What would Rui 'er grab?
Han Yunxi bet that Rui 'er would grab the antidote needle, while Long Fei Ye bet that Rui' er would grab the sword. The loser would have to eat the noodles cooked by the winner.
Gu Beiyue bet that Rui 'er would grab the seal, while Gu bet that Rui' er would grab the abacus. The loser would have to be the winner's servant for a day.
Tang Li bet that Rui 'er would grab the scriptures, while Ning Jing bet that Rui' er would grab the coins. The winner would be in charge of the finances.
How would Rui 'er know that he was shouldering three wins and losses? He stood there for a long time, pondering seriously. It was really difficult to face so many choices! In fact, there were many things he wanted.
But he could only have one.
He grabbed his fingers, feeling more and more conflicted.
The longer Rui 'er hesitated, the longer the ministers panicked.
The gifts had been presented and the banquet was over. The banquet should be over after the drawing of lots, right? Almost eighty percent of the people in the hall were hoping for the banquet to end quickly.
Because as long as it ended, they could no longer believe that the Empress was kind enough to not pursue their responsibility for slander. They could no longer believe that the Emperor was in a good mood today and would not pursue their crime of protecting themselves.
Finally, Rui 'er reached out his hand.
This time, the anxious people finally breathed a sigh of relief, as if they could see the hope of the banquet ending. On the other hand, Han Yunxi and Long Fei Ye were nervous. The outcome was about to be decided.
The hall was silent as everyone's eyes were fixed on Rui 'er. Rui 'er's hand reached out for the seal and grabbed it.
At this moment, Gu Beiyue showed an extremely gratified smile. Gu's mood fell to the bottom.
Han Yunxi and Long Fei Ye, Tang Li and Ning Jing were not willing to lose or win.
"As expected of the Crown Prince. Haha, heaven's will! Heaven's will cannot be disobeyed! "Long Fei Ye said loudly," Rui 'er, come here! "
Although Zhou Zao had foreshadowed it, Long Fei Ye and the others did not believe it.
If Rui 'er grabbed the seal, would the officials believe that the Crown Prince would be the Emperor in the future? Would they all submit?
This was a naive thought.
Long Fei Ye carried Rui 'er up and let him sit beside him. This action of his was much more significant than grabbing the seal!
He was telling everyone how much he expected of Rui 'er and how much he doted on him!
It was a taboo for the Crown Prince to take the initiative to sit on the main seat. However, Long Fei Ye, the Emperor, personally carried the Crown Prince up. That was the highest level of favor!
The officials were all shocked when they saw this. They also knew that the emperor was doing this for everyone to see.
Now that the things used to catch Zhou Yu were taken back, everyone's anxious heart finally calmed down a little. They were just waiting for the Emperor to announce the end of the banquet.
However, at this moment, a eunuch suddenly rushed in, looking very terrified.
"Your Majesty, something bad has happened! Not good! "After the eunuch knelt, he shouted loudly.
"Speak clearly!" Long Fei Ye glared at him.
Han Yunxi was even angrier. "How dare you speak carelessly at the Crown Prince's first birthday banquet! Unless it's something extremely important, I won't forgive you!"
"Your Majesty, Esteemed Empress, the two groups of troublemakers have beaten up the soldiers and are rushing to the palace gates to meditate!" the eunuch hastily reported.
Baili Lixiang was alarmed. Didn't she have someone spread the news? Why haven't they stopped yet?
Baili Yuanlong immediately turned to look at Baili Lixiang. Father and daughter looked at each other, speechless.
Long Fei Ye's voice suddenly turned cold. "Do they want to rebel? The banquet hasn't even ended yet. How would those troublemakers know that the Empress is being extravagant? "
The hall was silent. No one dared to answer.
The Baili Clan and the Xiao Clan were well aware of the commoners causing trouble. As for the others, they were all part of the government and could more or less smell something fishy going on.
Just like the Emperor said, the banquet hadn't even ended yet. How would the commoners know what happened? Moreover, those troublemakers hadn't started making a fuss now, but when General Baili had stepped forward to admonish the Empress, they'd already started.
Was there really such a coincidence in the timing?
Those with ulterior motives didn't dare make a sound, while those with no ulterior motives didn't dare speak up, afraid that they'd offend one of the Guodukes without knowing the truth.
Baili Yuanlong was sweating profusely. He finally understood. How could Han Yunxi let him off so easily? Han Yunxi was waiting for those troublemakers to make a big fuss!
After all, if Han Yunxi accused him of slander, he could still defend himself.
But if Han Yunxi made a fuss about helping the commoners and causing trouble, it'd be very, very serious if it was discovered that the Baili Clan had instigated the commoners!
In the silence, Baili Lixiang unconsciously pressed a hand to her chest. Right now, her heart was pounding so fast that she found it hard to breathe. It felt like it could jump out of her chest at any moment.
She never thought that things would develop to this point, nor did she think that the situation would be so serious!
She thought that the commoners would put pressure on the emperor, who valued the people's will. But who knew that this would become a life-threatening trap for the Baili Clan?
The emperor would definitely catch a few troublemakers and kill the chickens to warn the monkeys!
Baili Lixiang could only hope that the leaders she'd hired wouldn't betray her!
