Chapter 312: Drawing Jade Tokens, Seventh And Eighth

Lan Ning came in behind Caifen. She came to Ning Xueyan’s side, squatted down, and spoke a few words to Ning Xueyan in a low voice. The young masters of the aristocratic families who had entered the hall at this time went to the left wing of the main hall after they had seen the Emperor, the Empress, and the imperial concubines of the harem.

【 Here, several rows are all men’s seats. In the front, there are three chairs. The first one is covered with light yellow brocade similar to bright yellow. Its position is just below the steps of the Emperor’s platform, but it’s slightly outward. The handsome and deeply cold person sitting on it is none other than His Royal Highness, Prince Yi, who is known as the Imperial Younger Brother.

Below him were Third Prince Ao Mingyu and Fourth Prince Ao Mingwan.

This arrangement is grand enough!

At the same time that the candidates were alarmed, they also secretly rejoiced. If they could make a name for themselves in such an occasion, it would be enough to make the Emperor remember them, and perhaps they would rise to the top from then on.

“Empress, this… when will it start?” The Emperor’s complexion did not look very good. He looked wan and slightly pale, and his spirit also seemed to be quite lacking.

Ning Xueyan looked down and only felt that this Emperor did not look old. He was a middle-aged man with a thin appearance. It seemed that he should have been good-looking when he was young, but now, there were dark circles under his eyes, his complexion was too pale, and no matter how she looked at it, she felt that his body was not very good.

The Empress was an extremely dignified middle-aged beautiful woman. She was well-maintained, with a gorgeous phoenix skirt, and her complexion was good, but between her appearances, she always felt a sense of gloom and coldness. Even in this hall full of flowers, she could not dispel the gloom on her body.

This is the Empress of the middle palace without children. Without offspring, how could she be the Empress of the middle palace? So this gloom between her eyebrows and eyes, which had been difficult to dispel for a long time, was also reasonable.

Compared to Noble Consort Ya and Consort Shu, who were sitting beside her, she was obviously much more deeply cold.

“Emperor, this matter was all arranged meticulously by Younger Sister Ya. Let Younger Sister Ya tell the Emperor!” The Empress showed a proper smile on her face, turned her head to look at Noble Consort Ya sitting on the side, looked dignified and polite, and was worthy of being the mother of a country.

“Empress, you are too flattering to me. I can’t say that I have arranged anything meticulously. It is always this selection, and the Emperor and the Empress must also take a look. How could Younger Sister Shu and I dare to take the lead?” Noble Consort Ya smiled gently while holding her handkerchief. There was not a bit of disrespect for the Empress between her eyes, and she even subtly flattered the Empress.

The Empress’s complexion slightly relaxed a bit.

“Younger Sister Ya is really too polite. Then, can we start now?” A faint smile appeared on the Empress’s face, and she conveyed the words to the Emperor.

“Yes, start immediately.” Noble Consort Ya smiled and clapped her hands. An eunuch standing behind her stepped forward and handed her an exquisite box. Inside were small jade tokens. Noble Consort Ya stood up, walked gracefully in front of the Emperor, made a graceful bow, and held the box high above her head.

“Emperor, your servant would like to ask the Emperor to draw the first candidate to perform today, and then ask the Empress to draw the next one.”

“My Consort is truly intelligent. Are you drawing them on the spot?” Drawing and performing on the spot, the Emperor was rather interested. He reached out and took a jade token, and praised with a smile.

“Emperor, your servant doesn’t have any intelligence. It’s all the Empress’s reminder, plus Younger Sister Shu’s thoughts. Your servant is just a messenger.” Noble Consort Ya did not take any credit for herself, and with a smile, she pushed the matter to the Empress and Consort Shu. The Empress’s expression became even more relaxed, and she reached out and took a jade token, handing it to an eunuch on the side.

Consort Shu, sitting on the side, smiled even more happily.

The first one to perform was the daughter of the Minister of Rites. She was performing a dance. She is now going down to change into her own dance clothes. Next is the daughter of the Right Prime Minister. She is now preparing the zither, and the maidservant beside her has taken out the zither she brought with her from the bag of the zither.

The third to draw a jade token was Ao Chenyi. He languidly reached out and took out the token. An eunuch quickly took it and noted down the name of the third performer.

Then came the Third Prince, the Fourth Prince, and then Consort Shu, followed by the imperial concubines of various ranks in the harem, in order of their rank.

There were many imperial concubines who came today, but the number of candidates was obviously not many. After this arrangement, there were even a few of the lower ranks who did not have the opportunity to draw a token. After they were all drawn, the palace maids went down and announced the numbers of each young lady, so that they could prepare in order.

Ning Xueyan looked at her own number, which was the eighth. It was still a little early to prepare now.

But it seemed more coincidental that the palace maid who came to tell her the number first told Ning Qingshan, and then told Ning Xueyan. Of course, Ning Xueyan did not forget the polite attitude of the palace maid when she spoke to Ning Qingshan. It seemed that the people in this imperial palace also knew that Ning Qingshan was going to be the principal wife of the Third Prince.

The first candidate performed a talent. The zither music was elegant and clear, and one could tell that she had put in a great deal of kung fu. Even the Empress, who had been wearing a stern face, slightly showed a few points of satisfaction on her face, clearly showing that she highly approved.

