vstars Chapter 602 Unexpected Turn of Events at the Banquet
Chapter 602 Unexpected Turn of Events at the Banquet
Su Lingyue frowned as she looked at Su Nanxing, and when she saw that Su Nanxing had swallowed back what she was about to say, she felt completely bewildered.
After Su Nanxing left with her face covered, the guests in the hall resumed their conversation.
Having not seen Qin Wanning for some time, Su Lingyue asked Jia Shi beside her, "Madam, how has Wanning been these days?"
It's both an inquiry and a warning.
Madam Jia's expression was slightly unnatural, and she forced a smile. "She's fine, she's fine."
"That's good. Please take good care of her, Madam."
Madam Jia nodded in agreement, but Su Lingyue's expression was extremely unnatural.
Su Lingyue saw through her thoughts, so she stopped talking and simply picked up the teacup beside her to sip her tea.
*
In the hall, Su Heng walked up to Duan Xu, who had just returned from the outhouse, and asked, "Lord Duan, I also sent an invitation to Lord Li for this birthday banquet, but his wife said he was away on official business and not at home."
"Where has Lord Li gone?"
Duan Xu gave his usual smile and said nonchalantly, "It's a case of banditry."
After saying that, fearing that Su Heng wouldn't believe him, he leaned closer to Di Sheng and said, "A painting was lost in front of Lord Wang of the Ministry of Revenue. It's said to be an erotic painting for his beloved concubine, and it was stolen. A few days ago, we received a clue that the painting had appeared in Sichuan, and I asked him to investigate."
As Duan Xu spoke, a meaningful, dreamy smile appeared on his face.
Su Heng looked at Duan Xu with a puzzled expression, clearly disbelieving, "A third-rank official personally investigating an erotic painting?"
Duan Xu leaned closer and lowered his voice, saying, "Of course not, but that concubine is no ordinary person. She is the illegitimate daughter of Lord Cao, the military governor of Hanzhong."
"It is said that Lord Wang's methods of marriage were not very ethical. The woman happened to be taken back by him. He originally wanted to settle things peacefully, but then the erotic paintings were leaked out. How could he not be anxious!"
"So when they come to me for help, it concerns the reputation of a first-rank military governor and a fifth-rank official, so I have to pay attention."
After saying that, he seemed to suddenly remember something and looked at Su Heng warily, saying, "Prime Minister Su, you won't tell anyone about this, will you? If you do, I won't just be offending two people."
Su Heng said, "Of course, since you've confided in me about these things, I'll naturally keep it a secret for you."
After Duan Xu's half-truthful and rambling explanation, Su Heng seemed to believe him and didn't press further, which relieved Duan Xu.
At this moment, Su Nanxing walked into the men's lounge, covering her face with her left hand, looking as if she was about to cry.
"What's wrong?" Su Heng asked, frowning.
Su Nanxing looked at Su Heng with a wronged expression and choked up, "Father, Su Lingyue hit me."
After saying that, he put his hand down and showed Su Heng the bright red palm print.
With so many officials here, she wanted to see just how much her father could tolerate Su Lingyue. Was it possible that no matter what Su Lingyue did, her father would disregard her suffering for the sake of his so-called grand plan?
"What did you do?" Su Heng's eyes were clearly filled with suspicion.
Su Nanxing avoided Su Heng's eyes, her gaze darting away. "I...I...I was just relaying a message from my father, saying a few words of concern, and she hit me!"
As she spoke, she covered her face again, tears streaming down her face, looking as if she had suffered a great injustice.
Su Heng scrutinized her, his gaze heavy. "Have someone tell her to come see me after the banquet. Now!"
"Yes."
Su Nanxing covered her injured left cheek, a smug, cold smile playing on her lips.
As expected, under the watchful eyes of everyone, his father had no choice but to agree.
Otherwise, the fear of Prince Su would spread very quickly.
*
During the banquet, when not many people were paying attention, Su Lingyue asked Yan Qing to look around and see if he could find anything.
Halfway through the banquet, the maids brought out a new serving of ginseng and pigeon soup.
Just as the maids were serving the pigeon soup to everyone, the sound of fireworks rang out in the courtyard, startling several maids so much that they dropped the soup onto the expensive silks and satins.
"Madam, I'm sorry."
"Madam, I didn't mean it."
……
For a moment, pleas for mercy filled the entire hall.
Fortunately, Li Jing reacted quickly and pulled the maid away, spilling soup all over the floor.
"Bad maid!"
"Snapped!"
Jiang slapped the maid across the face, and the maid's face immediately turned red.
Do you know how expensive the fabric of this outfit is?
"I'm sorry, madam, I... I will do my best to make it up to you."
Jiang snorted coldly, "Compensate? Do you know how expensive this fabric is? You couldn't afford it even if you worked as a maid your whole life!"
What she said wasn't wrong; that maidservant couldn't afford it even if she worked as a maid her whole life. But noble ladies in the capital were supposed to be dignified and elegant; almost no one would say such a thing to their servants.
But Madam Jiang not only spoke, she also beat the head maid. Tears welled up in the maid's eyes and she immediately knelt down with a thud, kowtowing to Madam Jiang to admit her mistake.
"Madam, I was wrong, please forgive me."
The maid pleaded several times, and Su Lingyue couldn't bear to watch any longer. Just as she was about to speak, another authoritative voice descended.
I'll pay for your clothes!
Su Lingyue looked up and saw Lin Ju, the wife of General Lin, sitting at another table, looking at Jiang Shi with contempt in her eyes.
Beside her, Lin Yao, who was about to become Xiao Chang'an's concubine, looked at Jiang Shi with the same unfriendly gaze, her usually bright face full of disgust.
The old woman, following Madam Lin's instructions, delivered the silver notes.
Seeing the silver notes in front of her, Jiang felt greatly humiliated and shouted, "It's my business whether I reprimand her or not, what's it to you?"
"I just can't stand it. You can take it. Don't get upset over a piece of clothing."
Madam Lin had also been on the battlefield in her youth, and possessed a heroic spirit that ordinary women did not have. Coupled with her status as the Duke of England, she was even more arrogant and looked like someone who was not to be trifled with.
The words just spoken were, both openly and subtly, a sarcastic jab at the Jiang family's petty-mindedness.
Seeing this, the others quickly stopped complaining and took their maids out to change their clothes.
Even though Lin Ju's current official rank is not as high as Zheng Zixu's, his status and influence far exceed those of Zheng Zixu, who has just entered the capital.
Jiang Shi naturally dared not do anything to her, and with a cold snort, she took her maid to change her clothes.
Mrs. Lin patted her daughter's hand, then sat down and continued to eat slowly and deliberately.
After a while, the people who went to change clothes returned one after another, but Su Lingyue noticed that one person had not returned.
Jiang family.
Su Lingyue beckoned to the maid not far away, and the maid, looking like a puppy, quickly came over.
"princess."
"Go and ask why Madam Zheng hasn't returned yet."
The maidservant responded and ran out, returning shortly afterward.
"I heard from them that Madam Zheng has already gone back."
Su Lingyue nodded, dispelling her doubts.
It's not uncommon for people to have to leave the host's house and return home during a banquet if something comes up unexpectedly.
Everything seemed normal in the mansion, and Su Lingyue planned to tell Li Qingyuan before leaving.
But Yan Qing never came back.
"Aqing, go and look for Yanqing! It's been so long, why hasn't he come back yet?"