Night fell and lanterns were lit.
Lu Wushuang's Yikun Palace was not decorated with lanterns and streamers, but it was brightly lit as if it was daytime. The concubines of various palaces had come to attend the banquet. In fact, they were both jealous and envious. Why did the emperor ask Imperial Concubine Lu to host this banquet for Duke Ning? Did he want to put Princess Ning under the name of Imperial Concubine Lu?
All the women in the palace knew that in the past ten years, the Emperor had not allowed any of his concubines to have children. Every concubine that had slept with him would eat soup to avoid having children. Other than Concubine De, none of the concubines had children. Although the Empress had given birth to the Eldest Princess, she had died more than ten years ago. The Emperor doted on Concubine Lu so much. Maybe he really wanted Princess Ning to be under his name. Although it was only a princess, it was better than nothing.
Lu Wushuang was not as complicated as these people. She knew Zhao Yong better than them. Zhao Yong certainly did not think about her future. He asked her to hold a banquet only because it was convenient for her to do so.
She did not care about being envied by others, much less how Zhao Yong would use her. She was only worried about whether there would be another person in the palace who would steal her favor.
Why hadn't that Liu Guiren appeared yet? The emperor had brought her back to the palace for a long time, but she had been hiding in Chuxiu Palace and hadn't come to pay her respects. Although she knew that it was because the emperor doted on her every day, she was very clear on the consequences of being doted on by Zhao Yong. She still wanted to know who this Liu Guiren was.
"Imperial Concubine, I heard a few days ago that the emperor got a new beauty. How long has it been? Why haven't we seen her? She didn't come to meet us sisters, but didn't she pay her respects to Imperial Concubine?" Wang Guiren asked Lu Wushuang.
Lu Wushuang glanced at her. "Liu Guiren has to serve the emperor every night. Maybe he is too tired."
Wang Guiren curled his lips. "Even so, he really doesn't know the rules."
Concubine De, who looked delicate and weak, said, "Princess Ning is the star of the show today. Don't say such things. Otherwise, the Emperor won't like it."
"Yes, we don't know His Majesty's preferences as well as Concubine De, but we all shut up!" Concubine Zhuang Huifei glared at Noble Wang with a faint smile.
Lu Wushuang looked at the sky outside and said, "Stop talking!"
She did not like these women in the palace. If it was in the Jin Kingdom, she would have long thought of ways to deal with them. But this was the Qi Kingdom, and the man they had to serve was Zhao Yong. It was enough to be pampered once in a while. If it happened every day, they might as well die. She had originally thought that she did not love Zhao Yong and did not care which woman he would pamper. She only needed the position that Zhao Yong gave her. But now that Zhao Yong had really pampered others, she still felt uncomfortable in her heart.
"The First Princess and Princess Ning are here!" A palace maid came in to report.
"Please come in, Princesses!" Lu Wushuang smiled gently as she watched Zhao Rao and Zhao Ning walk in.
Concubine De, who was sitting at the side, raised her head and glanced at Zhao Rao. Then, she lowered her head again. Every time she attended such an occasion, she seemed to have no presence at all. Especially when the Eldest Princess was around, she was even more reluctant to speak.
"Greetings, Imperial Consort Niangniang. Greetings, Imperial Consorts." Zhao Rao smiled and bowed.
Zhao Ning followed behind her and did whatever she did.
"Everyone is waiting for you," Lu Wushuang said with a smile. Her eyes fell on Zhao Ning. "Our Princess Ning, with a little makeup, is a national beauty. She is not inferior to the Eldest Princess!"
"Imperial Consort Niangniang must be joking. How can I be compared to Big Sister?" Zhao Ning replied in fear, looking at Zhao Rao nervously.
Zhao Rao smiled and held her hand. "Ning is father's daughter. She must be a national beauty. There is no daughter of father who is not good-looking."
Her words were spoken with sincerity, causing Zhao Ning's heart to feel warm. He was even more shocked that Zhao Ning was such a powerful person. No matter who she faced, she seemed to be able to handle them with ease.
Lu Wushuang had been warned by Lu Lingzhi that she could offend anyone in the palace, but not the First Princess. "The First Princess really loves her sister. I'm done talking. Please sit down. The Emperor should be here soon."
Zhao Ning became really nervous. Was she finally going to see her biological father?
What kind of person could make her mother love him for a lifetime and hate him for a lifetime?
"By the way, why are the other princesses not here yet?" Lu Wushuang asked curiously.
Zhao Rao said, "Xin 'er and Xiang' er will be here soon. As for Lan 'er … I don't know."
Concubine De quickly said, "Lan 'er caught a cold. The imperial doctor just gave her some medicine. She won't be coming tonight. If she gets sick … it won't be good."
Was the woman who spoke Zhao Lan's biological mother, Concubine De? Zhao Ning looked at her in surprise. She didn't look like her at all. Such a delicate and timid look really didn't match Concubine De's identity. Zhao Ning thought that the person who could become Concubine De must be very powerful.
But … was it an illusion? Why did she feel that Concubine De looked a little afraid of Zhao Rao?
Zhao Rao did not answer Concubine De's words. She went to her seat and sat down. She didn't even look at Concubine De.
The concubines present seemed to be accustomed to Zhao Rao's attitude. Concubine De just bowed her head in embarrassment and said nothing else.
Zhao Ning, who was the only one who didn't know about the grievances between Concubine De and Zhao Rao, was shocked. Concubine De was an elder. Was it really okay for Zhao Rao to look down on her?
Lu Wushuang smiled and said, "Since Princess Lan is not feeling well, let her have a good rest."
Concubine De looked up at Lu Wushuang gratefully.
Just as they were talking, the Second Princess came from outside.
Zhao Ning finally saw the Second Princess, Zhao Xiang. She looked very gentle. After greeting Lu Wushuang, she came to sit beside Zhao Rao and said, "Big sister."
"You're here. You went to copy books again." Zhao Rao asked in a low voice, "At this time, you still can't let go of those books. Tell father that he will give you those books as a dowry."
"Big sister, you're teasing me again." Zhao Xiang said with a smile. She looked at Zhao Ning and said, "This must be Sister Ning. I wanted to look for you these days. I was so busy that I forgot. Sister Ning, don't blame me."
Zhao Rao said, "Ning, don't forgive her. She is a person who only cares about books. If you put a book in her hand, she will definitely forget everything. She won't even care about her sister."
"Hello, second sister." Zhao Ning said with a smile. She could see that the relationship between Zhao Rao and Zhao Xiang was really close. This kind of intimacy was not comparable to Zhao Xin. She looked at Zhao Xiang. Second sister was not very beautiful, but her whole body revealed a soft and comfortable temperament, making people want to be close to her.
(Nine-headed Bird Academy)
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