The Tyrant’s Drama Queen Empress

CHAPTER 64: The Banquet Begins

　　Prime Minister’s Manor.

　　Yang Zuoxiang stood with his arms slightly spread as his concubine helped him change his clothes.

　　Seeing that he was in a good mood, the concubine flattered him softly, “Master is in such good spirits today. You’ll be attending the palace banquet later, right? I wonder… could this concubine accompany you?”

　　The smile on Yang Zuoxiang’s face instantly faded the moment he heard her words. His tone turned cold and merciless.

　　“What are you even? And you think you can go to a palace banquet?” he said. “You think just because I’ve shown you a bit of favor, you’re suddenly qualified to step onto that stage?”

　　“Everyone who attends the palace banquet is either an official court minister or a madam with an imperial title. Even if they don’t hold a formal rank, they still have status and reputation. And you? A concubine? Lowborn and beneath notice. And even if I dared bring you along, would you not embarrass me the moment you got there? What could you possibly say to them?”

　　What Yang Zuoxiang did not say was that even if he could bring her, he would never do so.

　　The other ministers all brought their lawful wives. If he alone brought a concubine, standing out like that would be asking for trouble. If word reached Xie Yuanxun, this year’s palace banquet might very well become the end of him.

　　Last year’s palace banquet, there had been a newly returned court official who tried to give Xie Yuanxun a so-called “surprise.”

　　His legitimate daughter was stunningly beautiful, with an elegant and graceful figure. After she performed a dance at the banquet, the official even tried to present her to Xie Yuanxun.

　　In the end, that official, along with his daughter and his entire household, were all sent to the border military camps to serve the soldiers.

　　Men and women alike were all reduced to servitude.

　　Just a single wrong thought from him had dragged his entire family down into an abyss they could never climb out of again.

　　Although Yang Zuoxiang’s own daughter had entered the palace and become Jing Fei, if he ever crossed Xie Yuanxun’s line, it would not only be him who was finished. Even his daughter in the palace would not be spared.

　　Because of this, no matter how many political enemies Yang Zuoxiang had in court, he always kept his actions carefully within bounds.

　　The concubine looked flustered and quickly said, “This concubine was wrong, Master. Please don’t be angry.”

　　Yang Zuoxiang let out a cold snort.

　　“Alright, I’m not blaming you,” he said. “After all, your vision is only wide enough to see the square little world of this inner courtyard. Anything beyond that is out of your reach.”

　　“I keep you around not because you’re clever or not clever. If you actually had a sharp mind, I’d have to think twice every time I spoiled you. I already deal with enough scheming officials in court every day. I don’t want to come home and feel tired too.”

　　“The reason I favor you is simple. You know how to please me when you speak, and you’ve got a decent face. Let me make this clear. As long as there isn’t another woman in the inner courtyard who suits my taste better than you, you’ll always remain the most favored concubine here.”

　　Women, after all, if you didn’t want them getting distracted by all sorts of nonsense, you just had to redirect their attention toward each other.

　　Let them compete. That was the best method.

　　After finishing his preparations, Yang Zuoxiang left the inner courtyard and headed out of the manor with his servants.

　　The steward asked, “Master, will you be riding a horse or taking a sedan chair?”

　　“Take the sedan chair,” Yang Zuoxiang replied.

　　What was the point of riding a horse in the dead of winter?

　　Hadn’t that Marquis Xue just fallen off his horse not long ago? His legs were even crushed under the hooves and left severely injured. If something like that happened to Yang Zuoxiang instead, he probably wouldn’t just be talking about broken legs. Even a simple fall off a horse would be enough to ruin him. After all, he wasn’t exactly in his prime anymore.

　　The steward had the sedan chair carriers bring it out, and Yang Zuoxiang settled inside. The chair slowly began to move forward.

　　Along the way, he noticed quite a few people were also riding in sedan chairs this year.

