Chapter 528

The fifteenth year of Jia Zhao, the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

Jia Cong rose early, practicing his martial arts and sword techniques as usual, then returned to his courtyard to bathe and groom himself, just sitting down in the study to prepare for his studies.

He saw Zhen Ying Lian enter, her cheeks flushed, beautiful and flawless. She was wearing a magenta printed, front-opening fur-lined long jacket, a white cross-collar inner garment, and a pale pink long skirt, holding a tray covered with a piece of vermilion tribute satin.

Jia Cong, feeling curious, asked, "What is it you are holding?"

Zhen Ying Lian gave a sweet smile and said, "Young Master, you have forgotten that today is the fifteenth of the first month, a great day. We naturally had to make something to give to you as a festive gift."

Zhen Ying Lian lifted the red silk on the tray, revealing four or five bright and exquisite little items inside.

Jia Cong smiled gently: "How is it that you all conspired together to give me pouches? This is enough for me to use for a long time."

Zhen Ying Lian laughed: "Today is the fifteenth of the first month, the first major festival of the year. Our courtyard should be lively and festive, and it is also to help Young Master seek some good fortune.

There are indeed young ladies who give scent sachets, but Sister Zhi Shao said our status is limited, and if we followed others in giving scent sachets, it would only invite gossip for Young Master. Giving pouches is the most appropriate and thoughtful choice."

Jia Cong naturally understood the meaning behind Zhen Ying Lian's words.

The fifteenth of the first month carries the meaning of reunion and harmony. Young men and women temporarily cast aside the constraints of etiquette to stroll the night streets, enjoy the lanterns, celebrate the New Year, secretly exchange festive gifts, and pour out their hearts to one another.

It is a long-standing old custom for a woman to give a scent sachet to a man she admires on the fifteenth of the first month, as the sachet symbolizes longing.

The few people closest to Jia Cong, even if Zhi Shao left the Jia Prefecture halfway and received a gift bestowed by the Empress's phoenix edict, could no longer be considered servants of the Jia family.

But at present, she and Jia Cong have no formal status, and their daily living and conduct are equivalent to those of Jia Cong's personal maids, not to mention Liu Wuer, Qing Wen, and the others.

In a great noble household, a maid flirting with her master is always a taboo in the etiquette of the inner chambers.

If they all giggled and embroidered scent sachets to give to Jia Cong, all implying longing, although no one in the Count's mansion could blame them,

if the matter were to spread, it would be somewhat improper and would bring Jia Cong the stigma of licentiousness in the inner chambers.

Zhi Shao had this concern, so she had everyone change from giving scent sachets to pouches, to avoid bringing unpleasant gossip upon Jia Cong.

Although scent sachets and pouches are both items a man carries with him, the two are completely different things.

A scent sachet is filled only with medicinal herbs and spices, its opening sealed like a heart, thus entrusting the meaning of longing.

A pouch is a small open bag worn close to the body, which can hold spices, silver nuggets, and other small items, symbolizing reunion and companionship.

For a personal maid to embroider a pouch for her young master as a daily item for miscellaneous use, others could not find the slightest fault.

Zhen Ying Lian tilted her head and picked up each pouch on the tray, saying as if counting her family treasures: "This one embroidered with lotus flowers and Buddha's hand was made by Sister Zhi Shao, and the one embroidered with roses is Sister Liu Wuer's.

The one embroidered with red hibiscus is Sister Qing Wen's, the one embroidered with white hibiscus was made by Ling Guan, and this one embroidered with apricot blossoms was made by me."

Jia Cong saw these exquisite pouches, felt a warmth in his heart, and asked Zhen Ying Lian with a smile: "Why did you embroider apricot blossoms on yours?"

Zhen Ying Lian laughed: "I am now in charge of Young Master's study, and seeing that Young Master is about to take the spring imperial examination, I heard my mother say that apricot blossoms are also called 'success blossoms,' meaning to be listed on the Golden Roll.

If Young Master carries the apricot blossom pouch with him, it will surely bless Young Master with success, and who knows, you might even come back as the top scholar."

