The Virtuous Wife

Chapter 22: Thrilling

Just as Su Wei was about to plead again, he heard Jingyi say, "Your Majesty is wise, I know I am wrong. This is my first time entering the palace and seeing your majesty for the first time, so I am overwhelmed by your majesty. Your Majesty is wise, please forgive me!"

The Queen on the side looked at Jingyi in surprise. Such a little girl, seeing the emperor for the first time, was not afraid of the dragon's majesty! Is she really too naive and doesn't know the majesty of the emperor? Or is she too smart and good at guessing people's hearts?

After hearing this, the emperor leaned back slightly, and a shrewd light flashed in his eyes. He glanced at Gu, who was too nervous to look up, and then looked at this little person who was kneeling on the ground but had no sense of humility.

The emperor's hand gently knocked on the table twice. It seemed unintentional, but it pulled everyone's heart together. People who are familiar with the emperor know that the emperor will only do this when he is in two extreme emotions: anger and joy. At this moment, it seems that the emperor is furious!

Everyone couldn't help but sweat for Su Jingyi, secretly feeling sorry for her, such a beautiful girl!

Gu Wen was anxious and wanted to go forward to plead, but was pulled by Liu He, the Guanglu Temple Minister next to him. Gu Wen saw Liu He shook his head slightly at him, and there was still admonition in his eyes. Gu Wen thought again and again, and finally did not stand out. Liu He next to him breathed a sigh of relief, and the huge stone in his heart fell safely.

The emperor took in all the actions and expressions of the people. He snorted, "Su Jingyi, you just kept saying that I am wise and wise, and you said that you made a mistake because of my majesty. In your eyes, what kind of emperor am I?"

Everyone was so scared that they dared not breathe. Such a tricky question, let alone a child, even the ministers might not be able to answer to the emperor's satisfaction. Isn't the emperor deliberately making things difficult for this girl?

Gu was sweating profusely from fear. If it wasn't in front of the palace, she would have been unable to hold on for fear of losing etiquette. And Su Wei was also kneeling on the ground, motionless.

Su Ming and Su Qing were also kneeling, their eyes all looking at Jingyi, fearing that she would say something wrong and be punished by the emperor!

Su Jingwei lowered her head and knelt on the ground, her eyes and face were full of smugness, hum, Su Jingyi, you still don't die this time? If the emperor doesn't like you, who can save you?

Jingyi was also very nervous at this time. She sorted out her thoughts a little. She was just a seven-year-old child. How could she talk about state affairs in the court! If she said something wrong, it might implicate her father! But if she didn't talk about state affairs, how could she show that the emperor was a wise monarch? This emperor's personality was too weird. Why would he think of such a tricky question to question himself?

If he couldn't talk about state affairs, he could only think of ways to start from other aspects.

While Jingyi was thinking, she heard the emperor say again: "Speak!"

It was just one word, but it was full of majesty and dissatisfaction! It can be seen that the emperor was getting a little impatient.

Jingyi kowtowed, straightened up and said slowly: "Your Majesty, I am only seven years old. Although I don't understand national affairs, I know that all the people in the world are your subjects. My father has mentioned to me and my two brothers many times that food is the first necessity of the people. At that time, I didn't understand what it meant. Until two months ago, I went to a farm not far from the suburbs to accompany my mother to recuperate. When I had nothing to do, I walked around and had a look. I had eaten at a farmer's house not far from the farm. Although they didn't have big fish and meat, they had enough food every meal, and every family had food stored. Only then did I understand the meaning of 'food is the first necessity of the people' said by my father. I thought that if your people were well fed and clothed, it meant that you governed the country well, so I thought that Your Majesty was a wise ruler."

After saying that, she raised her head slightly and looked forward in a daze. The emperor was sitting in a palace nine steps higher than the ministers. She couldn't see the emperor's face from the height she looked up. But the emperor, who was high above, could clearly see the expression on her face. This was Jingyi's cleverness. She deliberately showed a confused look to let the emperor know that she was just a seven-year-old child. Do you have the nerve to embarrass me again?

