Chapter Forty-Six: Mid-Autumn Festival Visit
The Fourth Sister painted twelve portraits of the Queen Mother of the West amidst auspicious clouds, a testament to her long-term planning, yet she kept it completely secret. Ruan Bi couldn't help but marvel at her composure. These twelve portraits, some ethereal, some regal, some compassionate… each possessed its own unique charm. However, because they had only met once, and under duress, the resemblance was ambiguous. This suited Ruan Bi perfectly; if the resemblance were identical, everyone would immediately recognize it as flattery, which would be counterproductive. The ambiguity was what she wanted, leaving room for everyone to speculate.
After careful comparison, Ruan Bi still chose the one with the ethereal beauty, and then instructed the Fourth Miss to make slight modifications, making it seven-tenths like the Empress Dowager. Once the design was chosen, the embroidery began. The Fourth Miss finished it in just two days and then called Ruan Bi over to see it. To be honest, this embroidery wasn't anything special among the Fourth Miss's works, but the entire piece used only the Huangmei needlework technique, something no one else had used. Combined with the Fourth Miss's superb embroidery skills and the dense stitches, it appeared quite unique. Especially the Queen Mother of the West, with her ethereal charm, flowing robes, and extraordinary dynamism.
Ruan Bi clicked her tongue in admiration: "Fourth Sister's fingers are indeed as smooth as a spring breeze."
The fourth sister smiled and said, "It was the fifth sister who came up with the brilliant idea."
Qiulan, standing nearby, smiled and said to Xiuzhi, "The two young ladies are starting to flatter each other again."
Everyone burst into laughter.
"Fourth sister, let's take it to Grandmother to have a look."
"good."
Ruan Bi and the fourth young lady went together to the old lady's courtyard. The old lady had just woken up from her afternoon nap and was sitting on the couch holding a piece of white fox fur. A group of nannies and maids surrounded her, chattering away. Seeing the two young ladies enter with beaming smiles, the old lady asked curiously, "Fourth girl, fifth girl, what's making you so happy?"
“Grandmother, the embroidery of the Queen Mother of the West and auspicious clouds that we talked about last time is finished. Do you think it’s suitable as a birthday gift for the Empress Dowager?” Ruan Bi said, winking at Xiuzhi and Qiulan.
The two women each grasped a corner, then released their grip, and the embroidery unfurled like a scroll painting, revealing a half-person-high image of the Queen Mother of the West amidst auspicious clouds. Everyone's eyes lit up. The old lady placed the white fox fur on the couch, stood up, walked closer, examined it carefully, and exclaimed in surprise, "This is the first time I've ever seen embroidery like this! How was it made?"
Ruan Bi smiled and said, "It's embroidered using only yellow plum blossom patterns. Grandmother, what do you think?"
Qiulan frowned slightly when she saw that the fifth girl was talking the whole time. She gave the fourth girl a wink, signaling her not to let the fifth girl steal the spotlight.
Although the fourth young lady saw it, she pretended not to, and just smiled as she looked at Ruan Bi and the old lady.
"It's not exactly exquisite, but it's certainly quite unique." The old lady gave the two girls an approving look.
Ruan Bi said with a smile, "Grandmother, would you like to see the Queen Mother of the West's face again?"
The old lady's eyesight was failing; she squinted, taking a step forward and then a step back, struggling for a while before finally seeing clearly. She couldn't help but exclaim "Oh!" and looked at Ruan Bi and the Fourth Miss in astonishment, saying, "This is... the Empress Dowager..."
Ruan Bi nodded slightly.
The old lady remained silent for a moment. Born into a prestigious family and married into a century-old household, she was worldly-wise and experienced, and in a moment she had already assessed the value of the embroidery. Suppressing her joy, she sat back on the couch and said kindly, "Not bad, put it away for now. I'll have the steward get a fine scroll and box made for it later." She then beckoned to Ruan Bi and the Fourth Miss, "Come here, sit down next to me."
In the past, the Fourth Miss had sat on the edge of the couch several times because her embroidery pleased the Old Madam, but ever since Ruan Bi won the Old Madam's favor, she had never had such an opportunity again. Hearing the Old Madam call her over to sit again, she was slightly excited, not daring to steal Ruan Bi's thunder, and slowly walked a few steps to sit down on the Old Madam's right side.
The old lady held one of their hands and said, "You two girls have worked hard. Tell me, what reward do you want?"
Ruan Bi said, "I only used my brain a little. The one who really worked hard was my fourth sister. For more than a month, she often embroidered until the middle of the night."
