Chapter 10: Give a banquet

The first day of the first lunar month of the second year of Yufeng was the first Spring Festival after the new emperor ascended the throne, so the banquets in the Ganqing Palace were particularly lively. The eunuchs who served were even more busy. After the empress dowager and the concubines of each palace were promoted, they began to arrange cold meals. On a huge banquet table, the cold food of each color was full of snacks, dozens of foods. From Sucao abalone snails to the milk sauce, from water shells and urns to carved lacquer fruit boxes, the eunuchs were so busy that they were afraid of something going wrong.

At the second hour of Xinzheng, the eunuch Wang Hai of the general manager ordered the manipulation of hot meals, but the soup meal had not been delivered yet. Even so, the scene was spectacular. Boxes filled with various foods were delivered like flowing water, and the banquet for the concubines to be given to the concubines, the palace of the Qing Dynasty was filled with a cheerful atmosphere. It was still the mourning period of the third year of the late emperor, so the rituals and music were still not used, but everyone had already left the sad mood, and just flattered the empress dowager and the emperor with spirit.

In addition to the Empress Dowager and Empress sitting high above, the banquet tables in the east and west were clearly placed, with the concubines of the late emperor sitting on one side, and the concubines of the emperor sitting on the other side. The east end were the concubines of the late emperor, the first table was the imperial concubine of the late emperor, the first table was the imperial concubine of the Gonghui imperial concubine He Xueming, the second table was the imperial concubine Ma, the third table was the imperial concubine Ma, the third table was the imperial concubine Ma, the Rong Taifei Zhou, and the next table was the imperial concubine Fang and Taipin Xian. The first table was the imperial concubine of the west end, the first table was the imperial concubine of Lan, the second table was the imperial concubine of Xun Yue Qiyan and the imperial concubine of Ru Chen Hongru, the third table was Rong Ping's house, and the last table was the imperial concubine of Rong Yana and Zhen Ping's house, and the last one was the imperial concubine of Wan. The princes and princesses were still young, so naturally followed their mother to serve the banquet. After the eunuch came in, Haoyang would hold a glass of wine and kneel down with a smile to his father.

"Father, today is the Spring Festival. I am here to congratulate you on your longevity!" Haoyang congratulated respectfully, with a glittering look on his face with aura. He is also a small person. Although Hongru had told him that in the past years, there were princes toast, their generation was still young, so this year should have been avoided, but unexpectedly he remembered it in his heart.

Feng Wuhen looked at his son who was like a little adult, and couldn't help but be happy. He came forward and took the wine he brought with him. "It's hard for you to remember these rules, so I'll reward you. You are still young, so it's fine to pick up a few sips of what you can use later. If you are not the time to get the wine, I will receive your kindness first."

When Haoyang saw his father raise his glass and drink it all, he was overjoyed and kowtowed frantically, "Thank you, Father! Today is the New Year, and this is what the sons should do. I wish the emperor and grandmother good health and the mother and queen Jin An!" He probably didn't think about it in advance, and these words were a bit inconsistent, but the Queen Mother Xiao was still amused and gave him a jade pendant with her.

The queen Hai Ruoxin, who was beside her, also showed a knowing smile and said in a funny way: "A child of such a little bit of age is so sensible, and the Empress Dowager and the Emperor really did not love him in vain. He was studying with Mr. Xi before, but now he is different from the past. The Emperor should choose a suitable master for him." Her words were just right. Although Haoyang is not a legitimate prince, he should have found another wise master at the age of eight, so as not to delay his future growth.

"Well, what the queen said is reasonable." Empress Xiao also smiled from the side, "Haoyang has laid the foundation for the first time. Now we should find a great scholar to train well. In the future, we must be a prince who can protect the world. Emperor, please discuss with a few ministers tomorrow, and be sure to find a reliable person."

When the empress dowager spoke, Feng Wuhen quickly bowed to agree, and the concubines below were thinking about the purpose of it. However, the young Haoyang didn't understand these things. When he heard that his father wanted to choose a good teacher for him, he immediately pouted, and seemed not very happy. In his opinion, Xi Yuanli was naturally the best master.

Seeing that his brother got the first prize, Ji Yue naturally was not willing to fall behind. She stepped forward and curled up for a long time, and then successfully got a string of agate beads from Queen Hai Ruoxin. Naturally, she was excited for a while. He Xueming knew her identity and followed the empress dowager and flattered her for a while. The concubines sitting at her head frequently looked at her. Concubine De, Lan, was Feng Wuyan's mother, but was implicated by her son and became a convicted concubine. Therefore, even if she was promoted, she did not get much benefit. The rank position was one level lower than that of Concubine Yungui, and she was a little unhappy in her heart. She had always been arrogant and domineering, but she was a little restrained because her son was convicted, but she couldn't help it at this time.

"This Spring Festival is a day for family reunion, so everyone can be happy." She suddenly said, "The emperor's pair of precious children is really painful. It is really a blessing for the empress dowager and the emperor. But my life is miserable..."

