Crowned Consort in Golden Age-Chapter 21. Blooming Flowers Festival (2)

21. The Flower Festival (2)

「At the Gate of Ye Mansion」

Before Ye Li could even step out, she saw Ye Ying approaching gracefully amidst her handmaids, followed by an elated Ye Lin and Ye Shan. It seemed the issue with the invitations for the flower festival had been resolved. Ye Li didn’t know these two younger sisters well, so she usually let things slide when they occasionally tried to cause trouble for her to please Ms. Wang. As long as they didn’t truly anger her, she generally didn’t bother to argue with them. After all, she had never fulfilled the responsibilities of an older sister, so she couldn’t expect them to harbor sisterly affection for her. Upon seeing Ye Li, Ye Lin and Ye Shan reluctantly curtsied.

"Greetings, Third Sister."

Ye Li nodded. "Fourth Sister, Fifth Sister, Sixth Sister."

Ye Ying was clad in a snow-colored robe with wide sleeves, adorned with tiny, scattered pink cherry blossom petals. Her black hair was gathered into a simple bun, decorated with a golden ’buyao’ hairpin featuring a ’paired butterflies in flight’ motif; its delicate wings seemed to flutter vividly with her movements. Ye Ying was undoubtedly very skilled at adorning herself. In truth, none of the Ye sisters lacked in appearance, but when the equally well-dressed Ye Lin and Ye Shan stood next to Ye Ying, they inevitably paled in comparison, becoming mere backdrops. The few dabs of pink cherry blossom petal makeup between her eyebrows lent her an ethereal, almost otherworldly fairy-like quality. The Capital City’s number one beauty truly lived up to her reputation.

As Ye Li observed Ye Ying, Ye Ying was doing the same to this third sister whom both she and her mother disliked. Ye Li, who neither indulged in fashion nor participated in any of the Capital City’s gatherings, was someone Ye Ying had never paid much mind to. Just now, seeing Ye Li from afar in a pale cyan outfit had seemed to confirm this thought. Although Ye Li hadn’t worn the clothes their mother had sent over, it didn’t mean she could dress herself any better. However, upon closer inspection, Ye Ying discovered that Ye Li’s attire was not as unremarkable as she had imagined. The seemingly plain and unadorned pale cyan fabric shimmered faintly under the sunlight, revealing magnificent hidden patterns. The peony patterns, embroidered with silver thread in a ’zhezhi’ (broken branch) style, lent the young woman before her an air of reserved and graceful nobility. And those two hairpins in her hair—jade magnolia flowers inlaid with night-luminescent pearls—were precisely the new items released by Fenghua Pavilion this month. She had coveted them for a long time, but her mother had never agreed to buy them for her. Seeing Ye Li’s understated yet grand, simple yet noble attire, Ye Ying, who had been secretly pleased with her own appearance, wished she could immediately turn around, go back, and rip her own clothes off.

Remembering the news from a couple of days ago about the King of Ding Kingdom’s Mansion sending gifts to Ye Li, Ye Ying felt even more disgruntled. Since her betrothal, His Highness Prince Li had never once sent her anything!

"Now that everyone is here, let’s set out. It wouldn’t be good if we were late," Ye Li withdrew her gaze and said to her three younger sisters.

Outside the gate, three carriages were already waiting. The one at the front belonged to Ye Li, followed by Ye Ying’s. Ye Shan and Ye Lin, being daughters of concubines, could only share one carriage. Ye Shan, the youngest, glanced at the rosewood carriage with carved flowers, then at Ye Ying’s exclusive pearwood carriage with carved flowers and sheer gauze curtains, and finally pouted dejectedly at the carriage she had to share with Ye Lin. Seeing Ye Ying and Ye Li already boarding their respective carriages, Ye Shan’s eyes darted around before she ran towards Ye Li. "Third Sister, can Shan’er ride with you?"

Having climbed into the carriage, Ye Li looked back at Ye Shan, who wore an innocent and eager expression, and nodded indifferently. "Come up."

Ye Shan happily scrambled onto the carriage using the footstool. Behind them, Ye Ying, who had obviously heard their exchange, lifted a corner of her carriage curtain and smiled at Ye Lin, who was still standing to the side. "Since that’s the case, Fifth Sister, you can ride with me. That way, I won’t be bored by myself." Ye Lin hurriedly thanked Ye Ying gratefully and also boarded Ye Ying’s carriage.

The carriage proceeded slowly and smoothly towards Peony Garden. Sitting inside, Ye Li watched Ye Shan, whose face clearly showed unconcealable vexation, and found it rather amusing. She was probably regretting her earlier actions, worried that she might have angered Ye Ying, right? These young girls of this era certainly thought too much. Ye Shan would only turn thirteen in a few months. She remembered her own past life; even at twelve, when she had been forced to memorize countless books on military strategy and tactics, she was, in essence, still just an ignorant little brat. The most she could manage was to occasionally play some minor tricks on her grandfather or cousins; how could she have conceived of such scheming thoughts? This was merely a survival tactic for them, so Ye Li didn’t want to deliberately make things difficult for this currently vexed girl.

"Being too competitive isn’t always a good thing." Ye Li handed the scroll in her hand to Qingshuang to put away, then looked amusingly at Ye Shan, whose expression was constantly shifting. This young girl still had much to learn about hiding her feelings and thoughts.

"You... you’re talking nonsense! I’m not!" Ye Shan’s immature little face flushed red, and she bit her lip as she glared at Ye Li.

