You Yue’e was very anxious because she could not find a chance to talk to Princess Caifeng.
Feng Yulei’s memorial had been approved by the Emperor early in the morning and she was allowed to bring gifts to the Mo Manor to apologize. It was the madam of the Mo Manor who had treated her. The two did not have much to say and after a few words, You Yue’e left. She just went there to express their attitude. The apology to Mo Xueqiong was equivalent to King Yan’s Manor admitting their fault.
Mo Huawen knew this as well. Fortunately, he did not feel any pity for that daughter. King Yan’s Manor had made the Mo Manor look good and he did not pursue the matter any further. He told Xu Yan to treat Consort Yan and sent her out because Consort Yan was pregnant.
You Yue’e returned to the Mingguo Manor and chatted with You Yuecheng in the study for a while. Then, You Yue’e went to the palace to greet the Empress and followed by her side. She had been looking at Princess Caifeng earlier and could not tell what she felt. There were all sorts of emotions in her heart. Which woman was willing to choose another woman for her husband? But what could she do even if she was unwilling?
Could she just watch as Feng Yulei lose and die in the end?
As she noticed that Princess Caifeng had left to change clothes, You Yue’e could not sit there. She chatted with the Sixth Princess for a while before telling the Empress that she had to go to the bathroom. Then, the Empress nodded with a smile.
Coming out of the main hall, she asked the palace maids at the door and got the place where Princess Caifeng changed her clothes. Then, she went there. Feng Yulei was not here today, which was the biggest loss. You Yue’e had seen it clearly that the other princes were all dressed gorgeously, waiting for Princess Caifeng to pick them.
She had to persuade Princess Caifeng to marry into King Yan’s Manor before she went back to the hall. Even if she failed, she had to make her have a good impression on King Yan. Even if she could not make Princess Caifeng agree to marry into King Yan’s Manor, at least she had to get Princess Caifeng to mention King Yan in front of the Emperor. Given the Emperor’s character of caring about face, perhaps he would release King Yan.
“What kind of clothes are these? They look so ugly. I don’t want to wear them. I want to wear the clothes I brought here. The one that Mother made for me with peacock feathers.” Before You Yue’e came to the door, she heard Princess Caifeng’s angry voice from the room. There seemed to be a sound of pushing and hitting something.
“Princess, don’t be angry. The Empress said that when you decide to marry someone, you should give the clothes to him and ask him to embroider golden phoenix patterns on it for you to wear as a wedding dress.” A palace maid’s voice sounded anxious as she tried to persuade the unruly princess.
“A wedding dress, a wedding dress. I’m not married yet! I’m the prettiest in that set of clothes. I must stun him and let him know that I’m the most beautiful.” Princess Caifeng crinkled her nose. She was as proud as a peacock. She wanted Feng Yuran to like her and take a fancy to her the moment he saw her.
“Princess, the wedding dress can only be worn on your wedding day. If you wear it now, what will you wear when you get married in the future!” The palace maid persuaded her patiently while unfolding the clothes in her hands. The dress was made of brocade, and was beautiful. The pink color was in accordance with the princess’s skin. In fact, it was very suitable for her. However, the princess had a bad temper, and would not listen to her.
“Then that set of floating clothes. That set is also beautiful.”
“Your Highness, you can’t wear it. Her Majesty said that it can only be worn at certain times.”
“I can’t wear that or this. Will it be the same to wear it now as on the wedding day? And I will only wear it once. When I give the wedding dress to him in the future, he will ask someone to embroider the pattern of gold phoenix. In fact, it will be different from what it is now. So even if I wear it now, others won’t think it’s the same set.” Princess Caifeng didn’t agree, so she shook off the clothes in the palace maid’s hands and asked for the set she wanted.
The palace maid was so anxious that she was sweating profusely. It could not convince the princess. The hall was already prepared and was waiting for Princess Caifeng to take her seat. It would be impolite if Princess Caifeng refused to wear right now. The Southern Barbarian Lands would be shamed then. The Crown Prince would not spare her in that case.
“Let me do it!” The doors of the palace were pushed open suddenly. A gentle and elegant woman entered. The palace maid from the Southern Barbarian Lands was stunned. She did not know who the woman was. She reached out to pull Princess Caifeng’s sleeves, signaling that someone was coming. Furthermore, the person was from the Qin Kingdom. The madams and ladies who were present at the banquet today were all nobility. The palace maid did not dare to offend her and bowed to her.
Princess Caifeng was making a fuss and was in a bad mood when she saw someone coming to destroy her plan. She harrumphed and sized her up from above. “Who are you? What are you doing here?” She asked with an unfriendly expression.
“Mother asked me to come over as you have waited here for a long time. If you need anything, you can tell me, Your Highness.” You Yue’e looked at Princess Caifeng’s face and relaxed slightly. Princess Caifeng was indeed very beautiful, with a jade-like face and red lips. She was very attractive, but she was still a little inferior to Ling Fengyan.
In the past, King Yan could give up Ling Fengyan without hesitation. As such, she would not be able to win his heart. Even if she were to marry into the manor, she would not be able to steal his affections for her.