The dance of the second candidate was also beautiful. Although it was not very outstanding, it was also passable, and it was not much weaker than others.

Next was the third and fourth. These two were also coincidental. One danced and one played music. The two seemed to have discussed it, and they cooperated together, which made everyone feel refreshed. It was not known if the two knew each other originally, or if they had cooperated before, but they vaguely made people feel that such cooperation was excellent.

After they came down, there were more who praised them than before. Because these two people cooperated and got a full house of applause, for a moment, several candidates sitting next to Ning Xueyan and adjacent to her were quietly inquiring about what the other party was performing and whether they could cooperate.

As soon as the third and fourth candidates went off the stage, the fifth candidate went up. Her dance was not only good, but the dance music was also quite long. Coupled with the drumbeats, it had a feeling of being ethereal and immortal. Between the long sleeves, the dance steps moved lightly, and it was very attractive.

“Fifth Younger Sister, how about we cooperate? We will play the zither together. If I have any shortcomings, you will help me remedy them. If I have any shortcomings, you will also help me. We two will perform together, which will certainly give us greater Certainty than if we perform separately. Fifth Younger Sister, what do you say?”

Ning Xueyan leaned back as she watched the dance, and approached Ning Qingshan and said.

She believed that Ning Xueyan would not refuse. Ning Xueyan’s zither skills were unknown. Now, she was caught off guard. At this time, she must be very flustered. She reached out to help her, and it was also that she was willing to share some of the praise she received with her, or even took away some of her failure. How could she disagree?

So Ning Qingshan didn’t think that Ning Xueyan would not agree at all. Even after saying these words, for a long time, the position behind her was a deeply calm space, she also did not know that she had enough patience to let the prey slowly crawl over and be hooked.

“Thank you, Third Older Sister, but this is not quite right. We are both playing the zither…” A gentle and soft refusal came from Ning Xueyan’s side. Everything was within Ning Qingshan’s expectations. If Ning Xueyan agreed so simply, she would have felt doubtful.

She has not been with Ning Xueyan for just once. Which time was it not carefully planned and then acted upon? This shows that Ning Xueyan is extremely cunning, and it is impossible for her to immediately believe that she will sincerely cooperate with her. Fortunately, she was also well-prepared for the next words.

“Fifth Younger Sister, I am not very clear about your zither skills. For these three years, I have been in the Nun’s Abbey, not caring about worldly affairs, but now that I am out, I do not want anyone to criticize our Duke’s Mansion. If Fifth Younger Sister has any shortcomings, it will also implicate me. Fifth Younger Sister also knows about my relationship with the Third Prince. We cannot make any mistakes at this time, so I think that playing together with Fifth Younger Sister will give us more Certainty.”

Ning Qingshan turned her head, her gaze fell on Ning Xueyan, and she slightly revealed a few points of depression, but she spoke very sincerely, and she even subtly revealed that if it were not for the sake of the Duke’s Mansion’s face, if it were not for the sake of the Duke’s Mansion’s face, and her own wedding, which had a great relationship, she would not have taken the initiative to invite Ning Xueyan to perform together.

The two of them secretly clashed several times, and almost all of them ended in Ning Qingshan’s failure. How could there be no Misunderstanding? If Ning Qingshan only said “upholding Righteousness” at this time, saying “Sisterly Love,” Ning Xueyan would not believe it no matter what.

But to say that because of her own wedding, she had to make concessions to Ning Xueyan, after all, the Duke’s Mansion’s reputation was not good. Perhaps Noble Consort Ya and the Third Prince’s side would not be willing to form a Marriage Alliance with the Duke’s Mansion, then her position as the Third Prince’s principal wife would be missed in vain.

Saying such a reason was much more credible. After all, it concerned her own marriage, and it was also a matter of course for Ning Qingshan to make some concessions temporarily. The Emperor and the Empress were all above, and at this time, the two of them were fighting, and it was the face of the entire Duke’s Mansion that was lost. It was indeed not very suitable.

If Ning Qingshan was not Noble Consort Ya’s cousin, if Noble Consort Ya had not already promised Ning Qingshan that she would enter the Third Prince’s Mansion, it would be normal for Ning Qingshan to have these concerns now. These are of course based on Ning Qingshan’s Surface identity. Of course, Ning Qingshan also affirmed that Ning Xueyan would not know the relationship between herself and Noble Consort Ya privately, so she would affirm that Ning Xueyan would certainly agree.

Cooperation benefits both sides. Anyone who is a Smart Person will do it.

Of course, Ning Qingshan would not say her real Goal. The zither that had been tampered with, if Ning Xueyan’s hand was slightly exerted, one of the zither strings would break a bit. Then, when she played it again, it would certainly cut her. The Emperor, the Empress, and a group of imperial concubines were all watching above. Even if she found that the zither string was broken, Ning Xueyan would not dare to stop.

She was not originally proficient in zither skills. If she played with a zither that had cut her hand, and compared the two with her own, the advantages and disadvantages would be clear. In addition, if Ning Qingshan’s zither did not stop, Ning Xueyan could not stop either. This time, she would not only drive Ning Xueyan away, but also ruin her hand.

For this, she chose a musical piece that was relatively long.