She Only Cares About Cultivation
Chapter 345: [344] Tasty and Pretty Fisherman 195 (5 updates)

Chapter 345: [344] Tasty and Pretty Fisherman 195 (5 updates)

By five in the evening (automatically converted to ancient hour), the women of the harem and men from the previous dynasty began to move towards Zhaixing Building, which was specially used for the state banquet.

The Empress and the Crown Prince, as well as the Crown Princess Consort, had activities and needed to make their entrance last, so Xiao Yu followed the aristocratic ladies and left first.

After redoing her makeup, Xiao Yu was still dressed in the same outfit and makeup as in the morning. She remembered Yan Qing’s words and remained silent unless necessary.

So when someone talked to her, she responded with a polite smile and occasionally spoke an inconsequential phrase, but when it came to matters involving her family background or Yan Qing, she chose to stay silent with civility.

Realizing she wasn’t as easy to deceive as they thought, the ladies stopped coming over to chat with her. However, they would still sneak glances at her while whispering among themselves, fearing she wouldn’t realize they were discussing her.

Women in Yan Country did not wear platform shoes with flowerpot-shaped heels; they wore embroidered shoes and didn’t bind their feet. Foot binding started during the reign of Tang Houzhu, Li Yu, but it didn’t exist in Yan Country since the results were just too ugly.

Following the other ladies, Xiao Yu entered the grand hall of Zhaixing Building, which was very spacious. Seating was arranged with men on the left and women on the right. In the middle was a catwalk-like path for the banquet performances. At the very front was the seating for the Empress, and there was a corner designated for musical instruments, where musicians were already tuning up.

Xiao Yu didn’t know where she should sit, so she walked to the last row and took a seat in the corner. After all, she was just there to join in the fun.

"Miss, isn’t this a bit too far back?" Xiao Ya and Nanny Liang both felt the spot was too secluded, situated in the corner of the last row. Even the womenfolk of a fifth-grade official family would have a better position, wouldn’t they?

Not particularly concerned, Xiao Yu waved her hand dismissively, "After all, I haven’t been betrothed yet; I’m just an ordinary civilian. Since it’s inappropriate for me to sit anywhere, I might as well sit here."

The first row was reserved for favored imperial concubines, the second row for Crown Princess Consorts and Princess Consorts, the third row for noble ladies, and the fourth and fifth rows for relatives of fourth and fifth grade officials. There were also those who didn’t possess official titles but had made notable contributions and were specially allowed to attend. In short, everyone had a higher status than Shen Xiaoyu, so the seat she picked was appropriate.

She knew that Yan Qing would arrive with the Empress, so without mingling to the front, she sat quietly in the corner, sipping tea and snacking on melon seeds as if she were just an employee attending an annual meeting.

After waiting for over an hour, as people nearly filled the hall, around seven or eight o’clock, the Empress made a dazzling entrance with their luxurious entourage.

From her corner spot, she caught sight of Yan Qing immediately as he entered, searching the female guests’ side. No need to guess, he was looking for her, but unfortunately, she was too far off to the side for him to find her, as she could see him asking a palace maid nearby.

It wasn’t until a quarter of an hour later that the palace maid found her spot and hurriedly pointed her out to him. Seeing where she was seated made the gentleman displeased, but thankfully, she had sent a letter over, "I like this spot. Sitting at the front is too restrictive, and I cannot enjoy the meal or the show properly."

After reading it, Yan Qing shook his head helplessly. He instructed the palace maid to take good care of her and to bring her plenty of whatever was delicious to balance things out.

Indeed, not only had Yan Qing made such a request, but the Empress and the Crown Princess Consort did the same, understanding Xiao Yu’s temperament, hence they didn’t impose too many demands on her.