Imperial Consort Xian’s Prize
“Look at how eager His Majesty is. The children should be given a chance to get acquainted to facilitate the discussion of marriage. Tonight is the celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival. How about this wife has my niece come and perform a dance for Your Majesty?”
Imperial Consort Xian spoke slowly then personally received a swan-necked wine kettle made of gold inlaid with precious gems and filled Emperor Ning’s cup to around 70 percent.
Allowing the girls of noble families who had not yet gotten married to perform was also a tradition of imperial banquets.
Normally, after the performances came to an end, Emperor Ning might personally decide on a few marriages. This would both express his concern for his subjects and help stabilize the situation in court.
Eastern Ling’s empress died at a young age, and the members of the imperial harem viewed the eldest prince’s birth mother, Imperial Consort Xian, as the highest rank. The important opening performance at this time would naturally end up falling to someone from Imperial Consort Xian’s family.
Emperor Ning nodded his head in satisfaction, “Good, young miss Wang is generous and dignified. Having her go first could not be more fitting.”
After saying this, a young girl dressed beautifully slowly stood up. She could not hide her joy and nervousness and bowed to Emperor Ning.
“This girl will go and get changed. Would Your Majesty please wait a moment.”
Emperor Ning raised his cup and gestured to the officials present, “Come, would all my beloved officials enjoy a cup to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival!”
A short while later, the sound of instruments began to fill the hall, and two rows of dancers came into the hall.
They wore light-yellow dresses that were tidy. Taking small steps, they came together as quickly as the tide moves. For a while, they could not tell where that young miss Wang was.
It was inevitable that everyone would feel curious. Following this, the dancers separated like a flower blossoming, revealing a bit of white at the center of the flower.
It was young miss Wang!
“Good!”
Emperor Ning applauded, “If the group had not separated, We really would not have been able to see where young miss Wang was. This dance was fresh and was far more interesting than the solo dances of the past!”
“As long as Your Majesty liked it.”
Imperial Consort Xian attentively poured more wine from the side. Young miss Wang, who had been praised, revealed a smile and waved her flowing sleeves.
To be able to receive His Majesty’s praise, it was possible that young miss Wang would be the only one to receive such a prize tonight, but one thing still remained uncertain. Would His Majesty decide to marry her to anyone?
Imperial Consort Xian had already brought up the matter of Yin Shuo not having a wife. She also had young miss Wang be the first to perform. Could it be…
The second prince’s gaze drifted in Yin Shuo’s direction.
Aside from the young sirs of Marquis Gu’s Manor, the eldest son of Prime Minister Yin was also a person in high demand. Emperor Ning wanted to cultivate him into someone who could replace Yin Yan. This was something that even a fool could recognize.
Yin Shuo also lived up to his expectations. The way he dealt with people and handled matters was smoother and more likable than his father. There were some officials in court who disliked Yin Yan, but they would still like Yin Shuo.
Earlier, Yin Yan had respectfully declined Emperor Ning, but what if Yin Shuo himself took an interest in young miss Wang. Then things would not be great…
Whoever married Imperial Consort Xian’s niece would be in the same camp as the eldest prince.
Fortunately, Yin Shuo was only watching the dance out of courtesy, and his gaze did not focus on young miss Wang. Rather, he was not focused on anything.
The second prince relaxed just a little then turned his attention back to the family from Marquis Gu’s Manor.
The dance that had been praised by Emperor Ning did not seem to be able to attract any of their attention. Instead, they were more focused on observing Yu Fu’s first time into the palace and whether or not she could get accustomed to the atmosphere in the palace.
He relaxed completely.
Suddenly feeling someone tug at his sleeve, he tilted his head. Sure enough, he saw Princess DanYang giving him some looks.
“Second brother, you go and suggest to father Emperor to let me perform too. I want to be the last to perform!”
“Nonsense, you are a dignified princess. How can you perform along with these young misses?”
The second prince refused her, “Every time there is an imperial banquet, these performances are shown. The young misses that have not gotten married are displaying their abilities to marry up. You are a princess. You should already be marrying the best. There’s no need for such performances.”
“Second brother!”
