RPAGF Chapter 89 I heard there's a lantern festival tonight, does the princess know?
Chapter 89 I heard there's a lantern festival tonight, does the princess know?
Zhao Yutong was only average at playing the zither and guzheng, but she loved playing the flute, especially the short flute. This white jade short flute was exactly what she wanted.
Qin Yizhen said, "If you like it, that's good. I'm not good at this, so it's a good use of you."
"Thank you, Princess." Zhao Yutong carefully touched the short flute and examined it for a while. When she heard the maid come to report that other guests had arrived, she reluctantly put it back in the box.
The Marquis of Pingxi's residence extended an invitation, and it was to celebrate the princess's birthday. The female relatives who received the invitation were naturally delighted to attend the banquet, and they made sure they arrived at the right time, neither too early nor too late.
It was March, and the garden was bursting with blooming flowers in all their vibrant colors. Qin Yizhen invited everyone to move to the garden to admire the flowers.
"I had heard before that Marquis Pingxi hired the best gardeners to make the garden of his mansion like a paradise in order to please the princess. I didn't believe it at first, but now it seems that he really put a lot of effort into it."
"Look at the peonies, in all colors of crimson, delicate yellow, pink, speckled gold, snow white, and smoky purple, there is probably no other family in Qindu with a more complete collection of peonies than the Marquis of Pingxi's mansion."
"And there's the crabapple tree, which I heard the princess loved the most. Over there is a peach grove, and over here is a plum grove. In early spring, you can admire the peach blossoms. In the spring, everything is a riot of colors. In summer, there's a lotus pond with lotus flowers. In autumn, chrysanthemums are a must, and osmanthus and lilacs bloom in abundance."
"There are hibiscus, and the autumn flowers of the Han Palace are old, so there must be quite a few. In this winter, there are plum blossoms in bloom and camellias in full bloom. There seem to be quite a few varieties of camellias."
Qin Yizhen didn't like going out, so Cheng Yan had the garden transformed into a landscape for all four seasons, with beautiful scenery for her to enjoy in every season and every month.
Qin Yizhen had never paid attention to these things before, and was quite bewildered by everyone's chatter.
She thought for a moment and said, "It's all thanks to the gardeners in the manor for their excellent arrangement."
Lady Changting was a talkative and especially warm person; upon hearing this, she laughed at her:
“If it were just ordinary flowers and plants, it would be fine, but these peonies and camellias cost a lot of money to maintain over a year. If the Marquis didn’t agree, which servant would dare to do this?”
"Or is this something you, Princess, arranged?"
Qin Yizhen was silent for a moment. She had never paid attention to these things before. She usually just looked at the household accounts and ignored them if she thought the expenses were correct. Although the scenery in the garden was beautiful, she never noticed it and just assumed that the gardeners in the mansion had taken care of it.
But judging from what everyone said, it seemed that Cheng Yan had arranged it on purpose.
"I've also heard there's a lantern festival tonight, Princess, are you aware of that?" Lady Changting asked her again.
"A lantern festival?" Qin Yizhen found it strange. "It's not a festival, so where would a lantern festival come from?"
“Doesn’t the princess know?” Zhao Yutong also found it strange. “I heard it was to celebrate the princess’s birthday. This happened a few days ago. The Marquis should have gone to the Five City Division today to arrange the security for today’s lantern festival.”
Qin Yizhen was truly stunned. She turned her head sharply to look at Lü Qiao and the others. Lü Qiao covered her face guiltily, not daring to look at her.
"Does the princess really not know?" Zhao Yutong was sitting next to her. Seeing that she was stunned, she was also a little surprised and doubtful, wondering if she had remembered wrong and that there was no lantern festival at all.
Lady Changting laughed heartily, "Oh dear, it seems we've done something wrong. Perhaps the Marquis wanted to surprise the princess. Oh dear, it's all my fault for having such a big mouth!"
Surprise?
Seeing everyone snickering, Qin Yizhen blushed slightly, her mind went blank, and she felt a little dazed.
After admiring the flowers in the garden, the group moved on to Biluo Garden.
Sitting under the veranda by the lotus pond, admiring the lotus flowers with their outstretched leaves, sipping tea and eating snacks, and listening to the storyteller talk about the past and present, is a very leisurely experience.
"The pastries at the Princess's residence are also very good. This one tastes like Wanxianlou, this one is from Qingdelou, and this Hundred Fruit Cake and Golden Jade Soup should be from Shijinsi."
“This tea should be Yangxian tea.” Lady Wu’an smiled. “The Tea Immortal’s poem ‘Seven Bowls of Tea’ says, ‘The emperor must taste Yangxian tea, and no other herb dares to bloom before it.’ Although it is somewhat exaggerated, it is still a rare tribute tea.”
Qin Yizhen was in a daze.
Every flower, tree, building, pavilion, meal, and drink in this mansion has always been of the highest quality. Even if she doesn't go out, any delicious food outside can be quickly placed within her reach.
The food is always new, the clothes are always new, the jewelry is always new, and the scenery is never lacking throughout the year.
She hadn't thought much of it before, only that Butler Zhou was thoughtful and considerate, but now she realized that he must have given her instructions.
He had always treated her extremely well. Even in his previous life, he was probably worried that he might die on the battlefield, so he made arrangements for her well in advance.
If the country and the nation still exist, and if Empress Dowager Cheng is still alive, she will be protected for a lifetime.
If her home and country are gone, someone will take her away and let her live out the rest of her life in some corner of the world.
He always thought of her and arranged everything for her, hoping that she would live a carefree and peaceful life.
But she was always caught up in her own emotions, remaining cold towards him, and even constantly thinking of pushing him onto someone else...
Qin Yizhen suddenly stood up.
Everyone present was startled, and the laughter and chatter ceased. Only the storyteller on the stage across the lotus pond continued to recount the love story of the former dynasty's tyrannical emperor and his wicked concubine:
"Building palaces and sending precious pearls, it is absurd and extravagant, and the bones of the dead are already piled up everywhere."
Skyscrapers collapse, beauties perish, power falls into the wrong hands, and the empire crumbles into dust...
Qin Yizhen's eyes seemed to be burning hot, her fingers were clenched so tightly that her nails seemed to dig into her palms, she looked around but could not see the person she wanted to see.
"What's wrong, Princess?" Green Qiao stepped forward to support her and asked, "Are you feeling unwell somewhere?"
Qin Yizhen grasped her arm and asked, "Cheng Yan...where is Lord Marquis?"
Lü Qiao said, "Princess, you miss the Marquis. The Marquis went to court early this morning. He must have something to do today. You forgot, the Marquis also left you a letter saying that he will return at dusk."
"He also asked you to talk to the ladies and listen to storytelling."
Yes, he said he would be back at dusk.
Qin Yizhen snapped out of her daze and saw everyone looking at her with concern. She clenched her fingers and forced a smile: "Please forgive my rudeness, I just suddenly really wanted to see him."
She just wanted to ask him in person what his feelings for her were.
Lady Changting said, "Princess, there's no need to explain. We all understand. Take my husband, for example. I usually find him very annoying. I think he's clumsy and doesn't like to bathe. I always want to kick him off the bed and make him get out."
Everyone present burst into laughter upon hearing this, and the atmosphere became lively again.
Lady Changting was very generous and didn't care at all that people were laughing at her. After everyone finished laughing, she shook her head helplessly and said, "But after not seeing him for a few days, I suddenly think of him and I miss him terribly."
"That's just how it is with couples..."