The fourth daughter humbly replied, "This is my duty, Grandmother, there's no need for a reward."
Ruan Bi smiled and said, "Fourth Sister, Grandmother is only thinking of rewarding you because she's happy. If you're too polite, wouldn't that spoil her mood?" Then she said to the old lady, "Grandmother, let me ask for a reward for Fourth Sister..."
The fourth sister stared at her with wide eyes.
"...Fourth Sister has been in the embroidery room day and night for more than a month and hasn't had time to visit Aunt Lin. Now that this matter is settled and it's almost the Mid-Autumn Festival, let's send her to the Red Leaf Nunnery to see how Aunt Lin is doing?"
Normally, the old lady would definitely not allow it, but today she was in a good mood, so she patted the fourth girl's hand and said affectionately, "Fourth girl, she is your birth mother, and it's a festival, so it's only right to visit her. How about we ask the fifth girl to go with you another day?"
A few days ago, I went to visit Aunt Lin in secret. It was a rushed trip, and I only stayed for a quarter of an hour. It was a rare opportunity to see her properly. A look of ecstatic joy flashed in the Fourth Miss's eyes. She said, "Thank you, Grandmother." She glanced at Ruan Bi, her gratitude evident.
Ruan Bi, fearing that things might change if she delayed, said, "No need to change the date, let's do it today, it's only just past noon."
The old lady looked at her with surprise and said, "Weren't you supposed to visit the Princess's residence with your mother this afternoon?"
Ruan Biwei was taken aback and said, "My mother didn't mention it to me."
No sooner had she finished speaking than the First Madam entered, looking at Ruan Bi with a reproachful expression. "I've been looking everywhere for you, and here you are! Go change your clothes and come with me to the Princess's residence. The carriages are waiting at the door."
It was obvious that she had deliberately not notified her so that she wouldn't be prepared. Ruan Bi didn't know what to say, so she went back to the east wing to change her clothes and went to the hanging flower gate. There she saw the second young lady. Today she was dressed up carefully, wearing a red ruyi peony ruqun, with a red gold hairpin inlaid with rubies and kingfisher feathers in her hair. In addition, she had a slender figure and bright features, which made people dare not look directly at her.
She saw Ruan Bi dressed in a honey-colored lotus-patterned ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), with only two uniquely styled pearl palace flowers pinned to her hair, and without any other jewelry. She disdainfully looked away.
This time, the gifts prepared by the Ruan family to thank the Princess were enough to fill two carriages, with eight pots of first-class chrysanthemums being the highlight. Princess Huiwen received them in the east side hall. When she saw the gift list presented by the First Madam and the eight pots of first-class chrysanthemums, her eyebrows curved and she said, "Madam Ruan is too kind."
The First Madam smiled and said, "Not at all, not at all. The Princess has taken great care of my maids, and I am very grateful. I have always wanted to visit her, but unfortunately, I had some family matters to attend to recently. I hope it is not too late to visit the Princess before the Mid-Autumn Festival."
The eldest princess smiled and handed the gift list to the nanny beside her, gesturing for her to accept it. Her gaze first fell on the second young lady, who resembled a peacock spreading its tail feathers, then on Ruan Bi below her, and when it touched the pearl palace flower in Ruan Bi's hair, her eyes softened slightly. This palace flower was a gift from her last time, and it was rare for Ruan Bi to have the thoughtfulness to wear it specifically for her to see.
Last time, she had sent Lady Dongping to the Ruan residence to test the waters, but more than twenty days had passed without any news. Later, she heard that something had happened to the second master of the Ruan family, and assumed that the family was in turmoil and had no time to attend to it, so she waited. Today, the First Madam sent a visiting card, so she knew that she was there to give a reply. She had a vague feeling that something was amiss; generally speaking, replies should be given through Lady Dongping. After thinking for a moment, she said to Cui Jiu, "Take the two young ladies to see Jingyi. I need to talk to Madam Ruan for a while."
Cui Jiu nodded and said with a smile to Ruan Bi and the second young lady, "Ladies, please come with me to see my Lady Jingyi."
Gu Jingyi had received the news early and dressed in her guest attire, waiting in the west side hall. After exchanging greetings, she happily came forward, took Ruan Bi's hand, and said, "Fifth Sister Ruan, it's been almost a month since we last met! Why haven't you come over to play? I've missed you so much. Oh, by the way, my little brother Xiaobai snatched the lampshade you gave me." As she spoke, she pouted unhappily.
