The banquet is scheduled for the third day of the ninth lunar month.
That day was the Cold Dew solar term, and the ladies and young women of Yujing City were accustomed to holding banquets during the solar terms.
In spring, one strolls with flowers in one's hair, watching the falling blossoms and fine rain, the fallen petals and flowing water; in summer, one holds a banquet in a mountain pavilion at night, appreciating the clear springs, lush trees, various fruits, bamboo and cypress; in autumn, one climbs to a high place to look into the distance, discussing burning incense, hanging paintings, arranging flowers in vases; in winter, one gathers around a stove to brew tea, appraising jade, antiques, poetry, literature, music and chess.
Ultimately, different seasons and solar terms offer different ways to enjoy the activities.
There are still some days until the third day of the ninth lunar month. Zhu Jiayu has accepted the invitation to the Cold Dew Banquet, but he does not intend to listen to Lü Zheng's advice and stay at home to prepare for it.
She went to the ghost market again, this time to buy information about the Lin family.
She wanted to know who was left in the Lin family, and who, despite their impoverished state, still didn't give up on suppressing them or secretly helping them.
She wasn't trying to carry on Old Madam Qiu's legacy or to overturn the Lin family's case. However, she was destined to shine brightly in the capital in the future, and by then, the fact that her maternal grandmother was a former member of the Lin family would certainly not be kept secret.
Just in case, she needs to gather some information early on.
In the ghost market, a man dressed in a light blue robe stood silently by the window of a tall building.
He had a face as smooth as jade, both gentle and cold.
The servant knocked on the door, and after receiving permission, pushed it open and entered, bowing his head, saying, "Young master, the young lady wants to ask about the current social interactions within the Lin family."
The man nodded, his tone flat and calm, but his eyes held a turbulent undercurrent: "Give it to her, and also send her the orchid screen I acquired a few days ago. Tell her... it was a gift from an old friend."
The servant said yes and withdrew silently.
The man looked up again, watching the figure in the flowing red dress gradually disappear into the crowd, and chuckled softly.
Zhu Jiayu, how have you been?
...
Zhu Jiayu received the message from the Ghost Market messenger the day before the Cold Dew solar term.
Along with the mail, a hanging screen also arrived.
The hanging screen has a sandalwood base, is lacquered in green, and is painted with orchids in real gold, making it elegant, refined, and full of charm.
Zhu Jiayu didn't remember buying such a hanging screen at the ghost market, so she stopped the person to ask. However, the servant in the short brown robe only said that a young master had asked them to deliver it: "That young master also said that if you ask, just say that it was a gift from an old friend."
Zhu Jiayu stared at the hanging screen in front of her. After a while, she found a small groove behind the screen, where a piece of red rope was quietly placed.
She let out a cold laugh.
As she expected, Rong Heng was not dead.
Not only did he not die, he also brought her a long-awaited reunion gift.
She pulled out the red string, thinking of some distant, past events.
At that time, she and Rong Heng had not been engaged for many years. Rong Heng knew how to please her and often gave her all kinds of gifts, from small jade pendants and hairpins to large vases and ornaments. Whenever he gave a gift, a piece of red string would be embedded in the box or the gift itself.
She once asked Rong Heng why.
Rong Heng said, "From now on, I will not dare to miss this auspicious day, and I wish to entrust my longing to the red thread."
At that time, she was so naive and foolish that she was so easily deceived by his sweet words and even moved by those two lines of poetry.
Later, she saw a sandalwood ornament with a red cord inlaid in Princess Duanhua's villa, and found a delicate folding fan with a red cord inlaid in the hands of the eldest daughter of the Grand Historian. Even in the home of the old-fashioned Vice Minister of Works, there was a small-leaf sandalwood dragon pen holder with a red cord inlaid.
She finally understood that Rong Heng's affection might be genuine, but it wasn't just for her.
Of course, compared to being bisexual, Zhu Jiayu felt that Rong Heng was actually a very possessive person, so anything that belonged to him, whether or not it was given away, or to whom it was given, he would always mark it with his own mark.
Even though he knew it was likely to cause him trouble, he still did it with great enthusiasm.
He refuses to reveal his name now, but little did he expect that she would be able to find out his identity through this red string.
Zhu Jiayu slowly gathered the red rope in her palm, then opened her hand, letting the rope fall to the ground.
She turned to the servant who had brought the message and smiled, "In that case, please go back and tell that young master that I am in Yujing, waiting to collect his body."
Her smile was gentle and captivating, but when she spoke, she was unexpectedly ruthless—not a soft knife with honeyed words but a cold, sharp blade under the moonlight.
She let him escape last time, but this time, she wouldn't give him that chance again.
The servant trembled with fear.
He was just a lowly errand boy in the ghost market, who had never seen any great storms and had no idea that a beautiful and charming woman could have a ruthless heart and would take people's lives at the drop of a hat.
...
The Cold Dew season is just around the corner.
On this day, the dew was cold, as if it were about to freeze.
In Yujing City, the once lush green grass along the riverbanks and streets has turned withered and yellow. The Chunyin River is calm, with only reeds drifting and flying far away.
For today's banquet, Zhu Jiayu changed into a light purple jacket embroidered with eight auspicious symbols, underneath which was a bright yellow inner shirt and a light red skirt. Chrysanthemums were embroidered on the skirt with varying shades of yellow thread. As she walked, the light and shadow dappled, and the golden chrysanthemums opened and closed, making her look like a goddess from the frost-covered sky, gracefully emerging from a cluster of chrysanthemums, with an elegant and charming demeanor.
Lin Yulou was the first to go forward to greet them.
She called out to Miss Zhu somewhat awkwardly.
Zhu Jiayu stopped, smiled lightly, and nodded: "Miss Lin."
So the people not far away could see more clearly that Zhu Jiayu had dressed up specially today, making her already radiant appearance even more gorgeous and beautiful, like a bright moon reflected in the shimmering gold of the night.
Many people clenched their embroidered handkerchiefs, secretly gritting their teeth and saying, "What a vixen!"
Zhu Jiayu smiled as she accepted their envious and jealous glances, then whispered to Lin Yulou beside her, "Miss Lin doesn't look well. Is something wrong?"
Lin Yulou pursed her lips, and after a long while, she said helplessly, "Miss Zhu, please be extra careful today. If there are any situations you can't handle, don't force yourself."
She didn't know how the young ladies were going to deal with Zhu Jiayu, and all she could do was offer a few words of advice.
But then she thought that Xiao Ruiying had secretly invited Old Madam Xiao today, and perhaps things wouldn't get too bad.
Zhu Jiayu understood her implication, nodded slightly, and then asked in a questioning tone, "Miss Lin, aren't you afraid of being targeted because you're so close to me?"
Her tone was very well controlled; it sounded like she was genuinely asking a question, rather than doubting or testing.
Lin Yulou puffed out her cheeks: "I'm not afraid."
Oh dear, all she wants is to be close to her beautiful younger sister.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com