In mid-May, just after the Crown Prince’s 20th birthday, the Empress held a flower-viewing banquet in the palace.
The daughters of officials of the fifth rank and above in the capital were invited to the palace for the banquet.
Although it was not stated explicitly, everyone knew that this was about selecting wives and concubines for the prince.
After all, the Empress was strict and the Crown Prince was not allowed to have someone to serve him until he was eighteen years old. He was unlike ordinary princes who had someone to serve them at the age of fifteen.
Up to now, there are only two concubines in the prince's backyard, both of whom are very obedient and down-to-earth.
The women in the prince's backyard are divided into four categories: the crown princess, concubine, concubine, and concubine.
Therefore, the ladies who entered the palace all had clear goals. Those with outstanding family backgrounds all wanted to become the principal wife, while those with less advanced family backgrounds considered becoming concubines and high-ranking ladies. Although concubines were the lowest in rank, some also wanted to become concubines.
After all, it would be great to be able to enter the prince's mansion, and you can even get promoted. In the future, when the prince ascends the throne and enters the palace, things will be even more different.
Maybe she will be the empress in the future.
Driven by this idea, all the girls who came to the banquet dressed up gorgeously, intending to outshine the others.
Ye Jun had intended to observe secretly from the beginning, so he placed the banquet in the imperial garden and asked the girls to walk around, while he and several concubines in the harem sat in a pavilion in the distance to observe.
"Sister Qi, why don't you pick two sensible ones to serve the Fifth Prince today? The Fifth Prince is already fifteen years old." Concubine Rong said with a smile.
Concubine Qi De shook her head gently, "The Queen and I have the same idea. There is no need to get close to women so early. Let's wait until he turns eighteen."
"That's true, but I guess the eldest prince and the second prince will have to add some new people to their courtyards today." Concubine Rong took a sip of tea.
Concubine Hui Shu took over the conversation, "That's secondary. I looked at her for a long time. The girl in the honey-colored dress seems pretty good. She has a dignified manner and good looks. Many girls are surrounding her. I think her family background must be very good."
Obviously Ye Jun also noticed this girl and nodded slightly.
Kong Qing hurriedly took a half step forward and whispered, "To answer your questions, the lady is the legitimate daughter of Lord Lin, the Minister of State Affairs."
"No wonder. The Peiyang Lin family is also a century-old scholarly family. Lord Lin was promoted to the first rank five years ago and came to Beijing to serve as an official." There was a hint of admiration in Concubine Qi De's eyes.
She was born like this too, so she couldn't help but prefer it more.
However, Ye Jun didn't think much of it.
Because Miss Lin looked quite arrogant, and it was obvious that she looked down on the group of ordinary housekeepers and ladies who were talking to her, but she did not refuse those people to be around her.
I'm afraid I just like to hear compliments.
Most of these women cannot stand others being more dazzling than themselves, and often lose their tolerance for others.
Of course, Ye Jun was just guessing, and further contact was needed to confirm.
Everyone looked at it for a while and finally picked out four good ones.
One is Lin, and there is also the legitimate daughter of the new Minister of Revenue, Wu, the legitimate daughter of General Huoqi Shen, and the legitimate daughter of General Yunhui, Zeng.
Two are civil and two are military. These four people are the best in appearance, family background and manners among those seen now.
But what was unexpected was that when the Crown Prince and several princes came to the banquet, there was a girl standing next to the Crown Prince. She was wearing a misty purple dress and her eyes were calm and gentle.
For a moment, everyone looked over, some in surprise, some in jealousy, and some in envy.
However, the girl was very confident. She bowed slightly to the prince and walked to the side where the ladies were standing.
No one knows a son better than his mother. Seeing the look in the prince's eyes on the woman, Ye Jun knew what was going on.
"Kong Qing, who is that girl from?"
She looked extremely well-mannered. When she walked, the hem of her skirt hardly moved, her earrings were steady, and the hairpins on her head were rhythmic, swaying with every step, perfectly executed.
Ye Jun believed that even after so many years in the palace, she had never practiced to this level.
"Your Majesty, she is a girl from the Earl of Jing'an's Mansion." Kong Qing replied hurriedly.
After hearing this, Ye Jun's eyes flashed with surprise.
"Lord Jing'an, the daughter of the Xiao family?"
Concubine Huishu was also equally surprised and slowly put down the teacup in her hand.
"Although I am not from Kyoto, I know that the Xiao family has no successors and is slowly declining. Back then, the ancestor of the Xiao family was a first-rank cabinet minister and later a tutor. After the emperor ascended the throne, he was named Duke Jing'an, and his title was hereditary. Later, none of the Xiao family's children were outstanding, and now they have all been demoted to earls. This Miss Xiao is a great-grandchild, right?"
Generally speaking, if the descendants are capable, they can basically win the emperor's favor and allow the marquis to inherit the title without being demoted in their generation. It can be seen that the descendants of the Xiao family are not very ambitious.
Now, this Earl of Jing'an, apart from his title, holds a mere sinecure of the fifth rank. How could he have raised such a daughter with such excellent manners
"Maybe a lean camel is bigger than a horse. Although the Xiao family has declined, it is still considered a noble family." Concubine Rong said in a low voice.
Concubine Qi De shook her head. "I have seen the Xiao family before. They are not good. The Earl of Jing'an is even more useless. His wife died a long time ago, and now he has a concubine. I heard that she was not born well either. She has made a mess of the family. I am afraid that the Earl's Mansion has long been an empty shell."
This is somewhat credible.
Because what Xiao was wearing was not made of the best material, it could just be considered top-notch, but it was well-matched and the style was novel.
However, in the end, this little episode did not cause much waves at the banquet that day.
One reason is that the prince only appeared with Xiao, and they had no further contact afterwards. Everyone speculated that perhaps they just met and came together.
The second reason was that the Xiao family was now in decline, and those ladies from high-ranking families did not take Xiao seriously, thinking that even if she entered the mansion, she would probably only be a concubine.
Xiao herself was even quieter, with no unnecessary expression from beginning to end, as if the person who had shone brightly for a moment just now was not her.
After the banquet was over, Ye Yun called the prince to Zhaochun Palace.
The mother and son closed the door and sat down, and Ye Jun spoke lightly.
"Tell me, what's going on."
The prince touched his nose and said, "Mother, what do you want me to tell you? Today, Miss Lin's poems were good, and Miss Shen's piano was good."
"Shao Pin, I want to ask you about the girl from the Xiao family." Ye Jun glanced at him.
"She is quiet and virtuous. My son thinks she is good." The prince chuckled.
Ye Jun sipped his tea and said, "Why didn't you say anything just now?"
"Isn't it because the Xiao family has fallen on hard times and her family background is not good?" The prince shrugged and sat down aside.
Ye Jun narrowed his eyes and said, "No matter how poor they are, they are still a noble family. As long as they have good character and are smart, their family background is secondary."
As soon as he finished speaking, the prince handed over a peeled grape.
"My son knows that the queen mother is different from ordinary women. She sees things more clearly."
Ye Jun rolled his eyes at him unhappily, took the grape and put it in his mouth.
"You are just trying to trick me, but I am telling you, if she is not a good person, you cannot make her your concubine no matter how much you like her."
The prince put away his playful look and nodded seriously.
"My son knows that it is a favor that the Queen Mother is willing to give her a chance."