By the time she remembered to give the little princess the wooden figurine, winter had passed and spring had arrived.
Chapter 104 Green Plum 3
Spring in Kyoto begins with a cool chill, accompanied by a delicate floral fragrance. Gradually, from February to March, not only forsythia blooms, but also other flowers of various colors compete for attention.
Yuzhi was at home mourning her father, dressed in soft linen clothes, looking very plain. Her once chubby face, like a freshly cooked white dumpling, had lost a lot of weight in just a few months.
Seeing her kneeling silently before the adult's spirit tablet, the wet nurse was suddenly overwhelmed with sorrow.
Her young lady was exceptionally sensible. At the tender age of six, a child the size of a bean sprout, she did not cry and shout for her father like other children after losing her. Except for fainting once in December, she ate and drank as usual after waking up, hardly causing any trouble. She could even comfort her mistress in a soft voice.
Thinking of her taciturn wife who had been silent for months, Madam Zhao sighed softly. Her wife was an excellent wife, gentle and virtuous, never arrogant or cold to the servants, and a kind and compassionate woman. It was a pity that she lost her loving husband in her early twenties.
Born into a prestigious family, the legitimate daughter of a prime minister, her family background was enviable, yet she became a widow at a young age, which was pitiful.
Zhao had never dared to show the slightest sympathy. She was cautious in her words and actions, fearing that she might make a mistake. But she gradually discovered that the lady did not care about these things at all—she did not care whether others thought she was pitiful, nor did she care about the gossip, whether it was well-intentioned or malicious.
During the Great Yan Dynasty, women were not allowed to remarry, no matter how many years they had regressed.
After Your Majesty ascended the throne, you abolished this outdated custom and freed the women of the world from the shackles binding their ankles. The mourning period for a woman after the death of her husband was reduced from three years to one year. If she met someone she liked after the mourning period ended, she could remarry without being criticized.
The lady was far more fresh and beautiful than the crabapple blossoms. In the prime of her life, she spent her days guarding her deceased husband's memorial tablet. Not to mention that Prime Minister Liu felt sorry for his daughter, even outsiders would feel sorry for her.
The lady's current sadness is genuine.
After the funeral arrangements were completed, the Minister's residence closed its doors to visitors. The entire household, from the eldest son to the youngest, wore mourning clothes, and laughter was not heard in the residence for a long time.
Fortunately, the lady doted on her daughter, and it was not good for the child's physical and mental health to be trapped in sadness for too long. The mother and daughter comforted each other and managed to get through it.
On the full moon of March, Liu Boyan took off her white mourning clothes and changed into a dark black dress with white flowers on the chest. A wooden hairpin was inserted diagonally in her hair. Her clothes were simple and her face was thin.
Having lost her father, Yuzhi didn't want to lose her mother as well, so she was exceptionally obedient when facing her mother.
Liu Boyan saw the changes in her and felt a pang of pain in her heart. She took out a brand-new dark blue dress and dressed her daughter in it. She couldn't help but pat her little head and said, "Mourning is in the heart, not in appearance. Smile at your mother."
Yu Zhi thought for a moment and smiled at her, her smile no longer as bright and cheerful as before, but it was the best the child could do.
Overwhelmed with grief, she hugged her daughter and sighed softly, "My dear Zhizhi."
...
With Yu Wen gone, Liu Boyan and her daughter lost their beloved family member, and Ji Ying forever lost her trusted and loyal minister.
But while the dead are buried in the earth, the living must still live towards the sun.
Spring came gently and swiftly to Kyoto that year. In the blink of an eye, spring turned into summer, autumn went and winter came. The ice and snow melted, and spring came again.
The moat flows gently, and the willows sprout new branches, revealing the vibrant and passionate life in the smallest details.
A kite painted with ink wash painting soared high into the clear sky.
The imperial city, the back garden.
Princess Changyang was dressed in bright clothes and brocade boots. Her hair was tied up, and the stray hairs by her ears were pulled back, perfectly reflecting her delicate porcelain face.
With a gentle spring breeze and abundant sunshine, her eyebrows and eyes were truly striking.
