Chapter 77 The Banquet At Jinxiu Palace

"Your Highness, what color of clothes would you like to wear today?" As soon as Qian Yin entered the room, she saw Qin Yi styling Yun Shang's hair. She asked about the clothes with a smile.

Yun Shang thought about it and said, "Today's banquet celebrates the pregnancy of the Empress. Since it is a happy occasion, we should dress accordingly. Shangyi Bureau sent some clothes earlier and I saw a dress in Indian red. I'll wear that one."

Qin Yi smiled and pulled Yun Shang's hair up, "It's drizzling today. I'll fetch a cape. The other day, Prince Jing found a white fox while hunting and he gave the fox fur to His Majesty. His Majesty said that of all the royals in the imperial household, the color suits Your Highness the best, so he rewarded it to you. You were reading a book that day and weren't paying attention, so I put it away for you. I think the color matches your Indian red dress. Qian Yin, fetch it for Her Highness."

"Prince Jing? White fox?" Yun Shang was surprised and asked, "Is Prince Jing also coming today?"

Qin Yi smiled and looked in the mirror. She giggled at Yun Shang's expression. "Your Highness seems to be very interested in Prince Jing. Yes, he is coming. I heard that he is needed at the northwest frontier to settle the recent chaos there. He will be leaving with his troops in two days. His Majesty invited him to the banquet to comfort and encourage him."

"I see." Yun Shang nodded. In her pervious life, this was also the time when war broke out in the northwest. The country of Yelang had launched an attack. They gathered all the strong men in their country and formed an army of nearly 2, 00, 000 warriors. In her previous life, the war had lasted for several years. Hua Jing's royal husband had died in that war.

In this life, Yun Shang had already cut off the soldiers' supply of food, and tricked the Emperor's Son-in-law into staying in an empty city. She had even carried him off. So, in this life, Prince Jing, who was supposed to go to the frontier three years from now, was being sent there earlier.

The men from the country of Yelang practiced Kung Fu from an early age. They were all tall and good at fighting. An army of 2, 00, 000 strong warriors shouldn't be underestimated. Even though Prince Jing is the God of War in the State of Ning, it would not be easy for him to win the war.

"By the way, the master asked me to tell you that both Hua Jing and her Mother-in-Law have gone to the frontier in the northwest. Hua Jing only took four guards and two maids with her. The master said this would be a great chance." Qin Yi added.

Yun Shang turned around at Qin Yi's words, "Hua Jing? Is she out of her mind?"

Qin Yi smiled, "I also think it's unbelievable. But according to the master, it was the Empress who sent her there..."

Yun Shang shook her head, "Not likely. The Empress has always been careful and meticulous. It's not possible that she sent her daughter to die. However... After what had happened to the Emperor's Son-in-Law, Lady Zhao must have done everything she could to go to the frontier, which is not good for Hua Jing. In that case, it's understandable that the Empress sent Hua Jing there too. In doing so, Hua Jing would not have to suffer from constant rumors. But if the Empress really did that, she would have prepared for it and wouldn't let Hua Jing go alone."

"Is it possible that this is just a lie where the Empress sends Hua Jing to the frontier with few servants on purpose but secretly sent guards to protect her?" Qian Yin asked as she entered the room. She carried Yun Shang's selected attire in her hands. She spread out the dress for Yun Shang to see as she waited for the Princess to reply.

"Your Highness, see? This is the one right? Indian red with a cape. This cape is stunning. I've never seen such pure white fox fur." Qian Yin spread out the cape and ran her hands over the snowy white cape with a white coat around its neck. It looked very warm.

Yun Shang nodded, "It is beautiful indeed. I'll wear this one."

Qian Yin put the clothes away and stood aside as Qin Yin finished making Yun Shang's hair. "Protected or not, it would not be difficult to kill Hua Jing when she is in a place like the battlefield. Your Highness, why not let me notify Ning Qian and send her there to take a chance?"

