"I don't think your actions were accidental. Instead, it seems deliberate. Right, I remember that you once wanted to enter the palace, but in the end, because of the Empress Dowager's peerless beauty, you missed this opportunity. So you ended up marrying your father's protégé, didn't you?"
The man who was just about to speak up for his wife immediately lowered his head. Actually, he had never known about this. Back then, when his teacher married his daughter to him, he thought the teacher wanted to cultivate him, and he was extremely grateful. But he never thought that after all these years, this was the real truth.
No man can tolerate his wife having been a woman rejected by someone else, even if that someone was the late emperor.
The official's wife naturally noticed her husband's reaction and immediately panicked.
"Your Highness the Grand Concubine, it's better not to say such things. Have you forgotten that we were all selected to enter the palace together? The will of heaven cannot be violated. Moreover, my father married me to my husband because he thought highly of him. If you say such things, it will disrupt the peace of our family."
Hearing this, Concubine Mo didn't care at all.
"So you mean to blame the royal family for having such rules?"
"I dare not, Your Highness. I'm just stating the facts. Why do you bring up the old matters from the past at this time?"
"Humph, I wonder who gave you the courage to talk to me like this. It seems that the royal rules are no longer effective."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the main hall knelt down. Originally, the official didn't want to interfere with his wife's business, but now the situation had become serious. If anyone dared to openly refute Concubine Mo, they might be punished by the nine - clan extermination today.
He stepped forward reluctantly, with fear on his face.
"Please forgive us, Your Highness the Grand Concubine. My wife has always been outspoken."
"If this continues, she may not even know how she dies in the future. She already has the audacity to contradict me and despise the rules. Who knows what unexpected things she will do in the future."
"I will surely discipline her well in the future. Such a thing will never happen again. Please forgive us, Your Highness."
Concubine Mo fell silent and said nothing, which made everyone present feel a little scared.
Shi Muyuan helplessly shook her head. The official's wife was already crying in fear. Her former arrogance was gone, replaced by a trembling body.
She was afraid that the Hundred Flowers Banquet would be ruined by Concubine Mo before it even started. Finally, she had to show up to take charge.
"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is coming!"
Hearing these four words, Concubine Mo knew that her little sister was coming out to stop her. There was nothing she could do but roll her eyes and then salute with the crowd.
Shi Muyuan noticed her little sister's reluctant expression and knew she must be unhappy. She stepped forward and casually waved to the crowd.
"Why bother to argue with these ignorant people?"
Those who were kneeling on the ground, even if they had complaints in their hearts, didn't dare to stand up and refute at this moment. They knew that Concubine Mo and the Shi family were extremely protective. If today's matter were spread out, their lives would be over.
Concubine Mo didn't miss their expressions. Looking at their constipated - like looks, she felt much more comfortable.
"Then I'll listen to you. It's almost time. Let's go in first?"
The two held hands and sat in their corresponding seats.
Xiao Xiao received a signal from her mistress and whistled secretly.
Immediately afterwards, just as everyone stood up from the ground and returned to their seats, suddenly there were fireworks all over the sky outside, and countless Kongming lanterns rose up.
This scene made everyone gasp. They had never seen such a spectacular sight before, not even at previous Hundred Flowers Banquets.
Watching the Kongming lanterns slowly rising in the air, little fluorescent lights appeared around them. When they looked closely, they found that they were lanterns.
They were attracted by the sight and unconsciously walked outside.
When the Kongming lanterns rose to a certain height, they stopped steadily in the air, echoing the lanterns on the ground. The whole scene of the imperial garden was fully displayed in front of them at this moment.
Watching the fireflies flying over the flowers from time to time, some of the official's wives couldn't help but reach out to catch them.
But at the critical moment, they were stopped by the maids beside them: "Madam, please don't catch these fireflies. Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has ordered that fireflies are also lives. They will be released after the banquet is over."
The wife paused for a moment, and finally a smile appeared on her face.
"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has thought it through. I almost forgot. Since Her Majesty has already made the plan, we'll just enjoy the flowers."
Actually, Shi Muyuan and Concubine Mo weren't surprised by this result. The two sat on the high seats, eating melon seeds, and Concubine Mo occasionally gossiped.
"I heard that in a few days, the mother of a court official is going to remarry."
This news really surprised Shi Muyuan. For the ancients, even if a woman was widowed, it was already good if she didn't accompany her husband in death. How could there be such a thing as remarriage?
She pursed her lips: "Could the news be wrong? How could there be someone who remarries? And the official's mother is quite old by now, isn't she?"
"Exactly. When I heard this news, my reaction was similar to yours. But thinking about it, the official's father wasn't a good person back then."
"What do you mean? Did his father have a harem full of beauties?"
Concubine Mo twitched the corner of her mouth. Her little sister's imagination was really rich.
"No. It's just that his father had a tendency to beat women, and I hate men who hit women the most in my life. Once, his family came to Baotuo Temple to pray for blessings and stayed there for a night. Finally, I found that the old lady was covered in wounds, and some of them had already scabbed over."
Shi Muyuan's face completely fell. When she was a small urban management officer, she had also met many such people.
At that time, she couldn't stop anyone because they said it was a family matter. Even as an urban management officer, she couldn't interfere in other people's family affairs.
In modern times, if you reported such a thing to the police, as long as the victim didn't say anything, it would be a waste of time.
At that time, she regretted more than once why she didn't climb to a higher position so that she could help those women who suffered from domestic violence.