PFC Chapter 222 Gu Hanjiao's Remote Location
Chapter 222 Gu Hanjiao's Remote Location
"It's nothing, I just feel a little tired."
Siqi wasn't a talkative person to begin with, and seeing that Gu Qingwan didn't intend to say anything more, she wisely refrained from pressing the matter further.
Gu Qingwan couldn't help but sigh. She never expected that she would have to offend so many women in this life for the sake of Xiao Jingchen. This Miss Wen was not someone to be trifled with. In her previous life, she was so devoted to Xiao Jingchen that she would not marry anyone but him. Even Gu Qingwan had to admit that she admired her persistence.
However, in the end, she did not get her wish. Miss Wen went to marry a foreign ruler with resentment. It was only because of Xiao Yuheng's personality that he would never allow the Empress Dowager's maternal clan and the Prince of Chu to have another chance to be bound together. He wished he could get rid of them as soon as possible.
In this life... I'm sorry, Miss Wen. You couldn't have Xiao Jingchen in the last life, and Xiao Jingchen still can't belong to you in this life. But I still hope you can find a good home.
The banquet hall was already properly decorated. This time, the welcoming banquet for the Crown Prince was not very elaborate. Men and women sat together, and the whole family sat together, making it seem more like a family banquet.
As soon as Madam Ning appeared, people came forward to greet her, and young palace maids who had been waiting for a long time also came forward to lead the way.
Gu Hanjiao and Hongxiu had already left the Consort's residence. She had nowhere to go, and since the Third Prince hadn't attended court for so long and needed to socialize everywhere, it was impossible to take him along.
Consort Yu was supposed to be by the Emperor's side, and with other concubines around, she had to make sure she looked her best. How could the Emperor possibly have time to pay attention to her?
Li Qianyu came with her family. After paying her respects, she naturally had to go back to find her parents. Even the Yu sisters had their own separate seats. Although they were arranged at the back, it didn't matter. After all, the Yu family was just a merchant family. Even if a Consort Yu emerged, they couldn't shake off the title of a merchant family.
So the most awkward one now is herself. She came on her own, and without a family, she naturally wouldn't be given a good position. But since it was arranged by the Empress herself, there must be a place for her.
Sure enough, after inquiring, a palace maid pointed to a spot in the corner with a disdainful look, and didn't even bother to lead Gu Hanjiao there.
Gu Hanjiao looked and saw that it was an extremely remote location, even further back than the Yu sisters' location. It was right at the entrance, almost the same as the gatekeeper's. The autumn evening was still a bit chilly, and in that spot, let alone eating a hot meal, you could practically drink several mouthfuls of wind as soon as you opened your mouth.
Gu Hanjiao's face immediately turned ugly. This was definitely intentional. With the Empress making such a slap in the face, were Consort Yu and the Third Prince just going to let it go?
Hongxiu, standing beside her, also looked rather displeased; this was practically a blatant slap in the face to the Imperial Concubine and the Third Prince.
"Don't worry, Miss, I'll go and think of a solution," Hongxiu reassured her.
Gu Hanjiao stood there stiffly and nodded. Although she didn't like Hongxiu, she knew that only Hongxiu had a solution now, otherwise others would laugh at her for it in the future.
Watching Hongxiu's departing figure, Gu Hanjiao seemed to be deep in thought. She knew that since the Empress had already made the arrangements, there would be no room for change, so she still had to rely on herself. She looked around and finally saw Gu Qingwan.
Gu Qingwan really did come. In front of her were Old Madam Ning and Madam Ning. Gu Hanjiao thought that if she followed behind the Ning family, no one would look down on her. At least they would have to think about the Ning family before they laughed at her.
If it weren't for the fact that the Ning family had already accepted Gu Qingwan, I don't know what that old woman was fussing about. It wouldn't make a difference if there was another girl like her, so why couldn't she accept her?
Seeing a young palace maid carrying fruit walk past her, she stopped her and asked, "Hey, don't go, excuse me, where is the residence of the Duke of Ningguo?"
The young palace maid clearly didn't recognize Gu Hanjiao. She subconsciously assumed she was a member of the Duke of Ningguo's family, so she didn't dare to be negligent and quickly pointed her out.
"Miss is in the second row from the front. Would you like me to show you the way?"
"Oh, thank you, but it's not necessary. You can go ahead and do your work. I can go by myself."
After the palace maid left, Gu Hanjiao glanced at the Ningguo Duke's family's position in front. Sure enough, they were very close to the front, clearly the first among the ministers. Further ahead were the princes and princesses. If her father were still the prime minister, then the head of all officials would definitely be their Gu family, while the Ning family would at most be the head of the military officials.
Gu Hanjiao believed that her father, who had risen to the position of prime minister, would not simply sit idly by and wait for his fate. He must have a backup plan. When she returned, she would definitely find an opportunity to have a good talk with her father.
Now was clearly not the time to dwell on these things. After making up her mind, Gu Hanjiao didn't wait for Hongxiu. She straightened her clothes and walked gracefully toward Gu Qingwan.
Siqi spotted Gu Hanjiao coming this way from the crowd and quickly whispered a reminder: "Miss, isn't that the Second Miss? It seems she's coming this way."
Gu Qingwan looked up and saw that it was indeed Gu Hanjiao. She hadn't expected that even after losing his position as prime minister, Prime Minister Gu could still send his daughter to the palace.
Logically speaking, if Gu Ziming was suddenly dismissed from his post, then Consort Yu and the Third Prince should have abandoned him. Why did they allow his daughter to continue as a concubine?
Could it be that Gu Ziming has some hidden cards up his sleeve?
Before she could finish thinking, Gu Hanjiao had already walked up to her. Since Old Madam Ning and Madam Ning were talking to other noblewomen in front, Gu Hanjiao wisely did not go up to disturb them, but instead went to Gu Qingwan.
"What a coincidence, my sister is here too. If I had known you were coming, I should have waited to come with you." As she spoke, she tried to take Gu Qingwan's arm, which appeared very intimate to outsiders.
Gu Qingwan didn't give her that chance. She subtly shifted her body to the side, avoiding Gu Hanjiao's hand that tried to climb up, all without being noticed by others.
"I never expected that my sister, who is already in this state, would still be able to attend a banquet in the palace."
"What do you mean? Didn't you understand, little sister?" Gu Hanjiao pretended to be stupid and said, "Her Majesty the Empress personally issued the decree, so I dared not disobey."
"What's wrong, Qingwan?" Madam Ning heard the commotion and came over to check.
Gu Hanjiao greeted her with a smile, saying, "Greetings to Madam. I saw that you and the old lady were busy, so I didn't want to disturb you."
"It's Miss Gu the Second." Clearly, Madam Ning didn't want to say much to this girl who wanted to curry favor with the Ning family. "It's getting late, Qingwan, please take a seat."
"My sister just said she wanted me to come with her. After all, we're family and quite familiar with each other. Let's go, sister. There are some things in the palace that you don't know about. Let me explain them to you one by one."