When the prince is reborn, he will only hit me if he doesn't hit the wall!

After all this commotion, it was almost noon and the banquet was about to begin.

Qin Yuechuan didn't arrive early at this time. Except for the emperor, empress, and queen mother, all the guests were present. When he entered the hall with Xu Xinyue, the noisy voices suddenly fell silent, and everyone stared at the two people who appeared in a daze.

At the same time, he was full of curiosity about the girl who appeared beside King Rong.

Qin Yuechuan led him directly to his seat.

According to Beixuan customs, men and women cannot sit at the same table unless they are married.

Everyone present was surprised. They only heard that Prince Rong had left Kyoto a few days ago. When did he get a beautiful lady by his side?

Some people in the audience were whispering, "Could it be that Prince Rong found this girl from outside of Kyoto?"

"I think so. I don't know her status, but she looks quite good. I wonder which family she is from."

"She's not a rich lady. I heard her name is...Xu Xinyue. She used to be from the Xu Mansion, but later, because of that incident, she was expelled from the Xu Mansion. Now she's just a commoner."

"Hey? Isn't Xu Xinyue the one who embarrassed He Yunyin at the poetry gathering some time ago? It is said that Prince Rong was also present at the time, and he seemed to be visiting the poetry gathering with her! The rumor has been circulating for quite a while, and I didn't expect it to be true!"

"Oh, that's right, Xu Xinyue said her name on the stage. I was there at the time, but I was too far away to see her face clearly. Now that I see her today, she looks like this!"

"Tsk, she's just okay. I don't think she can compare to her sister Xu Mingxi, who is the most beautiful woman in Kyoto. Who knows, Prince Rong couldn't woo Xu Mingxi, so he turned to find a substitute. They are both from the Xu family, so they look a bit similar."

……

There were more and more discussions, some were surprised, some were envious, some were sighing, and some were disdainful. Xu Xinyue had heard them countless times and ignored them, only concentrating on eating the snacks in front of her.

She had a feeling that today's banquet would be anything but simple and she would not be able to enjoy it peacefully from beginning to end. Secretly, she thought it would be better to eat more to fill her stomach before the emperor arrived.

Qin Yuechuan poured tea for her and peeled fruit for her: "You don't have to worry about it, Yueyue, I'll take care of everything."

Xu Xinyue took a sip of tea, lowered her eyes and said nothing.

Qin Yuechuan was indeed there, but there were some things she had to face and could not be avoided. She could not always cower behind Qin Yuechuan like a quail.

If this is the case, I am afraid that what Princess Rong does will not be convincing.

Qin Yuechuan saw that she was worried and felt depressed. He thought she was worried and afraid, so he held her hand tightly and said, "Since I have decided to marry Yueyue as my princess, I will definitely protect her."

It was like a general about to go to war, holding up his spear and solemnly swearing to her: We will win this battle!

Seeing how solemn he looked, Xu Xinyue couldn't help but tease him, "Why are you so nervous? I'm just guessing what might happen next. Looking at your performance, why do you seem like I'm going to run away?"

Qin Yuechuan raised the corner of his mouth slightly, staring at her, without answering, but involuntarily holding her slender fingers tighter.

The sharp and high-pitched voices of the people announced the arrival of the Empress Dowager! The Emperor has arrived! The Empress has arrived!

The originally noisy palace suddenly became solemn and dignified. Everyone stood up and prepared to welcome the arrival of the Holy Emperor.

The emperor was obviously in a particularly good mood today. He waved his wide robe sleeves with a smile on his face and said in a friendly tone: "Today is the birthday of my mother. My dear ministers, there is no need to be so rigid about etiquette!"

Since it is a birthday, gifts are necessary.

Led by the eldest prince Qin Liexing, he presented a statue of Water and Moon Guanyin carved from white marble. It was of the highest quality jade with delicate carving, with half-closed eyes, looking down at all living beings with compassion. Even the fluttering sleeves and ribbons were carved so gracefully and softly that they seemed to flutter without wind.

The Queen Mother loved to worship Buddha, and this gift went straight to her heart. Her eyes narrowed into a thin line, and she kept praising: "Good, good, good!"

Next, the princes and princesses presented their birthday gifts one after another. When it was Qin Yuechuan's turn, he presented the "birthday gift" that he had prepared for a long time.

The Queen Mother did not have high expectations for the birthday gift he gave her. She had made up her mind that no matter how valuable the gift Qin Yuechuan presented, she would not take it to heart, and she also decided not to show it on her face.

When the palace maid presented Qin Yuechuan with a gift box that was not even as wide as a palm, he was even more dismissive and had no intention of opening it to appreciate what was inside.

But the eunuch read out the gift list: "Your Highness Prince Rong, we present you with a box of jade otter marrow!"

The whole house was in an uproar.

"The Jade Otter Marrow is almost extinct in the Northern Xuannan Abyss. It has not appeared for a hundred years. Now it has been found by Prince Rong. The Queen Mother is so lucky!"

"Yes, this thing is said to be a divine product for beautifying the skin, and it is also a very rare medicinal material!"

"Your Highness Prince Rong's filial piety is as good as the sun and the moon!"

"Indeed!"

At this time, the empress dowager could no longer hear the various opinions below. Her head was ringing, her eyes were dizzy, and the painful memories of the past years flooded into her mind. Her child had been a secret that had been buried for many years. When her child died, Qin Yuechuan's mother had not even entered the palace. How did she know all this?

On second thought, maybe it was just a coincidence, he didn't know, and it just happened that what he gave was jade otter marrow.

The emperor also had only a vague understanding of the matter. He only heard that the empress dowager had been obsessed with this in her early years. Now that her wish had come true, why did she have such an expression?

"Mother, is there anything wrong with this thing? I heard that you have searched everywhere but to no avail. Aren't you happy with what you found today?"

The Queen Mother's expression froze, and she forced a strange smile. Her fingernails dug into her flesh under her sleeves, and she said insincerely, "No, I really like it."

The emperor was a little confused. If she liked him, why did the empress dowager's tone sound a bit gnashing of teeth?

Qin Yuechuan just pretended not to know and spoke sincerely:

"I also happened to hear that the Queen Mother once longed for this item. Although I don't know where the Queen Mother found it, and this item is hard to find, it was not until today that it was presented to the Queen Mother at the birthday banquet. I wonder if the Queen Mother can still use it now?"

Without listening to the Queen Mother's response, Qin Yuechuan continued: "Whether it can be used or not, I think that since I have presented it, it may be able to comfort the Queen Mother's regrets in her early years.

Queen Mother, tell me, is what I said right?"

The Queen Mother felt the blood rushing up her body, and a salty smell surging in her throat. Her mind was also somewhat confused, and she only thought:

Revenge, it must be revenge. Qin Yuechuan was taking revenge on her for the marriage she had forced on him.

However, this matter was a secret, and the Queen Mother could not speak out. She could only nod stiffly and try to act calm and proper: "Indeed, that's right. I will accept the gift. If Prince Rong has nothing else to do, you can--"

"Father, I have something else to ask for your approval."

In fact, the emperor had seen the woman on his seat since he sat down, and he probably guessed that Qin Yuechuan would definitely take action today.

He rolled his eyes speechlessly. Qin Yuechuan had already taken away the imperial edict, but he was still not quiet.

Why, in order to clear his princess's name, he must go through the motions here and in public, right?