Before she finished her words, the Empress Dowager Xiao changed her face. At this time, Lan did not look at her eyes. However, Xiao's status is different now, and easily getting angry would hurt the atmosphere at this time. He interrupted in a faint voice: "Sister Lan doesn't have to be too sad. That was the order issued by the late emperor. Even the emperor cannot change it easily. What's more, it is still in the three-year mourning period, and there is no reason to change the arrangements of the late emperor. If you really miss your son, you will be asked for a special order for you tomorrow. If you really have the chance in the future, the emperor may also forgive you if you think of your brotherly feelings. Now it is time for everyone to be happy, so don't talk about these words."

A few words of neither soft nor hard made Lan speechless. She could only agree, then wiped her tears on her own, but her heart was filled with anger. The concubine of Yungui, who was standing beside her, quickly interrupted: "It has been several heavy snow this year. I think it will be very lively outside." She was an honest person, and as she said that she stopped, she had to watch He Xueming make things smooth.

He Xueming naturally knew what the other party meant, and smiled and said, "Although it is a good harvest, I think that those ordinary people may not be able to survive this cold winter smoothly. Now charcoal fires have been ignited in the palaces everywhere, and earth dragons have been burned, but many people outside are still hungry and cold, so they want to ask the emperor for help and let Shuntian Mansion help her." Her words were reasonable, and they both changed the topic and reported things by the way. Feng Wuhen's own concubines nodded secretly.

Although Feng Wuhen had learned from the memorial that heavy snow near the capital had caused disasters, he could not help but admire He Xueming's anxious wisdom. He nodded and said, "Aunt He, don't worry. I have ordered Yang Zhen, the prefect of Shuntian, to handle this matter. I believe the porridge farm had already begun to be reconciled at this time. Even the people whose houses collapsed by the heavy snow had been put in place." Seeing the different expressions of the concubines there, he would not know what they were thinking, but he was too lazy to pay attention to these activities.

Xiao Fangzi, who was serving Feng Wuhen, suddenly saw someone waving to him by the side door, and seemed quite anxious, so he asked his master gently, and then ran there. The person who came was Liu Qi, a little eunuch serving him in the study room, holding a bright yellow cover memorial in his hand, and said breathlessly: "Eunuch Fang, this is an urgent document sent by the southwest. Several adults in the study room were anxious to ask the servant to send it here, saying that it was a good news for the victory, and the emperor would be happy and happy."

Xiao Fangzi was stunned and was overjoyed. After praising Liu Qi a few words, he took the memorial into the hall. At this time, it was the time when the emperor rewarded the empress and the concubines with wine. The concubines raised their glasses and drank the wine together, and thanked them with great gratitude. He came to the emperor in three or two steps, and then knelt down to present the memorial. The concubines were stunned when they saw this, and their faces were a little unnatural, fearing that there would be some disturbing news at this time.

After listening to Xiao Fangzi's two words, Feng Wuhen stretched his eyebrows, which were already locked, and he hurriedly unfolded the memorial. When he saw it, he was very happy, and his face was full of eyebrows. "Okay, okay, it's true that it's Zhan Pohan!" He suddenly smiled and said, "In one month, two prefectures and one county were recovered, and only two counties remain had not yet recovered. I really did not see the wrong person!"

Empress Dowager Xiao was originally in his heart, but when he saw that it was a good news ahead, he couldn't help but feel sorry for him. "The Ai family thought that someone disturbed the emperor at this moment. It turned out that the ministers wanted to report good news to the emperor. No wonder they were gods and ghosts." She smiled and said to the concubines, "The emperor encountered such a good omen for the first time today. It was also your blessing. Why don't you quickly curry favor with your master and make a good fortune?"

The concubines were not ignorant, so they rushed forward to congratulate each other, which was very lively for a while. However, the imperial concubine He Xueming, the noble concubine, came forward to congratulate the Queen Mother Xiao in a fun way, and brought other concubines to join in. This New Year's banquet gave him real joy.

After all the meals were in, several eunuchs pondered the master's expression and asked Shi Liushun, the eunuch of the six palaces, and hurriedly entered the fruit table. First, the empress and the emperor, then the empress and the imperial concubine Gonghui, and then the concubine. After the banquet, the concubines came out to kneel down to send the empress dowager and the emperor back to the palace, they returned to the palace one by one.

That night, Feng Wuhen rested in Kunning Palace. He often stayed in Qinzheng Hall overnight, and he visited the concubines less often. Both of them were people who had not been warm for a long time, and they were immediately entangled for a while. After a long time, the two of them lay face to face after the passion, but no one said a word.

"Your Majesty, you have also seen the behavior of Concubine De today. Without a son in the harem, it is really worse than anything else." Hai Ruoxin finally spoke, and there was a hint of sadness in his words. "Although you and I are married, we even agreed to our grandfather to inherit Hai's cigarettes, but my sister and I still have no children yet."
Chapter completed!