Quick Wear: Cousin, Come to the Bowl Quickly

Lin Xi suddenly spoke out, wrapped herself tightly in the quilt and turned around with difficulty. Her watery autumn eyes were filled with anger as she glared at He Lan Ting angrily.

He Lanting saw her wrapping herself up tightly and struggling to turn around. Her movements were very much like a spring silkworm pupa. He couldn't help but find it even more funny. His usually clear voice was a little low due to the alcohol. He smiled softly and said, "Are you not pretending to sleep anymore?"

The moment Lin Xi turned around, she knew she had been tricked by him. Seeing the playful expression on his face, she became even more furious. She picked up the soft pillow beside her and threw it at He Lanting, saying angrily, "I was sleeping well, but you insisted on pulling the quilt and woke me up."

Helan Ting stretched out his arm and caught the pillow she threw at him. Seeing the shame and anger on her face, he stopped teasing her and apologized, "It's my fault, madam. I hope you can forgive me. It's cold this day and night, so please let me go to bed."

The room was lit with a fire pit and a brazier, so it was as warm as spring. How could it be cold? Lin Xi didn't want to expose his lies. Thinking that he must have been tired to accompany the emperor into the palace today, her expression softened a bit. She raised her chin and said, "No one is stopping you from coming up. But it's cold this night, and I don't sleep very well. Let's each cover ourselves with a quilt."

He Lanting didn't react at first why Lin Xi wrapped him up like a silkworm cocoon tonight. Now, listening to her explanation that made things even more obvious and the wary look in her eyes when she looked at him, he suddenly understood why Lin Xi was acting so abnormal tonight. He couldn't help but feel embarrassed for a moment, and his ears turned red.

"Are you still feeling uncomfortable? Didn't I apply medicine last night? This morning I also told Xueyun to go to the court doctor..." He coughed lightly, his eyes dodging, and he didn't dare to look Lin Xi in the eye.

Seeing that he still dared to say that, Lin Xi's face suddenly turned red. She wanted to rush forward to cover his mouth. She lowered her voice and gritted her teeth and said, "How dare you say that? I'm afraid the whole mansion knows about it now."

He Lanting felt that he must have caught a cold, otherwise why was his throat so itchy, and he couldn't help wanting to cough, "Cough, cough, cough, I won't do it tonight." Seeing Lin Xi's obvious disbelief, he said seriously, "Really, I will behave myself. It's late now, Xixi, please let me go to bed and rest."

He Lanting's face was already very attractive, and now he lowered his eyelashes, pretending to be pitiful, and deliberately lowered his voice. His snow-white middle garment was loosely draped on his body, revealing his slender neck. He really looked like a seductive fox demon. Lin Xi hurriedly looked away, fearing that if she looked at him any longer, she would lose her bottom line.

Glancing at her movements, He Lanting was delighted, and continued, "You don't know that at the banquet given by His Majesty today, I was forced to drink a lot of wine by those adults. When I came back, I was supported by Hengzhi. I am still in great pain now."

Hearing him being so aggrieved, Lin Xi finally softened her heart and said in a self-destructive manner: "Forget it, don't act so aggrieved. If someone sees you, they will think I made you drink so much. Come up and sleep."

After hearing Lin Xi's words, He Lanting felt as if he had been pardoned. He turned over, threw off the quilt and got into bed. He looked so agile that he didn't look like a drunk man at all. Lin Xi knew that he had been fooled at a glance. She reached out to push him away, but He Lanting held her hands and feet and hugged her tightly.

"It's all my fault. I've worked so hard, Xixi. Why don't you punish me by making me serve my wife well?"

Soon, dense, hot kisses began to fall from top to bottom, first on the forehead, then on the tip of the nose, the corners of the lips, and the chin...

Lin Xi's already sensitive body gradually turned into a pool of spring water under this slow and torturous attack.

The red candle on the table slowly melted, slowly flowed down the candle body and accumulated in the candlestick.

The moment the city fell, Lin Xi suddenly understood why Xie warned her with a complicated look on the night before the wedding: although He Lan Ting looked bright and handsome on the surface, he was actually a cunning little fox just like his father, the Duke of Anguo.

He Lanting really kept his promise. After a moment, he raised his head, gently wiped the translucent water color from the corner of his lips, and cleaned up Lin Xi. Then he hugged the limp Lin Xi back into his arms and coaxed her to sleep.

"Then my lady, will you forgive me?" He brushed away the slightly wet hair that was stuck to Lin Xi's temples.

