vrcanaries Chapter 423: Talk Behind the Golden Curtain
Chapter 423: Talk Behind the Golden Curtain
The huge palace was illuminated by bright lights as bright as day, and on the stage in the middle, a group of dancers were performing.
Thanks to Chen Ji, Luo Xiaoran, who was sitting at the last seat at the Queen's Thousand Years Festival Palace Banquet, suddenly sat at the chief seat.
Sitting opposite her was the King of Qi, whom she had met once. Below him were the heads of the five major families, oh no, the four major families. Then below them were the other ministers who were seated in order of their positions.
Emperor Tianqi sat high on the dragon throne, wearing a crown and a dragon robe, looking majestic and solemn.
On his left and right were the Empress and Concubine Bai. Behind him was a space separated by a curtain made of gold beads, in which sat the Grand Empress Dowager and the Queen Mother, who were in the seats of honor.
"She is indeed a beauty."
The Empress Dowager's playful eyes had been lingering on Luo Xiaoran ever since she entered the palace, and had never left her.
"This girl is quite good-looking. If she can marry into the royal family, it will be her good fortune. If not, it can only be blamed on her humble background. It all depends on you, old lady." The Queen Mother responded.
Although it is not known why the Grand Empress Dowager changed her mind about the marriage, the way the Empress Dowager and the Grand Empress Dowager get along is obedience, blind obedience, and eternal obedience.
As long as she was obedient, the Queen Mother would always be protected by the Grand Empress Dowager and could easily become the second most noble woman in Daliang. Why not?
When she lost her protection, that was the day when the Empress Dowager passed away. At that time, the Empress Dowager became the most noble woman in Daliang, and no one dared to disobey her.
"If you were me, would you help this marriage come true?" the Empress Dowager asked again.
A trace of confusion flashed across the empress dowager's beautiful eyes. She didn't understand what the grand empress dowager meant by this. She stroked her temples and spoke carefully:
"The Prince of Yan is a military man, and it is inappropriate for a weak young lady from a noble family in Kyoto to marry him."
"Luo Xiaoran was born a peasant girl. I heard she fled to the Northern Territory to escape famine. She is the perfect match for the King of Yan!"
After hearing this, the Empress Dowager finally withdrew her gaze from Luo Xiaoran. She glanced at the terrified Empress Dowager and said with a half-smile:
"You don't have to deliberately belittle the King of Yan to please me just because I hate him."
"No matter how bad the Prince of Yan is, he is still the descendant of Emperor Taizong, and he holds half of the military power in Daliang. Even if he wants to rebel and become the emperor, he may not fail. Isn't the benefit of marrying the Prince of Yan obvious?"
As soon as these words were spoken, Madam Ke and Wang Defa, who were serving beside them, wished they could become deaf on the spot, or at the very least dig a hole and crawl into it, anyway, so that they could not hear a thing.
The Queen Mother was also shocked, suspecting that the Grand Empress Dowager's illness might not have been fully recovered, otherwise why would she say such words out of the blue.
The Prince of Yan has half of the military power of Daliang, but these soldiers are held back by the Northern Barbarians. If the Prince of Yan leads them south, even if the rebellion is successful, what awaits him is not the yellow robe, but the Northern Barbarians taking advantage of the situation and invading.
By then, the King of Yan would become the sinner of the entire Daliang. Would he dare to rebel? Could he rebel?
What's more, the imperial court has been tightening its control over the Northern Border Army in recent years, and the supply of food and military pay has been delayed and saved wherever possible.
The imperial court does not need a strong Northern Frontier Army. It only needs a Northern Frontier Army that can match the Northern Barbarian Army in strength.
The Queen Mother quickly adjusted her demeanor and replied in a gentle voice:
"Your Majesty's worries are not without reason, but the imperial court holds the other half of Daliang's military power, and the Prince of Yan has no reason to rebel. The constant harassment from the northern barbarians is enough to give him a headache, how dare he commit the crime of treason!"
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager looked at the Queen Mother strangely.
"I was saying that marrying the King of Yan has many advantages. Who asked you about the rebellion?"
Queen Mother:…
Madam Ke: ...
Wang Defa: ...
"Forget it, the beginning of winter always has these things going on. I'm old now, so I'll leave this palace banquet to the young people to have fun!"