Sure enough, the emperor was very happy after hearing it and laughed: "Good! Good! Good!" Three consecutive good words can be said to have reassured everyone, especially Jingyi's family.

The emperor smiled and said, "Stand up! Su Aiqing is really a good parent! Come on, give Su Jingyi the crystal ruyi tributed by the foreign country. She is young and smart! Not bad, not bad!"

Everyone thanked her and sat back at the table again.

The handkerchief in Gu's hand was so wet that water could be wrung out!

The emperor said again: "Today is to celebrate for Gu Aiqing! Tonight, all the ministers will not go home until they are drunk!"

Everyone held up their wine glasses and said in unison to the emperor: "Long live our emperor! Long live! Long live!"

For a time, there was singing and dancing. The hall was lively again. After what happened just now, Jingyi was full of rejection and dissatisfaction with this royal family. She looked around, but there was no sign of Yuanxi! How could he be so unpopular that he was not even allowed to attend such a palace banquet! But since he was unpopular, who would assassinate him?

A noble lady next to her said: "Why don't you see Concubine Lan? Since she is so favored, why don't you come to such an occasion?"

Another said disdainfully: "No matter how favored she is, she is just a concubine. Can she go over the queen?"

The murmurs of these noble ladies came to her ears again, and Jingyi shook her head, which was really annoying. On the other hand, Su Jingwei listened attentively and didn't even know that the fruit juice in the cup in her hand had spilled out.

At this moment, a maidservant entered the palace with a happy face and knelt down and said, "I congratulate the emperor! Concubine Lan is pregnant!"

The emperor was overjoyed and said loudly, "When did it happen? Please explain it clearly!"

"Yes, the queen has had a poor appetite these days. This morning, the imperial hospital came to check her pulse, so the queen knew that she was two months pregnant!"

The queen glanced at the maidservant and said to the emperor with a smile, "Your Majesty, since Concubine Lan is pregnant and has a poor appetite, why not send some of the fruits and vegetables that the foreign countries tributed a few days ago to Concubine Lan, maybe it can help her relieve the morning sickness."

The emperor smiled and nodded, gave some instructions to the people, and felt that it was not appropriate, so he got up and left. I guess he went to Xinlan Palace.

Jingyi looked at Su Jingwei's envious expression and shook her head slightly. She was still too naive. If it was not as she expected, the offspring of Concubine Lan would not be preserved.

After all, she was a new concubine in the palace. Once she was favored, she was so proud! Since the imperial physician diagnosed the happy pulse in the daytime, why didn't he report it to the emperor earlier, and specially chose the palace banquet? If any of the concubines in the palace who were scheming were pregnant, they would not dare to report it to the emperor and the queen until three or four months later, when the fetus was stable, for fear that someone would harm them. But Concubine Lan was really too confident. Did she think that with the emperor's favor, she could be safe?

Jingyi thought of this and looked in the direction of the queen. The queen still had a smile on her face, amiable, but also solemn and noble! But in Jingyi's eyes, her smile did not reach her eyes. In the previous life, those professors came up with endless methods to make her cooperate with them to drive beasts and kill people. They were always friendly, but what happened in the end?

Jingyi thought to herself: After all, she has been the queen for ten years, and her mind is deep, which is incomparable to ordinary people!

Jingyi felt a bad look on her left side, and she turned her head to look. The owner of that look was actually a little girl of eight or nine years old! When the girl saw her looking at her, she raised her chin provocatively, with disdain in her eyes! Jingyi thought to herself, she had never met her, why did she look at her with hatred?

Jingyi ignored her provocation, looked down at the cup in her hand, blinked her eyes, and after thinking for a moment, she understood that the girl should be the granddaughter of the Huguogong Mansion and the niece of the queen, Bai Miner!