Cheng Ruyi was completely baffled, so she could only put a few Qingling Fruits into her Qiankun Bag for the time being, and then immediately ran back to her room to tidy up before going to meet this rare guest.
"Manager Wen, it's been a long time!"
Upon seeing the Wen family steward again, she couldn't help but sigh at how different scholars were. Look at his posture and demeanor as he sat in his chair—that's what they mean by "a person's inner beauty shines through their knowledge."
Upon seeing Cheng Ruyi, Wen He stood up and gave an elegant bow: "Madam Cheng, it's been a long time."
"Manager Wen came to see me today. I wonder what brings you here?"
She had absolutely no connection with the Wen family, and after racking her brains, she couldn't figure out what they could possibly want from her, so she didn't bother with pleasantries and just asked directly, not caring whether it would be impolite.
Wen He didn't react to her direct attitude. He was here for only one purpose.
He took something resembling an invitation from a box held by a servant beside him and handed it over with both hands.
"Madam Cheng, my mistress will be hosting a flower-viewing banquet tomorrow. She has specially sent me to deliver an invitation to you. I hope you can take the time to attend."
A flower-viewing banquet? This... I really didn't expect that!
After all, she had been busy with farming and martial arts practice, as well as drought prevention and related matters, constantly striving to survive. She couldn't imagine that the lifestyle of wealthy and powerful families like the Wen or Gu families could be so different from hers.
It's true that different people have different fates!
In the warm spring of March, when hundreds of flowers are in full bloom, it is indeed a perfect time to go out and enjoy the flowers.
Although Cheng Ruyi was a homebody in her previous life, she would often go out with a few friends when the weather was nice, so as to get some fresh air from nature.
Unfortunately, after transmigrating here, her life has been constantly tense. If she thinks about it carefully, the only time in the past year that she went out for fun without any purpose was that Double Ninth Festival mountain climbing trip. It was such a waste of the pure and unpolluted natural scenery!
Speaking of flower-viewing banquets, this is an indispensable famous scene in ancient romance novels. Whether it is the female lead and supporting female characters vying for beauty, or the various chance encounters between the male lead and female lead, there is a very high probability of triggering such scenes.
It would be a lie to say I had no expectations at all!
After receiving the invitation, Cheng Ruyi felt a little nervous. This was her first time participating in such a gathering, and she had no experience whatsoever. She didn't know what kind of situation she would face, nor did she understand the specific procedures and etiquette. In fact, due to the rush of time, she didn't have time to prepare anything.
That's right, the invitation was received yesterday afternoon, the banquet was held the next morning, and the Wen family thoughtfully arranged for a mule cart to pick people up from Lishan Villa early in the morning. So, Cheng Ruyi, sitting in the carriage arranged by the Wen family, was in a complete mess.
Well, we'll just have to deal with whatever comes our way and play it by ear.
The banquet hosted by the lady of the Wen family would probably invite all the prominent ladies and young women in the county, right? As the county magistrate's wife, Guo Qinglan would definitely be on the invitation list. As long as she tries to stay with Guo Qinglan, there shouldn't be any problems.
Fifteen minutes later, the mule cart stopped at the side gate of a low-key house in the north of the city, and Cheng Ruyi followed the leading nanny inside.
After walking through the long corridor, the view suddenly opened up before me.
Unlike the magnificent and ornate courtyard that Cheng Ruyi had imagined, the entire courtyard was elegant and simple, with pavilions, towers, ponds and waterside pavilions reflected among the green pines and cypresses; rockeries, flower beds and bonsai, vines and bamboos dotted the landscape, creating a unique charm.
She followed the old woman along the cobblestone path around the pond to the other side of the courtyard. Something felt off. The courtyard was very beautiful, but there were very few flowers along the way. What happened to the flower viewing party?
"Madam Cheng, this way please! Madam has been waiting inside for quite some time."
The leading nanny finally stopped in front of a glazed waterside pavilion, bowed respectfully to her, and gestured for her to go in by herself.
Cheng Ruyi subconsciously looked up and around. The environment was very quiet, even too quiet. She didn't see a single guest or servant!
She couldn't help but feel even more uneasy. Could it be that bad? The prestigious Wen family wouldn't do anything to her, would they?
Cheng Ruyi wanted to ask the nanny for details, but she didn't expect that the nanny had already disappeared in the blink of an eye. Now she was really all alone. She didn't know whether to stay or leave!
After hesitating for a moment, she decided to go in and take a look. In any case, the other party had been very open and aboveboard when they invited her over. If they really wanted to do something to her, there was no need for them to go to such lengths.
And maybe the soundproofing in that pavilion is very good or the space is very large, and she was just far away so she didn't hear the sound?
With that thought in mind, she mustered her courage and stepped inside.
Surprisingly, the waterside pavilion wasn't very big; you could see inside by simply walking through a corridor.
At this moment, in the vast glazed waterside pavilion, only one person sat upright at the sandalwood octagonal table, dressed in fiery red silk brocade, with a pearl and ruby tassel hairpin hanging from her flying cloud bun, making her appear incomparably noble and elegant.
