There were many people setting up lanterns by the river. Knowing that Xiao Qiu was afraid of strangers, Yu Xiang deliberately chose a quiet corner.
The lotus-shaped lanterns floated all over the river, and the colorful lights rose and fell on the river surface. It was as if the nine heavens and the galaxy had fallen into the human world, beautiful like a dream. There were also mosquitoes and moths that gathered around the lanterns, buzzing and flapping their wings above the lanterns, causing a school of silver fish to hear the sound and jump out of the water to hunt for food.
Refined people only felt that the lanterns were beautiful, the water was beautiful, the people were beautiful, and the galaxy in the heavens and the earth was even more beautiful. Vulgar people felt that the scene of fish hunting for food was much more beautiful than the river of candles.
Yu Xiang and Xiao Qiu were the only two vulgar people in this Xihe Garden.
A huge carp jumped out of the water, catching a moth in its mouth before falling back, splashing bright water.
Xiao Qiu was unable to contain her joy and clapped.
Yu Xiang supported her cheek with one hand and muttered while licking her lips, "This fish is at least two catties heavy, and it grows in such a clear river, so its meat is absolutely delicious. It would be great if we could fish it up and make it into sweet and sour carp. "She rubbed her stomach and sighed deeply," You don't say, I'm really a bit hungry. "
Foodies always appreciated each other, so Xiao Qiu hurriedly nodded in agreement, "I'm also hungry!"
Her master hadn't had so much fun in a long time, so the old mama giggled and said, "Please wait a moment, this servant will bring some food over." Because Yu Xiang's two maidservants were also here, and this was the imperial garden, she walked with ease. Who would have thought that as soon as she left, a group of young ladies with unkind expressions came over.
The leader was about twelve or thirteen years old and was dressed very luxuriously. Everyone followed behind her in a staggered two steps, seemingly taking her as their leader. The beautiful young lady and Yu Siyu that Yu Xiang had seen before were also mixed in with the crowd.
"Give me the lantern!" When they got close, the girl directly stretched out her hand to Xiao Qiu, her tone was quite arrogant.
Xiao Qiu jumped in fright and hurriedly hid behind Yu Xiang, shaking her head firmly.
Liu Lu from Tao Hong stepped forward to stop them, but he was dragged behind by the two old women brought by the girl. They even covered his mouth with a handkerchief. This action was done in one go, and he was quite skilled.
"The Nirvana Sacred Lamp is a tribute from Tintu to the Great Han Dynasty. There's only one in the world and it's priceless. Do you think you're worthy of it? Give it to me! "She took a few steps forward aggressively.
Xiao Qiu'er quickly hid on the other side of Yu Xiang.
When the girl saw that she was unwilling to give it to her, she was a little angry and wanted to snatch it away.
Although Yu Xiang liked children, she really couldn't bring herself to like those unreasonable brats. Her temper was also extremely protective. She immediately became angry, pushed the girl away, and sneered, "How dare you bully my Qiu 'er and take my girl! Do you believe that I won't splash lamp oil on your face!"
"How dare you! Do you know who I am? I am Commandery Princess Qinghe! My father is Prince Yu! "The girl staggered from the push and shouted at the top of her lungs.
"So what if you're a Commandery Princess? We won this lantern fair and square, and it's also a reward from the Empress. What do you mean by trying to snatch it without even asking? In the Imperial Garden, you captured another family's servant for no reason. What do you mean by that? Could it be that a Commandery Princess like you can go against the Empress and the laws of the Great Han Dynasty? " Yu Xiang took the lantern from Xiao Qiu 'er's hands and held it out to the river. She smiled contemptuously, "Even if I throw it into the river to feed the fish, I won't give it to you for free. If you have the ability, then come and snatch it. "
The lantern was getting closer and closer to the water. If she really went forward to snatch it, she might also fall into the river to feed the fish. Commandery Princess Qinghe was so angry that her entire body trembled. Her fingertips trembled as she pointed at Yu Xiang, but she couldn't say a word. Her father was Prince Yu, the Emperor's uncle. He controlled eight hundred thousand soldiers and could be considered one of the most powerful nobles in the Great Han Dynasty. Wherever she went, she was flattered and tried to curry favor. Today, she kicked an iron plate. Even a little cripple dared to talk back to her. How preposterous!
