Chapter Fifty-Eight: A Battle of Words
In the middle of the chrysanthemum garden, there is a small, square thatched pavilion with wooden beams and pillars covered with thatch, which has a kind of natural, rustic charm. The servants have already cleaned the pavilion spotlessly, and it is fully equipped with a boutonniere, a backrest, and a pillow. In the center of the pavilion is a low, square table with a complete tea set on it, and a mat is laid out behind it.
A young maidservant squatted outside the thatched pavilion, boiling water on a clay stove. Once the water boiled, Gu Jingyi invited everyone into the pavilion to sit for a while, personally brewing tea for them with skillful technique and elegant movements. Compared to her, Ruan Bi felt she truly didn't resemble a lady of a prominent family; aside from her calligraphy, she had nothing else to offer.
After brewing the tea, the maids serving it to the other girls on trays. Gu Jingyi said with a smile, "This is chrysanthemum tea that I picked and roasted myself last year. Please have a taste, ladies."
The second young lady lifted the teacup, and saw only a few chrysanthemums unfurling in the water. Indeed, they were like shimmering golden skirts, pleasing to the eye and fragrant. She praised them repeatedly: "I never expected Jingyi to make tea herself. Just this thought alone is extremely elegant, no less than that of Mr. Wuliu."
Hearing this, Gu Jingyi smiled and her eyes crinkled.
Han Lu took a small sip and said, "It really does leave a pleasant fragrance in your mouth, much better than the chrysanthemum tea sold outside."
Xie Mingzhu chimed in, "Yes, yes, it really is good tea. Jingyi, remember to give me a can later. My mother has been suffering from internal heat lately and has been drinking chrysanthemum tea every day."
"Yes, Sister Mingzhu."
Xie Mingzhu looked around and said with emotion, "Today, as we sit in the chrysanthemum garden and sip chrysanthemum tea, we can be considered as refined scholars and gentlemen."
Han Lu smiled and said, "Look at what Mingzhu is saying. Although we are not scholars, we have always been refined guests."
"I was wrong, I was wrong, so punish me by making me drink this whole cup of chrysanthemum tea."
Everyone laughed.
After laughing, Gu Jingyi noticed that Ruan Bi hadn't spoken, so she blinked and asked, "Fifth Sister, are you not saying anything because you don't like it?"
Ruan Bi pointed to the chrysanthemum garden and said, "With such a magnificent scene before me and such fine tea in hand, I forget all the thousand words I have in my heart."
Following her finger, everyone looked over and saw the pale golden sunlight shining on the garden full of yellow flowers, the sparse branches leaning askew, exuding endless charm.
A moment later, a refreshing autumn breeze blew, and the whole garden trembled.
Inside the thatched pavilion, the girls' clothes fluttered in the wind, and Ruan Bi's pomegranate-red skirt captivated everyone's attention.
Gu Jingyi looked her up and down several times and said, "Who made this dress for Fifth Sister? It's really beautiful."
“It was embroidered by my fourth sister; you’ve seen her before.”
Gu Jingyi had no recollection of the Fourth Miss. After racking her brains for a while, she shook her head and said, "I don't remember." Looking at Ruan Bi's dress, she said enviously, "She is truly beautiful. Would it be alright if Fifth Sister brought her to our mansion for a visit another day? I would like to ask her for advice in person."
Before Ruan Bi could speak, Xie Mingzhu interrupted, "Jingyi, why go to such lengths? Fourth Miss Ruan's embroidery is indeed excellent..." Her eyes flickered as she looked at Second Miss Ruan, her gaze filled with a mixture of inquiry and suspicion, "But Second Miss Ruan is no less remarkable; even her embroidery and paintings have earned high praise from the Empress Dowager."
The second young lady was drinking tea when the conversation suddenly turned to her, and it was about the topic she was most embarrassed about. She choked and covered her mouth with her handkerchief, coughing.
Ruan Bi was startled. That's right. Others might not know the Second Miss's embroidery skills, but Xie Mingzhu and Han Lu were her former best friends and talked about everything, so they naturally knew her skill level.