"Does riding in my carriage really make such a big difference compared to riding in your own?" Ye Li asked nonchalantly.

Ye Shan glared at her, her eyes revealing unwillingness and resentment, which quickly turned into dejection. "Yes! Even if you’re not favored, you’re still a legitimate daughter! Even if Prince Li broke off the engagement, you can still marry Prince Ding as his principal consort! And I, no matter how smart I am or how much I please Father and Grandmother, will always be a concubine’s daughter! In the future, I’ll either be a concubine to someone or the principal wife of a concubine’s son!" Ye Li looked speechlessly at the resentful young girl before her. She was only twelve and already considering such things. Even for Ye Li, who had lived for so many years, it was still somewhat difficult to get used to. Moreover, this girl really didn’t speak very pleasantly. "Speaking ill of others is not a good habit."

"Hmph!"

Ye Li couldn’t be bothered to argue with her. Only when they were nearing their destination did she seem to say as if to herself, "If status is unchangeable, rather than coveting things beyond your reach, isn’t it better to try and improve your life within the realm of possibility?"

Ye Shan was stunned for a moment and took a while to react. Then, glaring at Ye Li, she retorted, "Are you warning me not to delusionally hope for good things?"

Ye Li felt herself choke for a moment before she managed to say, "I meant that you’re still young; you can think about things slowly. Also, it seems we should be getting out of the carriage."

Watching Ye Shan get out of the carriage first with a sullen face, Ye Li shrugged amusingly. Qingshuang said with a grim face, "Miss, why do you bother with Sixth Sister? She’s often tried to undermine you in the past. She truly doesn’t know a good heart when she sees one."

Ye Li patted her hand, lifted the carriage curtain, and said with a smile, "She’s just a child. Everyone has their own means of survival. As long as she doesn’t truly harm me, am I really going to haggle with a child?"

Peony Garden was the largest peony viewing spot not just in the Capital City, but in the entire Great Chu. Every year, people from all over the country, and even other nations, would travel thousands of li just to admire the elegant beauty of the peonies that outshone all other flowers. April was the peak blooming season for peonies, and from afar, one could smell the faint floral fragrance wafting through the air.

Recently, the reputation of the Official Secretary’s Mansion had soared in the Capital City. One daughter had been honored as Zhaoyi and was pregnant with the imperial heir; two others were the future Princess Consort Li and the future Princess Consort Ding. Thus, the arrival of their carriages at the entrance attracted many curious eyes. While people marveled at the beauty of the Capital City’s number one beauty, even more glances of sympathy (or was it pity?) were directed towards the carriage in front. Hence, when Ye Shan emerged from that carriage, it caught the crowd pretending to be casual onlookers somewhat off guard. Only after regaining their composure did they see a pretty young girl dressed as a handmaid step out, followed by a serene young woman with delicate and pretty features emerging from within.

So, this is the future Princess Consort Ding?

The crowd was torn between surprise and disappointment. This Third Miss Ye was clearly not as ugly or coarse as they had imagined. Her poised and elegant comportment revealed her excellent upbringing. This made people think of Third Miss Ye’s maternal grandfather, from the Xu Family, a century-old great clan renowned for passing down scholarship and etiquette through generations. Looking at Fourth Miss Ye beside her, who appeared as ethereal and delicate as a celestial maiden, they concluded that it was clear that a woman like Third Miss Ye, with her beautiful appearance, generous demeanor, and dignified bearing, was more suited to be the Madam of House. Perhaps out of jealousy towards Ye Ying, many of the young ladies present began to harbor a sliver of doubt about the taste of His Highness Prince Li, whom they admired, and at the same time, gained a little more confidence in themselves.

Indeed, the Peony Garden was filled with blooming flowers and colorful butterflies flitting about. And the young ladies of marriageable age lingering among them added several degrees of brilliance to this beautiful scenery. The young women walked in groups of two or three with their close friends, smiling faintly and whispering, presenting a picture of prosperity and peace.

When Ye Li’s party arrived at the main gathering place in Peony Garden, many people had already gathered. The young ladies were assembled in one area: some playing the qin, some playing chess, some painting, and some composing poetry. The handmaids from the Princess Mansion moved among them, perfectly attending to these noble-born young ladies.

"Ying’er..."

As soon as Ye Ying drew near, someone called out to her. Several young ladies of similar age, evidently those on good terms with Ye Ying, came forward to greet her. Others also smiled at Ye Ying to show their welcome.

"Ying’er, you’re finally here! We haven’t seen you since you got engaged to His Highness Prince Li," a young lady in colorful attire said with a smile, joyfully taking Ye Ying’s hand.

Ye Ying smiled, a blush tingeing her beautiful face. "Mother asked me to stay at home. I missed you all."

After everyone had finished congratulating Ye Ying, the young lady in colorful attire asked, "Ying’er, this... is Third Miss Ye?"

"I am Ye Li. Greetings to all you young ladies," Ye Li greeted with a smile.

The young ladies exchanged glances; they only felt that this Third Miss Ye was not as unbearable as the rumors claimed. Besides, she was the future Princess Consort Ding, the true legitimate daughter of the Official Secretary’s Mansion, and Old Master Xu’s maternal granddaughter. Soon, someone began to show goodwill towards Ye Li. "Greetings, Miss Ye. I am Qin Zheng, the second daughter of Imperial Censor Qin."

"I’m Murong Ting, daughter of General Yangwei."

"..."

"Hmph! And here I was wondering who it could be. It turns out to be Third Miss Ye, the one whose engagement was broken by Brother Jing Li."