HomeSheng Shi Di FeiChapter 22: The Hundred Flowers Gathering (3)

Chapter 22: The Hundred Flowers Gathering (3)

“Hmph! Who did I expect to see? So it’s Third Miss Ye, the one Brother Jingli broke off the engagement with.”

Amid the peaceful atmosphere, there would always be one or two discordant voices. Everyone turned to see a nobly dressed young lady approaching, surrounded by her entourage.

Ye Li took a moment to recall the identity of the young lady before her—she was His Majesty’s cousin, Princess Ronghua, daughter of Princess Imperial Zhaoren and niece of Princess Imperial Zhaoyang. Though Ye Li wasn’t familiar with the capital’s young ladies, her uncle had her aunt send her detailed information about all the prominent families in the capital, with particular emphasis on several that required special attention. Princess Ronghua happened to be one of them.

“Princess Ronghua has a quick temper. Be careful, Miss Ye,” someone suddenly whispered beside Ye Li.

Ye Li looked up to see Inspector Qin’s daughter, Qin Zheng, giving her a kind smile. Ye Li nodded gratefully, and Qin Zheng smiled back.

“Greetings to the Princess,” everyone hurriedly came forward to pay their respects to Princess Ronghua.

Princess Ronghua snorted lightly, walked up to Ye Li, and scrutinized her for a long while before saying haughtily, “So you’re Ye Li?”

Ye Li nodded, “Yes, Princess, I am.” For some reason, Ye Li keenly sensed Princess Ronghua’s hostility toward her. Having never met the Princess before, Ye Li couldn’t understand the source of this animosity.

“Hmph, I heard you knew you were too ugly to show your face in public. Now that Brother Jingli has abandoned you, you’re suddenly eager to come out? Don’t you feel any shame?” Princess Ronghua’s exquisitely made-up face was full of disdain, and the young ladies standing nearby began whispering among themselves upon hearing her words.

A slight coldness flashed through Ye Li’s eyes, but her gaze remained steady as she looked at the imposing, spoiled young lady before her. Though Ye Li prided herself on her peaceful temperament, she had to admit this girl was thoroughly unlikeable.

“Thank you for your concern, Princess. I’ve been out for quite some time now and haven’t frightened anyone yet. Perhaps I was too self-deprecating before,” Ye Li’s tone was gentle but showed neither weakness nor avoidance. “As for Prince Li… I indeed wasn’t worthy of him. His Majesty’s decision to find another match for Prince Li was truly wise.”

“It’s good that you know your place!” Princess Ronghua was taken aback by Ye Li’s response but replied disdainfully.

Ye Ying hurriedly stepped forward, smiling apologetically, “Ronghua, my sister has never attended gatherings in the capital before. Please don’t hold it against her if she’s offended you somehow.”

Ye Ying wanted to play the role of a good sister defending her elder sister in public. However, Princess Ronghua had no intention of giving her face. She brushed away Ye Ying’s outstretched hand and gave her a look of disgust, “She’s useless, and you’re no better. Who are you to say whether this Princess takes offense or not?”

Ye Ying’s perfect smile froze on her face, and her rejected hand hung forgotten in mid-air. “Ronghua, you…”

Princess Ronghua raised her chin haughtily and looked at Ye Ying with disgust, “How dare you use this Princess’s name?”

Seeing the obvious anger, disgust, and jealousy in Princess Ronghua’s eyes as she glared at Ye Ying, Ye Li began to understand the situation. If Princess Ronghua was merely discourteous to herself, she was openly hostile and humiliating toward Ye Ying. It likely had everything to do with the renowned Prince Li. Ye Li shook her head internally—though she had no particular feelings for this sister, she equally disapproved of Prince Li and Princess Ronghua. Cousin marriages brought no benefits.

As Ye Ying looked pitifully at Princess Ronghua, her cherry lips trembling to speak, Ye Li stepped forward first, taking her hand and turning to face Princess Ronghua, “I heard the Princess and my younger sister were always quite close. If my sister has offended you, it’s due to my failure as her elder sister to guide her properly. Please be magnanimous, Princess.”

Princess Ronghua raised her delicate eyebrows, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll punish you? Or do you want to humiliate yourself like Ye Ying?”

Ye Li lowered her eyes and smiled faintly, “The Princess is gracious and magnanimous, surely you won’t be angered by such a small matter. After returning home, I will certainly report this to my parents, and we will make a special visit to the Princess’s mansion to apologize to you and your parents.” So could we please stop this now?

Princess Ronghua stared at Ye Li for a long while, then said thoughtfully, “You’re more presentable than Ye Ying. Brother Jingli’s judgment isn’t that good.”

Feeling Ye Ying’s wrist stiffen in her grasp, Ye Li couldn’t help but mentally roll her eyes: Princess Ronghua, will you die if you don’t stir up trouble?

“The Princess flatters me. Prince Li’s judgment and reputation have always been praised by all.”

Finally, Princess Ronghua gave a heavy snort and swept away with her entourage, leaving behind sympathetic, pitying, and worried looks from the crowd. Offending this spoiled Princess was no small matter.