Jia Cong held the apricot blossom pouch and smiled: "If I am successful on the Golden Roll, it will surely be the merit of your pouch. When that time comes, I will certainly thank you well."

Zhen Ying Lian beamed with a smile upon hearing this, looking very charming and pleasant, and said: "I will remember Young Master's words. If you are successful on the Golden Roll, you must not forget to thank me."

The two were chatting happily when they saw Qing Wen enter and laugh: "Cong Sanye, the Old Matriarch has sent word that the Master and Lady of the Shi family have brought the eldest Miss Shi and have already entered the Rongqing Hall to pay respects to the Old Matriarch.

The Old Matriarch invites Cong Sanye to go over and talk together."

From the beginning of New Year's Eve to the fifteenth of the first month, the New Year festival was coming to an end, but the festive atmosphere of the New Year had climbed to its peak.

Every New Year, the Love Shenjing holds a grand lantern festival, starting from the eighth day of the first month and continuing until the eighteenth.

Because the lantern periods are different, the eighth day when the lanterns are first lit is called "Trial Lanterns," the fifteenth is called "Main Lanterns," and the eighteenth is called "Closing Lanterns."

During this time, all the streets and alleys in the Love Shenjing are hung with various kinds of lanterns, which is the most brilliant and lively spectacle of the year.

Among them are official lanterns set up by the government, folk lanterns spontaneously funded by the people of each ward, and colorful lanterns hung by noble families and princely mansions near their residences.

There are Buddhist lanterns hung by major temples and nunneries, boat lanterns hung on various waterways and canals, and the forms of lanterns are endless...

Every year's lantern festival is also the time when etiquette and rules are most lenient, and men, women, old, and young can all go out to the streets to watch the lanterns and have fun.

Even women from boudoirs can temporarily cast aside the constraints of etiquette, either strolling the streets in groups or enjoying the lanterns from carriages and horses.

Of course, this only applies to those of ordinary families or small households.

Like the young ladies of the great Jia clan of Rongguo, where family etiquette is strict, they do not have such unrestrained freedom to go out to the main streets, squeeze into crowds, and stroll among the lanterns.

But this does not mean that the women of noble families have lost the joy and excitement of the New Year and lantern festivals; they have their own ways of seeking pleasure.

Every noble and wealthy family is extremely wealthy and has spacious mansions. Every New Year and lantern festival, they will hang lanterns throughout the mansion, which are called "mansion lanterns."

The beauty and brilliance of the mansion lanterns of noble families are even better than the official and folk lanterns on the streets outside.

These gorgeous mansion lanterns are not only for the women and children of the great clan to enjoy, but also to seek a red-hot, prosperous omen for the wealth and power of the coming year.

Later on, the mansion lanterns of each noble family became an important matter for noble ladies and young misses to visit during the New Year.

Every year during the lantern festival, the ladies and misses of each mansion often visit each other to enjoy the mansion lanterns, which is both a gathering for pleasure and a way to socialize and connect.

This year, the Rongguo Prefecture has newly inherited its noble titles, and it is the glory of having two titles in one body, which also shows a good omen for the revival of the family business.

Wang Xifeng, in order to raise the status and legitimacy of the Rongguo main branch, obtained Jia Cong's approval beforehand and put a lot of effort into the etiquette and scenes of the New Year festival.

Just for the hanging of the mansion lanterns, ten outstanding lantern craftsmen were hired from Dezhou before the New Year, and they spent all day in the outer courtyard weaving various exquisite lanterns.

The beauty and brilliance of the lanterns were far better than in previous years, and it also sought a good omen for Jia Cong to surpass the past with the present.

Since the eighth day of the first month, many noble women who have visited the Jia family have said that this year's Jia family mansion lanterns are far better than those of other families.

Rongguo Prefecture, Lixiang Courtyard.

The fifteenth of the first month is the day of the Main Lanterns of the New Year lantern festival. All morning, several old relatives and women came to the mansion to socialize.

Among the women who came to the mansion today to watch the lanterns, one family was not an old noble relative of the Jia family, but a female guest invited by Xue Yima.

