Chapter 580 I Won''t Allow Anyone To Bully You (Part Two)
The empress''s pce was crowded with people, and thedies from different families all sat in specific
seats that represented their status. Upon their arrival, a eunuch announced outside, "Heree Lady
Harper, Lady Isabe and Lady Caroline."
"Harper and Isabe are really inseparable friends. They even came here together, like sisters," the
empress teased them with a smile. "If I didn''t know that Harper is actually a daughter of the Chu n, I
would have thought that she was actually a daughter of the Bu n."
"Greetings, Your Majesty," the three neers said in chorus after they came in.
"Arise quickly, please," the empress responded at once. She sounded happy. She fixed her eyes on
Harper''s outfit, and said, "I was just talking about you two and said that you are such close friends. I''m
d to see you here. Please sit down."
Harper looked at her seat, and then looked at Isabe''s seat. She stayed still, not moving to her own
seat. Seeing this, the empress got the point right away, andmanded directly, "Maid, put Isabe''s
seat next to Harper''s."
"Yes, Your Majesty," a maid replied at once, and did as shemanded.
"Thank you, Your Majesty,"
Harper said. She then helped Isabe sit down, as if it were a matter of course. Everyone present was
eager to see what Harper would say and do, because she was a controversial figure in the imperial
capital.
"Today is His Majesty''s fiftieth birthday, and it''s a beautiful day for our celebration. You don''t need to be
restrained or formal today. Later, let''s go all together to the Grand Hall, to celebrate His Majesty''s
birthday," the empress then announced to all her guests.
"Yes, Your Majesty," everyone answered.
In her boredom, Harper chatted mainly with Caroline. Isabe, on the other hand, was greeting with
several otherdies. Joyce Jun was simmering with resentment over her recent encounter with Harper.
But they were in the Imperial Pce now, and Harper''s status was very high, so she was totally unable
to make aint.
"Harper," the empress called abruptly.
Unfortunately, Harper had all her attention focused on her chat with Caroline. Consequently, she didn''t
hear the empress calling her.
The smile on the empress''s face faded slightly. When she was about to call again, Joyce Jun had
already called out, "Harper, you are so lofty and arrogant that you don''t even take Her Majesty
seriously. You just turned a deaf ear to her."
"Harper," Isabe also called at once. She had not paid much attention at first, but when she noticed
that the atmosphere in the hall had be awkward, she turned her head and alerted Harper with a
hard pinch. Thetter then turned around and asked, "What''s up?"
"Harper, Her Majesty called your name several times, but you pretended not to hear her. Don''t you take
her seriously?" said Joyce Jun in a voice dripping with sarcasm.
Ignoring her sarcasm, Harper stood up and bowed to the empress. "Please forgive me, Your Majesty.
The noise in the hall prevented me from hearing you. Please forgive me."
"It doesn''t matter," the empress said as she waved her hand and gestured for Harper to sit down.
However, Joyce Jun still wanted to make a bigger issue out of it.
"Your Majesty, how can you tolerate such disrespect?" Joyce Jun sulked.
"Joyce," the empress called out and frowned. She was actually annoyed about Joyce Jun. This day
was a major event and she was not supposed to make a stir like this. In particr, the empress didn''t
want to sh with Harper for the time being. If Harper was put on the alert by this, she would be unable
to carry out her ns.
Joyce Jun was still indignant, but she didn''t dare to go against the empress, so she just turned her
head and pretended to ignore Harper. The empress then turned to Harper with a smile.
"Harper, what kind of birthday gift will His Majesty get from Matthew this time? Do you have any idea?"
she asked.
"The birthday gift was prepared by Matthew, so I have no idea about that. I''m sorry I can''t give you any
clue," Harper replied with a smiling face. Despite being Matthew''s wife, she wasn''t required to prepare
a gift for the emperor. Besides, even though the emperor''s birthday was a big event, it meant nothing to
her or to Matthew.
"I''m sure the birthday gift prepared by Matthew is good," the empress said. She didn''t really care that
Harper imed to know nothing of Matthew''s gift. She only cared about her ns that day. If her ns
seeded, then the emperor would receive the best birthday gift from her.
Therefore, she was not provoked by Harper''s reply. She cast a nce at the two maids beside Harper,
and then began talking to her daughter-inw beside her.
"Your Majesty, it''s about time for the birthday banquet to begin," a maid informed the empress.
"The birthday banquet is about to begin. Now all of us shall go to the Grand Hall together," the empress
then said to everyone.
RêAdt??St chapters at Novel(D)ra/ma.Org Only
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The empress led all thedies to the Grand Hall. Because Harper was Matthew''s wife, which made her
a princess, she was not far behind the empress. Yet, the empress suddenly grabbed Harper by the arm
and asked her to walk with her.
"Harper, can you walk with me? Let''s chat for a bit," the empress said smilingly, as she held Harper''s
arm. "Now, His Majesty thinks very highly of Matthew, and even asked him to be responsible for the
safety of this birthday banquet. Now that you have some time away from Matthew, you can talk with
me."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Harper replied inly and made a slight nod. She was bing a bit curious
about what the empress had up her sleeve.
The empress patted the back of her handcently. When they arrived at the Grand Hall, it was still
early and the birthday banquet had not begun yet. So the empress went to the side hall to rest for a
while, and the others sat at their own seats and waited for their families.
The empress also took Harper into the side hall. When they entered the side hall, Harper nced at
Fred. Fred, however, only blinked his eyes. He didn''t resist when he was blocked outside the side
hall.