The Empress Dowager seemed tired. After the guest nanny helped her leave, the Empress Dowager also wanted to go back to sleep early to take care of her beauty.
The sound of stringed instruments in the hall was melodious and pleasant, complementing the graceful dance of the dancers. The conversation between the Empress Dowager and the Queen Mother was not heard by anyone except the few people behind the curtain, not even the Emperor Tianqi who was closest to them.
……
The actions of the Grand Empress Dowager and the Queen Mother leaving the palace banquet one after another left the rest of the people a little confused for a moment.
Emperor Tianqi, in particular, felt as if he had been fooled.
Didn't the old woman want to see Luo Xiaoran? Why did she leave after just a short while?
She is also old and her eyesight is blurry. The two of them are not very close to each other, and there is a golden curtain between them. Can the old woman see Luo Xiaoran clearly?
This is his first time as a matchmaker, so it won’t fail, right?
Apart from Emperor Tianqi, the most confused person in the palace was of course Luo Xiaoran herself.
She took so much trouble to dress up just to impress the Empress Dowager, so why wasn't she even given a chance to meet her?
As for the others, the news that the Empress Dowager wanted to meet Luo Xiaoran at the Beginning of Winter Dinner had already spread. Does her action of leaving early mean that she is not satisfied with Luo Xiaoran being the Princess of Yan?
Luo Xiaoran was feeling depressed because of the departure of the Empress Dowager, and the next second, a crystal pork elbow appeared in her bowl, which was given to her by Chen Ji.
"You didn't eat much. Is it because the food at the palace banquet was not to your liking?"
Luo Xiaoran shook her head, "That's not the case. I'm not thinking that the Empress Dowager wants to see me. If I eat with oil dripping from my mouth, it would be inappropriate to be afraid."
"Hehe~~" Chen Ji couldn't help but chuckled.
"Now that she's gone, you can eat as much as you want."
Seeing that Chen Ji was not worried but happy, Luo Xiaoran felt a little strange in her heart for some reason. She spoke awkwardly:
"The Empress Dowager left the table halfway through. I guess she is not happy with me. I'm afraid your Highness will have to let someone else take over as the Princess of Yan."
Chen Ji laughed again when he heard that. His Adam's apple rolled and his brows relaxed. A touch of warmth appeared on his usually serious face.
He suddenly moved closer to Luo Xiaoran, staring into her eyes, as if he wanted to engrave Luo Xiaoran into his heart.
"My Princess Yan will always be you, and can only be you, Luo Xiaoran."
Seeing the solemn look and deep voice, Luo Xiaoran suddenly felt her breathing become a little rapid, her heart beat faster, and her cheeks were steaming.
"Just talk, why are you standing so close to me?"
She stretched out her hand to push Chen Ji away, lowered her eyes as if she couldn't face him, then raised them again after a moment and stared back at him without any hesitation.
"My husband can only have me in this life. If you want to take a concubine or a concubine someday, tell me in advance so that we can part ways in peace."
Upon hearing this, Chen Ji grabbed Luo Xiaoran's hand, anger flashed in his eyes, but he soon calmed down, his voice full of frustration:
"Xiao Ran, you know very well that between you and me, I am the one who is worried about gains and losses!"
Luo Xiaoran's eyes flickered slightly. When they were in the Northern Territory, Chen Ji also said that he was afraid that his future self would dislike him in this era...
Seeing the hint of grievance on Chen Ji's face, Luo Xiaoran felt that what she had just said was indeed a bit abrupt.
Chen Ji was already 23 years old, old enough to be a father in Daliang, but he would not even ride a mare, let alone a woman. His level of chastity was considered bizarre in the eyes of other men.
A person like Chen Ji either has an emotional obsession with cleanliness or will stay with someone for the rest of his life once he falls in love with them.
Or... he has a sexual fetish.
But according to her observation, Chen Ji is straight.
"Ahem, this crystal pork elbow looks good. Let me try it."
Feeling a little guilty, Luo Xiaoran quickly lowered her head and started to eat heartily, then ignored the person who was just feeling aggrieved, with a smile on her face at this moment.
That’s right, the sinister Prince Yan is laughing secretly!