In the silence, she finally couldn't help but speak up. "Your Majesty, Esteemed Empress. Before this, there were rumors that Esteemed Empress was going to hold a banquet for His Highness the Crown Prince, but the commoners must've misunderstood Esteemed Empress. As the saying goes, the ignorant are not guilty. The commoners didn't do it on purpose, so please don't let this disturb His Majesty and Esteemed Empress' mood. "
Han Yunxi looked over, a cold smile flitting through her eyes.
Baili Lixiang's mouth was even more lovable than Baili Mingxiang's. Unfortunately, she didn't like it at all!
With a look from her, the eunuch reported, "Reporting to Your Majesty, those unruly commoners heard from somewhere that Her Highness the Empress gave everyone a full set of tableware for the birthday banquet. They said that there were thousands of bowls on the table tonight …"
Before he could finish, Long Fei Ye slammed the table with a loud bang!
In an instant, everyone quieted down. Not a single sound could be heard! But after a moment, the Xiao Clan Head, Xiao An, was the first to stand up and kneel. "Your Majesty, please quell your anger!"
At this moment, all the ministers came to their senses and stood up in panic. They left their seats and knelt down. "Your Majesty, please quell your anger! Your Majesty, please quell your anger! "
How could they not be frightened?
This was too big a deal!
The banquet wasn't over yet, so no one had left. Even the servants hadn't left. The commoners all knew about the tableware. It was clear that someone had leaked the secret, that someone was stirring up trouble behind the scenes, and that someone was even in charge of the affair.
Inciting the commoners to slander the empress and smear the crown prince's first birthday banquet was a crime even more serious than rebellion!
Slandering the empress, which had been passed down through generations, paled in comparison to this crime!
Baili Lixiang and Baili Yuanlong were both stupefied. It wasn't until Baili Qiyu reminded them that father and daughter hurriedly knelt.
"Fa-father …" Baili Lixiang cried out, unable to finish her sentence.
She'd been tricked!
The Baili Clan had been tricked!
Although she'd hired those commoners, she'd indeed leaked the news. But she wasn't stupid enough to reveal the tableware and the details of the banquet!
Who had leaked the news of the tableware? Was it the Xiao Clan, or perhaps Han Yunxi herself?
Baili Lixiang couldn't think straight anymore, while Baili Yuanlong's mind was completely blank. They could only pray that the people they'd bribed wouldn't rat them out. Please don't!
But Long Fei Ye said Coldly, "Someone come, immediately arrest those unruly commoners for Zhen. Don't let a single one escape! If we don't get an answer tonight, none of them will be allowed to take a single step out of the hall! "
Baili Lixiang's heart almost stopped at these words. Baili Yuanlong's body was already swaying. He couldn't even kneel … properly.
"Bring them here for interrogation! I'd like to ask them why I'm not fit to be empress! "Han Yunxi said coldly.
So many people had drunk her chicken soup, but how many of them would be enlightened?
Why did she prepare chicken soup instead of duck soup or other kinds of soup? Did they really think that Zhao mama had raised too many chickens and no one would eat them?
Kill the chicken to warn the monkey!
She was reminding everyone that she was going to kill the chicken to warn the monkey tonight!
If she didn't catch someone and teach them a lesson today, would these people still think she was an empress to play with?
Actually, she'd originally planned to use the banquet as an excuse to ask the rich ministers to donate to Northern Li and raise some money and supplies for the disaster areas. Then she'd send them to them in Rui 'er's name. This could be considered a gift from her and Long Fei Ye to Rui 'er.
But the Baili and Xiao Clans both objected as soon as she said she was going to hold a banquet. She might as well spread the word that she was going to hold a grand birthday banquet! If she didn't use this chance to teach the Baili and Xiao Clans a lesson, the two most powerful factions in the Great Qin Empire would only get more and more overboard!
Thus, she'd asked Mu Ling 'er to come up with the idea of the tableware.
As for the rioting commoners outside, she could only guess that they'd been bribed by the Baili and Xiao Clans. As for whether they'd been bribed by the Baili or Xiao Clans, she couldn't be sure.
Baili Lixiang's behavior made her guess that the Baili Clan was the mastermind behind the scenes.
As for the tableware, no one had leaked it. Even now, the commoners still didn't know about the tableware. The eunuch had only said that because she'd ordered Zhao mama to tell him about it.
Later, they'd bring the commoners into the palace and interrogate the Consul's men in the great hall. Under her and Long Fei Ye's intimidation, would the Consul's scholars be able to explain themselves clearly? Wouldn't they be so frightened that they'd immediately confess who was behind the scenes?
The huge venue was terrifyingly quiet. Everyone seemed to be able to hear their own heartbeats. If not for Baili Lixiang supporting him, Baili Yuanlong would've fainted long ago.
Baili Lixiang looked like she'd lost her mind. Her palms were covered in sweat, gradually soaking her father's sleeves.
This kind of quiet waiting was simply torture!
Finally, the sound of shuffling footsteps came from outside the hall. Baili Lixiang couldn't help but turn back to see a crowd of commoners being pushed in by the guards. They were all kneeling outside the hall.
They'd been making a ruckus earlier, but now that everyone was kowtowing, no one daring to raise their heads.
"Bring in the Consul's men!" Long Fei Ye said coldly.
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