Chapter 221: Attending the Banquet

The Emperor wanted to hold a hundred-day banquet for the newborn prince, which made the capital city lively but also caused some worry.

Should one wear plain clothes or festive attire?

The little prince’s birth was a hundred days ago, but the Empress’s mourning period has only been four months.

However, this talk quickly attracted reprimands. The Emperor has already ordered the banquet to be held, and no one is allowed to wear a mournful face and spoil the fun.

Indeed, the Empress’s funeral rites have long been a mere formality. She had the name of Empress, but in reality, she was treated like a commoner.

Moreover, at this banquet, the Emperor will restore Consort Bai to the status of Noble Consort. Do not offend the Noble Consort.

The Emperor and Empress were deeply in love. Consort Bai was originally inconspicuous. People only noticed her because her father was found to be a member of Empress Jiang’s faction, and her entire clan was exterminated. She herself was also banished to the Cold Palace.

Unexpectedly, this consort who seemed destined for death suddenly had a stroke of great luck. First, she gained the Emperor’s favor in the Cold Palace, then she became pregnant, and then she gave birth to the only prince. Now the Empress is dead, and she is the only one who reigns supreme in the harem.

This time, she is restored to the status of Noble Consort, and in the future, she will definitely be crowned Empress.

Therefore, this is not only a hundred-day banquet for the prince but also the first banquet for Consort Bai’s restoration to her former status. It must not be neglected.

Clothes must be exquisite, and congratulatory gifts must be given with great care. For a time, every family was busy.

Mama Xu and the maids rummaged through dresses and accessories, constantly asking, “Madam, how about this one?” Mama Huang also brought the gift list for her to review.

The Marchioness of Dongyang sipped her tea with downcast eyes: “Anything will do.” “As long as it doesn’t exceed the regulations.” “Take the gift list to the Lord Marquis to see.”

Mama Xu noticed the Marchioness of Dongyang’s listlessness and hurriedly advised, “Madam, you can’t be like this when you enter the palace. Otherwise, people will misunderstand and think you are not happy for the prince and Noble Consort Bai.”

The Marchioness of Dongyang said irritably, “I don’t want to enter the palace.”

The last time she entered the palace, Ah Li died.

She didn’t want to set foot in that sad place again, especially to congratulate Consort Bai.

The two sisters truly had different fates.

Moreover, from Zhou Jingyun’s words, it seemed that Consort Bai knew about this younger sister, but she didn’t stop Zhou Jingyun from killing her? Was Consort Bai helpless, or did she actually welcome it?

It involved the safety of the Marquis of Dongyang’s Residence, so she couldn’t ask or investigate further, but she also didn’t want to face these people.

“Tell the palace that I’m ill and won’t go, lest I pass my illness to the prince,” the Marchioness of Dongyang said flatly.

Mama Xu still wanted to persuade her, “This is a joyous occasion. If someone stirs up trouble with a few words, the Emperor might be displeased. The Marquis’s Heir is currently in a delicate position…”

It was better not to mention this. Mentioning this made the Marchioness of Dongyang even angrier: “He doesn’t care about his reputation, so why should I care for him?” She then asked sharply, “What is he doing? Did he spend last night on the pleasure boat again? Or did he go out to meet his sweetheart again?”

Mama Xu hurriedly gestured to the Marchioness to lower her voice and shooed the maids out of the room.

“Madam, the Marquis’s Heir did not. The Marquis’s Heir was at home last night, and today he is also at home and hasn’t gone out,” she said. “Just now, Hongxing went to deliver snacks and saw the Marquis’s Heir asking Chun Yue and the others to choose clothes for the hundred-day banquet.”

The Marchioness of Dongyang was stunned for a moment, then snorted, “Don’t try to fool me with such a story. When has he ever chosen clothes!”

Her son was born so beautiful that even if he wore rags, he would still look like a celestial being. He never paid attention to dressing up.

He probably never even looked closely at what he was wearing.

In his eyes, clothes were all the same.

Chun Yue held up a crimson round-collar robe for Zhou Jingyun to see.

Zhou Jingyun scrutinized it for a moment and shook his head: “Too festive.”

Chun Hong hurriedly brought out a set of lake-blue robes: “Marquis’s Heir, you also have this.”

Zhou Jingyun shook his head: “A bit dull.”

Although the banquet would start in the afternoon, it would definitely last until evening. Under the bright lights, this color would be a bit inconspicuous.

“Marquis’s Heir, try this one,” Chun Xiang said, rushing from inside and holding up a set of silver-white round-collar robes with woven gold cloud patterns, elegant and noble.

Zhou Jingyun looked at this set of robes. His complexion was fair, so it should look good on him.

Looking good or not wasn’t important. He wasn’t attending the banquet to look good. Zhou Jingyun shook his head, shaking off this strange thought.