“Fourth Sister, are you alright?”

After Princess Ronghua had gone far enough, Ye Shan and Ye Lin hurriedly came forward to show their concern, and several other young ladies close to Ye Ying also gathered around to comfort her. Even if Ye Ying had offended the Princess’s mansion and Princess Ronghua, they shouldn’t forget that she was still the future Princess Li. Prince Li was deeply favored by both the Emperor and Empress Dowager, and the status of Princess Li far exceeded that of Princess Ronghua.

“Princess Ronghua just has that temperament, don’t take it to heart,” a gentle, elegant voice said softly beside Ye Li.

Ye Li looked up to see the scholarly Inspector’s daughter smiling faintly, and replied with a frank smile, “I’m fine. Thank you for your warning earlier, Miss Qin.”

Qin Zheng smiled graciously, “No need for thanks. My mother and Madam Xu are close friends, and Madam Xu often mentions you. I’ve long wanted to meet you, but you rarely attend gatherings, so we never had the chance.”

Ye Li recalled that Miss Qin’s father, Inspector Qin, was a disciple of her grandfather, Master Qingyun. More importantly, Qin Zheng and her second cousin Xu Qingze seemed to have a marriage arrangement from birth. No wonder her cousin said the second cousin would be staying long in the capital—at nineteen, it was indeed time for him to marry. At this thought, Ye Li’s smile became more genuine, “Just call me by my name. I didn’t like going out before, but I’m glad I didn’t miss the chance to make such a good friend. Besides… we’ll be getting more familiar in the future, won’t we?”

Qin Zheng clearly understood her meaning and blushed, glaring at her, “I’m half a year older than you, you can call me sister. Let me introduce you to some good friends.”

So Ye Li and Ye Ying were pulled in different directions, with Qin Zheng introducing Ye Li to her close friends. Not surprisingly, these young ladies were the ones who had earlier greeted Ye Li. Upon discovering that Ye Li was not as inadequate as rumored, but rather an elegant and well-spoken young lady from a prestigious family, everyone happily accepted this new friend.

Sitting with her new friends and discussing interesting matters among the capital’s young ladies, Ye Li found these women not as dull as she had initially assumed. Indeed, these carefully cultivated young ladies from prominent families, most of whom would become the primary ladies of these great households, were naturally talented and capable intelligent women, not the lovesick maidens from storybooks who lived and died for romance.

“Miss Ye, you’d better keep your distance from that sister of yours,” Murong Ting, who had inherited her father Distinguished General Yang Wei’s forthright nature, said while glancing at Ye Ying, who was comparing zither skills with others nearby.

Ye Li raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

Murong Ting waved her hand, “Ye Ying’s reputation isn’t very good right now. I heard Princess Imperial Zhaoyang didn’t want to send her an invitation at all. Somehow she managed to get Noble Consort Xianzhao to personally intervene before getting one. Princess Imperial Zhaoyang is upright and despises those who don’t follow rules. If you’re too close to her, the Princess Imperial might direct her anger at you too.”

Ye Li knew Ye Ying’s reputation wasn’t good, but she was surprised it had reached this level. She had thought this era’s requirements for women weren’t as strict as in ancient times from her previous life.

“If it were just an arranged marriage, that would be one thing. Even if people were jealous, they couldn’t say much,” another young lady from the Marquis Hua’s family continued with furrowed brows. “But to have private interactions with your future brother-in-law before the engagement—what sister could tolerate that? Previously, Princess Ronghua was closest to Ye Ying, but as soon as the engagement was announced, she turned against her.”

Murong Ting said contemptuously, “I heard most of Prince Li’s meetings with Ye Ying were arranged through Princess Ronghua. Princess Ronghua probably feels Ye Ying used her.”

Qin Zheng frowned, “Enough, why are you discussing this in front of Li’er?”

The two suddenly remembered that Ye Li was the most direct victim in this matter—originally envied as the future Princess Li, now the pitied future Princess of First Rank. They looked at Ye Li apologetically, not knowing how to apologize.

Ye Li covered her mouth and smiled, “It’s not a big deal, just talk. You needn’t worry so.”

Qin Zheng looked at her worriedly, “Li’er… you…”

Ye Li waved her hand, “Imperial orders are hard to defy. Since things are as they are, we must accept reality. Self-pity serves no purpose, right? Besides, before his accident, the Prince of First Rank was also an outstanding person, and in these years, I haven’t heard that he has a bad temper. He should be easy to get along with.”

The previously heavy topic lightened considerably with Ye Li’s casual attitude. The four chatted and laughed for a while until servants from the Princess’s mansion came to invite the young ladies to the banquet. The four then rose and went together.

After everyone had gone far away, the originally bustling garden became much quieter, with only the distant sound of young ladies’ laughter carrying over. From behind the imposing artificial mountain, a figure in cyan emerged. The slender silhouette sat in a wheelchair, gazing in the direction the young ladies had gone, his gentle yet cold eyes flashing with profound thoughts…

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