Volume 2, Step by Step to Victory, Chapter 29: Reunion with Gu Xiaobai
Manyun helped the old lady back to her room, where she changed into a new dress for receiving guests before coming out.
Upon reaching the main hall, she instructed the maids and servants to half-roll up the bamboo blinds in front of the windows. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the branches and leaves of several clumps of slender bamboo, casting dappled patterns of light onto the indoor floor in various shapes and sizes. A gust of wind blew outside, causing the light spots to dance and shift. It was a hot day, and also midday, so Manyun instructed the maids to bring several basins of ice to keep in the room.
Just as everything was ready, a maidservant announced from outside, "The First Madam and Master Ziying have arrived."
The old lady stood up and gestured for Manyun to personally lift the curtain at the entrance of the main hall.
The master led Master Ziying in, showing great enthusiasm.
Today, Master Ziying was not wearing her colorful feathered robes, but only a simple blue cloth Taoist robe. She held a whisk in her hand, her expression serene, a gentle smile playing on her lips. She bowed to the old lady and said, "Old Madam Ruan, it's been many years. How have you been?"
The old lady returned the greeting and said, "Thank you for your concern, Master. I am still well."
After exchanging pleasantries, the host and guests sat down, and the maids served tea and fresh seasonal fruit.
After drinking tea, Master Ziying said, "I was in the city on business today and passed by your residence. I remembered that the First Madam had invited me several times, but I had never had the time... I felt guilty, so I took the liberty of visiting you. I hope I have not disturbed the peace of the two ladies."
The old lady said, "You are a distinguished guest whom our Ruan family would be eager to meet. How could you possibly disturb us?"
Master Ziying said, “Excellent, excellent. I heard that the old lady fell ill a while ago. I have some knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine. How about I take her pulse?”
The old lady said happily, "I couldn't have asked for more."
The young maid took the wrist pillow and placed it on the table. The old lady placed it on her wrist, and Master Ziying extended three fingers to feel her pulse. He then carefully observed the old lady's complexion and said, "It's alright now. I see that the old lady has a clear and bright spirit. If she can control her temper and anger, living to a hundred years old is not out of the question."
Who wouldn't want to live a long life? The old lady was overjoyed and said, "Thank you for your kind words, Master."
Master Ziying withdrew his hand and said, "I've heard that the young ladies of the Ruan family are all exceptionally beautiful and talented. I wonder if I could meet them?"
The old lady and the first lady were taken aback, exchanged a glance, and thought to themselves, "There have long been rumors that Master Ziying is on good terms with Empress Zhao. She just entered the palace to pay her respects this morning, and Master Ziying came this afternoon to see the young lady. Could it be that the palace sent her to look at her face?" But then they thought, "That's impossible. If that were the case, wouldn't it be better to have them done together in the palace?" If it wasn't the palace, it could be the wife of a duke, marquis, or prince, but the Ruan family had just lost face in the palace today; why would such noble families send her?
Although she couldn't understand her intentions, she still sent a few maids to invite the young ladies.
The second daughter, who lived the closest, was the first to arrive, followed by the second wife and her three daughters: the third, sixth, and seventh daughters. The fourth daughter, who lived the furthest away, and Ruan Bi naturally arrived the last.
After exchanging greetings, they sat down according to their age.
Master Ziying surveyed the entire room, clicking his tongue in admiration, and said, "Madam is so fortunate. These young ladies are beautiful and elegant; they are sure to become outstanding individuals in the future."
The old lady said, "You flatter me. As long as they are quiet, virtuous, and do not disgrace the Ruan family, I will be content. How could I expect them to become outstanding?"
"Madam, there's no need to worry. The Ruan family in Jingxi is a century-old family. What they excel at is educating the younger generation. I remember when I was young, there was a saying in the capital: 'The sons of the Zhao family are of iron will; the daughters of the Ruan family are worth a fortune.'"
These words stung the old lady, who looked at Ruan Bi with a pained expression.
Seeing her looking at Ruan Bi, everyone turned to look at her, their expressions varied: the seventh girl was curious, the sixth girl was mocking, the third girl was sympathetic, the fourth girl was thoughtful, and the second girl was disdainful with a hint of thoughtfulness.
Master Ziying took in all the expressions of the young ladies and couldn't help but sigh. They were all about the same age, so how could they be so different? Look at Ruan Bi, under everyone's scrutinizing gazes, she didn't even raise an eyebrow, calmly drinking her tea without the slightest embarrassment or discomfort.
She cleared her throat and said, "Speaking of which, your fifth daughter and I have a special connection..."
Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned and stared blankly at Master Ziying.
“…A few days ago, she stayed at the temple. I was busy with various matters and didn’t have time to have a proper talk with her. Today I came to invite Fifth Sister to stay at Yuxu Temple for a couple of days again.”
The old lady glanced at Master Ziying, then at Ruan Bi. One was unfathomable, the other composed; she couldn't figure out what they were up to. But considering Master Ziying was a guest of high-ranking officials, and sometimes a single word from her could be more powerful than ten from others, she couldn't go against her wishes over such a trivial matter. Besides, it wasn't a bad thing that Ruan Bi had gained her favor, so she gave the First Madam a meaningful look.
The First Madam nodded knowingly and said, "I am honored by your kind words, Fifth Sister. Why don't you go back to your room and pack your clothes for a couple of days? The day after tomorrow is the first day of the month. I'm going to the temple to burn incense, and I'll bring you back then."
