If it was before the Chinese New Year this year, she would have no idea what these two words stood for... No, she didn't know now either, but she was sure that this matter must be extremely complicated.
Otherwise, the lady would not have behaved like that in the ancestral hall that day, and she would not have been controlled by Gu Yanfei!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Her heartbeat became faster and faster, almost jumping out of her throat.
After that day, Wang thought about this matter over and over again. Based on her understanding of the old lady, the most important thing in her heart was the title and future of the marquisate.
So, if this "body substitute" matter could cause the lady to lose her composure to that extent, would it be possible to endanger the title of the Marquis' Mansion?
Boom! Boom! Boom! Wang's heart beat faster.
The title of this marquis is not only a Achilles' heel for Madam Gu, but also a Achilles' heel for Wang.
Wang was frightened and hesitated.
After a long silence and repeated hesitation, Wang stamped her feet suddenly and said to the old woman in green in a deep voice, "Let that person wait first."
Wang turned around and walked towards Cihetang, taking two steps at a time with a brisk pace.
When it comes to a "stand-in", it's most likely a serious matter, so she still has to tell the lady dowager to avoid any problems in the future.
Wang didn't even bother to ask what the eldest prince was doing in the marquis's mansion. She left in a hurry, looking extremely anxious.
That day, Wang stayed in Cihe Hall for more than half an hour, and then reluctantly asked the maid to bring the man outside in.
In the following days, the Dingyuan Marquis Mansion continued to keep its doors closed and refused visitors.
By the time Gu Yanfei slowly finished making her lantern, it was already the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival.
At dusk, the sun sets and the sky becomes dark, leaving only the last hint of golden red in the western sky.
The Dingyuan Marquis' Mansion once again welcomed the eldest prince in person, and a black lacquered flat-front carriage was waiting outside the gate of the mansion.
Without waiting for the news to be reported to Gu Jian, Gu Yanfei happily got on the carriage. He met two pairs of very similar phoenix eyes in the carriage, both of which were curved with joy.
The brother and sister wore the same purple clothes today. Chu Yi's robe was embroidered with a bunch of green bamboo, while An Le's dress was embroidered with broken branches of green-calyx plum blossoms.
One is elegant and dignified, the other is shy and cute.
"Sister!" An Le showed Gu Yanfei a shy smile, asked her to sit next to him, and took a small white rabbit lantern from the side and handed it to Gu Yanfei, "This is a gift. My brother and I made the lantern ourselves."
The little girl blinked, her black and white eyes full of anticipation, as if asking, do you like it? "So cute!" Gu Yanfei took the rabbit lantern and praised sincerely, "It's much better than mine."
She was speaking from the heart. The rabbit lantern made by An Leza was much more delicate and lifelike than the round lantern in her hand.
Anle pursed her lips and smiled, becoming even more shy: "My royal brother taught me."
Anle looked at Chu Yi opposite her, her shy smile unable to hide her admiration.
Gu Yanfei also glanced at Chu Yi, his eyebrows curved, and handed the lantern he made to Anle, "This is for you, one for each of us."
She also took Anle's pulse and curled her lips in satisfaction.
That day at Chengtian Gate, Gu Yanfei mentioned this to the emperor and asked the imperial physician to prescribe some medicine for Anle to take good care of his body.
Over the past five years, the blood parasite has damaged Anle's foundation. Her legs will only gradually regain sensation after the energy she has lost over the years is replenished.
Now it seems that the imperial physician's prescription for peace of mind is quite good.
In just five or six days, the girl's complexion improved a lot, and her fair cheeks became plumper, like a half-opened flower bud, making Gu Yanfei feel like pinching her cheeks.
Xiao Shi's shouting was heard outside the carriage, and the carriage began to sway and move slowly forward, heading south.
Anle excitedly waved the lantern that Gu Yanfei had given her, and said with shining eyes: "Sister, have you ever been to a lantern festival?"
"My eldest brother and I have never been to a lantern festival!"
Anle’s second sentence surprised Gu Yanfei, and she subconsciously looked at Chu Yi who was sitting opposite her.
Chu Yi spoke so vividly in the Marquis' Mansion that day that she thought he went there often.
Chu Yi was pouring tea.
Even though the carriage was shaking slightly as it was moving, his hands were still so steady and graceful, his movements were as smooth as flowing water, and not a single drop of tea was spilled.
The next moment, a cup of scented tea that was about 70% full was handed to her, and the knuckles of the fingers holding the enamel pastel teacup were clearly visible.
Gu Yanfei looked straight into Chu Yi's warm, deep and peaceful eyes, and suddenly understood.
yes.
For the past eight years, Chu Yi has been a hostage in Nanyue, like a bird in a cage; and eight years ago, when the late emperor was alive, the current emperor, who was the crown prince at the time, had a difficult time, which also meant that Chu Yi's life would not be easy either.
Gu Yanfei took the cup of scented tea handed to him by Chu Yi, lowered his eyes to sniff the tea fragrance, and smiled: "This is my first time to go to the Lantern Festival, too. We must have a great time."
Anle nodded repeatedly, looking radiant.
After passing a few streets, the carriage began to slow down.
Even sitting in the carriage, the three of them could clearly hear the streets outside becoming increasingly lively...