Lin Xi felt extremely weak from head to toe. She didn't even have the strength to curse him. After trying to calm herself down for a long while, she finally regained her breathing rhythm. But she was too lazy to struggle anymore, so she simply leaned in He Lanting's arms and slowly closed her eyes.

Listening to the gradually calming breathing of the person in his arms, He Lanting's heart softened. He gently kissed Lin Xi's forehead and gradually fell asleep.

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye it was the New Year's Eve banquet. Xie, Yu and Lin Xi were all ladies with imperial decrees, so they were all able to enter the palace to attend the banquet. Taking into consideration that it was Lin Xi's first time to attend such an occasion, Xie had already invited a maid from the palace to teach Lin Xi the palace etiquette and rules.

Lin Xi was sweet-spoken and generous, which made the nanny very happy. She told her many taboos of the nobles in the palace, and under Lin Xi's deliberate questioning, the nanny revealed everything about the distribution of palaces in the palace and the defense of the royal guards. Lin Xi secretly memorized it all in her heart, and by the time she entered the palace for the banquet, she had already understood the situation in the palace clearly.

The sky is always gloomy in Jiankang in winter, but it is a rare sunny day on New Year's Eve. The sun, which has not appeared for a long time, shows up and shines in the sky for a whole day. At dusk, the sky is filled with rosy clouds, covering the whole Jiankang with a layer of blood-red light and shadow.

Looking at the blood-red setting sun in the sky, Lin Xi pursed her lips, a rare solemnity on her face. Her hand unconsciously touched the soft sword at her waist, and she followed Xie into the carriage.

----

"A golden cup of wine costs ten thousand, a jade plate of delicacies costs ten thousand"

Royal banquets have always been extremely luxurious, let alone New Year's Eve, a day when the emperor and all officials enjoy themselves together, bid farewell to the old and usher in the new, and celebrate the prosperity of the country.

As night falls and the lights come on, the East Hall of Taiji Palace is ablaze with light, illuminating the graceful figures of palace maids in gorgeous costumes as they busily move about the hall.

Ladies and officials sat on both sides, the tables were filled with delicacies, the sounds of stringed instruments were melodious and pleasant, in the middle of the main hall, dancers in orange dance costumes had graceful movements and slow lotus steps, creating a scene of extravagance and decadence.

Lin Xi sat together with Xie and Yu. Because of their titles as Duke of Anguo, the three of them had seats very close to the front, just behind a few princesses and princesses of the Zong family. They could clearly see the actions of the emperor at the top and the other officials and wives below.

On the high seat, Concubine Cen, who was dressed in crimson palace dress and had a bulging belly, and she and the empress, who was dressed in dark red phoenix robe, sat on both sides of Emperor Hui, looking like they were competing with each other.

Lin Xi couldn't help but secretly shook her head, and then calmly cast her eyes to the emperor's lower left. As expected, she saw that the seat was empty. Her heart sank again, and she turned around and whispered to Xie and Yu beside her: "Such a grand banquet, but the prince is nowhere to be seen. His Majesty must be furious."

Xie had also noticed that the prince had not arrived yet. She looked up at Concubine Cen, who was sitting next to Emperor Hui with a haughty look on her face. She was dressed in a way that looked like she was just about to usurp the throne. She couldn't help but frown and said in a low voice, "Be alert. I see that the queen doesn't look right. I'm afraid something big is going to happen tonight."

Emperor Hui, who was sitting on the high throne, also noticed the empty seat. His face was a little solemn. He wanted to get angry, but he was concerned about the occasion today, so he had to hold back his anger and whispered to the queen beside him: "Where is that evil creature? What is he doing in an occasion like this today!"

If it were any other day, seeing Emperor Hui like this, the Empress would have stepped forward to apologize, but for some reason today, after hearing this, she just glanced at Emperor Hui and said calmly, "I don't know, maybe he was held back by something."

Emperor Hui was even more angry when he saw that she was not as respectful as usual. He was about to scold her, but he felt his sleeve being pulled. He turned around and saw Concubine Cen with a delicate face, "Your Majesty, the prince seemed to have kicked me just now."

"Really?" Hearing his beloved concubine say this, Emperor Hui no longer cared about the Queen and the Crown Prince, and quickly turned around and asked with concern.

"If Your Majesty doesn't believe it, then forget it. After all, our prince is not as precious as His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and Your Majesty can't keep an eye on him all the time." After saying this, Concubine Cen turned her body slightly, looking as if she didn't want to say anything more.

