The Swallow Hairpin that Madam Zhang wore was made by Xu Lanyin. Madam Pu's thoughts also confirmed their previous speculation.
Liu Ying, Zhao Wu’s mother’s surname is indeed Liu!
Although Xu Lanyin had already guessed it, she still felt heartbroken when she heard someone call her Liu Ying. She tried her best to suppress her emotions, keeping a straight face, and sat back down.
Minjia and her two aunts were brought along by Li. They greeted the old ladies and then went to Feihua Pavilion.
At 9:00 PM, the talent show began in Feihua Pavilion. Madam Pu smiled at Princess Nanyang and Princess Xiyang and said, "Your Highnesses love watching talent shows the most. Why didn't you go?"
Princess Nanyang laughed and said, "It's too old to look at those children's things. It's better for the old sisters to get together and talk."
Princess Xiyang also laughed and said, "Exactly. I'm old now and I don't have that interest anymore."
Madam Pu smiled at the young people behind her and said, "Good children, I know you are filial. If you want to enjoy the flowers and see the talents, go ahead."
She looks very kind.
The other old ladies also smiled at the people behind them and said, "Go and have fun, don't restrict you."
Except for the two older ones, everyone else happily stood up and went out, and Xu Lanyin followed them out. When they left the main hall, their respective maids who were waiting in the corridor came to greet them.
Xu Lanyin brought the chess master, and the two of them headed for Taoyuan. The others had gone to Feihua Pavilion. Xu Lanyin felt that Madam Zhang, now middle-aged, might not necessarily enjoy watching talent shows, but would be more likely to admire the peach blossoms. From what Madam Pu had suggested, she'd try to get the Yanshang hairpin and see if they could get it. She wondered if they'd make the move today.
The peach orchard, nearly ten acres in size, was filled with blossoms. Along the uneven slopes, patches of pink blossoms were scattered in an orderly pattern, like layers of clouds. Walking deeper into the garden, immersed in this delicate pink and fragrant atmosphere, Xu Lanyin couldn't help but be overwhelmed by the beauty and fragrance of these clusters, and was intoxicated.
There were not many people in the peach forest, and most of them were women over 30 years old. There were very few young men and young women. The rest were maids on duty and cleaning.
To the west of the peach forest, there is a stream that is drawn from the lake to the south of the peach forest.
There was a row of green willows by the stream, with a pavilion in the middle. Several noble ladies were sitting in the pavilion chatting, and several maids were standing by to serve them. One of them was Mrs. Zhang wearing a hairpin with a swallow.
Standing in the pavilion, you can feel the cool breeze, and see the charming pink on one side and the clear green on the other. It is very comfortable.
Xu Lanyin walked over, knelt down and smiled at Madam Zhang, "Hello, Madam Zhang. My husband is Zhao Wu. Thank you, Master Zhang, for helping my master."
At that time, Zhao Wu went to the Western Xia Kingdom to rescue Xu Qingyan and received help from Mr. Zhang, the then general of Quanzhou.
Mrs. Zhang raised her eyebrows and said with a smile, "It's Zhao Wu's young wife, she's so pretty." She added, "I heard my master talk about Lord Zhao, saying that he is a martial arts expert, both wise and brave..." and called her over to sit next to her.
After chatting and laughing for a while, they stood up and left the pavilion, preparing to go see the peach blossoms again before going back for lunch.
Suddenly, four young ladies ran out of the peach orchard, laughing and making noises. The tallest was Wen Jiao, the second daughter of the Wen family, the oldest of the group. The other three Pu family girls were only twelve or thirteen years old.
Wen Jiao had been wondering why the girls from the Pu family were so welcoming to her today, pestering her to admire the flowers and joking around along the way. When she saw Madam Zhang, wearing the hairpin, she had a bad feeling. Even though the bad feeling was gone, she was dragged forward involuntarily.
When the girls saw Madam Zhang and other noble ladies, they smiled and bent their knees to them, seemingly going to pass them to the pavilion. Suddenly, Wen Jiao's body tilted and bumped into the girl next to her. The girl tilted her body again in an exaggerated manner and knocked the defenseless Madam Zhang into the stream.
This sudden change frightened everyone, and they all cried out "Ouch!" The little girls were stunned and stood there in a daze. The older woman hurriedly shouted, "Quick, help!"
Fortunately, the stream wasn't deep, only reaching above the knees. Mrs. Zhang was knocked flat on her face, but she quickly scrambled to her feet. Her clothes were soaked, her face was bruised, and the rocks hurt. Her features were distorted by pain, anger, and shame.
Madam Zhang's maid jumped into the stream first and helped her ashore. Xu Lanyin and several other people pulled Madam Zhang and her maid ashore.
Someone who had prepared clothes quickly took them out and put them on Mrs. Zhang.
The little girl who bumped into Madam Zhang was so scared that she started crying. She pointed at Wen Jiao and said, "How can you walk properly when you're so old? Why did you bump into me?"
The other two little girls also said, "You have been acting crazy all the way, and now you are in trouble." They hurried to apologize to Mrs. Zhang.
Wen Jiao had no way to defend herself and didn't dare to. She knelt down and cried to apologize to Mrs. Zhang.
Mrs. Zhang was so angry that she ignored her and lowered her head to follow the maid on duty to wash and change clothes.
Xu Lanyin snorted. She had been paying attention to the girls since they came out, and clearly saw that it was the girl from the Pu family who pushed Wen Jiao. Now, the Pu family had sufficient reason to verify the authenticity of the hairpin and put the blame on the Wen family.
Humph, Wen Yan’s daughter, Xu Lanyin hopes that she will bear more misfortunes.
No one was in the mood to appreciate the flowers anymore, so they all returned to Yingtaoxuan.
Xu Lanyin went to the main hall. Old Madam Pu had already received the news that Madam Zhang had been knocked into the stream by Miss Wen Er, and she was furious. She ordered Madam Pu Si and Madam Pu San to quickly apologize to Madam Zhang. She also scolded the Wen family for not raising their children well and how Wen Jiao was so impolite and rude...
Some people said that it was fortunate that Madam Zhang was a descendant of a military family and had lived in the western frontier for many years, so she had a strong character. If she had lived in the capital all her life, she would have fainted from anger.
Others say the Wen family is declining, each generation worse than the last. The head of the family, Duke Wen, is only interested in refining elixirs behind closed doors, while Wen Yan is a complete idiot. A few years ago, Wen Zhuo'an, obsessed with his brother's fiancée, committed suicide by jumping off a cliff. The year before, Wen Zhuolin was beaten to death while arguing for a red card. Only Wen Xing, long ago, had any promise, but he died young.
…
Hearing Zhao Wu being wrongly accused and scolded like that, Xu Lanyin could only listen with a blank expression.
Not long after, Mrs. Pu Si came over and said that Mrs. Zhang was so ashamed and angry that she had already returned home. Grandma Pu San followed her to the Zhang family with a generous gift.
Old Madam Wen took Wen Jiao to apologize to Madam Zhang, and then came to plead guilty to Old Madam Pu.
Madam Pu sullenly lectured Wen Jiao, saying she lacked the chastity and virtue expected of a lady from a noble family. She said she should calm down and study the Rules for Women more at home, and avoid going out and having fun.
Wen Jiao was scolded so hard that she kowtowed several times while crying. Old Madam Wen promised to confine her to her home and make her copy the Rules for Women a hundred times. The two of them returned home without even having lunch.
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