Chapter 1160 - Chapter 1160 Is Zhang Qilan Up Ahead?
Chapter 1160 Is Zhang Qilan Up Ahead?
There were two reasons why Chu Liuyue disliked Zhang Qilan.
The first reason was Prime Minister Zhang’s attitude. Even though he had agreed to marry Zhang Qilan as his legal wife, Prime Minister Zhang showed no partiality to him, appearing very impartial and fair in the imperial court. Every time Chu Liuyue wanted to get closer to him, he just smiled and walked away, treating Chu Liuyue the same way as before. But Chu Liuyue, anxious in his heart, felt very uncomfortable about his indifferent response.
The second reason was that Zhang Qilan was not as good-looking as Shao Yanru. Initially, Shao Yanru captured his fancy. Although Zhang Qilan was pretty, she was still far inferior to Shao Yanru.
Consort of Virtue chose Zhang Qilan as his legal wife, but Chu Liuyue was not very satisfied with the arrangement.
He knew Zhang Qilan was his best choice at the moment. Nevertheless, he always felt it was not enough. If he could get some extra help, it would also be a good thing for him. Thus, he would not disappoint Princess Yuyan, who took the initiative to come to him.
One had other intentions, and the other showed affection. While speaking, they were closely allied in opinion and feelings. Chu Liuyue had always acted like a gentleman not disturbed by Princess Yuyan’s full chest. However, he looked more tender than before and even displayed some faint affection.
Though Chu Liuyue had never mentioned his feeling openly, Princess Yuyan was very satisfied with this result. After all, she was used to male adoration in the Xu State. Whether a man was genuinely fond of her was evident in her eyes.
They had a most agreeable and long chat. In the end, seeing it was getting late, Princess Yuyan reluctantly got up. There was no hostess in the Prince Yue’s Mansion, so it was very inappropriate for her to stay for dinner.
Chu Liuyue personally sent her to the gate. Anyway, she was a Xu State princess. He should see her off. After Princess Yuyan’s carriage left, Chu Liuyue turned around and slowly walked back into the mansion with a mocking smile. A princess from a small, foreign country threw herself at him. It was a humiliating thing for Chu Qing. As for him, whoever came would be welcome.
If the Prime Minister Zhang’s Mansion didn’t like it, he could tell them to argue with the Xu State.
If Prime Minister Zhang didn’t give him some practical benefits, he would stand by and watch the fight between Princess Yuyan and Zhang Qilan.
Princess Yutao and Princess Yuyan didn’t invite many people. All their guests were young, either rich or noble.
This could be considered the first friendly contact between the Xu State and the royal family of the Kingdom of Dongcang.
There were not many people, plus the two princesses’ courtyard had no male master. Therefore, they decided not to separate men and women during the banquet. According to Princess Yuyan, in the Xu State, they would not keep males and females apart when in small gatherings of those descendants of aristocratic families. Male and female guests could enjoy the scenery and go around together. Guests would only be separated by screens during the meal.
The few princes with distinguished status were the only male guests of this banquet.
As for the female guests, they were not outsiders. More or less, they were related to these princes.
When the carriage of Prince Chen’s Mansion arrived, Princess Yuyan had been waiting there for a long time. But Shao Wanru alone got out of the carriage. Seeing this, she deliberately looked back to check out the situation with a smile and ensured no more person would get out of the carriage. Then, she asked teasingly, “Your Highness, why doesn’t His Highness come? Is he busy today?”
“He will be here soon,” Shao Wanru said softly.
“I thought he would not come. In that case, Your Highness, please come in!” Princess Yuyan said affectionately and reached out to hold Shao Wanru’s hand. However, Shao Wanru happened to turn sideways and say a few words to Yujie. Skillfully, she avoided her hand.
A trace of anger flashed across Princess Yuyan’s face, but she immediately covered it up. She put down her hand and still said with a bright smile, “Among the Misses coming here today, you have the highest status. Could you please help me and introduce each of them?”
Although Shao Wanru was young, her status was indeed the highest. Before Infanta Yuan’an and Zhang Qilan married the two princes, their status was lower than Shao Wanru’s.
Her request was fair and reasonable.
“I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you. I don’t know many people. Since I married Prince Chen, I’ve been in poor health and have never seen many noble ladies in the capital city. You can ask Infanta Yuan’an for help. She has superior status and has grown up in the capital city. Besides, you are on good terms with each other!”
Shao Wanru refused with a smile.
She would not interfere in today’s banquet. If she did, it might be hard for her to explain away some things in the future. In her eyes, Princess Yuyan wouldn’t act properly to her status and behave well, no matter what. Therefore, she only felt safe when being an ordinary guest here.
“Infanta Yuan’an is nice but not in a position as high as yours.” Princess Yuyan had a deep sense of grievance, but she didn’t show resentment on her face.
“Infanta Yuan’an will be Princess Zhou with prominent status. Even if we don’t talk about her future as Princess Zhou, she is a noble lady with a strong background in our country. What’s more, I heard you are friends attracted to each other by similar tastes.” Shao Wanru said.
She implied that Infanta Yuan’an had a close relationship with Princess Yuyan. Infanta Yuan’an was familiar with the Misses of aristocratic families in the capital city, but Shao Wanru knew little about it. If Princess Yuyan chose her instead of Infanta Yuan’an, she would arouse suspicion.
