Chapter 307: 307 slave concubine
Chapter 307 307 Concubine
The King of Andaman stood proudly like a cedar tree, looking directly into the emperor's eyes, waiting for the other party's answer.
The words that Pu Shen said echoed in Andaman's ears over and over again, from the time when Uhagalou appeared in Prince Chen's Mansion to when the Jin Yiwei almost killed all the Hao people he sent there, just to eradicate the roots and leave Pu Shen alone to die. escape…
Andaman's fists were clenched tightly in his wide cuffs.
He had long suspected that Emperor Da Qi and King Chen were pretending to be at odds in order to lower his guard. If this speculation is true, then the marriage between the two countries may not go so smoothly.
The performance of Emperor Da Qi today is tantamount to once again validating his previous guesses. The emperor did not really intend to marry his princess to the prince of their Hao Kingdom.
The emperor sneered, became angry again, and asked: "Wuhejialou has returned to your country in September, what does the prince mean by asking me?!"
The emperor's voice was neither soft nor serious, and his tone became colder. He decided to teach the Hao man in front of him a lesson today.
To Andaman's ears, it was clear that the emperor was telling lies.
Andaman was even more angry, and his brown eyes were filled with turbulent anger again, remembering yesterday.
Yesterday Andaman and the second prince Gu Nanzhao went to Baiyun Temple to pray for blessings.
After praying, he planned to leave with Gu Nanzhao. When he was about to leave the temple, he heard Lange casually mention the seven stupas in the temple. Andaman temporarily changed his mind and turned around to pay homage to the seven stupas.
There were not many pilgrims around the stupa. At that time, Andaman saw Gu Jue and a man in Tsing Yi wearing a curtain hat standing between several stupas.
Although they were far apart and the man in green was still wearing a curtain hat, Andaman recognized him from his back at a glance. It was Uhagalou.
Andaman is 120% sure that he will never admit his mistake!
At that moment, Andaman signaled to his subordinates to chase them, thinking that it would be best to block Gu Jue and Wuhejialou in the temple and catch them, so that Gu Jue would not be left behind.
It's a pity that he was lost in pursuit.
Even after Andaman borrowed his personal jade pendant and asked Gu Nanzhao to find some Daqi Forbidden Army soldiers to guard the front, back and side doors of the temple, and searched the entire Baiyun Temple inside and outside, there was still no trace. Find Gu Jue and Wuhejialou.
It was as if Gu Jue and Wuhejialou disappeared from this temple out of thin air.
Yesterday, Andaman suspected that there was something wrong with Gu Nanzhao.
This is in the territory of Qi State, how can we not find anyone, unless Gu Nanzhao is standing in the way!
The evidence was placed in front of him one after another, and the truth was clearly revealed!
In just an instant, Andaman was covered in cold sweat, and the hair on the back of his neck stood up, but his face remained unwavering.
He curled his lips in a sneer and asked the emperor again: "His Majesty, Emperor Daqi, do you still want to get married?"
Andaman's tone was already very rude and sharp, like a slap on the emperor's face.
The emperor and Andaman's eyes collided more intensely, and the atmosphere became increasingly tense.
The emperor held his breath, raised his voice by three points, and said almost word for word: "I have already said we will discuss it after the year. If you don't want to wait, then don't wait."
There was silence in the hall again.
This time, Andaman couldn't stay any longer and walked away with a heavy puff of his sleeves, leaving behind a decisive silhouette.
The hall became even quieter, and you could hear a needle drop.
The emperor looked at Andaman's retreating back, holding the armrest tightly with his right hand, and the veins on his forehead and back of his hands popped out, feeling resentful in his heart.
He is just an envoy, but he shows off his face!
The emperor's original intention was just to destroy the prestige of Andaman and the Nanhao people, and force the Nanhao people to choose between him and Gu Jue. Don't try to have both sides. But now the emperor is so angry with Andaman that he has long forgotten. own original intention.
The female relatives present did not say a word from beginning to end, and there was no room for them to interrupt, so they could only pretend to be deaf and mute.
The queen didn't know what the emperor's plans were for the marriage, and she was filled with surprise and uncertainty.
She thought for a while and then spoke carefully: "Your Majesty..."
She wanted to ask a few questions, but as soon as she opened her mouth, the emperor interrupted him unhappily: "It's so noisy, I have a severe headache."
The queen was inexplicably scolded by the emperor, and her face didn't look good.
The emperor didn't say anything else, stood up and left. Although he was wearing bright yellow, his back looked particularly gloomy, as if there was a light gray mist hanging over him.
