Chapter 42: Spring Banquet (Part 2)

The group entered the flower hall and saw several black lacquered square tables in front of them. Sweet citrons and pineapples were served on the tables on white porcelain plates. Flowers and bonsai were placed on the high tables in the corners of the walls. Bright octagonal glass lamps illuminated the mirror-like tiles, reflecting soft light.

The lady was wearing a lilac jacket with a gourd pattern, and was sitting on the black lacquered Luohan bed in the west room with an endless pattern of swastikas, smiling brightly. Beside her were several women wearing pearls and emeralds and gorgeous clothes, surrounded by a large group of women in red and green, sitting around her, chatting and laughing. There were also seven or eight maids wearing blue jackets, busying themselves with refilling tea, serving melon seeds and snacks, or changing plates, and the room was filled with a festive and lively atmosphere.

Seeing the eldest wife, the lady-in-waiting stood up and came to greet her.

The group of women also stood up and followed the lady.

Eleventh Lady saw Madam Qiao and Xu supporting Madam Qiao in the bedroom of Qiao Lian, the sixth daughter of the Qiao family.

Qiao Lianfang also saw Shiyi Niang.

She was still dressed simply, with a face as delicate and white as porcelain, a pointed chin, big almond eyes, and curved dark eyebrows... But at first glance, somehow, the little girl who always followed them silently suddenly became a little strange.

She was slightly startled.

There was no more timidity and shyness between her brows, no more awkwardness in her movements, instead there was a gentle gaze, a peaceful smile, and generous behavior, making her exude a sense of calm and composure.

Surprise flashed across her eyes.

But what happened?

Before she had time to think about it, her attention was attracted by a girl in a purple dress next to Eleventh Lady.

The girl was no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, tall, with exquisite curves, skin as white as fresh snow, eyebrows as dark as distant black, and her jet-black hair tied into a high bun with two red gold and lapis lazuli beads inserted diagonally side by side.

Although she is a rare beauty, she cannot be said to be unique in the world.

But she followed behind the eldest wife, her back straight, her chin slightly raised, and her gaze revealed a bit of pride that ordinary women dared not show, making her as eye-catching, beautiful and radiant as a crane standing out among a flock of chickens in a room full of submissive women.

Qiao Lianfang took a breath of cold air.

Who is this woman?

Don't you know that women should be virtuous, respectful and obedient? Even the fifth wife of the Xu family, the head of Danyang County, dare not do so. Or, which family is she from?

While she was thinking, the old lady had already taken the eldest wife's hand and said, "Why did you come just now? We've been waiting for you to start the feast!"

The eldest wife quickly apologized.

The lady saw Shi Niang behind her, and her eyes were filled with surprise: "This is..."

Shi Niang stepped forward gracefully and saluted the Madam: "Shi Niang Luo, I pay my respects to the Madam! I wish you a long life, good health, and everything goes well!"

The old lady nodded with a smile and looked at the eldest wife, "You are so lucky." She then asked Shi Niang, "Why didn't you come with your mother to play last time?"

Shi Niang glanced at the eldest lady and said with a smile, "My eldest sister is not in good health. I made a vow to fast for 81 days and copy a chapter of the Blood Sutra. I just finished it two days ago. Today, my mother brought me to pay my respects to the lady."

"It's really hard for you!" The lady patted Shi Niang's hand. Someone beside her laughed and said, "It's still the eldest lady who taught her daughters well. The sisters are so affectionate and harmonious."

"Thank you for the award." The eldest wife smiled modestly.

The lady introduced her: "This is Madam Lin from the Weibei Marquisate..."

Mrs. Lin was in her fifties, with a face like a full moon, and looked very kind.

The eldest wife hurried forward and saluted.

Mrs. Lin returned the gift.

The lady also recommended other people to her.

"This is Madam Tang from the Zhongshan Marquisate..."

She was a tall and thin woman who looked to be in her fifties.

"This is Madam Gan from the House of the Earl of Zhongqin..."

Lord Zhongqin, surnamed Gan, is the third wife of the Xu family’s maternal family?

Eleventh Lady couldn't help but glance at Madam Gan.

She was a beautiful woman in her thirties, wearing a royal blue floral jacket with a vase pattern, and she looked very elegant.

"This is Madam Huang from the Yongchang Marquisate..."

He is a man about the same age as the lady.

The lady finally said, "You already know Mrs. Zheng and Mrs. Qiao. I won't go on and on!"

The eldest wife smiled and saluted Mrs. Zheng and Mrs. Qiao, and then introduced Wu Niang, Shi Niang and Shiyi Niang to several other ladies. The ladies then introduced the people they brought with them.

The house was bustling with the sounds of chirping beauties and jingling jewelry.

Eleventh Lady counted and found that in addition to several ladies, the Lin family had the eldest grandmother, the third grandmother and a fifth young lady; the Tang family had the fourth grandmother and a third young lady; the Huang family had a third grandmother; the Gan family had a second grandmother, a third young lady and a seventh young lady; plus Qiao Lianfang... well, including her own side, there were a total of thirteen people. Excluding the married grandmothers, there were eight unmarried young ladies!

The Gan family also brought two young ladies…both young and beautiful. Especially the fifth young lady of the Lin family, who wore a moon-white dress, with an elegant appearance and graceful like the moon, as if she had walked down from a painting. She was as beautiful as the fifth lady, the tenth lady, and the Qiao Lianfang, and the only one who did not bring a young lady, the Yongchang Marquis’s wife, Mrs. Huang, praised the dowager lady: “It’s a pity that the second lady didn’t come, otherwise, it would be a good story to paint a picture of all the beauties.”

