The Poisonous Consort, the Regent's Beloved

The family members were divided into two groups, with the men sitting on the left and the women on the right, and they took their seats in order of their official rank.

Ren Yinxue did not sit in the first seat. Su Fuying turned to look and saw that the first seat was occupied by a beautiful woman with an elegant demeanor, but her face was full of sorrow.

The highest rank after Grand Tutor is Grand Commandant, and this woman should be the wife of the Grand Commandant.

But why is she all alone? Su Fuying pondered and looked at Biluo, seeing the little girl looking up at something in the hall with a serious expression.

Su Fuying called her name softly and asked, "Does the Grand Commandant have any children?"

Just as Biluo was about to reply, a woman quickly interrupted her, saying, "I know, I know, Princess Yongle, you're asking me."

Before she knew it, Ji Zhiyun had secretly come to her side.

Ji Zhiyun looked different today, dressed in traditional women's clothing, which made her appear more gentle. At this moment, she was staring at Su Fuying with her big, bright eyes, her face full of excitement.

Seeing her like this, Su Fuying couldn't help but smile. Biluo and Ji Zhiyun's maid behind her whispered excitedly, guessing that the little girl had just been looking for her.

Thinking that Ji Zhiyun had lived in the capital for so long, she probably knew more than Biluo, so she directly said, "Then tell me about the question you just asked."

Ji Zhiyun was surprised that Su Fuying actually agreed, and her smile widened. During her time back home, she felt that it was her loss not to have made Su Fuying as a friend, so she planned to try again at the palace banquet today.

Unexpectedly, the opportunity was right in front of him. Haha, Ji Zhiyun was overjoyed and immediately sat down next to Su Fuying and said, "There are three sons in the Pei family. The two eldest are guarding the border. There is also a young master who was said to be born with poor health and was sent to a temple to recuperate. He is only brought back to the mansion during festivals."

"Three sons?" Su Fuying was somewhat surprised. Luckily, this wasn't modern times, or she would be worried to death. But in this era, having such a large son would probably make her extremely happy.

“Yes.” Ji Zhiyun suddenly looked around nervously, and when she saw that no one was paying attention, she whispered in Su Fuying’s ear, “I heard that more than ten years ago, the Grand Commandant’s wife actually gave birth to a daughter, but she was stolen.”

"Stealing a daughter?" Su Fuying was somewhat surprised. She had heard of people exchanging daughters with others if they couldn't have a son, but she had never heard of stealing daughters in this dynasty.

"Shh, keep your voice down. This is a taboo subject in the Grand Commandant's mansion."

Looking at Ji Zhiyun, who was acting like a thief, Su Fuying said with amusement, "Who told you that?"

"hey-hey."

Speaking of this, Ji Zhiyun said with some pride, "My father knows everything; he told me."

"Your father listens to gossip."

"Hmm? What is gossip?" Ji Zhiyun asked curiously upon hearing this description.

Before Su Fuying could speak, a palace maid announced from outside the hall: "Her Majesty the Empress has arrived."

The noisy palace fell silent in an instant. Ji Zhiyun winked at Su Fuying and immediately returned to her seat.

A moment later, a figure walked onto the high platform. She was wearing a long dress with phoenix feather and diamond pattern, with gold and silver threads interwoven to create exquisite patterns, every stitch showing honor and luxury.

Her long, flowing black hair was piled high in an exquisite bun, adorned with a jeweled gold crown inlaid with flowers and butterflies, and two long, gold hairpins tucked into her temples. Her eyebrows were like distant mountains, and her every glance exuded majesty. Every gesture and movement revealed the bearing of royalty.

"See the Queen."

"Rise, all of you. Today is my birthday, so there's no need for such formalities." A gentle voice rang out. Despite her words, no one dared to be negligent. They all respectfully bowed and thanked the Empress before rising and returning to their seats.

Following this, the Empress and the wives of several ministers exchanged a few polite words. Su Fuying watched from the side, puzzled. Could the Ren family really produce such a gentle and refined woman?

