The embroidery work from Qianjin Square was flawless, and the measurements were spot on. Both Duanhua and Su Rong found the clothes fitting perfectly after trying them on.
Duanhua was reluctant to take off the clothes, but she still said to Su Rong, "Let’s save it for the banquet at the Duke’s Residence in two days." After saying that, she emphasized to Su Rong, "You should do the same. Wear that blue one that day."
Su Rong did not want to wear such eye-catching attire and retorted, "You can wear it yourself, I’d rather save it."
"No, you must wear it." Duanhua reminded her, "Didn’t you have your sights set on the Second Young Master Ye from Nanchu? There will be many women there. You have to stand out, captivate his attention, only then will you stand a chance."
Su Rong hesitated, "Is my face not enough?"
Duanhua scoffed, "Clothes make the man, gold buddies up the Buddha. Your face alone could only gain you an extra glance. But if you were to wear this unmissable attire, he might just find his eyes lingering over you more frequently."
Su Rong wanted to laugh, but she chose not to argue on this matter, "Let’s go!"
The two of them exited the fitting room, and Princess Qingping greeted them with a smile, "Did it fit?"
Duanhua rushed over, responding, "Perfectly, perfectly." She requested the shopkeeper to pack her items while she coquettishly clung to Qingping’s arm. "Mother, you are too kind. How come you didn’t have one made for yourself?"
"We have to leave some good things for others. We can’t possibly snap up all the good fabrics. Plus, I have more clothes than I can wear. Next time a batch of quality fabric arrives, I’ll have one made." Princess Qingping pointed at a few pieces of jewelry on the counter, "These are some pieces I picked out just now, all the latest designs. See if you like them? If you do, I’ll get them in pairs."
Duanhua nodded enthusiastically at her words, "Mother, your taste is simply the best." Turning to Su Rong, she asked, "Right?"
Su Rong nodded as well. She had accepted the clothes and making remarks on the jewelry seemed unnecessary.
After receiving double portions of jewelry, Princess Qingping accompanied the pair to select freshly arrived rouge and face powder, once again in pairs, then felt like something was missing. Looking around, an idea sprang into her mind, and she moved to the accessories section. After some contemplation, she selected a jade ornament, "This is for Fen Ling. The child didn’t come in, I almost forgot about him."
Su Rong thought to herself, the princess was indeed thoughtful and kind towards her and Fen Ling.
Having made her selection, Princess Qingping finally led the satisfied duo out of Qianjin Square.
Next to Qianjin Square was the Mobao Pavilion. Princess Qingping, still in high spirits said, "Let’s go pick out some stationery for your father."
Both Duanhua and Su Rong had no objections and followed her into Mobao Pavilion.
After picking out several pieces of fine stationery for the prince consort, Princess Qingping said, "Let’s head back."
A maidservant helped Princess Qingping into the carriage. Duanhua followed suit. Just as it was Su Rong’s turn, as her hand touched the carriage shaft, she felt a sudden gust of wind coming from behind her head. This gust was accompanied by a whooshing noise, indicating it was a cold arrow coming straight towards her. Su Rong attempted to sidestep, but if she did so, the arrow would hit those already in the carriage. Princess Qingping and Duanhua were inside, and even if Su Rong could avoid it, they definitely couldn’t. If hit, they would be severely injured, if not killed.
In that instant, Su Rong pulled out the dagger from her waist to block the arrow.
Simultaneously, Fen Ling shouted, "Be careful, my lady!"
One drew a dagger, the other a sword. Together, they deflected the incoming arrow. With a "crack," the arrow fell, and then with another "crack," it landed on the ground.
Fen Ling looked in the direction the arrow had come from, then leapt into the air and onto the ridge of the opposite roof. The movement of the arrow shooter was even faster than his. Upon missing with the first shot, the arrow shooter eschewed the second arrow, jumped off the roof, and retreated, their figure evaporating.
Fen Ling remained on the rooftop, knowing that the pursuit was futile, he decided not to follow.
"Protect the princess!" The guards of the Princess Residence, after witnessing the collapse of the arrow and Fen Ling’s pursuit, finally comprehended the situation. They immediately encircled the carriage and Su Rong tightly. Swords drawn, they scrutinized their surroundings vigilantly.
"What happened?" Princess Qingping asked anxiously.
Duanhua, who had been holding up a corner of the curtain for Su Rong to climb into the carriage, had a clear sight of the situation. Before she could even scream, the arrow had been deflected and Fen Ling had already dashed to pursue the attacker. Her face pale, she stared at Su Rong, whose face in that split second had turned icy. She was taken aback and for a moment, was lost for words.
The Su Rong she knew was always cheerful, her smiles captivating. She had never seen her instantly turn cold. In that brief instant, she seemed to turn into a completely different person, leaving Duanhua feeling inexplicably estranged.
