Miss Gu was already ready to leave after saying this, but when Qian Moer pushed her hard, she couldn't get off the stage. She turned to look at her angrily and said, "You are so incomprehensible!"
She spat and started to leave. Qian Mo'er was extremely angry, but he refused to let her go. He sneered and chased after her, opened his arms to stop her, and said loudly: "I swear, do you dare? You Don’t you dare, you still think I’m inexplicable? You’re the cause of this, and now you’re scolding me, are you being unreasonable?”
"Is there any use in trying to reason with people like you?" Miss Gu didn't want to pay attention to her anymore, but she couldn't get away after being stopped by her, and she became a little impatient and said angrily, "Wei Changying has already left, and you are still pestering her. What should I do? Don’t you think you’ve made enough jokes today?”
Being reminded by her, Qian Moer was startled and looked around. Sure enough, Wei Changying and Su Yuli had walked more than ten feet away and were about to be hidden by the flowers and trees. Judging from the situation, there were several people surrounding them, and they seemed to be the ones who had just stepped on themselves and built a ladder to get off the stage.
She thought about how she had caused so many things by chiming in, being beaten and humiliated, and now she had fallen out with her companions, but Wei Changying went back to the palace as if nothing had happened... She couldn't help but feel sad and cried: "Gu Meimei, I really misjudged you! Just now it was clear that you were the one who started it, but you didn't even say a word to me. Now that the situation is like this, how can I have the nerve to continue going to the banquet in the palace? I want to go home!"
Then he said angrily, "Don't mention the previous matter again. Although Liu Ruoyu is not familiar with me, I have also heard that Miss Liu Shi is a good-tempered person. But you, on the other hand, are not reliable at all!"
Miss Gu, whose maiden name was Meimei, frowned when she heard this, and hurriedly pulled her to the side of the road, avoiding her eyes, and complained in a low voice: "You are serious, I whispered a few words, you can just keep talking and forget it. , Why do you have to say it so harshly? Doesn’t it make it difficult for me to make a fuss like this?”
"You said what I said was unpleasant? Do you mean what you said was nice?" Qian Mo'er cried, "Didn't you despise the captain of the guard for winning a lot before? Now you blame me for speaking too unpleasantly about her. Are you so afraid of her? After all, she is just a servant's wife. You are the queen's niece, so you are so afraid of her! I really misjudged you. I thought you were different from others, so I pointed you out. , I thought you were the only one who was not afraid of her and dared to argue with her, but I didn’t want you to be so cowardly!”
Gu Meimei's face was very ugly. She pulled the veil hard and said: "What did you say... I... How could I be afraid of her? She is just that kind of person. Why do you think we innocent girls should be familiar with her? Look at it. She, a lady from a wealthy family, would just say something nice to someone, but then she would hit them! She would even slap them... It's really... so unruly!"
Qian Mo'er sadly wiped her tears and said, "Are you telling me this now? Didn't you call me Miss Qian Liu just now? Weren't you afraid that you would have nothing to do with me?"
"You don't point at so many people, but you point at me. Don't you want me to think that you want to deliberately make things difficult for me?" Gu Meimei bit her lip, thinking that she would really offend Princess Linchuan if she didn't go to the main hall, and standing here with Qian Mo It would be unseemly for Qian'er to keep arguing - no matter what, after coaxing Qian Mo'er to calm down, he said softly, "We are good friends, but we started a quarrel because of Wei Changying, why don't we give it to others?" Are you kidding? Can you please stop arguing? "
Qian Mo'er said with tears: "Who is your good friend? I finally see you clearly today! Besides, Wei Changying and I have become enemies since then. You are so cowardly. If I make friends with you, I won't be You're so angry! If I want to date someone in the future, I need to be more courageous. How can I be so enthusiastic about talking behind my back and not even dare to admit my words in person?" After saying this, he flicked his sleeves and said with a smile. The woman walked away quickly, leaving Gu Meimei behind.
"You!" Gu Meimei's expression changed. She wanted to stop her, but she was afraid of attracting attention, so she could only stomp her feet angrily and curse softly, "Useless thing! You're still talking about me! I can't hold myself back from jumping." When I go out, I don’t have the ability to outshine others. I’ve lost face for nothing, and yet you want to drag me down... What a waste!”
By this time, Wei Changying and Su Yuli had already arrived near the main hall, and vaguely heard the sound of silk and bamboo coming from the hall.
The two of them greeted the women around them, straightened their skirts, and walked into the hall after seeing that nothing was out of place.
After entering, they saw that Princess Linchuan had sat back down and was talking to a palace man below with her head tilted. When she caught a glimpse of them, she waved to the palace man and sent him to stand back again.
Everyone knew that this situation was because the princess was wondering why the people behind her had not come for so long. Everyone was secretly glad, and each of them gave the princess a blessing and returned to their seats.
Since Wei Changying's seat was right behind the imperial concubine, he wanted to pass by the princess on his way back, so he was stopped by Princess Linchuan and asked, "Why are you here so late?"
"This is my first time entering the palace. I walked a little slower because I was greedy for the pomegranate flowers along the road." Wei Changying said respectfully, "My cousin walked with me, and several female relatives were watching me. The woman was jealous, so she came over to talk to my wife, and then they left together."
When Princess Linchuan heard this, her face softened slightly and she said: "The pomegranate flowers in May illuminate the eyes. I have always been fond of the pomegranate flowers, so my mother has ordered people to decorate them with pomegranate flowers both inside and outside the Weiyang Palace. The world only says that red flowers and green willows are a common sight, but the pomegranate flowers are blooming. How can such a gorgeous and powerful bloom be appreciated by mediocre people? "You have a good taste and asked her to return the table.
