Chapter 34 June and the Pomegranate Blossom Feast in the Pomegranate Garden
With messy hair and a crooked little coat, Fu Sui sleepily took the sealed note from Kou Yun's hand and opened it with squinted eyes.
"Are you even human?!" Fu Sui thought she wasn't fully awake yet. She looked at it three times from beginning to end before she was sure she wasn't mistaken. She jumped out of bed in anger and rushed out the door without even putting on her shoes. "Where's Xu Zhiyi?"
Kouyun stopped Fu Sui before she could open the door: "Princess, Xu Zhiyi left after putting down the letter."
"At least he ran fast!" Fu Sui angrily grabbed two handfuls of hair and paced back and forth in the room, fuming.
Kouyun felt sorry for Fu Sui when she saw his hair, which was in a mess: "If you're angry, Princess, just smash something. Don't mess with your hair. You'll suffer when you comb it later."
Fu Sui was so angry she was about to explode; she didn't care about her hair anymore. She waved for Kouyun to leave, looked around the room, grabbed a pillow, and punched him repeatedly.
Even a donkey pulling a millstone gets fed, yet she works for free every day. And she's exempt from copying as punishment? Why didn't you say so earlier? She'd already copied it over a hundred times! Fu Sui straddled the bed, pounding the pillow with her fists, panting heavily.
Kouyun waited outside for a while, and hearing that there seemed to be no movement inside, she tentatively asked, "Princess?" Only after receiving her order did she come in with the maid who was carrying water.
There was still a lingering smell of burning in the room, and a small clump of black ash in a copper basin in the corner. Kouyun calmly poured the remaining cold water from the teapot into the basin, then picked up the mixed black water and splashed it under the hibiscus tree outside.
On the day of the pomegranate blossom banquet, Fu Sui stepped off the carriage wearing a gauze dress adorned with tiny crystal beads and gold and silver threads. Countless shimmering points of light in the sunlight sprinkled on the misty, ethereal skirt, creating a dazzling display as it swayed.
She glanced at Qiao Zhenzhen on her left, who was wearing a tattered sky-blue dress, and then at Yan Shan on her right, who was wearing a light green dress that reached her waist. Her eyes twitched involuntarily.
So when Fu Sui, who looked like a glass lamp, stepped into the flower pavilion with her two "decorative tassels," it indeed stirred up a lot of discussion.
Fu Sui arrived late. There were many people sitting or standing in the pavilion. Fu Sui glanced around but did not find Princess Wan Chun.
Qian Siqing and his wife did not show up today; Fu Sui and the others were welcomed in by Qian's fifth daughter.
Without the princess present, Fu Sui was the highest-ranking person, and according to custom, everyone present should bow to him. However, many of the noble ladies were meeting Xiao Wu Niang for the first time, and she didn't recognize them all, so she didn't know how to introduce them to Fu Sui.
Upon seeing Fu Sui arrive, Zheng Zizai stepped forward and led her to a seat. Xiao Wu Niang, seeing Zheng Zizai take on the responsibility of entertaining the princess, secretly breathed a sigh of relief and stood with her younger sister, Xiao Liu Niang.
While Fu Sui didn't recognize all the young ladies from the Qian family present, he did.
Liang Hui, daughter of Liang Yuanjiao, a staunch royalist and Imperial Censor; Yu Wenjun and Yu Chengjun, daughters of Yu Wei, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who was promoted by the current emperor; Gao Xianying, daughter of Gao Zi'ang, who was once an official under the Crown Prince and is now a Vice Chancellor; and Xiao Shuer, daughter of Xiao Jin, the Secretary of the Xiao Clan of Longyou, who was the same clan as the Empress Dowager.
The others were all daughters of the imperial family, including Zhang Chengyun, daughter of the Grand Princess of Xiangyang; Feng Gui, daughter of the Grand Princess of Nanchang; Su Shande, daughter of the current emperor's full sister, the Grand Princess of Xiangcheng; and even Duan Yuwan.
Fu Sui was also surprised to see Duan Yuwan here.
Seventeen-year-old Duan Yuwan was at the peak of her beauty. In the sweltering summer heat, she wore a light apricot-colored, narrow-sleeved, open-necked jacket and a pinkish-red, waist-length skirt, revealing a large expanse of skin. Around her neck hung a string of agate beads, the bright red agate contrasting beautifully with her fair neck.
Fu Sui glanced around casually. The people around her all had bare necks; she hadn't seen such vibrant necklaces in a long time. Fu Sui guessed that Qin An had deliberately arranged it. Actually, it didn't have to be like this. She could tell the difference between scars and jewelry. It was just that neither she nor Qin An wanted to bring up that scene sealed in their memories.