Yesterday, Bai Li had Granny Xu tell him, using the excuse of shopping for the pleasure boat, that she would accompany Li Yu to the hundred-day banquet.

She definitely wouldn’t accompany him for no reason. There must be something she needed.

So, he also needed to be vigilant, for example, choosing clothes, suitable ones, the kind that would allow her to spot him at a glance.

Seeing Zhou Jingyun shake his head, Chun Yue and the other maids became a bit anxious: “Let’s go get another—”

Zhou Jingyun came back to his senses and hurriedly stopped them: “No need, this one will do.”

He pointed to the silver-white round-collar robe, leaving the sash, shoes, socks, and accessories to them.

“I’m going to the study.”

The maids watched Zhou Jingyun walk out and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Fortunately, although the Marquis’s Heir doesn’t usually pick out clothes, we have prepared many new clothes at home. Otherwise…” Chun Hong whispered, “We would really be caught off guard.”

Indeed, who would have thought that the Marquis’s Heir would suddenly choose clothes? At other times, he just wore whatever the maids prepared.

Of course, the maids in charge of clothing were all carefully selected, but the Marquis’s Heir had never paid attention to it.

Because they had to attend the banquet tomorrow, the maid in charge of clothing brought the clothes today. Usually, Chun Yue would just put them away. But the Marquis’s Heir, who was originally reading in the east side room, suddenly asked to have them brought over to take a look.

Then, he wasn’t satisfied with what he saw and said he wanted to change into another set.

Everyone became busy for a while, picking and choosing for quite some time before finally settling on one.

“The Marquis’s Heir seems to attach great importance to tomorrow’s banquet,” Chun Hong murmured. “I wonder who will be at the banquet…”

Chun Yue reprimanded her in a low voice: “What are you talking about? It’s a royal banquet, of course the Marquis’s Heir has to prepare carefully.”

Chun Hong and Chun Xiang looked at her. Chun Yue herself felt a little guilty.

The Marquis’s Heir, indeed, had never, before, been like this…

Chun Hong’s lips moved, as if she had endured and endured, and finally couldn’t hold back: “Will the person the Marquis’s Heir is seeing outside also go…”

Chun Yue raised her eyebrows: “Silence!”

Chun Hong immediately stopped talking, and Chun Xiang also lowered her head.

Ever since the Marquis’s Heir started frequently staying out all night, at first it was said that he was lingering on the pleasure boat, and later it was rumored that he was keeping someone outside. Although the managing mamas in the residence had severely punished them, no one dared to mention it.

However, as the maids who served him closely, they were the most aware of the Marquis’s Heir’s changes compared to before. Not to mention anything else, the Marquis’s Heir had become more prone to smiling. He would suddenly laugh even when he was reading or eating alone…

At first, they found it frightening, but when they thought of those rumors, as women with keen observation skills, they naturally guessed what was going on.

A woman dresses up for the one who pleases her, and the same goes for men.

Chun Yue sighed softly in her heart.

Were they about to welcome a third Young Madam?

……

✿✿✿

On the day of the hundred-day banquet, Li Yu stood outside Princess Jinyu’s room early in the morning.

✿✿✿

When Princess Jinyu was woken up, it was already broad daylight. Seeing Li Yu standing obediently outside the hall, she looked pleased.

“You have your own Prince’s Residence now, why are you still staying at my place all the time?” she said with feigned annoyance.

Li Yu sat down, took the teacup from the maids and handed it to her, saying, “I’m going to the banquet today, and I want to go with Aunt.”

“What? Are you afraid to go before the Emperor yourself?” Princess Jinyu said with a smile. “He is your imperial uncle, you should be closer to him.”

Li Yu shook his head: “Imperial Uncle has his own son, he doesn’t need me to be close to him.”

Princess Jinyu snorted: “Are you saying that because I don’t have my own son, you come to be close to me?”

Li Yu chuckled: “Even if Aunt had her own son, your nephew would still dare to be close to you, because my life was given by Aunt.”

Princess Jinyu smiled. Good that he knew. If he really dared to get close to the Emperor privately, she would naturally let him know whose hands his life was in.

“Stop being glib,” she said, looking him up and down, then called out to someone, “Bathe and dress Prince of Chu, make him look presentable.” Then she smiled, “I have an even better life for you.”

But she refused to say another word.

Li Yu didn’t ask further and obediently let Princess Jinyu dress him up.

Although he waited to go out with Princess Jinyu, after leaving, Li Yu still returned to his own carriage.

After all, he was now the dignified Prince of Chu.

After getting into the carriage, before Li Yu could speak, a voice chuckled.

“You’re dressed even better than you were as Young Lady Li.”

