Chapter 317: Zhengzheng: Open and aboveboard! [Thank you all for your support]

The night sky in the distance was ink-blue,

Dotted with seven or eight stars.

Under the eaves of Jin'an Studio, lanterns for illumination had already been hung.

Sister Xiaodie accompanied Wei Shuyi, watching the fireworks rising not far away, and tilted her head, saying:

"Little Niang, the fireworks in Bianjing are indeed better looking than those in other places."

Wei Shuyi smiled at the corners of her mouth, continued to look expectantly at the place where the fireworks rose, and said:

"If you go out to play, wouldn't you see it more clearly?"

Sister Xiaodie shook her head, and realizing that Wei Shuyi wasn't looking at her, Sister Xiaodie said: "I'm not going out."

Wei Shuyi tilted her head and looked at her, saying:

"Before in Quanzhou, that person who snatched your lantern meant well, and didn't expect to scare you."

Sister Xiaodie pouted and said:

"Little Niang, that was my favorite lantern! Snatching it from me late at night while wearing makeup, and telling me it was to wish my family prosperity—who would believe that!"

Wei Shuyi held the hand warmer, rubbed it, felt the warmth of the hand warmer, and said:

"I heard from Mama Liu that it's because in Quanzhou, the pronunciations of the words 'lantern' and 'son' are similar. Hanging a lantern, carrying a lantern, and having a lantern snatched are all called 'bringing out a lantern'."

"It's also called 'bringing out a son', taking the meaning of family prosperity."

Sister Xiaodie said "Oh".

Wei Shuyi watched the night sky not far away for a while longer, and said with some regret: "Is it not being set off anymore?"

At this time,

Under the lantern at the entrance of Jin'an Studio's courtyard, the maid Caihuan walked over with a lantern and said with a smile:

"Little Niang, Happy Lantern Festival! The Da Niangzi and the Old Madam asked you to come over, saying they want to eat tangyuan together."

"Okay! I'll go over right now! Sorry to trouble you, Sister Caihuan."

"Little Niang, what are you saying."

Before Wei Shuyi left, she looked at the night sky expectantly once more,

"Boom!"

A huge firework exploded in mid-air, which was very brilliant.

Passing through the courtyard,

Wei Shuyi arrived at Shou'an Hall.

In the hall, Wei Shuyi bowed.

"On this Lantern Festival, don't just stand there, Suqin!"

The Old Madam said, glanced at Mama Fang, and Mama Fang smiled and moved an embroidered stool over.

Wei Shuyi glanced at Wang Ruofu, who was sitting in the lower seat. Wang Ruofu smiled and blinked, showing no reaction.

It was Mama Liu behind Wang Ruofu who nodded with a smile.

Only then did Wei Shuyi sit on the embroidered stool below Wang Ruofu, smiling as she watched Sheng Changmei climbing up the side of the Arhat bed behind the Old Madam, with Mama Cui, Cui Ru'an, protecting him with her hands spread out behind him.

Wang Ruofu stroked a piece of material on her lap and said:

"Shuyi, your hands are truly skillful!"

Hearing Wang Ruofu's somewhat overly intimate address, Wei Shuyi looked at Wang Ruofu with surprise in her eyes, and then glanced at the Old Madam.

It was Mama Liu beside Wang Ruofu who said with a smile: "Little Niang, the cloth doll you made, the eldest grandson of the Gu family likes it very much, so they sent someone to bring a thank-you gift."

While speaking, Mama Liu took the material handed over from Wang Ruofu's raised hand and placed it in the hands of Wei Shuyi, who had stood up.

Wei Shuyi rubbed the material, her eyes full of surprise: "This, this silk material is too precious. This servant was only able to make it because the Da Niangzi allowed it... This servant is ashamed to accept it."

Wang Ruofu withdrew her gaze from the material and said with great satisfaction: "Take it!"

Mama Liu said with a smile: "Little Niang, take it! The Hou Fu also sent a set of 'Great Master Yu Chuan' to the Da Niangzi!"

