Chapter 92: Chapter 92: The Palace Banquet, Li Jirou
On the next day, Ying Man’er dressed lavishly again, setting out to achieve her "lofty ambition."
Having been at the Pei Mansion for quite some time, she had gained some understanding of the eldest son’s whereabouts. However, this day she was not looking for the eldest son; that would be too obvious.
She was aiming to meet Tuan.
Tuan often played in just a few locations.
However, getting close to Tuan was not easy either. There were usually about a dozen maidservants and old women attending to him. Whenever she encountered them, even when she had the mind to greet Tuan, those senior women would block her way, preventing her from approaching.
The wet nurse, who was one of the old women attending to Tuan, regarded her as if she were merchandise, showing her no respect, often saying coldly, "Tuan is playing inside; please go elsewhere, cousin. Tuan doesn’t like being disturbed by strangers."
Ying Man’er was so angry that her teeth itched.
But Tuan seemed to dislike being followed around by so many people, often shaking off the servants to play alone in the garden, with certain rockeries being his frequent solitary spots.
Ying Man’er had seen this a few times. At those times, she hadn’t known that the eldest son planned to remarry without concern for social status, but after experiencing the Qian Family affair, she had a sudden realization.
Now she was trying her luck, and perhaps she was naturally fortunate, as she found Tuan without much effort: the little boy was sitting on a rockery, his short legs swinging to and fro.
"Tuan, I have something good here, do you want to see?" Ying Man’er called out to the little boy on the rockery, then opened her hand to show him what she was holding.
It was a small boat she had folded herself, and children were bound to like it.
Full of thoughts of impressing him, Ying Man’er neglected to consider Tuan’s current position. The five or six-year-old was gazing into the distance, and suddenly being called out like that startled him, causing him to fall off the rockery.
Ying Man’er turned pale as she watched, wanting to go and catch Tuan. If something happened to him, she’d be doomed.
However, Ying Man’er did not have the skill to catch a child, and could only watch as he fell.
At that moment, a shadow swiftly moved over, grabbing Tuan by the back of his collar and setting him down stably on the ground.
Ying Man’er saw the person’s face clearly and panicked internally.
It was the Princely Heir.
With his narrow phoenix eyes filled with indifference, Pei Ji’an cast a cold glance toward Ying Man’er.
At this point, Ying Man’er was feeling both guilty and nervous, wanting to explain that she hadn’t meant to scare Tuan, but it was as if her throat had been poisoned mute, leaving her unable to speak a word.
"Miss Ying, you should not be here." He stated coldly.
This was clearly an order to leave.
Ying Man’er still wished to say something, but guards had already stepped forward to intercept her.
Seeing the sudden appearance of people, Ying Man’er realized that Tuan’s places of solitude were actually under hidden protection.
Had her previous attempts to sneak into this area also been seen by these people?
For a moment, feelings of shame, embarrassment, and remorse filled her heart. Even with her thick skin, Ying Man’er could not stay any longer. She hastily saluted the Princely Heir and hurried away.
She thought this was already the worst possible situation, but as she slowly made her way back to her courtyard in her dejected state, she saw several old women packing up her belongings and bedding.
Ying Man’er’s heart sank instantly, causing her to forget her dejection and embarrassment. She rushed forward to stop them, "What are you doing? Don’t touch my things, put them down!"
The old servants replied with a fake smile, "The old lady knows you’ve been away from home for many years and must miss your parents. She asked us to help pack your things and send you back home."
These servants had long been displeased with Ying Man’er. After all, she was just a guest relative, yet she behaved as though she were an actual mistress of the Pei Mansion, ordering around the other servants.
Not treating servants as people was one thing, but not respecting the old lady’s kindness was another; how could the Pei Mansion tolerate such a person?
The sudden incident left Ying Man’er stunned for a while before she reacted.
"This is impossible, this isn’t the old lady’s wish. The old lady wouldn’t do this to me. You must have misunderstood her. I want to see the old lady, I want to see the old lady!"
Being sent back home at the age of marriage, what awaited Ying Man’er was easy to imagine with the slightest thought.
Ying Man’er dashed toward the entrance, trying to get out, but was stopped by the guards.
"The Princely Heir has instructed to pack your things properly and leave at once!" said the guards mercilessly.
Ying Man’er felt as if she’d been struck by lightning, her face pale, her whole body shaking.
Surely it was because of that previous incident, the Princely Heir had spoken ill of her in front of the old lady, resulting in the old lady asking her to leave.
It was only at this moment that Ying Man’er realized that as a guest relative relying on others, she no longer had the right to stay if her hosts weren’t pleased with her.
...
While Ying Man’er’s world was crumbling, Qu Fulan was busy drafting a new business plan.
The prospects for the "Flower Garden Ode" were promising, but she couldn’t afford to relax. Maintaining long-term profitability required careful planning.
Daily summarization, identifying problems for timely correction, and capitalizing on strengths for expansion.
The current "Flower Garden Ode"’s biggest attraction wasn’t its delicious food, but the milk tea and the book "Journey to the West," with "Journey to the West" being the biggest draw.
But no matter how profitable "Journey to the West" was, it was only available in a single restaurant. Even if it was packed every day, and people discussed it afterward, it was only within their upper circles which had limited reach.
As a renowned classic throughout history, "Journey to the West" shouldn’t be confined to a single restaurant.
It should be maximally promoted to achieve everlasting fame.
On this matter, Qu Fulan had some implementable plans, but the plan was quite large and needed the Princely Heir’s approval.
She was confident she could persuade Heir Pei to agree.
Then, come the Mid-Autumn Festival, she would present her excellent results to negotiate with Heir Pei.
...
A palace banquet.
Due to the significant results achieved by Heir Pei and Prince Xiao in training new soldiers, the Emperor was delighted, hosting a palace banquet in their honor, and during the banquet announcing that in this year’s autumn hunt, the two would lead their respective teams in a large-scale competition, with generous rewards for the winner.
Heir Pei and Prince Xiao both stepped forward, bowing to accept the order.
Unfortunately, the little prince beside the Emperor took a liking to the pouch on Prince Xiao’s waist, wanting to have it.
Prince Xiao refused.
The ministers were surprised, and he then revealed the truth.
It turned out that it was made for him by his fiancée, so he couldn’t give it away.
Such news shocked everyone present.
When did Prince Xiao have a fiancée? How come no one had heard about this?
The Empress, smiling, asked which family the young lady belonged to. Prince Xiao simply said she was in his hometown, and they had grown up together, already betrothed.
This was undoubtedly a childhood sweetheart relationship.
Prince Xiao’s hometown was tens of thousands of miles away from the Capital City, so people didn’t press the issue. Instead, the Empress said she wanted to see what the pouch looked like and later have an embroideress make one for the Prince.
Prince Xiao naturally wouldn’t refuse, handing over the pouch from his waist to be placed on a tray.
Standing nearby, Heir Pei inadvertently glanced over and spotted a subtle "Li" character on the pouch.
Li Jirou.