Wei Changying secretly thought that His Highness really liked the pomegranate flowers. He just said that he came back late because he was greedy for the pomegranate flowers, but he actually won her favor.
She returned to the table and found that all the dishes and drinks had been removed. Liu Di was still standing by and explained with a smile: "We just changed some dishes. Since the young lady was not here, the maid took it upon herself to ask them not to bring them out in case they got cold. So the maid will go and bring them over." "
"Sorry to trouble you." Wei Changying said politely to her, and looked away from her. He saw Concubine Deng in front of her changing her posture to sit upright. There was an extra person beside her, wearing a peach red dark dress. The jacket is embroidered with mandala flowers and leaves, and is tied with a pine-colored skirt embroidered with bamboo leaves.
Because he was in front of Wei Changying, even though this person was leaning sideways and could only see a sliver of snow on his cheeks, he could tell that he was not very old just by looking at Dare to wear such pretty colors as pink and pine flowers. Her jet-black hair was tied into a single snail, and a pair of hibiscus flower hairpins with precious stones were inserted into the bun. They flickered in the light of the hall... Wei Changying felt that the pair of hairpins were inexplicably familiar. After pondering for a moment, he suddenly thought She stood up and said, "These hairpins... aren't they the ones Cousin Song often wore in Fengzhou?"
She remembered very clearly the time she angered her mother, Mrs. Song, and was punished to kneel in the courtyard. In order to make Mrs. Song feel distressed, she deliberately chose a place without shade to kneel. As a result, Mrs. Song was cruel that time, and Wei Changfeng couldn't persuade the mother and daughter to fight, so he went to ask Song Zaishui to intercede.
As a result, Song Zaishui rushed to rescue Wei Changying, but Wei Changying forgot about his cousin. After Song Zaishui escaped, he ran to the Shuangting Court to find her and reason... Wasn't this the same pair with hairpins on his head at that time
"There is Cousin Song's hairpin, and he is talking to the imperial concubine... Is it Deng Zongqi's sister, Deng Wanwan?" Wei Changying thought, "Although there are many girls in the palace today, the imperial concubine may not be the same. He only asked me to accompany him to talk, but with the hairpin that Cousin Song once wore on his head, there is no mistake. "
Wei Changying was very curious about what kind of temperament Deng Wanwan had that Song Zaishui could take notice of - she knew her direct cousin very well. Song Zaishui seemed to have a gentle and generous temperament, an example of virtuous and virtuous people, and was recognized by many elders as a role model for ladies - In fact, Song Zaishui's true preference can't be overstated by saying that her eyes are higher than her head. She can't even look down on ordinary people, let alone mention and praise them in a letter to her cousin.
But now that her direct aunt and nephew were talking and didn't ask her to come closer, Wei Changying couldn't force her to come over. He had to regretfully glance at Deng's crooked back and talk perfunctorily with Liu Di.
After serving two dishes in this way, the Queen Mother, the eldest Queen Mother of England, looked around, beckoned the palace servants to come closer, and asked: "The Queen Mother has been dressing for a long time, why haven't you come here yet?"
The palace man said hurriedly: "My servant, go take a look."
The Queen Mother of England was already sitting with several royal wives. After saying this, the other queens were not in the mood to continue chatting, and they all stopped and waited.
When Wei Changying saw it, he was also reminded: Princess Linchuan had finished inscribing words in Qianqiu Pavilion before and proposed to come back first, which meant that Queen Gu had probably returned. However, the Queen has not arrived yet... It is said that Queen Gu dressed up the entire Weiyang Palace for Princess Linchuan's birthday. Normally, she would not deliberately ignore Linchuan's birthday banquet. How could she go and never come back
She slowly sipped the lychee green, thinking about possible changes in her mind. After waiting for a while, the palace servant who had been questioned by the Queen Mother came back from behind the screen and hurried to the Queen Mother and whispered a few words. The Queen Mother showed a look of surprise and nodded while talking to several other queens and princes. Main description. Because they were some distance away, there was still noise in the palace, and Wei Changying could not hear clearly. He could only guess that the matter was not serious from the expressions of the clan wives who suddenly realized but were not worried and angry. However, he could not know the specific reason, which was very regrettable.
Fortunately, although Concubine Deng had been talking to her niece, she had been paying attention here. She suddenly raised her voice and asked: "Liu Zhi, come here, why hasn't Sister Queen arrived yet... Although it was Queen Mother Zhou Quan who asked you to ask." , but who in the palace is not worried about the queen sister? Why did you quietly return to the Queen Mother without telling anyone else? "
He reprimanded her, "Without a wink, it means that the queen sister is kind-hearted and can tolerate a stupid slave like you!"
When Liu Zhi was called by Concubine Deng, her expression changed. It was obvious that the waiter in Changle Hall also had a headache for this concubine, so he timidly explained: "I thought it was the Queen Mother of England who asked first, so I told the king first." Queen Mother, again..."
When the Queen Mother heard that something was wrong, she secretly regretted that she was being meddlesome. For fear of being involved, she quickly said, "It's all my fault for being such a meddlesome old man..."
"It's none of the Queen Mother's business." Concubine Deng was polite to the Queen Mother of England and said calmly, "Liu Zhi, why are you still disobeying me? Why don't you come over here and speak clearly!"
Because the imperial concubine had a fit, the palace gradually became quiet at this time. They all looked at Danqi and waited thoughtfully.
Notes on "Inscription on the Pomegranate Flower" written by Zhu Xi of the Southern Song Dynasty. (To be continued)