What to do if you receive the wrong package?

When Zhou Yuran heard that there was a "hidden secret" in the round fan, she immediately bent down and carefully examined her and Lin Bihua's round fans. Sure enough, she found a clue in the handle of the fan.

Each round fan has three characters engraved on its handle. Lin Bihua's fan is "Xiang Jian Huan" (Meeting Joy), while Zhou Yuran's fan is "Ru Meng Ling" (Like a Dream).

"Who do you think Prince Ning will draw? Will he draw me or Sister Lin?" Zhou Yuran asked Hua Yin in a low voice, feigning surprise.

Hua Yin glanced at Zhou Yuran, who seemed completely unconcerned and even looked on with amusement, and said, "Yes, you'll be the first one drawn."

"Sigh, it's impossible for me to be chosen even with my toes. I guarantee there's something fishy going on here. The position of a princess is so precious, how could it be my turn?" Zhou Yuran could hear the Empress's inner thoughts even from this distance. She thought Prince Ning would put up some resistance, but unexpectedly, Prince Ning cooperated with the Empress in playing the role of a "loving mother and filial son" throughout.

"Then why are you asking? Of course, the Empress will draw whoever she wants Prince Ning to draw." Hua Yin looked at the girls around her, each with her own unique beauty.

Whether they are gentle and quiet, bright and beautiful, or fresh and lively, none of them would be at a disadvantage if they were all chosen for Prince Ning.

"Look, look! Prince Ning is starting the draw!" Zhou Yuran excitedly tugged at Hua Yin's arm.

The two watched intently as Prince Ning raised his hand and pulled a handful of bamboo tubes.

"Prince Ning is quite impolite, pulling out so many bamboo sticks at once. Isn't he afraid of not being able to recognize them all?" Zhou Yuran secretly glanced at Lin Bihua, and seeing that her expression was normal, she couldn't help but mutter to herself.

As if sensing the gazes of her two friends beside her, Lin Bihua smiled faintly, turned her head, and softly reassured them, "Don't worry, I'm fine. After all, I knew the purpose of the Empress's banquet before I came."

Zhou Yuran patted Lin Bihua's shoulder, "Actually, looking at it this way, Prince Ning is quite pitiful. Even when he marries a princess, he has to marry someone he doesn't like, not to mention that this person has other purposes for entering the palace and staying by his side."

"Listen carefully, the fortune telling is about to begin." Hua Yin lowered her voice and beckoned Zhou Yuran and Lin Bihua, who were chatting nearby, to come over and listen.

The first four were fine, until the fifth one appeared.

It's a joy to meet again.

Lin Bihua's exclusive writings.

"This... Sister Lin, did you just call out 'Xiang Jian Huan'?" Zhou Yuran asked quickly, afraid that she had misheard.

"Yes. The fifth one is 'Meeting Joy'. Yueya, did your jinx really come true?" Hua Yin quickly looked around. After the fifth one was read, no one else exclaimed, which meant that Lin Bihua had indeed "won".

"I..." Zhou Yuran didn't expect that her casual remark would actually come true.

Thinking of the irreconcilable conflict between Lin Bihua and Prince Ning, Zhou Yuran looked at Lin Bihua anxiously and quickly said, "Sister Lin, how about we switch fans? I'll go up for you. Prince Ning knows about my situation from Prince Chu, so he shouldn't make things difficult for me."

Lin Bihua didn't expect to be chosen. After all, if the Empress dared to make a move, it must have been arranged by her in advance. Now that she has appeared, it is likely that someone is manipulating things in secret, and this person is very likely to be Prince Ning, who just drew the lot.

"Heh." A cold smile appeared on Lin Bihua's lips. Although she knew that Prince Ning would not obediently follow the Empress's arrangements, she did not expect that it would involve her.

Prince Ning disliked her intensely and was usually cold towards her, yet this time he was willing to use her to do something.

Could it be because of the Lin family that she represents?

Thinking of this, Lin Bihua frowned slightly, a hint of anger in her eyes. She did like Prince Ning, but if it involved her family, that was unacceptable. Lin Bihua glared at Prince Ning. Prince Ning seemed to sense this and turned his head slightly, catching her gaze before she could look away.

Prince Ning smiled slightly, seemingly unsurprised by Lin Bihua's reaction, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Lin Bihua decisively looked away, patted Zhou Yuran's shoulder, and gave Hua Yin a reassuring look. "Don't worry, it's alright. If you go up there, it's easy to talk to Prince Ning, but what about the Empress? Since my name appeared in the bamboo tube, whether it was the Empress or Prince Ning who put it there, they must want to do something with this opportunity, so they will definitely make sure I'm safe."

