April is fragrant, the good spring cannot be hidden, and the apricot blossoms are slanting against the wall.
The Flower Festival Banquet is scheduled on April 15th every year, when the spring is beautiful and the flowers are in full bloom. It was first proposed by Imperial Concubine Xiao, the most favored concubine of the previous dynasty. She invited young ladies of the right age from the families of officials of third grade and above to have a banquet and enjoy the scenery in Qingyue Palace. At that time, Luoyang City will send twenty high-quality flowers selected by the local flower god. The auction will be opened, and the highest bidder will win. All the money raised will be donated to the national temple as a pure and sincere offering to pray for the people.
At the highest level, the Flower Festival Banquet has profound meaning and long blessings. At the lower level, it is a rare occasion for young men and women to gather together to enjoy the elegant flowers. Of course, even if dynasties change, the Flower Festival Banquet will continue to this day.
The Flower Festival Banquet is held every year by an important lady in the capital, and this year it was the turn of the Right Prime Minister's wife. A few days in advance, invitations to the Flower Festival Banquet were sent to various prestigious mansions in the capital.
The Cui family did their part.
Cui Xining and Cui Xijun had attended the Flower Festival Banquet, so they were not surprised to receive the invitation. What was unexpected was that Xie Miao also received it.
Regarding this, Madam Xie and Cui Xining were confused, Xie Miao was confused, and Cui Xijun was furious.
"Cousin Xie." She threw the invitation on the table, ignoring that Madam Xie was still present, and asked: "You are the daughter of a ninth-grade county magistrate, and your parents have been dead for who knows how many years. Why should you attend the Flower Festival Banquet?"
Sitting on the main seat, Madam Xie suppressed her displeasure and said warmly: "Xijun, they may be doing it for the sake of your grandfather and father——"
"Those are my grandfather and father, their surname is Cui." Cui Xijun looked at her heavy belly and said bluntly, "You do have father's child in your belly, but Xie Miao's surname is Xie and has nothing to do with the Cui family."
Seeing Madam Xie's smile fade and her expression become embarrassed, Cui Xijun felt a sense of joy in her heart.
Yes, seeing Madam Xie unhappy made her feel a lot more comfortable.
Logically speaking, this was the Second Madam's family matter, and Cui Xining shouldn't say anything. But she and Xie Miao were now very close, and it was inevitable that she would fight for her. Just as she was about to speak, she was stopped by Xie Miao's eyes.
Xie Miao picked up the red-gilt invitation, opened it and looked at it carefully. There were eight words clearly written on it: Respecfully inviting Xie family's Young Lady, Xie Miao——
She looked sideways at Cui Xijun and suggested seriously: "Cousin Xijun, to be honest, I don't know why the Right Prime Minister's wife invited me to the Flower Festival Banquet. Otherwise, why don't you go and ask for me?"
Cui Xijun: ...who to ask, Madam Right Prime Minister?
"You -" Cui Xijun came back to her senses, and realized that she was teasing her. She raised her finger to point at her, and stamped her foot fiercely, "Xie Miao, don't bully others too much! When my second brother comes back, I will definitely let him know your true colours!"
Let's talk about it, who is afraid of whom?
Xie Miao felt deeply bored and walked past her towards Madam Xie, "Aunt, while it's still early, I'll accompany you for a walk in the garden."
Madam Xie held onto her to get up. When she passed by Cui Xijun, her disappointment was palpable.
Cui Xijun wanted to catch up and argue, but Cui Xining grabbed her and scolded her in a low voice: "Xijun! Second Aunt is very heavy, so don't do anything willful again."
Cui Xijun's eyes flashed with confusion, and then filled with resentment and unwillingness.
*
After separating from Cui Xijun, Cui Xining went to Madam Li's house. After the mother and daughter talked, she hurried to Haihua Yuan.
Xie Miao was instructing Fu Lu and Lan Xia to dry the scriptures. When she saw her rushing in uneasily, she hurriedly asked: "What happened?"
Cui Xining pulled her into the study, closed the door, and said in a panic: "A-Miao, my mother plans to matchmake me!"
Xie Miao asked: "Which family is the Young Master from?"
Cui Xining said: "It's the fifth son of the Right Prime Minister's family, the one who broke his leg while riding a horse when he was young!"
Xie Miao stroked her forehead. Her thoughts turned out to be true.
It was this Third Young Master Gu who was engaged to Cui Xining in the previous life. Speaking of which, apart from being lame and having a cold temperament, there were no other sensational rumors about this Third Young Master Gu. After Cui Xining hanged herself in her previous life, Third Young Master Gu bore the reputation of being a wife-killer, but he did not bear any grudge against the Cui family. Instead, on the anniversary of Cui Xining's death every year, he would go to her grave and offer a bouquet of white chrysanthemums.
