As the time was approaching, the Seventh Prince had already arranged for people to prepare and deliver dishes to the various residences.
"Seventh Prince, what should we do with the The Mansion of the Marquis of Changting's dishes?" The guard at the side was in a somewhat difficult situation. He walked over and asked the seventh prince in a low voice.
"Seventh Prince hesitated for a moment, remembered what Duan Yunfei had said, and then sighed. She shook her head towards the imperial guards by her side. This prince will personally deliver the dishes from your The Mansion of the Marquis of Changting. "
Inside the palace, Duan Yunfei supported Yuwen Di and sat on the Dragon Throne in the great hall once again, and then continued to chat with Yuwen Di by the side.
"Little Thirteen, it's New Year's Eve today. Don't go anywhere else, just stay here and chat with royal father." Yuwen Di stretched out his hand and patted Duan Yunfei's shoulder. His tone was even more like that of a child who had suffered a grievance.
Seeing Yuwen Di like this, Duan Yunfei could only smile bitterly and nod his head.
"Your majesty, you've drunk too much today. It's better if chenqie helps you get back to sleep earlier." The Empress watched on from the side, feeling indignant in her heart, and tried to probe Yuwen Di with a smile on her face.
However, Yuwen Di did not answer and instead said with his back facing the Empress, "Today is New Year's Eve, so we are here to accompany Thirteen to guard the year. If the Empress is tired, she can go and rest first, and there is no need to inform us."
Yuwen Di said with determination, choking the empress into speechlessness.
The hall was in an uproar, so no one noticed that the empress's expression had turned ugly.
At this moment, the Seventh Prince had already arrived at the front door of the manor, bringing the dishes with him.
Tonight was New Year's Eve. In front of the The Mansion of the Marquis of Changting's residence, large red lanterns were hung up high. From far away, one could see the bright lights in the houses, and the festive atmosphere.
The Seventh Prince stood at the door hesitating for a moment before he nodded to the guards behind him. Go knock on the door! "
The guard nodded towards the Seventh Prince as he received the order. However, just as he arrived at the mansion's entrance, the The Mansion of the Marquis of Changting's door slowly opened before he could even knock.
A person who looked like a housekeeper walked out from the manor. When he saw the guard standing at the entrance, he quickly greeted the guard and said with a smile, "If I had known that the general would arrive, my master would have ordered us to wait here for him." "It's getting deeper outside, and the general has come in the cold. Come into the house and drink a cup of hot tea to keep the cold."
The housekeeper that came to receive them spoke to the guards in front of him as he pulled them into the house.
Seeing the butler's appearance, the guard couldn't help but feel a little anxious. He hastily waved his hand at the butler and pointed at Seventh Prince who was standing at the foot of the steps. "Butler, you've misunderstood. Our Seventh Prince is here personally to deliver the dishes to The Mansion of the Marquis of Changting today."
Hearing the guard's words, the butler could not help but jump in surprise. No matter what, the Seventh Prince's status was so high after all. He actually bowed down and came to deliver the dishes to the Marquis' Mansion. The butler stood at the door and carefully glanced behind him at Seventh Prince. For a time, he was so nervous that he couldn't say a word.
The Seventh Prince did not care and looked at the The Mansion of the Marquis of Changting in front of him. He could not help but smile, then slowly walked forward and said to the butler, "Today, the Prince has personally come to deliver the dishes for the Duke of Chang Ting. I wonder what the Marquis is doing at his house, would you have the time to come out and meet him?"
"Yes, yes." When the butler saw the Seventh Prince, he was startled and immediately nodded towards the Seventh Prince. He said somewhat frantically, "The Seventh Prince suddenly arrived, so this servant didn't have time to prepare. I beg your forgiveness, Seventh Prince. My house's duke is currently paying respects to the old man in the ancestral hall, so I ask the Seventh Prince to follow me in first. This servant will order someone to go report to the Marquis, and I hope the Seventh Prince can wait for a moment. "
As the steward spoke, he invited the Seventh Prince into the house.
The news spread very quickly and the seventh prince was arranged to sit in the main hall. In the time it takes to make a cup of tea, the Duke of the Pavilion quickly rushed over to pay his respects to the seventh prince.
"Today is New Year's Eve, and the seventh prince's presence at the Hou clan makes this old official overjoyed. "Please forgive me for the late arrival. Seventh Prince." Seeing this, the marquis hurried over and greeted the seventh prince with a smile.
Even if the Duke of Zhang Ting had publicly supported the Fifth Prince more than once, the two of them were after all only political enemies and did not have any personal grudges. Honestly speaking, the Seventh Prince had always admired the Duke of Zhang Ting's methods. He had long since wanted to take the Duke of Zhang Ting under his command. Unfortunately, he had never had such an opportunity. He could use this chance to gift the dishes to Changting, allowing him to spend more time with the marquis.
Seeing this, the Seventh Prince hurriedly helped the Marquis up and said to him in a low voice, "Your Lordship is too courteous, but today is New Year's Eve, I've come hastily. I've truly troubled Your Highness."
"I dare not dare, Seventh Prince is overthinking." After the marquis heard this, he hastily waved his hand towards the seventh prince and smiled. "It's my honor to have the seventh prince visit the marquis' residence. I wonder what matters the seventh prince has today?"
The seventh prince smiled and nodded at the marquis when he heard the latter's question. Your Lordship, I've come rashly to the manor today in order to gift you some food. "
The emperor bestowing dishes was a great gift. When the Duke of Changting heard the seventh prince's words, he hurriedly nodded at him and walked forward to wait for the seventh prince to announce the gift dishes.
"The Duke of Changting has worked hard, and his hard work has been great. New Year is coming, and he has specially bestowed upon the The Mansion of the Marquis of Changting Pigeon Eggs."
After the seventh prince had finished announcing the decree, he gave a look to the guards beside him, signalling them to bring out the dishes to the Duke of Zhang Ting.
The Duke of Changting was kneeling on the ground, frowning slightly. He didn't know what to do.
"Master Hou, this is royal father's favor to you. Hurry up and serve the dishes." The Seventh Prince pretended to be calm as he smiled at the Duke, pretending to joke with him.
"It's actually an egg made from a pigeon! This year, the dish bestowed upon the residence by the emperor is actually an egg made from a pigeon!"
"It's probably because the Sixth Princess is about to visit our house, that's why the emperor placed so much importance on our house. That's why he specially bestowed a pigeon egg to our house, and it's also a good opportunity to raise our family's position."
When the servants in the mansion heard that this year's dishes were pigeon eggs, they could not help but become excited. They stood aside and whispered amongst themselves.
"The Duke of Zhang Ting is still not willing to serve the dishes, but what is there to be dissatisfied about? Please speak frankly. " When the Seventh Prince saw that there was no response from the Duke of Changting for a long time, he couldn't help but feel somewhat anxious in his heart. He cleared his throat and said to the Duke of Changting.
The Duke of Changting was still in a daze, but when he heard the Seventh Prince's words, he regained his wits and hurriedly bowed to the Seventh Prince.