It was late at night, and the two of them ate some pastries and went back to their rooms. Su Li took a bath and went straight to sleep.
A dreamless night.
The next day, the weather was clear and sunny.
The parade of the top scholar of the Jin Dynasty would start from the gate of the imperial palace. Early in the morning, Pei Ji took a carriage to the palace to prepare.
Su Li practiced her sleeve arrows in the guest house for a while. When it was almost ten o'clock, Pei Mingyue came to find her on time.
As soon as she opened the door, she asked excitedly, "Ali, are you ready?"
"I'm ready, just waiting for you to come to me."
In fact, there was nothing to prepare. She was not a Jinshi, and she did not need to ride a horse in a parade. But after all, she was the wife of the new top scholar, so she still had to change into a festive dress.
Su Li chose a long dress that was mainly white with red as a secondary color. It was festive but not too eye-catching. She also combed her hair into a bun which was popular in Beijing at the time.
Pei Mingyue was stunned and praised repeatedly: "Ali, you look so good in this outfit!"
Su Li also looked at her. Pei Mingyue was wearing a colorful dress, which made her look youthful and pretty. It was very suitable for her personality. She smiled and said, "You look good too!"
Pei Mingyue laughed and said, "Then we will all look bad! It's getting late, let's go."
"Well, let's go..."
The horse-riding parade would begin at noon. After leaving the inn, the two took Pei Mingyue's carriage directly to Mingyue Restaurant.
Changming Street was one of the capital's main thoroughfares, and the route for the horse-riding parade. At this time, the street had already been swept spotlessly clean, and the shops on both sides were hung with large red lanterns and colorful silks, creating a festive atmosphere. The street was also crowded with people, and it was extremely lively.
Soon, the carriage arrived at Mingyue Restaurant, and the two followed the waiter to the private room that Su Li had booked last night.
Neither of them had eaten lunch, so as soon as they arrived at the private room, they ordered a table full of food and ate while waiting for the horse parade to begin.
After dinner, the waiter cleared the table and served another pot of tea.
Su Li poured tea for the two of them and said, "Ayue, I have something I want to ask you for help with."
"Okay." Pei Mingyue answered readily.
Su Li was stunned and couldn't help laughing: "You agreed before I even asked?"
Pei Mingyue chuckled and said, "It's rare that you ask me for help, so of course I agreed. Tell me, what is it? As long as I can do it."
"I want you to help introduce me to a tutor to teach me etiquette and rules."
Pei Ji has already won the top spot in the imperial examination and will be appointed an official after the Qionglin Banquet. By then, she will be an official's wife at least, so she must learn the basic rules and etiquette.
Not to mention that it will be used in social interactions later, let’s just talk about Princess Rongfu. In the original novel, it was not mentioned whether Princess Rongfu used rules and etiquette to make things difficult for the original owner, but because of jealousy, she used this matter to make things difficult for the original heroine.
The original heroine and the original owner were both born into commoner families, and neither of them understood official etiquette. I think Princess Rongfu would use this matter to make things difficult for the original heroine at the beginning, and she might use the same trick on her.
In short, no matter which one it is, she has to learn the rules and etiquette first to avoid being found wrong. To deal with Princess Rongfu, having no flaws is the most basic defense.
"Hey, I thought it was something else. This is simple. I have two maids in my house. They are retired palace maids. They taught me etiquette since I was a child. Now, they are also teaching several of my cousins. So, how about I have one of them come over and teach you?"
"Okay, thank you very much."
She had just arrived and didn't know many people in the capital. She had to learn the rules and etiquette, and of course she had to try to hire a better tutor. Most of the good tutors were old palace maids who had come out of the palace to retire. Most of these tutors would be invited back by some aristocratic families to raise their children as soon as they came out. It was not something she could easily invite, which was why she came to ask Pei Mingyue for help.
"We have such a close relationship, there's no need to thank me." Ali Ke had saved her, so she was naturally happy to help her.
Then he asked, "Young Master Pei will be given a mansion as the champion in the future. You will also have to buy some servants and so on, right? Do you want me to ask the maids in my mansion to teach them the rules?"
No matter whether it is a noble family or an official family, the master must learn the rules and etiquette, and the servants who serve him must also learn the rules and etiquette.
"That's great, thank you very much."
"You're so polite..."
As the two were talking, they heard the faint sound of gongs and drums coming from a distance.
"Here I come!" Pei Mingyue looked excited. She quickly ran to the window and looked out, calling out to Su Li, "Ali, come and see!"
Su Li put down the teacup in his hand and walked to the window.
At this time, people on the street had already automatically stood on both sides. In the dense crowd, men, women, young and old, all had excitement and anticipation on their faces. They all stretched their necks to look at the guard of honor in front of them, just to catch a glimpse of the new number one scholar.
As the crisp sound of gongs and drums got closer, a team dressed in gorgeous ceremonial uniforms slowly came into view.
"Here it comes, here it comes! Look!" someone shouted excitedly.
In the team, three white horses were moving slowly forward, one in front and two behind. On the horses sat three young men in gorgeous clothes. Behind them were more than a hundred second- and third-class Jinshi candidates walking.
As the team got closer, people could see the appearance of the three people on horseback.
"That's the number one scholar, right?" someone asked.
"Yes, the one riding the horse in the front is the number one scholar."
A woman smiled foolishly and said, "She's really pretty!"
The women echoed, "Yes, yes."
"This is the first time I've seen such a handsome man. He looks like an immortal who has descended to earth..." A woman seemed to be overwhelmed and stared at the number one scholar on horseback.
"Yeah yeah……"
"I don't know if he is married..." said another woman.
"Hey, the third and second place winners behind him are also good-looking!"
"yes!"
"Isn't that the second son of the Ningyuan Marquis's Mansion the third place winner? He's a famous handsome young man in the capital..."
"Right, right, right! I didn't expect that the top candidates in this scientific expedition would all be so good-looking..."
So, inexplicably, a horse-riding parade turned into a discussion about handsome men among the onlookers.
Su Li felt ashamed as he looked at Pei Ji who was getting closer and closer. He saw that he was wearing a green top scholar uniform and a top scholar hat with a flower on his head. His face was as white as jade and his temperament was pure and extraordinary.
In the face of everyone's admiration and praise, he remains calm and composed.
In the original novel, Pei Ji was named the most handsome man in the Jin Dynasty after this horse-riding parade.
Su Li looked at his flawless face, full of elegance, and thought to herself, he truly deserves this title...
At the same time, in a luxurious private room upstairs.
A round-faced woman in noble attire stood in front of the window, gazing fascinatedly at the man on horseback with an outstanding appearance and extraordinary temperament.
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