With three daughters gone at once, the east and west courtyards of the Gu family were empty, and Mrs. Gu's heart was empty as well.
Gu Shenzhi returned to the Gu Mansion and stayed there for a few days before going out to do some business. Madam Gu was the only one left in the entire Gu family.
Marrying someone who doesn't come home is like waiting for a door that doesn't open.
Mrs. Gu’s resentment is enough to fill the pond in the Gu Mansion.
Fortunately, an old acquaintance came to see her, and Mrs. Gu finally relaxed her brow.
The three sisters of the Gu family rode in sedan chairs all the way to the tallest building in Yizhou City. This building was called Qifeng Tower. It was a hundred feet high. The first floor was used to check whether the concubines were in good health.
A maid holding a ruler ordered the concubines to stand in a row. The concubines opened their hands and moved their knuckles. The maid checked each of their fingers to see if there were any defects.
Then he asked the ladies to open their mouths to check their teeth, and then asked them to roll their eyes to check their eyesight.
Then their height and waist circumference were measured, and then the maids brought stools, and the concubines took off their shoes and socks, and the maids checked their feet and toes.
The second level checks posture and figure. The beauties line up in a row and walk back and forth. This stage mainly screens out those with body odor and uncoordinated limbs.
The third floor examines conversation and handwriting. Not many people can reach the third floor from the first floor, and even fewer can reach the fourth and fifth floors.
Gu Qingrong is the only one among the three sisters of the Gu family who has reached the fifth floor.
She chatted and laughed with several noble ladies, and looked so intimate, even friendlier than when she was with Gu Yinwei and Gu Yingxia, as if she and these noble ladies were real sisters. The way she looked at Gu Yinwei and Gu Yingxia was just the same as the way she looked at almonds.
In the Yizhou City primary election, Gu Yinwei stood out from five hundred people and became one of the top three.
Among the five hundred contestants, there were many with beautiful looks and graceful figures, but they were not selected. This puzzled Gu Yinwei. Instead, some women with ordinary looks were selected.
Gu Yingxia explained her confusion: "The selection is not just about appearance and figure, but also family background. Miss Zhao is not bad looking, but unfortunately her father and brother are officials with no connections, so she is destined not to be selected."
Gu Yinwei said: "You seem to know a lot of inside information about the talent show."
Gu Yingxia suddenly became sentimental. "The moon above our heads today is the moon from a thousand years ago. We, the people of a thousand years later, are actually no different from those of a thousand years ago."
Gu Yinwei gazed at the moon. "The ancient moon shines on the people of today. I wonder how many people like you and me this moon has illuminated."
"The most important thing a concubine should care about is her own life, followed by the emperor's favor. How can she have so much time to care about the moon?"
Gu Yingxia turned over and had been asleep for a long time.
Gu Yinwei opened the window. She had almost recovered in these days. She stretched out her hand towards the window, and a ray of moonlight emitted by the moon was absorbed into her palm. The yellow gas on her face immediately dissipated, and her whole body seemed to be covered with a layer of moonlight.
The night passed quickly, and Gu Yinwei and Gu Yingxia rode in the same carriage. As soon as Gu Yingxia got up, she stared at Gu Yinwei.
"What are you looking at?"
"You seem a little different. Your skin is smooth and fair, and the dark circles are gone. You obviously slept later than me last night."
"When your mood is good, your skin will naturally be good."
"Seriously? Could it be that you've met a hermit master and are hiding it from me?"
"You think the maids and guards outside are vegetarians."
"That's right, you can't possibly know a master."
When the concubines arrived at the post station, the nanny arranged for them to have lunch. Gu Qingrong met Gu Yinwei and stared at her for a long time.
I secretly wondered how Gu Yinwei could become so much more beautiful overnight.
Gu Yinwei did not stay for long. After lunch, she went back to the carriage to read. Gu Yingxia believed Gu Yinwei's nonsense and thought that if she got more sleep and was in a good mood, she would have good skin, so she slept almost the entire way.
The carriage swayed unsteadily, with the imperial guards leading the way in front and guards with swords on both sides. Behind the team followed twelve men in iron armor. These men pulled the reins with perfect accuracy and wore a shiny steel knife on their waists.
They had a clear division of labor: four of them observed the grass and hills, four were responsible for listening to the movements of the people around them, and the remaining four held the rope with one hand and the knife with the other, ready to take action at any time.
These twelve men rode on green horses, five in a row. The five horses ran at the same time, but there was only one sound of horse hooves.
Gu Yinwei was wearing a hood on her head. She gently lifted a corner of the curtain and looked back. One of the horses' eyes met Gu Yinwei's. Gu Yinwei looked straight at the horse. The horse quickly turned its head away with a frightened expression and seemed very timid.
Gu Yinwei lowered the car curtain and closed her eyes to take a nap.
Chuchu gently covered Gu Yinwei with a felt blanket. Gu Yinwei opened her eyes and asked, "What time is it?"
"It's 2:15 PM. Young lady, please rest a little longer. Tomorrow when we arrive at Qifeng Pavilion, the head nanny will give lessons to all the young ladies. You'll be busy."
Gu Yinwei closed her eyes upon hearing this. Chuchu and Ah Qing chatted with laughter, "Chuchu, do you think the three young ladies in our family can get a share?"
"I can't say for sure. We'll see. If we're really grouped together, it wouldn't be a bad thing. At least we'll be people we know well. If we're grouped with others, that wouldn't be a good thing."
Gu Yingxia had already woken up. Her little mouth opened and closed as she told me about the new things she had heard. Ah Qing silently peeled sunflower seeds for her, and Chuchu made tea for her.
She would take a sip of tea, eat some melon seeds, and talk a lot in between eating.
"There are over fifty selected beauties this time, some of whom have already received ranks. The Imperial Censor's granddaughter, Gu Mengjun, will be the Concubine Yi; the Minister of Revenue's daughter, Wei Shuangxiao, will be the Concubine Zhen; the Governor of the Grand Canal, Mu Xinran, will be the Zhaoyi Mu; and the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guards, Xi Jiaoyu, will be the Concubine Xi."
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