Yun Shang smiled, "It is a good chance, indeed. How can I miss such a good one? However, I must take Hua Jing's life myself. Since she's already at the front, tell Ning Qian that I need her to keep Hua Jing there as long as possible. I'll find an opportunity to go there after I finish dealing with the affairs here."

"The affairs here?" Qian Yin thought for a while and couldn't figure out what Yun Shang meant. So she asked, "Your Highness, is there anything else you need to deal with here? Are you planning to wait for Lady Jin to deliver her baby safely?"

Yun Shang shook her head. "No. I'm confident that she will have a smooth delivery, and I won't wait for that long. My top priority now is to deal with the Empress's pregnancy... I'm not happy about that."

Suddenly a strange noise was heard by the three women. It sounded as if s

turned down the Emperor's offer in front of all the guests, the Empress got even more upset. It felt like a fishbone had gotten stuck in her throat. But she still put on a smile and said, "It's not bad for Lady Jin to live in Qiwu Palace for now. After her delivery, it's up to her to choose her favorite Palace. Since Your Majesty likes her so much, you can accommodate her request."

Emperor Ning turned to the Empress and smiled brilliantly, "That's for sure."

The Empress was shocked. After a while, she finally realized that her Qiwu Palace might also be an option for Lady Jin. And what the Emperor meant was that even if Lady Jin asks for Qiwu Palace, he'll give it to her.

The Empress panicked. She felt a chill spreading down her back, and that feeling was eating her alive piece by piece, cruelly.

Seeing this, Lady Shu stood up with a smile. "Your Majesty, we have singing and dancing performances at every banquet. Today, I'd like to do something different."

Emperor Ning raised his eyebrow on her words, "Something different? Enlighten me."

"What I'm thinking is a game where everyone passes round a silk ball in drumbeats. I've prepared a ball. The drummers turn their back on us and start beating their drums at will. When the drum stops, the one who has the silk ball gives us a show of talent. What do you think, Your Majesty?" Lady Shu suggested in a soft voice.

Emperor Ning nodded and smiled, "Lady Shu's idea is a good one. It's interesting."

"Then I'll get started. We're not sitting in a circle now. I suggest that Your Majesties join us in the game. It will add to the fun." Lady Shu added as the maids took the cue to begin moving the tables so that the royals were placed in a circle.

Emperor Ning nodded, "All right, we'll join you."

"The silk ball is in my hand now, so let's start with me. Everyone, please get ready." Lady Shu raised and clapped her hands and the drummers began to beat their drums. Lady Shu quickly passed the ball to Yun Shang, who paused for a second before passing it to the person sit next to her.

The silk ball was passed around quickly by everyone. When the drumbeats stopped, it was being held by a concubine dressed in cyan. Lady Shu smiled, "Lady Lan, you're the first one. What are you going to perform?"

The lady in cyan was not shy. She smiled and said, "I have no special talent. I can only play a few pieces of music and I'm not very good at it. But since I'm the first one to perform, I'll show you as much as I can. Please don't laugh at me."

As soon as she finished her sentence, a maid quickly brought a desk and put a Qin on it. Lady Lan played a piece of music, and just as she had said, it was nothing special.

After her performance, the game started again with drumbeats. This time, Qin Meng held the ball.

Yun Shang smiled and looked at Qin Meng with interest in her eyes. Qin Meng seemed nervous. She knocked over a cup as she stood up.

Lady Shu covered her mouth so the others wouldn't see her smiling. "Looks like Lady Meng is nervous. I wonder what kind of a talent she'll show us."

Qin Meng lowered her head and thought for a while, then she said, "I'll just perform a dance."

Lady Shu nodded, "Okay. We happen to have a free space in the middle. You can dance there. But it is a pity that you will be dancing without music. I've heard that Prince Jing is good at playing the flute. Prince Jing, why not perform for us too?"