On March 12th, the weather grew warmer, and the spring breeze caressed our faces, carrying a fluffy warmth and fragrance. This fragrance was the scent of flowers, as well as the scent of women's rouge, adorning the foot of the Western Hills with a lively and beautiful atmosphere.
Not all members of the Xiao family were out today. Lord Xiao and Xiao Lun each had official business, and Xiao Xin was only half a month away from the exam. Time was of the essence for him, so after considering it and discussing it with Xu Rong, he decided not to participate in any of these recreational activities.
Madam Xiao was also absent. It is unknown what Marquis Xiao said to her later, but she reluctantly agreed to Marquis Xiao's proposal. However, she was still angry and unwilling to go out. Therefore, the last four people to arrive, Chang Shuyin, Xu Rong, Xiao Shan, and Xiao Qi, were led by Madam Xiao.
In wealthy families like the Marquis of Changxing's mansion, before the master officially goes out, his servants will first use curtains to mark out a scenic area for the ladies to rest and meet after they arrive. At the invitation of Miss Luo and with the approval of Lord Xiao, the area for the outing between the Marquis of Changxing's mansion and the Earl of Cheng'an's mansion was marked out this year.
The Cheng'an Marquis's residence has a small population; only Miss Luo the Second and her mother, Madam Luo, came. According to Miss Luo the Second's quick wit, she also has an elder sister-in-law who was originally supposed to come, but she was found to be pregnant last month, and the pregnancy is still somewhat unstable, so she can't go out.
"My mother is so worried. When I went to see my sister-in-law, she wouldn't even let me sit by her bedside, for fear that if I spoke too loudly, I would startle my little nephew," Luo Er Guniang complained.
"Are you going to sit still?" Madam Luo scolded her. "Once you got there, you kept chattering away, and you even touched your sister-in-law's belly. It's only been two months, what could you possibly know? Besides, it was your place to touch it!"
Mrs. Luo was a thin, honest-looking woman. She spoke harshly, but it was clear that she had no way to deal with her mischievous daughter.
Madam Xiao smiled and replied, "So the eldest mistress of the household is pregnant. Congratulations, Madam! The first three months are crucial and we must not be careless."
Mrs. Luo liked to hear this, so she started chatting with her. Middle-aged women can't stop talking about these kinds of topics. If there are young wives around to tease and urge them to have children, the atmosphere is even better. Coincidentally, there are not only young wives around, but also two.
Chang Shuyin was initially teased and couldn't sit still. At this moment, a maid came in and whispered a few words in her ear. She quickly stood up and said, "Second Aunt, my mother has also arrived. I'll go and pay my respects."
Madam Xiao nodded in agreement. She then bid farewell to Madam Luo, who naturally did not stop her. She then hurriedly left with the maid.
Xu Rong escaped unscathed, as Madam Xiao said, "Some of my family members are here today. I'll take Qi'er to meet them."
Xiao Shan hesitated for a moment, then quickly said, "Second Aunt, I'll go with you."
Although she wasn't actually familiar with Madam Xiao's family, if she didn't go, she would have no choice but to stay and follow Xu Rong. She had only recently offended Xu Rong, so she didn't want to do that.
Madam Xiao then led her and Xiao Qi away. Upon seeing this, Miss Luo couldn't sit still any longer and jumped up, saying, "Mother, I'm going out for a stroll with Sister Xu."
"Don't go too far," Madam Luo instructed her. "Make sure you have all your people with you, and don't let those frivolous young men offend you. Also, don't provoke anyone. Just come back after a short walk."
Luo Er Guniang replied without hesitation, "I know, I know!"
Before Madam Luo could say anything more, she grabbed Xu Rong and ran out. Madam Luo's helpless voice followed behind: "This girl, how old is she and still so impetuous? I wonder if she'll even be able to find a husband in the future—"
"My mother talks a lot."
Luo Er Guniang stuck her tongue out at Xu Rong: "Sister Xu, you seem much more mature than me. Your mother certainly doesn't nag you like this at home, does she?"
Xu Rong thought for a moment and said, "My mother cries a lot."
Madam Xu's ultimate skill, and also her only skill: crying.
Luo Er Guniang laughed out loud: "My mother can cry too! She cries when I'm naughty, she cries when my eldest brother is disobedient, but she only likes my eldest sister. She always tells me to learn from my eldest sister, wishing I could grow up to be the second eldest sister."
“However,” she raised her head and said crisply, “am I not?”
