Ji Meiyuan's anger rose as she looked at Ji Wushang, her eyes filled with doubt. Did Ji Wushang already know about these things, so that she would hit herself and be unable to attend?
"What banquet? Brother, how come we don't know about it?" Ji Wushang asked doubtfully.
Ji Yinxue also asked, "Are we all going to the lantern festival? It's so late at night, I'm afraid it's not safe. Is Father okay with us going out to play?"
“All the women from these families are going out to play, there’s no reason for your father to order you all not to go. This is a traditional grand event, how could your father not allow you to go out? Your eldest brother will also go out with you, don’t worry, he will protect you,” Ji Tiankui said earnestly.
"Hmm." Ji Wushang nodded, most afraid that something might happen at the lantern festival. He turned to Ji Meiyuan and smiled, "In that case, let Second Sister rest well at the manor. After seeing the doctor and taking some medicine, she will surely recover quickly."
"Yes!" Ji Meiyuan said through gritted teeth.
Night fell quickly, and the lanterns of General Ji's mansion were lit. The maids and servants were preparing a feast in the courtyard, and many banquets were set up in the central hall, making everyone think that it was a happy occasion!
Guests began to arrive one after another. In the hall, Ji Dingbei and Aunt Nangong, both dressed in fine clothes, greeted the guests. Aunt Nangong looked down at Ji Dingbei beside her. Although Ji Dingbei was middle-aged, he was still tall and spirited, and his imposing presence as a general on the battlefield was in no way diminished.
Madam Bei was still asleep in the North Garden, and all the affairs of the mansion's backyard were being managed by Concubine Nangong. Madam Yuan, naturally focused on rest and recuperation, and given that her previous illness hadn't fully healed, was resting in the Quiet Garden; therefore, she wouldn't be attending such a banquet.
"Husband, why have you invited so many people?" Aunt Nangong frowned as she watched more and more people arrive. She truly had no idea what Ji Dingbei's intention was in inviting so many people.
"Isn't it all for the sake of a few daughters?" Ji Dingbei frowned slightly. "Just treat it as a bit of fun! There won't be too many people, just a few close friends."
As Aunt Nangong listened, she glanced around, only to see heads everywhere.
"Not many people," Aunt Nangong muttered to herself, frowning and coughing lightly a few times.
Immediately, Ji Dingbei frowned and said, "I told you not to help, and now you're having another attack. You should go and rest over there."
"It's alright." Aunt Nangong seemed much better. "Seeing my husband so tired, I should help him out."
"Thank you for your hard work." Ji Dingbei nodded, looking at Aunt Nangong with affection.
"It's not hard work," Aunt Nangong said with a smile.
After a short while, Ji Dingbei suddenly turned around and asked, "Have all the daughters returned home?"
"Yes. They've returned to the manor." Aunt Nangong nodded. "Just now, Steward Xue came over and said that everyone has returned safely. However, the Second Miss accidentally bumped her face, and it's swollen. But she's already seen a doctor and had some medicine applied, so she's fine now. I'm afraid she can't come to the banquet tonight, and she also can't go to the lantern festival."
Ji Dingbei frowned. "How could you be so careless?"
"Alas, it's all my fault as a concubine; I wasn't good enough to get the servants to take care of me." With that, Concubine Nangong blamed herself.
"Look at what you're saying, you've already done more than enough." Ji Dingbei gently kissed Aunt Nangong's forehead. Aunt Nangong felt as happy as if she had eaten honey.
A little later, he was greeting people on the other side.
Ji Wushang was having her hair combed by Zhu'er at the dressing table. Her long, dark hair made Zhu'er exclaim, "Miss, how can your hair be so beautiful? Everyone who sees it loves it."
"I don't know either." Ji Wushang watched her help comb her hair, then pulled open the cabinet, took out the small box from inside, shook it, and something inside made a rattling sound.
"Miss, what's inside?" Pearl asked curiously.
"What it is isn't important; what matters is who it is," Ji Wushang said calmly. "Hurry up and get dressed so you can go out for the banquet." With that, he locked the box again.
"Why would Master suddenly send so many people?" Pearl asked with a smile. "Is it because of Miss's wedding?"
"You little hussy, how dare you interfere in my affairs?" Ji Wushang turned around, looked at her, and scolded her with a smile.
"This servant wouldn't dare!" Zhu'er lowered her head. "However, I think it's probably because of this!"
"Tell me, if I let you marry a man without ever letting you see his face, would you be willing?" Ji Wushang suddenly asked.
“This, Miss, how can this be? The marriage is arranged by parents and matchmakers, it has been established since ancient times. Master, Madam and Miss are Zhu’er’s world, how can Zhu’er make her own decisions?” Zhu’er frowned slightly, but her hands did not slow down at all.
"Yes!" Ji Wushang sighed. Although she was a legitimate daughter, was she still the one whose fate was decided by her father and mother? Most of the things discussed at tonight's banquet were probably related to her marriage.
She'll eventually get married.
Ji Wushang frowned.
