Of course it was useless. She prided herself on being high - minded. She got a precious bracelet and wanted to show it off, but unexpectedly it was the same as the one worn by the maid beside the princess. How could she be willing to accept this?
"Send her back. Anyone who sees her like this will find her embarrassing," said Cheng Xiran. She really didn't want to see this woman anymore. She was arrogant but had no real ability.
However, Zhuque whispered, "Just now the second young lady cried and shouted that she wanted to go back to the mansion. None of us could stop her. But when she heard that Princess Ziyun was going to hold a banquet, she came back and didn't mention going back to the mansion anymore."
Cheng Xiran couldn't help but find it funny. With her eyes in such a state, she still wanted to curry favor with the powerful. So she didn't pay any more attention and took Chu Liyin inside first.
The place for the banquet was Nanyunzhai, a place set up by the queen for painting and drinking tea. It was said that to enter here, one not only had to be of noble status but also needed to send a post in advance. If there was no post, the guards at Nanyunzhai would not let anyone in.
A group of noble ladies entered Nanyunzhai in twos and threes and took their seats. The maids in plain clothes served them tea and fruits and then retreated.
The ears were filled with the chattering voices of the noble ladies talking about how good their paintings were.
Cheng Xiran was not interested in this. She was just thinking whether Nanyunzhai could be written into Anecdotes in the Capital. If she wanted to write about royal matters, she might have to negotiate.
It seemed that fog was rising on the mountain, hazily covering the red leaves. Faint footsteps came from the door. Cheng Xiran looked up, and the movement of playing with the teacup in her hand suddenly stopped.
Helian Duo walked in gracefully, followed by Xue Lianyu and Xiao Qi.
Princess Ziyun got up first and said in a somewhat surprised tone, "Xiao Qi told me before that you would come. I didn't expect you to really come. Don't you usually dislike this kind of banquet for ladies?"
"I just came to take a look," Helian Duo said coldly. His eyes scanned around and finally landed on Cheng Xiran sitting not far away. When their eyes met, he suddenly felt a strange emotion in his heart.
"Your Highness, how about we sit over there?" Xiao Qi pointed to a seat in the main hall and said softly.
Helian Duo didn't refuse. After sitting down, he found that there was no empty space beside him. But Xiao Qi sat down beside him forcefully. The fragrance of a young lady's powder rushed into his nose, and he suddenly felt uncomfortable.
Xue Lianyu, sitting among the female guests, was quite at ease. "Princess, a few days ago, the prince and I hunted a fox. It looked so cute that we brought it here today specially."
Then a servant carried a snow - white fox and presented it. The fox's legs were tied, and it flapped around on the ground in panic, with its black eyes looking around.
The noble ladies were used to such scenes, but they still couldn't help but take a few more glances at the fox.
"The fur of this fox is really beautiful. If it's made into a muffler, it must be very warm in winter," Princess Ziyun said with a soft smile.
"What's the point of making a nice fox into a muffler? It's not like we're short of mufflers," Cheng Xiran couldn't help but mutter.
But her voice was neither too loud nor too soft, and Princess Ziyun just heard it. Her face immediately darkened. "The prince gave this fox to me. Why can't I dispose of it? Maybe you're just jealous because the prince gave it to me but not to you."
"It's just a fox muffler. There's nothing to be jealous about. But if you make it into a muffler, aren't you afraid that it will come back to take revenge on you in your dreams at midnight?" Cheng Xiran said with a smile.
Princess Ziyun curled her lips and said, "What can a fox do? Don't scare me."
"According to the unofficial history, foxes have nine lives, and the white silver fox is even rarer. It has a very strong desire for revenge. It's better to believe in it than not. Whether you believe it or not is up to you, Princess," Cheng Xiran said coldly.