Chapter 227 The Confrontation in the Hall
After the ladies and gentlemen had their afternoon naps, the Princess Royal had snacks laid out in the hall for everyone. The people gathered around to chat. The men and women were separated into two different halls. The female guests were led to the parlor. The snow outside had already been swept away and one could occasionally see beautiful red plum blossoms peeking out from behind the cornices.
Plum blossoms were everywhere in the Princess Royal’s manor. Most of the plum blossoms were red.
Mo Xuetong was brought to the parlor by a maid. There was a luxurious carpet laid on the floor and beautiful draperies and decorations hanging above. The entire hall was luxurious and beautiful. The eight-sided palace lamps, the pink flower vases, white-jade vases with handles…There were two different sets of sandalwood tables and chairs that were placed in two circles with a heater in the middle. It was placed for people to chat while they enjoyed tea.
The Princess Royal sat in front with a smile. Fifth Princess sat on her side while Ling Fengyan sat on the other. The other ladies sat where they wished.
“Third Miss Mo, come and sit here.” Ling Fengyan said politely with a smile when she saw Mo Xuetong enter the room. She pointed at a chair beside her.
Mo Xuetong did not want to sit there. It was close to the Princess Royal and she had fought with Ling Fengyan earlier. It was rather annoying. However, since Ling Fengyan had been so enthusiastic, it would make her seem unreasonable. As such, Mo Xuetong walked over to her with a smile, curtsied, and sat down.
“Third Miss Mo, you’re late. Have you been stopped by someone? I did not see you when we took a nap. Have you gone to chat with someone?” Someone asked with warmth. Mo Xuetong turned around to see that it was You Yue’e.
“Oh, Third Miss Mo didn’t take a nap? Who did you meet and have such a good conversation with?” Ling Fengyan turned around to asked interestedly.
Mo Xuetong’s eyes sparkled. She twisted her handkerchief, looking slightly embarrassed as she said, “I wanted to see the scenery in the Princess Royal’s manor and got lost. Since I wasn’t tired, I decided to walk around. Then, I met a maid in the manor and asked her for directions to get here.”
Fifth Princess, who had been watching Mo Xuetong all this while relaxed slightly when she heard that.
“Third Miss Mo, we couldn’t see who you were speaking with in the pavilion earlier. We only know that it was a man dressed in white. He seemed very carefree.” You Yue’e smiled gently as she watched silently. She picked up her handkerchief to cover her mouth as if she realized that she had said something she shouldn’t.
Everyone looked at Mo Xuetong.
There were two men who were dressed in white today. There were no other men dressed so other than Bai Yihao and Feng Yuxuan.
Fifth Princess’s eyes grew even sharper while Ling Fengyan’s smile grew even gentler.
“So Third Miss Mo didn’t take a nap because you were occupied by someone. Childe Bai has always been a gentleman and if he meets Third Miss Mo in the plum blossom forest, he would definitely speak with her.” Ling Fengyan’s eyes shone as she smiled softly. It was as if she was trying to help Mo Xuetong explain.
Everyone knew that King Chu was the husband the Empress chose for Ling Fengyan. However, he did not seem to be very interested in Second Miss Ling who was well known throughout the capital. He had only chatted with her briefly earlier during the banquet. Of course, everyone knew that Fifth Princess liked Bai Yihao.
No matter which of the two men were the person who chatted with Mo Xuetong in the pavilion, Mo Xuetong would still gain an enemy out of one of the two noble women.
“It is indeed King Chu. King Chu asked me about the young ladies here, so I…” Mo Xuetong said somewhat shyly. She twisted her handkerchief in her hands with a humble smile on her face.
The consort-selection was on the horizon and every young lady knew about this. They also knew that a few among them would become consorts and second consorts. King Chu might have become interested in someone during the banquet and stopped Mo Xuetong to ask about the girls. However, this would definitely besmirch the reputation of the ladies whom he was asking about. Mo Xuetong did not mention it earlier because she was being considerate and they could not possibly think that she was lying to everyone.
A few young ladies grew excited when they thought of how King Chu had asked about a few young ladies among them. However, they knew that there were some questions that they could not ask. They could only recall shyly if King Chu had looked at them lovingly while he was across them on the other island earlier.
“So it is King Chu. I did not expect King Chu to ask Third Miss Mo about these things. I heard that while King Chu might be polite, he does not like talking much with young ladies, but I suppose it’s different for Third Miss Mo.” You Yue’e said with a sweet smile. She even mentioned a few examples to describe how while King Chu was gentle and elegant, he was not a person any random person could speak with.
You Yue’e laughed to herself coldly. Since the Empress wanted Ling Fengyan to marry King Chu, Ling Fengyan would naturally be prepared for it. Ling Fengyan was here right now, but Mo Xuetong had spoken with King Chu secretly. Didn’t this mean making Ling Fengyan her enemy? Ling Fengyan was unlike Ling Rui’er. She would be King Chu’s consort in the future and her status would be similar to that of Fifth Princess’.
The more You Yue’e said, the uglier the expressions of the young ladies who were interested in King Chu grew. A few of them looked at Mo Xuetong jealously. Even though Ling Fengyan, who was seated by the side, did not say anything, a vague smile appeared on her face. One could not tell whether she was happy or angry.
