Chapter 1178: Banquet

The large garden in King Rong’s Residence was opened to outsiders for the first time after the renovation. Judging by the countless exotic rocks and flowers in the garden that was more opulent than the current palace, one could see that Official Qin’s reputation as a corrupt official was not for nothing.

Even Mrs. Lin couldn’t help but fall into a daze when she saw the rare peonies planted in the garden. She held her mother-in-law’s arm and sighed. “Queen Consort Rong is truly an elegant person. Indeed, rumors mislead people.”

If she wasn’t an elegant person, how could she have raised these delicate peonies and orchids?

When Madam Xia heard this by chance, she was embarrassed. No one present knew the truth better than her.

Back then, when Great Qi took over the mess of Great Zhou, the Emperor was so poor that he did not even have the money to repair his younger brother’s residence.

Therefore, when he was looking for the embezzled money and treasures that Minister Qin had buried, Qi Xiuyuan was very petty and got someone to put away the precious items in Minister Qin’s residence first.

The exotic rocks and plants in the garden were naturally included. Although the Emperor had a military background, being born into an official family, he knew a lot about these things. Furthermore, Fan Zijin, who loved such treasures, was his advisor.

Before the soldiers rushed into Minister Qin’s residence and dug three feet into the ground like wolves and tigers, Fan Zijin first got someone to search the large courtyard. Then, he ordered his men to move all the precious items that could be moved. Therefore, although the large garden suffered a destructive blow when they dug three feet into the ground, the losses were not huge.

Although they could not find the embezzled funds, many people expressed their interest in the exotic rocks and herbs left behind in Minister Qin’s residence. However, with the stingy Emperor and Fan Zijin guarding the place, who could take things from here?

In the end, Qi Xiuyuan generously announced that since he had given this mansion to his brother, everything naturally belonged to him.

However, Qi Haoran and Mu Yangling were both boorish people. Compared to exotic rocks and plants, he was more interested in fine steeds and swords. While Mu Yangling liked flowers and plants very much, her admiration for them was only surface-deep. For example, she would find these flowers to be pretty and fragrant, but she didn’t appreciate them on a deeper level.

Fan Zijin felt that they were wasting such treasures, so he took the initiative to hire a gardener to raise them. When Mu Yangling and the rest returned from their trip to Lingnan, the mansion was repaired, and the garden was filled with vitality. When they returned from their trip to Guangzhou, several precious flowers had been sent to Fan Zijin’s house. The gardener even developed several new plant species, and without exception, all of them entered Fan Zijin’s mansion.

Previously, Fan Zijin had told Qi Haoran and Mu Yangling that after his Prince’s Residence was built, all the flowers in the garden had to come from here.

Qi Haoran agreed without thinking. Considering it was just a few flowers, Fan Zijin could have as many as he wanted. He had no objections to letting Fan Zijin move them all away as long as it made him happy.

Mu Yangling, too, nodded without any objections. Those flowers and plants were too delicate. Last time, in order to catch Tiger Head, she accidentally stepped on a stalk of flowers. Seeing this, the gardener immediately cried and fainted. Even Fan Zijin abandoned his official duties and ran to the residence to scold her. Thus, she didn’t have any objections to sending them away. Actually, she felt that certain non-cherished species were also quite pretty.

The reason why the rare flowers and plants in the garden could grow so well was mostly because of the gardener’s hard work; a small part of it was attributed to Fan Zijin’s concern. Knowing the inside story, Little Madam Xia felt that she could not let this topic continue. Otherwise, if Mrs. Lin suddenly asked Ah Ling about her experience in raising flowers on a whim, the image that Ah Ling had just established in their hearts would be ruined.

Little Madam Xia interrupted them and said with a smile, “Her Highness is already waiting in front. Let’s go over and pay our respects.”

Mu Yangling was considered young among the noble ladies, but she was of a high status, so even Old Madam Lin had to bow to her.

Mrs. Lin said with a smile, “Aren’t you a princess consort too? This reminds me that we ought to bow to, you. Come, come, do have a seat later and we’ll bow to Your Highness.”

Blushing, Little Madam Xia said shyly, “Mrs. Lin loves to joke with me…”

The few of them chatted merrily as they went to greet Mu Yangling.

Mu Yangling was wearing home clothes. When Old Madam Lin kowtowed, she held her hand and smiled. “Please don’t stand on ceremony.”

Supporting Old Madam Lin, Mu Yangling said to the madams and ladies who had also knelt down, “Everyone, get up. There aren’t so many rules here. Everyone, quickly take your seats.”

Seeing that Mu Yangling was kind, everyone’s expressions lightened.

The banquet was held in the large garden, and the seats were also out in the open. At this moment, the spring sunshine was dazzling brightly, and colorful flowers were in full bloom, making for a gorgeous sight.

The seats were arranged in two rows opposite each other, and behind each of them were all kinds of flowers. Even without embellishment, they looked beautiful and delicate. Hence, Mu Yangling’s banquet this time was simple and cost-effective.

Mu Yangling sat down at the head of the table and said apologetically to Old Madam Lin, “After receiving your invitation, I wanted to visit you personally. However, it’s an important time for The Lily Times to raise funds, so I could only decline. As I received more invitations, I couldn’t visit everyone one by one, so I could only send an invitation to invite everyone here. Firstly, spring has just arrived, and the flowers are in full bloom, so everyone can take the chance to admire the flowers and scenery. Secondly, if you have any questions, you may raise them here and I’ll answer them together.”

Old Madam Lin raised her brows slightly. She had long heard that Queen Consort Rong had a straightforward personality, comparable to King Rong. She didn’t expect this rumor to be true.

No one expected Queen Consort Rong to be so direct. They all looked at the main seat. Shouldn’t they be invited here to eat and drink, admire the flowers, and let the young ladies present their talents before bringing up The Lily Times when things reached the climax?

After recovering from her momentary surprise, Old Madam Lin smiled at Mu Yangling and said, “Since Your Highness is hosting a banquet now, I believe the rules of The Lily Times have been set. Since Your Highness says that this is a newspaper specially for women, I wonder if we’ll have a chance to read it before The Lily Times is officially published?”

Mu Yangling smiled and said, “Of course. I’ve set some rules. But since I’m still young and have many misgivings, please guide me along.”

Mu Yangling turned around and nodded at Spring.

Spring immediately distributed printed copies of the organizational structure and regulations of The Lily Times. Though only the titles of the position were shown in the organizational structure, it was sufficient for everyone to understand how The Lily Times operated.

Everyone couldn’t help but be shocked. They didn’t expect Queen Consort Rong to be so generous. Wasn’t she concerned that someone would replicate it?

It had to be known that the imperial court had already begun to relax rules for the civilians to start newspapers. Thus, it was estimated that the civilians would be able to start newspapers soon.

Wouldn’t others copy this if word got out about this operation method?

Mu Yangling didn’t care about their strange gazes at all. She continued to say to Old Madam Lin, “The Lily Times is indeed a newspaper for all the women in the world. Therefore, I hope that all the women in the world can support this newspaper.”

Old Madam Lin nodded slightly. “As long as it’s really for the good of the women in the world, they will naturally support it.”

Old Madam Lin’s words were very artful. Although she did not decline, she didn’t give any promises either. Mu Yangling liked it.

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