in2ebook Chapter 86 The Empress's Birthday (2)
Chapter 86 The Empress's Birthday (2)
The group proceeded to the gates of Anning Palace, where the gates were wide open and two rows of palace maids stood respectfully on either side. Upon their arrival, the maids bowed and greeted them. After entering the palace, everyone knelt to pay their respects to the Empress. After the Empress smiled and asked them to rise, the gift-presenting ceremony began.
The concubines deliberately chose this place to present their gifts first, firstly to avoid competing with the ministers for attention and the limelight at the palace banquet later; secondly, to take this opportunity to make a good impression on the Empress.
At this moment, Consort Qin stepped forward gracefully, bowed slightly, and said, "Your Majesty, I am always unsophisticated and have nothing of value to offer you. I have nothing of value to offer you but this humble gift. I hope Your Majesty will not find it offensive."
After speaking, she waved her hand gently, and the maid beside her quickly and steadily brought up an exquisite tray, carefully handing it to Chen Honghai, the chief eunuch beside the Empress.
After receiving the tray, Chen Honghai respectfully presented it to the Empress. Ying Qiu, the Empress's personal maid standing beside her, stepped forward and gently lifted the red cloth covering the tray.
In an instant, a pair of crystal-clear, warm and delicate red jadeite bracelets were displayed before everyone's eyes.
Chen Honghai looked closely, then raised his voice and sang loudly, "A pair of red jade bracelets!"
The Empress looked at the pair of brightly colored, exquisitely translucent red jadeite bracelets on the tray, a satisfied smile spreading across her face. She nodded in praise, saying, "Consort Qin is truly thoughtful. Such fine red jadeite bracelets are extremely rare. I like them very much, and I thank Consort Qin for parting with them." Hearing the Empress's praise, Consort Qin was secretly delighted and quickly bowed again in gratitude.
"I'm glad Your Majesty is pleased," Consort Qin said with a smile and a bow.
The concubine sitting at the end of the table covered her mouth and chuckled softly, teasingly saying in a sweet voice, "If Consort Qin's birthday gift is vulgar, then the gift I prepared is truly embarrassing to be seen and cannot be presented!" As soon as she finished speaking, everyone in the hall couldn't help but smile.
At this moment, Su Nuannuan, who had been sitting quietly, slowly stood up, a gentle smile on her lips, and said softly, "The value of a gift is not in its monetary worth, but in the sincerity behind it. Now, it is my turn to present a congratulatory gift to Her Majesty the Empress." With that, she stepped forward gracefully, her demeanor dignified and elegant.
The Empress chimed in with a smile, "Consort Zhuang is absolutely right. The value of a gift lies not in its price, but in the sincerity of all my sisters. As long as the sentiment is there, that's enough." The Empress's face was always beaming with a kind and amiable smile, filling the entire palace with a warm and peaceful atmosphere.
Immediately afterwards, Su Nuannuan bowed slightly and said softly, "Your Majesty, I wish you all the best and that all your wishes come true. This small gift was made by my own hands, and I hope Your Majesty will not find it offensive."
After speaking, the palace maid Yaoqin, who was standing to the side, steadily carried a tray covered with a bright red cloth and walked forward, solemnly handing it to Eunuch Chen Honghai.
When Ying Qiu carefully and gently lifted the red cloth off the tray for the Empress, everyone's eyes were instantly drawn to the tray as if by a magnet.
"This phoenix hairpin is so beautiful!" someone exclaimed first. The hairpin shimmered with dazzling light, each phoenix's head inlaid with crystal-clear gemstones, and the feathers were made of red gradient feathers, so lifelike that they seemed ready to take flight at any moment.
Faced with such an exquisitely crafted phoenix hairpin, the Empress could not hide her delight. She carefully picked up the hairpin from the tray and examined it closely. At the same time, she asked curiously, "Consort Zhuang, there must be a deeper meaning behind this nine-headed phoenix, right?"
Just then, Su Nuannuan suddenly realized something important: in the Azure Kingdom, there was no tradition of using the number of phoenixes to symbolize status and position!
As everyone knows, in this Azure Kingdom, the Empress wears a magnificent golden phoenix as her headdress. This golden phoenix is exquisitely crafted, its splendor breathtaking. The other concubines, however, are distinguished by their headdresses according to their rank. Among them, the colorful phoenix is considered second only to the golden phoenix, followed by the blue phoenix, fire phoenix, vermilion bird, peacock, and snow phoenix. Each bird carries a unique meaning and symbolism, representing different levels of nobility and favor.
Su Nuannuan bowed respectfully to the Empress and explained softly, "Your Majesty, nine is the largest of the yang numbers, which contains the meaning of the ultimate and supreme. Therefore, I specially crafted this nine-headed phoenix hairpin to highlight Your Majesty's unparalleled glory and your unique and honorable position in the harem."
Upon hearing this, the Empress smiled with satisfaction. She gently placed the phoenix hairpin back on the tray and said with delight, "Yes, I greatly admire Consort Zhuang's birthday gift. Yingchun."
Yingchun, who was standing to the side, quickly replied, "This servant is here."
The Empress nodded slightly, then instructed, "I will wear this phoenix hairpin to today's palace banquet."
Yingchun nodded quickly and said, "Yes, this servant will remember." Then she carefully picked up the tray and stepped aside to prepare for the follow-up matters.
"Sister Consort Zhuang, the craftsmanship of this nine-tailed phoenix hairpin is truly exquisite. I have never seen anything like it before!" Consort Qing's lips curled up slightly, revealing a half-smile, as she asked Consort Zhuang in that sarcastic tone.
Upon hearing this, Su Nuannuan glanced at Consort Qing's provocative face, then gracefully returned to her seat. After sitting down, she casually replied, "It's perfectly normal that you haven't seen it before. After all, this is a unique inlay technique that I painstakingly researched and developed myself. How could just anyone learn it after a single glance?" As she finished speaking, she slightly raised her eyebrows, a hint of contempt flashing in her eyes.
Now, it was the third person to present a gift—Consort Li. Back then, Consort Li was just a concubine, but because she took such good care of the two young princes, she won the Emperor's favor.
After some discussion, the Emperor finally decided to promote her rank, bestowing upon Consort Li the title of Imperial Concubine Li. The gift Imperial Concubine Li presented was a pigeon-blood gemstone, about the size of an adult's fist, completely uncarved and unpolished. It should be noted that for Imperial Concubine Li, this gemstone was the most precious and exquisite item she could offer.
Next, the other concubines presented their prepared birthday gifts. However, most of these gifts were not particularly valuable or rare, and were generally appropriate to their rank and status. Looking at the entire gift-giving process, the most outstanding gifts were those presented by three concubines; and if we were to discuss which gift would most likely win the Empress's favor, it would undoubtedly be the one presented by Consort Zhuang, Su Nuannuan.
Just as the concubines finished presenting their gifts, a loud shout came from outside the hall: "His Majesty has arrived!" Immediately afterward, a figure in bright yellow robes strode into the hall with an imposing presence...