On New Year's Eve, the palace was decorated with lanterns and colored banners.
The family banquet was held in the empress dowager's Peace and Wellness Palace. As Zhao mama had said, it was just a New Year's Eve meal with everyone seated around the round table.
However, on the dining table alone, a few people and a few mouths were enough to cause a lot of trouble.
It was rare for the empress dowager and Grand Concubine Yi to sit together. Emperor Tianhui and Long Fei Ye sat on the empress dowager's left, followed by the crown prince and the other imperial princes. The empress and Han Yunxi sat on Grand Concubine Yi's right.
Han Yunxi wasn't very old, but she suddenly realized her seniority in the family. She used to be of the same generation as the empress.
Duanmu Yao sat next to Han Yunxi. The banquet had already begun, but Princess Changping still hadn't shown up.
The mama said she was in one of the side rooms, preparing to give the empress dowager a New Year's gift and an unexpected surprise.
"This Changping sure knows how to dawdle," the empress scolded unhappily.
"Let her be. I'm still waiting for her surprise," the empress dowager said with a chuckle.
Grand Concubine Yi's lips rose to a cold, disdainful smile. She silently picked up food without speaking. Naturally, it wasn't good to talk about what happened at the Plum Blossom Meet at this banquet, especially when it was her Murong Wanru who'd lost face.
Eunuch Li had been sentenced to death by the empress for neglecting his duties, which counted as an explanation to Grand Concubine Yi.
Long Fei Ye and Emperor Tianhui were whispering to each other on the sidelines, but no one dared to disturb them out of curiosity. After all, the private conversations between these two brothers couldn't be trivial matters.
A family banquet was nothing more than a gathering of the whole family. The elders would show concern for the younger generation while the younger generation would ask after their health.
The empress dowager had a hall full of grandchildren. She asked about this and that, her face wreathed in smiles and her mood excellent. Occasionally, she'd exchange a few words with Grand Concubine Yi, who didn't have a single grandchild to hold. Although she smiled in reply, it didn't reach her eyes.
Soon enough, the empress dowager's attention rested on Princess Rongle. Actually, both the empress dowager and empress were eager to see Princess Rongle marry Long Tianmo. Unfortunately, her thoughts were all on the Duke of Qin.
The marriage alliance wasn't a child's play, nor was it a matter between the two clans. It was an important matter between the two countries and involved the cooperation between Tianning Country and Western Zhou, especially when it came to war.
Thus, even if the empress dowager and empress were unwilling, they didn't dare to interfere. From Emperor Tianhui's perspective, they still hoped that the Duke of Qin would agree to the marriage.
"Princess Rongle, please don't stand on ceremony. Men, quickly pour some wine for Princess Rongle!"
"The Empress Dowager is too polite. Yaoyao can do it herself."
The empress dowager had taken good care of Duanmu Yao, so Duanmu Yao had long heard that Grand Concubine Yi and the empress dowager were on bad terms. Naturally, she didn't dare to get too close to the empress dowager in front of Grand Concubine Yi, but she didn't lose her manners or dignity.
"Yaoyao, come and eat more."
"Imperial Concubine Dowager, Yaoyao doesn't deserve it. Yaoyao should be the one picking up food for you."
Grand Concubine Yi personally picked up food for Duanmu Yao while Duanmu Yao ladled soup for her. The two of them weren't mother and daughter-in-law yet, but they were more like mother and daughter.
Logically speaking, Han Yunxi should be the center of attention at this year's New Year's Eve family banquet, but Han Yunxi had been given the cold shoulder since the start of the banquet. It was as if the liveliness at the table didn't belong to her at all.
She was quite at ease as she quietly ate her meal and listened to their conversation. She could hear the truth and lies in their words clearly.
The empress dowager glanced at her before finally speaking. "Yunxi, is there any news?"
News?
Han Yunxi raised her head with a blank expression. What news?
But Grand Concubine Yi's expression turned gloomy.
"Muhou, it looks like there's none. Look at her reaction, she probably doesn't know what you're asking for. She's already married, but she's still acting like a servant girl, "the empress teased.
Han Yunxi really didn't understand. Why was she suddenly asking if there was any news? What news?
Seeing her expression, the empress dowager immediately laughed out loud. She tilted her head towards Grand Concubine Yi. "Little sister, this girl of yours … is she pretending not to understand, or is she really that clueless? Haven't you taught her anything? "
Grand Concubine Yi sighed softly with emotion. "They've only been married for half a year. The Duke of Qin is busy every day and hasn't shown up for days. How could there be news so quickly?"
At this, Han Yunxi finally understood what "there's news" meant.
The empress dowager was asking if she was pregnant or not!
Embarrassed, she lowered her head, her cheeks flushing red. Long Fei Ye and her were only together in name. Even the red on their wedding night was fake, so how could there be news from her stomach?
"So there's really no news?" the empress dowager asked while knowing the answer. She even put on a serious face.
Grand Concubine Yi didn't want to answer. She shot a Cold glance at Han Yunxi, indicating for her to respond on her own.
"There's news" and "the red on the white handkerchief" shared the same logic. They didn't ask about the process, only the results. Although both sides needed to work hard, if there were no results, then the blame would be pushed onto the female side. This was especially true in the imperial clan, where the men of the imperial clan were unquestionable!
Grand Concubine Yi didn't speak. Besides Emperor Tianhui and Long Feiye, who were whispering with their heads lowered, everyone else at the table looked towards Han Yunxi. For a woman to gain a firm foothold in a clan, there was no other reason than children!