"It's been a long time since we've seen the Princess. Who would have thought that she would steal our thunder as soon as she arrived?" Zhang Chengyun was straightforward and spoke her mind. "What's wrong with the County Princess and Sister Qiao today? I really don't understand their outfits."
"The county princess and Lady Qiao were dressed in elegant attire, like a gentle breeze, which made them even more graceful." Although both were daughters of the imperial family, Su Shande was, strictly speaking, a generation younger than the others.
In fact, the hierarchy among members of the imperial clan was not based on seniority, but only on the closeness of their blood relation to the emperor. As the emperor's niece, Su Shande was always closer to the emperor than other daughters of the imperial clan. However, when facing Fu Sui, who was treated as a princess but did not bow to princes, Su Shande always regarded herself as a junior and spoke much more respectfully.
Zhang Chengyun laughed heartily: "I think it was Yong'an who forced them."
Feng Gui and Xiao Shuer nodded in agreement.
Fu Sui repeatedly cried out his innocence: "Heaven and earth bear witness, it was clearly those two who forced me, why is no one speaking up for me?"
Zhang Chengyun retorted, "What grievance could you possibly have? Could it be that Yanshan is bullying you? Let me ask you, why didn't you even invite me to a meal for your birthday? Do you think my gift was too meager?"
It was indeed Fu Sui's fault for not hosting a banquet: "My coming-of-age ceremony was presided over by the Imperial Palace, and I barely had a sip of water all day. Later, I was confined to my residence by the Emperor, so how could I have had the opportunity to host a banquet? Can't we make it up another day? You can order whatever you want to eat."
The noble ladies didn't mind a few meals, but since they happened to see Fu Sui, they asked about her. Hearing what Fu Sui said, they didn't care anymore and instead asked about Fu Sui's recent situation.
"Why are they detained in the mansion? What happened?" Feng Guixin and Qiao, although they were daughters of the imperial family, had few opportunities to meet the emperor. Being punished by the emperor was a very serious matter in their eyes.
Fu Sui gave an evasive answer: "The sage found a small mistake and punished me by making me copy books."
Qiao Zhenzhen and Yanshan were unaware that Fu Sui had been punished and were extremely worried. They were somewhat relieved to hear that he was only being punished by copying books.
Liang Hui and the others dared not say anything, but Gao Xianying spoke up with a smile: "It is clear that the Emperor dotes on the Princess. No one else would dare to be naughty in front of the Emperor."
Everyone agreed. Zhang Chengyun expressed his admiration for Fu Sui's "fearless" spirit. Although Qian's fifth and sixth daughters had heard about Fu Sui's spoiled nature, they only learned today what "spoiled" and "indulgent" meant. They looked at each other and saw the shock in each other's eyes.
"What exactly did the princess do wrong?" Duan Yuwan asked.
Before Fu Sui arrived, the noble ladies chatted in twos and threes, leaving Duan Yuwan alone. After Fu Sui arrived, several daughters of the imperial family surrounded him, but Duan Yuwan couldn't squeeze in and could only sit on the side. Now, as soon as she spoke, the once lively flower hall fell silent instantly.
Those who were related to the royal family refused to respond to Duan Yuwan's words, leaving the daughters of several officials in silence.
Zhang Chengyun made no attempt to hide her disgust. Zhang Chengyun's mother, the Grand Princess of Xiangyang, was born to a woman surnamed Duan, who was the elder sister of Duan Hong, Duan Yuwan's nominal father.
Duan Hong's father joined Emperor Su's uprising and fought for many years, but died before he could see the throne and was buried in Yan and Zhao. Most of Duan's children also died or were separated during the war, leaving only a daughter and a son to depend on each other for survival.
Later, when Duan served her master, Duan Hong was granted the title of Duke of Zanhuang County and a fairy princess descended from heaven.
Duan Hong and the immortal's married life was not happy. Duan Hong was weak and incompetent, unfit to handle affairs. As a result, the immortal indulged in pleasure and kept male concubines. The two barely maintained a semblance of harmony.
In the twenty-seventh year of Jianwu, Duan Hong was ordered to leave the capital to search for someone. He returned after half a year, only to find that the immortal princess was four months pregnant.
When this matter reached Emperor Su's ears, he initially wanted to get rid of this illegitimate child. However, the immortal's pregnancy was not auspicious, and forcibly aborting the pregnancy would endanger her life. Emperor Su, concerned for his daughter's reputation, had no choice but to force Duan Hong to acknowledge the child in the immortal's womb.
This child was Duan Yuwan. After Duan Yuwan was born, Duan Hong and the immortal lived separately until the late emperor ascended the throne, at which point Duan Hong and the immortal divorced.
A few years ago, Duan Hong passed away. None of the Duan family's children were good for anything and lived off their ancestors' wealth. Duan Yuwan, on the other hand, was raised by the Grand Princess Shangxian. Although they shared the same surname, the Duan family refused to acknowledge each other and never had any contact with each other.
