Yuan Qingling watched as the dieting Prince Sun wolfed down a whirlwind meal of two plates of dim sum, fried lamb chops, two small stir-fried dishes, and a bowl of white rice, not leaving a drop of sauce behind.
"Brother, if you're still not full, call for more dishes." Yuan Qingling felt he was still looking longingly at the empty plates with a pitiable sense of still being hungry.
Prince Sun sternly looked at her. "No more. This prince is on a diet. You must not sabotage my efforts."
Yuan Qingling felt very helpless. A man claiming to be dieting comes to gorge himself at her place, then accuses her of sabotaging him.
"Then brother should stop eating," Yuan Qingling said.
Prince Sun slowly raised his head, a look of grief and indignation on his round face. "I've only eaten two of your dim sum. Must you be so petty about it?"
"It's not that..." Seeing his angry fat face, Yuan Qingling let her shoulders droop helplessly. "I meant, brother has eaten quite a bit today. Come back tomorrow for more."
"What dim sum will you make tomorrow?" Prince Sun dabbed his mouth daintily with a handkerchief, casually asking. But his eyes shone with obvious anticipation.
"Brother can ask the imperial chefs to make whatever he wants." She was defeated by him.
"Just make whatever is convenient." Prince Sun lowered his eyes and rummaged in his sleeve for a while, drawing out a list. "What a coincidence. My birthday is coming up in a few days. My consort said she wanted to celebrate for me and specially ordered this menu. Why don't you have the chefs make a few dishes from it so I can try the flavors first, to avoid offending the guests if the tastes are off during the actual banquet. The portions don't need to be too large since I'm dieting and can't eat too much."
He put the list on the table. Yuan Qingling picked it up and took a look, immediately dumbfounded. "38 dishes for brother's birthday banquet?"
"It's a bit extravagant, I know. We can cut back on other areas, skip the troupe performances, but we can't skimp on the food for the guests." Prince Sun said placidly.
"I can't make 38 dishes tomorrow though." Yuan Qingling truly felt for the imperial chefs.
"Just make three dishes tomorrow, then three more the next day, and so on. We'll get through the whole menu in 10 days or so."
"But your birthday banquet would be over by then!"
"Delay it!" His reply was terse.
Gluttons always have lofty justifications.
She was almost certain Prince Sun came to see her because the emperor had sent two imperial chefs to her estate.
Indeed, that was the case. When Prince Sun left, he didn't even ask about Yuan Qingling's injuries.
The next morning, Prince Ji and his wife, and Prince Qi and his wife came together.
There was a 10-day imperial rest period, so Yuwen Hao didn't go to the administrative offices either. He chatted with Prince Qi and Prince Ji in the main hall, while Consort Ji and Chu Mingcui spoke with Yuan Qingling in the Phoenix Pavillion.
Today Chu Mingcui wore an autumn fragrance colored diagonal folding plum blossom embroidered satin dress with butterfly pattern embroidery, her hair in a tall sharp Wu style chignon pinned with a cloud motif jade hairpin, requiring no other adornments, which made her appear refreshingly beautiful yet sweetly enchanting.
She had outstanding looks. Just a light touch of rouge on her face, her lips tinted like honey, gave off a smooth luster.
Her shapely brows were elegant, the ends slightly upswept, containing allure with a hint of sharpness.
Looking at Consort Ji, she wore a fresh green precious Xiang silk robe with gold swaying step hair ornaments. Her looks were ordinary, but she had an upright, grand aura. There was a black mole between her brows. As a daughter of an eminent family, she was knowledgeable and sensible. Standing together with Chu Mingcui, she did not seem overshadowed by Chu Mingcui's brilliance, but rather appeared free and easy.
In contrast, Yuan Qingling's face was ghastly pale. She wore an old rose colored blouse with her hair casually bundled up. In her haste she had applied just a touch of lip rouge, still unable to conceal her haggard appearance.
Seeing her, Consort Ji's face was filled with alarm. "I didn't expect Marquis Huiding to be so brazen and reckless, even daring to commit this atrocity right under the emperor's nose. Little sister must have gotten a huge fright this time!"
"It was fine, thank you for your concern, Consort Ji," Yuan Qingling said. She was unfamiliar with her and truly did not know what kind of person she was, so could only politely respond.
Hearing Consort Ji's words, Chu Mingcui felt a little unhappy. Although it was Marquis Huiding causing trouble, saying this right in front of her was a bit deliberate.
She kept silent, only looking at Yuan Qingling.
The two were enemies to begin with. No need for pretense today. She was only here because Prince Qi came. He was muddleheaded.
Consort Ji was very enthusiastic. "I heard His Majesty sent two imperial chefs to your estate. Why don't we eat together today? Us sisters haven't sat down to chat in a long while."
Yuan Qingling nodded. "That's good!"
The three didn't actually have much to talk about. But Consort Ji was adept at avoiding awkward situations. She kept asking Yuan Qingling all sorts of questions, about affairs inside and outside the estate, until the topic went to attending the retired emperor during his illness.
"Does the retired emperor have any preferences? Was he difficult to serve when you attended him in Qian Kun Palace?"
Yuan Qingling became somewhat wary now. She smiled and said, "I only assisted the retired emperor with taking his medicine in the palace. I didn't need to do anything else, and he rarely spoke to me, so I didn't find it very difficult to serve him."
"Is that so? But I heard he had you accompany him on a stroll through the Imperial Gardens." Consort Ji smiled.
"That did happen." Yuan Qingling said. Just accompanying the retired emperor on a walk around the gardens somehow attracted so much attention from others. She truly felt undeservedly favored.
Where was that glutton Prince Sun?
"So the retired emperor trusts you quite a bit. He hasn't been out to the Imperial Gardens in a long time. Asking you to accompany him on a stroll, and I heard you supported him by the arm, right?" Consort Ji enthusiastically asked.
Yuan Qingling forced an awkward smile. "The retired emperor was in an especially good mood that day."
"It shows you served him properly." Consort Ji praised ceaselessly.
Where on earth was that glutton Prince Sun?
Chu Mingcui felt just as uneasy as Yuan Qingling. She didn't want to hear any of this at all. There was no need to inquire so deeply about these things. Why keep grilling Yuan Qingling like this? Her questions made Chu Mingcui feel provoked.
Consort Ji was truly meticulous with her questions.
Might as well go out for a walk.
Yuan Qingling immediately stood up. "Good idea!"
Consort Ji walked over and looped her arm with Yuan Qingling's. "You're still injured. Be careful when walking."
Yuan Qingling forced a smile. This woman really couldn't be judged by her appearance.
Consort Ji looked proper and steady, but acted quite frivolously. Seemed she wouldn't find peace outside either.
However, Granny Xi was adept at reading subtle cues. Seeing Yuan Qingling didn't want to make small talk with the two women, she came over and said, "Consort, it's time to summon the imperial doctor to change her dressings."
Yuan Qingling apologetically said to Consort Ji, "I'm terribly sorry, I need to leave you for a bit. See you at the table later."
"Change dressings?" Consort Ji had wanted to offer her help, but the thought of looking at bloody wounds made her nauseous. She could only say, "Alright, see you later."
Chu Mingcui had already gone out. Chatting with the two women was truly boring. Her heart had long flown to the main hall. He was there. She hadn't seen him for many days.
When she came in earlier, she had only glimpsed him from afar, not even greeting him before Consort Ji pulled her to the Phoenix Pavilion.
