Chapter 73: Imperial Uncle, They Want to Snatch My Jade Pendant!

Tuan Tuan saw Huo Wenxuan, turned away immediately, ignoring them, "Hmph, that older sister isn't a good person! Anyone who's with her can't be good either! I don't want to deal with them!"

Cheng Ru'an frowned slightly; the two children were raised in the Palace, one the Eldest Princess's niece, the other the Empress Dowager's niece, and their ages and statuses were similar, so they were often together.

Huo Wenxuan was full of hostility toward her daughter, this Murong Yuyiao…

The two approached, bowed to her and said, "We have seen Princess Consort Ning," yet they deliberately omitted the bow to Tuan Tuan, the Princess Jiayou.

Both were from the outer clan and held no titles or ranks; upon seeing the Princess they should have paid their respects, but the two, as if prearranged, ignored her together.

Cheng Ru'an did not mind, nodded, "The banquet is about to start, everyone go in," then led her daughter, turned, and walked into the main hall.

"Alliance Leader!"

Tuan Tuan looked up, saw Lu Qingjia! She was thrilled: "Lu Er! Where's Little Huamei?"

Lu Qingjia stuck out his tongue: "This is the Palace! Alliance Leader, how could I dare bring it here!"

Tuan Tuan pouted: "Then bring it to me! I haven't seen it in ages."

"Alright! Tomorrow I'll bring it to you! Then we'll go together to Wanlingyuan to pet a snow leopard!" Lu Qingjia thought of the big cat; just imagining Tuan Tuan stroking it made his palm tingle.

Tuan Tuan nodded repeatedly: "Great! Tomorrow we go! I miss my big cat too!"

Lu Qingjia had been wanting to hug her but never got the chance; now that Tuan Tuan's brothers were away, he leapt forward: "Little Alliance Leader, may I hold you?"

Tuan Tuan spread her two little arms toward him: "Okay!"

Lu Qingjia happily lifted her, weighing her: "Little Alliance Leader, you're so light! How come you eat so little? Tomorrow I'll treat you to crushed‑gold soup!"

Tuan Tuan sat in his arms, hugging his neck: "Sure! Bring Little Huamei along!"

Lu Qingjia answered at once: "No problem! I'll definitely bring it!"

Cheng Ru'an smiled at Meng Xin, who stood nearby, and said, "The two children get along quite well."

Meng Xin hurriedly bowed: "We have seen Princess Consort Ning, Princess Jiayou. Princess Consort puts it well; my son is usually like a wild horse—no one can command him unless it's the Little Princess! That's also amusing."

While the few were chatting idly, Huo Wenxuan and Murong Yuyiao walked over.

Meng Xin quickly bowed: "Miss Huo Wenxuan, Miss Murong Yuyiao, are you both well?"

Lu Qingjia was reluctant to set Tuan Tuan down, and, still holding her, raised his hand in a gesture.

The two gave a faint nod; Huo Wenxuan glanced at Tuan Tuan: "It seems Young Master Lu is quite familiar with you."

Tuan Tuan, annoyed by her, rolled her eyes at her: "Yeah! Are you jealous?"

Lu Qingjia almost couldn't hold back his laugh: "An Alliance Leader is still an Alliance Leader—so impressive!"

Huo Wenxuan's eyes widened instantly: "He's just the son of a minor Ministry of Personnel Assistant Minister; how could befriending him be something for Miss me to envy?"

Meng Xin's expression turned somewhat sour.

Murong Yuyiao lifted her chin even higher than Huo Wenxuan, paying no heed to Meng Xin and her son.

"I am the Empress Dowager's most favored junior; not only a minor Ministry of Personnel Assistant Minister, even the Minister of Personnel must bow when he sees me."

She smiled lightly: "Sister Wenxuan, you and I have grown up in the Palace since childhood; we see imperial relatives and high officials every day, so we naturally don't care about such things."

"Compared with those just brought back from the countryside," she glanced dismissively at Tuan Tuan, "their standards are naturally different."

She surveyed Tuan Tuan from head to toe, then fixed her gaze: "Your Jade Pendant is very exquisite; the Black Tortoise pattern on it is a Palace regulation—how could you wear it? Could it perhaps be a gift from the Eldest Princess?" After speaking, she glanced at Huo Wenxuan.

Huo Wenxuan followed her gaze, also noticing the Jade Pendant at Tuan Tuan's waist; she instantly recognized it as no ordinary piece, and jealousy flared in her eyes.

"Sister Yuyiao, you have a good eye; this truly is a Palace item. Could it really have been given by Auntie? How come I didn't know?"

