Chapter 769 Well-prepared to Wait for Prince Yue
Shao Yanru’s foot recovered quickly. After resting for two days, she came back to study the course with those beauties.
She was a good learner. Most of the time, she sat on the side like Shao Wanru, watching the other beauties practice. Good learners watched the others and rested on the side.
After two days, the nanny in charge found that those few good learners were from noble families, so she told them not to come back until the next learning project.
Hearing the words of the nanny in charge, most of the beauties heaved sighs and watched these few ladies leave with pride. Why did they have such good performance? It was because they had learned very formal etiquette in their mansions a long time earlier. They behaved quite well whenever they saluted others or took steps.
In fact, the beauties brought to the palace had learned palace rules for a period of time at home. However, some etiquette instructors themselves could not put the rules into standard practice, and some beauties had just learned the rules for a short time, so they had not truly integrated the rules into their words and behavior. Naturally, they would have to keep learning for a longer period under the supervision of the nanny in charge.
“Would you like to go out for a walk, Wanru?” Shao Yanru said to Shao Wanru with a smile. This was the first time they had left the Chuxiu Palace in the morning since their arrival here.
Shao Wanru nodded and looked around. All the beauties who were out didn’t want to stay in the Chuxiu Palace, so they all headed to the palace gate.
When they were outside the gate, Shao Yanru pointed to a small path in front of the palace and said, “Let’s go there and enjoy the scenery.”
Shao Wanru nodded. She wanted to walk around casually, so she didn’t mind going anywhere.
They walked down this road, and another two beauties followed them. Shao Wanru quietly looked back and saw that several other ladies walking together or alone in different directions, but people on this road were the most.
She looked up to judge where she was going, and then she had a small smile. It turned out that everyone had a purpose.
The two beauties behind them also saw them, but they did not approach them. Instead, they were moving 10 steps behind them at a steady pace. They looked at them from time to time while talking.
They were also people with purposes!
“Wanru, it seems that the flower is about to bloom. The flowers in the palace bloom so early!” Shao Yanru walked up to a winter jasmine and praised.
Winter jasmines bloomed early, but they wouldn’t bloom so early that they already had buds.
“This is not an ordinary species, right?” Shao Wanru also came over, looked it up and down, and said.
Winter jasmines were the most common flowers, and there were many in the countryside. Such common flowers were usually not planted in the palace, let alone in a specially designed flowerbed.
These winter jasmines were indeed extraordinary. Shao Wanru could recognize these few peonies beside her. The flowers that could compete with the peonies would never be common ones. When she looked at them carefully, she found that their branches were different from those of the winter jasmines she had met before. Their branches were much thicker and bigger.
A carefully made flowerbed and the peony flowerbed on the other side looked nice in a symmetric fashion. If Shao Yanru hadn’t pointed it out, she would not have recognized that they were winter jasmines.
“This is not the ordinary winter jasmine, but one carefully cultivated by the flower house gardeners in the palace. It is cold-resistant. It is said that there are only a few in the palace. I didn’t expect to see such one here. Previously, I saw it in front of the empress’s palace gate!” Shao Yanru said with a smile.
While they were talking, the other two ladies arrived and stood beside them. They were quite amazed by the winter jasmine.
Shao Wanru frowned and suddenly remembered such a winter jasmine. “That one was also a winter jasmine.”
There was one in Prince Chen’s Mansion. It was in the place where she had been framed for strangling the sixth prince to death. The bloody red flowers were so many that what she saw was all blood. For a moment, she didn’t know whether it was true or not.
She closed her eyes hard. When she looked up again, she was clear-headed. “The flower is bright red?”
“Yes, it is bright and beautiful. The appearance of the flower is comparable to that of the peony. It is said that the flower and the peony were cultivated with the cutting method, but I don’t know about the details. It seems very complicated, and it seems so hard to succeed. Otherwise, there would not be only a few!” Shao Yanru looked at the tightly wrapped bud with great pity.
The flower seemed to be able to bloom flourishingly soon.
She remembered it so clearly, not only because she had seen it at the gate of the empress’s palace, but also because Chu Liuzhou had accompanied her at that time. He broke a twig of the winter jasmine that the empress liked so much, put it into her hair, and praised her that she was more beautiful than the flower and extremely charming.
But it felt like a dream when she recalled it now.
She was now interested in Chu Liuyue.
She was here today because of Chu Liuyue. She believed that Prince Yue would surely come out to meet her when he saw her.
This road led to Prince Yue’s lounge. All these princes had their lounges outside the Chuxiu Palace, and they were in very high places, designed for them to pick beauties with their own eyes.
Not far away from here was Chu Liuyue’s place. One could see the penthouse and even the guards at the palace gate.
