Chapter 31     There are many beauties (Part 1)

The horse's hooves stepped on the long corridor paved with bluestone slabs. The carriage with wood hibiscus on the shaft turned around the two palace gates and came outside the Yanjia Gate.

Walking further in, it is where the inner palace is.

Liuyun turned over and dismounted, bowed and said, "Marty Bing, Miss Mother, Yanjia Gate has arrived."

Xiao Rang lifted the curtain, jumped out of the carriage, turned around and stretched out his hand, helping Gu Xiyan behind him.

When the two imperial guards guarding the gate saw this, they bowed and said, "I have met Marquis Pingyang and Mrs. Pingyang."

After passing Chonghua Gate, the Changle Gate leading to the inner palace.

Just now, I didn't really see the scenery outside in the carriage. When I got off the carriage, Gu Xiyan just saw this magnificent scenery with red walls, yellow tiles and magnificent scenery.

Under the blue sky, the brackets are double eaves and golden tiles are flying in the sky, which is magnificent and magnificent, shining with dazzling light in the sun, which makes people feel a sense of oppression.

Turning over another hall gate, Gu Xiyan looked straight ahead and stared blankly. Suddenly, he felt that the man had pinched his hand. When he looked up, Xiao Rangzheng looked down at her with a smile, "Are you nervous?"

Gu Xiyan looked at the man with beautiful eyes as blue as a blue wave, and admitted without feeling embarrassed at all: "Nervous."

Two days ago, the Empress Dowager in Shoukang Palace posted a post to the well-known princes, marquises, and the families of sages and generals in Shengjing City, saying that the flowers cultivated in the greenhouse in the palace were blooming this year, and it was rare to see them. Women from all the houses were invited to visit the palace.

On that day, the Jiangnan governor came to the palace to meet him and specially paid a few baskets of hairy crabs from Yangcheng Lake, Jiangsu.

It is November now, and I guess the crabs can only eat the last crop. After a plan with the old palace servants around me, the Empress Dowager simply turned the flower viewing party into a crab feast that both appreciates flowers and tastes fresh.

Xiao Rang's mother, Princess Yuanning, was the daughter of the Empress Dowager, so Xiao Rang wanted to call the Empress Dowager the Emperor Grandmother.

With this relationship, it is difficult for Gu Xiyan to not be nervous.

Back then, the struggle in the Empress Dowager was fierce. The Empress Dowager overcomes all the difficulties and firmly sits in the position of Empress Dowager, leaving behind the reputation of "a generation" of virtuous queens.

When the Supreme Emperor passed away, the legitimate prince of the Empress Dowager was the Emperor Cheng'an who was promoted to the great treasure.

The court was unstable in the first two years after Emperor Cheng'an ascended the throne. The Empress Dowager and her mother clan secretly supported her until she saw the peaceful and clear world with her own eyes, so she let go and lived a stable life in Shoukang Palace.

This was the first time that Gu Xiyan and Xiao Rang went to the palace to pay homage to the Empress Dowager after they got married.

There are no elders in Pingyang Hou’s Mansion. Gu Xiyan’s life is free and easy during these days after the wedding.

Now that I suddenly want to meet my relatives, the empress dowager, the grandmother of the queen mother, is inevitably feeling uneasy.

Xiao Rang was amused by Gu Xiyan's stupid look, and curled up his thin lips and said, "What are you afraid of?

After a while, I entered Shou'an Palace. Remember, it's enough that it's not only the queen mother sitting on the upper body, but also your relative's grandmother."

After hearing these comforting words, Gu Xiyan bent his pink lips slightly and nodded at him.

The two of them were talking, but before they knew it, they had arrived in front of the Shoukang Palace.

When the palace ladies guarding the door saw the two, they all saluted, "Please treat the marquis and wife of the marquis."

Xiao Rang raised his hand and said, "Give it aside."

Can the emperor and grandmother be inside?"

An elderly palace maid smiled and said, "The Empress Dowager was talking to several ladies inside, and told the servants early in the morning that if he saw the Marquis and his wife coming, he didn't have to go in and report it specifically, just ask inside."

Xiao Rang smiled and said, "Then I'll bother Madam Wei."

When he came, Gu Xiyan heard Xiao Rang say in the carriage that he had been with the Empress Dowager for a short time when he was young, so several palace maids and nannies around the Empress Dowager had always been close to him.

This Madam Wei had a charitable smile and spoke quite kindly.

Gu Xiyan couldn't help but smile after hearing this.

There are four gold-plated bronze incense burners on the steps in front of the hall. When you step into Shou'an Palace, you will see a group of tangled lotus, dragon patterns, sea, river and clear screens placed at the entrance.

Four giant lacquer pillars are held in the huge palace, surrounded by auspicious lacquer gold reliefs of dragons and phoenixes, and a royal style comes to the face.

The Empress Dowager was wearing an indigo blue long-lasting and wishful dress, and was sitting upright on the throne of red sandalwood gold painting and talking to the noble ladies on both sides.

In the eyes of the ladies, Xiao Rang took Gu Xiyan to the front and gave a big gift.

After receiving the two of them, the empress dowager immediately gave her a great reward, then held Gu Xiyan's hand and kept her by her side and said kindness.

Today, there are mostly female relatives in the Shoukang Palace. As a man, Xiao Rang was inconvenient to stay here, so he asked the Empress Dowager An, so he left Gu Xiyan to talk to the Empress Dowager in the Shoukang Palace, and turned to the imperial study room of the front palace to see Emperor Cheng An.

...

On the throne of red sandalwood, the queen mother's temples were as silver as silver, holding Gu Xiyan's hand and asked, "Are you okay in the marquis' mansion these days?"

