Chapter 3 Initial Dispute
It was still early, and only five or six candidates had arrived. They all carried silver flower sticks specially made by the Ministry of Rites. The sticks had a seven-petal lotus flower head, and a thin body below, engraved with gold thread, an image of a flute attracting a phoenix, serving as a token of good fortune.
At this time, several people were standing or sitting, and some people who might have known each other before were chatting in groups of three or two.
Qiandeng put down the tray and secretly glanced at them. The beautiful women, the orchids and the pearls, all looked like outstanding men.
The servants and attendants who had called her earlier had already put their things away. On the carpet was a futon with a black silk and eight-treasure pearl pattern, covered with a brocade cushion, on which sat cross-legged a young man with quite beautiful features.
He was wearing an apricot-yellow silk robe embroidered with gold. The collar was unbuttoned, and had been turned down to resemble an open-collared Hu garment. It was tightly tied with a white jade belt made of grape vines, outlining his slender waistline. He exuded the spirit of a proud and unrestrained young man.
She glanced at the brocade cloth he was sitting on and saw the word "gold" embroidered on it. Thinking about the candidate information she had read, she suddenly understood.
The Jin family, the richest family in Chang'an, had more than a dozen merchant caravans traveling to the Western Regions all year round, from as close as Tubo and Beiting to as far as India, Persia, and Fulin, handling countless porcelain, silk, spices, and jewelry.
A family so wealthy naturally wanted to expand its influence at court. The Jin family already had two capable sons supporting the family, but the only candidate for her fiancé was Jin Tang, a pampered son from childhood.
Originally, merchants were not qualified to be selected as her husband, but Jintang happened to enter the Imperial College before the election, so he was selected as a student.
After all, the husband of a county lady in this dynasty would be appointed an official. Marrying the county lady would mean entering the official career, and the Jin family's future would be smoother.
Seeing Qiandeng put down the tray and stopped moving, Jintang tapped the table and looked at her with raised eyebrows.
She smiled, leaned over to put down the teacup, and poured Jintang a full cup of clove drink.
Jin Tang signaled his attendant to give her a tip. Seeing that she was wearing a veil, he looked at the other maids and asked, "Why are you the only one wearing a veil?"
Qian Deng said vaguely, "I have had a big sore on my face these past two days. It's red and swollen. I'm afraid I might offend you."
"Are the palace staffed so short that patients are even asked to come out to pour tea?" Jin Tang asked with a frown.
A long-servant behind him laughed and said, "Young Master, do you think you are at home? I see that the palace is not very big, and there are not many servants. With so many guests today, everyone must be out to serve."
From what they said, it seemed like they were mocking the decline of the royal palace and its inferiority to that of merchants.
Qiandeng raised her eyebrows and was about to refute him, but Jin Tang was oblivious. He simply gestured to his attendant to take out some more reward money and said to her, "Yanshoufang is our Jin family pharmacy. We have a famous doctor who sees patients every ten days. Appearance is of utmost importance to a woman. You can go and see him. Don't delay."
Seeing that he didn't seem to have a bad heart, Qian Deng didn't bother to argue and stood up and left with the tray.
The attendant raised his arm to stop her: "Maid, how can you be so rude? Why don't you take the silver and thank my young master?"
Qian Deng blocked his hand with the tray and frowned to avoid contact with him.
Seeing the attendant holding out his arms to stop her, a young man wearing an indigo-colored Shu brocade round-collared robe stood up and pushed the attendant away with a palm. He said in a deep voice, "Young Master Jin is so grand! Why is he still embarrassing a little maid after entering the palace?"
Qiandeng turned around and saw that the man was obviously dressed more simply than Jintang, with no other gold or jade decorations on his body, but this was exactly in line with his thick eyebrows, high nose, and upright and serious temperament.
She was just trying to figure out who he was when Jin Tang sneered, "I was wondering who it was, Su Yunzhong, Su Lingshi. Last year, when I left the city for a stroll, I was two steps late. I asked you to open the door a crack, but you refused. How did a lowly gatekeeper like me get such a chance to be a candidate here?"
Qiandeng immediately understood that it was Su Yunzhong, the left gate guard.
Although Lingshi's position was not high, Su Yunzhong was neither humble nor arrogant. He simply said calmly, "Master Jin, I didn't open the city gates because I was fulfilling my duty. You tried to bribe your way into the city because you were flouting the law. Why did you expose your crime in front of so many people?"
Jintang opened his mouth, but was speechless for a moment.