Everyone's eyes were fixed on the emperor, and they watched quietly as the emperor's back disappeared from everyone's sight.
The surrounding female relatives became even quieter, and no one dared to speak for fear of offending the queen.
Empress Dowager Yin and Chu Qianchen both had nothing to do with themselves and were at peace.
Queen Mother Yin took a sip of tea gracefully and wiped the corners of her mouth with her handkerchief when she saw Chu Qianchen blinking at her quickly, which seemed meaningful.
Queen Mother Yin was a smart person. She immediately understood what Chu Qianchen meant and curled the corners of her lips slightly.
The veil just blocked her faint smile.
The emperor has formed an alliance with Nan Hao at this moment, which is not a good thing for the country or the people, especially since Nan Hao is still on the throne as a fake emperor who killed his brother and usurped the throne.
From the tense relationship between the Emperor and the Prince of Andaman, Empress Dowager Yin can probably guess that from the time Andaman arrived in the capital in October to the present, Andaman and the Emperor have been friendly to each other from the beginning, to now the two sides have almost broken off. She must have The son has done a lot of things secretly.
Thinking about it, the smile on Queen Mother Yin's lips deepened a little deeper. When the veil was put down, her expression returned to normal, making it impossible to tell whether she was happy or angry.
Queen Mother Yin gently patted the back of Chu Qianchen's hand and said nothing.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law exchanged looks that only they knew.
"Aunt Nine Emperors."
At this time, the third princess An Le walked up to Chu Qianchen and the Queen Mother Yin in three steps at a time, showing a bright smile. Then, she also greeted the Queen Mother Yin: "Greetings, Grandmother Royal."
When An Le is not smiling, he still has a somewhat noble and gentle temperament. This smile makes him look a bit coquettish and innocent.
Her smile was as clean as a piece of flawless white paper, and like clear water without impurities.
Anle is the protagonist today, whether it is hair extensions or marriage, it is all related to her, but she was not affected by what happened just now, let alone the tense atmosphere at the moment.
Queen Mother Yin took An Le's hand and said with a loving smile: "Good boy, if you get hair extensions today, you are an adult." She put a pair of imperial green bracelets on An Le's wrist as a gift for getting hair extensions.
Putting aside other messy things, Queen Mother Yin really felt that the three princesses should not get married.
The third princess had a serious illness when she was young. She had a high fever and was ill for several days and nights. The doctors at the imperial hospital were helpless. At that time, the queen was almost in a panic and went to the hospital. She tried all methods, and finally drank alcohol. The fever went away after I got some talisman water from someone I don't know where.
But after waking up, the third princess seemed to have stayed at the age of seven or eight forever, ignorant and naive.
In fact, the chamberlains, maids, and companions around the third princess, as well as the masters who went to the study to teach the princesses to read, all knew this very well. But no one dared to talk about it for fear of offending the queen.
Of course the empress should keep a child with impaired intelligence like the third princess by her side. Even if she wants to get married, she must marry under the eyes of the empress. Let the third princess marry thousands of miles away. She was afraid she wouldn't live long in a foreign country.
Empress Dowager Yin looked a little sad, and sighed quietly in her heart, but the emperor and empress only considered their interests.
Yuan Zhitong and An Le's other companion also followed and saluted Queen Mother Yin and Chu Qianchen appropriately.
The skin on Yuan Zhitong's face looked three times whiter than usual, and she was covered with thick makeup, but even so, the makeup couldn't cover her swollen right forehead.
She fell asleep at Wanqing Restaurant yesterday, and the swelling on her right forehead is still hurting.
Not only did the injury hurt, her heart was also throbbing.
Originally, she could have taken advantage of the third princess's hairpin ceremony today to naturally enter the field of vision of the ladies present. However, the queen felt that she had hurt her face and was unbecoming, and was not suitable to be the third princess's supervisor anymore, so she asked Miss Lu Ba to take over. .
If Miss Lu Ba hadn't walked in front of him yesterday, Yuan Zhitong would have almost suspected that Miss Lu Ba had stepped on his skirt, causing him to fall down the stairs...
Yuan Zhitong looked at Chu Qianchen for a while, and then couldn't help but look towards Miss Lu Ba, biting his lower lip slightly, over and over again.
Gradually, the queen on the phoenix throne also came back to her senses.
The queen had just been slapped in the face by the emperor in public. The queen still felt that her face was burning and she was not happy in her heart. However, the emperor could walk away, but she could not.