"By the way, Second Sister Ruan, I was just about to ask you something," Gu Jingyi said. "I heard Mother say that the embroidery was incredibly lifelike and wonderful. How did you embroider it?"
Xie Mingzhu chimed in with ill intent, "Yes, Qi'er, how did you embroider that?"
The second daughter's face paled slightly as she said, "How else can embroidery be done? It's done stitch by stitch."
Xie Mingzhu then asked, "Your skill level used to be limited to embroidering purses. When did you learn such advanced techniques?"
The second daughter said, "My mother had already asked the people from the Tiangong Embroidery Workshop to teach us, but I used to be lazy and didn't want to embroider. Recently, I've been staying at home and practicing every day."
"When did Qi'er start practicing? Last time when Master Ziying accepted Fifth Sister as his disciple, I even sat in your courtyard, but I never heard of it."
The guilty second daughter had gradually calmed down, but remembering how the Xie family had rejected her marriage proposal, she was still angry and said in a harsh tone, "Who are you? Why should I tell you?"
These words stung Xie Mingzhu. Raising an eyebrow, she said bluntly, "Why don't you dare tell me? Is it because you can't bear to see anyone?"
The second young lady suddenly stood up, her eyebrows furrowed, and asked, "What do you mean?"
Xie Mingzhu snorted coldly and said, "Don't you understand what I mean? I can't stand any nonsense, and I hate people who are deceitful the most. The moment I see one, I want to skin her alive."
Han Lu stood up and pulled the second young lady aside, saying, "Qi'er, don't get excited. Mingzhu just heard that your embroidery has won the Empress Dowager's favor, and she's just curious. Actually, I'm curious too. I've known you for so long, and I know you have beautiful handwriting, can play the zither, and write poetry, but I really didn't know you were also good at embroidery. Not only are you good at it, but it's said that your designs are also unique, and the Empress Dowager was overjoyed when she saw them." It seemed like she was trying to smooth things over, but she was actually just cheering on Xie Mingzhu.
Gu Jingyi, unaware of what was happening, opened her eyes wide, her dark pupils darting around.
The second young lady shook off Han Lu's hand and said with a sneer, "You're just unhappy because I've won the Empress Dowager's favor."
Ruan Bi frowned, thinking, "Second sister, even though it's true, you can't say it in front of everyone. Do you think those two will let it go?"
As expected, Han Lu's face turned cold, and she said, "It's good to be liked by the Empress Dowager, but we also need to consider how she came to be liked."
Xie Mingzhu's expression changed drastically, and she said, "Bah! Let me ask you, when did you start embroidering?"
Two months ago.
Xie Mingzhu asked again, "I heard that the picture is half a person tall, with bright colors and intricate color matching. Even a master would need at least three months to embroider it. You can embroider it in two months?"
The second young lady was already unsure about the embroidery, but she forced herself to say, "I said two months, and that's it. What do you have to do with me if you don't believe me?"
Outside the pavilion, a respectable old woman dressed in a gray silk robe coughed lightly and winked at Gu Jingyi. Gu Jingyi finally realized that as the hostess, she needed to maintain harmony between the guests. But she had no experience in mediating disputes. After racking her brains for a long time, she whispered, "Sisters, let's talk things out and not get angry."
The voice was barely audible, and the Second Miss and Xie Mingzhu were already furious; how could they possibly listen to it?
Xie Mingzhu then said, "Since that's the case, why don't you tell me how many colors were used in total?"
Ruan Bi's mind raced. Xie Mingzhu, usually so careless, had pressed her relentlessly, from the timing of the embroidery to the colors used, clearly someone had trained her. If today's events could convince her, all would be well; otherwise, the consequences could be dire. Although Ruan Bi disliked the Ruan family mansion, it was still her place of refuge, and she couldn't afford to become someone else's target. She immediately spoke before the second young lady, saying, "There are twenty-three kinds." Seeing Xie Mingzhu and the others looking at her with surprise, she added, "I helped my second sister sort the threads."