Emperor Hui naturally tried to comfort her again, and only then did he coax Concubine Cen into smiling again. Then, naturally, he became clingy as if no one was around. The Queen looked at the two of them coldly, and she felt her stomach churning.

As the legitimate daughter of a prominent family, she could have found a nobleman of equal status and understanding to spend her life with, but she was summoned into the palace by an imperial edict. Even more tragic was that Emperor Hui did not like her at all, and he made her queen just to confuse those clans who opposed his succession to the throne.

She was the Empress of the Central Palace, but she was suppressed by this lowly woman from a horse-breeding family for twenty years. Even the child she had borne with great difficulty after ten months of pregnancy was despised by Emperor Hui. If she had not been so cautious over the years and had not made any mistakes, she would not have been able to keep her child's position as crown prince.

She originally thought that she could continue to endure it. Although the bitch was favored, she was not able to conceive. Emperor Hui wished to go to her palace every day and gave her many elixirs, but she had not been able to conceive for more than 20 years.

In this harem, a woman without children, no matter how favored she is, is only a flash in the pan. She just needs to hold on until Emperor Hui passes away. Her child will naturally be the next emperor. By then, Cen Zhu, who will no longer have anyone to rely on, will be at her mercy.

But who would have thought that the Cen family had long harbored evil intentions and colluded with the censor to frame the prince. Fortunately, her father and brother reacted quickly and not only cleared the prince of the charges, but also turned the tables and sent the Cen father and son to prison.

He thought that everything was settled and he could finally get rid of Cen Zhu, the biggest worry in his heart. However, who would have thought that at this critical moment, Cen Zhu diagnosed that he was pregnant. The person who was so cold and heartless to him and his child, cried with joy the moment he learned the good news of Cen Zhu. He sent rewards like water to Jifu Palace, and found scapegoats for the father and son of the Cen family and released them.

The moment she learned the news in her palace, she should have been furious, but she suddenly laughed out loud. The thought that had flashed through her mind before took root at that moment and grew wildly. And all this was about to end tonight.

After Concubine Cen finished talking to Emperor Hui, she cast a provocative look at the Queen. A cold light flashed in the Queen's eyes, but her face showed a gentle smile that was no different from usual. Concubine Cen curled her lips in disdain and turned away.

Halfway through the banquet, the crown prince finally arrived. He was dressed in a black crown and followed by two eunuchs holding a wooden box. He walked slowly into the hall and bowed to Emperor Hui.

"I am late, please forgive me, father."

Emperor Hui was extremely unhappy, but seeing the Crown Prince's respectful attitude and considering the presence of officials and ladies, he could only wave his hand with a solemn face and call people to get up. "What were you doing at the New Year's Eve banquet? Why are you so late?"

The crown prince slowly stood up and looked at Emperor Hui who was sitting on the throne. He did not look as submissive as usual. Instead, he lowered his eyebrows and bowed to Emperor Hui in a neither humble nor arrogant manner, saying, "I know I am stupid. I have achieved nothing in my position as the East Palace. I feel guilty for failing to live up to your teachings. Therefore, I went out of my way to find a treasure to present to you today. I wish you a long life."

Seeing that he was not as tongue-tied as before, Emperor Hui looked at the wooden box held by the two eunuchs behind him, and his expression relaxed a little. He said, "You are thoughtful, but you shouldn't be so late. After the banquet, you can copy the "Great Jin Ritual" a hundred times and present it to me. This will be a good deed to atone for your sin."

"Your son obeys your command." A cold light flashed in the prince's eyes, but he still spoke respectfully, and then ordered two eunuchs to present the box.

Concubine Cen held her belly, covered her mouth with a handkerchief and smiled, "I don't know what kind of rare treasure it is. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince treasures it so much that he even forgot to attend today's grand banquet. Your Majesty, please open it quickly and don't let the Crown Prince's efforts go to waste. This will also open the eyes of me and the other adults." She would not miss the opportunity to add insult to injury as he had made such a big mistake as being late for the New Year's Eve banquet. Although she praised the Crown Prince, the intention to sow discord in her tone was particularly obvious.

The empress hadn't said anything yet, but she spoke so recklessly, which was already beyond the rules. All the officials and ladies frowned, but Emperor Hui didn't care at all. Instead, he showed a doting smile and motioned the eunuch beside him to take the box and bring it to the table. Concubine Cen came forward with a smile, watched the eunuch open the lid of the wooden box, and looked inside the box.

"what!"