“You… are a princess?” Princess Caifeng hid the pride in her eyes and looked up and down at You Yue’e again. Her eldest brother was going to marry a princess this time. The woman in front of her was about the same age as her, so she put on a much more friendly look on her face. Her eldest brother’s wife was the crown princess, and might be the Empress in the future. Her mother was still in the royal palace of the Southern Barbarian Lands, so she naturally did not dare to offend the princess who was going to marry into the Southern Barbarian Lands.
“I am not the Princess. I am Consort Yan.” You Yue’e smiled lightly. She picked up the clothes that Caifeng Princess had thrown on the ground and shook off the dust on them. She looked at it carefully and said, “Your Highness, the clothes are beautiful. It just needs some matching accessories. If they are matched with suitable accessories, Your Highness will stun everyone.”
She flattered her in a very natural way, remaining calm.
“Accessories? Which accessories did we bring?” Princess Caifeng was enlightened by You Yue’e’s words and turned to ask the palace maid.
“Your Highness, we brought this set of head accessory with us when we entered the palace this time. The rest are all outside the palace.” The palace maid hurriedly turned around and took a box of jewelry from the dressing table by the side and brought it to Princess Caifeng. They had come to the palace today as a guest, and had brought her dancing clothes and changed clothes, so they did not bring any more accessories. They only brought this set of head accessory which matched the clothes.
You Yue’e walked up to her and flipped through it. She said, “This agate accessory matches the clothes well, but they do not shine much. The clothes are light pink while the agate is red. The two colors do not match well and cannot reveal Your Highness’ beauty.”
You Yue’e was the legitimate daughter of the Mingguo Duke and was now Consort Yan. She had her own taste in clothing and was on a completely different level from that of Princess Caifeng.
As she heard You Yue’e’s clear and logical words, Princess Caifeng’s face softened and she could not help but ask, “Then what do you think we should do?” Her eyes moved from the red head accessory to the pink clothes, and she felt discouraged. It was indeed not good-looking. She turned back and glared at the palace maid beside her. What kind of match did she choose?
The palace maid shrank back, hid behind, and lowered her head, feeling wronged. It was well-known that Princess Caifeng liked red, so the clothes and accessories she chose were mainly red, which was her usual style. However, she now disliked the color of red. Where could she get other accessories for the time being?
You Yue’e smiled and clapped her hands. “Your Highness, don’t worry. I have a set of head accessory with jade and ruby on it. I’ll give it to you,” she said generously, which gave a good impression on Princess Caifeng. Then, a smile appeared on her face.
A maidservant by You Yue’e’s side brought in an exquisite box. You Yue’e went up and opened it. There was indeed a set of head accessory with jade and ruby on it. The green color, together with the ruby, immediately made the whole color lively. Just by looking at it, one felt that it was extremely pretty.
Princess Caifeng liked it with one glimpse.
You Yue’e picked up a pair of earrings first and gestured in Princess Caifeng’s ears. “Your Highness, look, this pair of earrings make your as smooth as jade. The green leaf and red flower complement each other. Come on, help your princess wear the earrings.”
You Yue’e handed the earrings to the palace maid standing by the side. After all, she was Consort Yan. Even though she was trying to please Princess Caifeng, she could not do too much.
The palace maid took the earrings and carefully put it on for Princess Caifeng. You Yue’e had already taken a small bronze mirror and placed it in Princess Caifeng’s hand, saying, “Your Highness, look, does it look beautiful?”
On the emerald green holder, there was a half-bloomed ruby flower. It hung beside her jade-like face obliquely. It was so beautiful and brilliant that Princess Caifeng’s eyes lit up. “It’s really beautiful!”
As she praised, she turned her head and was very satisfied.
The palace maid saw that she was finally satisfied and hurriedly took the clothes handed over by You Yue’e. She carefully helped Princess Caifeng put on the clothes and pushed her to sit in front of the mirror to dress her up.
“Consort Yan, why are you helping me? What do you want from me?” Princess Caifeng looked at You Yue’e through the mirror and asked with a vague smile.
Of course, she was not stupid. Consort Yan showed her kindness for no reason and gave this set of expensive head accessory as a gift. She must have something to ask for, so she asked directly.
You Yue’e didn’t expect this arrogant princess to know the ways of the world. It seemed that she could not mention some matters in case she alarmed her and made it unable to approach her. You Yue’e thought and made up her mind. She looked up and said with a smile, “Your Highness, you’re so smart. I do have something to ask for your help. Can you do me a favor and ask His Majesty to stop ground King Yan?”
“What happened to King Yan?” Princess Caifeng asked curiously. Was King Yan not in the palace earlier?
You Yue’e knew that there were some things that she could not tell Princess Caifeng. As such, she cleared her mind and said, “His Highness discovered that a second consort had an affair with another man. When the matter got out, the second consort committed suicide because she was too embarrassed to face anyone. However, later we found out that it was another concubine who did it. His Majesty said that His Highness did not manage the household strictly and grounded His Highness. His Highness is a nostalgic person. He hid himself in the manor and did not say anything in front of His Majesty.”
You Yue’e’s words were full of half-truths and were also vague. However, Princess Caifeng did not know the inside story. When she saw that You Yue’e’s eyes turned red, she could not help but have a good impression of King Yan, who dared to take responsibility. She felt that the prince was manly!
It was just a death of a second consort, but he, a prince, accept the punishment without argument!