　　Yang Zuoxiang let out a light snort. “They’ve got horses and still refuse to ride them. Why are they all taking sedan chairs? A bunch of cowards afraid of death.”

　　Outside the sedan chair, the steward thought silently: Master, when you’re mocking them… did you forget you’re sitting in one too?

　　......

　　Shen Manor.

　　Shen Kangzheng was about to bring Madam Jiang along to the palace banquet, while Shen Xi had been left behind at the manor by Madam Jiang’s decision. Shen Kangzheng only nodded lightly when he heard about it, showing he acknowledged it.

　　Madam Jiang had given the reason that Shen Xi had caught a chill. Whether that was true or not, Shen Kangzheng did not dare take the risk of bringing her to the palace in case she really fell ill.

　　In truth, Shen Xi was not sick at all. It was simply Madam Jiang deliberately suppressing her. Even back when Shen Xi was still Madam Jiang’s daughter, she had already witnessed more than once how Madam Jiang would quietly scheme in unnoticed ways, making others suffer losses without them even realizing it.

　　Now that it was her turn to suffer those hidden losses, Shen Xi’s hatred only deepened. At first, she had thought she could still go head-to-head with Madam Jiang, but as Madam Jiang regained her composure, Shen Xi was clearly losing ground.

　　Frustrated, Shen Xi twisted her handkerchief and said bitterly, “When Jinxiu comes back, I’m going to tell him everything. About how Madam Jiang has been scheming against me behind my back!”

　　She wasn’t insisting on attending the palace banquet. But whether she wanted to go or not, and whether she was allowed to go, were two very different matters.

　　Shen Xi wasn’t complaining yet only because Shen Jinxiu had left the manor early at dawn to look for Xue Yunshi. She could only wait for him to return before she brought it up.

　　No matter how angry Shen Xi was, things were quite pleasant on Madam Jiang’s side. Even hearing that Shen Jinxiu was not entering the palace with them, but instead going in with Xue Yunshi, did nothing to dampen her mood.

　　Shen Kangzheng had no interest in dealing with the women’s affairs. Like the others, he was seated in a sedan chair today. He slightly lifted the curtain with his fingers and let his gaze drift across the soldiers standing along both sides of the road.

　　He murmured softly, “There are quite a lot more soldiers in the capital today. Hopefully nothing happens.”

　　“If something does happen… let Jinxiu be safe.” He suppressed the uneasy feeling that had been lingering since morning.

　　At that moment, the sedan chair suddenly came to a stop.

　　Shen Kangzheng frowned. “What’s going on?”

　　“Master, it’s Minister Qu’s group of sedan chairs. We were supposed to go first, but they cut in ahead of us.”

　　Shen Kangzheng’s expression darkened, but he couldn’t quite point out anything wrong with what Minister Qu had done. In terms of official rank, Shen Kangzheng and Minister Qu were equals, and in fact, Minister Qu had even been in his position longer.

　　In the past, however, no matter what happened, Minister Qu and the other colleagues would usually defer to him, so Shen Kangzheng had grown used to always being the one leading the way.

　　But that situation had changed after the Mulan Hunting Grounds incident. Shen Kangzheng was simply experiencing that shift all over again now.

　　He said coldly, “If they want to go first, let them. It’s just a few steps. They still need to argue over something like this? Hmph. I won’t bother being petty with him.”

　　“Yes, Master is right. Master is magnanimous.”

　　Once they entered the palace and took their seats, Shen Kangzheng saw Minister Qu. His expression showed no trace of the earlier displeasure, and he even took the initiative to greet him.

　　Minister Qu didn’t say anything.

　　But Madam Qu beside him let out a cold snort. “What did I say? We never should’ve given them any face in the first place. You’re both Ministers, so who’s afraid of who? We kept yielding to them, and now they act like it’s only natural. I have no idea where he gets all that confidence from. Today we didn’t step aside for him, and look at him putting on that righteous, dignified act. But he probably didn’t expect that his wife, Madam Jiang, isn’t nearly as good at hiding her feelings as he is. The dissatisfaction in her eyes toward me couldn’t be more obvious.”

