Chapter 044
Chapter 44: Undercurrents at the Flower Viewing Banquet
The mess from earlier had not faded. The air still carried a sickly sweet smell and a hint of malice.
Groups of noble ladies huddled together, smiling on the surface while hiding scorn and schemes in their eyes.
The ones with clearer minds had already realized the Third Princess’s banquet was not a peaceful feast at all. It was a big trap.
Qiu Ru Ying was one of them. She had already pulled Lin Yu Jiao into a quiet corner and did not even want another sip of tea. Frowning, she traced the warm rim of her cup and said: “There are men mixed in with the guests, and those actors keep giving us bold looks. This is not how a proper flower viewing should be.”
She felt like even the air here was dirty.
Lin Yu Jiao kept her lady’s pose, but a mocking smile tugged at her mouth as she leaned to Qiu Ru Ying’s ear and said in a low voice: “My good Sister, it’s not like you just met her.”
She snorted and added: “The Third Princess lives to act ‘crazy’.”
She clicked her tongue and went on: “What she loves most is watching those so-called proud noble ladies make fools of themselves in public. Who knows what trick she will pull today.”
Qiu Ru Ying’s brows knit tighter. She shook her head, about to speak, when a sharp crack split the garden’s fake calm.
The sound was so piercing it felt like a needle stabbing everyone’s ear.
All eyes turned at once. There stood the youngest sister, Lin Yu Ning, frozen in place before a scatter of porcelain shards. Her face was as white as paper.
Glossy blue-white pieces lay around her feet, their winding lotus vines broken in painful lines. Anyone with sense could see it was the Third Princess Xuan Ji’s favorite piece, the Imperial Kiln Lotus Vine Vase of the Former Dynasty. People said there was only one in the world.
[We’re doomed.]
That was the first thought in every mind. The air went still. In the dead silence, even breathing sounded too loud.
From the main seat, the Third Princess Xuan Ji rose slowly, as if she were enjoying a perfect silent play. A not-quite-smile curved her stunning face as her gaze locked on Lin Yu Ning like a snake on its prey, and she said in a voice soft as a lover’s whisper: “Third Miss Lin.”
The gentle tone still sent a chill up every listener’s back.
She tilted her head and said: “This vase came from the Imperial Kiln of the Former Dynasty. You can search the world and not find a second one.”
Lin Yu Ning’s knees went weak. She almost collapsed then and there. She dropped into a shaky curtsey and stammered: “Princess, please forgive me. I… I truly didn’t mean it. Someone bumped into me just now.”
Tears pooled in her eyes, ready to spill.
Xuan Ji lifted a hand. The light motion carried unquestionable pressure and cut off the rest of her words. Her smile deepened, but it never reached her eyes. It was cold and poisonous.
She glanced at the crowd and said: “But the only person by the broken vase is you. Everyone saw.”
Then she spoke lightly: “I have always been generous. Since it was an accident, I won’t make this hard on you.”
She added with airy grace: “There’s no need to repay it with silver.”
Relief hit Lin Yu Ning so hard she almost swayed. A little color returned to her pale face.
But before she could finish that breath, Xuan Ji’s next words dropped like ice: “I hear your Elder Cousin, Lin Qing Xuan, praised as the Capital City’s first Buddha’s Chosen, is well versed in the Buddhist Dharma. His scriptures calm the mind and steady the heart.”
She drew out her tone and let her gaze roam over Lin Yu Ning’s terrified face, savoring the fear, then said: “Why don’t you ask him to write me a copy of the ‘Heart Sutra’ in his own hand. Then we will call this matter settled.”
She tipped her head and asked: “How about it?”
Lin Yu Ning froze. She turned instinctively and looked to Sister Lin Yu Jiao for help.
Lin Yu Jiao’s brows had already twisted into a hard knot. Her fingers clenched at her side until her nails dug into her palm. She knew perfectly well what this meant.
[This isn’t compensation. This is a challenge. A trap.]
The Third Princess’s true target was never a vase, nor her simple Little Sister. It was their high, untouchable Elder Cousin, Lin Qing Xuan.
With so many watching, the Third Princess had framed it as “generous.” If they dared say no, it would be a slap to the royal face. That was a cost the General’s Manor could not afford.
Under a thousand cutting stares, Lin Yu Ning could barely breathe. She bit her lip so hard it almost bled. After a long moment, she forced out the words through her teeth: “I obey.”
“Good,” Xuan Ji said with a satisfied nod, finally releasing that suffocating gaze.
But as she sat down, her cold phoenix eyes skimmed, almost carelessly, over Qiu Ru Ying. There was a playful calculation in that look.
Qiu Ru Ying’s heart jumped. A bad feeling rose inside her.
The banquet broke up in a hurry. Lin Yu Jiao practically dragged Qiu Ru Ying into the family carriage, slamming the door to shut out every prying eye. She could not hold herself together anymore. She yanked a cushion off the wall and hurled it to the floor, then hissed under her breath: “Darn it! That crazy Old Granny!”
She panted, chest heaving, and said: “The Third Princess asking for the Buddha’s Chosen’s scripture came out of nowhere. That can’t be a coincidence.”
Qiu Ru Ying had already regained her calm. After a brief pause, she analyzed in a low voice: “She may be testing your Elder Cousin’s bottom line to see if he will break a rule for his family.”
She hesitated, then said even softer: “Or the scripture itself hides something we don’t know.”
Lin Yu Jiao rubbed her brow in raw frustration. Even her perfect makeup could not hide her fatigue and anger as she said: “She hates that my Elder Cousin is pure and distant. She wants to drag him down from his altar. In the Capital City, is there anything she doesn’t dare try?”
She drew a long breath and forced herself to be steady, then said: “Fine. When we get back, I’ll send Little Sister straight to Elder Cousin. He may be cold, but he won’t truly make things hard for his own kin.”
Qiu Ru Ying nodded. For now, it was the only path.
Something crossed her mind. With a bit of hesitation, she said: “Yu Jiao, just now at the banquet, you invited me to visit your manor…”
At once Lin Yu Jiao’s dim eyes lit up. She grabbed Qiu Ru Ying’s hand like a drowning person catching a rope and said: “Yes! Ru Ying, come tomorrow. Stay at my manor a few days.”
She spoke quickly, almost pleading: “Help me ride out this storm. The Third Princess didn’t target you openly today, but you saw that look at the end.”
She gritted her teeth and added: “She’s noticed we’ve been sticking together. Who knows what a crazy person like her will try next.”
“We need to hold together.”
Qiu Ru Ying met her worried gaze, turned her hand to squeeze back, and patted gently in comfort. She smiled, light but firm, and said: “Alright.”