Chapter 2 Playing with fire and getting burned?
Song Lingyi listened with a smile on her face, "Thank you, Brother Jianzhi, for your guidance."
"It wouldn't be called guidance. My master told me this." Pei Zhao slowly stood up and straightened the sleeves of his white, straight-stitched robe. "I've been out for a while now, and it's time for me to return to the table. Miss Song, do you want to come with me?"
Song Lingyi wanted to happily agree, but her stomach started to hurt again. It seemed that she had eaten too much last night. She smiled awkwardly and waved her hands: "No, no, I'll sit for a while. Brother Jianzhi, please go back first."
Seeing her strange expression, Pei Zhao mistakenly thought that she was afraid that others would see them walking together, so he didn't say anything more. The smile on his lips faded a little, and he walked out of the pavilion.
It was not until the slender moon-white figure entered the corridor that Song Lingyi pounded her stomach.
The corridor is dimly lit by candles.
It was quiet all around.
Song Lingyi walked towards the bathroom with her head down.
There were about seven or eight stone steps ahead. Just as she was about to lift her skirt and step up, she suddenly saw a large shadow descend from above, tightly covering the thin shadow on the ground. The already dim light dimmed even further.
"Are you the orphan girl from the Song family?"
The boy's voice was low and cold, like an icy mountain spring, which made the girl's heart suddenly tighten.
Song Lingyi looked up.
The man was looking down from a high place, with the light behind him, so his face could not be seen clearly, but his pair of auspicious phoenix eyes revealed a rebellious arrogance.
Taking in the boy's darkly patterned gold brocade robe, Song Lingyi suspected he was the Kyoto bully Lu Qian her cousin had mentioned. He hadn't been home all day, and the way he'd shown her power the moment they met was fitting for his character.
"You must be my cousin."
Song Lingyi raised her arms and bowed, her eyes curved and she smiled falsely.
"I just returned to Beijing today and haven't met my cousin yet. Now that I see him, he's exactly like the rumors said."
"oh?"
Lu Qian pressed his tongue against his cheek, looking down at her with a lazy yet wild gaze, "What do the rumors say about me?"
"..." Song Lingyi was obviously stunned for a moment.
It's just a polite remark, why are you asking further questions...
"Of course I'm praising my cousin for his handsomeness and extraordinary bearing—"
As she spoke, the shadow cast by the height gradually approached, and her voice stopped abruptly.
Song Lingyi lowered her head, her forehead throbbing twice. She thought to herself, what is this pretty boy going to do? Is it not okay to praise him?
"What were you talking about with Dead Fish Face just now? You looked so happy." Lu Qian smiled evilly.
Dead fish face?
who?
Could it be Pei Zhao?!
Song Lingyi pondered this and subconsciously let out a mocking chuckle: "You're such a person, and you still have the nerve to call Brother Jianzhi a 'dead fish face'."
As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly realized that this person was not someone to be trifled with, and she covered her lips with her hands and smiled awkwardly.
"Like this?" Lu Qian suppressed his smile and leaned closer, a chill of oppression piercing Song Lingyi. "What about me?"
Song Lingyi took a half step back, and the initial urge to defecate was completely suppressed.
"Cousin just returned home, grandma just asked where you were going."
The topic changed abruptly. Lu Qian sneered and didn't bother with her. He walked straight around Song Lingyi and went towards the hall.
"As your cousin, I have to give you some advice."
Lu Qian walked briskly, without even turning his head, and said, "The second son of the Pei family comes from a prominent family, and many noble ladies in Kyoto admire him. You are an orphan, so don't try to get close to him. You might end up getting burned."
“…”
Song Lingyi paused, her expression suddenly darkening.
Playing with fire and getting burned? She just didn't believe it.
…
Within a day, the news that the Duke of Jin's Mansion had found his cousin spread like wildfire and became known to everyone.
Many high-ranking officials in Kyoto wanted to curry favor with the Duke's Mansion, but the second daughter of the Duke's Mansion had just reached the age of marriage and was not in a hurry to get engaged; and the young master was a mischievous devil, so no noble lady in Kyoto dared to marry him.
Although this cousin was an orphan from a poor family, she was deeply loved by Old Lady Lu and the Duke and his wife. If they could form a marriage, it would also be considered a connection with the Duke's Mansion. The wives of the officials vied with each other to introduce this cousin and that nephew to Wang, but the quality of their performance was uneven.
On this day, a poetry gathering was held at Bishui Yuntai.
The organizer was a highly respected scholar from Wenlushan Academy, so the attendees included not only literati and poets, but also high-ranking officials and royal relatives.
When Song Lingyi arrived, many noble ladies were already seated at the female banquet table. Eyes from all directions were focused on her, some sizing her up, some probing her, some looking at her with contempt.
It wasn't until she sat down that the gazes subsided a little.
The poetry reading had not yet officially begun, but the ladies were already chatting animatedly about everything from how to dress to the preparations they had made for the poetry reading today.