　　Minister Qu: “…”

　　He had only blinked once, so how had his wife already said so much?

　　Madam Qu was displeased with Madam Jiang, and Madam Jiang, now seated as well, was equally displeased with Madam Qu.    

　　Madam Jiang leaned close to Shen Kangzheng and said, “People always say Minister Qu has a gentle personality. I think he’s just a hypocrite. Not only him, even his wife is the same. Didn’t you see it? When she looked at me just now, there was clear disdain in her eyes. Hmph, I really don’t know what she’s so proud of. She’s just a foolish woman who even dragged her own youngest son out to his death.”

　　Listening to Madam Jiang’s resentful words and her constant criticism of Minister Qu and his wife, Shen Kangzheng’s lips curved slightly. It was clear he agreed with her.

　　Meanwhile, over at the other side, someone was already fawning over Yang Zuoxiang.

　　“Ah, Prime Minister Yang, how do you maintain your complexion so well? We’re clearly about the same age, but standing next to you makes it feel like I’ve aged a whole generation. I honestly think no one in the entire court takes care of themselves as well as you do.”

　　“Yes, exactly!”

　　“How could any of us compare to Prime Minister Yang? Everyone in the Da Liang court knows this. First, he relieves His Majesty’s worries, and second, he looks after the common people. As the saying goes, a peaceful heart keeps one youthful. If you ask me, if we were all as devoted to His Majesty as Prime Minister Yang is, even if we couldn’t look as young as him, we definitely wouldn’t age so quickly.”

　　It could be said that this flattery didn’t just butter up Yang Zuoxiang, it also elevated Xie Yuanxun’s praise to a whole new level as well.    

　　But if Shen Ling had heard that, she would’ve definitely laughed out loud. These people were honestly too funny. Their flattery had somehow turned Xie Yuanxun into some kind of immortal elixir that could preserve youth and keep one’s appearance from aging.

　　Yang Zuoxiang had clearly become the center of attention in the entire hall. Shen Kangzheng glanced in his direction and pressed a hand to his forehead. He was supposed to be the one drawing everyone’s focus, yet because Shen Ling had openly shown their conflict to the outside world, they had gone from being the ones held in high regard to being completely ignored. Only those who had experienced that kind of fall would truly understand how uncomfortable it felt.

　　Shen Kangzheng’s expression darkened, and Madam Jiang did not look much better either.

　　Madam Qu happened to notice that, and she tugged at Minister Qu’s sleeve, saying gleefully, “Look at their faces. They’re really sour. Seeing that Prime Minister Yang is more popular than them must not feel good at all. Prime Minister Yang can benefit from the favor of Jing Fei in the palace, but they can’t even get a single bit of influence from the most favored Bao Fei.”

　　Minister Qu followed her gaze and looked over. Then he helplessly twitched the corner of his mouth. So what if Madam Jiang, as a woman, couldn’t control her expressions? But how was it that even Shen Kangzheng, a dignified Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, couldn’t manage his face properly either?

　　His ability to handle pressure really was quite poor. Minister Qu shook his head.

　　But what Minister Qu could not possibly have known was that it was not that Shen Kangzheng lacked resilience under pressure. He simply did not have much real ability to begin with.

　　He had managed to rise through the imperial examinations and eventually enter the Ministry of Personnel. While part of that was due to his own efforts, a much larger reason was the support he gained after marrying Madam Jiang and benefiting from her family’s influence. Even his promotion to Minister had been boosted by Shen Ling’s influence.

　　......

　　Inside the palace, when Shen Ling arrived at the Taiji Hall with Liu Zhu, she happened to see the Duke of Fuguo and his daughter, Song Qiaochu, walking out of the hall with Senior Eunuch Feng.

