Those present here are all people of relatively noble status, including the elders of the Xia clan and important officials of the current dynasty.
In addition to the Regent and the Crown Prince, there are also Taifu Liang, the Minister of the Secretariat, Lord Cui of the Ministry of Shangshu, Lady Chen, Duke Jingguo Xiao and his wife, Marquis Huaibei and his wife, Grand Princess Murong Zhuangzhuang, etc. Each of them is a prominent figure no matter how you look at their titles.
Xia Wan'er walked in as everyone was watching. The bridesmaid smiled and said, "The second young lady offers tea to the lady."
"Kneel!" said the matchmaker.
Xia Wan'er knelt in front of Ximen Xiaoyue, and the bridesmaid came up with tea, "Second Miss pays respect to mother."
Xia Wan'er kowtowed, then raised her head, took the tea from the tea tray of the bridesmaid and offered it to Ximen Xiaoyue, smiling, "Mother, please have some tea."
Ximen Xiaoyue took the tea with a smile, took a sip, and then put it down. The bridesmaid handed over the red envelope, and Ximen Xiaoyue took it and handed it to Xia Wan'er, saying, "Get up."
Xia Wan'er took the red envelope and said, "Thank you, mother!"
The bridesmaid smiled and said, "After drinking this cup of tea, you will continue your parents' kindness. Second Miss, please stand behind Madam."
Xia Wan'er stood up and walked behind Ximen Xiaoyue with a smug look on her face.
From now on, Ximen Xiaoyue is her mother. As for her biological mother Chen Linglong, she will slowly fade out of everyone's sight over time. As long as she and Ximen Xiaoyue appear in various occasions more often, no one will remember who Chen Linglong is.
The old lady and Prime Minister Xia were both very satisfied with Xia Wan'er's cooperation.
What they are more worried about now is Xia Zian.
However, considering that there were so many guests present, she couldn't not offer tea, because Xia Wan'er, the future Crown Princess, had already offered tea and called her mother, and she, as the eldest sister, would not lose her sense of propriety.
If she really doesn't offer tea, she will be the only one who is impolite.
Xia Zian, who was late, arrived in full view of everyone. She came in like a whirlwind, saying, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I kept you waiting for so long."
After she came in, before the bridesmaid could speak, she took out a red envelope from her sleeve pocket and handed it to Ximen Xiaoyue, then took a cup of tea from the bridesmaid's tea tray, drank it all in one gulp, and said with a smile: "We are all family, Auntie, you don't have to offer me tea, I'll just drink it."
After finishing her tea, she put the cup back into the tea tray of the bridesmaid. Seeing everyone's surprised faces and Ximen Xiaoyue's gloomy face, she couldn't help but be surprised, "What's wrong?"
The bridesmaid said quickly, "The eldest lady is going to serve tea to the lady."
Zi'an exclaimed, as if a little shocked, "Really? Xi Niang means that I should offer tea to my aunt, right?"
The old lady's face darkened. "What aunt? Call me mother."
"But I have a mother, so this one is my little mother?" Zi'an was at a loss, and looked at Xi Niang dejectedly, "Xi Niang, you know the rules, just teach me. According to the rules, should I offer tea to my aunt... no, my little mother?"
The bridesmaid was invited by the Duke of Jin, so she naturally had to do what Ximen Xiaoyue wanted. She said, "Miss, since Madam entered the Prime Minister's residence as a co-wife, and she is also the current First-Rank Lady of Imperial Concubine, it is only right for you to offer tea to Madam and call her mother."
Zi'an suddenly realized and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I misunderstood the law and thought that a concubine was also a concubine."
Everyone was stunned. It was absolutely impossible to say this because the Household Law. Marriage stipulates that a co-wife is a concubine. According to the law, it should be Ximen Xiaoyue who offers tea to her, the eldest daughter, because the wife of the main house is not there.