Lu Yu took a bite of the cake and said cheerfully, "I've heard from my grandmother that my aunt is a very talented woman. If my cousin comes to the poetry gathering, she will definitely stand out among the noble ladies."
When she received the invitation to the poetry reading, she had no intention of coming, but her cousin took the initiative to ask for it, so she came.
"Um, what corner?"
Song Lingyi had just arrived and didn't know that men and women in Dayuan had to sit at separate tables. While she was perfunctorily answering her little cousin, she glanced around inconspicuously, trying to find Pei Zhao.
"My cousin's poem is ready. Can you show it to me in advance?" Lu Yu tugged at the corner of Song Lingyi's clothes and looked at her with her bright almond-shaped eyes.
"What poem?" Song Lingyi frowned.
Only a few noble ladies in Kyoto could write poetry, so when they participated in poetry gatherings, they would either buy poems in advance or write one in advance, just in case.
Lu Yu thought her cousin was hiding her talent, so she pretended to be profound and said, "Ah, I see. My cousin is planning to compose a song right now."
“…”
Song Lingyi didn't quite understand.
She came to the poetry gathering because Pei Zhao would be there, and weren't these ancient banquets all about eating, drinking, and chatting? Confused, she asked directly.
Lu Yu tilted her head and said, "Since it's a poetry gathering, of course we have to write poems, but the main purpose is to see the poems written by talented scholars. We are just doing some small things here, so it's okay to write some casually."
The two sisters were whispering to each other when the noble ladies sitting outside the pavilion suddenly started to make a noise. Song Lingyi vaguely heard them mention something about the second prince, but did not pay too much attention to it.
Over there.
The banquet of talented scholars was extremely lively. When everyone was talking enthusiastically, they suddenly heard "The Second Prince has arrived", and they all fell silent and changed their expressions.
Xiao Du strode into the pavilion, wearing brocade clothes and a golden crown, holding a folding fan in his hand, his belt inlaid with gold thread and agate, and two or three jade pendants hanging from it. With every step he took, the rings and pendants jingled with his steps.
The scholars and writers all bowed their hands in greeting and shouted in unison: "Welcome His Royal Highness the Second Prince."
Xiao Du walked to the seat at the head without looking around, sat down with a very casual attitude, and raised his hand slightly: "Stand up."
"Thank you, Your Highness the Second Prince."
Xiao Du's sudden arrival had left the pavilion feeling much quieter. Pei Zhao sat near the head of the table, his expression calm and composed.
"I didn't know the Second Prince was coming. I'm sorry for not welcoming you." A middle-aged man dressed like a scholar came forward and greeted him with a smile.
The great scholar who was to host this poetry gathering had not yet arrived. Pei Zhao came from a prominent family whose family had never sided with either the Second Prince or the Crown Prince, so his attitude would not be too enthusiastic. That was why this senior from Wenlushan Academy took the initiative to take on the task of entertaining the Second Prince.
The Second Prince is deeply favored by the Emperor, and his mother is the most favored of the six palaces. Now that the Crown Prince is not in Kyoto, there are voices in the court calling for "abolishing the legitimate heir and enthroning the virtuous one". No one dares to offend the Second Prince until the last moment.
Xiao Du folded up his folding fan with a snap, pushed the senior brother away with the end of the fan, and his eyes fell directly on Pei Zhao.
"When I heard that Wenlushan Academy was holding a poetry gathering, I guessed Pei Erlang would come."
This kind of arrogance that doesn't take others seriously is Xiao Du's usual style of doing things. Pei Zhao is used to it and smiles indifferently.
"The Second Prince has always prioritized official duties and would not normally attend such leisurely poetry gatherings. I wonder what brought you here today?"
Xiao Du leaned back, gently waving his folding fan, and snorted coldly, "I'm usually quite busy. Today, I rode past East Street and heard you were holding a poetry gathering, so I just took a look."
If he really wanted to win over the Pei family, he wouldn't bother coming to this damn poetry gathering.
"Second Prince, you have arrived at the right time. We have written a few new poems. Would you like to show them to you first?" the senior brother asked with a smile.
Seven or eight sheets of rice paper were presented to him. Xiao Du scanned them quickly, then threw them on the table in front of him and said, "Very good."
"I heard that your poetry competition doesn't have any prizes, it's just a competition of talent?"
"Exactly."
Xiao Du touched his chin and placed the folding fan in his hand on the table. "This fire-painted fan of mine is worth a fortune. It will be the prize for today. The women next door are also expected to write poems at the banquet. Whoever writes the best poem will receive the fire-painted fan as a reward."
The whole room was silent.
Everyone knows that the second son of the Pei family is both talented and handsome, and writing poems and essays is no problem for him.
The Second Prince had always wanted to win over the Pei family, and this Fire Painted Fan was just the pretext. Not only did no one at the men's table dare to snatch the prize, even the unsuspecting women next door would have a hard time snatching it from Pei Zhao.
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