Xu Rong nodded with a smile. This Miss Luo was completely different from Xiao Shan. Her family's unique way of rising to prominence meant that she had not undergone the standard upbringing of a noble lady. Just three years ago, she was just a girl from a household with a hundred households. Coupled with her own personality, her carefree and energetic nature was closer to that of Xu Rong's era.
No wonder she couldn't break into the traditional circle of aristocratic ladies. However, she does have a very nice and elegant name: Yanfeng.
"Actually, my original name was Luo Que'er, wasn't that fine?" Luo Yanfeng rambled on and on, revealing her true identity again. "But when my brother-in-law, the Crown Prince, met me, he asked me if I was the Luo Que from the doorway. My older sister got upset and changed it for me. Now when she calls me, I don't even recognize her."
Xu Rong smiled and said, "It's not bad that it's been changed."
She could tell that the Crown Prince and his wife had a very good relationship, so even when Luo Yanfeng complained, she did so in a casual, conversational tone.
Luo Yanfeng said that Madam Luo talked a lot, and she herself was quite talkative as well. She changed topics quickly and started another one in the blink of an eye: "Sister Xu, thank you so much for that day. I enjoyed listening to you talk about them."
Xu Rong raised an eyebrow: "Hmm?"
If she remembered correctly, she must have spoken up for Xu Huazhang at the time.
Luo Yanfeng hesitated for a moment, then couldn't hold back: "Sister Xu, you don't know, some of the people in there aren't good people. My sister—"
She lowered her voice. It turned out that the Crown Princess and the Crown Prince had been married for three years and were perfect in every way. The only regret was that the Crown Princess had never conceived.
"Actually, my brother-in-law is not in a hurry. He said that the Emperor is not in a hurry either. They both told my sister to relax, take good care of her health, and that she will definitely have a baby soon."
Since it was a matter of imperial importance, Xu Rong did not feel comfortable interjecting and simply nodded, saying, "Yes. If the Emperor says so, it must be true."
I felt that this generation of royals was surprisingly humane, not pressuring them to have children for three years, which was quite rare.
"His Majesty values the eldest son born of the legitimate wife." Luo Yanfeng said to her smugly and eloquently, "My brother-in-law, the Crown Prince, said that it doesn't matter if it's a few years later, the eldest son must be born to my sister."
Xu Rong understood immediately.
When Xiao Xin mentioned Ruan Yiniang's background, she said that the current emperor was the eldest son, not the legitimate heir, and that he had experienced many twists and turns when he fought for the throne. Another prince, Qing, who was favored by the late emperor, tried to take advantage of his status as a concubine and almost brought him down.
It's understandable that he held onto this obsession.
Incidentally, that Prince Qing did not fare well later on. The first thing the current emperor did after ascending the throne was to enfeoff him in Pingliang Prefecture, which, judging from the name of the place, is quite remote.
“But Her Majesty the Empress is getting a little anxious.” Luo Yanfeng said, her face falling again. “I don’t know which scoundrel has persuaded Her Majesty, but Her Majesty intends to choose two more concubines for the Crown Prince’s brother-in-law. The Crown Prince’s brother-in-law disagrees, but he can’t refuse too obviously.”
She looked at Xu Rong expectantly, and Xu Rong nodded knowingly.
Of the noble ladies present that day, eight out of ten were potential candidates for the rank of concubine. In this dynasty, to prevent the selection of imperial consorts from being influenced by powerful maternal relatives, they generally did not choose from the families of officials with real power. Therefore, before becoming the Crown Princess, Miss Luo was merely the daughter of a centurion. However, not every noble family possessed both power and wealth; for example, the Xu family only had money left, their official positions were merely empty shells. For a noble lady from such a family, entering the Eastern Palace as a concubine was both a possibility and not a bad choice.
Given this context, it's understandable that Luo Yanfeng would feel wary and hostile towards her sister when she saw so many young girls sneaking around to peek at the Crown Prince.
"Hehe, Sister Xu, you made them all lose face. When the Crown Prince's brother-in-law went back and mentioned it to the Empress, the Empress thought they were not reserved enough and has given up the idea of choosing concubines."
Xu Rong was taken aback. No wonder Luo Yanfeng thanked her—there was this follow-up.
"Then congratulations!" she said, half-jokingly.
Luo Yanfeng readily accepted the offer and added, "I should also thank the young marquis, it's just that he didn't come today."
