Most of the ladies who came to the palace for the banquet did not bring their daughters with them. Only a few did, including Zhao Xijun's mother, Zhao Wangshi.
The person Zhao Wang brought with her was her niece Wang Miaoyun from her mother's side. Wang Miaoyun was fourteen years old, with a beautiful face and a graceful figure.
Zhao Xifang, who was talking to someone, saw this and her face changed slightly. She went over and pulled Zhao Wangshi aside and asked, "Mother, why did you bring your cousin into the palace?"
"Bringing her here, of course, is to have her enter the palace to serve His Majesty." Zhao Wangshi said frankly.
"Enter the palace?" Zhao Xifang sneered. "Don't even think about it. The Queen won't let anyone enter the palace. Even if you really send someone to the palace, it won't end well for you."
"Xifang, you are too jealous. This is not good." Zhao Wangshi said with a frown.
"I, forget it, there's no point in saying more. Anyway, you'd better keep a close eye on her and don't let her show up. Otherwise, if something happens, no one can protect her." Zhao Xifang flicked her sleeves and walked away.
Just when Zhao Xifang was instructing her mother, someone found Miao. Jiang Changning was an orphan, her family had been ruined, and the person closest to her was Miao, her wet nurse.
That person hoped that Miao would help to intercede and send her daughter to the palace to serve Emperor Xuanzhi.
No woman is willing to share her husband with another woman. Miao is a woman who does not allow her husband to take concubines. Upon hearing this, she snorted coldly and said, "Your Majesty has exempted the selection of concubines because he does not want anyone to enter the palace. You want to send your daughter to the palace. Are you trying to disobey the order?"
The man's expression froze. "If you don't want to help, then don't help. What's the point of saying you're disobeying an order?"
After saying this, he quickly slipped away.
Miao picked up the cup angrily and took a big gulp. The decree asking these ladies to bring their daughters into the palace must not have been from the Queen Mother, but should have been from the Empress Dowager.
After a while, the Queen Mother and Jiang Changning arrived at the Imperial Garden together, and Miao became more certain of her thoughts.
When the two ladies stepped down from the phoenix chariot, all the ladies bowed down and said, "Greetings to the Empress Dowager, and greetings to the Empress."
"Ladies, there is no need to be so polite. Please stand up quickly." The empress dowager said with a weak support.
Jiang Changning was standing by, smiling gracefully. In the morning, she went to pay her respects to the Queen Mother and politely asked her if she would attend the Chrysanthemum Banquet.
When they were at the palace, the empress dowager, who was not keen on attending these banquets, actually wanted to attend, which surprised Jiang Changning.
The Queen Mother wanted to attend, and Jiang Changning had no way of refusing, so the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law came together.
"No need to be so polite, everyone please take a seat." The Queen Mother sat down.
The ladies thanked him and sat down.
The eunuch came up holding rare chrysanthemums and placed the flowerpot on the sixteen-sided carved table in the middle for everyone to admire.
Next, it’s time for the ladies to show off their acting skills.
Each of them had a surprised expression, as if they were seeing chrysanthemums for the first time, and then they could not stop praising the chrysanthemums, as if these flowers were fairy flowers in the garden of flowers in heaven.
The Queen Mother was in a good mood, but she wasn't looking at the flowers, her eyes were on the girls.
Jiang Changning knew that the Queen Mother had always wanted Emperor Xuanzhi to favor more women so that he could have more children. She wondered which of these girls would catch her eye
As Jiang Changning expected, the Queen Mother made a move, "Whose daughter is that little girl in pink?"
"To answer your Majesty, I am the niece of the wife of the Marquis of Wuchang. My name is Chu Jing. The waning moon hangs on the sparse toon tree, and the water clock stops and people are Chu Jing."
"Chu Jing, well, it's a good name." The Queen Mother praised with a smile.
"Thank you for the compliment, Madam."
The Queen Mother lovingly asked the girls' names and praised them, "It's really boring to sit and admire the flowers like this. What talents do you girls have?"