Xiniang's expression also changed slightly. At this moment, she couldn't ask Zi'an to kneel down and serve tea, otherwise, it would be against the law.
If this matter were to be taken literally according to the law, then everything would have to be done according to the law, and all the rules set by Ximen Xiaoyue would have to be invalidated.
The old lady's face darkened even more. "Zi'an, you are going to marry the Regent soon. Don't mess around. Go up and serve tea to your mother."
These words were actually spoken to the Regent, so that the Regent could teach Xia Zi'an a lesson for not knowing the rules, because Ximen Xiaoyue was a first-rank imperial lady, and Zi'an did not have any title. If the Regent respected the etiquette of imperial titles, he should let Xia Zi'an kneel down and serve tea.
The old lady thought that the regent would not offend the Jin family because of such a small issue. He was a smart man and knew that offending the Jin family would not be good for him.
However, Murong Jie did not seem to understand the old lady's meaning. He sat upright on the chair, tapping the armrest with his fingers, looking impatient.
It was as if these so-called red tape was a waste of his time.
Murong Zhuangzhuang had the same expression as him. She didn't ask about the matter, but just felt a little impatient.
The prince was very displeased and said to Zi'an, "Why are you dithering? I told you to kneel down and serve tea, so just do it."
Zi'an was very cooperative and said, "I will follow your orders, Your Highness."
After saying that, he reached out for the cup of tea.
Ximen Xiaoyue's expression improved slightly. She adjusted her skirt and waited for Zi'an to kneel down.
However, Master Liang spoke up at this time, "Wait!"
Zi'an stopped and looked at Master Liang in confusion.
Everyone was looking at him, and most people understood why Master Liang stopped Zi'an from serving tea.
Because the prince spoke. If the prince hadn't spoken, Master Liang wouldn't have cared whether Zi'an knelt or kowtowed.
Sometimes, when so-called rules conflict with laws, the law must take precedence.
The prince asked Xia Zian to serve tea, which was against the law. If the prince did something against the law, wouldn't he be laughed at? If Murong Jie wanted to investigate, he could still investigate.
Therefore, the Grand Tutor would never allow such a thing to happen.
Taifu Liang said calmly, "According to the provisions of the Household Law of the Great Zhou Dynasty, a concubine is a concubine. If the eldest lady offers her tea, it would be equivalent to disrupting the status of wife and concubine, which is against the law."
Ximen Xiaoyue clenched her clothes tightly, her face turning blue with anger. Since the law had been brought up, she naturally could not ask Xia Zian to serve her tea. However, it was not right for her to accept the red envelope that Xia Zian handed over, nor was it right for her to not accept it.
If she accepted it, wouldn't it be the same as admitting that she was a concubine? But if she didn't accept it, the red envelope would be in front of her, and she couldn't throw it away.
Seeing that Xia Zi'an was still reluctant to serve tea, Xia Wan'er wanted to please Ximen Xiaoyue and said to Zi'an, "Sister, please don't make trouble again. After serving tea to mother, we are all family. What's the point of talking about wives and concubines? How can status be as important as family affection?"
Zi'an was a little embarrassed. He looked at Master Liang and said, "Sir, should I kowtow or not?"
Taifu Liang cursed Zi'an's viciousness in his heart. It was obvious that she was unwilling to kneel and kowtow, but she seemed to be at a loss and pushed all the responsibility onto others.
Seeing this, the old lady said to Grand Tutor Liang, "Since she is a co-wife, she is the wife of the Prime Minister's Mansion. As a descendant of the Prime Minister's Mansion, it is only right for me to kowtow and offer tea to her. Moreover, Xiaoyue has a title. According to etiquette, even an old person like me has to pay respect to her, let alone a junior."
Taifu Liang nodded, "What the old lady said makes sense. If we judge by title, the eldest lady should indeed offer tea to the lady."
"fart!"
A low and unhappy voice came from outside the door, and I knew that Prince Li had arrived.
(End of this chapter)