Marseille
Is it true that good days have finally arrived? A maid from the outer courtyard brought over two sets of gorgeous clothes. One set was a sandalwood-colored, high-waisted silk skirt paired with a sky-blue gauze shawl, and the other set was a turquoise silk skirt embroidered with double butterflies, with a few small pearls adorning the sash, making the wearer look more charming.
The maid said that the lady was taking the young lady out to a banquet today, and that she was now helping the young lady with her hair and makeup.
"Attending a banquet?" She shook her head, took a few steps back, and all the joy she had felt at seeing these beautiful clothes faded away: "I'm not going to any banquet, you can all go back."
Before she could finish speaking, a voice rang out from inside the courtyard: "What, young lady, do you not want to go out with me?"
Jingwan turned around; it was Wang Shi.
The old nanny helped her in. As Wang Shi stepped over the threshold, her fierce aura frightened Jing Wan into retreating until she bumped into the table, where she had nowhere left to go.
Wang saw her fear and scoffed dismissively.
Jingwan could tell that she disliked her for being too petty, so she scolded herself a few times in her heart. After calming herself down, she went to greet Wang Shi and poured her a cup of tea.
Wang Shi found the tea made from the honeysuckle flowers she had picked and dried herself disgusting, and didn't even want to clink glasses with it. She didn't want to stay in the poor place any longer, and said indifferently, "You're getting old. You should find some suitable opportunities to show your daughter's face, so that people don't know that you have such a daughter in your family, and I won't be blamed by outsiders for mistreating my stepdaughter."
She waved her hand lazily, signaling the maid to continue working, and left with those words, supported by the old nanny.
Jingwan clutched her clothes tightly, watching her leave with trepidation.
She didn't want to go out at all, or at least, she didn't want to go out with them.
But there was no such freedom. A faint sense of disgust rose in her heart. She sat in front of the bronze mirror, and her beautiful face lost some of its youthful charm because of this hatred.
Nowadays, the women of the Great Wei Dynasty mostly wear light and elegant makeup, with a single, dark eyebrow accentuating their graceful appearance. However, Jing Wan has a pair of thick eyebrows, which, despite her lack of skill in grooming, are quite beautiful.
The maid only trimmed her eyebrows a little, but when she was about to draw them again, she stopped. Her eyebrows were already naturally dark without any makeup, so drawing them again would be superfluous.
With her fair skin, she applied only a touch of rouge, then a light layer of powder, and finally a plum blossom decoration between her eyebrows. In the mirror, a stunningly beautiful woman appeared.
She is young now and has not yet fully matured, but in a few more years she will surely be an absolute beauty.
The maid was also stunned and exclaimed repeatedly, "Even Consort Dong in the palace must be this beautiful!"
Consort Dong, who was favored by the emperor because of her stunning beauty, was the emperor's favorite.
Jingwan was a little embarrassed to look at herself in the mirror, but she couldn't help glancing at herself. Even though she was sullen, she still had a childlike heart and liked this fresh and pretty outfit.
And this pomegranate-colored skirt, dyed with pomegranate blossoms, is a flowing gauze skirt with fashionable turquoise wave patterns embroidered on the sash. It's light and breathable to wear, and she gently touches it with her fingers, feeling the coolness under her skin.
Footsteps sounded, and Jingwan turned around excitedly, smiling at Dongxia, "Dongxia, do I look pretty?"
Dongxia put down her sewing box, walked over to admire the girl's face closely, and then nodded affirmatively: "Beautiful!" Looking at the unfamiliar maid, she asked, "Is the young lady going out?"
Upon hearing this, Jingwan's overjoyed mood suddenly calmed down considerably. She nodded and said, "Yes, Madam said she would take me out to a banquet."
She was still young and didn't know what it meant to keep her emotions in check. Her likes and dislikes were all clearly displayed on her face. Dongxia noticed her displeasure and said, "If you don't want to, you can just refuse."
Jingwan sighed. If only she could do whatever she wanted. She shook her head and said, "Never mind, it's just going out once."
She didn't want to cause any more trouble at home over such trivial matters. If she fell out with Wang, she would never have a peaceful life. Although she was a little wronged now, she thought that things would be better later.
Cowardly people are afraid of offending anyone, dare not do anything, and try to be considerate in everything, but they end up making themselves miserable.
Dongxia shook her head helplessly.
After she finished dressing up, the maids left the courtyard. Once they were all gone, Dongxia said, "Miss, why don't you change your makeup a little more? I think it would be better if it were simpler and more plain."
Jingwan stood up and showed her her pomegranate-red skirt: "Isn't it too flashy?"
Dongxia smiled and shook her head: "The young lady is not ostentatious, but that second young lady will not tolerate anyone surpassing her."
Dongxia's words made sense. Jingwan asked, "Then what should I wear? Should I change into that tulip-colored dress?"
Dongxia went to the cabinet and picked out a light blue gauze dress for her. She removed the floral hair ornaments and wiped half of the color off her lips. Although she wasn't as stunning as before, she was still quite pretty.
In short, it's not as annoying as before.
Sure enough, when Jingwan came out, Gao Yun saw her outfit and realized that it wasn't even worth as much as the bridge hairpin in her hair. She snorted and got into the carriage.
Shi Jun, however, glanced at Jing Wan a few more times. Unlike Gao Yun, who was shallow and always judged women by the amount of gold they wore, she saw that Jing Wan's face was becoming more and more beautiful. Jealousy pierced her heart like a venomous fang, causing her pain. She didn't even say hello. After getting into the carriage, she turned her head to look at the scenery outside.
