History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 401 Scheming Against Gao Ying
After redoing her makeup, Liu Nian headed to the Crane Wine Banquet. As she passed Wei Yao's seat, the two women exchanged glances, but to outsiders, nothing seemed amiss.

In the midst of this, Liu Nian recalled her meeting with Wei Yao in the nunnery yesterday. Wei Yao suddenly asked about something unrelated to Yuan Xiang's rebellion: "Sister Nian, do you know that the Empress has detained the Prince of Jingzhao's favorite concubine in the harem?"

“I heard it from Aunt Jun.”

Wei Yao asked, "How does Consort Gao evaluate the Empress's methods of punishment?"

"Jun Gu said... Empress Yu destroyed Yang Lianluo's hair and skin, thinking she was punishing one to warn a hundred. But what others saw was that the Empress was making a mountain out of a molehill. In reality, what she destroyed was the good reputation of 'silence and tolerance' that the Yu family had promoted to the Empress."

Wei Yao asked again: "Previously, Yu Zhong was ordered to break into the Prince of Beihai's mansion, which made Consort Gao and her son resent the Yu family. This time, from the matter of Yuan Xiang and Gao Fang, we know that Consort Gao looks down on the Chengcheng Duke's family. In your opinion, will Consort Gao take care of and win over Gao Ying at this Crane Wine Banquet?"

"You mean... would Aunt Jun use Gao Ying to deal with the Empress after she enters the palace? No, if her son didn't covet Gao Fang, perhaps that's possible. The Emperor will definitely expand his harem in the future. If Aunt Jun wants to use this method, she can choose other noblewomen instead of Gao Ying."

Princess Beihai and her entourage walked over, and Wei Yao's vision cleared up. She noticed that Gao Ying was shifting slightly, as if he was uncomfortable sitting on the stool. Wei Yao lowered her eyelids for a moment, admiring Princess Liu for being able to act swiftly according to her instructions even in the abyss-like royal mansion.

Yesterday, she briefly met with Princess Liu at Yaoguang Temple and instructed her: "I brought Gao Ying to your banquet to prevent the Dowager Princess Gao from winning Gao Ying over. The Emperor values ​​the Chengcheng Duke's family and does not expect Gao Ying to be won over by the Empress in the future. To be honest, Gao Ying is about to enter the palace, so I need your help, elder sister, to make Gao Ying wary of the Empress, or rather, the Yu family behind the Empress, during this banquet. Gao Ying... can only be loyal to His Majesty, and absolutely not to the Empress!"

The room was full of guests.

When the nearby drums and music stopped, the guests began to take turns offering wine to Consort Gao in order from front to back, expressing their best wishes.

Princess, Grand Princess, Lady of the Imperial Household...

We've arrived at Weiyao.

When Gao Ying saw Wei Yao get up, she wanted to follow, but the maid who was serving the wine gently pressed her shoulder and sat her back down, whispering, "Miss Gao, please wait a moment. The number of people should not be too large each time. You can go after Vice Minister Wei and the others return."

Wei Yao offered water instead of the slightly cloudy crane-shaped wine. As soon as she finished her blessing, a maidservant from Consort Gao's side came over with a wine pot and teased, "Since you're already here, how can Vice Minister Wei offer water instead of wine?"

The noblewoman to Wei Yao's right was her old nemesis, Yuan Chuntuo. Yuan Chuntuo once again forgot her brother Yuan Cheng's instructions and said with barbs, "Minister Wei is different from us. He must have official business to attend to again."

Wei Yao brushed aside the wine pot and replied with a single word: "Yes."

“You…” Yuan Chuntuo drew out her words, turning her gaze to the Dowager Consort Gao above, transforming her own anger into shared anger: “Dowager Consort, you see, I was right.”

Consort Gao questioned, "Wei Yao, today is a banquet in my residence. Why are you here if you're not going to drink?"

Those sitting close together were all princesses, and seeing the Empress Dowager's anger, they all looked at Wei Yao.

Wei Yao lightly wiped away a drop of wine that the maid had just spilled on the back of her hand with her finger, then looked at Consort Gao, drew the same finger horizontally from left to right under her nose, and replied with a mocking smile: "Attending the banquet is my official business."

