Chapter 11
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Chapter 11: The Birthday Banquet
On the day of the birthday banquet, Prince Rui’s residence was festooned with lanterns and decorations, alive with noise and voices. From early morning onward, one splendid carriage after another arrived, nearly filling the entire East Street.
Guests streamed into Prince Rui’s residence in wave after wave, while congratulatory gifts piled up until they nearly filled the storeroom set aside for them.
The steward standing at the entrance wore a broad smile, especially when he spotted Marquis Lin Hongqiu and Lin Junrou.
He knew a thing or two about his prince’s affairs, so he hurried forward several steps. “So it is Marquis Lin. My respects, Marquis.” He then bowed to Lin Junrou with obsequious enthusiasm. “Miss Lin, how do you do?”
Lin Hongqiu waved grandly. “You are too courteous, Steward.”
With that, he swaggered into the front courtyard.
The male guests were received in the front courtyard, while the female guests were seated in the flower hall near the garden.
Madam Lin had come as well. Not yet forty, she was dressed in finery and possessed a charmingly beautiful face. She was chatting and laughing with several other ladies while accompanied by Lin Junrou and a few daughters born to concubines. Just as they were about to enter, the surrounding noise seemed to fall silent for an instant.
Madam Lin looked over curiously and saw two people approaching. The young man leading them had delicate, handsome features, and she found his face strangely familiar.
A lady who was close to her said in surprise, “That young gentleman resembles you by at least half. Could he be a relative of yours?”
Madam Lin was bewildered. There was no one like him among her relatives.
“That is Deputy Commissioner Lin of the Tianlu Bureau,” Lin Junrou said.
At those words, the ladies around them swiftly gathered up their younger relatives and fled. They moved so quickly, one might have thought a ghost was chasing them. Only Madam Lin and Lin Junrou remained.
Madam Lin had felt a trace of goodwill toward the young man, but upon hearing this, her brows instantly drew together in disgust. She took Lin Junrou’s hand and said, “Tomorrow, I must have a serious word with the prince. The gates of this residence cannot be left open for every stray cat and dog to come knocking. After all, beasts know nothing of the rules of the nobility.”
Meng Jie’s eyes widened. His fist immediately came into view.
Madam Lin was startled by the fist, which was larger than her head. But remembering that she stood before the gates of Prince Rui’s residence—and that the prince was to be her future son-in-law—she steadied herself and gave a disdainful snort in return.
Lin Qing waved Meng Jie back. After hearing Yongning Marquis’s wife, she cast a rather surprised glance at Lin Junrou, only to find the other woman looking straight ahead with her eyes lowered, as though she had seen and heard nothing.
Lin Qing remembered that in the novel, the relationship between Lin Junrou and Prince Rui was not exposed until much later. In reality, their relationship had always remained a secret as well.
Now that Yongning Marquis’s wife had spoken so openly, Lin Junrou had not stopped her. Were they planning to make it public?
Lin Qing had carefully considered Li Chenxuan’s character. The position of Princess Rui was a tempting prize, and he had used that promise to keep a great many young women dangling. Without enormous benefits at stake, no matter how much Li Chenxuan loved Lin Junrou, he would never elevate her to his principal wife so soon.
There had to be something going on that she did not know about.
“Beasts may know nothing of etiquette, but they know how to cherish their own blood. A parent’s devotion is still far better than the fools who mistake a fish’s eye for a precious pearl.”
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Without bothering to see how Yongning Marquis’s wife reacted, Lin Qing tossed her invitation to the chief steward and strode inside.
Madam Lin stared in disbelief. “Did she just insult me? How dare she insult me!”
She had even called her a fool who mistook a fish’s eye for a treasure!
Grinding her teeth, Madam Lin wished she could rush forward and fight Lin Qing to the death.
She had raised Junrou for sixteen years. Junrou was the daughter she was most satisfied with, and only a daughter like her was worthy of Madam Lin’s status.
As for the others...
It was not that she had never investigated the matter in secret. Though she had not learned everything, she did know that sixteen years ago, Nurse Liu had indeed sent a baby girl back to her old home in the countryside.
Whenever she imagined the crude, ignorant, uneducated appearance of some country girl, Madam Lin’s face twisted with disgust. How could such a rustic girl possibly be the daughter of the Marchioness of Yongning?
Lin Junrou was frightened by her mother’s expression. Seeing another group of guests approaching, she quickly tugged at Madam Lin’s sleeve and called, “Mother.”
Madam Lin returned to her senses. Looking at the daughter who satisfied her in every possible way, she said gently, “Junrou, those fools are merely jealous of you—and jealous of the prince as well. We must make the prince give us justice later.”
Lin Junrou nodded and followed Madam Lin into the residence.