Otherwise, today's daughter's hair extension ceremony will become a joke.
The queen steeled herself again, pretending to be nonchalant, and called the ladies to move to the royal garden.
Today, not only was there a banquet in the palace to entertain the guests, but the queen also specially arranged for the theater troupe from Jiaofangsi to come to the palace to sing and entertain everyone.
All the female relatives responded, and they all talked and laughed calmly, as if what just happened had never happened.
"Mother, if you like watching the theater, come with us and join in the fun." The queen came over in person to invite Queen Mother Yin, followed by Miss Lu Ba, several princesses and others.
In the past two months, the queen has been more and more attentive to the Queen Mother Yin. In addition to the first and fifteenth day of the lunar month, she will also take Anle and other princesses to Shouning Palace to pay respects to the Queen Mother Yin from time to time. Cheng Huan kneels down.
Before Empress Dowager Yin could answer, Yuan Zhitong reached out to support Empress Dowager Yin's arm with a smile, and said affectionately: "Cousin, I still remember how well I sang "Mu Guiying Takes the Command" last time. That Dao Ma Dan was really good at singing. …”
"Mu Guiying Takes Command" is a play ordered by the Queen Mother Yin while watching a play in Changyin Pavilion when the Queen held a flower viewing banquet in the palace in October.
However, Queen Mother Yin said calmly: "It means that my singing skills are just passable."
Yuan Zhitong's expression froze slightly, and his face, which was painted like a white wall, suddenly turned extremely pale.
Chu Qianchen naturally held Empress Dowager Yin's right arm and said casually: "Martial arts and workmanship are a bit inferior."
The queen glanced at Yuan Zhitong seemingly casually, her brows becoming colder.
Many of the female family members around them see through things without saying anything, and look at Yuan Zhitong with a hint of a smile in their eyes.
The crowd gathered around Empress Dowager Yin and the Queen like stars over the moon, and headed towards the Imperial Garden.
Today's palace banquet was held in a flower hall in the imperial garden, and the stage was set up outside the flower hall. From the flower hall, you can enjoy the banquet, watch plays and dances, or go to the warm pavilion in the plum blossom forest. Flower viewing.
It was still early and the banquet had not officially started yet. The maids first served some tea, fruits and snacks to the guests.
Some people sat down to play, some talked and laughed, and some were still walking outside the flower hall.
On weekdays, the third princess Anle couldn't sit still at all, but today she was the protagonist, and she was wearing a heavy dress and had difficulty moving, so she had to sit obediently next to the queen and drink scented tea.
At this moment, the Queen has returned to her usual noble, graceful, decent and generous appearance.
Without even looking at it, she handed the playbook to Anle. She turned her head and looked at the Queen Mother Yin and Princess Li, and said with a smile: "Queen Mother, Auntie Huang, recently there was a show called "Fei Xiang's Fan" in the capital. The playbook is very popular. I also heard a few verses sung and thought it was interesting, so I asked the Jiaofang Secretary to arrange it. I just happened to sing it for everyone today. "
Since the Queen was in such a mood, others naturally wouldn't say anything. Princess Li, Princess Shun and others also made fun remarks like "It's thanks to the Queen" and "Try something new today". At this time, a palace maid served tea to the Queen Mother Yin and Chu Qianchen, but Chu Qianchen glanced at it and ordered: "Give the Queen Mother a cup of chrysanthemum tea."
The palace maid was startled, then she knelt down and agreed.
"Mother, you haven't been sleeping well lately, have you?" Chu Qianchen asked the Queen Mother Yin earnestly, "Drinking too much strong tea will make it easy to sleep poorly. If you really want to drink it, just try to drink Dahongpao and Pu'er tea. , these two teas are mild and suitable for you to drink.”
Queen Mother Yin laughed: "Okay, okay, I will listen to you."
Nanny He nodded frequently beside the Queen Mother, as if to say that Chu Qianchen was right.
Miss Lu Ba, who was beside the Queen, was still paying attention to what the Queen Mother Yin and Chu Qianchen were talking about at first, but she felt bored when she saw that their mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were just talking about tea.
When the chrysanthemum tea came, Chu Qianchen put a sugar in the tea, smiled at Queen Mother Yin and winked before personally serving the chrysanthemum tea with added ingredients to her.
In the flower hall, the opera excerpts were still being passed around among the female relatives; outside the flower hall, two actors who had appeared on stage were already singing on the stage. They were a pair of beautiful sisters. The elder sister was gentle and elegant, and the younger sister was lively and cute. , the two sisters each have their own merits.
