I have an agreement with the Emperor that I do not need to go to the palace for social engagements or attend various banquets."
Eunuch Zhang grew anxious: "Princess, please stop talking about agreements! If you don't enter the palace soon, your man will be stolen away!" Wen Yuxia exclaimed in shock, "Say that again!"
Eunuch Zhang recounted everything that had happened at the palace banquet. In previous years, only a few neighboring countries had come to offer birthday greetings, but this time, in addition to a few friendly nations, other countries had also come to offer their congratulations.
At the banquet, the envoys from those countries all proposed marriage alliances, and the chosen partner was remarkably consistent: Marquis Zhennan, Nangong Wenrui. While the envoys from other countries were more accommodating, they specifically requested that Nangong Wenrui take wives and concubines.
The eldest princess of Tianzhu Kingdom actually demanded on the spot that the emperor issue an edict ordering Nangong Wenrui to divorce his wife and marry into her family. This woman was highly skilled in martial arts, domineering and unreasonable, and had a penchant for embarrassing others.
At that moment, a commotion was raging at the palace banquet, with the emperor threatening to overturn the table if he didn't agree. Upon receiving a hint from the emperor, Eunuch Zhang quietly left the banquet hall and went out of the palace to invite Wen Yuxia.
Wen Yuxia laughed in exasperation. These foreign envoys probably had their eyes on the Great Xia's cement roads; the cement was provided by the Nangong family.
Nangong Wenrui, the young palace master, happens to hold an official position in the Great Xia Dynasty. No wonder everyone is eyeing this coveted talent. Well then, time to pack up and enter the palace.
After changing into her princess attire, Wen Yuxia led the four girls from Bei Yi into the palace for a banquet. At the entrance of the banquet hall, Eunuch Zhang shouted in a high-pitched voice, "Madam of Zhennan, Princess Muhua has arrived!"
Everyone was stunned. The Empress and court officials were stunned because Wen Yuxia never attended palace banquets, and the envoys were stunned because Wen Yuxia only appeared halfway through the banquet.
The eldest princess of Lanzhu Kingdom was speaking harshly when she was interrupted by Eunuch Zhang's loud voice. She turned to look at the doorway and saw Wen Yuxia walking slowly into the hall. Her exquisite features, youthful appearance, noble temperament, and aura all made the princess feel intimidated.
The eldest princess thought to herself, "Is this the princess from the common people of Great Xia?"
Wen Yuxia walked to the center of the hall, gave the Emperor a curtsy, and her clear, melodious voice, amplified by her inner strength, resounded throughout the hall: "Your Majesty, happy birthday! Your Majesty is late because I was preparing a gift for you. I hope Your Majesty will not be offended!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Bei Yi, carrying a large basin of blood-red coral, followed Eunuch Zhang in to present it as a gift to the emperor.
Xia Yichen smiled and said, "Mu Hua, you've come at the right time." Xia Yichen took out the imperial edict from his pocket and handed it to Eunuch Zhang. Eunuch Zhang opened the edict with a bewildered look, and a subtle smile appeared on his face. He then read it aloud in a high-pitched voice:
"By the grace of Heaven, His Majesty decrees: Wen Yuxia has worked tirelessly for the development of Great Xia... and the well-known tabloid was also written by the Princess. From this day forward, the Princess is promoted to Princess, with no change in title. So be it!"
When the emperor bestowed titles and ranks upon officials, he would replace the phrase "召曰" (zhào yuē) with "敇曰" (shì yuē). The use of "敇曰" in the imperial edict was intended to admonish Wen Yuxia.
The imperial edict was written by him this morning. Too many countries came to offer their birthday wishes this year, and he feared they might have ulterior motives, so he prepared an edict in advance.
Wen Yuxia calmly accepted the imperial decree and expressed her gratitude, but in her heart she wondered what the old fox meant by bestowing the title of princess upon her at this time, since the delegation was led by either a prince or a princess.
As night fell, palace maids moved swiftly through the banquet hall, lighting palace lanterns one by one and placing platters of delicious food on the tables.
Bathed in the soft light, the ancient palace appeared both solemn and graceful. As the banquet began, the emperor slowly rose, raised his glass, and delivered a speech.
His voice was gentle yet powerful, expressing gratitude to the delegation for coming to offer birthday wishes and his deep hope for peace and well-being for the country and its people. After speaking, he drank the wine in his cup in one gulp.
Wen Yuxia sat with Nangong Wenrui, who thoughtfully served her food, snacks, and fruit, completely ignoring the flirtatious glances thrown at her by the eldest princess of Lanzhu Kingdom across from them.
As the music began, the palace musicians started playing, their melodies lingering and poignant. The courtiers either conversed quietly with their families or raised their cups in toasts with their colleagues at neighboring tables.
The envoys also savored the fine wine and food; in short, everyone except the eldest princess of Lanzhu Kingdom was in high spirits.
Believing that Nangong Wenrui had neglected her eldest princess, her face grew increasingly dark. Suddenly, she stood up, picked up a bowl of chicken soup from the table, and threw it across the table.
"Ah!" Everyone sitting on either side of her was startled. Nangong Wenrui and Wen Yuxia naturally saw the soup plate flying rapidly towards them as well.
Nangong Wenrui grabbed Wen Yuxia, who was about to catch the basin, with his right hand. With a gentle flick of his left hand, his sleeve sent a gust of wind through the air as the basin spun around and hurtled towards the eldest princess.
The soup bowl was poured more than twice as fast as before. The envoy sitting next to the eldest princess and the guards behind her didn't have time to help before the princess was completely drenched in the chicken soup.
The eldest princess, with a chicken head on her head and chicken soup streaming down her face, stared blankly at Nangong Wenrui. She had thrown the soup bowl to vent her dissatisfaction with him, expecting him to catch it, but instead, he made it return to its original position.
"You, you, you splashed me!" The eldest princess finally came to her senses, pointing angrily at Nangong Wenrui. Everyone, including the emperor, was stunned by the scene before them.
Wen Yuxia said softly, "Princess, you, you, you mustn't wrong us." Turning to Xia Yichen, she said aggrievedly, "Brother, look, the soup bowl is still on the table. The Princess is slandering us. You must stand up for us!"
Xia Yichen bit his lower lip tightly, afraid of bursting out laughing. He composed himself and slowly said, "Princess, you're in such a hurry to drink the soup."
Few people saw the eldest princess throw the soup bowl, but everyone in the hall saw her disheveled appearance, with chicken pieces on her head and chicken soup all over her face.
Hearing Xia Yichen's words, everyone's attention turned to the table in front of the eldest princess. Consort Li chuckled, "Heh, the chicken soup really is on the eldest princess's table."
With Consort Li's suggestion sparking a flurry of discussion, the ladies and young women of the court began to whisper among themselves, all mocking the eldest princess for rushing to drink her chicken soup, resulting in it getting all over her face and head.
Originally, the face that had turned black with anger at the loving appearance of Nangong Wenrui and his wife turned red with embarrassment at the gossip of the crowd. Just as the eldest princess was about to lose her temper, Empress Xie Qianlian spoke gently.