Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved-Chapter 123 - : Consort Jing Pin Bears a Resemblance to the Empress Dowager
Chapter 123: Chapter 123: Consort Jing Pin Bears a Resemblance to the Empress Dowager
The Second Prince crushed the wine cup, and the shattered porcelain left his hands covered in blood.
However, amidst thunderous applause, no one noticed this small commotion.
Among them, the applause from the Western Region Prince was the most fervent, standing up with eyes that radiated astonishment.
The envoys by the side of the Western Region Prince also nodded vigorously, ceaselessly praising him alongside the people next to them.
Updat𝓮d from frёewebnoѵēl.com.
Seeing this, the Emperor felt somewhat gratified, thinking that Murong Jiu had brought honor to Great Yan. He rose and loudly praised, “Excellent, excellent, such a melody should belong to the heavens; seldom is it heard on earth! Princess Consort Ling, you truly are a surprise! Now that the birthmark is no longer on your face, no longer is the pearl under dust. I had not expected that aside from medicine, you possess such exceptional skills in playing the zither!”
In Great Yan, no noble girl from any family did not learn the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting; so-called scholar’s six arts and the lady’s eight graces were always admired by people.
For instance, in painting, there was the Saint of Painting, Hua Daozi, and in chess, the Chess Fool, Sima Gong, and so on.
For example, Murong Man was known as the First Talented Lady of Capital City, not because her learning was exceptional, but because her skills in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting were amongst the best among the ladies.
Yet, what no one could have imagined was that Murong Man’s prided zither skills could be comprehensively surpassed by Murong Jiu, leaving the entire assembly in shock, struggling to come to terms with it for a long while.
Even the Emperor’s face was filled with surprise and satisfaction.
Guangling San is highly challenging, technically demanding, and most difficult emotionally. However, Murong Jiu’s performance could be said to be impeccably perfect, giving one the feeling of being in the presence of the music, with the mind following the changes in the melodies.
Even those not proficient in zither music could sense the rich emotions within Murong Jiu’s piece.
Empress Dowager, with a warm smile, said to Murong Jiu, “This Lv Qi had collected dust under my care for over a decade; however, it has shown its past grace in your hands. A good zither matches well with good hands. I shall give Lv Qi to you.”
Upon hearing this, everyone showed shock, and the Empress tightly clenched her fingers, smiling as she said, “Your Majesty, Lv Qi is a national treasure and was a gift from the Emperor to you on your birthday; its significance is extraordinary. It might not be appropriate to just give it to Princess Consort Ling like this.”
In the entirety of Great Yan, the zither Lv Qi was regarded as the finest. In previous dynasties, the consorts in the palace considered owning it a matter of pride, a symbol of status. It was permissible when the Emperor had gifted it to Empress Dowager, but for Empress Dowager to intend on giving it to Princess Consort Ling, the Empress naturally was displeased.
The Empress Dowager coolly responded, “Since it was given to me by the Emperor, it is mine to give to whom I see fit. Moreover, under the heavens, can the Empress find someone more suitable for this zither than Princess Consort Ling?”
The Empress said, “But this is Great Yan…”
She hadn’t finished her sentence when she was interrupted by the Emperor, “Mother speaks rightly. I gave it to Mother, and how she disposes of it is her affair. I also believe that only Princess Consort Ling is worthy of this Lv Qi zither.”
With the Emperor having said so, what could the Empress say? Naturally, she just smiled and said no more.
Thus, the most prestigious zither under the heavens became the possession of Murong Jiu.
Murong Jiu bowed deeply, thanking the Empress Dowager and the Emperor.
As everyone came to their senses, they realized Murong Jiu really was different now; even the treasured zither Lv Qi had been awarded to her, elevating her status immensely.
She was no longer the country bumpkin ugly girl people talked about before.
Murong Man, who had been pampered in Capital City, couldn’t even compare to half of what Murong Jiu was.