"Yes, Mother."
Ruan Bi led Cha Mei back to the east wing. Xiu Zhi had already returned and came to greet them, whispering, "The Third Master has just returned. I heard he will go to the palace to relieve the guards again this evening."
Ruan Bi did the math. Master Ziying was waiting, and there wasn't enough time. They could only talk about it after returning from Yuxu Temple. "Help me pack my clothes. We're going to stay at Yuxu Temple for two days."
Xiuzhi was surprised and said unhappily, "Why are we going to the temple again?" As she spoke, she opened the wardrobe and started packing her clothes.
In truth, Ruan Bi was also quite puzzled, not understanding what Master Ziying was planning to do, but she had no say in the matter and could only take it one step at a time.
The First Madam and the Second Madam, along with the young ladies, personally escorted Master Ziying to the gate, and Ruanbi boarded the carriage amidst their puzzled gazes.
The Great Zhou Dynasty governed the country with rites, and carriages, like clothing, had strict hierarchical regulations: the emperor rode in six carriages, ministers in four, ordinary officials in three, noble families in two, and commoners in one. However, because the Rong and Di tribes frequently caused trouble in the northwest of the Great Zhou, the demand for warhorses was very high, so the use of horses by the common people was restricted. Moreover, horses were expensive, and ordinary people, including some low-ranking officials, could not afford them and could only use mule carts and oxcarts.
Master Ziying usually held official appointments, and his carriage was drawn by two horses. The exterior of the pine-wood carriage was painted with a yin-yang symbol, along with the three characters "Yuxu Temple" in small seal script. The interior of the carriage was simply decorated but very comfortable, and it was filled with a faint, pleasant scent of pine nuts, from some kind of incense.
Once outside the city, Master Ziying asked Xiuzhi to sit on the carriage shaft.
Xiuzhi looked at Ruan Bi, and seeing her nod, she went out.
Master Ziying turned to look at Ruan Bi, his expression inscrutable, and said, "I heard that Fifth Miss was refused entry to the palace gates today?"
"The news is really well-informed," Ruan Bi said with a smile. "Originally, I wasn't supposed to be invited to the palace today, but some busybody insisted on making me embarrass myself. Now I've made a huge fool of myself, and my reputation is completely ruined. I wonder if she's happy about it?"
When Master Ziying saw that she could still laugh and subtly belittle herself, he couldn't help but admire her and said, "Perhaps she originally meant well."
"Oh? What kind of good intention is it? Tell us about it, sir." Ruan Bi blinked with interest.
Master Ziying pondered for a moment, about to speak, when suddenly the rapid sound of hooves came from behind, clear and crisp, clearly the sound of a fine horse. In an instant, it was beside the carriage, flashing past the window. Then, a shout rang out, the horse neighed and stopped, and a man asked loudly, "Who is in the carriage? Are you Master Ziying?"
Three words automatically popped into Ruan Bi's mind: Gu Xiaobai.
Master Ziying lifted a corner of the curtain, peeked out, and said, "It's me, Xiaobai, you're out of school? Going to see the Princess again?"
Gu Xiaobai urged his horse forward and said, "Grandma refuses to return to the city, so I have to come back every few days. Master, please help me persuade her again. Grandpa, he..."
Master Ziying coughed lightly to interrupt him, then rolled up the bamboo curtain halfway.
Gu Xiaobai was puzzled, so he looked down and saw Ruan Bi's pale face, her eyebrows lowered and eyes closed.
The sound of galloping hooves approached again, and in the blink of an eye, they were upon him. Four young men dressed as servants reined in their horses beside Gu Xiaobai. One of them was Anping. Wiping the sweat from his brow, he yelled in his hoarse voice, "Oh, my young master, you're riding a horse from the Western Regions! Can't you slow down and wait for us? If the Princess sees that we haven't kept up with you, she'll scold us again..." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ruan Bi in the carriage and paused, "Huh, aren't you the one from that day..."
Ruan Bi frowned and glanced up at him.
Anping then realized his mistake and quickly shut his mouth, still staring intently at her, thinking to himself, "This girl is even prettier than last time..."
Master Ziying asked in surprise, "What, do you know the girl beside me?"
Gu Xiaobai hesitated for a moment, then said, "I don't know him."
This person seemed to have a sense of propriety, Ruan Bi raised her eyelids to look at him. He was also looking at her, and their eyes met. He turned his head to look at the carriage shaft, his brows brimming with pride and nonchalance, almost overflowing. He was tall, but she'd heard he was only sixteen. He had a high forehead, a prominent nose, and eyes like black jade; he was quite handsome. However, Ruan Bi strongly disliked his arrogant, aristocratic air. Every time she saw him, she felt an urge to trample him into the mud and make him eat it.
Gu Xiaobai hesitated for a moment, and Master Ziying realized that the two knew each other. High-ranking officials gathered in the capital, but only a few prestigious families came and went; it was possible they had met before. Thinking this, she began to worry and quickly said, "It's getting late, Xiaobai, you should go first, lest the Princess wait impatiently. Don't worry, I will persuade the Princess."
Gu Xiaobai nodded and said, "Thank you, Master."
He glanced at Ruan Bi again, seeing her sitting with her eyes lowered, solemn and dignified like a clay statue in a temple, and found her rather uninteresting. He cracked his whip, and Zi Sa Lu galloped forward. An Ping quickly spurred his horse to chase after her, shouting, "Oh dear, my young master, slow down..."
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