Princess DanYang anxiously said: “What nonsense about the best. The one that is the best does not want me. Have you not noticed? I want to perform. I want him to know how beautiful I am. I want him to grovel beneath me. Second brother, this also stands to benefit you. You must help me!”
The second prince naturally knew who she was speaking of when she mentioned the best. He hesitated for a while before finally nodding.
“Fine, I will let you perform in the finale. You need to put on a good performance. Don’t let me lose face.”
“Don’t worry, second brother. I have prepared this long in advance. You just need to suggest it!”
She already knew that Emperor Ning would reminisce about the past and bring up the matter of Gu ShuBai’s marriage. She had already prepared herself for this.
If he wanted, it would naturally be fine. If he did not want to, she would need to bring out the performance that she had carefully prepared to reclaim his gaze.
With the conclusion of young miss Wang’s performance, the sound of applause filled the hall.
Gu HuaiJiang smiled and looked at Yu Fu, fearing that she would be bored, “Yu Fu, did you like young miss Wang’s dance?”
“I liked it. A group of people dancing is far livelier than one person dancing. Everyone likes liveliness, and His Majesty also likes it. The normal dancers helped make young miss Wang look like a goddess.”
Hearing Yu Fu’s words, Gu HuaiJiang nodded with a smile and did not say anything else.
She was right. For young miss Wang’s dance to have received so much praise was not just a result of her own hard work. Rather, it was the hard work of all in the group.
It was different from the dance performances from other young misses in past imperial banquets. Her act was both novel and lively, and it could have the normal dancers help elevate her own beauty.
This sort of plan…
Gu HuaiJiang looked up and saw Imperial Consort Xian looking at young miss Wang in satisfaction. He quickly retracted his gaze.
He did not want to know about the secret plots and fights occurring in court, nor did he want to participate. He was even less interested in siding with any prince.
The cup of grape wine from the Western Regions had a mellow and fragrant smell. In the candlelight of the imperial palace, it shone beautifully.
Gu HuaiJiang held the golden cup and looked at it a few times in the candlelight before downing half.
Imperial Consort Xian’s Prize
“Look at how eager His Majesty is. The children should be given a chance to get acquainted to facilitate the discussion of marriage. Tonight is the celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival. How about this wife has my niece come and perform a dance for Your Majesty?”
Imperial Consort Xian spoke slowly then personally received a swan-necked wine kettle made of gold inlaid with precious gems and filled Emperor Ning’s cup to around 70 percent.
Allowing the girls of noble families who had not yet gotten married to perform was also a tradition of imperial banquets.
Normally, after the performances came to an end, Emperor Ning might personally decide on a few marriages. This would both express his concern for his subjects and help stabilize the situation in court.
Eastern Ling’s empress died at a young age, and the members of the imperial harem viewed the eldest prince’s birth mother, Imperial Consort Xian, as the highest rank. The important opening performance at this time would naturally end up falling to someone from Imperial Consort Xian’s family.
Emperor Ning nodded his head in satisfaction, “Good, young miss Wang is generous and dignified. Having her go first could not be more fitting.”
After saying this, a young girl dressed beautifully slowly stood up. She could not hide her joy and nervousness and bowed to Emperor Ning.
“This girl will go and get changed. Would Your Majesty please wait a moment.”
Emperor Ning raised his cup and gestured to the officials present, “Come, would all my beloved officials enjoy a cup to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival!”
A short while later, the sound of instruments began to fill the hall, and two rows of dancers came into the hall.
They wore light-yellow dresses that were tidy. Taking small steps, they came together as quickly as the tide moves. For a while, they could not tell where that young miss Wang was.
It was inevitable that everyone would feel curious. Following this, the dancers separated like a flower blossoming, revealing a bit of white at the center of the flower.
It was young miss Wang!
“Good!”
Emperor Ning applauded, “If the group had not separated, We really would not have been able to see where young miss Wang was. This dance was fresh and was far more interesting than the solo dances of the past!”
“As long as Your Majesty liked it.”
Imperial Consort Xian attentively poured more wine from the side. Young miss Wang, who had been praised, revealed a smile and waved her flowing sleeves.