Shao Wanru stopped watching the guards at the penthouse. Not only Shao Yanru but also the two ladies who had come later were watching the penthouse secretly. They were talking about the winter jasmine and looked quite absorbed, but they had different things on their minds.
She had no purpose, so she was much calmer than the three ladies.
Since Shao Yanru was here, Chu Liuyue would surely come.
As expected, as soon as she finished, Shao Yanru heard a clear voice coming from behind. “First Miss Shao, you are wrong. This winter jasmine was not bred in the palace.”
The tall, handsome Chu Liuyue came out from behind the rockery and put a gentle smile on his everlasting cold face. With his hands behind his back, he walked over slowly.
With the wind blowing his brocade robe, he looked more handsome and more attractive.
Shao Wanru stopped watching and bowed. These brothers of the royal family were all good-looking. Although Prince Zhou, Chu Liuzhou, was slightly less handsome, he was exceptionally handsome if he appeared outside. As for Chu Liuchen, he was amazingly handsome. Anyone who saw him would think that he should not have descended to the earthly world.
Of course, he who was so weak should have died a long time ago!
“Greetings, Prince Yue!” Shao Yanru and the other two beauties bowed shyly. Their tender faces turned pink, looking extremely lovely.
Chu Liuyue’s eyes swept over the faces of these ladies and finally fell on Shao Wanru’s face. Shao Wanru looked extremely calm. Her long eyelashes flapped a few times, leaving irregular shadows on her face. Her skin was snow-white and her lips were deep red. Even if she didn’t speak or smile, she could attract people’s attention.
“Up!” Chu Liuyue stopped looking and said gently.
All of them stood up straight.
Looking at Chu Liuyue with joy, Shao Yanru couldn’t hide the pride in her eyes. As expected, after sending gifts to Consort of Virtue, Consort of Virtue had asked Chu Liuyue to come over. And he didn’t avoid her.
“Why do you think I’m wrong, Your Highness? People in the palace said so earlier!” Shao Yanru continued the topic and said softly.
Shao Yanru was really good at talking. It was she who had started the topic moments earlier, so giving an answer was quite natural for her. No one would think she was currying favor. But it would look much awkward if someone else answered.
“This is winter jasmine, but it was actually not bred by palace gardeners. It was the empress who asked people to breed it. The palace climate is actually not suitable, and it’s not convenient to take care of it. It is bred outside and then sent to the place, and palace servants are asked to take good care of it. Even so, few can survive in the palace. Initially, the palace leader wanted to grow this flower in an independent courtyard!”
Chu Liuyue looked up at the winter jasmine that was about to bloom and spoke.
There were still no leaves on the branches, but there were already quite a few buds. In such a cold winter wind, it was pleasant to see so many buds.
“Only this flower? How many flowers should be sent in?” Shao Yanru looked surprised. She gently covered her mouth with her handkerchief, showing her softness and charms to a proper degree.
She behaved quite appropriately. She didn’t look too pretentious or boring. Shao Wanru glanced at her face and had doubts. Shao Yanru could not do so well even if she was quite scheming. After all, she was just a lady living in the depths of a big house. Was she so skilled in some aspects?
Was she born with such skills?
She looked at her demeanor thoughtfully and found that she was natural and charming and looked delicate and lovable. She didn’t seem to find anything unusual in her, but after pondering it over, she realized that she had changed a few small details, which made her whole image quite different.
She felt something strange inexplicably!
She couldn’t tell what the strange feeling was, so she stood aside and watched her talking and behaving, hoping to figure out why she felt she was strange.
“A lot of them were sent here at the beginning. It should be more than 100. However, only a few survived in the end and were then distributed to different palaces!” Chu Liuyue said. He looked so urbane, quite different from his usual cold look, making the other two young ladies very excited.
They had taken this path for the sake of seeing Chu Liuyue! One of them opened her mouth, ready to say something, but Shao Yanru spoke before she could.
“Was the courtyard unoccupied then?” Shao Yanru’s eyes were full of curiosity. She had stunning looks, or she would not be called the most beautiful woman. The eye expression with a little yearning gave people a better impression of her. Although he was quite dissatisfied with her, Chu Liuyue thought that it was pleasant to see a beauty with such yearning.
“That courtyard was indeed unoccupied, but no plants were found suitable for that place,” Chu Liuyue nodded and said. Then he pointed to a place not far ahead and explained, “It’s actually that place.”
“Prince Yue… can we go and take a look?” Shao Yanru always knew what she should say next, and what she said made Chu Liuyue satisfied. She looked up at the distance but blushed as if she was embarrassed by her advice.
“I happen to be free, so let me take you there for a walk!”