Hearing the words "Great Master Yu Chuan", the corners of Wang Ruofu's mouth couldn't help but curl up again,

Her eyes full of satisfaction with this gift; it really hit the mark in her heart.

Wei Shuyi turned around, and Sister Xiaodie hurriedly walked over, took the material, and stood aside.

At this time,

Mama Fang walked over with a tray. The tangyuan in the bowl on the tray was steaming, and a spoon was placed on the side.

After placing it beside the Old Madam and Wang Ruofu, Wei Shuyi stood up again and took the soup bowl.

The Old Madam waved her hand and said:

"Eat!"

After speaking, the Old Madam scooped out a tangyuan, cut it on a small plate to let it cool, blew on it to test the temperature, and only then fed it to Sheng Changmei's mouth with a spoon.

Wang Ruofu ate the tangyuan with a hiss, somewhat ungracefully, and said: "Mother, the taste of this year's tangyuan is a bit different from last year's."

The Old Madam nodded with a smile.

Wei Shuyi only ate the first tangyuan at this time, and her eyes froze after it entered her mouth.

Mama Fang on the side looked at everyone eating tangyuan with concern, and after hearing Wang Ruofu's words, said:

"Da Niangzi, this tangyuan draws on the method near Chuzhou. Is the taste okay?"

Wang Ruofu nodded and said: "Hmm, it has a unique flavor."

"Little Niang?"

Wei Shuyi: "Good."

After speaking, she looked gratefully at the Old Madam and Mama Fang.

"Boom!"

A huge firework exploded in the sky.

Qi Heng looked at it from afar at the window and said:

"Jing Ge'er, it should be His Majesty arriving at the Xuande Tower."

Rong Xian, who heard this, nodded and said: "Sigh, watching the fireworks on the Xuande Tower is much more beautiful than here!"

Qi Heng nodded.

Outside the Xuande Tower, many gate tower lanterns were actually facing the Imperial City gate tower, mainly for the Emperor to see. Looking from the side, no matter how you looked at it, it would lack some flavor.

"Young Master, the eldest young lady at home said she wants to go watch the fireworks, and wants you to accompany her."

Hearing the words of the young servant at home,

Zheng Xiao, who was feeling a bit bored on the side, jumped up,

Quickly tidied his clothes, adjusted the silk flower on his hair, waved at Xu Zaijing, and walked out.

Gu Tingye on the side asked suspiciously: "What's wrong with Zheng Xiao?"

After Xu Zaijing and Qi Heng looked at each other, they followed without a word.

The few walked to the entrance and poked their heads out to look. They saw Zheng Xiao arrive at the stairs, and his niece, Zheng Ni, the eldest daughter of Zheng Jun, bowed,

Zheng Ni's demeanor was very similar to Zheng Daniangzi's, serious and not prone to smiling.

Beside her was the Fifth Young Lady, who had dressed up and was waving at Zheng Xiao, asking: "Brother Xiao, where is the brother from the Shen family?"

Zheng Ni, who was beside the Fifth Young Lady of the Zhang family, was no longer serious, but patted the Fifth Young Lady somewhat shyly.

Zheng Xiao patted his forehead annoyedly and turned back.

Xu Zaijing and the others immediately shrank back. After Xu Zaijing looked around the room, he pulled over Shen Herui, who was discussing academics with Changbai, and said:

"Brother Herui, the Zheng family's Ni Jie'er is here."

As soon as Xu Zaijing said this, laughter and teasing sounded all around.

Afterwards, Shen Herui was pulled out by Zheng Xiao by the arm, and their young servants and attendants also hurriedly followed.

Xu Zaijing and Gu Tingye came to the window and looked out.

Before long, the figures of the four appeared on the street downstairs, followed by the carriages of their respective families.

Rong Xian lay on the third-floor window and blew a teasing whistle.

Downstairs,

The Fifth Young Lady of the Zhang family stopped, put her hands on her hips, and pointed at the third-floor window.

The window was soon empty.

"Hmph!"

"Brother Xiao, let's go, let's follow."

After a while,

The Fifth Young Lady of the Zhang family looked with great envy at the lantern Zheng Ni had won by guessing a riddle.