The tense expression on Li Yu’s face immediately softened as he looked at Bai Li, who was sitting in the carriage dressed as a palace maid.

“Do I look good?” he said, his smile spreading. “As long as I look good, then all that fussing over me wasn’t in vain.”

Regardless of who Princess Jinyu wanted to show him to, as long as Bai Li saw him and praised him, it was enough.

“Your Highness, please have some tea,” Bai Li said with a smile as she handed him a cup of tea.

Li Yu took it with a smile, then remembered something and said apologetically, “Because of my affairs, you had to leave the pleasure boat. Is Nannan alright?”

Bai Li had said that she had set up a barrier so that the people on the pleasure boat wouldn’t discover the child and Madam Zhuang and the others.

He had no choice but to ask for her help. Who would take care of the child? Because of his current identity, there were even more people watching the pleasure boat. If they discovered that a child was being kept on the pleasure boat, it would probably cause trouble.

Would she have to move again?

“Don’t worry, I have someone watching over her,” Bai Li said with a smile, looking at Li Yu. “For your sake, he is doing his utmost.”

Li Yu breathed a sigh of relief, but was a little puzzled. Did she say it wrong? Why was he doing his utmost for his sake? Wasn’t it her person?

……

✿✿✿

On the pleasure boat in the afternoon, perhaps because the surroundings were too quiet, the guard on duty couldn’t help but yawn as he leaned against the railing, feeling sleepy.

“Shift change,” a guard walked over and said. “Go get some sleep.”

The guard happily agreed, tossed his sword to his companion, and walked towards the cabin, collapsing onto the bed and falling asleep.

On the third floor, Huang Ru peeked out and saw the guard leaning against the railing, tossing his sword aside, and falling into a deep sleep with a relaxed expression on his face.

Huang Ru entered the room and took the child from the wet nurse’s arms: “Alright.” She then handed the child to a person standing in the room. “Master Shen, please take Nannan for a walk in the cabin. You can do it without being noticed. Although it’s still indoors, the space is larger, and she will have more fun playing.”

Shen Qing’s face stiffened as he held the child that was thrust into his arms. He had never held a child before. It felt different from holding a guqin…

The child in his arms made cooing sounds, as if about to cry.

“Go quickly,” Huang Ru urged. “She likes to walk around now, otherwise she’ll start crying.”

Shen Qing subconsciously walked forward, his expression helpless and somewhat annoyed.

Bai Li said that Li Yu was in danger and needed help, so he immediately obeyed and came here.

Li Yu definitely couldn’t be in trouble. They were still counting on him as a stepping stone. In the future, when their mistress returned to the imperial city and regained her position as Empress, they would then make further plans.

He thought he would be accompanying them to the imperial palace, but he didn’t expect to be asked to look after a child.

He, the dignified Master Shen, who could kill people without a trace, was truly being underutilized!

……

✿✿✿

In the afternoon, carriages and horses lined up in front of the palace gate. Everyone was dressed in luxurious clothes and adorned with jewels. Despite this, when Zhou Jingyun arrived on horseback, he still caught everyone’s eye.

“I have to say, Marquis Zhou’s Heir is becoming more and more handsome.”

“He has a bit more of a charming air…”

“This charming air is even more captivating than his celestial aura.”

Zhou Jingyun dismounted and had his identity verified by the imperial guards, but he didn’t go straight into the imperial city. Instead, he looked around, seemingly searching for someone.

“Let’s go, let’s go greet Marquis Zhou’s Heir.”

“Let’s not. Haven’t you heard? He’s close to Prince of Chu, trying to curry favor…”

“I don’t believe it. What’s so good about Prince of Chu to curry favor with…”

“Prince of Chu has arrived.”

As the discussions continued, two luxurious carriages slowly approached. They were the carriages of Princess Jinyu and Prince of Chu.

Before the carriages came to a complete stop, the young man in the rear carriage jumped down and rushed towards Princess Jinyu’s carriage, followed closely by a maid.

“Look…” someone nudged their companion.

Look at Prince of Chu? Prince of Chu was indeed good-looking, but with Marquis Zhou’s Heir present… The person still looked at Zhou Jingyun first and couldn’t help but be stunned.

Zhou Jingyun’s gaze was fixed in one direction, and then he smiled slightly, his dark eyes sparkling like stars.

The person was mesmerized and subconsciously followed Zhou Jingyun’s gaze, landing on Prince of Chu.

Prince of Chu also looked over, his gaze seeming to meet Zhou Jingyun’s. The next moment, he also smiled, his smile like ripples on spring water.

These two…

A line of poetry suddenly popped into the person’s mind: “Across the Milky Way, they secretly meet, under the golden wind and jade dew, they come together.” The thought sent a shiver down their spine.

No, it couldn’t be…