Especially for a commoner like Han Yunxi who had married into a rich and powerful family. Children were even more important to her.
Not bearing any children was one of the seven rules for divorcing a wife.
Amidst the silence, even the imperial concubines sitting on the side looked over. Gradually, they began to talk amongst themselves.
Han Yunxi's face was a little red, but she remained calm. "Not yet."
What else could she do besides remain calm?
At her words, snickers rose from around them. Sitting behind Han Yunxi, Noble Consort Xiao even scooted over to murmur, "It's already been half a year. The Duke of Qin is busy all day, but he shouldn't … Yunxi, ah. Go find Imperial Physician Xue for a look later. He's an expert in this field."
Although she spoke in a low voice, many people heard her and broke into laughter again. Han Yunxi only felt like she'd become the target of public criticism again. But she didn't have any say in this issue, much less any room to explain herself.
Of course, this wasn't a topic suitable for family banquets. The empress dowager glanced at Grand Concubine Yi's pale face and was very satisfied.
She stopped while she was ahead and gave Han Yunxi a way out. "Duke of Qin, this is your fault. No matter how busy you are, you can't leave Yunxi out in the cold, right?"
The empress dowager assumed that the Duke of Qin wasn't listening and would only nod his head. But Long Fei Ye looked up and even knew what was going on. He said mildly, "Empress Dowager's lecturing is right. Erchen will continue to work hard."
This …
For a moment, the crowd was in an uproar. Nobody expected the Duke of Qin to have such an attitude.
Duanmu Yao was dumbstruck. She felt as if she'd been dealt a heavy blow. In her heart, her senior brother was like a god, forever noble and inviolable. She couldn't imagine that such ambiguous words would come out of his mouth.
Many of the women present blushed. Han Yunxi's face was even redder.
"Continue to work hard." His words really made one's imagination run wild!
How was he supposed to work hard?
She couldn't help but think too much. Fortunately, she pulled herself back in time. She couldn't help but sneak a peek at the esteemed figure in front of her, only to see Long Feiye's expressionless face looking right back at her. Han Yunxi immediately averted her gaze and missed the teasing smile in his eyes.
The empress dowager pursed her lips, at a loss for words.
As a mother, even Grand Concubine Yi found it inconceivable. She couldn't help but recall the white handkerchief with the blood on it. Without a doubt, Feiye's words were meant to protect Han Yunxi.
If he didn't speak up today, the issue of "having news" would continue to trouble Han Yunxi in the future. But now that he did, many of the people present would restrain themselves.
With her son's personality, how could he be willing to help Han Yunxi like this? Grand Concubine Yi found it harder and harder to see through him.
Emperor Tianhui looked at Han Yunxi a few times before a complicated look flashed past his eyes. Then he opened his mouth and teased, "Duke of Qin, you only have one wangfei in your estate, but you're already giving her the cold shoulder. Wait until the new year is over. You can't do this again if a new person enters the family?"
After the new year, a new person would enter. Wasn't this talking about the marriage for peace? Wasn't that Duanmu Yao?
This was probably the first time Emperor Tianhui had brought up the matter of marriage in public. Although his words were reserved, everyone present understood what he meant.
Duanmu Yao had come to the family banquet and Emperor Tianhui's words meant that the recent rumors were true. It was highly likely that the marriage alliance was a done deal.
Long Tianmo picked up a cup of wine and downed it in one gulp. Others might not be able to see through it, but he could.
Grand Concubine Yi bringing Duanmu Yao to the family banquet and his imperial father asking in public was actually the two of them working together to put pressure on the Duke of Qin. They were forcing him to have no room to refuse.
It looked like this was a foregone conclusion!
It was one thing if he couldn't marry the woman he liked, but he didn't expect that he couldn't marry the woman he didn't like, either. Thinking up to here, he poured himself another cup of wine.
A foregone conclusion was a foregone conclusion. Everyone still hoped that His Highness Duke of Qin would answer the question himself.
Duanmu Yao's gloomy mood turned nervous, her face pink as she waited for Long Fei Ye to speak. At the same time, Han Yunxi's cheeks were still red as she waited.
She looked towards Long Fei Ye again, only to meet Long Fei Ye's deep gaze just like before. He was looking at her again.
Han Yunxi wanted to avoid his gaze again, but for some reason, she didn't. Instead, she stared straight at him and waited.
Everyone said that when one's eyes met, it was a silent exchange of words.
Han Yunxi didn't have anything to say to Long Fei Ye, but Long Fei Ye's lips quirked up slightly at the sight of her serious gaze.
As everyone waited in silence, he said, "Your lordship doesn't even have time to attend to a wangfei, so there's no need for a newbie."
As soon as these words came out, it was like a sudden clap of thunder that hit the banquet table, shocking everyone to the point that their hearts almost stopped!
Long Fei Ye, what did he just say?
Emperor Tianhui's expression gradually changed into a storm, while Grand Concubine Yi glared fiercely at him. The empress dowager and empress were so stunned that they didn't know what to do.
"Long Fei Ye!"
Suddenly, Duanmu Yao roared. She sprang to her feet and turned to run, knocking over a bowl of soup on the table and spilling it all over Han Yunxi.
Grand Concubine Yi panicked and chased after her. "Yao Yao! Yao Yao, wait! "
Han Yunxi was drenched in soup, but she didn't care. She looked at Long Fei Ye with an involuntary curve of her lips. Right now, she really wanted to ask Long Fei Ye if he did it on purpose. Did he wait until such a public occasion to refuse her? Otherwise, why didn't he say anything so many times before?
This guy is rotten to the core!
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