Gu Xiyan said softly, "Return to the emperor's grandmother's words, everything is fine in the marquis's mansion."

The Empress Dowager had just looked at Gu Xiyan carefully. When she heard that she had a good birth, she saw that she was a general, dignified and polite person. She nodded with satisfaction.

"Yanli is not at home when she is busy. You are the only one who can take care of the Nuoda Marquis' Mansion, so it is inevitable that he will work hard.

Hearing that Yanli invited Mama Gui back again.

She is an old man who has gone out of my palace, and there are no elders in the Marquis' mansion, so it is better to have some help from Gui's mother."

Speaking of this, the Empress Dowager probably thought of the deceased Princess Yuanning, with a faint look of worry.

"You young couple are newly married soon, so that they can respect each other as long as they last."

Gu Xiyan smiled and said, "What the emperor's grandmother said is that I will follow the emperor's grandmother's teachings."

When the empress dowager heard this, her brows stretched out, nodded, and immediately took off one of the gilded red jade bracelets on her hand and put them on Gu Xiyan's hand.

The elders can’t refuse.

The bracelet is engraved with a pattern of fish playing with lotus leaves, which means there are many children and grandchildren, and long-lasting fortune and longevity.

Gu Xiyan dared not refuse, and thanked him again.

In the hall, there were also upright sits the wife of Dingguo Duke Shi, the wife of the Korean Duke Qi, and the wife of the deputy governor Hu Wenzhong, who was the wife of the political affairs officer Bai, most of whom were noble ladies who had never seen Gu Xiyan.

The wife of Dingguo Duke Shi has always been a person who is out of character and is quite proud of her in front of the empress dowager and dares to say any stubborn jokes.

Seeing the two of them talking endlessly, they joked, "It took so long since the Empress Dowager hadn't been so happy. Now her eyes and hearts are full of Mrs. Pingyang, and she can't see the old and ugly people at all!"

When the empress dowager heard this, she smiled and said, "This is the granddaughter-in-law of the Ai family. When the Ai family sees it, she is naturally full of joy. What age is your rascal? How dare you say in front of the Ai family that you are old and ugly?

It's really a fight!"

After saying that, he turned to Gu Xiyan and smiled, "Good boy, I wanted to keep you for a while, but I didn't expect to get these rascals! The Ai family invited these rogues today. They are just young and like flowers, and they are playing in the Imperial Garden behind!"

When the mother Chu saw it, she said, "The ancestors refused to let Mrs. Pingyang go to the Imperial Garden, and it was also a kind of love."

The noble ladies in the hall were laughing, but suddenly they heard a palace servant coming outside the hall to report, "Empress Dowager Bing, Concubine Yin is asking for a meeting outside the hall."

Emperor Cheng'an's harem was full of. The Empress of the Central Palace was born in the Xie family of Chenjun. She was the first wife of Emperor Cheng'an when he was secretly living. She has always been known as virtuous and dignified.

This Concubine Yin was born into the King of Qinghe and is said to be quite favored. Since she was promoted to the Imperial Concubine two years ago, one of the four concubines has been vacant.

Concubine Yin favored the harem, and Gu Xiyan also heard a lot about it.

When the empress dowager heard this, she only raised her hand, and she couldn't hear her joy and anger in her voice, "Please."

As soon as he finished speaking, a graceful woman walked in from the hall gate.

As she got closer, she saw her wearing a water-red golden flower palace outfit, with a five-phoenix-hanging pearl hairpin on her flying fairy bun, and a pearl hairpin with eight-treasure gold silk.

A pair of phoenix eyes are filled with emotion, and a small tear mole is faintly seen at the corner of the eyes, which creates charm throughout the body with white hair.

Concubine Yin pulled out her jade hand holding the maid and bowed deeply to the Empress Dowager, "I'm paying homage to the Empress Dowager."

I heard that the Queen Mother had a crab banquet today, and it must be extremely lively.

I was bored in the palace and came uninvited.

I hope the Queen Mother will not blame her.”

The empress dowager said in a faint expression, "Concubine Yin is well-informed."

Since you are here, you are a guest.

Madam Chu asked Xiao Xuanzi to take the imperial concubine to the banquet.”

Concubine Yin's smile remained unchanged, "I thanked the Empress Dowager."

The Empress Dowager has not liked Concubine Yin for a long time, and it is no longer a secret.

Everyone held their breathless words after hearing this question and answer.

Although each of them looked as usual, they couldn't understand why Concubine Yin insisted on coming to attend the crab banquet today.

Just now, Concubine Yin looked at Gu Xiyan several times without any trace. At this time, she was turning around and about to leave, pretending to be careless, "This is the wife of the Marquis of Pingyang?"

A few days ago, the newly married mansion of the Marquis of Pingyang was still in the palace, and I still had time to congratulate my wife."

After hearing this, Gu Xiyan quickly got up and gave a blessing, "I thanked the concubine, thank you for your concern."

Concubine Yin smiled and nodded, with a kind look on her face as if she cared for the younger generation.

After Concubine Yin left the palace gate, Madam Chu stepped forward and said, "Empress Dowager, the banquet in the Imperial Garden will be held soon. Should I ask Mrs. Pingyang to come here now?"

The Empress Dowager then patted Gu Xiyan's hand and said, "Good boy, there are so many fun things in the Royal Forest Garden today, I believe you will like it."

"I haven't recovered from the typhoid fever a while ago and the crabs are cold in nature, so I won't go to sweep the elegant atmosphere of you young people."

After hearing this, the ladies in the hall spoke one after another, some said that they were unwell and could not eat crabs, some said that they wanted to stay and talk to the empress dowager... The empress dowager did not force herself after hearing this, and just told everyone to do whatever they wanted.
To be continued...