Su Rong regained her composure quickly, sheathed her dagger, picked up the arrow from the ground, and answered Princess Qingping, "A cold arrow was shot in our direction, princess."
After speaking, she looked towards Duanhua, smiled at her, reached out to hold her hand, "Were you frightened? Don’t worry, Fen Ling is highly skilled in martial arts, a cold arrow wouldn’t harm us."
Duanhua tightly gripped her hand, "Su... Su Rong, you..."
Su Rong grinned, "Looks like you were really scared, don’t worry, everything’s fine."
Despite her pale face, Princess Qingping, who had weathered numerous storms, remained calm. She looked at the sword in Su Rong’s hand and said, "In broad daylight, a bold thief dared to shoot a cold arrow at me. Someone, report to Jingzhao Prefecture."
After finishing her sentence, she continued, "Let’s go home. After escorting you to the Princess’s Residence, I will take this arrow to the emperor and request him to intensify the investigation. We need to figure out which audacious thief dared to try and harm me."
Su Rong clearly knew that the cold arrow was meant for her, not for Princess Qingping. But since an arrow was indeed fired at Princess Qingping’s carriage, she didn’t say anything and took the arrow before getting on the carriage.
Sitting in the carriage, she examined the arrow for a long time. There was no identifying mark, it was just an arrow, but not an ordinary arrow. It was made from refined heavy iron, when launched from a big bow, it could cause significant damage. She and Fen Ling only just managed to knock it down together. If she were alone, she might have only deflected it slightly, the arrow was indeed intended to hit the carriage.
Fen Ling quickly returned to the front of the carriage, reporting to the occupants, "Princess, the culprit has escaped. The crossbow was taken by culprit. Apart from a broken tile where the assailant hid to shoot the cold arrow, which revealed that the assailant is a tall man with large feet, no other evidence was left behind."
Princess Qingping nodded, "Let’s move, back to the residence."
The curtain of the carriage was lowered and the carriage started to move. Princess Qingping looked at Su Rong.
After a moment of hesitation, Su Rong confessed, "I’m sorry, Princess, the cold arrow was aimed at me."
Even though Qingping didn’t witness it herself, she had guessed it as the cold arrow was fired just as Su Rong was about to get on the carriage. The motive was clear, it was aimed at her. She looked at Su Rong’s face and involuntarily thought of Princess Zhenmin - the people the Prince Consort had sent to Jiangning County to investigate hadn’t returned yet, and it wasn’t confirmed whether Su Rong was associated with Princess Zhenmin. Ning nodded, "The cold arrow shot at my carriage was targeted at me. We’ll stick to this story, no matter who asks."
Su Rong expressed her gratitude, "Thank you, Princess. I apologize for causing trouble."
Qingping didn’t mind, "If you really have something to do with Zhenmin, no trouble is too big. If you have nothing to do with Zhenmin, this is just a minor inconvenience."
She shook her head, "We’ve all had a fright. When we get back to the residence, have the imperial doctor prescribe some medicine to calm the nerves, for both you and Huahua."
Su Rong turned to look at Duanhua, noticing her own discomfort. She nodded, "I’m fine, but Huahua was indeed frightened. We should call the imperial doctor."
"Huahua used to be so brave. I didn’t expect her to be so scared now." Qingping reach out to pat Duanhua’s head, "Your head is covered in cold sweat. The culprits are truly evil."
The carriage returned to the Princess’s Residence shortly. Princess Qingping remained seated, speaking to Duanhua, "Huahua and Su Rong, you both go home. Fen Ling and I will going to the Imperial Palace to find out who opened the cold arrow."
Fen Ling glanced at Su Rong, she nodded at him, and he agreed.
Duanhua and Su Rong got down from the carriage, watched by the guards, Qingping went to the Imperial Palace.
After returning to Cangjiao Pavilion in the Princess’s Residence, Su Rong instructed someone to call the imperial doctor, then sent Duanhua back to her room. As soon as the door was closed, Duanhua immediately said to Su Rong, "Su Rong, I saw."
Su Rong nodded, "Yes, I know you saw."
"No, what I mean is, I saw the expression on your face at that time," she looked at Su Rong somewhat fearfully and hesitantly, "Your...your look..."
Su Rong understood that she wasn’t terrified by the cold arrow but by her expression at that moment. She pulled her to sit down, "I’m sorry, the cold arrow came too suddenly. Otherwise, I would have lowered the curtain to block your view."
Duanhua looked at her, "You...you looked like a completely different person. Is that the real you?"
Su Rong laughed, "Of course not. It’s just that people show different sides to them depending on the situation. " She comforted Duanhua, "Don’t be scared. The situation was quite tense at that time, it was hard to control my emotions."
Duanhua nodded, then suddenly said bitterly, "Why does someone want to kill you? Is it because we offended Concubine Ning Yao, the Crown Prince’s wife that day? That woman is too ruthless, was it her?"
Su Rong’s expression faltered before she shook her head, "I don’t know."
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