Young Master, Don't Show Off - Chapter 89
[Chapter 89 Love the House and the Dog]
and the Dogs in It is different from the lively singing and dancing at the night banquet in the Central Palace, but a certain hall in the harem is peaceful at this moment.
In this hall, besides the concubines, there are also the noble ladies and daughters of the powerful families. The most prestigious women in the whole Daxia are all in this hall.
Of course, no matter how noble the concubines or noble ladies are, they are not as noble as the Empress Dowager. At this moment, they are lining up and presenting gifts one by one, trying to please the Empress Dowager.
A noble lady held a scroll in her hand and asked a palace maid to help. After slowly unfolding it, it turned out to be embroidered with a picture of Guanyin.
The Guanyin in the embroidery was lifelike, holding a pure bottle and looking compassionate. The noble lady smiled and said, “Grand Empress Dowager, this is a Guanyin image embroidered on the best Suzhou embroidery by a skilled craftsman. I wish you a long life and good health, and eternal youth…”
A palace maid presented the embroidered Guanyin image. The Grand Empress Dowager looked at it for a long time and said happily, “Good, good, what a beautiful Guanyin image. You are thoughtful. Look at the reward…”
A nanny took the reward money and handed it to the noble lady. She saluted with a happy face and said, “Thank you, Grand Empress Dowager…”
Although the reward was not much, it was a good omen. The important thing was that she pleased the Grand Empress Dowager, which was incomparable to anything else.
After she withdrew, several wives from the dukes and marquises came forward and presented birthday gifts to the Grand Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager usually likes to worship Buddha. This time, it is her 80th birthday, so the gifts she received are all things like longevity pictures, Guanyin statues, Buddha statues, lotus platforms, Buddhist scriptures, etc. At first, everyone felt a little fresh, but after seeing them so many times, they no longer thought they were good.
At this time, another sturdy figure came forward, holding something in both hands, and said: “Empress Dowager, this is the longevity pagoda my daughter gave you. I wish the Empress Dowager a life as long as the East Sea and as long as the South Mountain…” What
she held in her hands was an exquisite glazed pagoda, which was also a rare item.
But the concubines and noble ladies present were not paying attention to the pagoda, but to her.
This woman was really special. The powerful families of Daxia had strict requirements for the women in their families. They must always maintain the demeanor of a lady. Not only did they have to learn etiquette, but there were also strict requirements on when to eat and how much to eat at each meal.
A woman from a rich family may look ordinary, but her temperament and demeanor must be incomparable to that of an ordinary woman. No rich daughter would let herself be so bloated, otherwise she would be laughed at by others.
Looking at her, and then looking at the girl sitting behind the table next to her, they were like heaven and earth, and the contrast was not only strong, but also tragic.
Even the Empress Dowager couldn’t help asking, “Whose girl are you?”
Seeing that she had attracted the attention of the Empress Dowager, Song Yuzhi hurriedly said happily, “Replying to the Empress Dowager, my grandfather is the Duke of Ningguo…”
Unexpectedly, the Empress Dowager just shook her head and said, “Since you are a girl from the Duke of Ningguo’s family, you should be more strict with yourself. You should eat less at every meal in the future…”
The smile on Song Yuzhi’s face froze. If someone else said this to her, she would have been furious, but facing the Empress Dowager, she could only force a smile and said, “My daughter will remember the Empress Dowager’s teachings…”
After that, she returned to her seat in disgrace.
Xue Ning’er’s seat was right next to Song Yuzhi. After Song Yuzhi, it was her turn to present a gift. She picked up a brocade box on the table and slowly left the table.
Song Yuzhi was originally ashamed and angry, but when he saw Xue Ning’er stand up, an inexplicable smile appeared on his face.
In this palace, the Empress Dowager sat on the main seat in the middle, and the Empress sat beside her. After that, it was the Imperial Concubine, the Virtuous Concubine, the Shu Concubine, and some concubines and noble ladies.
Tonight, all the women gathered in the harem. In addition to the Imperial Concubine, who was the most bright and beautiful, the youthful and lovely Xue Ning’er was also a flower that attracted attention in the crowd.
When she walked out, even many concubines cast their eyes on her.
Even they had to admit that this little girl from an unknown family was born too beautiful, and there was nothing wrong with her temperament and demeanor. Compared with the girl from the Song family just now, hey, this idea should not exist…
The only girl of the same age that they knew who could compare with her was Minghe.
The Imperial Concubine did not look at Xue Ning’er. She was concentrating on teasing the pet in her arms, wondering whether she should let Lin Xiu take her out of the palace again in a few days. She was a little greedy for the food in the Jiangnan Restaurant, and the girls in the theater had nice voices…
The Imperial Concubine Shu also looked at Xue Ning’er, but when her eyes inadvertently swept across Song Yuzhi’s face, her beautiful eyebrows frowned slightly.
At this time, Xue Ning’er had already walked into the hall. She was holding a palm-sized square brocade box in her hand and said, “This is a string of Buddhist beads that Master Huikong held in his hand when he passed away. The Xue family got it by chance. I took this opportunity to present it to the Empress Dowager. May the Empress Dowager live a long and healthy life…”
Master Huikong was a very famous Zen master in Buddhism a hundred years ago. His belongings were priceless treasures for those who worship Buddha. The Empress Dowager was delighted when she heard this and said, “Quick, bring it up for me to see…”
A nanny stepped forward, took the brocade box from Xue Ning’er, and presented it to the Empress Dowager.