This guest was the mother and daughter of the Guihua Xia family, who brought several personal maids and matrons.

A few days ago, Lady Wang accompanied Xue Yima to offer incense at Qingxu Temple. Because of the introduction of the old immortal Zhang Daoist Priest, the temple master, they got to know the mistress and young miss of the Guihua Xia family who also came to offer incense.

Several noble ladies chatted together and found they were very compatible. After carefully recounting their family origins, the Xue and Xia families actually had some noble friendship, but they hadn't visited each other for many years, so the younger generation had become estranged.

Now that they were reunited in a foreign land, the two families felt even closer.

That Xia Gu Niang's name was Jingui, sixteen years old, beautiful in appearance, graceful in figure, and elegant and generous in her conduct; she was a first-class person.

Not only did Xue Yima feel satisfied after seeing her, but even Lady Wang felt that this Xia Gu Niang had an extraordinary appearance and was someone who could handle the scene, looking no worse than Baochai.

Not to mention that the family was extremely wealthy, and she was the only daughter, an only child; whoever married Xia Gu Niang would gain endless family wealth for nothing...

Xue Yima and Mrs. Xia were both widows and both mistresses of imperial merchant families, and both were entirely focused on their children's debts.

The two had very similar experiences, and their chat was even more tacit, even feeling like they had met too late, wishing they could become sworn sisters.

Xue Yima and Mrs. Xia were close to each other, and Lady Wang added a few words from the side, making the atmosphere even warmer and more harmonious. They were all leaders in great mansions, so how could they not understand the meaning?

When Xue Yima left Qingxu Temple, she gave Zhang Daoist Priest a generous amount of incense money. As for whether Mrs. Xia gave the same reward, that is unknown...

The Main Lantern festival on the fifteenth of the first month was the appointment for Xue Yima and Mrs. Xia to meet again.

In the morning, two carriages stopped at the main gate of the back street of Lixiang Courtyard, and Xue Yima and Lady Wang were waiting at the gate.

They saw the Xia mother and daughter get off the carriage with smiles on their faces, bringing several personal matrons and maids.

Because Xia Gu Niang came to the Jia Prefecture to enjoy the mansion lanterns this time, Baochai, who was of the same age, also came to entertain the guests and pulled Seeing Tan Chun along to accompany them.

Originally, there were many young ladies in the Jia family, and they could have invited a few more to accompany them to make it lively.

But Baochai considered that Xia Gu Niang was visiting with her mother, and there was an underlying intention of proposing marriage, so it was not appropriate to make the first meeting too grand.

Moreover, the East and West Prefectures of the Jia family were no longer what they used to be, and the young ladies of the family could not be invited to accompany guests at will.

Although Yingchun was gentle and kind, and always kind to others, she was the eldest young lady of the Count's mansion, and her status was already extraordinary.

Ever since Jia Cong inherited the Rongguo title, the main branch of the first house had become the legitimate branch of the Jia family, and Yingchun had become the legitimate eldest young lady of the Rongguo Prefecture, even the eldest sister Yuanchun in the palace had to yield to her.

With Yingchun's current status, it was very inappropriate to rashly pull her to accompany ordinary female guests, and it would even cause Jia Cong to lose face, so Baochai naturally would never do such a thing.

Daiyu was indeed a clever person with a graceful demeanor, but Daiyu was only an external relative of the Jia family after all, and had no connection with the Xue family, and her personality did not like socializing, so it was naturally not good to call her.

Xichun was still a child and could not handle things.

Only Seeing Tan Chun was clever, beautiful, generous, and could answer appropriately. She was also Lady Wang's daughter, so accompanying her legitimate mother to entertain guests was even more legitimate, which is why Baochai pulled her to accompany them...

Baochai knew clearly in her heart that this Xia Gu Niang who came today might very well be her future sister-in-law, so although she entertained guests with a smile, she kept ten percent of her mind to observe.

She saw that this Xia Gu Niang had a beautiful and charming appearance, a graceful and romantic figure, and flexible and generous speech, without the shyness of a young lady from a small family, and even had a bit of Fengjie's style.

