From Joy of Life, the Tian Gang is reversed

Chapter 42: New Year's Day Banquet (Part )

Kyoto, first day

Kyoto's streets and alleys are festooned with lights. Big red lanterns hang from the eaves, swaying gently in the breeze, creating a striking contrast with the colorful New Year paintings and paper-cuts displayed at street stalls.

The streets were bustling with people, shoulder to shoulder. Children, dressed in new clothes, holding candy figurines, ran and laughed. The cries of vendors echoed, "Selling candied haws" and "Come and pick up all kinds of firecrackers!" The atmosphere was bustling with activity.

Into the night
In the direction of the palace, fireworks soared into the sky, lighting up the night sky. Golden and silver light rained down, dazzling the eyes and causing cheers from the whole city.

Inside the palace, bright candles shone brightly, and light and shadows flickered on the vermilion palace walls.

To the sound of drums and music, dancers in embroidered palace attire filed in. Their sleeves fluttered, their figures slender like willows, their steps graceful and graceful. As they twirled, their sleeves swirled like flowing clouds, capturing everyone's attention.

On the banquet table, delicacies were laid out and the aroma was overwhelming.

Emperor Qing sat atop the dragon throne, his crown tassels twitching slightly as he gazed down at the hall, his gaze shone with an impenetrable mist. The Empress, clad in a phoenix coronet and bridal robe, held a dignified demeanor, yet her expression was grave, her gaze fixed on the hall entrance, as if anticipating something.

All the ministers were dressed in court robes and sat respectfully. This should have been a New Year's Day ceremony where everyone was happy and the emperor and his ministers were having fun together, but the atmosphere today seemed a bit dull, one could even say... weird!
Because one person was missing, the prince did not come.

Li Chengqian, the Crown Prince of Daqing, went astray in his cultivation half a year ago. It is said that the meridians in his legs were severely damaged and he may have difficulty walking in the future.

The situation in Qing Kingdom immediately caused huge turmoil and undercurrents.

However, the protagonist, the prince, became silent. For a full six months, he stayed in the East Palace and did not go out.

Of course, as the crown prince, it is unacceptable for anyone to suddenly become unable to walk, and it is only natural for him to stay alone behind closed doors.

But the prince's inaction did not mean the incident was over.

Qin lost his deer, and the world chased it.

The prince lost his throne and was devoured by wolves.

However, there are not many princes in Daqing today. There are actually only two who are truly qualified and able to compete for this position, and one of them is too young.

Over the past six months, the entire Kyoto and even Nanqing have been in turmoil.

Today is the annual New Year's Day banquet. All the ministers have entered the palace and the banquet has been going on for nearly half an hour, but there is still no sign of the prince.

Although Emperor Qing did not say anything, as time went by, all the ministers in the hall could still feel that the face of His Majesty, who was in the high position, was gradually becoming gloomy. Although they still had smiles on the surface while drinking and chatting, there was a bit of stiffness and perfunctoriness in their smiles. The noise in the hall gradually became smaller, leaving only the somewhat harsh sound of dance music.

The actors and dancers in the palace were not fools either. They all broke out in cold sweats, but no one dared to stop without Emperor Qing's order.

Finally, a slight commotion was heard outside the hall. Wooden wheels rolled across the polished marble floor, making a subtle, rhythmic sound. A cool night breeze blew in, bringing with it a hint of winter's chill, causing the candlelight inside the hall to flicker. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a eunuch outside the hall, carefully pushing a wheelchair in with his head lowered.

Prince!

A few low exclamations were heard in the hall.

Prince Cheng Qian was dressed in blue, sitting in a wheelchair with a smile on his face. Compared with everyone's previous impression, he seemed a little thinner, but his smile was very sunny and he looked in a good mood.

He raised his head slightly, his eyes sweeping across the crowd in the hall with a smile, and then looked at Emperor Qing and Empress sitting on the main throne, "Father, I'm so sorry, I'm late because of my mobility issues."

