Jiang Xinyue didn't care whether he was happy or not; after all, it was the New Year, and she was quite pleased.
Because this time, her adoptive father had brought Lady Ruan into the palace, not Madam Zhou.
Her full-blood siblings had also come, and from across the crowd, they were waving to greet her from afar!
Jiang Xinyan had always been gentle, self-disciplined, and dignified, rarely showing such outward emotions. This was the first time Jiang Yunxia and Jiang Yuncai had entered the palace, and also the first time they had seen their cousin Xinyue since she entered the palace.
In fact, before Jiang Xinyue entered the palace, they had only met her once, many years ago, when their fourth uncle had brought his whole family back to their hometown to pay respects to their ancestors.
At that time, Jiang Xinyue was only about ten years old!
Jiang Yunxia was probably seven or eight.
Her only impression of Jiang Xinyue was that she was beautiful, more beautiful than all the other girls in the Jiang family combined.
When they were young, none of the girls in the clan could avoid being jealous of her, feeling that when she stood there, she was like a towering tree, overshadowing everyone else's light.
At that time, no one would play with her. The little girls were unwilling, while the little boys were shy, afraid to disturb this fairy-like sister or cousin.
After all these years, time had been particularly kind to her. That beautiful face, as it matured, revealed stunning beauty and radiance.
Outside, those high-and-mighty young ladies from great families privately complained together, asking why Jiang Xinyue was so favored, wasn't she just a pretty face?
Jiang Yunxia shook her head, finding it amusing.
After seeing cousin Xinyue's beauty today, could they still say such ignorant things?
A pretty face?
Even if she was just a pretty face, her cousin Xinyue was the most beautiful and exquisite of all, captivating anyone who laid eyes on her.
Even as a woman, she couldn't help but be attracted, wanting to look a few more times. How much more so for the Emperor, a virile young man?
Isn't the purpose of a pretty face to be beautiful?
Being beautiful enough is already the biggest reason for her to be favored!
The last time she entered the palace, Lady Ruan had met her daughter in Hexi Palace, during the Fifth Prince's one-month celebration. It had been almost a year since she had seen her eldest daughter.
That time she came quietly, and Xinyue wasn't as favored as she is now, so no one paid much attention to her.
This time was different. After Lady Ruan took her seat, all the eyes around fell on her, making her inexplicably nervous. She timidly tugged at Jiang Yankun's sleeve.
She wasn't afraid of anything else, just that her lowly status might cause her children to be pointed at and gossiped about.
Especially Xinyue...
While Jiang Yankun was still engaged in witty banter with the flattering officials around the table, his hand under the table tightly held Lady Ruan's, his thumb gently stroking the back of her hand to reassure her.
Where there are flatterers, there are also those who are sour and mean-spirited.
"As it happens, our family has some connection with Lord Jiang's family!" Lady Pei, the mother of Concubine Li, said with a cold smile. "I heard that Lady Ruan used to be a dancer in the Ruyang Prince's Residence. Back then, the Prince of Ruyang saw that Lady Ruan was peerlessly beautiful and almost sent her to my father as a bedwarmer. But my father was already advanced in years at that time and politely declined. It was Lord Jiang who had the eye for beauty and asked the Prince of Ruyang for her hand to be his concubine. Otherwise, today's Concubine Zhen would have been my little sister, and that would have been quite a gap in generations. But then Lord Jiang could have asked my father for his late-born daughter's hand in marriage."
These words were truly venomous.
First, she publicly exposed Lady Ruan's background, laying her shameful past bare for all to see and inviting everyone's contempt.
Then she said that when the Prince of Ruyang obtained this exceptionally beautiful dancer, he intended her as a gift for Minister Pei, but Minister Pei looked down on women of such low status and unclear backgrounds, not knowing if they were even clean, so he refused.
It was Jiang Yankun who was indiscriminate in his tastes, too uncouth, and actually welcomed such a promiscuous prostitute into his household, presumably blinded by lust.
What's worse, she hypothesized that if Lady Ruan had been given to Minister Pei as a concubine, Jiang Xinyue would have been Minister Pei's late-born daughter, and Jiang Yankun would have had to ask their Pei family for Jiang Xinyue's hand in marriage.
Wasn't this a violation of ethical norms, hinting that the Jiang family had no rules, and spreading rumors about father-daughter impropriety...
The color drained from Lady Ruan's face. She had expected to be insulted, but she hadn't imagined that Lady Pei would be so vicious, opening her mouth to completely destroy the reputation of the Jiang family's daughter.
There wasn't a hint of anger in Jiang Yankun's gentle eyes. Instead, he let out a sneer: "Lady Pei is right, and I must thank Minister Pei for his consideration back then, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to marry my dear wife with a clear conscience. However, Lady Pei is mistaken on one point. The Emperor has already decreed that my dear wife be elevated to the status of my equal wife; she is not a concubine as you say. My dear wife is well-educated and gentle in nature, unlike those vicious women who immediately divorce their husbands and cut ties when they fall from grace. They are sharp-tongued, while my dear wife is well-mannered and no match for them. I ask all the ladies present to take good care of my dear wife. I, Jiang, thank you all in advance."
"Yes, yes... No need to thank us, it's what we should do..."
This Lord Jiang's tongue was too sharp!
Repeatedly calling her "Lady Pei" was like rubbing salt in her wounds, wasn't it?
Vicious woman, sharp-tongued, ill-mannered - every word was a stab to the heart!
And while retaliating, he also cleared Lady Ruan's name, stating that when she married Lord Jiang, she was a pure and innocent maiden, not the lowly person Lady Pei described.
Most men value chastity highly, and since Lord Jiang said so, Lady Ruan must certainly be beyond reproach.
Lady Pei was so angry she wanted to explode, but this was a palace banquet, so she had to hold it in. However, the hideous expression on her face was far from presentable.
Jiang Xinyue hadn't heard the argument over there, but she saw her mother's pale face and frightened eyes, as well as her siblings' indignant heaving chests.
Who was gossiping and stirring up trouble again?
She looked at the sweet crab meat already peeled on the table, then at Lady Pei sitting diagonally across from the Jiang family. She raised her hand to summon Xiao Xuanzi and whispered a few words in his ear. Xiao Xuanzi quickly retreated from the great hall.
Chief Steward Gao was busy preparing tonight's main course - hot pot.
He saw Concubine Zhen's personal eunuch, Xiao Xuanzi, approach and hurriedly wiped his hands: "Eunuch, does the Concubine have any instructions?"
Xiao Xuanzi glanced over the table: "The Concubine asked me to fetch a few crabs."
Chief Steward Gao immediately placed four plump crabs on a plate: "I'll have them prepared for the Concubine right away."
After a moment's thought, he added, "Eunuch Xuan, crabs are very cooling. The Concubine is with child, it's best not to eat too much."
Xiao Xuanzi smiled, appreciating his goodwill: "Thank you for the reminder, Chief Steward Gao, but these crabs are not for the Concubine to eat. They're for punishing someone. Please prepare these good-looking ones, and also give me a few with little meat, sharp pincers, and hard shells. I need to do this task well for the Concubine."
Hearing this, Chief Steward Gao understood. In no time, he had selected a few crabs that were about to be discarded and gave them to him according to his requirements.