Jingwan, who had originally intended to bow, was startled by his cold demeanor and dared not utter a word, remaining silent in the carriage.
They were on their way to see a horse race.
The wife of the current Prime Minister Qin is nearly sixty years old. She loved riding horses when she was young and still does now. Her son, Qin Huan, often holds horse races at the Duanyuan Horse Ranch in the east of the city to please his mother.
Duanyuan Horse Ranch was originally a place where the Imperial Guards of Pingdu trained in horsemanship. After many years without war, the place was abandoned.
Five years ago, a wealthy merchant named Li Daochun discovered a business opportunity and rented the property for 100 taels of silver. He then renovated it into a racetrack for public use.
To this end, he specially trained a horse racing team and held horse racing events at Duanyuan Racecourse, charging the public for spectating fees.
The fees were cheap, but the venue was large enough to accommodate hundreds of spectators, so a single match could bring in a considerable amount of money.
Li Daochun also owns several restaurants in Pingdu. He has the restaurant chefs prepare simple dishes to sell on-site, including fruits and snacks, which earns him a small profit.
However, making money is a minor matter. What Li Daochun is best at is using the horse farm to make friends and curry favor with the powerful and influential people in the capital.
For example, this time, Qin Huan invited guests here without spending a single tael of silver. Li Daochun provided all the money and manpower. He even brought his specially trained team to the game, just so that the audience members who came along could enjoy the show.
Using this horse farm, Li Daochun accumulated a lot of connections. Because powerful and influential people in Pingdu often came to patronize him, his restaurants, cosmetic shops and other businesses flourished, and he became a well-known merchant in Pingdu.
The Zhou Li (Rites of Zhou) lists "Yu" (御) as one of the Six Arts. The horse races in the Great Wei Dynasty took many forms, including horse racing, polo, equestrian competitions, horse games, and more. The arena was bustling with activity as six fine horses gathered, ready to compete. The participants were all sons of powerful nobles from Pingdu, who, on their day off, naturally wanted to have some fun.
To add to the excitement, Li Daochun even set up a betting game, allowing the audience to place bets.
The guests sitting at the main table were different from the common people. They gambled freely, as long as they were happy. Even Jingwan was infected by this and put a small jade fish pendant she had carved on the table—she was betting on the black horse with big ears to win.
There were so many horses, each with strong muscles and glossy coats. Because they were so far away, it was impossible to tell them apart. But she noticed that one of them was different. Its ears were a bit bigger than the others, which was quite funny.
Compared to the gold hairpin she had thrown away, Gao Yun felt that Jing Wan was petty and had disgraced the Gao family, so she turned away and refused to speak to her.
Several girls with sharp eyes noticed that the jade fish pendant was smooth and translucent, with each fish scale clearly visible, and asked her which store she bought it from.
Jingwan was delighted to hear this, as it seemed her culinary skills had improved again.
The Gao family sat at the right rear of the main stage, some distance from the Qin family. The Duchess deliberately sat up straight and craned her neck to look, but she did not see the two young masters of the Qin family next to the Old Madam Qin.
Wang Shi saw that this was full of planning, rolled her eyes, and looked at her innocent daughter who was eating snacks. She had an idea in mind.
Although Qin Huan only held a sinecure, his son Qin Gang was a highly sought-after young talent. He won first place in the imperial examination and entered the Hanlin Academy. He was later appointed as a compiler in the Hanlin Academy and continued to rise in rank, becoming an assistant director in the Ministry of Receptions. At a young age, he obtained the official rank of the fifth grade.
How could we not leave such a fine young man to Yun'er?
Just as Wang was contemplating how to win over this swan, a young woman approached. She was beautiful and graceful, and spoke softly and gently, making her very approachable.
At a glance, Madam Wang recognized Qin Xi, the eldest granddaughter of Old Madam Qin. Her eyes darted around. If Yun'er couldn't marry Qin Gang, then it would be good if this Qin family girl came to our home!
Qin Xi came over to invite Shi Jun to sit at the Qin family's place. She smiled and said, "Sisters can have a good chat when they sit together."
Despite her lack of enthusiasm, Shi Jun still agreed and prepared to follow Qin Xi. Gao Yun, having received a signal from her mother, pretended to be angry and said, "Why didn't Sister Qin invite me? Am I not considered a good sister to you?"
Qin Xi smiled and said, "I was worried that Sister Yun'er wouldn't want to go. If she's willing, she can come along too!"
As she spoke, she glanced casually at the Gao family members, but her gaze lingered on Jingwan.
After carefully looking the somewhat flustered girl up and down, Qin Xi asked, "And this young lady is...?"
Gao Yun didn't want anyone to know about these things at home, so she pulled Qin Xi forward, saying, "Don't worry about us! Sister, let's go quickly so we don't miss the Marseille race."
Qin Xi let her pull her away, but couldn't help looking back at that small face. She was beautiful and would soon be a stunning beauty. Who was she to the Gao family?
Shi Jun was favored by Old Madam Qin, and it was the old lady who instructed her granddaughter to call her over. After Shi Jun bowed, the old lady warmly held her hand and asked her a few more questions. However, when she saw Gao Yun, who was dressed in a richly dressed manner, the smile on her lips remained unchanged, but the smile in her eyes completely disappeared. Although she nodded to Gao Yun, her words and actions were much more distant and polite.
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