"We are having a party today." The lady laughed, "She is a quiet person."

As they were talking, a woman wearing a green floral jacket rushed in.

"Mother, you can't blame me for being late." She said to the old lady coquettishly, "I helped the fifth master move the lotus lantern."

The lady tapped her forehead and said, "You are a woman, why are you going crazy with him?" There was no blame in her tone, only doting, "Don't go there again in the future!"

"Okay!" the woman responded loudly, her big eyes smiling into crescent moons.

"I haven't met all the ladies yet!" The lady-in-waiting instructed her with a laugh.

"Yes!" She answered readily, and bowed to each lady one by one.

All the ladies looked at her with smiles and called her "Danyang County Lady".

It turned out to be Sun, the fifth wife of the Xu family and the daughter of Sun Kang, Marquis of Dingnan!

Eleventh Lady looked at her carefully.

She looked to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, not tall, very slim, with delicate features and very good skin, as white as snow and as delicate as cream. When she smiled, she had the friendliness and sweetness of a neighboring child. She had a deep whirlpool on her left cheek, which made her very likable.

When she saluted the first wife, she looked at Wu Niang and Shi Niang and her eyes suddenly lit up. She smiled and said, "Is it the Fifth Miss and the Eleventh Miss? I didn't see them last time when I went back to my parents' home. This time we must have a good chat!"

Wu Niang smiled and returned the gift to Wu Madam, but Shi Niang smiled and said, "I am Shi Niang." She pointed to Shiyi Niang beside her and said, "This is Shiyi Niang."

Eleventh Lady smiled and bowed to Fifth Lady.

The Fifth Lady was surprised to see that she was so young yet so graceful and elegant. But before she could say anything, Miss Lin smiled and greeted her, "Cousin!"

"Mingyuan." Madam Wu said with a smile, "Why are you here too? We are having a party today!"

I didn’t expect that Miss Lin and Madam Five are cousins?

It seems that the Yanjing family is indeed complicated.

Shiyi Niang secretly observed the surrounding environment.

"Today is March 3rd." Miss Lin smiled with her hands covering her mouth, her posture elegant.

"That's right!" Mrs. Wu said with a smile, "You can't stay at home reading, writing, painting and reciting poetry 365 days a year." She added, "How about we go to the Taichi Lake to play later? It's windy today, perfect for flying kites."

"You are talking nonsense again." The lady scolded with a smile, "You can only play in the garden, you are not allowed to go out."

The Fifth Lady giggled and pulled the Lady's hand: "Shall we go to the garden to fly a kite later?"

"This monkey really can't sit still for a moment."

"Otherwise why would his surname be Sun?" Mrs. Huang joked.

Everyone laughed too.

The seventh daughter of the Gan family was about the same age as Shi Niang. She whispered to her elder sister, "No wonder everyone says the Lord of Danyang County is fun... We can go fly a kite later!" There was a hint of excitement in her tone.

Her sister frowned and said awkwardly, "After all, we are visiting someone else's house... If you really want to fly a kite, you can fly as many as you want when you get home."

The younger sister hummed absentmindedly, but her eyes were always following the Fifth Madam.

Eleventh Lady, who was standing next to them, couldn't help but smile.

This Miss Gan Qi still retains some of the innocence of a young girl, which is really rare!

Madam Wu and Miss Lin were cousins, and they were no strangers to the other people. After everyone had greeted each other, Madam Tai invited everyone to take their seats: "... so that we can go to the opera early."

Everyone smiled and sat down according to their place of honor.

The maids brought orange juice for everyone to wash their hands, and another maid quietly brought the soup.

Several ladies drank a little wine, but the young ladies ate their meals obediently and were served by the people around them.

After dinner, everyone moved to the west hall to drink tea, and then went to Dianchun Hall.

The background of the Dianchun Hall stage had been set up, and the courtyard was quiet and silent, with no one in sight. The wing behind the stage was closed, but the wing opposite to the north was wide open, with several long couches with low legs spread out in front of them, fruit plates and tea placed on the tables in front of the couches, and a watermelon-shaped wash basin made of silk and enamel placed on each side.

The third lady led everyone into the north chamber. After a round of politeness, everyone sat in pairs according to their age. The old lady naturally sat with Madam Zheng, and the eldest lady sat with the youngest, Madam Gan.

A maid brought a brocade stool and placed it beside the couch.

The grandmothers and young ladies sat around their elders.

The maids served tea.

A slender man in a brocade robe with an apricot-yellow background and round flowers walked in and said, "Ladies, please choose the play." As he said this, he bowed his head slightly and presented the gold-stamped card with a cupped hand.

Miss Lin and a few others stood up in shock.

The ladies all laughed and joked, "When did our Fifth Master become the head of the Deyin class?"

The man raised his head, revealing a handsome face as bright as the sun.

"I heard that several ladies were here, so I asked for this job." He joked, "I wonder if you ladies are going to listen to a civil opera or a martial arts opera? Otherwise, I would like to tell you the name of the opera?" It sounded quite cynical, but it made the ladies laugh again.

Miss Lin and a few others also sat down with their sleeves covered and smiles.

For a moment, the atmosphere in the room was extremely cheerful.