Crossing the Palace Fighting Fox Harem

Chapter 122: Playing Cards and Drinking

"The beads can come back by themselves? This is really weird." Ji Anni was curious and scared. Her blood, which naturally loved excitement, was boiling again. "I really want to go and see it if I have the chance..."

"Xiao Zhao..." Yizhen, who was standing by, had already broken out in a cold sweat. She pulled Ji Anni aside and whispered, "Don't talk about this anymore. Let's change the subject."

"As the saying goes: If you don't do bad things, you don't have to worry about ghosts knocking on your door. Even if the fox demon queen is so evil, we didn't harm her, so why should we be afraid? Besides, if the fox demon queen was really that scary, this palace would have become a mass grave long ago. How could we have the chance to hold a dinner party here to celebrate your birthday?" Ji Anni had an indifferent attitude. After comforting Yizhen, she turned around and asked Yun Zhen with great interest, "Yun Zhen, you are a Taoist priest and you know how to capture demons the best. Tell me, what's the matter with the fox beads in the demon-suppressing temple?"

Yun Zhen said, "My Lady, those are all old stories from a hundred years ago. As time goes by, it is inevitable that there will be some misunderstandings, and the truth is difficult to verify. Since the matter of the fox beads was not explained clearly back then, it is even more unclear now. Moreover, the Demon Temple has been sealed long ago, and no one usually goes near it. Everyone just thinks that there is no such place. There are stories about the Fox Demon Lady, but everyone just treats them as nonsense and forgets about them. No one takes them seriously."

If you think more deeply about these words, Yun Zhen is actually tactfully suggesting that Ji Anni change the subject.

It seemed that the only people who were interested in the Fox Demon Lady were Princess Tianning and Ji Anni. The rest of the people were either pale or expressionless. Considering the atmosphere of the banquet, Ji Anni had to give up trying to get to the bottom of the Fox Demon Lady. She took a few more skewers of meat and grilled them while saying, "It's a good day today, so whatever the birthday girl says is fine. Since Yizhen is afraid of ghost stories, then... come on, Tianning, tell me a joke."

The tone was like saying to a puppy, "Come, turn around and take a look."

Tian Ning immediately shouted in dissatisfaction: "Why me again?"

"Who told you to eat the most today?" Ji Anni seemed to be increasingly looking down upon Tian Ning, and she bullied him whenever she wanted.

"Is it okay not to eat?" Tian Ning got angry and sat back in the pavilion.

She was angry, and she kept silent just to have some peace and quiet. Ji Anni was so happy that she pulled Yizhen and Baoguifei over. The three sisters gathered around the pond, grilling and eating. Finally, Yunzhen joined them, leaving Princess Tianning alone in the pavilion. She wanted to join but couldn't bring herself to do so, and she felt lonely if she didn't join. Just when she was feeling depressed, Huarong and Die'er finally came back from the imperial kitchen.

Huarong was carrying a small basket, which must have contained dishes; Dieer was holding a tray with a green jade bottle on it - it must have contained wine.

"Princess Zhao, the wine is here. Please come up and have a few drinks with me." Princess Tianning finally didn't have to sit alone anymore.

But Ji Anni was busy now, grabbing a handful of bamboo sticks in one hand, and responded without raising her head: "Princess, enjoy it slowly, Zhao Ji doesn't drink."

"Just drink a few more cups and you'll be fine." Princess Tianning was young, but she looked like an old drunkard when she was trying to persuade him to drink. She walked over in two or three steps and pulled Ji Anni back to the pavilion to accompany her without saying anything.

Ji Anni was still holding a bunch of uncooked potato chips in her hand, and said unhappily, "Princess, it's not that Zhao Ji is ruining your fun, but Zhao Ji is not a good drinker. I'm afraid... afraid... afraid that she will have sex indiscriminately after drinking."

Princess Tianning laughed when she heard this and said, "It's okay, we are all women, do you think I am afraid of you?"