Yuan Chun Tuo was shocked to see her mocking Consort Gao's nose-destroying action. He screamed in his heart: You are brave, you are even braver than your mother!

With her last shred of reason, Consort Gao restrained herself from throwing objects to kill Wei Yao. The princess serving the food and wine was unaware of Wei Yao's actions; her shock was genuine. She quickly tried to smooth things over, saying, "Minister Wei, please return to your seat and have your meal."

When Wei Yao sat back down, Gao Ying and the other four noble ladies went to offer a toast. This was Gao Ying's first time meeting the mother of the Prince of Beihai, the Dowager Consort Gao, up close. Although Wei Yao had reminded her that the Dowager Consort had some flaws in her appearance, Wei Yao hadn't been clear. The other woman's nose was obviously fake, and the thick powder on her face formed grooves on both sides of her nose, revealing an eerie pink color. Good heavens, it was terrifying!

Gao Ying didn't finish her prepared toast, and the Dowager Consort Gao asked in displeasure, "You're the niece of the Duke of Chengcheng? You've been in the capital for a while now, haven't you been taught etiquette and manners?"

“Yes, I am taught. People from the palace teach me every day.”

"Then study hard and learn the rules before going out!"

Princess Liu Nian spoke up kindly: "Good advice is often harsh. The Dowager Consort means well, but she is worried that if Miss Gao enters the palace in the future, she might be disrespectful and overstep her bounds in front of the Empress, which would be troublesome. At the very least..."

"Shut up." Consort Gao glared at her talkative daughter-in-law, cursing her inwardly as a fool for openly revealing the secrets of the inner palace that her family had discovered!
Gao Ying returned to her seat with trepidation and grievance. Recalling the scolding she had just received, she was sure everyone around her was laughing at her. This banquet was so boring; she really wanted to go home immediately.

She was lost in thought, oblivious to the maidservants serving dishes, pouring wine, and spilling a little wine on the table. She was preoccupied with what the Princess of Beihai had said, and then she remembered that Wei Yao had also mentioned the Empress the day before, saying that the Empress had punished the Prince of Jingzhao's concubine with flogging. Could this matter not be as simple as punishing a concubine?
"It would be troublesome to be disrespectful or overstep one's bounds in front of the Empress."

"At the very least..."

What would be the least severe punishment? Would they resort to flogging?

Would the Empress treat her concubines with the same sternness? Otherwise, why would Princess Liu have said that?

Gao Ying suddenly felt dizzy and her vision blurred. She felt that the pot, bowl and plate on the table were sliding. It was too late when she realized something was wrong. With a "crash", the wine pot tipped over. She couldn't catch it, and the porcelain plate on the other side fell to the ground.

"Pfft—" Someone burst into laughter.

Gao Ying was flustered and confused. She and her maid tidied up together. Just as she sat back down on the stool, the wood cracked with a "thud". She swung her arms and, in a ridiculous posture of trying to save herself from falling headfirst, she fell backward onto several pieces of wood.

"Haha, look at her, she's swinging her arm so hard it's leaving a shadow."

"Who is she? How could she make such a fool of herself?"

Two maids came to help Gao Ying up, one on each side, both showing concern. One called her by name: "Miss Gao Ying, let me help you up."

The other waved his hand in front of her and asked in a loud voice, "Where did you bump your head? Did you hit your head? Young lady, tell me quickly, how many fingers are these?"

More laughter erupted!
"Haha, haha, I can't take it anymore, I'm dying of laughter!"

"Look at her dazed look! Come back quickly, how many fingers does she have? Has she really lost her mind from the fall?"

Gao Ying's eyes were blurred with tears. At her age, she was new to the extravagant Prince's mansion and attended such a grand banquet. She was careful and disciplined in every step she took. She never expected that her carefulness would lead to such a disgrace and such a loss of face! What made her even more helpless was that she only now realized that she had been tricked. However, she did not have the courage to get angry, not even to get angry at the maids in the Prince's mansion, nor did she dare to leave in a huff.

Through her blurred vision, Wei Yao, like her god, reached out her hand.

Who hasn't stumbled or fallen in their life?