This is a literary drama, and the atmosphere on the stage is leisurely and tranquil.
The female guests gathered together in twos and threes, watching the play, chatting about family affairs and gossiping about the capital.
The queen took a sip of tea, put down the tea cup casually, turned her head and suddenly looked at Miss Lu Ba beside her, followed Miss Lu Ba's gaze and raised her eyebrows.
"Denjing, why do you keep staring at Princess Chen?" the queen asked with a hint of teasing.
Only then did Lu Wenjing look back slightly awkwardly. She pursed her lower lip in embarrassment and called out "cousin" softly.
The queen gracefully stroked her sleeves, and her nails dyed with bright red made her fingers particularly white. She said affectionately: "Xianjing, have you never seen her before? This is Princess Chen. Her appearance is top-notch in the entire capital. Yes, it makes people feel so happy just looking at it that they can’t bear to look away, don’t you think?”
The queen's voice was neither soft nor serious, and all the nearby royal concubines heard it and got a taste of it.
The queen's words sounded like she was praising Chu Qianchen, but the underlying meaning was as if Chu Qianchen had no other merits except his appearance.
Princess Li frowned dissatisfied and looked back and forth between the Queen and Lu Wenjing.
The other princesses exchanged meaningful glances with each other.
"Cousin, I have met the princess. Yesterday I happened to meet Princess Chen in a restaurant," Lu Wenjing smiled at the queen.
She paused, sighed, and looked at Chu Qianchen again, "It's a pity that the princess doesn't know me, so I couldn't talk to the princess."
"Sister Tong is here too. She was so wronged that she even cried..."
Lu Wenjing's words were ambiguous, implying that Chu Qianchen was arrogant, especially the last sentence was clearly meant for the Queen Mother Yin.
In the flower hall, more and more eyes were directed towards the Queen and Chu Qianchen, and most people had no intention of looking at the stage outside.
The dramas outside are not as exciting as the dramas here!
"Sister Jing, please stop talking." Yuan Zhitong interrupted Lu Wenjing gently, and rubbed the handkerchief with a little embarrassment, "That's not the case. It's my inability to speak that makes my cousin unhappy. ”
Yuan Zhitong's eyes turned slightly, and he slowly lowered his long and thick eyelashes.
After returning from the Xiyuan Palace, she originally wanted to go to the Queen Mother Yin to file a complaint against Chu Qianchen, but after trying a few words, she found that the Queen Mother Yin was not interested in it, so she endured it and never complained.
Lu Xianjing sighed at the right time.
Queen Mother Yin put down the cup of sweet chrysanthemum tea in her hand and raised her eyebrows: "Oh?"
"Cousin, it's my fault." Yuan Zhitong said eagerly, with an extremely complicated look on his face, and he pursed his lips tightly, as if some of the words had reached his lips, but she swallowed them back.
This scene made the onlookers can't help but think about it, and they wondered in their hearts whether there was something hidden.
There was silence in the flower hall.
The actors on the stage continued to sing dutifully, and the music of the Huqin was bright, melodious, and sweet.
Queen Mother Yin glanced at Yuan Zhitong and Lu Wenjing, and said calmly: "If you know you have made a mistake, correct it. There is no greater good. Since you know that you have made a mistake, why don't you apologize to the princess?"
Yuan Zhitong: "..."
Lu Wenjing: "..."
Lu Wenjing's eyebrows twitched. Queen Mother Yin's words were clearly meant for Pei Gong when Xiang Zhuang performed the sword dance, and she must have told her on purpose.
Lu Xianjing felt that the mocking eyes around her were all focused on her. A gloomy look appeared on her forehead, and her pretty facial features were tinged with a hint of ferocity.
The queen clenched her handkerchief and suddenly cleared her throat, attracting everyone's attention again.
She smiled gently and said: "Mother, you don't know, but Zhitong already offered tea to the ninth younger brother and sister when we were at the hunting palace, but the ninth younger brother and sister refused to accept it."
"I am thinking that Zhitong is also your niece, and it is always not good for the nine younger siblings to be like this."
The queen glanced at Chu Qianchen again and sighed quietly. Her expression and eyes seemed to say that Chu Qianchen was too petty.
Queen Mother Yin turned to look at Chu Qianchen and asked softly: "Really?"
When Yuan Zhitong heard this, his heart beat faster and his eyes showed anticipation.
This is obviously a sign that Queen Mother Yin is dissatisfied with Chu Qianchen!
The queen was also moved in her heart and raised her red lips.
