As Mingtan sat at the breakfast table the next day, spooning bird’s nest porridge, she suddenly realized she had forgotten to tell her husband about Lu Ting’s misdeeds. However, it wasn’t a major concern, as today happened to be the monthly military drill day for the Palace Guard. Lu Ting was waiting for Jiang Xu to arrive and answer his questions.
Lu Ting’s attendant, who had a good memory, recalled Zhou Jingwan’s words by the pond yesterday. However, he only remembered the words, not their meaning, stumbling slightly in his retelling and inevitably making mistakes in punctuation.
After listening, Jiang Xu couldn’t help but glance at Lu Ting.
Lu Ting’s usually stern face showed a rare flicker of emotion. “Your Highness, what did Miss Zhou mean exactly?”
“…”
“She means she doesn’t want to marry you.”
Lu Ting fell silent, then couldn’t resist asking, “How can you tell?”
While watching the soldiers drill, Jiang Xu explained calmly, “Knowing the fish is unhappy means she doesn’t like your courtship methods. When you said to feed the fish more, she probably misunderstood it as you increased the betrothal gifts to force the marriage. So, she’d rather die than comply.”
Rather die than comply?
As the drill ended, Jiang Xu turned to leave. Passing Lu Ting, he paused briefly and chuckled, “Feed the fish more… quite the way with words.”
Lu Ting: “…”
—
Jiang Xu had no desire or time to meddle in Zhou and Lu’s affairs. But Mingtan, concerned for her friend, used her powers of persuasion, and he had to address it somewhat.
“Miss Zhou’s wishes aren’t the only factor in the Zhou family’s marriage decisions. Her father is highly respected among scholars, and her sister married the eldest son of Examiner Li, who is likely to be promoted to Director of the Imperial Academy. Do you think it’s appropriate for the Zhou family to seek another marriage alliance with a high-ranking civil official?”
Hanlin Academy scholars were potential prime minister candidates. While prestige was good, too much prestige and too many civil official in-laws might suggest forming factions to pave the way for the prime minister position.
In comparison, Lu Ting’s position as Commander of the Palace Guard, though powerful, was directly under the Emperor’s command. This made him more suitable than other suitors.
Realizing this, Mingtan felt somewhat melancholic.
No matter how suitable Commander Lu was, Jingwan didn’t like him. But marriage arrangements had never been solely based on a young lady’s preferences.
Perhaps she had become complacent due to her fortunate marriage. In the end, if Mr. and Mrs. Zhou found the match suitable, others had no right to interfere.
—
The late spring days, fragrant with flowers and warm breezes, seemed to pass more quickly than usual. Before they knew it, ten days had passed, and the Pingguo Duke’s late spring gathering was upon them.
Jiang Xu had gone to Qingzhou a few days earlier and hadn’t returned, missing this lively event.
Though disappointed, Mingtan consoled herself. It was fine this way; with her husband absent, she could bask in her status as the Princess Consort on her own.
Suxin had caught a cold recently, so Mingtan left her to rest and instead brought Yunyi, disguised as a maid, along.
Yunyi, a skilled operative from the Jinyun Guard, had been posing as a concubine in the manor and regularly paid respects to Mingtan as per her orders.
After meeting her a few times, Mingtan found Yunyi’s personality intriguing.
Typically, assassins trained from childhood would be somewhat cold-hearted, having shed blood. But while Yunyi could kill effortlessly, she seemed pure-hearted and naive in daily life, finding everything curious and novel.
Since the clothes Mingtan gifted her were too intricate, Yunyi would always seek help from Madam Fang to dress properly before coming to pay respects.
Today, dressed as a maid, she came to Qian’an Hall, asking Lüe to help her dress.
Once in maid’s attire, Yunyi followed Mingtan and suddenly asked out of nowhere, “Princess Consort, I bought a roasted chicken outside the manor yesterday. Can I claim it as an expense? My monthly allowance is almost gone.”
“How is it gone already? Wait, why did you buy a roasted chicken outside?” Mingtan was puzzled.
Yunyi explained frankly, “I was hungry last night and didn’t want to bother anyone. I tried to sneak to the kitchen for food, but the manor was so big I couldn’t find it after searching for ages. So I climbed over the wall and bought a roasted chicken outside. I also bought you a package of osmanthus sugar cakes. So can I claim it as an expense?”
“…?”
“Where are the sugar cakes?”
Yunyi: “I was still hungry after the chicken, so I ate those too.”
Mingtan: “No sugar cakes, no reimbursement.”
Lüe couldn’t bear to listen anymore. Was this Concubine Yun serious? Bothering her mistress with such trivial matters.
And why was her mistress acting childishly with this concubine? The dignified Princess Consort, arguing about roasted chicken and sugar cakes first thing in the morning!
Fortunately, Yunyi was honest and immediately promised to buy another package of osmanthus sugar cakes for the Princess Consort tomorrow. She also sincerely praised the Princess Consort’s beauty, calling her a divine beauty.
Mingtan’s mood improved, and she quickly agreed. “By the way, you still haven’t explained how you spent all your allowance.”
