Chapter 12 Five Poison Marks
Since Zhu Zhanji had made the announcement, Zhu Yuhuan also took the matter of going to Wenhua Hall to heart. In addition, that day was the Dragon Boat Festival, which was also a major festival in the Ming Dynasty, so naturally it could not be taken lightly.
"This is the Five Poisons jewelry sent by the Shanggong Bureau and the Shangfu Bureau. Your Highnesses, please take a look and see if there is anything inappropriate."
Zhu Yuhuan was originally coloring a fan according to the shape his sister had drawn. When he saw the palace maid bringing in the jewelry, he stared at the fan and asked, "Have you sent it to Grandma at the palace?"
It was popular in the palace to give fans as gifts during the Double Fifth Festival. One reason was that fans were useful at that time, and the other was that fans could drive away poison and dampness, and they also meant to promote benevolence in the court. Therefore, Zhu Yuhuan thought of making some fans with his sister and giving them to several elders as Double Fifth Festival gifts, which was also a small token of his appreciation.
The oldest of the young palace maids spoke up, "Send the one over there to the old lady first. The prince chose an Aihu pendant. I delivered it to the Renshou Palace, and the old lady ordered me to bring the box to the Kunning Palace for the two princes to choose from."
Zhu Yuhuan said "oh" and then said to Zhu Youtong without raising his head: "Tongtong, pick first and see if there is anything you like."
The Dragon Boat Festival, also known as the Double Fifth Festival, is celebrated because May is an unlucky month and the fifth day is an unlucky day. Therefore, people avoid the five poisonous creatures on this day. To celebrate the occasion, people often use snakes, scorpions, centipedes, geckos, and toads as ornaments, crafting hairpins and jewelry and wearing patches bearing the five poisonous creatures.
The Shanggong Bureau oversaw the tailoring of palace robes, the supply of precious treasures, money, brocades, and silks, and the provision of food and clothing. They often collaborated with the Shangfu Bureau, and since it was the most respected of the six Shangs and held some real power, they would never be left alone if they could partner with them. However, the Shanggong Bureau sent newly made items, while the Shangfu Bureau sent items from previous years.
Han Guilan took the jewelry box and handed it to Zhu Youtong, and asked the two palace maids from the Shanggong Bureau to sit and wait.
Zhu Youtong picked out a silver snake-shaped hairpin and four flower-shaped hairpins, saying, "These look good."
She still only wears a small bun and doesn't need too many jewelry, so a few hairpins are enough.
Zhu Yuhuan put down his brush when he saw that the coloring was almost done. Huai En saw that the folding fan was finished, so he took it aside to dry the ink. Zhu Youtong, however, was a little worried and went over to check. Seeing that Zhu Yuhuan had filled in the colors honestly, he nodded with satisfaction.
With her guidance, wouldn't it be easy for my sister to draw a fan?
Zhu Yuhuan saw the dazzling array of jewelry in the box and said with a smile, "Why do you see so many new ones this year?"
"The Emperor ordered them all to be newly made. He said that's why they were so chosen. There are also several new patches made, all for Your Highness. The Emperor said that Your Highness can choose for himself this year."
"What's the other box?"
The maid replied politely, "The old lady asked me to bring this with her. The Shangfu Bureau presented her with twenty-four Double Fifth Festival purses as a gift. She kept two for herself and six for the Thousand Year Old Master. The rest were sent here for her to choose from. The Empress has already made her selection."
Zhu Youtong asked in confusion, "Grandma only wants two, but you're giving the prince six?"
The palace maid said cautiously, "Your Highness has delicate skin, and I'm afraid mosquito bites might hurt His Highness."
Zhu Youtong said "oh" dryly and stopped talking.
Zhu Yuhuan didn't take it seriously. He first looked in his jewelry box and took out a scorpion-shaped heart-shaped ornament and a green sapphire and gold flower ornament. He also selected a pair of gold-inlaid jade and mugwort leaf and green snake hairpins. Han Guilan was also there to help evaluate them and said, "This mugwort tiger patch will go perfectly with that goose yellow square-necked dress with cloud pattern."