This shocked Ji Anni. If Princess Tianning was a man, Ji Anni would definitely suspect that she was trying to get her drunk on purpose and had bad intentions. How could a thirteen-year-old girl drag another woman to drink? It was strange no matter how she thought about it.

At this time, Concubine Baogui stepped forward and explained to Ji Anni, "The princess is imitating Concubine Kang."

After hearing what Concubine Baogui said, Ji Anni remembered that Concubine Kang drank the cup of imperial wine that the emperor rewarded after the archery ceremony of the hunting meeting. At that time, Concubine Kang held the wine glass, tilted her neck gracefully, and drank the wine in one gulp, which made Ji Anni, who was also a woman, couldn't help but feel a little excited.

Princess Tianning and Concubine Kang were close to each other and must have learned some generosity from each other.

Ji Anni looked at the jade wine bottle that Die'er was holding, and estimated that it couldn't even hold two taels of wine. With just this little bit of wine, why did he pretend to be a hero? He couldn't help but find it a little funny.

"Concubine Zhao, please come and sit down." Princess Tianning urged again after pouring two glasses of wine.

It's not that Ji Anni really can't drink, but she doesn't want to drink with Tian Ning. Firstly, she is afraid that the Queen Mother will find out and accuse her of something; secondly, she is afraid that Princess Tian Ning will get into trouble after getting drunk.

Just when Ji Anni was in trouble, the voice of Concubine Baogui came softly from her ear: "Sister, Tian Ning tried every means to win you once. Don't refuse first, just drink a few cups with her and admit defeat. After you admit defeat, she will be satisfied. Hua Rong is smart, I think the wine must have been mixed with half a bottle of water, two or three cups will not make people drunk, you don't have to worry."

Ji Anni always regarded the words of Baogui Concubine as good advice. Now that Baogui Concubine said so, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and go ahead. She handed the half-baked potato slices to Baogui Concubine and said, "Okay, sister, these potatoes will be left to you and Yizhen to bake, and I will have a few drinks with the princess."

Seeing Ji Anni finally sit down opposite her, Princess Tianning smiled contentedly.

Ji Anni picked up a glass filled with wine and was about to drink it all in one gulp to complete the task as soon as possible. Unexpectedly, as soon as she held the glass, Princess Tianning held her hand.

"What's wrong with you, Princess?" Ji Anni tried her best to keep a friendly smile.

Princess Tianning said, "It's boring to just drink. How about we play chess? The loser will drink a glass as punishment."

Without waiting for Ji Anni's reply, he ordered Hua Rong on his own initiative, "Hua Rong, go get the chessboard."

Hua Rong responded and turned around to leave, only to hear Ji Anni burst out, "Wait!"

"Don't you think Concubine Zhao can play chess?" Princess Tianning asked with a smile.

"I can, but playing chess is such a waste of time." Ji Anni was telling the truth.

Although her chess skills were not superb, they were at least at a medium level, slightly higher than the entry level. If she played with Princess Tianning with all her strength, she would probably win or lose half of the time. But the problem was that she only wanted to win quickly, admit defeat to Princess Tianning as soon as possible, and send Princess Tianning back to the palace as soon as possible. If she relied on playing chess to decide the outcome, who knew how long it would take.

"What suggestions does Concubine Zhao have?" Princess Tianning asked humbly.

"Princess, do you still remember the playing cards?"

The night before the Emperor's banquet for the concubines, Ji Anni made a deck of playing cards overnight in order to avoid Princess Tianning's training. After teaching it to Tianning the next day, Tianning immediately became fascinated by it. Now this simple handmade deck of playing cards is in this right courtyard.

Ji Anni said, "Why don't we play cards and bet on wine? We each draw a card at a time, and whoever has the lowest score loses. The loser will be fined to drink a glass of wine, how do you think?"

"Okay. I'll listen to you." Princess Tianning agreed readily.