Cheng Ru'an's heart sank; when the Emperor had presented Tuan Tuan with this Jade Pendant and told her to wear it thereafter, she had not taken it off, carefully hiding it beneath her outer skirt so no one would see.

She hadn't expected that Lu Qingjia's embrace would expose the pendant, allowing the two to see it.

Tuan Tuan glanced at the two and, in a baby‑like voice, asked, "Didn't you just say you grew up in the Palace? Don't you have anything better than mine?"

Murong Yuyiao and Huo Wenxuan were instantly speechless: indeed, they didn't.

The Jade Pendant radiated a luminous sheen, its carvings fine and patterns exquisite; anyone seeing it today could instantly tell it was far superior to what she wore.

Meng Xin, intending to divert, brushed the matter aside with a smile: "Ladies, it's time to take your seats; the hour is near, and the Empress Dowager and His Majesty should be arriving soon."

At that moment, a gate guard and inner attendant shouted loudly: "His Majesty has arrived! Empress Dowager, Eldest Princess has arrived!"

Huo Wenxuan and Murong Yuyiao could only fall silent and walk to their respective seats.

Everyone in the hall knelt and bowed: "Long live His Majesty, long live His Majesty, ten thousand years! Empress Dowager, Eldest Princess, may you be safe!"

Xiao Jieyun, clad in a black Dragon Robe, sat at the head of the hall; the Empress Dowager and the Eldest Princess sat to his left: "Stand down."

Tuan Tuan's tiny arms and legs wobbled as she saluted, standing out conspicuously among the adults.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The crowd rose and took their seats.

Murong Yuyiao was the first to speak: "Your Majesty, you may not know, but we were just discussing the Jade Pendant the Prince Ning's legitimate daughter is wearing today."

"It is so exquisite, even engraved with the Black Tortoise pattern; the one my sister Wenxuan and I wear can't compare to hers..."

Cheng Ru'an's brows tightened; this Miss Murong was determined to cut off relations with her daughter.

Meng Xin and Lu Qingjia couldn't help worrying for Tuan Tuan; although she is the Prince Ning's legitimate daughter and a Princess, the regulations on the Jade Pendant clearly make it unsuitable for her to wear.

The Empress Dowager's expression darkened as she looked at the Eldest Princess: "Could it be that you gave it?"

The Eldest Princess also frowned slightly: "Reporting to Mother Empress, it was not bestowed by any of my children."

Murong Yuyiao wore a gloating expression, as if enjoying the drama.

Huo Wenxuan's heart leapt with joy, for wearing a prohibited ornament at a palace banquet was a grave disrespect! Finally she could drive that wild girl of her aunt away.

Cheng Ru'an grew a little anxious; the Jade Pendant was a gift from the Emperor for Tuan Tuan's meritorious rescue, and the Emperor had strictly ordered that the matter not be spread, so how could they now explain it?

In the great hall, everyone cast sideways glances, sinking into a suffocating silence.

Tuan Tuan glanced at the Emperor, pouted, a look of grievance on her face, and pointed at Murong Yuyiao and Huo Wenxuan seated nearby: "Imperial Uncle! They're all eyeing my Jade Pendant, wanting to snatch it!"

"Imperial Uncle!" the shout rang out, and the hall erupted in a clamor.

Murong Yuyiao and Huo Wenxuan were both shocked and angry: "When did we ever try to snatch your Jade Pendant? That's an outright slander!"

This unruly girl actually has the audacity to call out "Emperor Imperial Uncle"? The seniority may be correct, but the royal heavenly authority cannot ignore the ruler‑subject order—this is sheer treason!

Huo Wenxuan shouted harshly: "Silence! What is your status! Eldest Princess has graciously allowed you to address her as Imperial Aunt—a heavenly favor—yet you dare to call the present sovereign Imperial Uncle?"

"Is it that you are relying on Prince Ning's present power to dare to despise the sovereign?"

Cheng Ru'an snapped his head up to look at her: "Are you trying to use this incident to drag the entire Ning Prince's Mansion into the mire? At such a young age, how can you be so vicious!"

Murong Yuyiao sneered: "Sister Wenxuan's words are correct; even if she is Prince Ning's legitimate daughter, Princess Jiayou, she cannot disregard the hierarchy, speak recklessly, and thus should be punished!"

She looked up at the Empress Dowager: "Your Majesty, you value ritual propriety above all; if this grave disrespect is let off lightly today, I fear that the entire Palace will descend into lawlessness in the future!"

"If this goes on, where will the rites and regulations be? How will the hierarchy be distinguished? Where will the royal dignity be placed?"