Zhu Yuhuan asked her to choose a few more to keep, and then took two sachets at random. Then he said with a smile, "Thank you for your hard work."
"These jewelry styles were carefully prepared by Sister Qiuying."
Qiuying passed the examination to become a female official and was hired by the Shanggong Bureau. This official often interacted with the concubines in the palace and had relatively some power, so it was a good place to go.
"Go get a few coins later, and then help me pass a purse to her as a reward for her hard work."
"yes."
Han Guilan handed over the things Zhu Yuhuan had prepared long ago, and had the young palace maids sent out. Then she said to Zhu Yuhuan, "It seems that His Majesty is thinking of what happened at the horse farm and wants to give Your Highness some compensation."
Zhu Yuhuan glanced at the fans drying on the bookshelf, picked up the first one he had painted, "After the Rain," and examined it for a long time. As he walked towards the desk, he said, "I also heard that Daddy has sent people to decorate the Princess's residence again. I guess he's worried that I'll feel wronged because of that incident, otherwise he wouldn't have let Wang Dayun mention the reward first before discussing going to Wenhua Palace."
Zhu Youtong curled his lips upon hearing this and said, "Instead of making up for these, it would be better to teach the prince to respect his sister a little more..."
Zhu Yuhuan picked up a pen and wrote on it: "The water is shimmering and beautiful when the weather is fine, and the mountains are misty and strange when it rains." Then he said, "Tongtong, you can't say these words outside."
"I know." Zhu Youtong picked up the seal beside him, stamped it with the seal of "Chaoyang Believer", and said with a smile: "This is for Jiajia."
Zhu Youtong searched for a long time before she found a line from the Book of Songs: "The phoenix is singing on the high hill. The phoenix tree is growing in the morning sun." The word "morning sun" has a very good meaning and complements her name. Zhu Yuhuan also added the word "believer" to his sister's name.
Anyone who believed in Taoism could be called a "believer". Zhu Youtong had previously specially presented a painting of gods to Zhu Zhanji, and many people knew about it, so the word "believer" was also appropriate.
Zhu Yuhuan joked, "You two have a great relationship and always think about each other. Jiajia just gave you a pair of tortoise shell nails a few days ago."
Zhu Youtong was very proud and said, "I have a good relationship with everyone. Empress Wu always remembers me, and so does Xiaoyu."
Zhu Yuhuan listened to his sister's talk and saw that she never mentioned the title of Crown Prince. He knew that she disliked Zhu Qizhen from the bottom of her heart. He just reminded her: "Just don't lose face for the Crown Prince."
Zhu Youtong curled his lips and muttered, "I just don't like the way he bosses everyone around. He even dares to boss my sister around... What's wrong with the prince? He doesn't have the demeanor of a gentleman at all."
Zhu Yuhuan placed the fan on the shelf and continued, "I won't force you. As long as it's acceptable, one of these fans must be given to the prince."
Zhu Youtong exclaimed, glanced around, picked out the one Zhu Yuhuan had painted last, and said, "Give this to him!"
The last fan was not personally supervised by Zhu Youtong, but was made by Zhu Yuhuan. However, the previous ones were all her masterpieces, and she would never give them to the prince!
Zhu Yuhuan curled his lips and couldn't help but carefully examine the masterpiece he had worked on. He said, "Is my painting really that ugly? I think it's okay..."
She was used to coloring maps, and she would usually just apply color over a large area. The changes in light and dark shades did not require any brushwork, as long as she changed the paint. She was nothing like Zhu Zhanji and Zhu Youtong, who needed not only the pigments to create the changes in color, but also the painter's own skilled and experienced brushwork.
Zhu Youtong snorted and chuckled, saying, "This was painted by my sister. Giving it to him is a bargain." After that, she took her favorite "Sunshine on Golden Mountain" and looked at it again and again, obviously liking it very much.
Zhu Yuhuan had no choice but to say, "Then I'll just write the inscription."
Zhu Yuhuan's calligraphy is passable, but his talent and level in painting are indeed not as good as his sister's, so he has to admit defeat.
In a few years, Zhu Yuhuan wanted to hold a calligraphy and painting exhibition for his sister.
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