Nothing new happened in the past two weeks. Half a month later, the Hundred Flowers Banquet was held as scheduled. All the celebrities and dignitaries invited by Princess Ning arrived as promised. The banquet was held in a villa in the eastern suburbs of the capital, nestled against the mountains and by the water.
It's April now, and the peonies in the garden are blooming in vibrant colors, a truly beautiful sight. Their overlapping petals are as soft and smooth as fine brocade, attracting bees and butterflies, and the air seems to be filled with a sweet, trembling fragrance. (Jiang)
Jiang Shu was brought along by her mother, who was somewhat reluctant. Perhaps in order to ensure the smooth completion of the marriage, Jiang Shu specially changed into a beautiful gauze dress. After dressing up, she looked like a white lotus with dew in the late spring of March, extremely beautiful.
Jiang Shu sat down with an air of composure, which drew frequent glances from many young men at the table.
Zheng Heyi arrived a little late. As soon as she entered the garden, she was spotted by the sharp-eyed nanny from before. After bowing, the nanny persuaded her to take Heyi aside. Heyi knew that she was going to see Princess Ning.
"Heyi, you've finally arrived!" Princess Ning grasped her hand, appearing extremely affectionate. Although Zheng Heyi had previously kept her distance from this clingy behavior, what could she do now?
There was nothing they could do but let it be. Princess Ning led her toward the waterside pavilion. After walking for a while, Princess Ning pointed to a spot not far away.
“Heyi, look! That handsome young man over there is Gao Tanhua. Shuer is a very stubborn child. Later, you should find a way to get them to say a few words to each other, so that she can see his talent and character. Master Gao is a man of both wisdom and courage. Speaking of which, the two of them are really well-matched and a perfect match.”
Speaking of which, He Yi was also very curious. At this moment, she looked in the direction that Princess Ning was pointing and saw a young man dressed in a moon-white brocade robe standing by the Nine-Bend Bridge.
The man's profile was handsome and smooth, and He Yi couldn't help but sigh inwardly, realizing that Princess Ning had really gone to great lengths for her daughter's marriage.
But when she thought of Jiang Shu's stubborn nature, and how she was unlikely to be swayed by either soft or hard approaches, she suddenly felt immense pressure.
But Princess Ning looked at He Yi with such eager eyes that Zheng He Yi had no way to refuse. "Don't worry, Your Highness, I will do my best," He Yi replied softly.
At that moment, her gaze involuntarily drifted to the distance, and coincidentally, the tall, upright man in the octagonal pavilion in the distance was also looking at her, and their eyes quickly met.
He Yi was taken aback and instinctively wanted to avoid him. This Prince Gu was like a leech; once you got on him, there was no way to shake him off.
The man talking loudly with several men in the octagonal pavilion was none other than Gu Minghe. Just now, the young master seemed to have noticed the gazes from this side. Now, he looked up and looked over, and sure enough, he saw Zheng Heyi.
He Yi was about to leave when, to her surprise, Gu Shizi's lips curled into a half-smile, and he strode over.
He Yi instinctively tried to avoid him, but Gu Minghe spoke with a smile, "The young princess is indeed radiant." Gu Minghe's voice was gentle and composed.
"What's it to you?"
He Yi interrupted, but Gu Minghe remained calm and unhurried, saying, "As for me, it's been a long time since we last met. I thought you had forgotten about me." He Yi's tone was distant, and it was clear that she didn't like Gu Minghe at all.
But Gu Minghe didn't care about anything else and still pressed on, "The Princess's mansion has been busy with many trivial matters lately, I thought you wouldn't come today."
Recalling Gu Minghe's mention of marriage during their last visit to the Marquis's residence, He Yi felt somewhat uneasy. In her view, the absurd marriage agreement between her and the young master was nothing more than an exchange of interests.
On the contrary, Gu Minghe seemed to see through Zheng Heyi's thoughts.
He smiled. "I heard that the Princess's mansion has been through quite a bit of trouble recently. I wonder if there's anything I can do to help?"
“These are just the servants’ squabbles, none of your business, please don’t take them to heart, young master.” He Yi interrupted him, her tone filled with obvious anger. “Although I am not very talented, I can still manage the affairs of the manor.”
She disliked it most when others made a fuss about the Princess's Mansion, especially this self-important young master Gu Minghe. Upon hearing this, Gu Minghe raised an eyebrow indifferently, seemingly not expecting her to react so strongly.
"Why is Your Highness angry? I'm just worried about you. There are undercurrents in the city right now, and it's not easy for you, a young lady, to support such a large princess's mansion. If we get married soon, I can rightfully help you share the burden."
His tone was neither high nor low, carrying a certain unfathomable feeling. It was clear that the young master had a high opinion of himself and had already placed himself in the position of Zheng Heyi's "future husband".
[Oh my god! Gu Minghe is pressuring me to get married again!]
[You wicked female supporting character, run! This man is definitely not a good person!]
Wait a minute! Does he know something? Why is he suddenly bringing up marriage so urgently?
Before He Yi could respond, a sweet, soft, and sickeningly sweet voice unexpectedly chimed in from the side: "Oh, isn't this Princess Yong'an? How come you're chatting so amiably with the young master?"
Looking in the direction of the sound, a noblewoman in a pink dress was swaying gracefully as she walked over, a sickeningly sweet smile on her face.
He Yi glanced at the woman with ill intentions.
The newcomer was none other than Li Yanran, the daughter of the Minister of Personnel. Her gaze swept over He Yi and Gu Minghe, and when she looked at Zheng He Yi, her eyes were filled with obvious hostility.
Especially when she saw Gu Minghe and He Yi looking so affectionate, the jealousy in Li Yanran's eyes almost turned into poisoned arrows, ready to kill He Yi. This Li Yanran, relying on her privileged family background and being spoiled since childhood, was truly unscrupulous. She had often tripped up others, and it was clear at a glance that she had come to provoke them.
He Yi nodded slightly, clearly not wanting to say anything more to her. But that damned Li Yanran wouldn't let it go, and walked up to Gu Minghe, deliberately puffing out her chest.
"Young Master, I was just looking for you. It turns out you were here talking to Princess Zheng."
As she spoke, she turned to He Yi with disdain, "Princess Zheng seems to have been exceptionally busy lately. It's rare to even see you at the racetrack. If it weren't for the Princess Ning hosting the Hundred Flowers Banquet today, I'm afraid even a great Buddha like you wouldn't have bothered to come here."
He Yi sneered, "What kind of people are these... In fact, noble ladies in the capital often gamble on horse races, and many unmarried women are quite good at horsemanship."
At almost every banquet, this group of men and women would race horses. Li Yanran, who was very proud of her riding skills, always looked down on others and loved to challenge them to races. Now that she was jealous of Zheng Heyi, she naturally wanted to trample Heyi underfoot.
"Miss Li, is there something you'd like to say?"
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