The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure-Chapter 1556 - 1553: New Year’s Banquet

The Lady of the Gu Family took an extra glance at Lady Gao.

After such an event, Lady Gao gathered her spirits and quickly returned to normal.

With a smile on her face, she deliberately walked over to greet the Lady of the Gu Family and exchanged a few pleasantries.

The Lady of the Gu Family naturally also smiled warmly.

Seeing them chatting and laughing, others kept their thoughts to themselves.

After walking through a long palace lane, they arrived at the residences of the concubines; everyone was accustomed to entering the palace and knew the rules. After passing the gate, they restrained their expressions and did not dare to talk and laugh, following the chamberlains and palace maids quietly.

On the first day of the new year, a feast was held in the palace, and officials were required to bring their entitled family members to attend.

The entire palace was adorned with palace lanterns, and by evening, hundreds of lanterns were lit, making the entire Imperial City resemble a heavenly palace.

The New Year’s feast was held at Baohe Hall, with the Emperor’s throne at the top, and slightly to the side was the Empress Dowager’s seat.

Below the Emperor and Empress Dowager, two rows of tables were set up on either side for the concubines to be seated according to their ranks.

Further down were the seats for the princes and princess consorts.

Below that were the seats for the clansmen and princesses, and finally, the civil and military officials had seats on either side.

Since Duke Weiguo was of the highest rank, his seat was toward the front, just behind the clansmen among the military generals.

The Gu Family was also highly favored by the Emperor, with their position in the front among civil officials.

The men had already entered the palace before dawn to pay their respects to the Emperor, who then rewarded them with tea at Taihe Hall, and by then, they were already seated.

The Eldest Lady, together with Lady An and Lady Lou, naturally sat next to Gu Changqing, with Lady An and Lady Lou sitting beside their respective husbands.

In theory, Old Lady Gu should have gone to the palace as well, but due to her age, she was too frail for the journey, so she had been granted permission to stay home and avoid the ordeal.

Those who did not get such permission, regardless of their age or infirmity, had to endure the struggle to walk on unsteady legs, catching a chill, only to enjoy a day of lukewarm food and cold winds, yet it was considered an honorable ordeal.

Only Lady Gao attended from the Duke Weiguo residence; theoretically, Little Lady Hou should have been brought to the palace today, as Song Chongzhao held a nominal position and Little Lady Hou had a Grant of there pose as Lady An.

This was Little Lady Hou’s first opportunity to enter the palace, and she’d been eagerly anticipating it, preparing her attire and accessories a month in advance.

The night before, she was so excited that she almost didn’t sleep, having her maids lay out her clothes and jewelry.

Early in the morning, she dressed lavishly, waiting for the appointed time to greet Lady Gao, who would take her to the palace.

That was indeed Lady Gao’s plan until she unexpectedly received news from the palace before Song Hong left to perform his New Year greetings, informing her that the Imperial Noble Consort had safely given birth to a Little Prince, both mother and child were healthy.

Song Hong was stunned, unable to react for a long while. His first response was, "Really? Is this news accurate?"

He confirmed it multiple times before finally believing that the Imperial Noble Consort was truly safe.

Song Hong had originally contemplated divorcing his son’s wife, but the reason he halted the plan wasn’t due to anyone else but the Emperor himself. The Emperor had mentioned in front of Song Hong, "Minister Song, you indeed have a good daughter-in-law!"

This singular comment puzzled Song Hong for a long time, pondering whether it was genuine praise or sarcastic humor.

This uncertainty led him to act cautiously.

Upon receiving this news, the weight in his heart finally settled.

With the Imperial Noble Consort and her child safe, Wang Yongzhu could expect rewards for his contributions.

At the very least, the danger looming over the Song Family was alleviated.

When Song Hong came to his senses, his first action was to rush back and instruct Lady Gao to prepare congratulatory gifts for the birth of the Imperial Noble Consort’s son.

Over the past days, Lady Gao had barely recovered from her illness; moreover, she had once prevented him from divorcing Wang Yongzhu, causing Song Hong to feel embarrassed about facing her, harboring slight blame in his heart.

For that reason, he hadn’t spent the night in the main courtyard recently.

On New Year’s Eve, he couldn’t make any excuses and stayed there, but after staying up for the night vigil, he only slept restlessly.

In previous years, he would give Lady Gao instructions before leaving for the palace early, but this year, harboring resentment, he simply dressed and left with a stern face.

Returning to the main courtyard, he felt both apologetic and fortunate.

Luckily, Lady Gao had stopped him back then; otherwise, with Wang Yongzhu’s defiant personality, he might have rashly divorced her out of anger.

If that had happened, he would have offended the Royal Family and alienated his son, which would have been a grave loss!

Upon entering the main courtyard, he vaguely heard Lady Gao’s voice, wondering why there was no news since Wang Yongzhu had been in the palace for a day and night, perhaps indicating trouble?

Song Hong lifted the curtain with a hearty laugh, startling Lady Gao and the sister by her side, nearly causing them to pass out in fright.

It took a while for Lady Gao to recover, cautiously asking, "Were you not in the palace, my lord? Why have you returned? Did something happen? Is it trouble with the Eldest Daughter-in-law in the palace?"

These words made Song Hong blush, realizing Lady Gao thought he was pleased because his eldest daughter-in-law had met with trouble.

He shook his head hastily and explained that the Imperial Noble Consort had successfully given birth to a Little Prince.

Finally, he couldn’t help but hold Lady Gao’s hand, saying tenderly, "As the saying goes, ’a wise wife brings less misfortune to her husband.’ It’s fortunate I had you to intercede, or else I would have made a grave mistake! I blame you for no reason lately! I deeply regret how I treated you!"

Lady Gao’s hands trembled, perhaps from excitement or emotion.

It took her quite a while to say, "A wife and husband are one; as long as you are well, so am I. Reminding you is my duty—there’s no need for such gratitude!"

Although she said this, her complexion was not looking good.

Song Hong, still elated, instructed Lady Gao to prepare the congratulatory gifts for the birth of the Imperial Noble Consort’s child, consoled her briefly, and then hurried back to the palace to avoid further delay.

Because of this situation, Lady Gao contemplated half a day, realizing that if they went to the palace, it was likely everyone would praise Wang Yongzhu. With Little Lady Hou’s temperament, who couldn’t conceal her emotions, how could she endure hearing everyone praise Wang Yongzhu?

In case she misspoke or acted improperly, it would be a minor embarrassment, but today being an auspicious day, if she violated palace taboos, it might cost her life.

It was best to send word for Little Lady Hou to stay home instead of bringing her to the palace today.

When Little Lady Hou received the message, she felt as if struck by lightning.

Having longed for this day for months, how could it be ruined?

She had boasted to others that she would surely enter the palace and would have tales of grandeur to share.

If she couldn’t enter the palace, how would she face others?

Unwilling to relent, she clung to the messenger, trying to find out why.

Eventually, she parted with a ruby-embedded hairpin, and the messenger hinted that the Wife of the Heir-Apparent helped the Imperial Noble Consort safely give birth to the Prince, and she still remained in the palace...

Though the words weren’t complete, the meaning was clear enough.

Little Lady Hou’s face turned white with anger, her teeth gnashing as she spat out Wang Yongzhu’s name repeatedly.