Chapter 288: Taking an Unconventional Path
Prince Rui returned slightly earlier than usual.
Princess Consort Wei took the tea from the maidservant and handed it to Prince Rui, signaling for everyone to withdraw.
“You know about the literary gathering?” Prince Rui asked knowingly.
“Yes, I was worried, so I sent Second Sister to take a look. After Second Sister told me, the more I thought about it, the more I felt these words were no small matter.” Princess Consort Wei frowned.
“Song Yun is likely as Miss Li said.” Meeting Princess Consort Wei’s puzzled gaze, Prince Rui explained, “It’s that Mr. Dongxi.”
“He’s really manipulating public opinion? Did that Miss Li know beforehand?” Princess Consort Wei was very surprised.
“There were a few impeachments before, Yan Ge’er suspected Song Yun’s involvement and is still investigating. Miss Li probably didn’t know.
“I sent someone to Pingjiang Prefecture to inquire about this Miss Li. The person returned yesterday and said that Miss Li’s elder brother and three elder sisters all have excellent character. I will have him come tomorrow to report the specific details to you in person,” Prince Rui said slowly.
“Regarding this Miss Li, take another look. If there are no major issues, you should finalize it. The Emperor has always been worried about Yan Ge’er’s marriage, and settling it will put his mind at ease,” Prince Rui continued.
“Alright,” Princess Consort Wei nodded.
……………………
Fourth Mistress Wei alighted from the cart at the second gate and headed straight for the two rows of hard-roofed houses not far from the gate. This was where the stewards and maidservants on duty rested.
The few maidservants standing in front of the hard-roofed houses saw Fourth Mistress Wei and quickly called out to report.
Fourth Mistress Wei stopped and looked at Nanny Liu, who came out to greet her, and called out, “Nanny Liu.”
Nanny Liu walked over, looked at Fourth Mistress Wei’s unusual complexion, and asked with concern, “What happened?”
Fourth Mistress Wei turned and walked back towards her courtyard, saying aggrievedly, “As soon as I arrived at the Xiùman Weaving Workshop, I ran into my Gu Family’s second cousin. I knew I shouldn’t have gone out today!”
“Did the Second Great Aunt scold you?”
“No, Second Cousin isn’t that kind of person. She asked if I was going to the God Worship Festival. I said it was too noisy and I wasn’t going. Then Second Cousin said: You must go, who else will accompany Miss Li? Nanny, listen to that!”
Nanny Liu quickly nodded to show she had heard.
“As soon as I heard that, I knew something was wrong. Before I could speak, Second Cousin said again: Miss Li has definitely never seen the excitement of our Jianle City’s God Worship Festival. You should accompany Miss Li and have a good time. Of course, I understood what she meant. So I asked her if she was going, and if Eldest Cousin and Aunt were going. Second Cousin just looked at me and said: Are you stupid? Of course, we’re not going, what would it mean if we went?”
“If they aren’t going, what does it mean for me to take Miss Li to the God Worship Festival?”
Nanny Liu chuckled, “Even if they don’t go in person, their eyes and ears will surely be there. Second Great Aunt is right, it’s indeed not appropriate for them to go.”
“Is this an arranged meeting?” Fourth Mistress Wei was full of annoyance. “What should I do?”
“What do you mean, ‘what should I do’? Second Great Aunt asked you to take Miss Li to play for a day, so you take her to play for a day,” Nanny Liu glanced at her Fourth Mistress.
“Nanny knows exactly what I mean! What should I say to Miss Li? It’s definitely not okay to say nothing, right? If I say something, how much should I say?” Fourth Mistress Wei was completely vexed.
“What’s so difficult about saying it? Just say that Gu Family’s Second Great Aunt reminded you that you should take Miss Li to see the excitement, and that will make things clear,” Nanny Liu said with ease.
“Nanny! Do you truly not understand, or are you pretending not to?”
“The people of Jianle City, Miss Li doesn’t know them. The customs of Jianle City, Miss Li doesn’t know. The rules and etiquette of families like ours, Miss Li understands even less. It’s not enough for her to know that Aunt wants to meet her; she needs to know how to speak, how to act, and what is considered proper!”
Fourth Mistress Wei gave Nanny Liu a glare.
“Oh, my dear! Are you the only one who knows this? Doesn’t the Princess Consort know? Don’t the Eldest Madam and Second Madam in the manor know?”
Fourth Mistress Wei’s eyes widened at Nanny Liu’s question.
“Besides, how many arranged meetings have you had? You’ve seen many, but how can you be so confused now? An arranged meeting is about temperament and character. Can you help with someone else’s temperament and character? Even if you could, you shouldn’t!”