　　Senior Eunuch Feng greeted her with a smile. “Your Grace, you’ve arrived. His Majesty is waiting inside to go with you to the main banquet.”

　　“With Your Grace accompanying him this year, His Majesty definitely won’t find the banquet boring anymore.”

　　Shen Ling’s mouth twitched. “…”

　　As if she didn’t know all the trouble Xie Yuanxun had caused at previous palace banquets.

　　Boring? He always seemed to be having plenty of fun stirring things up himself.

　　Shen Ling turned her gaze toward the Duke of Fuguo. The Duke and Song Qiaochu bowed to her, and she raised a hand slightly.

　　“Duke of Fuguo, Miss Song, you may rise.”

　　The Duke of Fuguo was an old man with sharp, defined features. Although he was already advanced in age, Shen Ling could still sense the strong military aura around him.

　　His daughter, Song Qiaochu, was someone Shen Ling was meeting for the first time. The moment she saw the armor on her body, Shen Ling immediately straightened her expression and said, “Duke of Fuguo, Miss Song truly lives up to her reputation as a daughter of a military family. It is the fortune of the Da Liang Dynasty and His Majesty to have you both.”

　　The Duke of Fuguo replied, “Your Grace is too kind. My daughter still has a long way to go before she can truly become a soldier who can ride into battle in full armor.”

　　Shen Ling nodded repeatedly, “Mm-hm, mm-hm.” She understood, she really did. This was just a common parent thing. No matter how outstanding their children were, parents would never show too much pride in front of outsiders. Instead, once they got home, they would laugh louder than a loudspeaker at home.

　　Watching Senior Eunuch Feng escort the Duke of Fuguo and Song Qiaochu away, Shen Ling finally walked into the Taiji Hall.

　　The moment she stepped inside, she didn’t even spare a glance at Xie Yuanxun, who was dressed in black robes with a cold and imposing aura. She immediately said excitedly, “Your Majesty, I just saw Miss Song! She looks amazing in armor. Oh right, Your Majesty, does she hold any official position?”

　　Xie Yuanxun said calmly, “She’s the commander of the infantry, a fifth-rank official.”

　　Shen Ling went, “Wow!”

　　Xie Yuanxun raised a brow. “That’s her position, not yours. What are you so happy about?”

　　Shen Ling replied without missing a beat, “I’m happy because Your Majesty has such sharp judgment and an open mind. You appointed Miss Song as the infantry commander instead of a man. That kind of boldness and vision is something only Your Majesty has throughout history.”

　　—If I had known there was a female general like Miss Song, I might not have entered the palace back then. I would’ve gone to follow her instead and fought my way across the world together.

　　Xie Yuanxun: “......”

　　He let out a faint scoff. “With those thin arms and legs of yours, you still think you can go to the battlefield? You think you can even lift a blade and kill someone?”

　　Shen Ling: “......How do you know I even want to go to the battlefield?”

　　Xie Yuanxun said calmly, “Your thoughts are practically written all over your face. I can see them clearly.”

　　—Phew!

　　—Good, then. I thought you could hear my thoughts or something.

　　—But even if you couldn’t, you’d still be able to read them off my face anyway.

　　Xie Yuanxun’s expression didn’t change at all. See? She really was that easy to read. And with that kind of personality, she still wanted to go to the battlefield? She dares, but he doesn’t.

　　He didn’t say anything else and simply pulled Shen Ling onto the imperial carriage. The carriage headed straight toward the banquet venue.

　　“His Majesty arrives! Bao Fei arrives!”

　　“Your subject (this wife of your subject) greets His Majesty, greets Your Grace.”

　　Everyone in the hall dropped to their knees in unison.

　　Xie Yuanxun said, “Rise.”

　　The crowd stood up. Out of the corner of their eyes, they caught sight of the seats at the very top. Besides Xie Yuanxun, Shen Ling was also seated there.

　　Once again, they couldn’t help but silently marvel. Bao Fei really was incredibly favored.

Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter