The departure date for Fuzhou was set for five days after Xu Yixuan's wedding.
Dai Zhiwan hadn't recovered from the 'sadness' of Xu Yixuan's marriage when she heard that Su Wanyan was leaving. The day before she left, she ran to Prince Gong's Mansion and held Su Wanyan's hand tightly, her eyes red and swollen.
Su Wanyan found it amusing; she had tried to coax her for a long time but couldn't get her to calm down.
Having no other choice, Su Wanyan took out her treasured intertwined vase, hoping to make her smile.
A vase with intertwined necks is a vase where the necks of the two vases are intertwined. With a little ingenuity, the two vases can be separated. This was specially made by the ceramic craftsman at Su Wanyan's request.
One vase is bright blue, and the other is porcelain white; both are very beautiful with their rich, pure colors.
When Su Wanyan took it out, Dai Zhiwan felt strange: "This vase is made in a very odd way."
Her voice trembled as she asked, "What can this vase be used for?"
Dai Zhiwan felt that apart from the good texture and color, it had no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Not only did it lack aesthetic appeal, it was also unsuitable for flower arranging.
Su Wanyan touched the vase: "Really? Is it strange?"
She smiled affectionately and said, "I paid a lot of money to have the master cook it."
Because the two bottlenecks needed to be completely rotated and fitted together, according to the master craftsman, many were ruined before this satisfactory one was finally fired.
Dai Zhiwan knew that Su Wanyan liked these unusual things, so she didn't say anything more.
Su Wanyan pushed the vase towards her: "Here, this is for you. Don't cry."
She's just leaving the capital, not dying.
Dai Zhiwan pouted: "A gentleman does not take what others cherish, I don't want it."
She pulled Su Wanyan along, saying, "I just can't bear to part with you, so please let me cry for a while."
It's not that I want anything from her, nor do I want her to coax me.
Su Wanyan grasped her hand in return: "Since you're crying in front of me, how can I let you? Why don't you go back to the manor and cry there, and don't let me see you?"
"How can you know I'm sad if I don't cry in front of you? If you don't know I'm sad, why would you consider staying?"
Su Wanyan smiled helplessly: "It's absolutely impossible for her to stay. You should have heard your grandfather and the others mention the Empress Dowager's thoughts."
"..." Dai Zhiwan fell silent instantly.
He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he didn't say anything. He then leaned on Su Wanyan's shoulder again, and the tears he had just stopped flowing started flowing again.
Su Wanyan had no idea that Dai Zhiwan was such a crybaby.
"You really are..." Su Wanyan smiled helplessly, "What am I supposed to do?"
“Wanyan, you don’t understand.” Dai Zhiwan’s tears flowed even more fiercely as she said, “In the past, when I made an appointment with Yixuan, all I needed to do was send a message through a maid. In fact, I would go to the Duke of Shun’s mansion to find her. But now, I have to write a visiting card to the Grand Secretary’s mansion.”
Dai Zhiwan could not accept it.
She and Xu Yixuan grew up together and were very close, like twin sisters.
But after Xu Yixuan got married that day, she realized that although they were both in the capital, there were many more rules and regulations.
Dai Zhiwan raised her eyes: "Yixuan has been extremely busy these past few days, serving tea and water, paying respects to her parents-in-law, and returning to her parents' home on the third day of the lunar new year. Look at her, where has she found the time to meet with me?"
Su Wanyan comforted her gently, "She's just been busy lately. Once she's done with this, she won't forget you. Just wait here at the manor. She'll definitely send someone to tell you as soon as she's done."
Dai Zhiwan lowered her eyes, bit her lip, and pursed her lips, wanting to say something in rebuttal, but ultimately gave up and threw herself into Su Wanyan's arms: "Wanyan! You're leaving too, sob—"
Now that Su Wanyan is gone, when will the three of them be able to reunite again?
After that... she was about to get married, and she would have to serve tea and water, take care of her parents-in-law, and have children. Dai Zhiwan had no idea about it at all, and she didn't want to change her current life at all.
But she couldn't bring herself to say these words.
Su Wanyan patiently patted her back, sometimes gently, sometimes slowly.
She didn't know how to comfort Dai Zhiwan. In Su Wanyan's eyes, people and things could not remain unchanged. She was someone who accepted change at any time, so she really didn't share Dai Zhiwan's worries.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" Just then, Qiu Ye's voice came hurriedly from outside the door.
Dai Zhiwan quickly turned her head away to wipe away her tears. Su Wanyan couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh, then got up and went to open the door.
Before she could speak, Qiu Ye hurriedly reported, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, an imperial edict has arrived from the palace and is currently in the front courtyard."
"It's just an imperial edict, it's here, what's the rush?"
"No, Your Majesty!" Qiu Ye quickly interjected, "Besides the Saint, there are... there are..."
Su Wanyan asked curiously, "What else?"
Qiu Ye opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say. She said anxiously, "Your Majesty, you should go and see her quickly."
"?" Su Wanyan was completely confused.
Just as she was wondering, Dai Zhiwan came out of the house: "What's wrong?"
"An imperial edict has arrived from the palace. I'm going to see what's going on."
Judging from Qiu Ye's anxious state, it probably isn't anything good.
Su Wanyan asked, "Where is the Prince?"
"The prince has been summoned to the palace."
Su Wanyan was slightly taken aback: "When did this happen?"
How could she not know?
"Just a quarter of an hour ago."
Because Su Wanyan and Dai Zhiwan were talking in the room, Yu Nanqing specifically instructed them not to report it before leaving so as not to disturb them.
Su Wanyan nodded in realization: "Never mind, I'll go see what's going on first. Zhiwan, wait for me here."
“I’ll go with you to take a look too,” Dai Zhiwan said immediately.
Su Wanyan thought for a moment and nodded. She confided in Dai Zhiwan, and Dai Zhiwan was no outsider.
Moreover, when palace officials come to announce the imperial decree, the entire capital will know, so there's no need to hide anything.
When Su Wanyan and Dai Zhiwan arrived at the front yard, they finally understood what Qiu Ye was in such a hurry for.
Standing in the front courtyard were not only the eunuchs who were announcing the imperial decree, but also two rows of neatly arranged palace maids.
Hmm, Su Wanyan wasn't sure if these were palace maids or not, because there were obvious differences in their clothing and hairstyles.
Although she didn't know, Su Wanyan had already guessed what the Empress Dowager wanted to do.
Su Wanyan remained calm, but Dai Zhiwan couldn't. Upon seeing this scene, she frowned and said, "Eunuch Sun, are you here today to deliver an imperial decree or to present beauties? Every single one of them is so lovely!"
The words were spoken in a sarcastic tone, and even the most obtuse eunuch delivering the decree could tell what was going on.
The Changguo Duke's Mansion is now highly supported by the ministers in the court, and the Empress Dowager values it even more. Therefore, when Dai Zhiwan spoke, the eunuch who delivered the decree dared not refute her at all.
With a forced smile, he said, "Miss Dai, you flatter me too much. I am merely a messenger of imperial decrees. How could I be so worthy of Prince Gong's trust? Please don't make fun of me."
The implication was that Dai Zhiwan had no right to enter Prince Gong's mansion unless it was ordered by the Empress Dowager.
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