"Which family are you from …" She gritted her teeth and asked.
"Guess." Yu Xiang covered her mouth and chuckled.
Xiao Qiu 'er stuck out half of her head and also chuckled. With the lotus seed cake, she wasn't afraid at all.
Commandery Princess Qinghe was so angry at the two people's contemptuous attitude that she fell backwards. Just as she was about to explode in anger, she saw Duke Jingguo's second daughter, Chang Yafu, step out from the crowd. She said softly, "Commandery Princess, please calm down. This is Marquis Yongle's younger sister, Yu Xiang. Please don't argue with her for my sake."
Without waiting for Commandery Princess Qinghe to respond, she went forward and squatted in front of Yu Xiang. She said patiently, "Xiang 'er, sister has a set of white jade bell phoenix hairpins. It's made of thirty-six delicate ornaments and was made by the famous craftsman Fu Xilin. It's not an exaggeration to say that it's a masterpiece. How about sister exchange that hairpin with you? The lamp looks okay now, but after a long time, the inner wall will be covered with black lamp oil and it won't have the luster it has today. It's not as practical as that hairpin. "After saying this, she pinched Yu Xiang's fingertips. Her attitude was very intimate.
If it was the original 'Yu Xiang', she would naturally be willing to exchange a useless lamp for a set of exquisite jewelry. However, the current 'Yu Xiang' was stubborn. She would rather throw away her own things than let an outsider take them. She only looked at the girl and sneered, "Who are you? Do I know you? "
The girl's face was pale. She opened her mouth but couldn't say anything.
"Yu Xiang, this is Phoule's older sister. She's engaged to Big Brother. You don't know your future sister-in-law? "Yu Siyu quickly stepped forward to explain.
It would have been better if she didn't explain. Once she did, the girl's expression became even more embarrassed.
Yu Xiang quickly searched 'Yu Xiang's' memories. After a long time, she finally found some information. This' Phoule's older sister 'was the second legitimate daughter of Duke Jingguo's Manor. She was indeed engaged to Yu Pinyan. In her early years, she had come to the Marquis Household a few times. Later, as the dispute over the title became more and more intense, she stopped coming. Yu Xiang had never met her before, so she naturally didn't know her. However, from her memories, she knew that the Old Ancestor had been ill for more than a month because this granddaughter-in-law wanted to break off the engagement.
As long as the Old Ancestor didn't agree to the title of 'future sister-in-law', it wouldn't fall on her head. She didn't stand up to protect her sister-in-law earlier. Instead, she waited until the conflict intensified to curry favor with both sides. This person was quite scheming. It was no wonder that she played the game of waiting for the right price back then.
Yu Xiang's impression of the girl immediately fell to the bottom. She sneered, "When my things were robbed, Phoule's older sister didn't stand up for me. Now, you're playing the peacemaker. You used an ordinary set of jade hairpins to exchange for my priceless palace lantern. You want me to remember your favor. This abacus is really loud. Do you really think I'm a fool? Now you're helping an outsider to cheat sister-in-law's things. In the future, when you marry into the family, what will happen? You'll torture sister-in-law to death! That's right. You're a heartless person. In the past, when my brother was in trouble, you didn't help him at all. Instead, you wanted to distance yourself from him. I can't count on you now. "
Chang Yafu's method wasn't bad. It was just that he was more inclined towards Qinghe Commandery Princess. Moreover, he didn't forget to help her gain some favor. If it were someone else, they might have reluctantly agreed. However, Yu Xiang could eat anything but a loss. If they wanted to snatch things from her, they had to be prepared to be scratched until their faces bled.
She pursed her lips and blinked her eyes. Many tears appeared in her eyes. She choked and said, "You're a group of healthy people. You're ganging up to bully a cripple like me. My future sister-in-law is also among you. You're blood-related sisters. Are you trying to force me to death? Fine. Anyway, I have no reason to live. I might as well throw myself into the river today and help you! " After she finished speaking, she rolled the wheelchair with difficulty and slowly walked into the river. Her whole body was filled with unspeakable sorrow.
