Chapter 222 There is something wrong with the wine
Chapter 222 There is something wrong with the wine
Princess Anyang looked as pale as death. How could she have lost so miserably?
She started learning gambling on stones from Master Gong at the age of eight. Over the years, in addition to playing the piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, she has spent her spare time learning the techniques of gambling on stones.
Even she herself couldn't count how much jade raw materials she had come into contact with, so she can be said to be truly experienced.
Moreover, over the years, many of the jadeite she has gambled away are of good quality.
Even when she was ten years old, she cut out a piece of imperial green and made it into a jade pendant, which she presented to her father.
From then on, her position in her father's heart was no less important than that of her brother.
She may not be the best in the world in gambling on stones, but she is one of the best in Beijing.
Even Master Gong, the most famous stone gambling master in the palace, said that she had great talent and no other lady could compare to her.
But she gambled three rounds today and lost all three.
It seemed as if Xie Lan was born to be her nemesis.
Not only did she fail to humiliate her, but she ended up losing her favorite jade pendant and bracelet.
He even got two pieces of good quality jadeite.
Princess Anyang was filled with hatred, but she did not dare to show it because there were outsiders present.
Suppressing the hatred surging in her heart, Anyang tried to force a stiff smile on her face and slowly said, "Miss Xie is indeed very skilled. In these three games today, I lost with a clear conscience.
Miss Xie's accomplishments in gambling on stones are truly admirable. This princess is also quite famous in Kyoto, but I didn't expect to be defeated by Miss Xie today. It can be seen that Miss Xie's ability is far superior to this princess's."
Xie Lan's eyes turned slightly cold. Princess Anyang's words seemed to be a compliment, but in fact they were malicious.
“Princess, do you have poor hearing? I just said that I have not learned any skills in gambling on stones. The reason I was able to beat you today was just because of the help of the magpie.
I heard that the princess has learned a lot from Master Gong, and her skills in gambling on gemstones are unmatched in the whole of Kyoto.
It is extremely rare to find a lady of noble status like the princess who is also good at gambling on stones.
I don’t know which gentleman will be lucky enough to marry a treasure like you in the future.”
As soon as Xie Lan finished speaking, many ladies looked at Princess Anyang with a hint of calculation in their eyes.
Princess Anyang knew that it was Xie Lan's words that made them think of marrying her and using her as a tool to make money.
Princess Anyang clutched the handkerchief tightly. This bitch dared to plot against her. One day, she would make her suffer neither the fate nor the death.
Xie Lan saw through Princess Anyang's thoughts at a glance, but she didn't care about it.
She knew very well that even if nothing had happened today, the princess would definitely not like her.
As for the reason, the princess had probably been wanting to make trouble for her since the day she exposed Fan Mingju's affairs.
Seeing Xie Lan win in the gambling game, a gleam of light flashed across Princess Huaining's eyes, but she returned to normal in an instant.
She greeted everyone with a smile and said, "Today's gambling on stones is really wonderful and it is a feast for the eyes for this princess.
Come, come, come, the princess has already ordered people to carefully prepare a banquet, everyone please come and sit down and enjoy this happy time together."
Due to Princess Huaining's status, those women could not plot against Princess Anyang openly, so they could only suppress their thoughts and take their seats.
The banquet was filled with clinking glasses and a warm atmosphere.
Today's visit to the Princess's Mansion was quite fruitful. Not only did he buy the stones he wanted, but he also won many prizes. Xie Lan was very satisfied.
It was Tiechui who brought Uncle San to watch the sex scene between Aunt San and the one-eyed gangster, and she felt a little regretful that she didn't see the sequel.
However, seeing that the dishes on the banquet were quite good, Xie Lan quickly put aside his regrets and decided to fill his stomach first. He would then ask his uncle Tiechui if he was mad after returning home.
Lady Wen'an, who was standing by, became furious when she saw how relaxed and contented she was.
She was already upset about Xie Lan's victory in the gambling game, and now seeing her so happy at the banquet, she was even more furious. The four-happiness meatball in Wen'an County Master's bowl was stabbed into a pulp by her.
It was obvious at first glance that she was taking that meatball as Xie Lan to vent her anger.
It was a pity that Xie Lan could not sense her hatred at all. The angrier Princess Wen'an was, the more she enjoyed her food.
Princess Wen'an stared at her intently, and was about to mock Xie Lan for being a country bumpkin and a reincarnated ghost.
But before she could open her mouth, she was stopped by the sharp look of Princess Huaining opposite her.
Princess Wen'an was even more annoyed.
Seeing a maid coming over with a soup bowl, a hint of viciousness flashed in County Master Wen'an's eyes.
When the maid wasn't paying attention, he quickly stepped forward and tripped her.
The maid's body tilted, and she was about to pour the hot soup towards Xie Lan.
In a flash, Xie Lan screamed and raised his arms suddenly.
With a seemingly panicked wave, the soup bowl flew straight towards Princess Wen'an and landed steadily on her head.
Princess Wen'an's carefully combed hair was messed up by the hot soup, and her gorgeous clothes were covered with oil stains.
Everyone around was stunned.
Xie Lan was secretly happy in his heart, but his face showed an innocent and frightened look. He stammered, "Please forgive me, County Lady. I didn't mean to do that. I saw the maid tripped and wanted to help her up, but I didn't expect that in my panic, I got you soaked in the soup."
Everyone originally thought that the maid fell by accident, but it turned out that she was tripped by someone.
Although Xie Lan did not point out who tripped him, everyone present was smart and knew what happened after a quick thought.
Princess Wen'an was both ashamed and angry at this moment. She had wanted to frame Xie Lan, but she didn't expect that she would be the one being plotted against and end up in such an embarrassing situation.
She glared at Xie Lan fiercely, wanting to point out that she had deliberately spilled the soup brought by the maid on her.
But before she could say anything, Princess Huaining had already frowned and said, "Miss Xie, you didn't mean it. Come on, go down and change your clothes."
Although she was angry, Princess Wen'an knew that her mother would never let her cause trouble in public, so she could only suppress her anger and go downstairs to change her clothes.
Not long after Lady Wen'an left, the steward of the princess's mansion came in with a group of maids.
They held exquisite wine jugs in their hands, and everyone could smell the aroma of wine from a distance.
The steward bowed respectfully to the princess, and then said loudly: "Your Highness, the emperor learned that you were holding a banquet and specially gave you fine wine to celebrate."
“I didn’t expect that my brother, who is so busy with the affairs of the court, would still be thinking about the banquet at our princess’s mansion.
Since my brother is so kind to you, I will lend you my love and share this fine wine with you all."
Princess Huaining and the emperor are not from the same mother. Although some ladies were surprised that the emperor would give them wine, they couldn't say much.
After signaling the maid to pour wine for each guest, Princess Huaining expressed her gratitude for the emperor's grace and raised her glass to invite everyone to drink together.
Seeing everyone raising their glasses, Xie Lan raised her glass and took a sip in order to prevent Princess Anyang from using it as an excuse to cause trouble.
Xie Lan had already drunk three glasses of fruit wine and had originally planned to take only a sip, but he did not expect that the wine bestowed by the emperor would taste so delicious.
She couldn't help herself and drank it all in one breath.
I don't know if it was because the wine was too strong or if she had drunk too much in the first place.
Not long after, Xie Lan felt as if there was a fire burning inside his body. His heartbeat gradually quickened, and a strange and uncontrollable feeling of heat spread.
She was shocked. Something was wrong with the wine!