Xue Ning’er stood in the hall, waiting respectfully, and did not notice that Song Yuzhi had a barely detectable smile on his face.
The older nanny opened the brocade box in front of the Empress Dowager, but when she looked into the box, her expression was slightly startled.
The box was empty.
There was nothing in the empty brocade box.
The Empress Dowager’s joyful expression also froze on her face. The concubines looked over, and some of them couldn’t help but wonder.
“The box is empty?”
“What does this mean?”
“Are you here to tease the Grand Empress Dowager?”
…
The nanny also showed anger on her face. She looked at Xue Ning’er and scolded, “Whose girl are you? How dare you tease the Grand Empress Dowager with an empty box!”
Xue Ning’er ran forward nervously, looking at the empty brocade box, and said in panic, “It’s impossible. The Buddhist beads are clearly inside. I just checked it…”
The nanny’s face sank and asked, “So what you mean is that I took the treasure you presented to the Grand Empress Dowager?”
The brocade box was tied with a ribbon before and had never been opened. Apart from Xue Ning’er, she was the only one who took over the brocade box. No wonder she was so angry.
Xue Ning’er looked at the empty box, her pretty face turned pale, and she murmured, “How could this happen…”
She had never thought that she would encounter such a thing. She stood there blankly at this moment, not knowing what to do.
At this time, many ladies in the hall were already talking about it.
“This is the granddaughter of Duke Xue’s mansion, right?”
“The little girl looks smart, but how can she be so careless?”
“The Empress Dowager respects Master Huikong very much, and now she will be happy for nothing…”
They did not doubt that Xue Ning’er was deliberately teasing the Empress Dowager. This would not benefit the Xue family at all, and would put her in such an embarrassing situation. It is very likely that she just lost the gift. Although the Empress Dowager would not do anything to her, the face of Duke Xue’s mansion was completely lost tonight.
Tomorrow, this matter will become a joke among the powerful people in the capital.
This sudden incident caused a commotion in the hall and also attracted the attention of the imperial concubine who was teasing the pet. She looked up at Xue Ning’er standing there, and then continued to tease the pet.
However, the next moment, she suddenly raised her head again, and her eyes fell on Xue Ning’er again.
To be precise, it fell on the pair of earrings that Xue Ning’er was wearing.
How could she not recognize her own things? That pair of butterfly earrings was one of her favorite accessories when she was a girl. However, as she grew older, she was no longer suitable to wear such girlish jewelry, so she put it away.
And not long ago, she gave this thing to Lin Xiu. How could it appear on the girl of the Xue family?
Her jewelry was made by the top craftsmen in the palace. There is only one pair in the world, and it is absolutely impossible to have another pair that is exactly the same. In
this case, the earrings of this little girl were given to her by Lin Xiu.
This shows that she has a close relationship with Lin Xiu, and it is very likely that she is the girl that Lin Xiu likes. Since she is the girl that Lin Xiu likes, she can’t just sit back and watch.
This is called loving the house and loving the dog.
Everyone’s attention was on Xue Ning’er. The Imperial Concubine turned her head and whispered to a concubine beside her: “Noble Lady Wang, I heard that you have a string of sandalwood Buddhist beads, which you want to present to the Grand Empress Dowager?”
Before the concubine could speak, the Imperial Concubine lowered her voice and said: “Give the Buddhist beads to me, and you choose another gift to present to the Grand Empress Dowager. In the future, I will protect you in the harem. If anyone dares to bully you, I will stand up for you.” Noble
Lady Wang was overjoyed when she heard this. She had just entered the palace and had no foundation in the harem. When facing other concubines, she was always careful and could only swallow her anger when she was bullied. But she had heard that the Imperial Concubine was a tigress in the harem, and even the Queen had to give her three points.
If she could get the protection of the Imperial Concubine, not to mention walking sideways in the harem in the future, at least she would not be bullied.
How could she miss the opportunity to curry favor with the Imperial Concubine?
Quietly, she passed the sandalwood Buddhist beads that she had worked so hard to obtain from under her body to the hands of the Imperial Concubine. She glanced at the concubines who often snatched her palace and bullied her, and snorted in her heart.
She is now the Imperial Concubine’s person, you little bitches, wait for me!
When Xue Ning’er was embarrassed and at a loss, a figure suddenly came out. The Imperial Concubine walked to the side of the Grand Empress Dowager, presented a string of Buddhist beads, and said, “Grandmother, it’s all my fault. I saw that the Buddhist beads of the little girl from the Xue family were beautiful just now, so I couldn’t help borrowing them to take a look, and forgot to return them for a while. This little girl is really something. Why didn’t she remind me? Do you think I would steal your things?”
Xue Ning’er looked at the Imperial Concubine in a daze. When did the Imperial Concubine borrow her Buddhist beads? How could she not know?
Song Yuzhi was also shocked. She subconsciously glanced at a palace maid in the corner of the hall. The palace maid shook her head slightly at her. Song Yuzhi retracted her gaze and looked at the Imperial Concubine in surprise.
The maid, after touching something in her sleeve, was finally relieved. She just raised her head and looked at the Imperial Concubine with extremely doubtful eyes.
However, she suddenly realized that someone was looking at her.
The maid slowly turned her head and met the Imperial Concubine’s eyes.
(End of this chapter)
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