Xie Mingzhu knew the relationship between the second young lady and Ruan Bi, so she naturally didn't believe it. She sneered and said, "Are you helping your second sister split up the storyline, or are you helping your fourth sister split up the storyline? Fifth young lady, have you figured it out?"
Ruan Bi didn't mince words and said coldly, "I made myself perfectly clear. If Miss Xie didn't hear me clearly, she'd better have a doctor check her ears."
Xie Mingzhu turned pale with anger and said, "You stupid pig, you're still protecting her. You have no idea what she says about you."
These words startled everyone in the thatched pavilion. It was common knowledge that young ladies of respectable families were forbidden from using vulgar language when cursing, especially since she was doing so in someone else's home. The grey-clad matron outside the pavilion frowned and shook her head slightly.
Han Lu, fearing Xie Mingzhu might misbehave, quickly pulled her hand and said with a smile to Ruan Bi, "Fifth Miss is quite sharp-tongued. Mingzhu is easily influenced and can't stand being criticized. Actually, she's just curious how Qi'er, who is clearly not good at embroidery, could embroider such a masterpiece in just two months? I heard that the embroidery is superb, with tight stitches, something no ordinary person could do. If it were Fourth Miss, Mingzhu wouldn't be surprised. And it's really strange, Fourth Miss is so good at embroidery, yet she doesn't embroider herself, instead letting Qi'er do it?"
This girl was clearly much more cunning than Xie Mingzhu; her smile was gentle, but her words were like knives.
Ruan Bi also laughed and said, "There's no way around it, I can't stand any nonsense. The person I hate the most is Sima Zhao. Whenever I see someone like that, I want to rip her heart out."
These words were clearly imitations of what Xie Mingzhu had just said about the second young lady. Xie Mingzhu's face flushed red, and she almost jumped up, but Han Lu held her back. The maids and nannies standing inside and outside the thatched pavilion all pursed their lips and secretly smiled, looking at Ruan Bi with great curiosity in their eyes.
Han Lu's eyes flickered slightly as she said, "The sage said, 'A gentleman is magnanimous and at ease, while a petty person is always anxious and worried.' He also said, 'A person with an upright character has nothing to fear.' Fifth Miss, don't you agree?"
"The sage also said that it is easy to dodge a spear in the open, but difficult to guard against an arrow in the dark. He also said that one should stay away from petty people and befriend virtuous people."
The exchange was intense and lively, and Gu Jingyi was so engrossed in listening that she forgot her responsibilities as the host.
Han Lu frowned slightly. She knew Ruan Bi was different from before, but she hadn't expected her to become so formidable that she couldn't gain any advantage. Just as she was thinking about how to respond, she heard Ruan Bi say, "Miss Xie, Miss Han, have you seen that painting?" Arguing was only about gaining the upper hand initially; the key was to resolve any potential crises.
Xie Mingzhu rolled her eyes and didn't answer.
Han Lu said, "No."
“I’ve never even seen a painting like this before, no wonder,” Ruan Bi said. “You’re just wondering how my second sister, who isn’t good at embroidery, could embroider such a complex pattern and color scheme of the Queen Mother of the West amidst auspicious clouds on a moonlit night, right?”
"Exactly."
"Then I'll tell you, it's because that picture only uses the Huangmei embroidery stitch, so it's very quick to embroider. Not to mention Second Sister, even I could finish it in two months."
Han Lu and Xie Mingzhu naturally didn't believe it. Ruan Bi's ignorance and incompetence, exaggerated by the second young lady, had deeply penetrated their hearts.
Ruan Bi turned to look at Gu Jingyi, who was watching the commotion with wide eyes: "Jingyi, may I borrow the lampshade I gave you?"
Gu Jingyi was stunned for a moment, then said, "I told you last time, my little Bai brother took it away."
"Could we borrow it from Young Master Gu?"
“My little brother has a big temper. I wouldn’t dare lend him anything he wants.”
Ruan Bi was a little amused and said, "You should just tell him to borrow one and return two."
Gu Jingyi's eyes lit up, she nodded, and said to the little maid standing behind her, "Que'er, go and tell the young master that Miss Ruan Wu can borrow the lampshade, and she will return two of them."
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