Zi'an looked over and found that Xiao Tuo's face was indeed pale.
She guessed that she was bitten by a poisonous snake when entering the bamboo forest. There were small green snakes in the bamboo forest, which were very poisonous. But since they dared to break in, they should have brought antidote pills.
If the poison had not been removed yet, Murong Jie should have come to find her instead of sitting there calmly waiting for wine.
Zi'an actually didn't think Xia Huaijun would be so stupid as to hide someone in the Prime Minister's residence, especially when he knew that the Prime Minister's residence was going to hold a wedding banquet.
Was Murong Jie's action a bit redundant
Murong Zhuangzhuang was sitting at a table with the old lady, Concubine Cui, old lady Liang and others. When she saw Zi'an and Liu Liu, she called them over.
Zi'an took Liu Liu over and originally just wanted to greet Concubine Cui and Lady Chen, but Zhuangzhuang asked them to sit down.
Zi'an understood Zhuangzhuang's meaning very well. With the Old Lady and Concubine Cui around, it wouldn't be easy even if the old lady wanted to harm her.
Zi'an sat next to Chen Taijun, and Chen Taijun whispered, "How is the matter going?"
Zi'an smiled: "Don't worry, Madam Taijun, everything will be done soon."
Concubine Cui heard this and said with a smile, "Old Chen, don't hide it. I know what you are planning. Is it about Liu Liu's marriage?"
Lady Chen said with a worried look on her face, "Isn't it? I am so worried about this."
"You really can't worry about fate. Look at our princess, she's already 28 years old and still has no one settled down." Concubine Cui couldn't help but talk about Murong Zhuangzhuang again. It was not Concubine Cui's fault. Every time she entered the palace to pay her respects to the old empress dowager, the old empress dowager would always talk about Zhuangzhuang's marriage, saying that she was uneasy because the things the grand empress dowager had entrusted her to do had not been completed.
Chen Liuliu was listening nearby and asked in confusion: "The princess is only sixteen years old?"
Lady Chen smiled and said, "Silly child, the princess is twenty-eight years old."
Zhuangzhuang's face darkened. "You don't have to keep mentioning my age, Madam. I remember it."
"Twenty-eight seems so young, and I'm already seventy-eight." The old lady sighed softly, looking nostalgic for her youth.
"Old lady, you are so blessed now. You have married a virtuous daughter-in-law and your Chen family has grown into a prosperous one. These twelve generals will be the shield of our Great Zhou when they step forward." The old lady said with a smile.
The old lady glanced at her and said, "When it comes to choosing daughters-in-law, I am indeed better than you. Except for Yuan, the other four daughters-in-law of yours are not that good."
The old lady only spoke because she wanted to get close to her, but she didn't expect to be scolded by the old lady. She looked unhappy, but when she thought of Chen Linglong, Liu and Ximen Xiaoyue, they were indeed not outstanding people.
There was no way to defend herself, so she simply kept silent, but she felt a little resentful towards the old lady in her heart.
Concubine Cui was kindhearted and quickly tried to smooth things over and change the subject, but she stabbed Zhuangzhuang in the heart fiercely, "Princess, don't think about that little bastard Xiao Xiao."
Zi'an heard Xiao Xiao's name again. She looked at Zhuangzhuang and saw that her face suddenly turned pale, as if someone had hit her soft spot. It can be seen that this person holds a very important position in her heart.
She looked at Liu Liu, and Liu Liu was also looking at Zhuang Zhuang. There was actually a bit of pity on the girl's expression.
"Are you going to force me to sit somewhere else, Concubine Dowager?" Zhuang Zhuang said expressionlessly.
The concubine sighed softly, "Okay, I won't say anymore. I'll be a bad guy later. Look, the meal is served."
The old lady ordered someone to serve wine, and two maids poured the wine, but one of them only poured for Zi'an and Liang, then quickly left.
While pouring the wine, the old lady smiled and said, "You really have to try the braised pig's trotters tonight. We've been cooking it since early this morning, simmering it over a slow fire. It melts in your mouth and is very delicious."
Concubine Cui said, "I have a bad tooth. If it is stewed softer, I can eat it. Thank you for your trouble, old lady."
The old lady reached out to pick up the wine, but accidentally dropped the chopsticks. When Zi'an bent down to pick them up, the old lady also bent down and quickly whispered in her ear: "There's something wrong with your wine."
Zi'an actually noticed it, but he remained calm.
The maid who poured wine for her and Liang was the old lady's personal maid. She didn't need to come out here to serve the guests today. Xia Quan had already mobilized enough manpower, and no one in the old lady's room needed to come out to help.
Even if she came, she would only serve the old lady and would not pour wine for others, especially when there were already maids serving wine.
But she was puzzled as to why Liang's wine was poisoned.
The servants began to bring up the dishes. The exquisite dishes were neatly arranged and looked delicious.
But everyone’s appetite was not very good, because lunch was almost served at the Shen time, and now it was the end of the You time, which was only an hour and a half away.
Everyone was just waiting for the fire dragon to arrive. After all, there were actually very few officials and noble families who would invite a fire dragon, as it was a luxury. On the contrary, there were more wealthy businessmen's families who would invite a fire dragon.
The old lady was toasting, and Zi'an followed suit and raised his glass. After toasting, he covered his face with his sleeves and pretended to look up, but all the wine fell into his sleeves without drinking a single drop.
Zi'an looked at Liang. She had drunk it all. It seemed that she either had the antidote already or didn't know there was something wrong with the wine.
She pretended to look at the old lady casually. She had been staring at Zi'an, but when Zi'an's gaze turned away, she quickly turned away.
When the meal was almost over, the bridesmaid came over and said to the old lady, "Old lady, the family has to go back after dinner. According to custom, the second young lady should count the gifts for her family and put them in the basket by herself. Do you think it's time to ask someone to call the second young lady over?"
This kind of return gift is usually done by the sister-in-law or the younger sister-in-law, but the sister-in-law Liu has been driven out and there is no younger sister-in-law, so Xia Wan'er, who has kowtowed, can only do it.
The old lady said, "Okay, I'll ask someone to find it right away."
She raised her head and saw a crowd of people, but Xia Wan'er was nowhere to be seen.
"Xia Quan, go find the second young lady," she called.
Xia Quan bowed and walked over, "Yes, I will order someone to find it now."
The old lady said calmly, "The second young lady just went after the prince, and I haven't seen her since."
The old lady was stunned for a moment, "Really? I didn't notice it. Could it be that this child followed the Crown Prince to go boating on the lake again?"
Concubine Cui smiled and said, "Their marriage has been settled. It's not against the rules to go out for a walk. You should stop interfering too much."
The old lady said unhappily: "Today is her father's big day, she should be more careful."
Xia Quan said, "Don't worry, old madam. I will go find it right away." After saying that, he turned and left.
The old lady raised her eyes and glanced at the old lady calmly, "I heard that the marriage between the second lady and your highness has not yet been approved by the Empress Dowager. Is that true?"
The old lady's face was a little stiff. "Really? Is there such a thing? Where did you hear it from?"
The old lady smiled and said, "Isn't it? I forgot who told me that, but if the old lady said no, then it probably isn't true."
Everyone knows this, but no one asks about it.
The old lady thought that she was too rude. As a guest, she didn't give the host any face at all, so her face looked a little bad.
(End of this chapter)