Baochai thought of her brother's dissolute and unruly behavior, and anyone who knew the truth would feel that her brother was not reliable enough.

Compared to this beautiful and crisp Xia Gu Niang, her brother was also far inferior. If he could marry such a wife, it would be a fortunate thing.

Baochai hoped in her heart that this marriage could be successful, so her brother could have some restraint.

Seeing Tan Chun was only here to accompany the guests. She was not in the situation like Baochai, but was an outsider observing.

Although she felt that this Xia Gu Niang had a first-class appearance, was crisp in speech, and was literate, she could be considered an outstanding one among young ladies in boudoirs.

She saw that her speech and etiquette were thoughtful, but there was a hidden arrogance in her conduct and expression, although it was not very obvious, and her gaze seemed a bit sharp.

But Seeing Tan Chun was only pulled by Baochai to accompany the guests, and she also knew that Xia Gu Niang was going to discuss marriage with the Xue family's eldest brother, so it had nothing to do with her, and she didn't take the slight impression of the first meeting to heart.

Although Baochai and Seeing Tan Chun were both clever and sharp women, they were born into noble families since childhood and had long been influenced by etiquette and rules. When they first interacted with others, their speech and conduct were always somewhat restrained.

It was this Xia Gu Niang who, although it was their first meeting, was more generous and crisp than them, and the topics of conversation were often led by her.

At this moment, she was saying in a crisp voice: "I have been an only daughter since I was a child, and I don't have any close brothers or sisters, but I envy others for having lively brothers and sisters.

Before I came, I heard a lot about the great name of the Jia family of Rongguo. Everyone outside says that there are many outstanding brothers and sisters in the mansion, who accompany each other harmoniously and live leisurely, which makes people yearn for it.

Seeing Miss Bao and Sister Seeing Tan Chun today, you are already so outstanding. I think the other brothers and sisters must also be excellent. It's a pity that I don't have the chance to meet them one by one today.

I heard that there is an eldest sister in the East Prefecture who is in charge, and there are rumors among the noble women of all families recently. Her name is Yingchun.

I heard that this Sister Yingchun is not much older than me. A young lady, yet she manages such a large family business in the East Prefecture of the Jia family. This kind of ability is truly admirable."

Seeing Tan Chun's bright eyes lit up when she heard Xia Gu Niang mention Yingchun. She seemed to really admire her second sister, and even had a sense of envy.

Seeing Tan Chun smiled slightly in her heart. Her soft and gentle second sister actually had such a great reputation among the noble families, and even Xia Gu Niang had heard of her indirectly.

Naturally, there was the reason that the second sister was in charge of the Count's mansion, which made outsiders envious, but in the final analysis, it was because the second sister had a brother like the third brother.

Recently, several families wanted to propose marriage to the second sister, wasn't it because they took a fancy to the third brother's authority and future...

Xia Gu Niang said again: "I also heard that there is a young lady of the former Lin Tanhua in the mansion. Although she is a daughter of a boudoir, she has an unparalleled appearance and is full of poetry, even more learned than ordinary scholars.

The beauties in the boudoirs of the Love Shenjing seem to have gathered in the Jia Prefecture, which is truly surprising."

Baochai smiled: "Sister Xia is truly knowledgeable and knows the sisters in the family so clearly. Sister Yingchun is indeed capable. She is not much older than us, yet she can already manage the family business.

Sister Lin has a scholarly family background and is even more remarkable. She is a rare talented woman in the boudoir."

Xia Gu Niang seemed to be getting more and more interested in talking, and continued: "Not to mention the sisters in the mansion, the brothers in the mansion are also extraordinary people.

In the early years, I often heard that there was a Bao Second Young Master in the mansion who was born with jade in his mouth, which has always been passed down as a miracle in the Love Shenjing, and I don't know what kind of immortal-like person he is..."

Lady Wang was chatting with Xue Yima and Mrs. Xia when she suddenly heard the words "born with jade in his mouth," and she immediately became alert. That was the thing she was most proud of in her life.