Zheng Xiao walked to Shen Herui's side and whispered: "Herui, help, help! Help me guess the lantern riddle."

On the third floor,

One after another, the young men were called away by their elder or younger sisters to accompany them to watch the fireworks.

By the window, Rong Xian blew the cold wind,

Staring blankly at the Xuande Tower surrounded by fireworks in the distance, thinking in his heart, when would he be able to go downstairs with Chai Jin or Chai Bo,

"Sigh!"

At this time, Xu Zaijing patted him on the shoulder and said: "Xian Ge'er, let's go. Let's go watch the fireworks too."

Because they were classmates in the academy,

So when they went down this time, it was Xu Zaijing, Gu Tingye, Qi Heng, Changbai, and others going down together.

When going downstairs, the young ladies of several families were chattering. Xu Zaijing, relying on his outstanding hearing,

Heard "Little Gongye" no less than five or six times,

And "Gu Er Lang" three or four times.

Although they went downstairs together and walked towards the Xuande Tower in the north,

Walking on the street, the noble ladies stopped and went, stopping whenever they encountered lanterns or riddles they liked, so they gradually scattered.

The six young ladies of the Lu family, surrounded by the servants and maids of the Duke of Lian's mansion, had been following behind Lu Zezong.

And Lu Zezong was following Xu Zaijing, and Qi Heng was beside Xu Zaijing.

At the crisp request of the six young ladies of the Lu family, Qi Heng guessed quite a few lantern riddles, helping the young ladies win lanterns.

And Buwei had been following Qingyun, running back and forth, calling him Brother Qingyun every other word.

The crowd continued to walk towards the Xuande Gate. By the roadside, there were not only lantern riddle guessing and lantern selling stalls, but also colorful sheds for other Bianjing variety performances on the roadside.

The closer to the Imperial City, the more luxurious the colorful sheds,

And there were many Bianjing commoners gathered in front to watch the programs.

From time to time, the sound of performers leading the audience to shout "Long Live" came. This wasn't shouted for nothing;

Often, eunuchs from the Imperial Palace would take rewards onto the stage,

Indicating that His Majesty on the Xuande Tower had heard the cheers and received everyone's good intentions.

Therefore, the closer to the Xuande Gate, the denser the crowd would become, almost to the point where they couldn't move their feet.

Of course, Xu Zaijing and the others didn't go to join the fun. After watching a fire dragon dance performance on the stage from the side, they turned around.

Xuande Tower,

The Emperor sat on the dragon chair at the entrance, wearing luxurious winter clothes.

Looking down from a high vantage point, the south side of the Xuande Tower was full of huge, meticulously crafted colorful lanterns.

Between the huge colorful lanterns were "slowly flowing" rivers of lanterns, which were the dense crowd of Bianjing commoners moving.

Further away was the wide Imperial Street, and from time to time, the sound of "Long Live" came from both sides of the Imperial Street.

"Long live the Sage! Ten thousand blessings to the Imperial Heir!"

"Long live the Sage! Ten thousand blessings to the Imperial Heir!"

Hearing this cheer, the Emperor on the dragon chair smiled, stretched out his finger, and said: "That one, reward! A heavy reward!"

A great eunuch on the side identified it and said: "The one by the flagpole, the colorful shed with the red fish lantern, reward!"

After speaking, the little eunuchs listening on the side took the Forbidden Army soldiers wearing golden armor down the gate tower and squeezed towards that side.

The Emperor stood up, glanced at Zhao Fang in the Empress's arms, and beckoned.

Zhao Fang walked to the Emperor's side,

"Fang'er, look, whichever one you like, we will reward it!"

Zhao Fang was small, and after poking his head out and not being able to see clearly, he stood straight on the dragon chair the Emperor had just sat on to continue looking, to the horror of the great eunuch.

Seeing this scene, the Emperor smiled and said: "Fang'er is truly smart!"

"Father, among these lantern colorful sheds, are there any built by the Marquis Yongyi's family?"

The Emperor was stunned and looked at the great eunuch on the side inquiringly.