Emperor Qing narrowed his eyes, stared at him for a while, shook his head and said, "No problem, take a seat."

"Yes!" Li Chengqian responded with a smile, and the sound of the wheelchair rolling was heard again.

As the crown prince, his position was only below Emperor Qing and the Empress. As the wheelchair slowly moved forward, the expressions of everyone in the hall gradually became strange.

The wheelchair suddenly stopped in front of another wheelchair. Chen Pingping looked at Li Chengqian, who had suddenly stopped in front of him, and narrowed his eyes slightly. He was about to speak, but found that Li Chengqian was not looking at him, but was looking up and down at his wheelchair. Chen Pingping was confused about what Li Chengqian meant and fell silent.

"Dean Chen, your wheelchair is old, right?"

"Uh!" Chen Pingping was startled. "It's been a while, more than ten years."

"So I'm saying, you're not fit to be the president of the Supervisory Commission. Retire soon." Li Chengqian curled his lips and began to diss Chen Pingping without hesitation. "You're only wearing a broken wheelchair, and they haven't even bothered to replace it for over a decade. What's the Third Department doing? They really don't take you, the president, seriously. Look at me."

As he spoke, he patted the wheelchair.

Kacha, Kacha

The wheelchair under the seat suddenly made a slight sound, and the backrest began to bend and tilt downward. The two wheels also changed. In just a few breaths, the wheelchair turned into a rocking chair.

"Look, how comfortable this is." Li Chengqian leaned back in the chair and rocked it twice, then patted the wheelchair twice, and the wheelchair returned to its original position.

Then he fiddled with the two wheels with his hands and turned them around twice.

Front, back, left, right,

Back, front, right, left
The wheelchair flexibly turned in his hands, moving forward and backward...

After demonstrating for a while, he finally stopped.

"Aren't you three departments always known as poison agencies? You don't even think about how to flatter you. Putting aside other things, don't you think you are really incompetent?"

Chen Pingping's mouth twitched twice, and he said helplessly, "My wheelchair is fine. I've used it for a long time and I've developed an attachment to it. I don't need to change it anymore, so I don't need to."

"Ha, you're just being stubborn." Li Chengqian showed disdain and started the wheelchair again.

All the officials in the hall were stunned.

The current crown prince publicly attacked the emperor's confidant, the President of the Censorate, at a banquet. This situation was completely beyond everyone's expectations.

There have been rumors that the two are not getting along. Could it be true?

However, although the two of them spoke in a sarcastic tone, there was also some joking and sarcastic tone between acquaintances. Maybe they have a very good relationship!

The ministers in the hall were confused for a moment. The less experienced ones were stunned and looked at each other with puzzled eyes. Some lowered their heads, trying to hide their expressions. Lin Ruofu, Fan Jian and other important ministers had a twinkle in their eyes, with a hint of smile. The eldest princess chuckled and said, "Cheng Qian, it's been half a year since we last met. It seems that your injuries have healed well. I thought you would be in a low mood for a while."

"Why are you so depressed? You've done what you did, and you can't blame anyone else. Just be happy. By the way, auntie, how's Chen'er?"

"I'm much better now, I just need to rest for a while. Thank you so much for this."

"Chen'er is my sister, and this is all as it should be." Li Chengqian smiled faintly, "I'm not some incompetent Supervisory Director who's trying to push away a favor."

"Enough, Cheng Qian, sit back." Emperor Qing's voice suddenly rang out, interrupting their casual chat.

"Yes." Li Chengqian responded with a smile again.

"I, Li Mingchuan of the Censorate, report that the Crown Prince acted unruly at today's banquet, unworthy of the throne. I boldly request that Your Majesty punish the Crown Prince for his misbehavior."

Just as he returned to his seat, he saw a thin figure suddenly rush out from among the ministers and prostrate himself on the ground.

(End of this chapter)