The dissolute nature of the Grand Princess was well-known even to her relatives, and those aristocratic families who considered themselves virtuous avoided her like the plague. Regardless of who Duan Yuwan's biological father was, her status as a member of the imperial family was undeniable. The fact that the Qian family even invited Duan Yuwan truly showed their sincerity by abandoning the dignity of their aristocratic families.
Zhang Chengyun also really wanted to know what mistake Fu Sui had made, but since Duan Yunwan had asked the question, she could only pretend to be uninterested and change the subject: "You were able to come out today, so it seems you've finished copying."
Fu Sui forced a smile: "I guess so."
Zheng Zizai understood immediately; it turned out the princess had been copying books that day. With the emperor's decree, the princess naturally couldn't go out on the Dragon Boat Festival, and those rumors were thus dispelled.
Xiao Shuer thought of today's game: "Fortunately, the princess finished copying the book, otherwise wouldn't the champion of the pitch-pot game have been given to someone else?"
“That’s right.” Zhang Chengyun clapped his hands and immediately said, “I want to go with Yong’an.”
Fu Sui didn't understand what they were talking about, so Zheng Zizai quickly explained to the three of them: "It was Sixth Sister's idea. Today, we will each be divided into teams and compete in three rounds: hiding hooks, pitch-pot, and poetry. Whichever team wins will choose a pomegranate tree from all the pomegranate trees in this garden, and all the pomegranates that tree bears this year will belong to the winner."
Compared to the poets Zheng Zizai, Qiao Zhenzhen, and Gao Xianying, the Qian sisters are also formidable opponents, and the outcome is still uncertain. However, among those present at the pitch-pot game, if Fu Sui is second, no one can claim to be first.
Zheng Zizai watched as the group scrambled to be on the same team as Fu Sui and joked, "That won't do. If the princess makes a move, there will be no suspense at all."
It's better to have no suspense than to be more shameful than to write poetry, but Fu Sui is adamant about competing in pitch-pot, and won't budge no matter who tries to persuade him.
"I think we should draw lots instead. Whether or not we can be on the same team as the princess will depend on luck," Xiao Wu Niang suggested.
With Xiao Wu Niang's arrangement, a maid soon brought over paper, pen, and a plate. Xiao Wu Niang wrote down the numbers on the plate in a corner and instructed the maid to bring them to the noble ladies for them to draw: "There are five teams in total. I wrote the numbers, and I will draw last."
Fu Sui took a card, unfolded it, and saw a two. She peeked at Yan Shan and saw that Yan Shan had a three. Then she looked at Qiao Zhenzhen, and Qiao Zhenzhen had a five. None of the three were in the same team.
After everyone had drawn their cards, Xiao Wu Niang and Xiao Liu Niang took the last two.
"I'm number three, I wonder who's on my team?" Little Fifth Sister unfolded the slip of paper, glanced at it, and held it up to ask.
Yanshan and Fenggui stood up together.
Xiao Liu Niang also showed everyone the slip of paper in her hand. It had the number four on it, and Zhang Chengyun and Yu Wenjun were on her team.
Zhang Chengyun craned her neck to look at Fu Sui's fortune slip, unwilling to give up: "What are you?"
“It’s two.” Fu Sui showed the slip of paper in his hand.
"Haha." Xiao Shuer laughed and showed a two, "Thank you all for your support, I'll be on the same team as the leader."
Just as Xiao Shuer was about to flip through Qiao Zhenzhen and Zheng Zizai's fortune slips, Duan Yuwan slowly raised her own fortune slip, which also showed a number two.
Xiao Shuer was a little stunned. She glanced at Qiao Zhenzhen and Zheng Zizai with regret, hesitated for a moment, and then walked over to stand with Duan Yuwan.
The remaining people were Yu Chengjun, Su Shande, and Liang Huiyi in one team, while Qiao Zhenzhen, Gao Xianying, and Zheng Zizai were surprisingly assigned to the same team.
Zhang Chengyun got anxious: "If the three of you are on the same team, how can you compete in poetry and literature?"
Zheng Zizai hadn't expected this to happen, and redrawing lots wasn't appropriate. After a moment's thought, she said, "I think it would be more interesting to change the poetry contest to a riddle game where the person who answers replies with a poem."
“This is good. It’s a three-round competition, and we can also use points to calculate the results. The first place in each round gets three points, the second place gets two points, and the third place gets one point. After the three rounds, the winner will be determined by the points each team has. Otherwise, the princess alone would outdo all of us,” Yu Wenjun added.
The others also thought it was a good idea and agreed.
With the rules set, Xiao Wu Niang led everyone to the garden to play pitch-pot.
Fu Sui lagged a few steps behind Zheng Zizai and asked, "Why haven't I seen Wang Lingshu?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