The attendant behind him was furious and said sarcastically, "Su Lingshi, who is loyal to his duties and selfless, is poor but has great ambitions. He can't even support his sister and gave her away. I wonder where he got the confidence to run for election?"
Qiandeng recalled the information and knew that the Su family had indeed fallen on hard times. Although his ancestors had been officials, by the time of his father's generation, they had already been unable to make ends meet.
However, Su Yunzhong was a skilled warrior. A few years ago, he helped the government capture a major thief and was commended for his service as a guard at the Left Guardian. However, his family was in decline, and he was only a minor official, so it was difficult for him to have any career advancement in the future.
Unless, he got a great help from a chance encounter, for example, marrying a county lady who was favored by the emperor and empress.
Although she already knew that among her ten candidates, there were wealthy and poor families, as well as prominent and humble families, she did not expect that someone would start arguing as soon as they met.
Qiandeng's face darkened slightly, while Jintang looked Su Yunzhong up and down and asked, "Mr. Su, you're dressed quite nicely today. Is it because you haven't used up all the money from selling girls yet, so you're planning to dress up and make a better future?"
The words were so harsh that Su Yunzhong suddenly stepped forward, grabbed Jin Tang's collar, and raised his fist to hit his fair and beautiful face.
"Brother Su, don't act on impulse." A young man who was putting the tea utensils behind him stood up to intervene. "We're all gathered here today. Meeting is fate. I'm sure the palace, the Ministry of Rites, and the Inner Palace Bureau wouldn't want us to damage our relationship, right?"
Qiandeng's eyes swept across the handsome face of the young man and fell on the tea set beside him, thinking that this should be Meng Lanxi.
The Meng family, with its thousand-acre tea plantation in Jiangnan, nurtured a child with a refined aura. His graceful demeanor was captivating, his eyes naturally radiating a sense of purity and gentleness. His white Yue Luo shirt, embroidered with orchid leaves in silver thread, only served to accentuate his ethereal elegance.
"Brother Jin, although you may have spoken out of turn, please don't forget why we came here today. We are all in the palace. What good will it do to fight in such a situation?"
His voice has a Jiangnan accent, which sounds particularly soft and seems to be able to soothe people's hearts.
"Brother Meng is right, but this person is really too much!" Su Yunzhong barely controlled his fists, but his anger was hard to calm down, and he pushed Jin Tang away angrily.
He was a martial artist, and after being pushed, Jin Tang couldn't control his body at all. He stumbled and hit the coffee table behind him, and the hot clove drink spilled on his hands.
The back of his hand was burned red, and Jintang shook his hands and screamed.
His attendants immediately shouted, "Su Yunzhong, you burned my son's hand, how are you going to compensate him?"
Su Yunzhong stared at them coldly without saying a word.
Meng Lanxi shook her head at Su Yunzhong, signaling him not to be impulsive. She then said to Jin Tang, "Don't worry, Brother Jin. I've been involved in tea ceremonies for years, and there might be splashes of boiling water. That's why I carry some medicine with me. It's quite effective in reducing swelling and dispersing blood stasis. You can try it."
Jin Tang was still waving his scalded hands angrily, but Meng Lanxi had already taken out a small porcelain bottle from her sleeve, poured some slightly green medicine into it and rubbed it on the back of his hands.
The potion was indeed effective. Once Jin Tang rubbed the back of his hand, he felt cool muscles and bones. The redness and swelling on his hand quickly faded away, and his muscles and bones became more flexible and comfortable.
Jin Tang turned his wrist a few times and exclaimed in admiration, "This stuff is really good. Where did you get it? I'll buy a hundred bottles first!"
"This is my family's recipe. If you like it, Brother Jin, I'll give you a few bottles next time." Meng Lanxi said, capping the bottle and putting it into her sleeve. "But this medicinal wine can't be drunk. Remember to wash your hands before eating."
Jintang smelled his hand and found no strange smell, so he said, "Okay."
The argument was quickly resolved. Although Jin Tang continued to rub his hands and grumble, he stopped making trouble. Su Yunzhong also nodded to Meng Lanxi to show his gratitude.
Qiandeng noticed the maids behind her waving at her secretly, so she quickly walked over, dropped the tray, and said to Yingluo, "Aunt, please go to the front hall and tell the young man who came to be the candidate today, and all his attendants, to withdraw. Only he can stay in the hall."
To prevent the evil servants of the Jin family from causing trouble again.
Aunt Yingluo agreed, took her hand, and said, "My dear county lady, go back and change your clothes quickly, the Crown Prince is coming!"
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