This human heart is both the most complex and the simplest. No matter how intimate the Empress Dowager Yin and Chu Qianchen looked at each other, they were still mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, not mother and daughter, so they could not be intimate.
When they have a common enemy, they may be able to deal with the outside world unanimously, but Yuan Zhitong is the niece of the Queen Mother, and this person is always protective. Chu Qianchen slapped Yuan Zhitong in the face in public, but he did not give the Queen Mother face. No wonder the Queen Mother was dissatisfied.
At this moment, Princess Li intervened and said: "Princess Qianchen, if you want to forgive, then forgive. If you don't want to forgive, what's the point of a little court lady?"
The queen's expression changed slightly, her eyes suddenly turned cold, and she shot towards Princess Li like a sharp arrow.
Princess Li didn't seem to be aware of it, and said to the Queen Mother Yin: "Sister-in-law, I see that your little daughter-in-law is well behaved, smart and generous, and has a good rapport with me. It must be that your niece is too reckless and doesn't know it."
The cup of chrysanthemum tea in Queen Mother Yin's hand was almost empty. She was still a little unsatisfied. She sighed and nodded: "It is true that Zhitong is young and is not very safe in things."
Queen: "..."
Yuan Zhitong: "..."
Under the strange and subtle glances of the Queen and Yuan Zhitong, Queen Mother Yin continued calmly: "Zhitong, as the third princess's companion, won't you accompany the third princess?"
Just at this moment, a clear and soft female voice was heard: "Okay!"
Two tables away, the third princess was sitting comfortably in her seat, clapping excitedly, so hard that the palms of her little hands turned red.
At this moment, this applause seemed extremely mocking.
Yuan Zhitong reacted suddenly, his face turned red visibly, and his face turned red with embarrassment.
Yes, she is the third princess's companion. Logically speaking, she should stay by the third princess's side and serve her, not sit here with the queen.
This matter is not big or small, at least it can be scolded by these so-called nobles with words like "no princess, no rules"!
Yuan Zhitong's eyes narrowed, and the scene of Chu Qianhuang being scolded by the queen at the last flower viewing party flashed through his mind.
She felt her throat tightening, and her heart seemed to shrink into a ball.
In just a blink of an eye, Yuan Zhitong already understood the stakes, and he obediently admitted his mistake and said, "My cousin taught me a lesson."
Yuan Zhitong took two steps in the direction of Anle, and apologized to Anle: "Your Highness, it was my fault."
An Le was still watching the show, with a pair of eyes shining like gems. He waved his hand and said casually: "Just admit your mistake."
After a pause, Anle added casually: "Remember to change it."
“…”
“…”
“…”
The other people around were stunned when they saw this scene.
Queen Mother Yin tapped her fingers on the coffee table twice casually, and then said: "Why don't you serve tea?!"
"Why don't you go and propose a cup of tea to the third princess?"
Her voice was very slow, but her words seemed to carry the power of thunder.
Queen: "!!"
Yuan Zhitong: "!!"
Yuan Zhitong and the Queen froze, their bodies and minds seemed to be frozen, and they could not react for a moment.
Queen Mother Yin didn't wait for them to speak, she raised her hand and gestured to Aunt He, who immediately brought a cup of tea.
"Miss Yuan." Nanny He presented the tea to Yuan Zhitong with a smile on her face.
Aunt He seemed to be smiling as usual and had a friendly attitude, but now Yuan Zhitong felt that she was smiling but not smiling.
Yuan Zhitong's heart dropped little by little, as if falling into a bottomless abyss, and his limbs became even colder...
Queen Mother Yin was still tapping her knuckles carelessly, one after another, and sighed: "The Ai family has been in the palace for a long time, and they don't even know that now we need to serve tea first to apologize. I'm really old. Then serve tea. Bar."
Queen Mother Yin shook her head and sighed, as if she was an old woman who didn't understand worldly matters.
Queen Mother Yin is only in her forties and has been well taken care of. In the past few months, she has been well cared for by Chu Qianchen. She has a rosy complexion and a radiant face. She does not look like she is in her forties. What she said seemed a bit inconsistent.
The other female family members around looked a little strange, looking at Yuan Zhitong with a look that could not be described as sympathy, ridicule or sigh, with burning eyes.
In the Daqi Dynasty, under normal circumstances, an unmarried girl's family would only serve tea to her elders. If a girl's family served tea to outsiders, it would only be to honor the mistress, which meant that the girl was either a slave or a concubine. .
(End of chapter)