Chu Jing said modestly: "My daughter has studied piano for several years."
Wang Miaoyun said, "My daughter has learned the guzheng for a few years."
There were seven girls, four playing the piano, one playing the zither, and two painting.
The two painters were each mixing paints and preparing to paint at the long table they had brought over.
The five girls who were going to perform musical instruments were arguing about who should perform first. Chu Jing said, "I'll be the first."
"Why?"
"Just because the Queen Mother asked me first."
As soon as Chu Jing's hands touched the strings of the zither, she heard the sound of a cleaning whip. It was Emperor Xuanzhi coming.
Looking at the bright yellow figure coming from the other side, Jiang Changning pursed his lips. Why was he here
The Queen Mother explained, "I asked someone to invite the Emperor over. He has been busy with government affairs all day, so he should take a break to avoid exhausting himself."
"Your Majesty is right," Jiang Changning said with lowered eyelids.
As soon as Emperor Xuanzhi came over, everyone except the Empress Dowager stood up and saluted.
He walked straight to Jiang Changning, helped her up, and sat down. "Mother, why are you in the mood to come to the Imperial Garden to appreciate the flowers today?"
"The Queen invited me here," the Queen Mother said with a smile.
Jiang Changning met his gaze and said with a smile, "It is better to share happiness with others than to enjoy it alone. Your Majesty has come at the right time. The girls are about to perform."
Emperor Xuanzhi said indifferently: "Then act it out."
"I respect your Majesty's will." Chu Jing said in a soft voice.
She sat down beside the zither table, put her ten fingers on the strings, and played a piece of music called "Flowing Water". "Flowing Water" was inspired by the story of Boya playing the zither and meeting a soulmate.
Jiang Changning raised her eyebrows. The meaning of her playing this song was to express her desire to find a soulmate.
Her soulmate was not the Empress Dowager, but Emperor Xuanzhi.
Jiang Changning glanced at Emperor Xuanzhi, who smiled at her, reached out and grabbed her hand, playing with it in his palm.
The three of them sat at the top, and only the Empress Dowager and the palace maids and eunuchs standing behind could see Emperor Xuanzhi's little movements.
The Queen Mother looked at it, frowned slightly, and coughed lightly.
Emperor Xuanzhi did not let go, and Jiang Changning did not pull his hand away, and the couple pretended not to hear.
Seeing this, the Queen Mother didn't want to speak in front of everyone, so she had to turn her attention back to Chu Jing.
"Flowing Water" performed by Chu Qinfu is a very expressive piece of music with varied fingerings. Her piano skills are excellent and she can fully bring out the various moods of flowing water.
The sound of the melody appears and disappears from time to time, just like being on the top of a mountain, surrounded by clouds and mist, unpredictable.
Then it turns to clear overtones, the rhythm gradually becomes brighter, gurgling and clanging, like a cold current in the quiet; clear and cold, like a stream at the roots of pine trees.
Listening quietly to this flowing melody is like seeing the sound of a spring in a mountain stream, and a feeling of joy arises spontaneously.
The melody is ups and downs, the wind is strong and the waves are surging.
There is a sense of extremely boiling and surging water, like a roaring dragon.
If you calm down and listen quietly, it's as if you are sitting in a dangerous boat passing through Wu Gorge. You will feel dizzy and shocked. You will almost doubt whether you are already rushing towards the mountains and being swept by the currents of thousands of ravines.
At the end of the song, the sound of flowing water resumed and slowly died down, while everyone was immersed in the artistic conception of mountains and flowing water and had not yet come back to their senses.
"Emperor, how about this poem 'Flowing Water'?" asked the Queen Mother.
"Average." Emperor Xuanzhi said calmly.
The empress dowager frowned again. Does the emperor not like it
"Next."
The second girl who performed a talent show performed "Three Variations on Plum Blossoms".
This song has a beautiful melody. It praises people's noble character by describing the plum blossoms' proud demeanor in the frost and snow.
Jiang Changning smiled slightly. This girl is quite clever.
(End of this chapter)