Hearing Xia Gu Niang praise Baoyu as an immortal-like person, Lady Wang felt as if she had eaten honey in her heart.

Now many people are following the imperial edict in the palace and saying bad things about my Baoyu behind his back, but after all, there are still people who understand Baoyu's benefits.

This Xia Gu Niang is young, but she is not someone who follows others blindly. She heard about Baoyu's strange preciousness and actually felt it made a lot of sense. She can be considered someone with insight.

Pan'er is a dissolute and unruly child, but he is also lucky, actually having more luck than my Baoyu, letting him run into a person like Xia Gu Niang...

Seeing Tan Chun noticed Lady Wang's gaze and had to echo: "Bao Second Brother not only had a miracle when he was born, but he is also very good to the sisters in the family..."

Lady Wang smiled from the side: "The Xia family and the Xue family are old friends of the previous generation, so naturally they are close to our Jia family. You are all sisters of the same generation, and you are so young, so you don't need to avoid suspicion.

Since you are visiting the mansion today, it is good to meet each other. I will go and call Baoyu over. He is best at talking among the brothers and sisters."

Seeing Tan Chun said: "Lady, you left the courtyard early this morning, so you might not know yet that today the Shi family's eldest master and aunt brought Sister Xiangyun to Rongqing Hall to pay respects to the Old Matriarch.

The Old Matriarch sent someone to call the Master, Third Brother, and Second Brother to Rongqing Hall to meet the guests. Second Brother probably can't get away now."

Lady Wang smiled at Mrs. Xia: "That's it. During the New Year, relatives visit each other a lot. That eldest master of the Shi family now inherits the title of Marquis of Lady Bao Ling.

He is the Old Matriarch's own nephew, so he will definitely come to pay respects on the fifteenth of the first month. Baoyu naturally has to go to entertain guests. Fortunately, there will be plenty of time in the future, and there will always be opportunities for the sisters to meet."

Mrs. Xia was someone who was used to wealth, and her house was full of gold and silver, but no matter how wealthy she was, she was an imperial merchant without a proper official title.

Therefore, she had always envied people who passed down official titles. Hearing that the relatives who visited the Jia family during the New Year were all Marquises, she couldn't help but feel very envious.

That Xia Gu Niang heard Seeing Tan Chun's words and suddenly said: "I forgot for a moment that there is also the most proud young master in the mansion, who was granted a title in his youth, is both civil and military, and whose name in books and poems has shaken the north and south.

Is it the Third Brother that Sister Seeing Tan Chun mentioned?"

Seeing Tan Chun was happy to hear Xia Gu Niang praise Jia Cong so outstandingly, and smiled: "It is exactly this Third Brother."

Lady Wang felt that Xia Gu Niang was someone with insight because of what she said about being born with jade in his mouth, but she didn't expect her to praise Jia Cong again, which made her feel uncomfortable in her heart.

However, she comforted herself in her mind that this boy's reputation was not small now, and it was reasonable for this girl to have heard of him, which was nothing.

Xia Gu Niang suddenly smiled at her mother: "Mother, I heard when I came that the mansion lanterns of the Jia family are very exquisite and famous in the Love Shenjing. I want to ask the two sisters to take me to see them."

Baochai, who was on the side, was slightly stunned, thinking that it was not yet noon, and watching the mansion lanterns at this time would not show much brilliance. One had to wait for the sun to slant a little before there would be more interest in enjoying them.

Lady Wang had also seen many boudoir figures in the inner chambers. In her eyes, Baochai and Seeing Tan Chun were both clever daughters.

But this Xia Gu Niang had only met them for the first time, yet her speech was flexible, her actions were always ahead of them, and she had her own ideas in her heart. She was indeed a capable woman, and even had a bit of Feng Yaotou's mold.

If her sister really married such a daughter-in-law, she would have a good helper in managing the family, which would also be a blessing. Lady Wang thought of this and looked at Xia Gu Niang with higher regard.

Lady Wang smiled: "You young ladies should move around more. What's the fun in just accompanying us old people? Just go and stroll."

