OBS Chapter 371 Banquet
Chapter 371 Banquet
Only then did Emperor Shenwu realize how difficult it was to have a good conversation with Lan Qingwu.
The Seventh Princess had already begun "painting" at the imperial desk when Li Xiang bowed and approached Emperor Shenwu. "Your Majesty, the Empress has issued an imperial decree. The Empress will compensate the families of the dozens of palace maids and eunuchs who died of "illness" in the palace. In addition, the ashes of palace maids and eunuchs with families will be returned to their families for burial. If no one claims them, they will be buried at the foot of the mountain near Guoan Temple. Your Majesty, the Empress has told the harem that it was her failure to manage the harem well that led to this consequence. The Empress..."
Emperor Shenwu waved his hand and rubbed his forehead with a headache. He knew that in Lan Qingwu's mind, she would bear the self-blame and guilt for the rest of her life because of this incident.
During this period, the emperor and the empress had been living in two separate palaces. After Empress Dowager Li "got what she wanted", she received the news that the abandoned prince Zhou Qihuai was seriously ill and died. Immediately afterwards, Empress Dowager Li became seriously ill, and there was chaos in the harem again.
The focus in the harem was on Empress Dowager Li. The fact that the emperor and the empress seemed to have a rift did not cause any waves except for a few people who noticed it.
The Fourth Prince did manage to secretly visit Concubine Bai. Concubine Bai was confined to a corner of Chuxiu Palace, with no one to serve her. In just a few days, she had become haggard. The Fourth Prince looked at the cramped room, Concubine Bai's half-worn clothes, and the thin, colorless blanket on the bed, and felt a surge of anger and resentment. Concubine Bai was afraid that someone would discover the Fourth Prince and implicate him further. After a few hurried words between mother and son, Concubine Bai urged the Fourth Prince to leave, only solemnly admonishing him at the end, "Go find the Third Princess!"
Although the sun was shining brightly that day, there were also gusts of cool breeze. The Sixth Prince asked the Fourth Prince to meet at Chunfeng Tower outside the palace.
The Fourth Prince thought about it for a long time, but finally gritted his teeth and went to the appointment. He wanted to see what the Sixth Prince would do.
The Fourth Prince rode his horse from the palace to Chunfeng Tower and went straight to the upper room. After he pushed open the door, he found that there was not only the Sixth Prince in the room. The Eldest Prince, the Second Prince, the Third Prince, and the Fifth Prince were all sitting in the room. They all stood up when they saw him enter. The Fourth Prince froze for a moment, then reacted and greeted his brothers.
The Sixth Prince raised his hands and clasped his fists in greeting. "Fourth Brother, please take a seat. Today is the day I gather all my brothers together. I am the youngest among them. Is this the first time I have invited all of you together? Come on!"
At the command of the Sixth Prince, servants came in one after another, and in a short while, the table was filled with fragrant tea, fine wine and delicious food.
The Second Prince was the first to break things up. "Sixth Brother, you're too polite. We brothers see each other every day in the palace. Why would we need a special banquet? Could it be that you learned that our eldest brother is about to have a son, so you asked the brothers to congratulate him and his wife in advance?"
The Sixth Prince couldn't help but laugh and said, "This is certainly something worth celebrating. I'd like to congratulate you, Big Brother, in advance!"
The eldest prince showed a genuine smile on his face: "Then I will accept it all!"
After the brothers sat down one by one, they chatted and laughed for a while, but the Fourth Prince was still worried. He was not so naive as to think that the Sixth Prince gathered them all together just for a meal.
They had just chatted for a few moments when the Sixth Prince's attendant came outside the door to report: "Master, Princess Mingzhu's consort wishes to see you."
A hint of ambiguous light flashed in the Sixth Prince's phoenix eyes: "Please invite the prince consort!"
The eldest son-in-law came from a noble family and was the ideal husband carefully selected by Emperor Shenwu for Princess Mingzhu. The two had been attracted to each other before they got married, so they lived in harmony and equality after their marriage.
The Sixth Prince still remembered how the Crown Prince Consort protected Princess Mingzhu closely during the poisonous bee incident. It seemed that his father really had a good eye for people!
The Grand Prince Consort walked into the upper room and bowed first: "I am having dinner here and accidentally saw you, the princes. I came up to pay my respects. I hope I didn't disturb you."
The eldest prince waved his hand generously: "You are welcome, my Lord. We are just getting together when we have nothing to do. You..."
The eldest prince looked back at the expressionless sixth prince, and felt that he vaguely saw the shadow of his father in this sixth prince.
The Sixth Prince curled his lips and said, "You're welcome, Prince Consort. Please take a seat! It's just right that you can have a few drinks with us!"
The eldest son-in-law was more than happy to accept this. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when he heard the Sixth Prince say this. For some reason, the eldest son-in-law vaguely sensed that Princess Mingzhu had a deep grudge against the current queen, and the Sixth Prince had always been lukewarm towards him. He wanted to make a big splash in the court and realize his ambitions and ideals, so how could he not build a good relationship with the Sixth Prince, the future designated crown prince!
However, the Sixth Prince had never allowed himself to be among his followers without leaving any trace, which gave him a headache. Today, the eldest son-in-law discovered this opportunity, and he would not give it up no matter what.
The eldest son-in-law sat down readily. He was an outstanding and elegant nobleman raised in a noble family. His conversation and manners were all very good. It didn't take long for him to get along with everyone. Even the third prince was invited to talk a few more words.
When he learned that the eldest prince was about to become a father, the eldest son-in-law also smiled and said, "It seems that the princess and I's child will have a companion from childhood."
Everyone immediately understood and congratulated again.