How can I bow my head and serve the powerful officials?

There were never any rules broken at the Peach Blossom Banquet, so Xie Chengze finally went to the side with the female guests.

Although the Peach Blossom Banquet is open to all students, the children of the powerful and wealthy are still separated from the students from poor families. Unless the children of the powerful and wealthy condescend to come to the poor area and want to choose a few younger brothers to show off, there is actually no chance for the two to communicate.

Xie Chengze pretended to be Sheng Yiren, so naturally he had to go to the seat of the noble ladies in the capital.

It was a quaint and elegant wooden pavilion with several chess tables and piano stands neatly arranged inside, for powerful women to compete in skills at the Peach Blossom Banquet, seeking the title of the most talented woman in the capital. This would allow them to make a name for themselves and lead other women to emulate them, as well as gain the favor of powerful young men and win a good marriage.

After Xie Chengze took his seat, he sat in a corner very low-key, looking at the ancient pavilion along the long corridor. This ancient pavilion was specially prepared for the noble ladies of status in the capital. The other young women sat around the pavilion a little further away, looking over here curiously, their eyes full of envy and hope.

I envy their status, position and talent, and hope that I can be like them one day.

"Alas, I wonder if the princes will come to the banquet this year."

At the chess table next to Xie Chengze, four noble ladies were chatting. One of them said, "I'm afraid they won't come. Everyone knows that the princes never attend the Peach Blossom Banquet."

"Speaking of which, the princes have long passed the age of marrying a princess. Not only are the princes not in a hurry, but His Majesty also does not arrange marriages for the princes. Why is that?"

"Who knows? Maybe he feels it's not the right time yet?"

"By the way, have you heard? The eldest prince has also returned from the border. Maybe when the eldest prince gets married, it will be the turn of the second prince and the crown prince."

"Then it seems that the most talented woman selected at this year's Peach Blossom Banquet is most likely to be chosen as the prince's consort? Maybe she can even become the crown prince's consort!"

"Alas, then we have no hope." A noble lady couldn't help but shake her head and sighed, "Everyone knows that the candidate for the first talented woman is either Sheng Yiren or our Wuxue."

No snow?

Xie Chengze moved his ears and felt that the name was very familiar.

Could it be that Cheng Wuxue, the daughter of Dali Temple Minister Cheng Yuan, the other confidante Shen Yuan met after returning to Beijing, who was known as the "little talented girl"?

In the original book, she had helped Shen Yuan a lot by using her identity as the daughter of the Dali Temple Minister. Not only that, she also fell in love with Shen Yuan at first sight. However, Shen Yuan was like a wooden block who didn't understand romance and only had eyes for overthrowing the second prince.

Xie Chengze poked his head out to see which one was Cheng Wuxue. He remembered that the book described this woman's appearance as being as elegant and graceful as a peony, with a small mole on the side of her nose that was very eye-catching, adding a bit of charm to her appearance, making it very easy for people to remember her characteristics.

He took a furtive glance and sure enough, among the four noble ladies, there was a woman in a dark wine-red long gown. She was holding a black chess piece with her slender jade fingers and looking at the chessboard in thought. A small mole on the bridge of her nose was very conspicuous, making her serious face look a little more lively.

"Wuxue, which prince are you planning to marry?" a noble lady asked curiously.

Hearing this, Cheng Wuxue raised his eyes slightly, and a sarcastic smile appeared on his lips, "This matter is not something you and I can decide."

Noble ladies of their status have never been able to decide their own marriages. If the princes had not intended to get married, she would probably have been pushed to one of the princes by her family and become a tool for power trading.

"That's right. The Crown Prince and the Second Prince have been fighting fiercely. If both of them had not refused to marry to consolidate their power, we would have been pushed out of the marriage by our father long ago." A noble lady sighed, "If the bet is wrong, we will be buried with him."

"But have you really never thought about marrying a prince?" Another noble lady took a sip of tea. "The princes are all very handsome and have good tempers, except for the second prince."

Xie Chengze glanced at the woman unhappily.

What do you mean except the Second Prince? He has such a good temper!

Are your news out of date? Aren’t they updated iteratively?

"Good temper? Are you misunderstanding something?" The third noble lady sighed. "Not to mention that the Fourth Prince is like a wooden man. Whenever he is approached, he immediately finds an excuse to leave and never pays attention to any woman. As for the Crown Prince..."

She lowered her voice, "Does the youngest daughter of the Imperial Censor know? She secretly expressed her feelings to the Crown Prince at the annual banquet last year, but was rejected by the Crown Prince. His sharp words frightened her so much that she couldn't sleep well for three days and three nights. From then on, she no longer had any good feelings towards the Crown Prince."

"Wow! How come I don't know about this?"

"She kept it a secret! She was only exposed a few days ago when she was competing with the second lady of Feng Zhilang's family for a husband. In contrast, all the women who expressed their feelings to the second prince were politely rejected and even given gifts as a consolation!"

"So the Second Prince is so gentle?"

"Besides, the Second Prince is now the Regent. Thinking about it this way, he is more suitable for marriage than the other princes."

Xie Chengze nodded his head, thinking that they had good taste, but then he heard Cheng Wuxue snort coldly, "Tactfully rejecting the offer but still giving the gift, I'm afraid you are deliberately trying to seduce the girl, you have other intentions."

All those in power have corrupt hearts, and the royal family is the most powerful.

Xie Chengze couldn't help but feel wronged. Although he didn't do those things, the Second Prince had indeed never had any thoughts about any woman. Even in the books, the Second Prince had never had a confidante, nor had he ever thought of consolidating his power by getting married.

On this point, he still agrees with the other party.

He couldn't help but interrupt, "Miss, you are not the Second Prince, how can you know that he gave the gift not to thank the other party for his love, but to play hard to get?"

In the memories and feelings he inherited, the Second Prince had never truly felt the love that belonged to him alone. Although these women preferred his status and appearance, at least they did not like "Xie Chengze".

If he is pleased, he will reward.

He was seldom happy.

Cheng Wuxue and the three noble ladies turned around when they heard the question. Seeing Xie Chengze, whose face was not clearly visible under the veil, they looked at each other and asked, "Which noble lady are you from? It seems like I have never seen you before."

There were many daughters of minor officials who came to join in the fun in this ancient pavilion, and even the daughters of concubines came to the banquet. It was already a mixed crowd, and this person covered his face like this, so he must be a dirty person.

Cheng Wuxue also narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Xie Chengze sharply.

Looking at this person's stature, although he looks as slender as a woman in the peach dress, his height and pelvis are much higher than those of an ordinary woman. His voice is also not easy to distinguish between a man and a woman, and his hand bones are even more prominent, not like those of a woman, but rather a slender man.

Could it be that some dirty-minded man disguised himself as a woman and came to the female guest's place with evil intentions?