However, her face was full of confusion: "Your Majesty, Hai Ling doesn't know where she went wrong. Hai Ling was only thinking of Your Majesty's health. Some of the women in those portraits are too stiff, with big but lifeless eyes; some have thin lips and a mean face; and some have fierce faces, clearly destined to bring misfortune to their husbands. How can such people enter the palace? Hai Ling is wholeheartedly for Your Majesty, but Mother Empress is angry?"
She showed no remorse and even had a self-righteous expression.
The Emperor was even angrier. He clenched his fists and coldly ordered, "Guards, take the Empress back to Zhengyi Palace. She is not to come out without my decree."
He didn't want to see this woman even once. She was clearly ugly and fat, yet she was jealous and talked back to his mother.
Seeing that the mother and son at the head of the table were both quite angry, Hai Ling was finally satisfied. She slowly stepped back and led Yan Zhi out of the hall, heading back to Zhengyi Palace.
On the way, Rouge couldn't help but wipe her sweat: "Miss, you almost scared me to death. When will this ever end?"
Even if the Empress Dowager and the Emperor are very angry now, they won't touch Miss. They're just keeping her around to make a show of it, to let the world see that the Empress is still a member of the Jiang family, to demonstrate the royal family's favor towards the Jiang family. But if Miss becomes useless, she suspects that Miss will be the first one to suffer.
"It'll be soon."
Hailing spoke vaguely, which others did not understand, but Yanzhi did. Her mistress meant that she would be able to leave the palace soon.
But is that even possible?
The talent show continued and did not stop because of Hailin's nonsense.
Three days later, all the young ladies from prominent families who had been chosen by the Empress Dowager and the Emperor entered the palace to attend the flower-viewing banquet.
Hai Ling originally thought it was none of her business, but to her surprise, the Emperor summoned her because there were court officials present, and as the Empress, she naturally had to be there.
Even though Feng Zixiao disliked her, she still had to maintain appearances.
Rouge and Xiao Ke tidied up Hailing, and the group headed to Chengqian Palace.
The flower-viewing banquet was held at Chengqian Palace. Outside the palace gates, the lights were bright and the place was bustling with people.
Today's flower-viewing banquet is exceptionally lively. Not only are the daughters of high-ranking officials present, but several princes have also attended, as have all the unmarried officials in the court.
Left Prime Minister Xi Lingfeng, Imperial Censor Wei Lin, Grand Secretary Yan Zhan, and others all arrived.
The main hall of Chengqian Palace was filled with talented young men, so the young ladies attending the flower-viewing banquet tonight were all excited, dressed in their finest attire, displaying stunning beauty. Whether they entered the palace or not, if they were betrothed tonight, they would enjoy a life of wealth and honor, so everyone was happy.
When Hailing arrived, almost all the beauties who were supposed to come that night had arrived, along with several princes and young talents from the court. Apart from the Emperor and Empress Dowager, the imperial concubines were also absent.
The eunuch shouted, "Her Majesty the Empress has arrived!"
Everyone looked over and saw a plump figure walk in through the door, surrounded by admirers.
Inside the main hall, everyone bowed and greeted, "Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress."
Hailin nodded and said softly, "Get up."
As everyone stood up, several daughters of high-ranking officials came to greet Hailing, surrounding her and escorting her inside.
Although the Empress was not favored, she was still the head of the harem. If she were willing to say a few more words tonight, it might change their fate. Therefore, all the women surrounding Hailing were flattering her.
Then the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, and the concubines of the harem all made their appearances.
Inside the main hall of Chengqian Palace, the lights were brilliant, the colors were dazzling, and the scenery was breathtaking.
The men were handsome, the women were beautiful, and the entire palace was filled with a dazzling array of colors, like a bewitching flower in full bloom.
Fine wines and delicacies, it was truly an intoxicating night.
Feng Zixiao sat at the head of the main hall, with the Empress Dowager and Hai Ling sitting beside him, while the other concubines sat in their own places.
The emperor, empress dowager, and others sat down, and the people below the hall also took their seats.
The hall was filled with dazzling colors, a feast for the eyes.
Hai Ling glanced down and saw that the beauties entering the palace today were all daughters of important officials in the court. Not only were they of noble status, but they were also very talented. Every move they made attracted attention. Among them, unsurprisingly, were Ye Xiuying and Jiang Feixue.
The two women were all smiles, poised and elegant, showing no embarrassment or awkwardness whatsoever, as if the barking of the dog not long ago had nothing to do with them.
Inside the hall, Feng Zixiao gave the order: "The banquet begins."
Court singers gracefully ascended the throne, instantly filling the hall with red sleeves and creating a scene of peace and prosperity.
However, intelligent people know that beneath the peaceful surface lies a struggle for power.
The women present, along with the court officials, were all targets of the royal family's calculations. Today's flower-viewing banquet was certainly not without its purpose.
However, none of this mattered to Hailing. She sat there, enjoying the food and drinks, watching the singing and dancing, and having nothing to do with the excitement.
After a song and dance, the beauties took to the stage to perform their talents. Each of them used all their skills, hoping to catch the eye of the men present, or even the emperor, so that they would be treated with the utmost respect and honor from then on.
When it was Ye Xiuying and Jiang Feixue's turn to perform, the two of them put on a show of all their skills, their beautiful eyes constantly flashing signals of admiration as they looked at the emperor with his head held high.
Inside the main hall, many people could see their intentions.
It seems that these two women are interested in the Emperor.
By the time the song and dance performance ended, it was already late. Many people had been drinking and were feeling sleepy. They looked at everything in the hall with blurry, drunken eyes. Although they were drunk, their minds were not. At today's flower-viewing banquet, there was no room for them, as subjects, to speak. The reason the emperor held this flower-viewing banquet was nothing more than to arrange a political marriage to check and balance each other.
The Empress Dowager first inquired about the Emperor's opinion, asking if there were any women he favored who could be selected as concubines in the harem.
Feng Zixiao glanced down and saw that most of the beauties in the hall were gazing at him with affection, wishing they could be chosen as his concubines.
Feng Zixiao was well aware of the current troubles facing the Great Zhou Dynasty, so he had no interest in selecting any beauties. However, he knew that this was his mother's wish, hoping that he would quickly fill the harem and produce more royal blood. Naturally, he could not go against his mother's wishes, so he selected three beautiful and charming women to enter the palace.
One of them was still the daughter of the Vice Minister of War, and was granted the title of a fifth-rank concubine.
One was the daughter of a high-ranking official, who was granted the title of Liangyuan, a fifth-rank official; the other was the daughter of a commander of the capital's garrison, who was granted the title of Liangdi, a fifth-rank official.