After combing her hair, Ji Wushang, accompanied by Zhu'er and Xian'er, went to the hall for the dinner. All eyes were on Ji Wushang, who could only awkwardly bow to her uncles, aunts, and other relatives. Ji Yinxue, Ji Wuxia, Ji Wusi, and Ji Tiankui were already present.
Aunt Qin and Aunt Xie ate their meal together without saying a word.
Aunt Qin was already heavily pregnant, and this was the first time she looked directly at Ji Wushang. Ji Wushang felt her gaze and glanced over, seeing a beautiful young woman with a large belly sitting with Aunt Nangong and Aunt Xie.
The moment their eyes met, Ji Wushang felt as if he had met this woman before, whether in a past life or this one, he didn't know.
Aunt Qin also felt strange, as if she had seen it before, but she couldn't quite place it.
Ji Wushang bowed to Ji Dingbei, Aunt Nangong, and others, then sat down to eat.
There were many high-ranking officials present, such as the Minister of Personnel, generals, ministers of justice, grand secretaries, and governors, as well as some young noblemen and young masters of all shapes and sizes, but Ji Wushang had no interest in getting to know them.
However, I had a vague feeling that something was amiss.
Ji Dingbei was already chatting with some officials when he glanced at Ji Wushang and saw her nonchalant attitude, only caring about eating. He then gently nudged Aunt Nangong, who was standing to the side.
Upon seeing this, Aunt Nangong immediately nodded, then made an excuse to leave the table and walk to the side. Originally, she hadn't intended to go to Ji Wushang's side, but if she wanted to eventually become the wife, she would have to pay attention to the young ladies and gentlemen. With Madam Bei so ill, she probably wouldn't live much longer, and Aunt Bai was currently out of favor; the most likely candidate was for her to be promoted to wife! Aunt Nangong, calculating in her heart, approached Ji Wushang with a forced smile.
"Wu Shang, why do you look so troubled?" Aunt Nangong asked with a smile.
"Auntie." Ji Wushang looked at Auntie Nangong, feeling slightly displeased. He thought to himself, "Although Mother isn't feeling well, why is she dressed like a lady now? She's just a concubine!"
"Master asked me to ask you if there's anything bothering you. You might as well tell your aunt." Aunt Nangong was very patient. She smiled and sat down next to Ji Wushang.
Ji Wushang sneered inwardly. Was this really how she was playing the role of a mother?
"No need, Aunt. Wu Shang just feels a little tired, nothing unpleasant has happened. If there's anything unpleasant, it's that my second sister is injured. It's because I, as the older sister, didn't take good care of my younger sister. Sigh!" Ji Wu Shang sighed.
"It's not your fault." Aunt Nangong's attitude kept changing. When she saw Ji Yinxue looking in their direction, she immediately waved to her.
Ji Yinxue felt strange. Wasn't her aunt the one who disliked her and her eldest sister eating together the most? She wouldn't even allow them to go out together. Was she letting her go?
"Yinxue, come and sit with your eldest sister." Aunt Nangong really called out.
Although she spoke very softly, Ji Yinxue, who was at the next table, heard it clearly. She hadn't misheard; Aunt Nangong had indeed changed her attitude.
Ji Wushang nodded. Regardless of whether her aunt Nangong had taken the wrong medicine tonight, Ji Wushang was still very willing to have Ji Yinxue accompany her for dinner.
At this moment, Ji Wuxia secretly glanced at Ji Wushang. She had been preparing her dowry in her courtyard for the past few days, feeling indignant about Zhou Muxuan's situation and even more resentful towards Ji Wushang. If she hadn't acted impulsively, it would have been Ji Wushang who married Zhou Muxuan!
I heard that Zhou Muxuan plans to marry Ji Wuxia on the same day, and also take that girl from the private school as his concubine! Thinking of this, Ji Wuxia bit down on the meat in her mouth even more firmly, looking at Ji Wushang with hatred in her eyes, as if the meat she was biting into was Ji Wushang's flesh!
Ji Wushang turned around, looked at Ji Wuxia, smiled slightly, and then turned back to eat her own food. Ji Wuxia, seeing her turn around, froze for a moment, always feeling guilty for being seen!
However, there will be a good show tonight.
Ji Wuxia turned her attention to her bowl and ate slowly.
At this time, Ji Meiyuan had already returned to the plum garden. She applied medicine, but the redness and swelling wouldn't go down for a while. Feeling angry, she thought about it and remembered Aunt Bai. Seeing that no one was around, she secretly left the courtyard and went to Qingya Garden.
The Qingya Garden was indeed serene and elegant, with shrubs and weeds everywhere, unattended and unswept, and withered branches and leaves scattered all around.
Ji Meiyuan walked alone in this place, feeling a little scared. It was the dead of night, and Qingya Garden was completely dark! This showed just how desolate the place was!
Ji Meiyuan carried a lantern and walked nervously inside.
Finally arriving at the gate of the garden, looking at the three characters "Qingya Garden" bathed in the cold moonlight, Ji Meiyuan felt an indescribable chill from the bottom of her heart.