To be able to receive His Majesty’s praise, it was possible that young miss Wang would be the only one to receive such a prize tonight, but one thing still remained uncertain. Would His Majesty decide to marry her to anyone?
Imperial Consort Xian had already brought up the matter of Yin Shuo not having a wife. She also had young miss Wang be the first to perform. Could it be…
The second prince’s gaze drifted in Yin Shuo’s direction.
Aside from the young sirs of Marquis Gu’s Manor, the eldest son of Prime Minister Yin was also a person in high demand. Emperor Ning wanted to cultivate him into someone who could replace Yin Yan. This was something that even a fool could recognize.
Yin Shuo also lived up to his expectations. The way he dealt with people and handled matters was smoother and more likable than his father. There were some officials in court who disliked Yin Yan, but they would still like Yin Shuo.
Earlier, Yin Yan had respectfully declined Emperor Ning, but what if Yin Shuo himself took an interest in young miss Wang. Then things would not be great…
Whoever married Imperial Consort Xian’s niece would be in the same camp as the eldest prince.
Fortunately, Yin Shuo was only watching the dance out of courtesy, and his gaze did not focus on young miss Wang. Rather, he was not focused on anything.
The second prince relaxed just a little then turned his attention back to the family from Marquis Gu’s Manor.
The dance that had been praised by Emperor Ning did not seem to be able to attract any of their attention. Instead, they were more focused on observing Yu Fu’s first time into the palace and whether or not she could get accustomed to the atmosphere in the palace.
He relaxed completely.
Suddenly feeling someone tug at his sleeve, he tilted his head. Sure enough, he saw Princess DanYang giving him some looks.
“Second brother, you go and suggest to father Emperor to let me perform too. I want to be the last to perform!”
“Nonsense, you are a dignified princess. How can you perform along with these young misses?”
The second prince refused her, “Every time there is an imperial banquet, these performances are shown. The young misses that have not gotten married are displaying their abilities to marry up. You are a princess. You should already be marrying the best. There’s no need for such performances.”
“Second brother!”
Princess DanYang anxiously said: “What nonsense about the best. The one that is the best does not want me. Have you not noticed? I want to perform. I want him to know how beautiful I am. I want him to grovel beneath me. Second brother, this also stands to benefit you. You must help me!”
The second prince naturally knew who she was speaking of when she mentioned the best. He hesitated for a while before finally nodding.
“Fine, I will let you perform in the finale. You need to put on a good performance. Don’t let me lose face.”
“Don’t worry, second brother. I have prepared this long in advance. You just need to suggest it!”
She already knew that Emperor Ning would reminisce about the past and bring up the matter of Gu ShuBai’s marriage. She had already prepared herself for this.
If he wanted, it would naturally be fine. If he did not want to, she would need to bring out the performance that she had carefully prepared to reclaim his gaze.
With the conclusion of young miss Wang’s performance, the sound of applause filled the hall.
Gu HuaiJiang smiled and looked at Yu Fu, fearing that she would be bored, “Yu Fu, did you like young miss Wang’s dance?”
“I liked it. A group of people dancing is far livelier than one person dancing. Everyone likes liveliness, and His Majesty also likes it. The normal dancers helped make young miss Wang look like a goddess.”
Hearing Yu Fu’s words, Gu HuaiJiang nodded with a smile and did not say anything else.
She was right. For young miss Wang’s dance to have received so much praise was not just a result of her own hard work. Rather, it was the hard work of all in the group.
It was different from the dance performances from other young misses in past imperial banquets. Her act was both novel and lively, and it could have the normal dancers help elevate her own beauty.
This sort of plan…
Gu HuaiJiang looked up and saw Imperial Consort Xian looking at young miss Wang in satisfaction. He quickly retracted his gaze.
He did not want to know about the secret plots and fights occurring in court, nor did he want to participate. He was even less interested in siding with any prince.
The cup of grape wine from the Western Regions had a mellow and fragrant smell. In the candlelight of the imperial palace, it shone beautifully.
Gu HuaiJiang held the golden cup and looked at it a few times in the candlelight before downing half.
