Back on the original painted boat, the poetry gathering moved on to the next activity—a grass-fighting game.
The so-called "grass fighting" is a competition where rare and exotic plants are compared and the one with the most novelty or variety wins. Since their boat trip was crowded and limited space, they couldn't bring too many plants, so they relied on the unusual to win.
At this moment, everyone was seated at their own seats, with the flowers and plants they had brought for the competition laid out on the table in front of them, all covered with cloth. The person at the very end of the seat took the lead and introduced the flowers and plants they had brought in turn.
The seating arrangement was based on the respective family status of the noble ladies. Since the General's Mansion was the head of the military, Qingying was naturally very close to the Princess's head seat.
Her counterpart was the Princess of Anyang County.
There were many people, and most of the women at the front wanted to impress the princess. They would spend half an hour introducing a single flower or plant. By the time it was her turn, half an hour had passed.
Qingying was already tired of waiting, but now that everyone was looking at her, she had to put on a dignified appearance.
With a smile, she lifted the cloth covering the flowerpot and introduced it: "The flower I brought is called Egret Spreading Its Wings. It was transported from Zhongzhou. The gardener put in a lot of effort to make it bloom before the poetry gathering. Egrets are a symbol of longevity and happiness. The egret is flapping its wings upwards, which means progress, hard work and leaps."
The flowers blooming in the white porcelain flowerpot on the table in front of her were quite peculiar. The flowers were small, funnel-shaped, with white sepals and pale green petals. A white fan-shaped flower emerged from the center, like a white egret spreading its wings. The petals were white, with long, tassel-like serrated edges, like a white egret standing among the lush green stems and leaves.
Such a peculiar flower immediately attracted the attention of others. Even Princess Yongning couldn't help but get down from her seat and come closer to take a closer look.
"I was already surprised by the fiery red lips that Miss Tan brought, but I didn't expect that Miss Liu's white egret wings would be even better."
Qingying curtsied modestly and said, "Your Highness is too kind."
This competition involves everyone voting to select the three best and most unique plants from among many flowers and plants, excluding their own choices. These plants will then compete against the plants selected by the other two painted boats. Finally, the Grand Tutor of Jin, the Crown Prince of Yu, and the two princes will choose the most unique plant as the champion of the competition.
The winner will receive a red coral tree prepared by Princess Yongning.
That is a rare treasure.
To ensure fairness, they were arranged beforehand to sit behind a screen on the central pleasure boat, and the plants were to be transplanted into the same pots before being brought in.
Qingying was already not very interested, so she didn't go to the central pleasure boat with them. She just sat quietly in her seat and waited for the result.
Suddenly a gust of wind blew by, and she couldn't help but sneeze. Yu Yue, who was behind her, immediately brought her a cloak. "Miss, it's windy on the lake. You should keep your body covered."
She nodded and let Yu Yue help her fasten her cloak.
Suddenly, a small sachet, shaped like a rabbit, landed in front of her, with a white jade pendant hanging from its bottom.
She followed the slender fingers that were hooking the sachet and looked into the tiny, fragmented starry sky in the man's eyes.
"Your Highness..." she realized and quickly stood up to bow, "Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince."
"No need for formalities." Wei Huaixu smiled gently. "I heard that you are a light sleeper and often have trouble sleeping at night, so I specially ordered someone to go to the Imperial Hospital to find medicine and make a sachet. Take it back and hang it by your bedside; it may help you sleep."
Qingying hesitated, not taking the sachet. "Why does Your Highness want to give me this sachet?"
"Why so many questions? Just take it. It's my way of repaying the debt of saving my life."
He used his gratitude as leverage, so how could Qingying dare to refuse?
He had no choice but to take it and hold it in his hand, saying, "Thank you, Your Highness."
Wei Huaixu smiled and said, "I think you seem a bit bored staying here. Why don't you go out for a walk?"
"Where are we going?"
"Go outside and feel the lake breeze; the scenery of Moon Lake is truly beautiful."
Qingying also found it rather boring here, so she nodded in agreement.
They walked to the edge of the painted boat, where they could see the surrounding scenery clearly.
The vast lake comes into view, its waters as blue as a fine gemstone under the sunlight, shimmering in the light. In the distance, the mountains rise in layers, and the trees along the lake are lush and verdant, creating a beautiful landscape painting.
The sun is still warm in mid-March, but the reflection of the lake water makes it somewhat dazzling.
Qingying raised her hand to cover her forehead, and by slightly raising her eyes, she could see his smooth and beautiful profile.
She hadn't dared to look closely before, but now she noticed a small dark mole at the corner of his right eye.
No wonder his smile is so captivating.
"What are you looking at?"
His sudden words startled Qingying, who quickly looked away, "No..."
Wei Huaixu turned his head to the side, the corners of his lips slightly upturned, "You haven't reached the age of marriage yet, have you?"
"Yes, I won't be fourteen until after this month."
Which day?
Sensing his intention, Qingying shook her head and said, "It's just my birthday."
He didn't ask any more questions, but simply looked ahead again.
After a long silence, he said softly, "I won't either."
...
Qingying did not stay by the lake for long.
Her body is too weak; I'm afraid if she gets too much wind, she'll be bedridden for several days again.
Wei Huaixu escorted her back to her seat and had someone serve her a pot of hot tea before leaving.
Qingying took a sip, but found the taste strange, so she didn't continue drinking.
The results of the grass-fighting contest came out quickly.
Unsurprisingly, Qingying won first place and the priceless red coral tree.
The next part was the main event of the poetry gathering—composing poems.
Because her egret-shaped tree was quite fitting for the occasion, Princess Yongning asked everyone to compose poems on the theme of "egret".
Qingying was well aware of her own limited knowledge, so she excused herself from her studies and went to the side to relax.
Everyone in the capital knew about her frail health, so no one made things difficult for her.
After finally making it to the end of the poetry gathering, Qingying disembarked. Just as she stepped into the carriage, she was stopped by someone.
"Miss, please wait."
Qingying turned around and saw the aloof and cold man standing by the carriage. She was taken aback. "Young master... is there something you need?"
Jin Heng extended his hand, his tone flat and indifferent: "You dropped something."
In the large, clean hand with long, slender fingers lay a rabbit-shaped sachet and a jade ring broken into three pieces.
Her eyes widened instantly.
"It's...it's broken?!"
Oh no! The gift His Highness the Crown Prince gave her today has been broken into this state in just two hours! She absolutely mustn't let him see it!
Jin Heng asked, "Is this thing important to you?"
She took it, looked at it, and said helplessly, "The gift itself isn't that important, but the person who gave it to me... never mind, I'll apologize when he asks about it later."
"This jade broke because I stepped on it carelessly. If you trust me, please give it to me and I'll try to see if I can restore it."
Qingying shook her head, "I won't trouble you, young master."
Knowing Jin Heng's identity, she didn't want to get too involved with him, so she said goodbye and got into the carriage.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com