freenovelworld Chapter 370 Another Reward!
Chapter 370 Another Reward!
Next, the Empress inquired about the young ladies' studies, their youth, and what books they had been reading recently.
Mu Xin Nuan understood that the Empress's true intentions were not what they seemed. The questions and the ladies' answers were all meant for Duanmu Chu Ze's benefit.
The thought that all the beautiful women here were probably after him, the hero of Dayong, made Mu Xin Nuan feel a little sour. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, she pinched Duanmu Chuze's waist!
She pinched him first, and when she saw that Duanmu Chuze didn't react at all, she immediately got angry!
When no one was looking, I pinched it again, and this time, I not only pinched it, but also twisted it half a turn.
Duanmu Chuze's eyebrows twitched, and his face turned to a threatening look, which made Mu Xinnuan panic. She quickly let go of his hand and lowered her head to drink her tea.
When Mu Xin Nuan finally met Miss Wang, she learned that she was actually Wang Zi Yu's half-sister, named Wang Zi Ling. Could it be that the Empress actually favored her as Duanmu Chu Ze's concubine? This Miss Wang is far too extravagant!
Wang Ziling naturally didn't think there was anything wrong with her actions; on the contrary, she volunteered and played a tune on the zither on the spot.
Mu Xin Nuan despised Wang Zi Ling's behavior from the bottom of her heart!
They are both from prestigious families, so how much worse is one of them? Their talents are about the same, but their temperament, attitudes, and methods of handling things are quite different!
A woman like Wang Ziling, who wants all the men in the world to know how outstanding and excellent she is, is simply not worthy of the attention of a true nobleman! Of course, at this moment, although the Empress verbally agreed, Mu Xin Nuan clearly saw a hint of displeasure flash in the Empress's eyes.
When the song ended, everyone naturally applauded and cheered. After all, she was a young lady from the Duke of Lu's mansion. Even if they didn't care about the Duke of Lu, they should at least consider the Empress's feelings, right?
The Crown Princess's lips curled slightly. It seemed that this Prince Ling would not be moving into the Chang Le Prince's Mansion. In that case, Xie Yilin would have one less rival.
If we're talking about looks, Xie Yilin doesn't have many rivals, but she can't be considered too few either.
However, when it comes to family background and connections, there are only a handful of women who can rival Xie Yilin! Now, Wang Ziling is naturally no threat, and two other young ladies from good families have already started discussing marriage in private, clearly indicating that they have no intention of competing for the title of Prince Chang Le.
Therefore, Hsieh Yi-lin's chances of winning are naturally much greater.
When the third cup of tea was served, before Mu Xin Nuan had even taken a sip, she heard Xie Yi Lin say with a smile, "Your Majesty, this tea is smooth and emerald green like jade, with a rich aroma, a bright green liquor, a sweet and mellow taste, and bright tea leaves. It must be the famous Enshi Jade Dew."
The Empress nodded with a smile, and Sun Ruoxiang also took a sip before saying, "It is indeed the Jade Dew of Grace. However, Your Majesty, please forgive my bluntness, but such tea tasting is perhaps unfair."
The Empress raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What injustice is there?"
Sun Ruoxiang was straightforward, a fact known to almost everyone in and around the capital. Seeing her like this, Mu Xinnuan roughly guessed what she was going to say, but seeing that the Empress's smile remained unchanged, she figured there wouldn't be any trouble.
"Your Majesty, since this is a tea tasting and guessing game, there should be a unified standard. However, the tea was served in different orders. Some ladies hadn't even touched the teacup yet, while others had already tasted its flavor. Therefore, I feel this is unfair."
Sun Ruoxiang was seated to Xie Yilin's left, with one seat between them. Just as Xie Yilin announced the name of the tea, Sun Ruoxiang took her first sip, which naturally made her feel it was unfair.
The Empress nodded. “That makes sense! It is indeed somewhat unfair. However, since the tea has already been served, let’s have everyone guess how it was brewed. If anyone answers correctly, I will reward them handsomely.”
"What Your Majesty says is true. This tea is indeed Enshi Jade Dew. But how is it brewed? Can anyone tell the difference?" Princess Ming asked, following the Empress's words.
Silence fell over the hall once again. The young men and women who had been slightly amazed by Xie Yilin's quick ability to identify the tea now wore expressions of disdain.
Xie Yilin was slightly annoyed, but she knew this was not the time for her to lose her temper. She could only rack her brains to think of a way to brew the tea.
Xie Yilin gave her answer, which she had thought about for a long time, only to see the Empress on the Phoenix Throne gently shake her head.
Following that, several other young ladies gave their answers, all of which were rejected by the Empress.
"Mother, I remember that Miss Mu was the one who gave the instructions on how to brew the first cup of tea. How about we hear her opinion this time?"
"Very well." The Empress nodded and looked over. "Mu Xin Nuan, how did you guess?"
Mu Xin Nuan stood up and said calmly, "Your Majesty, this tea is simply brewed using ordinary methods. Boiled water is cooled slightly before brewing. There's nothing special about it. However, in my teacup, I only see tea soup and no tea leaves. If you want the tea leaves to look beautiful and the soup to be fresh, you should be careful when brewing it. You should not pour hot water directly onto the tea leaves. You must slowly pour it along the side of the cup or the side of the teapot. That is the best way."
The Empress was overjoyed!
"Good! As expected of my daughter-in-law, well said! It was originally just a simple brewing method, but you all made it too complicated. The same is true of things in this world. If you think too complicatedly, it doesn't necessarily mean you are much smarter than others. Perhaps, it just makes you seem a bit too pedantic!"
Mu Xin Nuan remained silent. The Empress's words were clearly a warning to most of the people in the central hall!
It's really foolish of people to complicate what was originally a simple matter!
Among everyone present, Xie Yilin reacted the most obviously!
It can only be said that she was too sensitive and actually took the Empress's words to heart.
In just a short while, Mu Xin Nuan received another set of rewards from the Empress. This time, the Empress bestowed upon her a gold hairpin made of pure gold with a phoenix spreading its wings and inlaid with rubies. In the phoenix's mouth was a small but very rare pink pearl!
The pink pearl alone was already quite valuable, and with the craftsmanship and the pure ruby set in it, it was in no way inferior to the previous pair of bracelets.
Later on, the atmosphere gradually became more lively.
Next, a game of musical chairs was played, and whoever received the gift had to perform a tea-related skill in front of everyone. And the ladies present could only think of the art of tea ceremony!