After speaking, Lin Bihua straightened her clothes and hair, stood up from her seat with a polite smile, and walked forward to join the other four girls who had been selected.

After listening to the nanny read out the fortune slips, the Empress nodded with great satisfaction. Four out of the five slips were arranged by her, and even if there was one "unrelated person," it wouldn't matter; she would find an opportunity to deal with it later.

She slowly picked up her teacup and sipped her tea, then turned to the palace maid beside her and instructed, "Go and bring those five young ladies here. I'm old and my eyesight isn't good; I can't see them clearly from that far away."

The palace maids acknowledged and withdrew. A moment later, she led five young women to the Empress and Prince Ning.

"Yang Lanru, daughter of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices"

"Li Xiruo, daughter of a Grand Secretary of the Imperial Academy"

"Zhao Shuang'er, the younger sister of the Commander of the Imperial Guards"

"Liu Ruyan, daughter of the Vice Minister of War"

Lin Bihua, granddaughter of the Grand Marshal of the Army and Cavalry

As the nanny introduced the faces, the Empress's smug gaze swept over the first four faces, pausing noticeably when she saw the fifth.

Lin Bihua?!

Although she was invited to the Feast of the Fallen Heroes, there was no slip of paper with Lin Bihua's name in the bamboo tube that had been prepared in advance, so how could she have been chosen?

Thinking of this, the Empress coughed lightly twice, but on the surface she remained amiable and asked with a smile, "Have all the people been verified?"

"Your Majesty, it has all been confirmed." The old nanny stood respectfully to the side and nodded.

"That's good."

Now that Lin Bihua has been exposed to everyone, the Empress cannot easily change the current situation. She can only suppress her displeasure and place her hopes on the other girls.

"Indeed, my son knows how to choose. He is excellent in both appearance and background."

The Empress then smiled kindly at the young ladies, "Don't be nervous. Since His Highness Prince Ning has chosen you, it means you are destined to be together. However, whether this destiny is strong or weak depends on yourselves. I have heard that you young ladies are very talented. I wonder if His Highness Prince Ning and I would have the honor of appreciating your talents?"

Apart from Lin Bihua, the other girls nodded, their faces filled with anticipation. The Empress smiled slightly, and the matron beside her instantly understood her meaning, immediately leading the girls off the stage to make preparations.

Watching the young ladies depart, the Empress turned to Prince Ning and suggested, "I know about your relationship with Miss Lin, and I know you dislike her. How about I find a reason to disqualify Miss Lin later, and you can draw a few more to see?"

"Thank you for your concern and kindness, Mother. However, Lin Bihua represents the Lin family and the Grand Marshal of the Army. If we simply send her away, it might embarrass the Lin family and even the old Grand Marshal Lin. It would be even worse if the old Grand Marshal Lin used this to cause trouble for Father." Prince Ning analyzed seriously, even invoking the Emperor as an excuse.

Although the Empress was in the inner palace, she had also heard of Lin Ye's fiery temper. She nodded and said, "My son is right. Let's observe first."

While the two were talking, the girls also got ready.

The talent show segment, which Zhou Yueran and Hua Yin liked the most, has arrived.

The first to appear was Li Xiruo, a girl in purple. She sat in the center of the performance area with her pipa in her arms. After tuning a few notes, she slowly plucked the strings with her fingertips, and the sound rippled in the air like water.

It sounds nice.

But it doesn't seem to be like the description in "The Ballad of the Pipa" where "the large strings are loud like a sudden rain, and the small strings are soft like whispers."

"What do you think?" Zhou Yuran tilted her head and asked Hua Yin in a low voice.

"It's great, much better than Ayan's 'cotton fluffing' song."

Zhou Yuran was speechless. "You're using Ayan as the standard? Anyone who can play the pipa can play it better than her."

Gu Yan: Please don't mention it, thank you.

The second group to appear was a duo, consisting of three people: one singing, one dancing, and one providing accompaniment.

"Hmm, why does this scene look a little familiar?" Hua Yin couldn't help but frown, as if she had seen it somewhere before.

"Wait!" The moment Zhou Yuran heard the sound of the guqin, she instantly remembered.

"I remember now! It was when Zhen Huan performed the 'Dance of the Startled Swan' in The Legend of Zhen Huan! Wasn't she, Sister Mei, and An Xiaoniao also in that kind of combination?"

"Yes, yes, that's the scene. I wonder if this girl can perform the Dance of the Startled Swan. The Dance of the Startled Swan at the Flying Swan Banquet would be quite fitting."