After the Empress arrived, the palace servants filed in, and various pastries were served on the table. Then, singing and dancing began in the main hall.

Seeing that she could finally have something to eat, Su Fuying didn't stand on ceremony and casually picked up a piece of pastry to eat in small bites. She thought to herself, "The food in this palace is indeed quite good."

Soon, the dancers withdrew, and it was time for the gift-giving. The first was the Grand Commandant's wife, who simply presented a pair of jade ruyi scepters, said a few auspicious words, and then withdrew.

Then Ren Yinxue stepped forward and presented a jade screen. Judging from its color, such a large piece must be priceless.

As Ren Yinxue's aunt, the Empress naturally praised Ren Yinxue repeatedly and bestowed many rewards upon her, making others extremely envious.

With this precedent, the others suddenly felt that the gifts they had prepared in advance were somewhat inadequate, but they had no choice but to bite the bullet and present them.

There were plenty of valuable gifts, such as agate, jade, calligraphy and paintings by famous people, and coral ornaments. After observing for a long time, Su Fuying felt that her piece of paper was not presentable at all.

I originally wanted to choose a gift to avoid trouble for the Empress, but I was afraid that would only bring trouble. However, I noticed that some of these people had their gifts given by their elders, so the younger generation didn't need to do it themselves.

Thinking that Liu Hui and the others must have made preparations as well, he decided it was better to avoid getting involved.

When it was the Minister's residence's turn, Su Wan'er stood up, wearing what she considered a dignified smile, and gracefully walked to the center of the hall to bow to the Empress, saying, "This humble woman greets Your Majesty the Empress. I have heard that Your Majesty the Empress enjoys worshipping Buddha, so I specially sought out these glass prayer beads. May Your Majesty enjoy good health and longevity."

Soon the palace servants presented the item: a bracelet made of crystal-clear beads that shimmered with iridescent light.

This suddenly made the Empress, who hadn't been very interested, light up. She reached out and took the item out, asking excitedly, "Is this the seven-colored glass prayer beads of Master Bodhi of Zhenru Temple?"

Su Wan'er replied respectfully, "Yes, Your Majesty."

The Empress immediately put the bracelet on her wrist, showing how much she liked it, and repeatedly said "good" several times, "Reward, reward."

A look of joy appeared on Su Wan'er's face. She wanted to become the Crown Princess, so naturally she had to please the Empress. Previously, the Empress had been indifferent to her, but today her attitude made her overjoyed.

Just as she was about to pass this hurdle, Su Fuying breathed a sigh of relief; it was finally over.

"Sister, since this is your first meeting with the Empress, didn't you prepare a gift?"

When Su Wan'er's voice rang out, Su Fuying wished she could beat her to death on the spot.

Her words were neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for everyone present to hear, and immediately all eyes were on her.

Su Fuying could only get up with a forced smile, her mind practically screaming that she wanted to whip Su Wan'er's corpse.

The Empress noticed Su Fuying just now. She was dignified, composed, and reserved. Sitting here, and being the legitimate daughter, she was far superior to Su Wan'er.

She was never satisfied with Su Wan'er; she thought she was petty and narrow-minded. But the Crown Prince liked her anyway. Now that she had met Su Fuying, the marriage would have to be reconsidered.

"Oh? You are Su Fuying? Come forward quickly so I can take a look at you."

The Empress waved to Su Fuying with a kind expression. In this situation, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and move forward.

"Your Majesty, it is I, your humble servant." With that, Su Fuying took a few steps forward.

The Empress looked Su Fuying up and down, becoming more and more satisfied. Su Wan'er, sensing something was amiss, hurriedly said, "Sister, didn't you prepare a gift? Take it out and let me see."

Su Wan'er had no idea whether she was prepared or not. It was best if she wasn't prepared; if she was, it was probably something that couldn't be presented in public.

The Empress also looked interested, seemingly really looking forward to her gift, which made Su Fuying's head spin with a few black lines.

Will you really send that letter?