In her opinion, Third Young Master Gu is also a passionate person, which is why she initially advised Cui Xining and Sun Shenyuan to go their separate ways.
Xie Miao shook off the random thoughts in her head and pointed directly to the issue, "Auntie wants you to go to the Flower Festival Banquet to meet him?"
Cui Xining nodded, then shook her head violently, "A-Miao, you know I only have Shen Lang in my heart, and I don't want to marry anyone else!"
Xie Miao patted her shoulder and said, "Calm down, calm down. Since you know Auntie's purpose, you can just pretend to be sick to avoid it."
Cui Xining's anxiety did not subside and she was still worried, "I can escape the first day of the new year, but I can't escape the fifteenth. If my mother arranges it again -"
"Everything is ready, all we need is the east wind." Xie Miao said pointedly: "When the east wind arrives, half of the matter between you and Sun Shenyuan will be done."
Cui Xining asked: "What is the east wind?"
Xie Miao looked serious, "This is a secret and cannot be leaked easily."
Cui Xining laughed, took a lock of her black hair and scratched her face, "Bad guy, you just know how to tease me! By the way, what about you, are you going to the Flower Festival Banquet?"
Xie Miao covered her lips with a handkerchief, and put her hand on her forehead. She said weakly: "It was cold in the night, and I accidentally caught a cold, and I felt very dizzy..."
Cui Xining laughed for a while, then hesitated, "If you and I are pretending to be sick, wouldn't it mean that Xijun is the only one attending the banquet?"
After her reminder, Xie Miao remembered something.
In her previous life, she did not receive an invitation, but Cui Xijun and Cui Xining went to attend the Flower Festival Banquet. Cui Xijun had a conflict with Princess Qingyang at the banquet for some unknown reason. Afterwards, Princess Qingyang came to apologize in person, but Cui Xijun was also punished and confined in the ancestral hall for two months.
Xie Miao didn't know the details and wasn't curious. Anyway, there was nothing she could do to stop Cui Xijun's behavior.
"It's okay." She said casually: "Isn't there still Miss Su?"
*
The day before the Flower Festival Banquet, Xie Miao became "sick" again.
Madam Xie came to visit and saw that her face was pale and her expression was gloomy, showing that she was sick.
Madam Xie was extremely depressed, "Why are you sick again!"
Xie Miao tried her best to sit up, leaned on the bedside, and said feebly: "Aunt, it's A-Miao who failed to live up to expectations. I was finally invited to the Flower Festival Banquet, but - cough, cough!"
Just as Madam Xie wanted to comfort her, she suddenly caught a glimpse of suspicious white powder on her collar, and then looked at her unusually pale face...
She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, and turned to Fu Lu and Lan Xia for a moment. She shouted sternly: "Kneel down!"
Lan Xia and Fu Lu were frightened and knelt down quickly, "Second, Second Madam."
Madam Xie said coldly: "Should you two be punished?"
Ah, did the Second Lady find out that they helped the Young Lady pretend to be sick?
Fu Lu and Lan Xia didn't dare to reply, so they kowtowed and said, "We should be punished."
Madam Xie couldn't be bothered to talk to them anymore. She waved her hand, "Go to Steward Bai and get ten planks each, and three months' monthly payment will be deducted."
Fu Lu and Lan Xia responded in low voices and bowed their bodies to leave. They gave Xie Miao a pitiful look before leaving.
Xie Miao: ...This is different from what she thought.
"Wait a minute!" Xie Miao grabbed Madam Xie's sleeves and said dryly: "Aunt, I'm sick, why are you punishing them?"
Madam Xie said: "Count, how many times have you fallen ill in the past six months? As your maids, they did not take good care of their Master. It is a mercy for me not to send them out of the house!"
Xie Miao still wanted to save them, "Aunt, they have followed me since childhood, and they are like sisters to me——"
Madam Xie smiled, "Of course I know that you are sisters."
Madam Xie walked up to Lan Xia and motioned her to pull down her collar, revealing the light scar on her neck, "This was the year I was getting married. Xie Qin deliberately poured hot tea on your face, and Lan Xia pushed you away, but she was burned, right?"
Looking back on the past, Xie Miao remained silent, "Yes."
Madam Xie looked at Fu Lu again, "And this girl, in the past, when someone bullies you, she would always rush to protect you. She wouldn't say anything when she was beaten, right?"
"Yes." Xie Miao said, "So you..." Can you not punish them?
"So what?" Madam Xie's tone changed, "You still have to punish those who deserve it, otherwise they will become more lax in the future then how can they take good care of you?"
After saying that, Madam Xie waited quietly, as if waiting for her to make a choice.
