Unlimited estates for rural beauty-Chapter 617 Who Could Be the Whistle-Blower (3)
"Alright, I’ll follow your advice. After all, there hasn’t been a large banquet held in the palace for the past few years, right?"
Feng Xuxu thought for a moment with a frown. "Let’s not stick to the old rules with one table per person. Instead, let’s switch to self-service style." This way, everyone can move around freely, without being confined to a single table, they can mingle, discuss life or even find someone they fancy for a private conversation, deepening their understanding of one another.
"Self-service style?" Dugu Chen asked, skeptical of his wife in his arms.
"Yes, this time let’s host them in the Warm Pavilion. We’ll place several long tables in there with ready-made dishes, soups, and so on. Everyone will be free to choose whatever they want to eat from any platter, pour themselves whatever they want to drink, and then in the conservatory, we’ll set up some brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. If anyone feels inclined to show off their talent, they can freely compose poetry. I’ll also prepare three pairs of couplets. If any one of them can answer all three correctly, I will reward them with a treasure from the Warm Pavilion. If they answer two correctly, they’ll get free tea at ’Summer Garden’ for a month, and if they answer one correctly, I will reward them with a jar of ’Pear Blossom Drunk’."
"Good, that’s an excellent idea," Dugu Chen praised.
No time like the present, Feng Xuxu stood up, put on her cloak, and waved her hand towards him: "I’m off."
Dugu Chen shook his head with a resigned smile: "Remember to eat."
"Got it." Someone’s voice came drifting from afar.
Back in the Warm Pavilion, two hours later, she questioned the eunuch and the gardener, "Do you understand what I’ve just described?" 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
"Yes, Your Grace," they replied.
"Your Grace, what is this..." Baihe was puzzled, watching the gardeners begin to move many of the large potted plants, clearing a huge space in the middle. Except for those too heavy to move rooted in the ground, nearly all the others had been moved to the side.
"You’ll see in a couple of days. Guard this place for me; I have other matters to attend to." Seeing them all busy at work with everything she needed to explain already explained, she could now leave to write the invitations.
Almost reaching her study, she slapped her forehead, realizing she didn’t know much about the daughters of the ministers. Turning back, she headed to the Imperial Study.
"Oh, have you finished giving out your orders?" Dugu Chen was surprised to see his wife return so soon.
"Yes, husband, regarding the ministers’ daughters, I really don’t know much about them. Could you find me a know-it-all?" She lay on the writing desk, looking up at him with clear, big eyes.
Dugu Chen’s lips curved indulgently, "Leave that to the Ministry of Rites. You just need to decide on a date."
"A date, well, sooner is better of course. How about the twelfth day of the twelfth month in three days’ time?" she asked.
"Good, I’ll have the Ministry of Rites take care of it." Watching his wife’s excited eyes, he inexplicably felt joyful himself.
"Proceed as Her Grace has instructed."
"Yes, master." An icy voice echoed through the desolate Imperial Study, heard but not seen.
Feng Xuxu blinked and smiled lightly: "When did you change the Hidden Guard?"
"I haven’t changed them; it’s just I sent one of them on an errand."
"An errand? For whom?" She sat up straight, now sitting on his lap, very curious.
Dugu Chen’s brows knitted slightly: "Nangong Xiu!"
"Him!" Nangong Xiu was from one of the Capital City’s five great families, the Nangong Family, and he was set to be the next Family Head of the Nangong Aristocratic Family.
"Why are you so surprised, my wife?"
"I’ve investigated him before. No matter how much I dug, I couldn’t find a shred of evidence that he meant any harm to Prince Mei Residence. It was only later that I dropped the investigation!" She spoke of matters that had happened many years ago, back when she had been pregnant.