The little baby had an innate arrogance hanging from his eyebrows, as if he had been a master for eight lifetimes. His bright, grape-like eyes exuded an air of authority even when he didn't speak. When he smiled, his eyebrows curved, blending the innocence of his age with the nobility of his status. Even the little fairy children in New Year paintings couldn't compare to him in terms of appearance and temperament.
The little princess looked up at the sky with a melancholy expression. The sky was vast, and she was all alone, her kite all by herself, without a single companion.
Knowing that the nanny had forbidden others from flying kites today, she initially thought the nanny was being domineering. She was just one spectacle; how could she possibly take up the entire sky? Even the stars wouldn't dare claim to fill the sky every night!
She glanced again at the ink-wash painting kite hovering high in the sky.
All alone.
That's boring!
"I won't let go!"
A soft, white hand dropped the winch full of fuses, and the kite rose with the wind, flying freely to higher places.
The nanny serving the little princess was shocked upon hearing this and hurriedly ordered the palace servants to put away the kite—the painting on it was drawn by the little princess herself! Even His Majesty praised it!
The emperor, being of noble birth, had a temper more volatile than a sudden storm. She carefully coaxed him, "Why aren't you letting it go?"
"You find this interesting?"
"this……"
The old nanny was a senior member of the palace, and the Empress always treated her with respect. Faced with the little princess's light-hearted question, she felt a sudden unease, unsure of where the sense of crisis came from. Taking advantage of the princess's young age, she subconsciously asked, "What is it that Your Highness is dissatisfied with?"
Xiao Changyang narrowed his eyes, his cheeks puffed out as if he were angry: "Look at me all alone, is that funny?"
What she wanted was excitement! The old woman chased all that away! What was the point of all that hard work making that kite? Fool!
She was only two years old, yet the emperor and empress possessed an imposing aura that seemed to come naturally from within her, an aura unrelated to age. If Granny Wang still didn't realize the little prince was angry at this moment, she would have lived a long and arduous life.
In a flash, a layer of sweat broke out on her forehead, and she knelt down with a thud: "How dare I!"
Princess Changyang ignored her kneeling and pleading. She was young and at the age where she could do whatever she wanted. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the palace servants trying to put away the kite on the orders of Granny Wang, and she immediately became furious: "Bring me scissors."
She wanted scissors, but the palace servants dared not offer them to her.
"You're not listening to me anymore?"
It was a palace maid from Yangchun Palace who brought over some golden scissors. The little princess suddenly smiled, stepped forward, and cut the kite string: "I don't want it anymore, let it fly."
She didn't want to be all alone.
Her kite shouldn't be all alone either.
Granny Wang's inner garment was soaked through. It was supposed to be the warmest and most pleasant spring day, but when she met the little prince's bright, dark eyes, she couldn't help but feel as if she had fallen into an ice cave.
To be honest, she discovered half a year ago that the little prince was wicked and too smart. The little boy's thoughts were harder to guess than those of the other masters she had served. Besides, whose child could have such an imposing presence when he squinted his eyes and remained silent?
The emperor and empress dote on their child to an extreme degree!
She's an old woman who doesn't want to enjoy her retirement years and instead bravely runs to Princess Changyang's side to be a servant. She must have been kicked in the head by a donkey!
She felt remorse and thought she would ask the Empress for permission to leave the palace that day. But when she looked up, the child was nowhere to be seen.
She asked those around her, "Where is His Highness?"
The maidservant said, "Let's go back to Ganning Palace."
Granny Wang's face turned pale, and she rushed over.
Upon entering the Gan Ning Palace, the little princess eloquently and logically complained to her mother about Granny Wang.
"She's a sycophant, does she think I'd be happy that she chased people away? She dared to chase away the children of the Imperial Uncle's family, what wouldn't she dare to do? I don't think she even cares about the children. Who would want a servant like that?"
She spoke as if she were an old woman, but little did people know that this was the most endearing thing about her.
Yan Xiu adored her daughter and took a handkerchief to wipe the fine sweat from her nose: "Didn't you already know that Granny Wang forbade others from flying kites in the Imperial Garden?"