When Lin Qing entered the front courtyard, quite a number of people had already gathered there. Lin Hongqiu noticed her, but perhaps he had learned his lesson from their previous encounter. He immediately turned away and began chatting with someone beside him.
Li Chenxuan was also in the front courtyard, surrounded by a crowd. Perhaps men of the same age simply found one another easier to talk to, for nearly all those gathered around him were young masters from prominent families. Even the least distinguished among them was the legitimate son of a third-rank court official.
Few people there failed to recognize Lin Qing. One after another, they kept as far away from her as though she were a plague.
Lin Qing was perfectly happy with that arrangement. She led Meng Jie to a table, sat down, grabbed a handful of melon seeds, and stuffed them into his hand. Then she took another handful and cracked them as she looked around.
The ceremony of presenting gifts began at that moment.
Those with close ties, high ranks, or especially valuable gifts were called first: antiques from the former dynasty, blood coral, jade worth ten thousand pieces of gold, and more.
Lin Qing reckoned it would be some time before her turn came. She was just preparing to take a stroll outside when she saw a maid approaching with a tray of tea. Hidden beneath the tray, the maid’s index and middle fingers tapped lightly in a particular rhythm.
Lin Qing lowered her eyes.
It was a secret code unique to the covert division of the Tianlu Guard. It meant: east wing, guest rooms, third chamber.
The Tianlu Bureau had a covert division, but only she and her master knew of its existence.
Perhaps because Li Chenxuan enjoyed the emperor’s deep trust, there had been few covert operatives watching him while he was in the imperial palace. But later, after he was made a prince and established his own residence, Lin Qing had risen to power as well and had placed a considerable number of people within Prince Rui’s household.
Over the years, because she had never once used them, most of those operatives had remained safely in place. That was the capital she possessed for acting within Prince Rui’s residence.
When the maid came close, she suddenly caught her foot and fell. More than half a cup of tea spilled across Lin Qing’s clothes.
The maid dropped to her knees in panic and pleaded, “This servant knows she was wrong. Please spare me, my lord!”
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The steward hurried over and scolded the maid. “Look at you, so careless and clumsy!”
He then turned to Lin Qing with an apologetic smile. “The maid was thoughtless. Please forgive her, Deputy Commissioner Lin.”
Lin Qing waved her hand magnanimously. “Forget it. I am not such a petty person. Find me a place where I can change clothes.”
The steward exchanged a glance with the maid, who immediately led the way.
Meng Jie started to rise as well, but Lin Qing gave him a look. Someone still had to keep watch here.
Meng Jie understood and sat back down.
Prince Rui’s residence was enormous. The maid led Lin Qing along the main road, where plenty of people passed by. Whenever anyone asked questions, the maid lowered her head and replied in a timid whisper, as though she had been frightened out of her wits.
When they reached the third room in the eastern wing, Lin Qing said, “You may go. Be more careful when carrying tea in the future. Not everyone is as easygoing as I am.”
The maid immediately fell to her knees and sobbed, “Thank you for sparing my life, my lord!”
Then she hurried away, afraid that if she lingered for even a moment, Lin Qing might change her mind.
A guest emerged from a nearby room. Seeing this, he looked at Lin Qing with even greater disdain, but no one dared come forward to cause trouble. After all, Lin Qing belonged to the Tianlu Bureau—the infamous Tianlu Bureau, notorious for confiscating the property of entire households.
Lin Qing did not mind. She had no intention of associating with these aristocratic young masters in the first place.
Once inside the room, she locked the door and swiftly changed her clothes.
Half a cup of tea later, the maid who had led her there climbed in through the rear window. There was not the slightest trace of fear left on her face. She knelt expressionlessly.
“Covert Division Agent Thirty-Nine pays respects to the Deputy Commissioner.”
Lin Qing sat on the edge of the bed. “What have you found?”
Thirty-Nine replied, “Including our covert division, there are four groups that have infiltrated Prince Rui’s residence.” She hesitated. “There may be a fifth. I found only a trace and cannot confirm it.”
Lin Qing gave a derisive laugh. “Prince Rui’s residence has become quite the prize.”
Thirty-Nine said, “Of the four groups, one is ours, one belongs to the Mu clan of Yuzhou, one appears to be connected to the imperial family of the former dynasty, and one...” She stole a glance at Lin Qing. “One consists of the emperor’s hidden guards.”
Lin Qing had anticipated the first few. The last, however, was entirely beyond her expectations.
In the story, one of the conditions that allowed Li Chenxuan to successfully usurp the throne was Li Mingxiao’s trust in him.
Yet now, Li Mingxiao had actually sent people to Prince Rui’s residence.
What had he sent them there to do?
Could it be that Li Mingxiao had already begun to suspect Li Chenxuan?
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