The great eunuch hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, the one with the carp lantern jumping back and forth under the golden archway, implying 'carp jumping over the dragon gate', is jointly organized by several families, including the Xu family and the Qi family."

Zhao Fang, wearing a small golden crown, his eyes lit up and said: "Then, let's reward that one!"

The Emperor raised his chin.

Zhao Fang got off the dragon chair, walked inside, and after returning to the Empress's side, laboriously picked up Princess Yue'er, who was dressed thickly and looked somewhat round.

Below the Empress's seat, there were also several other people of the Emperor, including concubines and Da Niangzis of noble families.

Princess Pingning looked at Princess Yue'er in Zhao Fang's arms with a smile, tilted her head to look outside, and said:

"These Zhengzheng and Feiyan young ladies, staying outside for so long, aren't they afraid of the cold!"

The Empress smiled and looked at Imperial Consort Rong, saying:

"Pingning, you say that, but I don't know who it was that first went up to the Xuande Tower when she was a child and almost caught a cold from the freezing."

"No matter how the female officials tried to persuade her, she wouldn't come back."

Princess Pingning was stunned, smiled, and shook her head: "Mother, that was so many years ago, I've forgotten!"

A burst of laughter came from the room.

Rong Feiyan and Chai Zhengzheng, who were standing outside, curiously looked back, then continued to look south.

"Sister Zhengzheng, look, that colorful shed over there is performing a fire dragon dance!"

The spectacular scene on the Xuande Tower temporarily dispelled the gloom in Rong Feiyan's heart.

In her excitement, Rong Feiyan even stretched out a hand from her cloak and pointed towards the Imperial Street.

Chai Zhengzheng looked over and said: "Yes! It's just like it's alive!"

Lanterns were lit in the dragon body of this dragon dance. Although there was some distance, it could still be seen clearly from the tower.

Of course, the two young ladies' eyesight wasn't as good as Xu Zaijing's, so naturally, they couldn't see clearly who was standing next to the colorful shed.

Then, Rong Feiyan quickly withdrew her hand, secretly tilted her head to look at Chai Zhengzheng, and seeing Chai Zhengzheng looking over, she immediately turned her head to look downstairs.

Chai Zhengzheng looked at Rong Feiyan curiously.

Just now, when Chai Zhengzheng first came to the tower, seeing Rong Feiyan wrapped tightly in her cloak, she thought Rong Feiyan was afraid of the cold.

But this dodging gaze... what was going on with that guilty look?

At this time,

The Empress's personal female official walked out from the side door and came to the side of the two, saying:

"Two young ladies, the Empress said to let the two of you go in and warm up before coming out to watch."

Rong Feiyan was like being granted amnesty and hurriedly said: "Okay, we'll go in right now!"

As she spoke, she stepped inside.

Chai Zhengzheng behind her was somewhat confused, frowned, thought for a moment, and followed.

Entering the room from the side door, the light was much brighter than outside the tower.

Imperial Consort Rong felt a pang of heartache looking at her younger sister wrapped tightly in her cloak, and beckoned to Rong Feiyan.

After Rong Feiyan walked close, Imperial Consort Rong reached her hands into the cloak and held Rong Feiyan's somewhat cold hands.

Before Rong Feiyan could react, her hands were already on the tie of Rong Feiyan's cloak, and she smoothly untied the cloak for her,

Took it into her hands, handed it to the female official behind her, and took off her own thick cloak to drape over Rong Feiyan.

It was originally a smooth action, but Imperial Consort Rong looked at her younger sister's somewhat wrong expression and said: "What's wrong, Feiyan?"

Chai Zhengzheng, who was following behind, swept her eyes over Rong Feiyan, and understood in her eyes.

Looking at the eyes of the Empress and Princess Pingning in front,

Chai Zhengzheng walked a few steps faster and said:

"Sister Feiyan, I didn't expect that the clothing color scheme we discussed that day, you really made it!"

"And you even hid it and didn't show it to me."

Rong Feiyan looked over, surprised and shy.

Looking at Chai Zhengzheng's "open and aboveboard" hint in her eyes, she almost cried with emotion.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 318 =====