Under Madam Xie's eyes that seemed to see through everything, Xie Miao was defeated. She looked at the bed curtain roof and then at the quilt. Her energy was suddenly shaken and she cheered up: "Aunt, I think I'm much better. I should be able to participate at the Flower Festival Banquet tomorrow."
Madam Xie looked on with cold eyes, hehe, let's perform again.
Xie Miao carefully held her hand and said, "Aunt, Xie Miao likes you the most."
Madam Xie did not lower herself to argue with Xie Miao. She said: "There are many noble people at the Flower Festival Banquet. You should go and join in the fun and see the world."
Xie Miao said: "Okay."
"As for Xijun..." Madam Xie shook her head and sighed. She said helplessly: "She is favoured at home and will inevitably act impulsively. If she does something out of line, please give her a few words of advice."
Xie Miao agreed, "Okay."
*
Dusk sets over the mountains, and the night swept across.
Several carriages were parked in front of the inn, and the coachmen were refilling their plates with food and water. Not far away from the official road, a thin middle-aged man sat in a wooden wheelchair, facing south, his eyes filled with worry.
His hometown is in front of him, but he feels timid when he is close.
Eight years...
The door curtain was lifted, and a young master in a warm brocade robe with dark cloud patterns walked out and stood beside him quietly, "General Zou, we will arrive in the capital at noon tomorrow."
Zou Yuandao looked away, with a self-deprecating smile on his lips, "How can I be called a general when my legs are disabled? Master Cui just call me by my name."
Cui Muli put his hands behind his back, and the afterglow traced the profile of his face, which was impeccable. "You still have a great reputation in the army. You deserve to be called general."
Zou Yuandao smiled bitterly and looked down at the pair of legs that had not felt for many years, "Lian Po is old..." (t/n: Lian Po is a military general of Zhao State during the Warring States Period. On the surface, Lian Po is old, seems to be asking whether one can continue to serve the country. However, digging deeper, it is a metaphor for expressing one's loyalty to the country amongst other meanings.)
There was the sound of brisk footsteps, accompanied by a child shouting energetically, "Daddy!"
Zou Yuandao turned around in his wheelchair, smiled and hugged a small figure rushing over, "Cong'er."
The thin boy, about six years old, stared with his round eyes and took out a wild daisy from his sleeve, "Look, I picked a flower. It's beautiful."
Zou Yuandao patted the bits of grass on his clothes and said cooperatively: "It is indeed beautiful."
Cong'er did not ignore Cui Muli who was standing aside. He turned to him and stood on tiptoe to bring the flower to him. "Brother Cui, take a look at it too. It's so beautiful!"
Cui Muli lowered his head and sniffed, then asked with a smile: "Where did you pick it, Cong'er?"
Cong'er turned around and pointed to the back of the inn, "It's right behind the house. Brother Cui, do you want to pick it? I'll go with you!"
"Cong'er, it's time to eat." A woman in green opened the door curtain. She had a beautiful appearance and an easy and graceful temperament.
"Mom!" Cong'er happily ran to her side and chirped, "What are the dishes tonight? Is there braised pork hock, sweet and sour fish, and braised prawns?"
Lu Xianghe touched his head and said, "The rash on your body is not healed yet. Eat less greasy food. Mom made you scrambled eggs with toona and loofah meatball soup. Quickly, go wash your hands and serve food to your father."
Cong'er jumped into the inn. Lu Xianghe nodded to Cui Muli and said, "Master Cui, I personally cooked some dishes. If you don't mind, you can share some with us."
Cui Muli said: "In that case, this official won't be polite to Madam."
Lu Xianghe walked behind Zou Yuandao and pushed the wooden wheelchair forward. Zou Yuandao habitually covered her hand and said, "Thank you for your hard work, Madam."
Lu Xianghe said nothing, but a slight smile appeared on her face.
At noon on the second day, Cui Muli escorted Zou Yuandao's family to General Ningde's Mansion.
Standing in front of the long-defunct General's Mansion, Zou Yuandao hesitated to speak, feeling complicated and difficult to speak.
Cong'er held the corner of Lu Xianghe's clothes, and raised his head. He looked curiously at the tall and magnificent plaque, "Dad, Mom, where is this?"
Cui Muli said: "This is your home."
Home.
Zou Yuandao's pupils trembled, and his tight lips revealed a bit of pain. Knowing that he was not feeling well, Lu Xianghe knelt down and held his hand gently.
"Just send us up to here." Lu Xianghe said: "Master Cui, many thanks for taking care of us along the way."
Cui Muli cupped his hands and said with a smile: "It's all within my official duties, Madam Zou doesn't need to be polite."
After watching the Zou family enter the General's Mansion, Cui Muli did not leave immediately. He stood there for a long time before returning to the carriage and giving instructions: "Go and investigate Madam Zou's life."