Fourth Mistress Wei felt her mood relax after Nanny Liu’s words, but also felt a bit discouraged. “If it’s as Nanny says, then Miss Li can only rely on herself.”
“These kinds of things are all about relying on oneself. That Miss Li is a capable person, so you don’t need to worry about her.”
“What Nanny says… is also true.” Fourth Mistress Wei breathed a sigh of relief.
……………………
Before Fourth Mistress Wei’s invitation, Gu Yan had already sent Shi Gun to deliver a message: Princess Consort Wei intended to use the God Worship Festival for an arranged meeting with her. Also, if Li Xiaonan didn’t know or wasn’t sure about anything, she should ask Fourth Mistress Wei, no matter what.
After Shi Gun left, Wan Jing meticulously explained this God Worship Festival.
Before the God Worship Festival was the Sacrifice to Gao Mei, which was very grand and required the Empress to preside as the main officiant. As for what kind of deity Gao Mei was, Wan Jing couldn’t explain clearly, but it was very important.
The God Worship Festival after the Sacrifice to Gao Mei seemed to have originated after Emperor Taizong unified the world. In short, on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month, young ladies and young wives in Jianle City who could walk would all go to the Prefect’s Temple to spend the day.
After so many years, the God Worship Festival had developed many customary rules: for example, the young ladies and young wives from the noble families of Jianle City would gather in the garden behind the Prefect’s Temple.
Li Xiaonan heard Wan Jing talk about how good and plentiful the new wine was at the God Worship Festival and how exquisite the pastries were. She asked who was hosting the God Worship Festival. Wan Jing simply shook her head; she had only heard these things and hadn’t heard who the host was.
Li Xiaonan didn’t ask further. Who the host was didn’t matter at this point.
Early on the morning of the sixth day of the sixth lunar month, Fourth Mistress Wei’s carriage arrived at the Li family’s gate. Following Wan Jing’s advice, Li Xiaonan did not take Fourth Mistress Wei’s noble carriage. Instead, she and Wan Jing rode in their own paulownia wood carriage, following Fourth Mistress Wei’s carriage out of the city towards the Prefect’s Temple.
Fourth Mistress Wei and Li Xiaonan arrived earlier than any previous year, but when they reached the garden behind the Prefect’s Temple, they found that other young ladies and young wives had arrived even earlier.
Fourth Mistress Wei forced herself to appear nonchalant, glancing at Li Xiaonan from time to time.
Alas, at this year’s God Worship Festival, everyone was looking at Miss Li alone and discussing Miss Li alone. This kind of city-wide attention was hard to bear.
Alas, Aunt is truly something. Who arranges meetings like this!
From the moment she got out of the carriage, Li Xiaonan looked at everything with great seriousness and care. This was a real-life museum, no doubt about it!
Wan Jing followed closely behind Li Xiaonan, watching her diligently observe her surroundings. She felt a sense of pride: her young lady was truly magnificent. Look at this spirit of investigation and her dignified demeanor; she was unfazed no matter where she was!
Yu Ting had been trained by Wan Jing day and night for these past few days, but hadn’t made much progress. Fortunately, she was bold and straightforward. Now, she cautiously looked around. She was similar to Li Xiaonan; Li Xiaonan was curious about real-life historical artifacts, while Yu Ting marveled at how opulent everything was, how incredibly opulent!
After walking only a few steps, Ninth Lady Pan, who came out to greet Fourth Mistress Wei, saw Li Xiaonan and immediately her eyebrows shot up. “Why did you bring her here!”
Ever since she heard that the Young Lord was going to marry this Miss Li, Miss Li had taken the most detested position in Ninth Lady Pan’s heart. Seeing Li Xiaonan now, Ninth Lady Pan, who never knew how to hide her feelings, immediately erupted.
“Ninth Sister!” Fourth Mistress Wei raised her voice, then quickly replied, “This is Miss Li, we’ve met her in Pingjiang City.”
Seeing that Ninth Lady Pan clearly had no intention of backing down, Fourth Mistress Wei, before Ninth Lady Pan could speak, immediately followed up with, “Ninth Sister, who did you come with?”
“I came with my Eldest Sister-in-law. I’m asking you! Why did you bring her here?” Ninth Lady Pan completely missed the point of Fourth Mistress Wei’s words and continued to pester Li Xiaonan.
A silence fell around them, everyone straining to listen. Fourth Mistress Wei had never experienced such an awkward situation, her face turning bright red.
“Do you have a grudge against Fourth Mistress? A grievance?” Li Xiaonan stepped forward and asked Ninth Lady Pan.
“What nonsense are you talking about! What grudge do I have with Fourth Mistress!”
Towards Li Xiaonan, Ninth Lady Pan was even less polite.