Bewitched by the beauty, Cheng Ruyi couldn't help but want to get closer to take a look. However, the woman suddenly turned her head to look at her. Her face was as clear as jade, and her eyebrows and eyes were as beautiful as a painting. Under the sunlight, she was radiant and exuded a noble aura.
"Madam Cheng, I have long admired your name. Meeting you today, I can confirm your extraordinary demeanor. Please have a seat!"
Gu Pinting gestured for Cheng Ruyi to sit down opposite her.
She was so used to people being stunned by her beauty that she wasn't surprised by Cheng Ruyi's reaction. Besides, she could tell that Cheng Ruyi's eyes were full of amazement and admiration, without any malice, so she couldn't help but feel a little goodwill towards her.
She hadn't seen such pure eyes in a long time.
Of course, at this moment, Cheng Ruyi's heart was truly filled with amazement! Not only was she amazed by the other person's stunning beauty, but she was even more amazed by how magical fate could be!
The famous Gu Pinting was actually the woman from the divine couple she had encountered by chance in the backyard of Dabei Temple that day. So the other one was the talented Wen Jingqing? What a fateful encounter!
Cheng Ruyi grasped the outstretched hand of the other woman, completely unaware of any problem, and greeted her blankly, "Mrs. Gu... no, Mrs. Wen, I've heard so much about you! I've heard so much about you!"
Wow, a beautiful woman is smiling at her! Wow, her hands are so smooth and soft! Wow, she's staring at her with wide eyes, she's so beautiful!
Without thinking, Cheng Ruyi couldn't help but blurt out what was on her mind: "You're so beautiful! How can someone be so gorgeous!"
Gu Pinting was shocked by Cheng Ruyi's direct expression. Although her words sounded a bit frivolous, she could feel the sincerity in her tone. This was the first time she had been praised so frankly and sincerely by a woman her age, so she was so startled that she forgot to pull her hand back.
So the two of them stood there holding hands, staring at each other in a stalemate for quite a while.
It wasn't until Cheng Ruyi finally came to her senses and realized that she was holding the other person's hand that she was startled. She quickly let go, blushing, and apologized: "I'm so sorry. It's the first time I've seen such a beautiful woman like you up close, so I was a little impolite. Please forgive me, Madam Wen!"
Gu Pinting: "......"
After you've said that, how can I possibly stay angry?
"Ahem... It's alright. Madam Cheng's personality... is truly... rare." After thinking for a long time, Gu Pinting couldn't find a suitable adjective. It was rare for a talented woman like her to be at a loss for words.
"Haha, really?"
Thinking about her performance just now, Cheng Ruyi did feel a little embarrassed, so she could only pick up her water glass and pretend to drink water to ease the awkward situation.
After drinking three or four glasses of water, she finally calmed down.
“Um, Mrs. Wen, if I remember correctly, your invitation mentioned a spring flower banquet, this…”
Cheng Ruyi deliberately looked around exaggeratedly for a while before continuing, "It seems quite different from the Hundred Flowers Banquet I imagined?"
The glazed pavilion beside the pond is indeed a beautiful sight, but looking around, there are only a few scattered pots of flowers, which is quite different from "a hundred flowers".
Seeing that the other party still appeared calm, Cheng Ru suddenly spoke with a mischievous glint in her eye, teasing, "Oh! I see, it seems that all the blooming flowers were ashamed and hid away after seeing Madam Wen's face?"
"Cough cough cough!!!"
Gu Pinting stared at the person in front of her in disbelief, wondering how a woman could speak so... lewdly! She almost thought she was facing a lecherous rogue!
"Uh, sorry, I was just joking, please forgive me, Mrs. Wen!"
Upon seeing the other person's reaction, Cheng Ruyi immediately apologized sincerely and reflected on why she couldn't be more reserved in front of such a beautiful woman.
However, it turns out that teasing a serious and beautiful woman is actually quite fun.
"Madam Cheng, I have invited you here today because I have important matters to discuss. Please wait here for a moment. My apologies!"
After saying this with a stern face, Gu Pinting got up and left without looking back.
"Oh! Mrs. Wen, I was really just joking! Please don't be angry! Mrs. Wen~~ Mrs. Wen~~"
Cheng Ruyi watched Gu Pinting's retreating figure and couldn't help feeling a little guilty. "Serves you right for being so glib and indecent!" she thought. "Now look what's happened, you've made her leave in a huff!"
In fact, neither the original owner nor the modern Cheng Ruyi had ever seen such a beautiful person in real life, so she was a little confused for a moment about whether this was her own personality or a personality inherited from the original owner.
According to Cheng Ruyi's modern way of thinking, although her words were meant as a joke, they were not malicious at all; on the contrary, they were a compliment. If a modern girl heard that, she would at most just laugh it off. Unfortunately, the person she said those words to was a proper and polite woman from ancient times, which made her seem somewhat frivolous and impolite.
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