Anle couldn't help but lift a corner of the curtain and look outside.
Big red lanterns were hung on both sides of the street, emitting a bright light. It was like a dazzling river of lights flowing in the air, which was a beautiful sight.
Many young people were holding lanterns, chatting and laughing as they strolled along the streets. From the direction they were walking, one could tell they were going to the Jokhang Temple to watch the lantern festival.
The closer we got to the Jokhang Temple, the more people there were on the street, and the slower the carriages moved. In the end, they were almost slower than pedestrians walking.
Gu Yanfei simply suggested: "Let's walk over from here, see the lanterns, and visit the temple fair."
There was no need for Chu Yi to give any more instructions, as the driver Xiao Shi smartly stopped the carriage on the side of the road.
Gu Yanfei was the first to get off the carriage. A wheelchair had been placed next to the carriage. Xiao Shi smiled at Gu Yanfei in a cute way.
Chu Yi personally carried Anle down from the carriage and gently placed her on the wheelchair.
Gu Yanfei helped the little girl straighten her cloak, then snapped his fingers and lit the lantern in Anle's hand.
There was no candle in the lantern, only a piece of talisman paper.
When the talisman paper burned, the lantern lit up, and through the translucent lampshade, one could see several butterflies dancing around two peonies in the lantern, like a wonderful shadow play.
Anle covered her mouth with her hands and let out a low cry of amazement, and then she saw a colorful butterfly flapping its wings and flying out from the mouth of the lantern, transforming into a point of light and wisps of fragrance in mid-air.
Some passers-by looked at them curiously, and their eyes inevitably fell on Anle in the wheelchair, and were attracted by the lantern in her hand.
Exclamations of praise came from all around, and one could faintly hear words like "beautiful", "carousel", "butterfly" and so on.
Anle proudly straightened his little body and gently shook the lantern in his hand. His dark pupils sparkled under the light outside the window, like the brightest star in the night sky.
This lantern was made by her sister Yan Fei herself, and it is the only one of its kind in the whole capital! Chu Yi pushed An Le's wheelchair forward slowly.
There are countless lanterns hanging on both sides of the street. The bigger the restaurant and store, the more lanterns they have. There are lotus lanterns, Guanyin child-delivering lanterns, top scholar riding lanterns, horse-riding lanterns, and horse-watching lanterns...all kinds of lanterns make the surroundings festive, colorful, and brightly lit.
Gu Yanfei and Anle were overwhelmed and amazed, their eyes wide open.
It was not only Anle’s first time to attend the Lantern Festival, but also her first time out of the palace. She was amazed at everything she saw and lingered at every stall on the street.
After walking only a few dozen feet, she had already bought a basket of small things.
"Sister, the purses in that shop are so pretty!"
"Sister, this candied fruit...it's sour and sweet and delicious."
"Sister, is this bracelet pretty?"
“…”
"Sister, let's go over there and guess the lantern riddles!"
The three of them came to a bustling restaurant.
Strings of big red lanterns were hung outside the restaurant, like a big red curtain, illuminating the entire restaurant with red, creating an atmosphere of joy.
Outside the restaurant's door, there were many people who came to guess riddles, and there were three layers of people inside and outside.
A waiter was shouting at the top of his voice: "Ten cents for a guess at the lantern riddle. If you guess it right, the lantern will be yours."
"If you guess ten riddles correctly, our restaurant will give you a jar of our fine wine 'Gladiolus Spring'.
"Don't miss it if you pass by."
There were many people watching, but not many people were guessing the riddles. After all, it cost ten cents each time, and most people just wanted to join in the fun.
"I'll do it." Anle happily raised his hand to the waiter and picked up a lantern at random.
The waiter tore off the white paper on the lantern, revealing the riddle on it: Flowers are fragrant in late spring and early autumn.
This question is neither difficult nor easy.
An Le tilted his little face and thought for a while, then said: "'End of spring' is 'sun', 'beginning of autumn' is 'grain', add them together and it's the word 'fragrant', 'fragrant flowers' is also 'fragrant'!"
"Miss, you are really smart. You guessed it right." The waiter clapped his hands and said, "Miss, do you want to guess again?"
"Guess!" Anle said with great enthusiasm.
Anle had a lot of fun and guessed ten riddles in a row. Of course, she didn't guess all of them.
She couldn't guess that Gu Yanfei would take over; Gu Yanfei couldn't guess that Chu Yi would be behind him.
After passing all the levels and guessing ten riddles correctly, Anle felt bored and pulled Gu Yanfei's sleeve and wanted to leave.
The waiter could see that these three people were not short of money, so he jokingly tempted Anle, "Girl, if you guess the most lantern riddles correctly today, you can win the Lantern King."
"Look, that's the King of Lanterns!"
The waiter turned and pointed to the restaurant at the back. In the center of the lobby hung an exquisite palace lantern-shaped revolving lantern, shining with golden light and dazzlingly gorgeous.
Anle took a glance, but felt uninterested.
The revolving lantern was nice, but in her opinion, it could not compare to the butterfly-chasing incense lamp that Gu Yanfei gave her.
The waiter wanted to persuade them a little more when he heard a crisp slapping sound suddenly coming from the lobby of the restaurant.
(End of this chapter)
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