“Third Miss Mo is exceptional, of course. Not only does Childe Bai think highly of her, but she is also talented in both the Qin and dancing. Even King Chu thinks highly of her.” Said Wang Xiuxiu who was seated next to Fifth Princess. Her expression was one of kindness. She looked at Mo Xuetong gently and smiled at her warmly.
Even though Fifth Princess did not say anything, she glared at Mo Xuetong coldly.
While Wang Xiuxiu sounded as if she were praising Mo Xuetong, it made others feel suspicious. Mo Xuetong did not know what the seemingly kind Wang Xiuxiu wanted, but she knew that she was not as kind as she looked. Her lips curved up slightly and she smiled lightly.
Mo Xuetong picked up the tea that a maid had just made her. Her smile seemed like an illusion behind the steam of the tea. It was as if she were looking at the people in the world from her place in the clouds. Her eyes were beautiful but hidden and deep. she blew on the cup and smiled, “King Chu even asked me about Miss You. He only let me leave when I said that I had just come to the capital, am still mourning for my mother, and am young an ignorant.”
“King Chu asked about me?” You Yue’e paused momentarily. A trace of surprise flashed through her eyes. She had always thought highly of herself and did not think that she was any weaker than Ling Fengyan. Of the Four Great Manors, other than the Ding General Manor, which was the Emperess’ family, the other manors were all of the equal standing. If she could enter King Chu’s manor, her status would not be any lower than Ling Fengyan’s.
She only realized that she had said something she shouldn’t after she said that. An awkward expression immediately appeared on her face.
Ling Fengyan, who was seated by the side, looked deeper in thought. She glanced at You Yue’e and a cold smile appeared on her lips.
Mo Xuetong’s words had pointed out that Feng Yuxuan was interested in You Yue’e, and at the same time made it clear that she was still in mourning and was young. How would King Chu be interested in a young girl? The consort-selection was about to happen. Mo Xuetong had no chance.
Everyone suddenly looked up and realized that Mo Xuetong was just a child. Her innocent eyes were still child-like. It was obvious that she did not know anything. Furthermore, she had only just arrived from Cloud City. She probably did not even know what was happening! A few others turned to look at You Yue’e. They did not expect that the usually arrogant First Miss of the Ping General Manor would be interested in becoming King Chu’s consort. This was big news. Could the Ding General Manor and Ping General Manor be fighting for the position as King Chu’s consort?
What happens in court determines what happens in the palace. It seemed that the path to becoming King Chu’s consort would be full of ups and downs. No matter You Yue’e was paying such close attention to King Chu earlier. The eyes of many young ladies lit up. Did this mean that the two General Manors were about to start fighting?
You Yue’e was speechless. When she saw more and more people looking at her and Ling Fengyan and comparing them, she said, not willing to back down, “I thought that King Chu must be treating Third Miss Mo differently since he didn’t ask any of the other young ladies and only asked Third Miss Mo.”
“I thought that King Chu only asked me about Miss You because I am young.” Mo Xuetong said in surprise. She looked up innocently and with a childish air and continued. “Furthermore, I met King Xuan on the way back and only spoke with them briefly.”
Mo Xuetong had managed to cleverly explain that not only was Feng Yuxuan there, Feng Yuran was there as well.
The devilish and flamboyant King Xuan might be extremely handsome but everyone was still slightly wary of him. Most of the ladies looked at Mo Xuetong with sympathy when they heard that she was around. If one were to meet King Xuan and was not careful and annoyed him, he would not care which family you were from.
Ling Fengyan’s eyes darkened slightly. She picked up the teacup by her hand and took a sip. One could not tell what she was thinking.
Fifth Princess’ expression was easy to guess, however. She glared hatefully at Mo Xuetong but did not continue to pursue anything.
You Yue’e did not dare to say anything else. It was not that Feng Yuran was very powerful. It was just that he was a person who would not spare his sympathies for anyone. If one offended him or annoyed him because of what they said, he might even barge in. Their reputations might be ruined and they would be forced to marry King Xuan without even being given a status.
They heard that a noble lady had offended King Chu and he had taken her out in her inner-clothes to show everyone. The girl could only enter King Chu’s manor in a little sedan. She was not even granted a concubine status. An unmarried girl’s reputation was very fragile and none of them could bear any reckless trouble.
The conversation turned towards other topics. The Princess Royal who was seated in the main seat looked at Mo Xuetong with a meaningful and deep glance. It seemed that she was complementing Mo Xuetong.
Because of what happened, Mo Xuetong’s sharpness had a hint of innocence. Coupled with her display of her Qin and dancing skills, some ladies began to gain a favorable impression of Mo Xuetong. A few of them chatted with her in a friendly manner. The tea session grew to become slightly noisy.
Wang Xiuxiu tried to chat with Mo Xuetong in a friendly manner but was rebuffed. After what happened today, Mo Xuetong was no longer the useless and meritless Third Miss Mo. She was not afraid of what others might say behind her back. These people all had their goals and they would cause trouble out of nothing. If she took a step back and attempted to express goodwill, they will only think that she was an easy target.
Furthermore, everyone knew that You Yue’e was intentionally trying to cause trouble today. Even though Wang Xiuxiu had said nice things, she was the only one who knew what she was trying to say. Mo Xuetong did not wish to be entangled with such complicated people and matters. Wang Xiuxiu might be more difficult to handle than Ling Fengyan.