“A few days ago, I went to the east side of the city and met a small beggar. Feeling sorry for him, I bought him some buns. Suddenly, a whole group of young beggars swarmed around asking for buns—”
“…”
Well, at least she was kind-hearted.
Today, the Pingguo Duke’s mansion would be crowded. Bringing Yunyi along was both a precaution and an opportunity for her to experience such a lively event for the first time.
Before boarding the carriage, Mingtan instructed, “When we arrive at the Pingguo Duke’s mansion, stay close to Lüe. Do whatever she does, and don’t wander off.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Last year’s spring poetry gathering had caused traffic congestion on Chengzheng Street in front of the Pingguo Duke’s mansion. Fengzhao’s carriage had blocked the Jing’an Marquis, leading to a spat between Mingtan and Ming Chu.
This time, Chengzheng Street was equally bustling, but when the carriage bearing the Northern Defender Prince’s insignia arrived, even the most crowded areas made way.
Fengzhao watched from afar, sneering.
After the embarrassing incident at the Grand Xiangguo Temple, Princess Yi adopted a humble stance, sending gifts and apologies, even personally visiting the Grand Princess’s residence.
Though Zhai Nianci was reluctant to let it go, Grand Princess Wenhui didn’t want to escalate her daughter’s conflict, so she suppressed the matter.
As a result, things had been calm between the two households lately.
However, the Prince and Princess Yi were determined to marry Fengzhao off to distant Shu. They had kept her confined at home to prevent further trouble. Today’s outing was only to accommodate Jiangyang Marquis’s request to see his potential second wife at the gathering.
—
Zhang Hanmiao, true to the elegant gathering’s name, had arranged various refined activities.
The spring scenery was beautiful, with a gentle breeze carrying the fragrance of early lotuses swaying in the lake amidst the blooming flowers.
The men were directed to the polo field for games and archery contests, while the women were led by maids along a path, their destination a mystery until they heard the sound of flowing water. They arrived at a stream for an elegant “floating wine cups” party.
This literary tradition involved placing wine cups on bamboo rafts to float downstream, with guests drinking from them as they passed.
Today’s event had a twist: the ladies’ luncheon was set along the stream banks. Guests sat on both sides, enjoying delicacies. Wine cups still floated downstream, but now only one at a time. Whoever the cup stopped in front of would be given a challenge by the previous person.
The challenge could be composing poetry or solving riddles, at the challenger’s discretion.
If the person couldn’t answer, they had to drink the wine. If they succeeded, they could choose anyone else to drink it.
As the Northern Defender Princess, Mingtan sat near the upstream end, making it unlikely for cups to stop before her. She was content to observe the game without participating.
Zhang Hanmiao issued the first challenge. The atmosphere was delightful, with the sound of flowing water, occasional flower petals drifting by, poetry being composed, and the distant excitement from the polo field.
However, this pleasant mood was soon disrupted by the troublemakers Zhai Nianci and Fengzhao.
A cup stopped before Zhai Nianci. The previous challenger, not daring to offend the Yongle County Princess, gave an easy task. After Zhai Nianci answered, she directed Fengzhao to drink.
Though displeased, Fengzhao complied.
They exchanged a few barbed words, but Zhang Hanmiao managed to smooth things over. However, by chance, the next cup stopped right in front of Fengzhao.
According to the rules, it was Zhai Nianci’s turn to issue a challenge.
Zhai Nianci laughed outright and stood up, saying bluntly, “Then I ask Princess Fengzhao to compose a poem about peonies.”
This request caused a stir among the guests. They had known Fengzhao to be troublesome, but now it seemed the Yongle County Princess was equally adept at stirring up conflict!
Mingtan watched the drama unfold from afar, thinking that given Fengzhao’s temperament, it wouldn’t be surprising if she threw the wine in Zhai Nianci’s face.
Unexpectedly, though Fengzhao was angry and about to say something, she swallowed her words. Even more surprisingly, she picked up the cup and composed a peony poem.
Everyone: “…?”
In the ensuing silence, Fengzhao provocatively said, “Since I’ve answered the challenge, I request the Northern Defender Princess to drink this wine.”
Mingtan, who had been enjoying the spectacle: “…?”
Soon, a maid brought the cup to Mingtan.
Mingtan lowered her gaze, feeling something was amiss.
Fengzhao had touched this wine; could there be a problem with it? Why did she feel so uneasy?
But with all eyes on her, she couldn’t refuse to drink or test the wine publicly.
If she tested it and found nothing wrong, it would not only embarrass Fengzhao but also insult the Pingguo Duke’s household.
As Mingtan hesitated, she suddenly heard Yunyi’s voice: “Don’t worry, Your Highness. I’ve switched it.”
Switched it?
Hearing this, Mingtan calmly drank the wine, considering the matter settled.
When no one was paying attention to her, she quietly asked, “How did you switch it, and where did it go?”
Yunyi paused.
She had only been concerned about her mistress’s safety, not caring about others. She had simply exchanged it with one of the many cups that hadn’t yet floated downstream.
Though she had marked it with a scratch.
Oh, coincidentally, it seemed to be the cup the Yongle County Princess was now drinking.