In the blink of an eye, the appointed day arrived, and Cen Yurong, who was dressed up in fine clothes, was arranging everything in the house early.
"The pastries must be made finer and softer. The Duke's wife and the old princess are old, so we must let them know that we put our best efforts into it."
"Every corner must be cleaned and the white jade cups must be placed. Don't lose the prince's face."
Xiao Junlan is still graceful and elegant today, wearing a pure green bamboo robe with dark patterns, calm and dignified. He has already settled the matters in hand in advance. Cen Yurong quickly came forward and stretched out her hand to help him sort things out. The tassels on the jade pendant.
"Your Majesty, Princess, the distinguished guest has arrived!"
The housekeeper rushed in hurriedly, Xiao Junlan nodded, and led all the servants to the door.
Unexpectedly, there were no personnel from the Duke's Palace and Prince Pingnan's Palace in front of them. Only two sedan chairs were seen lying across the road, and two astonished figures were facing each other.
"Master Su, are you here to visit His Highness the King Xian today?"
"Yes, I happened to encounter some difficult business matters, and I would like to ask the prince for advice. Where is Mr. Liu?"
"I...hehe, I came to see the prince to discuss his chess skills."
During the conversation, they saw several figures coming out of the door. The leaders, Xiao Junlan and Cen Yurong, looked solemn and formal, and they were immediately shocked and at a loss.
The prince and princess actually came out to greet them in person?
But while they were stunned, several more sedan chairs came from a distance, and those luxurious figures appeared in front of everyone.
Their doubtful eyes fell on Cen Yurong, and Xiao Junlan whispered, "Are you entertaining anyone else today?"
"Yurong doesn't! The Duke's wife has never liked the excitement, how could I... Those ladies said they wanted to come to the mansion to learn tea art from Yu Rong, but I don't know why..."
Cen Yurong's expression could no longer remain calm. Why didn't she come earlier or later? Why did she choose such an important day to come?
The prince must have felt that she was not handling things properly, which is why she made such a mistake.
Everyone crowded on this road to look at each other. The two adults awkwardly walked up to Xiao Junlan and cupped their hands, "Your Majesty wants to entertain guests? It seems that I came at the wrong time, so I won't delay His Majesty's important business. Let's change it." Come visit me again tomorrow."
"Now that we are here, is there any reason to let the two adults go back?" There was no trace of annoyance on Xiao Junlan's face. The steward on the side got the signal and immediately led the people in.
Cen Yurong was a little anxious, how could this be possible?
"You should also entertain the ladies well. You are supposed to be an open and aboveboard banquet. If you let others in, if word spreads, it will become the king's gathering of people to plot evil!"
Xiao Junlan knew that people's words can be feared, so he received these guests generously so that he would not be criticized by others.
Cen Yurong pursed her lips. Fortunately, she had prepared enough ingredients, so it would not be a problem to entertain these people.
The whole house suddenly became lively. Cen Yurong watched these uninvited guests walking through the inner courtyard that she had carefully decorated and cleaned. She admired the plants and trees around her with a look of surprise, and even tasted the expensive new tea.
She was reluctant to part with her, but she pretended to be enthusiastic on her face.
"People will be here soon. Let me know immediately, Princess." Cen Yurong gave the instructions carefully, and then began to greet the ladies with a smile.
I saw dishes of exquisite pastries being served, but there was no other movement outside the door.
It's getting late, why haven't we seen the carriage or sedan chair from the Duke's Palace and Pingnan Palace?
"Quick, send someone to see if we were delayed on the road."
Cen Yurong could no longer hold back and looked at Xiao Junlan opposite the two adults from time to time. Fortunately, the prince's face was still as warm as the spring breeze, and there was nothing strange about it.
Soon, the servants brought back the news that the Duke's carriage was already on the way.
Cen Yurong finally breathed a sigh of relief. The Duke's wife had just recovered from a serious illness, so her movements would naturally have to be slower.
She began to discuss tea art with the ladies with peace of mind again. I don't know how long it took, but everyone gradually felt a little tired. The cool breeze blew in the evening, and as night fell, the servants who were originally full of energy seemed a little unable to do what they did.
"It's getting late, so we can't bother any more." Finally, a lady was so hungry that she couldn't bear it anymore. Usually at this time, she had already finished her meal and was eating in her back garden!
It was really strange. She saw that a banquet had been prepared in the garden, with very exquisite white jade cups and saucers placed on it. It must have been a banquet. Why were they not invited to sit down at this hour?
Could it be that they are not welcome?
Cen Yurong didn't know whether she should laugh or apologize. It had been an hour. Even if the Duke and Madam walked on two legs, she should have arrived!
"It's really rude. It took a little long to prepare the ingredients in the dining room this time. Madam, please use some pastries first."
And eat cakes?
The ladies smiled stiffly, their mouths were so sweet that they were tired of it. What on earth did Princess Xian mean? She would not let them leave, and she would not let them in at the banquet!
Cen Yurong felt the dissatisfaction and hurriedly made an excuse to leave for a while, but was immediately found by Xiao Junlan.
"What's going on? Have you really made an agreement with the Duke's wife?"
At this time, he also had a bad premonition in his heart.
Cen Yurong still looked as confident as before, her voice was already trembling a little, "It's true, the Duke and Madam personally agreed!"
At this moment, the old housekeeper rushed in anxiously, "Your Majesty, Princess, Miss Liang is already at the door!"
Cen Yurong's face was filled with joy, and Nanny Huang hurriedly ordered the kitchen to bring out all the delicacies, for fear that the Duke's wife and the old princess would be waiting for a long time.
Everyone clearly felt that the atmosphere had changed. The two adults and several ladies saw that the table was instantly filled with a dazzling array of dishes. Such extravagance was not at all like the behavior of His Highness the Wise King.
So...who did they originally entertain?
However, before Cen Yurong and Xiao Junlan walked to the door to greet her, she heard someone in the corner mutter, "Why is there only Miss Liang, and where are the others from the Duke's residence?"
Before they could react, Liang Qianqian's figure had already appeared in front of them.
"Qianqian to Your Highness the Prince Xian, please give your regards to the Princess! I wonder if Jin'er is at home?" She dressed simply and smiled brightly, while Cen Yurong couldn't help but look behind her.
"Miss Liang, where is the Duke's wife?"
Is she really the only one here? !
Liang Qianqian's eyes were full of doubts, "The princess is looking for my grandmother. Is there something important?"
Her surprise made Cen Yurong's heart tighten, and her face became a little ugly, "Didn't the Duke's wife agree to be a guest that day? The old princess also said she would come with Prince Pingnan!"
Liang Qianqian frowned, looking puzzled, "The princess is joking, my grandmother has never said such a thing!"
