In front of the gate of the Brocade Pavilion
A young girl in gorgeous clothes was accompanied by a maid.
The girl raised her head, looking at the plaque of the Brocade Pavilion. With a skeptical look on her face, she asked, "Is this the place where Yongle ordered her clothes?"
The one who spoke was the eldest princess Yongning of the current dynasty.
The maid beside her nodded, "According to the maid in the Fifth Princess's palace, it's this place for sure."
After hearing this, although Princess Yongning showed a hint of disdain in her eyes, she still decided to go in and take a look first.
As soon as she stepped into the store, suddenly, Princess Yongning seemed to see a familiar face.
Then she kept searching in her mind.
After getting a definite answer, she exclaimed, "How come it's you?"
Hearing Princess Yongning's voice, Ruan Jiu raised her eyes.
Compared with Princess Yongning's surprised look, Ruan Jiu seemed calm and composed, as if she had known that Princess Yongning would come.
Actually, it was really the case.
In order to get close to the eldest princess and sneak into the palace, Ruan Jiu spent a large sum of silver to bribe the maids to boast in front of the eldest princess about how beautiful the clothes Princess Yongle was wearing were.
If it had been someone else, the eldest princess surely wouldn't have taken it seriously.
But it happened to be Princess Yongle.
The eldest princess had been at odds with Princess Yongle since childhood. She always wanted to compete with her in everything.
When she heard that Princess Yongle's clothes were from the Brocade Pavilion, she naturally had to come and find out.
So, she immediately left the palace with her maid.
Ruan Jiu stepped forward with a smile, "Your Highness the Eldest Princess's visit has truly added luster to our Brocade Pavilion."
This simple and polite remark greatly surprised the eldest princess, "You're the shopkeeper here?"
Ruan Jiu nodded.
The eldest princess looked at Ruan Jiu in disbelief, sizing her up and down, "How is that possible? How can a woman be a shopkeeper!"
Chuntao beside them said proudly, "Why not? The Xie Family Silk Store in Qinzhou is managed by my cousin."
This remark shocked the eldest princess even more.
Then, she frowned tightly, "Didn't you say that day that you couldn't even read?"
The Xie Family Silk Store provided a large amount of silk to the palace every year.
If she really couldn't read, how could she manage such a large silk store, and moreover, be a merchant for the royal family.
Ruan Jiu smiled and replied, "Whether I can read or not depends entirely on Your Highness's will."
After hearing this, the eldest princess immediately understood that in the palace that day, Ruan Jiu had deliberately hidden her talents so as not to offend her.
She originally thought that Ruan Jiu, like Shen Ruoxi, was unpleasant.
Unexpectedly, Ruan Jiu impressed her.
Thinking of this, the eldest princess relaxed her brows and said coquettishly, "Since that's the case, then show me the most beautiful clothes in your Brocade Pavilion."
Then, Ruan Jiu directly took out the Emerald Smoke Sand Dress that she had prepared long ago.
The skirt was layered, like the gentle clouds winding in the mountains, fresh and refined. Coupled with the extraordinary embroidery skills, it added a bit of vitality and vigor to the dress.
It instantly caught the eldest princess's attention, and she couldn't bear to look away for a moment.
Even the maid beside her couldn't help but praise, "It's so beautiful! Your Highness, if you wear this dress at the palace banquet, you will surely outshine the Fifth Princess!"
"Do you think I can't outshine Yongle if I don't wear this dress?"
Although the eldest princess said so, her eyes still couldn't bear to move away from the Emerald Smoke Sand Dress.
In her long life, she had worn countless silks and satins, but it was the first time she had seen such a dress that she liked so much.
Ruan Jiu was quite satisfied with the eldest princess's reaction. After all, this dress was specially designed for the eldest princess.
Moreover, she had asked Qiuniang to rush here from Qinzhou at full speed, just to make the embroidery on the dress more vivid.
"I wonder if Your Highness is satisfied with this Emerald Smoke Sand Dress?" Ruan Jiu asked.
"Hurry up. Serve me and help me change my clothes!" the eldest princess immediately said.
She couldn't wait to put on this dress.
But Ruan Jiu frowned, "This..." After a pause, she looked embarrassed and said, "I'm afraid Your Highness can't wear this dress."
Hearing this, the eldest princess immediately got angry, "Do you mean that I'm too fat?"
There was a hint of dissatisfaction in her tone.
"Your Highness has misunderstood!" Ruan Jiu waved her hands repeatedly and quickly explained, "What I mean is that Your Highness has a graceful figure, but this dress is too big."
These words instantly made the eldest princess in a great mood, and the anger in her eyes gradually turned into regret.
She looked at the Emerald Smoke Sand Dress reluctantly and asked, "Do you have any other clothes that I can wear?"
After hearing this, Ruan Jiu pursed her lips and shook her head, "After all, it's the first time I've seen someone with such a good figure as Your Highness. So, there are no clothes in our store that are suitable for Your Highness to wear."
After seeing the regret in the eldest princess's eyes, Ruan Jiu continued, "However, we can modify this Emerald Smoke Sand Dress according to Your Highness's figure."
"Really?" After hearing this, there was a look of surprise in the eldest princess's eyes, as if she had regained something she had lost.
Ruan Jiu nodded.
"How long will it take to modify it?" the eldest princess quickly asked.
Ruan Jiu thought for a while and replied, "It will take at least three days to modify it."
The maid beside her leaned over and whispered in the eldest princess's ear, "Your Highness, the day after three days is the day when the Queen Mother is hosting a banquet."
The eldest princess bit her lip. Didn't she come to the Brocade Pavilion today just to choose a dress to outshine Yongle at the palace banquet?
So, the eldest princess raised her head and said to Ruan Jiu, "You must send the modified dress to my palace early the day after three days. Otherwise, I'll hold you accountable!"
"This..." Ruan Jiu frowned, "Isn't the time too tight?"
The maid immediately said, "If you delay the eldest princess from attending the palace banquet, can you bear the responsibility?"
Ruan Jiu curtsied and pretended to be panicked, "I wouldn't dare, Your Highness! I will surely send the modified Emerald Smoke Sand Dress to Your Highness's palace before the palace banquet."
Hearing this, the eldest princess nodded in satisfaction.
Little did she know that at this moment, when they weren't paying attention, there was a glint of cunning in Ruan Jiu's eyes.
All of this was part of Ruan Jiu's long - planned scheme, aiming to enter the palace smoothly on the day of the palace banquet.
Just as the eldest princess finished measuring her figure and was about to leave, suddenly she stopped in her tracks.
She saw Xie Jingchu walking against the light. He was wearing a long white brocade robe, looking like a celestial being who had descended from the sky. The eldest princess was immediately captivated.
She never expected that there would be a man in this world who was more handsome than Crown Prince Brother.
She couldn't help but ask, "Who are you?"
Xie Jingchu ignored the eldest princess's words.
He frowned tightly, only feeling that this person blocking the door was really in the way and preventing him from entering.
"The eldest princess is asking you a question!" the maid immediately said.
Only then did Xie Jingchu realize that the person blocking his way was the eldest princess.
So, he suppressed his annoyance and replied, "I'm Xie Jingchu from the Xie Family in Qinzhou."
This answer made the eldest princess frown tightly.
After a moment, she said slowly, "So you're just a merchant. It's really a pity for such a good - looking face."