Princess Yuyan didn’t expect Shao Wanru to be so cautious. Her smile died, and the look on her face hardened. Fortunately, Infanta Yuan’an had reminded her of this situation before. Back then, Princess Yuyan didn’t believe it, thinking Shao Wanru would do this to show respect to the Xu State. In particular, the reason she prepared was appropriate and sound.
Princess Yuyan held her anger in check and kept her radiant smile. With pity, she said, “Then, I’ll have to give up this idea. Originally, you were my first choice because of your most eminent status!”
While talking, they had already entered the garden.
This courtyard was prepared when a foreign princess was said to marry into the Kingdom of Dongcang. The Xu State princesses would only live here for now and soon marry into another mansion. No matter what, this place would become useless. Therefore, this place was of moderate size. It was not a large place. Undoubtedly, it was not comparable to the princes’ mansions. It was just an empty residential place. The servants had tidied it up before the two princesses moved in.
The garden was quite exquisite. Some flowers and plants inside seemed newly planted, but they presented a beautiful sight. There were flowers scattered among these green and luxuriant plants.
“Your Highness, take a walk first. I have to pick up a few other Misses,” Princess Yuyan said with a dazzling smile. “There are tea and snacks along the way. If you are tired, you can rest in the pavilions by the roadside. Have some tea and desserts. I’ll bring other Misses here later.”
Princess Yuyan said, pointing somewhere. It didn’t seem to be a main road of the garden but a winding path leading to a picturesque place. Those pavilions and pagodas loomed from a distance through the sea of plants, bushes, and flowers. What an impressive sight.
“Where is Princess Yutao?” Shao Wanru didn’t immediately step forward but asked with a smile.
“She has gone to the outer court. There should be a prince coming. Today I’m responsible for welcoming the womenfolk in the inner court, and my Eldest Sister greets those in the outer court. We’ll bring them all here later!” Princess Yuyan explained with a smile.
Since there was no male master, the two princesses cooperated and shared the work. It was appropriate for Princess Yutao to pick up the few princes. Princess Yutao could be considered a prince in the Xu State and might inherit the throne.
“Your Highness, rest assured. Miss Zhang has also arrived here. If you walk a little faster, you might meet Miss Zhang. I heard you were best friends before you married.” Princess Yuyan pointed forward with a smile. “She came a little earlier than you. She should be not far away from here!”
At this point, it was improper for Shao Wanru to ask Princess Yuyan to stay. Thus, she nodded with a smile, said goodbye to Princess Yuyan, and went straight into the flowers and trees with two servant girls.
Not long after she walked forward, she met a servant girl of the mansion. At the sight of Shao Wanru, she hurriedly stepped aside and bowed respectfully.
Looking at the teacup she took away, Shao Wanru stopped and asked, “Who is in front of us?”
It was obvious that the teacup had just been used. Since it had been removed from the table, the people drinking the tea must have left.
“The Miss of Prime Minister Zhang’s Mansion just rested in a pavilion before us!” The servant girl answered in a low voice.
Shao Wanru waved her hand and asked the servant girl to leave. Then, she continued to walk forward with Yujie and Qing’er.
After walking for a while, they did see a pavilion on the side of the path. The curtains fell, and only one side of the pavilion facing the road was left uncovered. As the thin gauze curtains swayed in the wind, she saw the fruit tray and teacups on the stone table, but no servant was outside the pavilion. The maid who left just now must have been serving here.
It was a peaceful and secluded place. A few bird calls from somewhere made the scenery here more vivid.
“Look, My Lady. There are bird cages above.” Qing’er had sharp eyes. Immediately, she spotted two birdcages hanging on the pavilion’s edge. Inside, several colorful birds were jumping around and chirping occasionally, which looked quite cute.
Shao Wanru walked toward the pavilion. It was indeed an excellent place to watch birds and rest. The journey was neither too short nor too long. She didn’t see anyone around, so it was good to have a rest here.
Upon entering the pavilion, she found all the utensils inside were clean. Even if someone had drunk tea here, servants changed the tea set.
Yujie reached out and touched the teapot in the middle. It was scorching. She opened the cover and picked up the empty cup on one side, pouring tea for Shao Wanru.
The tea was light-colored and fragrant, and the tea leaves were top-grade. It could be seen that this place had been prepared with meticulous care. Not far away, they saw a high and upturned courtyard corner, but no one knew what that place was. Because it could not be seen clearly, the mysterious scene brought them some subtle feelings and moods.
There were a few clusters of flowers outside the pavilion. The branches were vines, which didn’t look like any of the flowers Shao Wanru had seen. The green vines dotted with little flowers spread out beneath them. These flowers didn’t look like those delicate flowers raised in the capital city. However, judging from the sharp thorns on the flower branches, Shao Wanru could tell this kind of flower should be full of vitality.
These flowers were small, but the vines were strong.
“My Lady, this kind of flower seems to grow in the mountains. When living in the nunnery, I sometimes went to pick herbs with Mingqiu Nun in the mountains. Those extremely vigorous vines may have such small flowers. At that time, I felt they looked stunningly beautiful, more appealing than the flowers in the garden.”
Walking to the pavilion entrance, Yujie squatted down to observe them and said to Shao Wanru with a smile. She liked flowers in this shape. Before serving Shao Wanru, she was a wild and naughty girl raised in the mountain. This kind of flower was her favorite. Occasionally, she would pick a few flowers and put them into the hair near her temples. She was not a nun without hair but just a young girl who had been living in the nunnery. After all, the desire to look attractive is universal.
“I’ll pick one and show it to Mingqiu Nun. It may be useful!”