At that moment, Murong Man stood next to Murong Jiu, holding a zither, her face unable to hide its pallor, looking haggard, while Murong Jiu radiated vitality, standing tall and elegant. This contrast was indeed brutally stark.
Both returned to their seats.
“Respected Your Majesty, today’s performance by Princess Consort Ling was surely unforgettable! Our huqin cannot produce such a surging and moving melody!”
Na Kesi loudly said to the Emperor, his amber eyes, however, were fixed unblinkingly on Murong Jiu.
His gaze was too aggressive, causing Murong Jiu to lower her head, unwilling to meet his eyes.
Murong Jiu felt something was amiss. Na Kesi hadn’t glanced at Fu Baozhu even once, yet he was always staring at her—a prince shouldn’t be so lacking in propriety.
Jun Yuyan’s brows furrowed slightly, and in front of everyone, he grasped Murong Jiu’s fingers, signifying his sovereignty. If the Western Region Prince had any shame, he would cease staring at another man’s wife.
Na Kesi, however, laughed heartily and then said to the Emperor, “It is a pity that Princess Consort Ling’s beauty is untouchable, and the melody of the qin leaves one longing for more. However, we have prepared beauties from the Western Regions to perform our palace dance once again for Your Majesty and the distinguished guests, wishing Your Majesty eternal youth and Great Yan everlasting prosperity!”
The Emperor, upon hearing this, was overjoyed and ordered the dancing girls to enter the hall.
The entering dancing girls were indeed each beautiful as paintings, their faces covered with a thin veil, rendering their features tantalizingly elusive.
Their dance moves were bold and unrestrained, interacting with the officials present when the atmosphere became heated.
The so-called interaction involved gyrating their hips in front of the ministers, or swaying their bodies upon them, causing many ministers to become lustfully distracted.
Of course, there were also those like General Fu who, unappreciative of such manners, pushed the dancers away, causing Murong Jiu to barely suppress a chuckle.
Over by Jun Yuyan, there was a dancing girl who hadn’t even started to dance before his icy gaze frightened her away to elsewhere.
Murong Jiu guessed that these dancing girls would soon be sent to various ministers’ mansions.
In her past life, like was there a similar incident—she couldn’t recall clearly—only remembering that Murong Man had been highly noticeable, and Fu Baozhu had performed a sword dance, receiving great praise from Na Kesi and the envoys.
Thinking of this, she looked towards Fu Baozhu.
Fu Baozhu appeared to be struggling with something, biting her lips and occasionally looking towards Na Kesi.
Hmm? Did Fu Baozhu harbor feelings for Na Kesi?
Wasn’t Fu Baozhu fond of Prince?
Or had she sensed some danger, fearing her identity would be exposed, and sought to quickly free herself from the General’s Mansion?
Although the Western Regions Nation was a vassal state, it was still one of the strongest among the surrounding countries, and since Na Kesi was already designated as the successor, he would inevitably become the King of the Western Regions. The Old King of the Western Regions would soon pass away, and not long after her marriage, Fu Baozhu would become the queen.
Murong Jiu lowered her eyes, lost in thought.
As the palace banquet ended, many officials were drunk, the Emperor included, who seemed very pleased and went back to the Queen’s palace with the Queen.
On the first and fifteenth of each month, the Emperor always visited the Queen’s palace.
Throughout the entire banquet, Consort Jing appeared as if she were invisible; even the concubines hardly noticed her, remaining extremely low-profile.
But Murong Jiu noticed that Consort Jing’s gaze wasn’t on the Emperor but on the Empress Dowager.
She felt somewhat anxious about it and shared it with Jun Yuyan on their way back.
“I always feel like Consort Jing bears a resemblance to the Empress Dowager; even the styles of their Buddha beads are quite similar.”
Of course, the Empress Dowager’s Buddha beads were made from white jade, while Consort Jing’s, like herself, were inconspicuous. Had Murong Jiu not been observing intentionally, she would have hardly noticed the Buddha beads wrapped around her wrist.