Ji Meiyuan looked inside and saw only one light, a candle that flickered and seemed about to go out.
Despite her fear, Ji Meiyuan still had to go. She harbored resentment but didn't know what to do, so she naturally sought advice from Aunt Bai.
——
In the elegant garden.
One person knelt on the ground, kowtowing and begging for mercy, while the other stood, constantly berating, beating, and kicking. The kneeling person was the head maid, Tianxiang, while the one berating and kicking was Aunt Bai.
At this moment, Aunt Bai was dressed in coarse white cloth, without any rouge, her face slightly pale, her hair disheveled, looking every bit the shrew. Her shoes were also worn and tattered. Just then, she saw a figure appear outside the door and immediately looked at the person warily.
Aunt Bai frowned, turned to look at a tall man wearing a straw hat carrying a lantern, and judged that it was probably a man. She then turned and slapped Tianxiang across the face again. "Get out of here! Get me some good food! Are the kitchen staff all just eating and not doing anything?!"
Tianxiang's face was already bruised and swollen, her head bowed low, completely unaware that someone had arrived, and she was only begging for mercy.
"Get out of here! I didn't call you, so just wait outside!" Aunt Bai turned to look outside, but the figure outside was gone. Knowing that something was wrong, she sent Tianxiang away.
After Tianxiang scrambled away, Aunt Bai turned around, closed the door, and went into the inner room. Turning around, she saw a tall man in coarse clothes standing in front of her, still wearing his straw hat.
"Who are you?" Aunt Bai scrutinized him questioningly, looking him up and down. "Are you someone my father sent?"
“Exactly.” The tall man reached out and took off his straw hat. Immediately, in the dim light, a face with a wide scar appeared. His long hair was neatly combed, and his eyes were bright and full of hatred. A scar ran from his left eye to his right cheek.
"You're not dead? How hateful! You couldn't even complete the task I gave you!" Aunt Bai looked at the person in front of her and snorted coldly.
Indeed, this person is the one who led the assassination attempt on Ji Wushang and Madam Bei last time. After the incident went wrong, he went into hiding until now.
"As long as Bai Aomei is alive, I, Hei Wuyai, will not die!" Hei Wuyai said coldly.
"Hmph!" Aunt Bai sized up Hei Wuyai. "Speak, what brings you here today?"
"The cult leader has given orders for you to do this and that," Hei Wuyai whispered in Bai Yiniang's ear.
After hearing this, Aunt Bai remained silent, and then said, "My three-month confinement is not over yet, how can you expect me to do anything?"
"Soon, your confinement will be lifted," Hei Wuyai whispered in Bai Yiniang's ear.
Aunt Bai trembled and took a step back. "In that case, please go back and tell the sect leader that I will definitely complete the mission as long as the agreed deadline arrives!"
"You're still Aunt Bai, don't forget." Hei Wuyai's face was slightly stern.
"Of course! However, I won't always be a concubine. From now on, you should call me Madam Bai!" Concubine Bai walked to the dressing table, put down her slightly disheveled hair, and started combing it.
"Madam Bai?" Hei Wuyai walked over and looked at the woman in the mirror. Although she hadn't applied rouge, she was indeed a beautiful woman, still retaining her charm. He snatched the comb from her hair, and Aunt Bai, caught off guard, had her hand grasped and couldn't break free.
He took her hand, and she held the comb, and then he helped her comb her hair.
"Shouldn't we change our address to Madam Hei?" Hei Wuyai smiled slightly.
"Don't joke with me!" Aunt Bai glared at him. "I've never forgotten who pushed me into this situation!"
“But I will never forget who carved this long scar on my face.” As he spoke, the man immediately put down the comb from her hand, grabbed her hand, and touched the scar on his face. “This is your masterpiece!” Hei Wuyai leaned in and whispered in Aunt Bai’s ear, word by word.
When Aunt Bai touched the hideous scar, her heart suddenly clenched.
That day, she vowed never to marry into the general's mansion and become his pawn, but he had to obey the leader's orders and bring her to the general's mansion as a concubine, as the daughter of the Minister of Personnel. She cruelly said she wanted his life, but he gave her a knife instead.
In the end, however, she disfigured him, making him think of her for all eternity.
Now, things have changed.
"Hahahaha!" Aunt Bai suddenly laughed, pointing at Hei Wuyai and saying, "What's the use of saying all this! You and I are just pawns! Madam Hei, Madam Bai! Humph!"
Hei Wuyai stared at Aunt Bai expressionlessly, then suddenly scooped her up in his arms. Aunt Bai immediately struggled and cried out, "What are you doing! Put her down right now!"
“Shouting won’t do any good. This is Qingya Garden. You know the situation better than I do!” Hei Wuyai replied coldly, then tossed Aunt Bai onto the bed. “You should be looking forward to this moment!”
"No!" Aunt Bai glared at him coldly. "I am a viper, I did not look forward to this moment for even a moment longer!"