"Later, the civet cat showed up to save the day, didn't it? I wonder if some 'unexpected person' will appear in front of us later." Zhou Yuran felt more and more that she was right to come to this Amazing Feast, it was so convenient to watch the excitement.

"Let's not worry about the unexpected person for now. Let's think about what to do with Sister Lin. She's going on stage soon, and what if Prince Ning speaks rudely to her in front of so many people?" With the trio's performance about to end, Hua Yin was even more worried about Lin Bihua, who was about to go on stage.

"Trust Sister Lin. Since Sister Lin dared to go on stage, I think she is prepared to face all of this." Zhou Yuran patted Hua Yin on the shoulder, and the two of them looked at Lin Bihua, who was walking up with her sword.

Good heavens, why did Sister Lin bring a weapon onto the stage? Hua Yin and Zhou Yuran quickly exchanged a glance, both showing surprise and confusion.

Zhou Yuran was so frightened that she quickly grabbed the token that Duan Chenke had given her, just in case something happened.

Lin Bihua, holding a long sword, gave Prince Ning a meaningful look before drawing the sword and beginning to dance.

The longsword seemed to come alive in Lin Bihua's hands, emitting a clear, ringing sound. Her swordsmanship flowed like water, each move brimming with power and beauty. Everyone was captivated by her swordsmanship, holding their breath and watching her dance with rapt attention.

Her swordsmanship grew faster and faster, the sword light flashing like a starlit night sky. Her figure danced gracefully amidst the sword light, like a blooming flower, beautiful yet dangerous.

Prince Ning's heart stirred. He saw that Lin Bihua's swordsmanship contained a kind of fearlessness and perseverance. He was even more surprised by Lin Bihua's performance today, as she actually went on stage to perform.

After the swordplay was completed, Zhou Yuran and Hua Yin were the first to applaud enthusiastically. Zhou Yuran, in particular, was the mood-maker, shouting loudly, "That was awesome!"

After she shouted and attracted countless stares, she realized that she probably shouldn't have shouted it.

The Empress and Prince Ning's gazes were also drawn to Zhou Yuran's voice, lingering on the two of them for a moment. The Empress, in particular, seemed to have noticed something, causing Zhou Yuran and Hua Yin to tense up, wondering if she had already noticed them.

Zhou Yuran and Hua Yin dared not move, and could only keep their heads down as much as possible, pretending that nothing had just happened. It even felt like time had frozen, and every second became long and heavy.

Oh no, oh no, oh no, I messed up in my excitement.

If the Empress finds out they're together, and recalls what happened in the women's quarters, she might just hold them accountable.

Fortunately, Lin Bihua spoke up in time, breaking the awkward atmosphere and allowing Zhou Yuran, who had caused the trouble, to breathe a sigh of relief.

"I wonder what Your Highness, Prince Ning, thinks of my sword dance?"

"It's acceptable." Prince Ning remained silent for a moment, uttering only two words.

"I have heard that Your Highness's swordsmanship is superb. I wonder if I could have the honor of asking Your Highness for some guidance?" Lin Bihua stared intently at Prince Ning, awaiting his reply.

"I have no sword with me today," Prince Ning said indifferently and bluntly.

The girls in the audience knew more or less about Lin Bihua and Prince Ning's affair. Seeing Lin Bihua being rejected by Prince Ning without any mercy, the crowd sighed.

However, things took an unexpected turn when Prince Ning spoke again, saying, "I will be on leave in two days. You can come to my residence to find me."

The other four girls were surprised by Prince Ning's invitation and were about to follow Lin Bihua's example, all wanting to ask Prince Ning for guidance, when they saw a guard walking quickly towards them.

"Your Majesty the Empress, His Majesty has urgently summoned Prince Ning to the palace immediately, saying that he has important matters to discuss and cannot be delayed."

The Emperor decreed that even if the Empress was unwilling, she had to obediently send the person away.

Once Prince Ning left, the Empress could no longer sit still. She briefly comforted the young ladies on the stage, said a few words to everyone, and then was helped away by her nanny.

"So, lunch isn't included at this Feast of Splendor?" Zhou Yuran asked sadly, watching the Empress's departing figure.

Hua Yin: "The Empress is gone, who are you waiting for to take care of you?"

"I think I understand now. At this 'Feast of the Fallen Angels,' the Prince of Ning and the Empress are the main characters, Sister Lin and the other four girls are supporting roles, and we're just extras. It's not fun at all," Zhou Yueran pouted, somewhat unhappy.

I didn't get to eat a meal, I didn't get enough melon, and I was worried sick for half a day. I'll never attend any banquets again.