After Fang Zilan and Zhuge Yu took care of their official duties and explained all the matters to their subordinate officials, they went to the Lianhua Palace in the imperial city, where the opera was rehearsed.
The capital admires gods and Buddhas and uses the thousand-petaled lotus as its national flower. Therefore, the Lotus Palace is the place of worship in the imperial city.
As New Year's Eve approaches, there are more and more rituals in Lianhua Palace, and the smell of incense has become a bit stronger.
Therefore, before the two of them reached Lianhua Palace, they saw the fragrance and mist curling up from a distance across the palace wall.
Seeing this, Fang Zilan couldn't help but asked curiously: "The incense is so prosperous, is it possible that there are rituals in Lianhua Palace every day?"
"Every year before New Year's Eve, the palace invites eminent monks from Baiye Temple to come to Lianhua Palace to chant sutras and pray for blessings." Zhuge Yu's expression was as clear as ever, but there was an indescribable complex look in his eyes.
He paused, and finally whispered: "I think this year will be no exception."
Fang Zilan looked sideways at him and said thoughtfully: "Ayu, do you believe there are ghosts and gods in this world?"
"If you don't believe it, believe it." Zhuge Yu shook his head slightly, "It is better to ask for yourself than to ask for others. I have always believed in myself more. But I also know that there are many things in this world that are beyond the reach of human beings. It is impossible to place hope on ghosts and gods. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
"What A Yu said is pertinent." Fang Zilan nodded slightly in agreement, "There are so many twists and turns in the world, how can it be solved by praying to God and worshiping Buddha? It's just that I just saw you mention chanting sutras and praying for blessings, A Yu, and I thought about it with great nostalgia in my eyes. I thought you were a believer in gods and Buddhas, so I was reckless."
"I don't believe in gods and Buddhas, it's just..." Zhuge Yu hesitated before saying, "I once had a personal relationship with a senior monk in Baiye Temple, so I know a little bit about Buddhism."
When Fang Zilan saw him like this, she thought that he might have a good relationship with the eminent monk.
However, she had no intention of prying into people's private affairs, so she answered in an understatement: "If I have the opportunity in the future, I would like to pay a visit to that master."
Zhuge Yu smiled and said nothing. Fang Zilan raised his eyes and looked at the Lianhua Palace, which was just around the corner. "It's getting late, let's go in."
The rehearsal time of the social opera is set after noon every day. The two of them arrived a little late. The other young masters from the aristocratic families had already performed the social opera once and were resting at this time.
That's why the two of them stepped into the gate of Lianhua Palace. Before they entered the palace, they heard someone inside saying angrily: "It's just that Mr. Fang's new official has been busy with government affairs, so he never showed up once. How come the second son of the Zhuge family never showed up either?" What's going on? If things continue like this, how can we continue to schedule social dramas?"
Hearing this, Fang Zilan looked at Zhuge Yu. The suppressed smile on her face made him look more helpless. He raised his hand to signal her to go in, but she stood leisurely by the wall with no intention of going in at all.
As soon as the man in the palace finished speaking, someone from the other side helped: "Don't talk about the second young master of the Zhuge family, haven't we only met the young master of the Wei family once? It's really hard to invite a celebrity in front of your majesty. .”
Wei family? Fang Zilan looked at Zhuge Yu subconsciously, but saw that the expression on his face was a little lighter, and there was no expression on his face.
She thought for a moment and was about to go in when she heard a voice coming from the front door of the palace, "Master Fang, Master Zhuge, you two are finally here."
The two of them looked back and saw that the person speaking was none other than Li Qiyou. But the person standing next to him was actually Wei Subaru.
"I came here to take a look when I have free time today. It's not easy to ask the prince to invite you all the time." Fang Zilan smiled slightly and spoke politely and distantly.
Li Qiyou knew that he had tricked Fang Zilan, so he had to smile awkwardly to save his face.
Wei Subaru raised his eyebrows happily, "Master Fang, Master Zhuge, we meet again."
Zhuge Yu's face was cold and his voice was a little deeper, "What are you doing here, Lord Wei?"
"My useless little nephew caught the cold and was bedridden. Only I, the uncle, came to take his place." Wei Subaru said calmly. Zhuge Yu snorted and stopped answering. The scene suddenly changed. Somewhat embarrassing.
Li Qiyou was in a dilemma, so he forced himself to smooth things over and said, "Since everyone is here, you might as well go into the palace to talk about anything you have to say."
"Okay." Fang Zilan took the lead and strode into the palace gate. Zhuge Yu followed her and ignored the two people standing in the courtyard.
Li Qiyou asked for trouble and said no more, and entered the Lianhua Palace with Wei Subaru.
After Fang Zilan and Zhuge Yu entered the palace, the noisy palace suddenly fell silent. The young masters from various aristocratic families looked at each other, with some expressions on their faces being shocked, some stunned, and most of them wary.
It wasn't until Pei Xiaoze came out to break the deadlock that their expressions gradually returned to normal, but they still couldn't stop whispering.
Pei Xiaoze walked up to the two of them calmly and said, "Master Fang, Mr. Zhuge, I haven't seen you for many days. Are you okay?"
"Thanks to Mr. Pei for your help, everything is fine." Fang Zilan smiled, no longer just being polite.
Zhuge Yu also nodded politely and said, "Thank you, Lord Pei. I'm thinking about you."
As soon as the two of them said hello to Pei Xiaoze, Li Qiyou and Wei Subaru walked in, and the hall became extremely quiet.
After Li Qiyou explained Wei Subaru's intention, the hall was in an uproar.
No one expected that Lord Wei Subaru, who was guarding the capital with heavy troops, would also come to rehearse the New Year's social drama.
"What's so rare this year? Not only did Master Fang and a woman appear on stage, but Master Wei also came to rehearse the social drama?"
"Yes, it makes sense that Mr. Fang is new here, but Mr. Wei, with his status, is actually here to rehearse a social drama."
"The new rich are very popular. With Lord Wei and Lord Fang and other famous people in front of His Majesty here, we are not worth mentioning in the social drama..."
The young masters of the aristocratic family who used to just whisper to each other have now become more and more violent and have turned into gesticulating as if no one else is watching.
Li Qiyou, standing in the center of the crowd, heard the words around him clearly, and his face could not help but turn blue and purple.
He was about to say something to break the situation, when he heard Fang Zilan say loudly: "Since you all have time to chat, it must have been rehearsed. So why not tell me, how is this social opera rehearsed?"
Every word she said was neither humble nor arrogant, but it conveyed an indescribable coolness, as if she was the one watching the fun.
For a moment, all the voices in the palace were silenced by her words. Everyone was trembling and no one dared to speak casually again.
Then she turned to Li Qiyou and said, "Your Majesty, what do you think?"
Li Qiyou knew that the only reason he could preside over the overall situation here was because of his status as a relative of the Yucheng Emperor, and there were many people present who were dissatisfied with him. Now that Fang Zilan had given him the steps, of course he had to go down the steps, and it was not easy to refute her face and put himself on the fire.
He immediately said loudly: "What Mr. Fang said is that the rehearsal of social opera is not a day's work. It is better for you to put more thoughts and energy on social opera."
As soon as Li Qiyou finished speaking, he heard a voice sarcastically say: "Your Majesty said it lightly."