Gu Xiaobai snatched the lampshade? Ruan Bi was slightly surprised and said, "I embroidered several of those lampshades. I'll have someone deliver them to you another day."
Gu Jingyi was overjoyed and said, "Thank you, Fifth Sister. Oh, right, there's something else I need to tell you." After saying that, she turned around and hugged "Mituan" from the side, and said with a big smile, "My little white brother finally agreed to let it be called Snowball. I have to thank Fifth Sister for this."
"Thank me for what?"
“After you came last time, I told Brother Xiaobai that Sister Ruan Wu said Snowball was a nice name. Then he said, ‘It’s so annoying, let’s just call it Snowball then.’” Gu Jingyi paused, her eyes crinkling with laughter. “So Snowball was able to revert to its original name thanks to Sister Ruan Wu.”
"What does this have to do with me?" Ruan Bi was both amused and exasperated.
The second girl sat on the sidelines for half a day, watching Gu Jingyi and Ruan Bi being so intimate. She felt both jealous and annoyed. With a flicker of her eye, she smiled and said, "I also think that Mi Tuan is not as elegant as Xue Qiu."
Gu Jingyi, being completely innocent, listened to her praise of the snowball and happily said, "Second Sister Ruan, you think so too?"
"Your cat is so beautiful, more beautiful than mine."
Gu Jingyi's eyes widened in surprise, and she said, "You keep cats too?"
The second daughter nodded and said, "Besides cats, I also keep mynah birds and parrots."
Ruan Bi didn't like keeping pets, nor did she have the leisure or inclination, so naturally she and Gu Jingyi had little to talk about, having only met a couple of times and become somewhat familiar with each other. When Gu Jingyi heard that the second young lady was a kindred spirit, her eyes lit up, and she sat down beside her, clutching her snowball, and began chattering away. The two started by talking about the color of cats, then moved on to the sound of parrots, the sharp beaks of mynahs…
The second young lady was very pleased with herself and glanced at Ruan Bi sideways.
Ruan Bi was too lazy to pay attention to her. She looked at the servants filing out of the east side hall, obviously the host and guests were about to discuss serious matters. She couldn't help but feel a little strange. The Ruan family had never had any dealings with the princess. What serious matters could they have to discuss?
In the east side hall, the First Madam said politely, "...My second daughter often mentions you to me, saying that you take good care of her and even personally awarded her first place in the poetry competition, rewarding her with gold. After receiving your reward, the girl was very happy. She wrapped it in a gilded pouch and hung it by her bedside, looking at it every day."
The eldest princess heard her keep mentioning the second young lady but never mentioning Ruan Bi, and she vaguely understood something. She shook her head and said, "Could it be that the second young lady didn't tell you? I originally wanted to give the five taels of gold to the fifth young lady."
The First Madam was slightly embarrassed and said, "Second Miss said that later, when Young Master Gu came to critique the poems, he finally chose hers."
The princess suddenly realized that there had been a misunderstanding. She smiled and said, "My little Bai is just being silly."
Having said all that, both sides have essentially stated their positions.
The First Madam hesitated for a moment, then asked again, "So that gold was a reward for my Fifth Daughter?"
The eldest princess said with certainty, "That's right, it has always been the Fifth Sister."
A surge of anger welled up in the First Madam's stomach. What was so special about this Fifth Miss? Master Ziying had taken a liking to her, and Princess Huiwen had also taken a liking to her. She had ruined the Second Miss's marriage to Xie Mingyue, and now she wanted to steal the Second Miss's marriage to Gu Xiaobai… Suppressing her anger, she decided to try one more time, saying, "To be honest, my Fifth Miss is already being betrothed…"
The princess's expression changed, her eyebrows furrowing in displeasure. For someone of her status to send someone to propose marriage, only to be rejected. Raising her voice, she called out, "Someone come here." A group of maids, nannies, and eunuchs entered. "Chief Steward He, I'm tired. Please escort Madam Ruan out."
A eunuch responded and gestured for Madam Ruan to proceed.
The First Madam hadn't expected the Eldest Princess to be so eccentric. In a fit of displeasure, she directly dismissed them, leaving the side hall in a rather disheveled state. Servants then went to the west side hall to fetch Ruan Bi and the Second Miss. The Second Miss, engrossed in conversation with Gu Jingyi, approached the First Madam with surprise and whispered, "Mother, why so soon..."
The First Madam glanced at her, stopping her from continuing.
When the three reached the door, they discovered that the gifts had also been returned.
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