“I didn’t lash out before because I hadn’t gotten this angry yet.” She pointed to her chest with her fingertip. “It’s not just this one thing. She broke my jade cat earlier. I saw her old age, with her white hair and trembling body, and I couldn’t bear to be harsh with her. But how could she take advantage of me and think I didn’t have a temper? What do you call that?”
She sifted through the books she had read and found one phrase: "abusing one's age and power! Bullying children!"
Yan Xiu smiled, her delicate hand gently stroking her daughter's undeveloped, flat chest: "What do you want?"
Ji Pingxi remained silent for a long time before saying, "I want her to never dare to be so arrogant again."
After saying this, her anger subsided a bit, but her little face remained stern: "Father said that I am the most noble princess in the world, but I also hope to have more playmates. I am all alone, studying alone, flying kites alone."
She said "alone" three times in one sentence, and Yanxiu felt sorry for her because she didn't have any brothers or sisters she could talk to and play with: "Okay, Mother will help you."
On that day, Granny Wang was "invited" out of the palace, and her anticipated "graceful retirement" became a pipe dream. She knelt in front of the palace gate and cried miserably.
Even the guards at the gate seemed to remember her. Hearing their comrades' words of sympathy, they sneered coldly, "I know this person. It's said she served the Empress Dowager, which is why she's so respected by everyone in the palace. But she's gotten old and her mind's not what she used to be. Not long ago, she even slapped a young palace maid because of her age..."
After hearing his words, the fellow soldier suddenly realized the truth and no longer felt pity for the old woman.
How could someone serving in the palace not recognize their own place? In his view, the fact that he could come out unscathed after offending his master was already a sign of the master's mercy.
...
Where is my little wooden doll?
The palace maid rummaged through the small red wooden box and retrieved what she wanted—a wooden doll whose clothes could be disassembled and replaced at will.
Back at Yangchun Palace, the little princess held the wooden figurine in her arms, revealing a childlike innocence: "Do you remember who sent this wooden figurine?"
The maidservant serving nearby couldn't forget it even if she wanted to, and said with a smile, "Your Highness, it was sent by the Eldest Princess. She said it was a gift from Miss Yu to Your Highness."
"A greeting gift?" She poked the little wooden figure's face with her finger. "She saw me, but I didn't see her. Has her mourning period ended?"
Knowing that she was asking about the granddaughter of the Liu family, the maid said, "It's over."
"That's good. My aunt always praises her so much, I want to see if she's really that good, or just average."
...
Xuanwu Street, the Yu family residence.
A kite with a broken string fell into the clean and tidy courtyard.
"Jinshi, what is that? Let me see it."
"Yes, Miss."
Jinshi and Yinding are Yuzhi's maids, both nine years old. They have a pitiful background and were sold into the Yu family by a human trafficker.
Yu Zhi is seven years old this year, not even as old as her maid, and not even as tall as two people. She is gentle and frail. After the mourning period ended, she wore a cherry-red butterfly and flower dress, and looked like a little beauty in the making.
After waiting by the window for a while, Jinshi soon came in carrying a large ink painting kite. Yuzhi exclaimed in surprise, "This kite is so unique!"
Yin Ding stepped forward to examine the broken part of the fuse more closely. The break was clean, as if it had been cut with scissors. He hesitated and said, "It must have been rejected by some family."
"How could anyone bear to leave such an interesting kite?" Yu Zhi went outside and decided to stay in the yard: "Go and ask around, which family has lost a kite? Bring the owner back and return it to them."
The person in charge of this matter was Yin Ding.
As soon as Yin Ding left, Yu Zhi looked down at the cats in the ink painting and counted eight of them.
She learned music, chess, calligraphy, and painting from a young age, and it's clear that the painter of this painting is probably a child around her age.
She hasn't had any friends in a long time, and if she could, she would like to be friends with the person who drew the kite on the paper.
However, since the kite originated from the imperial palace, the silver ingot was destined to never find its 'owner'.
Yuzhi was disappointed for two days because of this.