Xue Yima also said: "It's still early, so you can go to the garden to stroll. Baochai, estimate the time for the banquet and bring Sister Xia back."

As soon as Xue Yima finished speaking, this Xia Gu Niang had already stood up, acting very neatly, which made Baochai feel a bit strange in her heart.

Their mother and daughter came to this appointment, which was actually for the two families to see each other's family background. Why didn't she hear her mention her brother even half a sentence, but instead talked about the Jia family's sisters and brothers all over?

She also knew very clearly about the origins of Baoyu and the Cong brothers, listening as if she had been paying attention for a long time.

But although Baochai had doubts, it was a bit of a guess after all, and she couldn't be sure in her heart, so she couldn't think too much, and accompanied her out with Seeing Tan Chun.

The three of them each brought their personal maids, walking along the corridors and around the trees, enjoying the lanterns hung everywhere in the Jia family garden, but it was bright now, far less brilliant than when they were lit at night.

Between Baochai and Seeing Tan Chun, Xia Gu Niang seemed to be closer to Seeing Tan Chun, and her speech to her was quite intimate, often talking about leisurely topics and asking about anecdotes in the Jia Prefecture.

The three walked for a while, and Xia Gu Niang suddenly asked: "Sister Seeing Tan Chun, I wonder where the mansion lanterns hung in the house are the most exquisite?"

Seeing Tan Chun smiled and said: "The Old Matriarch lives in Rongqing Hall, and the old lady likes it lively and brilliant the most, so naturally the mansion lanterns in Rongqing Hall are the most exquisite."

Xia Gu Niang's eyes turned slightly, and she smiled: "So that's it. Since we are enjoying the mansion lanterns, why don't we go directly to the vicinity of Rongqing Hall, so we can see the best ones faster, wouldn't that be more convenient?"

Seeing Tan Chun heard this, naturally there was nothing wrong with it, so she led the way and took her towards Rongqing Hall.

Since the eighth day, every night, Seeing Tan Chun often pulled Jia Cong and the sisters to appreciate the lanterns in the mansion, and under the lantern light, they would link sentences and guess lantern riddles, so naturally she knew best where the lanterns were the best to look at.

Compared to Seeing Tan Chun's indifference, Baochai, who was following on the side, looked at the beautiful Xia Gu Niang, and suddenly felt an awkward feeling in her heart, always feeling that something was wrong, but couldn't say the reason.

The three passed through a corridor and walked onto a corridor bridge spanning the water, seeing several people walking out from the rockery not far away.

The two people walking in front were two middle-aged men, dressed in gorgeous clothes, acting calmly and steadily, followed by two young men in their prime.

Because the corridor bridge on the water pavilion protruded high above the water surface, the position was much higher than the flat ground, so they could clearly see the few people walking not far away.

Xia Gu Niang just glanced slightly at the two middle-aged men in front, and her gaze focused on the two young men walking behind.

One of the young men was dressed in bright and rich clothes, looking very conspicuous, wearing a purple-gold crown with gold treasures on his head, a gold forehead band with two dragons grabbing a pearl, wearing a red arrow-sleeved jacket with gold and red colors, and stepping on small court boots with green satin and pink soles.

His face was round and harmonious, his features were handsome and upright, and although he looked a bit powdery, he could be considered to have a good appearance.

The other young man had a taller figure, and his clothes were also simpler and neater.

He wore a very well-fitting moon-white round-collar long robe with silver bamboo patterns. The cuffs and chest of the robe were embroidered with elegant and exquisite round flowers, and the craftsmanship was brilliant and delicate, extraordinary.

The young man's black hair was tied into a bun, and he only used a moist white jade hairpin to pin it. Although he didn't have the gorgeous wealth of the gold crown and forehead band of the young man next to him, he revealed a super-eminent spirit that made people's hearts break.

Because he was facing away from this side, Xia Gu Niang didn't see his face, only feeling that his shoulders were like knife-cut, his waist was strong, his steps were steady, and his sleeves were lightly rolled, just like a jade tree facing the wind.

Just a back view, the graceful and outstanding state of it was already far better than the young man in gorgeous clothes. (End of chapter)