"Does he hate me?" Luo Yanfeng pressed on, touching her face. "Sister Xu, I was too embarrassed to ask that day. Am I ugly? Why did he say he wouldn't play with me?"
Xu Rong: "..."
She didn't notice Luo Yanfeng's embarrassment; everyone here is so straightforward.
"Brother Zhang is probably worried about the difference between men and women, and is afraid of damaging your reputation," Xu Rong lied against his conscience.
“Oh, I’m not afraid,” Luo Yanfeng said readily. “My reputation isn’t very good to begin with, and my mother is always worried that I won’t be able to get married.”
Xu Rong chuckled and curiously looked her over. She suspected that the girl had fallen in love with Xu Huazhang at first sight, but judging from the way Xu Huazhang looked when he was riding on the tree when they first met, he didn't seem particularly imposing.
Normally, a girl wouldn't develop any ladylike thoughts because of this—she can't possibly admire his tree-climbing skills, can she?
She was probably overthinking it. Xu Huazhang was just a bit slow on the uptake, and Luo Yanfeng, with her outspoken and straightforward nature, seemed more like a simple-minded person who hadn't yet figured things out.
"Sister Xu, is Lord Xu engaged yet?"
Xu Rongcai's relaxed mind tightened again, and he felt incredulous—could it be?
"No," she forced a smile. "Mother is worried about him. He's very mischievous. I don't know what kind of wife she should choose to keep him in check."
"Why do you always want to control others?" Luo Yanfeng said dismissively, yet with a hint of sympathy. "My mother is the same way. She always says she wants to choose a powerful husband to keep me in check, but why should I let others control me? If that's the case, I might as well not get married at all."
Xu Rong breathed a sigh of relief when she heard what the child said. She didn't have any problem with Luo Yanfeng. Listening to her chatter was much more comfortable than being with Xiao Shan. Besides, Xu Huazhang's marriage was naturally up to him, and she had no intention of interfering.
She simply couldn't believe that love could come so easily.
"Sister Xu, did I say something wrong?" Luo Yanfeng pressed her, "Is it because your family has very strict rules and doesn't like someone like me?"
Xu Rong came to her senses and smiled, "That's right, no. When people grow up, they can take care of themselves and don't need others to take care of them."
Luo Yanfeng was satisfied, and a sweet smile appeared on her apple-shaped face: "Sister Xu, you are such a kind person, and Lord Xu is such a kind person too. I can tell just by looking at him that you are different from those pretentious families."
Well.
Xu Rong's mind started to wander again. Luo Yanfeng's energy was so strong that she couldn't stop talking about it. If there was something wrong, she was too frank; if there was nothing wrong, she really couldn't convince herself.
She started to miss Xiao Xin. If he had come with her, perhaps she could have found the answer right away—at least he would have been better able to grasp the mindset of young girls of his generation.
They had already walked quite a distance when Xu Rong looked back and saw throngs of tourists. She could no longer find the location of the Xiao and Luo families' tents. Remembering Madam Luo's instructions, she said to Luo Yanfeng, "Shall we go back first? Otherwise, we'll worry our elders if we stay out too long."
Luo Yanfeng was obedient and nodded, even reaching out to link arms with Xu Rong.
The two men, leading their servants, turned around and saw a figure in brocade robes running swiftly through the crowd. However, due to the large number of tourists, he couldn't run very far even if he ran a little longer. Behind him, a delicate young girl, supported by her maid, chased after him, crying and pleading, "Lord Xu, wait for me—"
"No, no!" the young man in the brocade robe shouted. "Go find your elders, why are you bothering me!"
"I—cough cough!" The girl gasped for breath, and the maid supporting her called out, "We can't find her. There are so many people here, how are we supposed to find her? Lord Xu, you've already saved my young lady, so please do us a favor and help us look for her!"
"I won't help you. You spoke ill of my sister. I'm already doing you a great favor by chasing away the bad guys for you. Don't push your luck!"
"Lord Xu, Second Mistress came with us today. You can take us to find her!" the maidservant cried out anxiously.
"Yeah?"
The young man in the brocade robe hesitated and slowed down. The girl finally caught up with him and, afraid that he would run away again, hurriedly reached out to tug at his sleeve.
Xu Rong felt a tightness in her sleeve.
She turned her head and saw Luo Yanfeng's pouting lips and chubby, apple-shaped face.
Along with the tight grip on her slender little hand, a sour smell filled the air.
She felt a mix of amusement and relief, as if everything had finally settled down.
All right.
For some people, love comes so easily.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