Tao Hong Liu Lu was pressed against the stone table by two old women and couldn't move. She cried anxiously.
Qinghe Commandery Princess was really scared by her. Clearly, she was sharp-tongued and aggressive a second ago. In the next second, she was crying and disheartened. Even flipping a book couldn't compare to her changing her face faster. What did she want to do? Throw herself into the river in the Imperial Garden? She wanted to drag everyone down with her!
Just as she reached out to stop her, there was another person who changed her face even faster. She saw the anxious-looking Little Ball tightly tugging on Yu Xiang's sleeve. She opened her mouth and wailed loudly. As she cried, she shouted mournfully, "Brother, come quickly! Someone's bullying Little Ball! Someone's trying to force Lotus Seed Cake to death! "
"…"
Who's the Lotus Seed Cake you're talking about … You can't give him a nickname behind his back! Yu Xiang had been acting. When he heard Little Ball's devilish voice, he really couldn't keep up the act. He held back his tears and stared at her, dumbfounded.
Her voice was loud and clear. The entire Xihe Garden could probably hear her! She originally wanted to scare this group of children and make them retreat. Great, now the matter had completely blown up. Fine, she'd better think about how to smear others and clear her name in front of the Empress! Fortunately, her brother saved the Crown Prince. As a cripple, she was in the right and shouldn't be at a disadvantage. She was just afraid that she would offend Prince Yu's Estate and cause trouble for her brother in the future.
She wiped her face, and her mournful expression instantly turned into one of not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
Seeing that these two were so tactless and not only did they not take the initiative to offer lanterns, they even made the matter worse. Princess Qinghe panicked and threatened, "Today is Her Majesty's birthday. One of you is wailing and the other is jumping into the river. You're deliberately making trouble for Her Majesty! Don't you know the rules? Do you have any manners? "
"Stop fooling around. Do you want to die!" Everyone tried to dissuade him.
"Yu Xiang, even if you want to die, don't implicate the Marquis Household! Come quickly! "Yu Siyu was so angry that smoke came out of his head. Yu Xiang's personality was truly becoming more and more unrestrained. He didn't even look at the situation before causing trouble!
"Is Qiu 'er's upbringing good? Why don't you go and ask my Imperial Father and Imperial Mother?" A low voice came from behind. Princess Qinghe was shocked and hurriedly turned back to look.
She saw the Crown Prince standing with his hands behind his back. Although there was a gentle smile on his lips, his eyes were surging with icy fury. Marquis Yongle quickly walked out from behind him. His face was so gloomy that it could drip water.
"Brother!" The two little girls cried out pitifully and reached out their hands to their older brothers.
The Crown Prince and Yu Pinyan each picked up their precious little sisters and left. The group of noble maidens acted as if they had seen ghosts and hurriedly opened a path for them. They watched as they walked further and further away.
Liu Lu of Tao Hong broke free from the old woman's grip and lifted her skirt to chase after them.
"I heard that Her Majesty the Empress intends to choose a study companion for The Ninth Princess today. You have to perform well …" Princess Qinghe suddenly remembered what her mother had told her before she left. She had snatched the lantern from the The Ninth Princess. That was the Ninth Princess. The Emperor, Empress, and Crown Prince, the three most powerful people in the Great Han Dynasty all loved The Ninth Princess like a treasure! How could this end?
Thinking of this, Princess Qinghe felt her scalp tingle.
Yu Siyu and Chang Yafu turned their heads and saw the matriarch standing on the embankment with an unfathomable expression. Their faces also turned pale.
"Old madam, this, this …" Duchess Jing Guo's wife had a bellyful of praises for her daughter, but she couldn't spit out a single word. Yu Xiang's accusations just now were truly heart-rending! What did he mean by "She hasn't even married into the family yet"? What did he mean by "Heartless" and "Can't be counted on"? The matriarch's eyebrows rose when she heard this. If it wasn't for the fact that the embankment was narrow and inconvenient, she would have already rushed down. But before she could rush down, the Crown Prince and Marquis Yongle arrived first. This made the situation even worse.
What kind of evil was this?! Duchess Jing Guo was angry and anxious.