“Then did Fourth Mistress offend you? When and where did Fourth Mistress offend you?” Li Xiaonan continued to ask.
“You’re trying to sow discord! Fourth Mistress and I are on very good terms! I’m talking about you!” Even if Ninth Lady Pan wasn’t quick-witted, she knew she had to refute this immediately.
“You mean I shouldn’t be here, right? Then you should have said it directly to me. Why are you taking it out on Fourth Mistress? If you use Fourth Mistress to insult me indirectly, won’t people think you’re bullying the weak and fearing the strong? Even if they don’t say you’re bullying the weak and fearing the strong, Fourth Mistress has done nothing wrong to you, and you’re making her lose face and be unable to step down. Aren’t you afraid Fourth Mistress will be angry?” Li Xiaonan spoke rapidly and clearly.
Wan Jing wanted to lift her chin but quickly lowered it. She had to maintain her young lady’s humility!
Ninth Lady Pan was not quick-witted to begin with, and Li Xiaonan’s words seemed to be perfectly reasonable. She couldn’t refute them, so Ninth Lady Pan simply pointed at Li Xiaonan and asked, “You! Then I’ll talk about you! Why are you here!”
“Is this your family’s garden? Are you hosting today? If not, what right do you have to control whether I can come?” Li Xiaonan asked calmly.
“I’m asking why you’re here, not whether it is or isn’t. I’m asking what you’re here for, what do you want to do!” Ninth Lady Pan was almost beside herself with anger.
“I’m here to see the excitement.”
“You!” Ninth Lady Pan was so angry she almost burst into tears.
Li Xiaonan stepped forward, grabbed the clothes on Ninth Lady Pan’s shoulder, and pulled her a few steps to the side.
“Let’s talk quietly for a moment. You’re angry with me because I’m going to marry the Young Lord, and I’ve taken Miss Shi’s marriage prospect, right?” Li Xiaonan whispered, her head close to Ninth Lady Pan’s.
“You know very well…”
“We’re not arguing. Are you angry because of this?” Li Xiaonan interrupted Ninth Lady Pan.
“Yes!” Ninth Lady Pan admitted frankly. “Sister Shi is too pitiful. Sister Shi and the Young Lord are so well-matched. It’s all you…”
“Then if you argue with me, or beat me up, or even if I were to die, would the Young Lord be able to marry your Sister Shi?” Li Xiaonan asked.
“Sister Shi said she doesn’t want to marry the Young Lord at all. Even if the Young Lord begged her on his knees, she wouldn’t marry him again!” Ninth Lady Pan said with her chin held high, finally venting her anger.
“Since that’s the case, then in front of so many people, you rush up and argue with me. What will everyone think? Everyone knows you and your Sister Shi are closer than sisters, right? Won’t everyone think you’re standing up for your Sister Shi, and that your Sister Shi is still desperately trying to marry the Young Lord?”
“No! I’m not! Sister Shi isn’t either!” Ninth Lady Pan glared at Li Xiaonan.
“Then you want to marry the Young Lord?” Li Xiaonan continued to ask.
“No!” Li Xiaonan’s question made Ninth Lady Pan’s face turn bright red. “I’m saying you’re not worthy! You! Not worthy!”
“I think, the Young Lord isn’t worthy of your Sister Shi, but he’s quite a good match for me,” Li Xiaonan said with a smile, looking at Ninth Lady Pan.
“It’s Sister Shi who isn’t worthy… no, it’s the Young Lord who isn’t worthy of Sister Shi, but you’re also not worthy of the Young Lord!” Ninth Lady Pan was a bit flustered.
“Who is worthy of the Young Lord, and who isn’t, is that your business?” Li Xiaonan asked Ninth Lady Pan seriously.
“How can you talk like that!” Ninth Lady Pan was almost in tears again. She was an unmarried young lady.
“Look, you definitely can’t win an argument with me. If you truly think I’m not worthy of the Young Lord, and you don’t want me to marry the Young Lord, then you need to find the right person. For example, go to your Eldest Sister-in-law. Tell your Eldest Sister-in-law that if I marry the Young Lord, you’ll smash your head against her. This is the most effective tactic.”
Facing Ninth Lady Pan’s wide, staring eyes, Li Xiaonan continued to offer advice.
“Or, you can go to Princess Consort Wei. You’re relatives, right? Go and speak ill of me to Princess Consort Wei, say whatever bad things you can, say them with all your might. Or, you can talk to the Young Lord, or the Prince. It’s useful to talk to them.”
Li Xiaonan patted Ninth Lady Pan’s shoulder, speaking earnestly.
Fourth Mistress Wei stood by, listening with wide eyes.
