The Empress' Gift
The Lu family had just received the gift that the eighth prince had asked Xuan Tian Ming to deliver. Suddenly hearing that the Empress had rewarded them with something, they were dazed for a moment. The three stood in place while looking at each other. Nobody could understand what was going on. It was Ge shi that was the first to ask: "It feels like Her Highness the Empress has never treated our Lu family particularly well? Why would she suddenly send something?"
Lu Song furrowed his brows but did not speak. Lu Yan, however, expressed her own thoughts: "There isn't anything strange about it. The Empress is the master of the inner palace. Father is the prime minister of the court, and our family does not have anyone in the palace. In the past, it was natural that we could not have any relationship with the Empress. It's not like she would curry favor with the prime minister. But now, things are different. Daughter and His Highness the eighth prince's marriage has been determined. It seems that His Majesty will personally sanction the marriage at the new year. As the master of the inner palace, it's natural that the Empress must express herself."
Lu Yan's analysis was reasonable, and Ge shi expressed her approval upon hearing it by repeatedly nodding. Lu Song did not have much to say, and the housekeeper was already hurrying them from the side, as the person outside was still waiting, thus they quickly arranged for that person to be brought inside.
With the manor's gates opened, a mighty group of palace maids and eunuchs entered. They all held something in their hands. There were bolts of silks and satins, and there were boxes of accessories. The sight of this caused Lu Yan's eyes to stare straight ahead. Since being suppressed by the Yao family, the Lu family had already lost all of its businesses on the outside, thus they were given a sudden feeling as if they had made a step towards a resurgence.
It had to be said that the impact these nice things had could not affect Lu Song, but the head palace maid that brought these things caused Lu Song to feel overwhelmed by unexpected favor. Upon seeing who had come, even if he was the prime minister, he quickly took a few steps forward and received them, taking the initiative to greet: "Who knew that it would be Aunty Fang Yi who would personally come. Please excuse this old official for not going out to meet you. I hope that aunty will not blame us!" The so-called aunty was nothing more than an honorific title. It was not determined by age. Lu Song was definitely much older than Fang Yi, but the people in the palace all referred to Fang Yi as aunty, thus he also did the same.
The person that was leading the group in delivering the gifts was indeed Fang Yi. Seeing Lu Song, she acted kindly. While smiling, she said that Lord Lu was too polite and personally handed over a box, "Her Highness the Empress advised this servant to personally hand this to Lord Prime Minister Lu. This is something that was awarded a few days ago by the Emperor. It's an extremely high-quality item that was brought into the palace. The palace only received a total of two boxes, and his Majesty awarded one box to Imperial Concubine Yun and one to Her Highness the Empress."
Lu Song received it and opened it to take a look. Inside was a full box of edible bird nest, and there were 12 portions. The bird nests were moderate in size and were scarlet in color. They were indeed extremely high-quality goods. Hearing Fang Yi say that the palace only received two boxes, the Empress would definitely receive one as the dignified ruler of the inner palace, and the other portion was given to Imperial Concubine Yun. Imperial Concubine Yun's place in the Emperor's heart was something that everyone knew about. It could be seen just how precious this item was. It was truly impossible to imagine, and it was even more impossible to estimate its value in gold or silver.
"Her Highness the Empress has said that she has gotten up there in age. For her to use these things, it would be a waste, and it would be better to send it to the Lu manor and the future princess of the eighth prince." Fang Yi said with a smile: "Lord Prime Minister, quickly accept it. Remember to have the kitchen prepare a bowl for the young miss each day. These things can't be kept for a long period of time. It would be best for them to all be consumed." While she spoke, she giggled and looked toward Lu Yan, reminding her: "I fear that Young Miss still hasn't had a chance to properly meet His Highness the eighth prince yet, right? His Highness will be back by the time of the palace banquet on new year's. Before this, Young Miss needs to take care of yourself, so that you can be very beautiful when meeting His Highness the eighth prince."
