Behind the half-open screen in the private room, Xie Jinglan held a book, his long eyes cast downwards.
The bright candlelight fell upon his elegant profile, highlighting his fair complexion with a jade-like luster.
Hearing Ma Jingbo’s voice, Xie Jinglan happened to turn a page of the book, then continued to read intently, not even lifting his eyelids.
Ma Jingbo did not seem surprised, nor did he show any disappointment at being ignored. He turned his head and continued to look downstairs.
Outside Xiangshan Tower, passing commoners heard that the second young lady of the Ji family was coming to guess lantern riddles. The already crowded street was now further packed, three layers deep.
Ji Ziyan did not expect so many people to gather. She quickly stepped forward and tugged at Ji Zixiu's sleeve, "Second Sister, I think we should just forget it..."
Ji Zixiu raised her delicate eyebrows, "Don't you trust me?"
Ji Ziyan honestly nodded, "A little bit."
Ji Zixiu, "..."
As expected of her own sister, a professional dismantler.
The commoners of Sheng Huang City all knew that the women of the Ji family valued martial arts, especially this second young lady. From a young age, she had cultivated excellent martial arts among men. Within the entire imperial city, there were only a handful of people who could withstand the whip of the second young lady of the Ji family.
But when it came to the word "literary"...
Ji Ziyan couldn't help but get a headache.
Her second sister had no talent for poetry or song. Back then, their grandfather had broken so many brooms trying to force her to learn to read.
Ji Zixiu naturally knew her own limitations, but with so many people watching now, even if she regretted it, she couldn't turn back. She could only brace herself and walk to the stall.
Underneath an exquisite lantern hung a single strip of paper.
"Looking south, a lone star rises with the crescent moon."
Ji Zixiu, "..."
What the heck?
In the private room on the second floor, Xie Jinglin burst into laughter, "The second young lady of the Ji family probably doesn't even recognize the characters? Otherwise, why would she still be unable to guess after so long?"
"Are the two holes below your eyebrows for breathing? Didn't you see I was thinking..." Ji Zixiu's voice gradually lost its confidence as she spoke the latter half of the sentence.
Back in the manor, she had seen the maids guess lantern riddles, but they were all very simple. Unlike the paper in front of her, she didn't even know what was written on it.
Ji Ziyan walked over and looked at the riddle, her brow furrowed in helplessness, "Second Sister, if you really can't guess it, then let's just give up."
Ji Zixiu said stubbornly, "How can we give up? So many eyes are watching. If I really can't guess it, will I still have any face? Even if I'm not afraid of gossip, I absolutely cannot let others point fingers at our Ji family and call us all thugs."
Ji Ziyan was stunned, her eyes filled with surprise.
Ji Zizhao hooked her lips and smiled with relief.
Her second sister had truly become more composed, at least understanding the meaning of shared honor and disgrace.
A hand reached out and touched the strip of paper with the riddle. Ji Zixiu and Ji Ziyan both turned their heads and saw their eldest sister had approached a few steps forward at some point, her calm black eyes focused on the words of the riddle.
On the second floor, Xie Jinglin shouted disdainfully, "Do you really think anyone can show off in front of me? If you can't guess it, admit defeat quickly. Considering you are all young ladies, I..."
Ji Zizhao suddenly spoke, "This character should be 'Zhuang'."
The words had not even finished when Xie Jinglin could no longer laugh.
He looked at Ji Zizhao in disbelief, "You're just guessing, right?"
This riddle was specially commissioned from Sima Taifu, a Grand Tutor from the palace. How could a useless person from the Ji family possibly guess it?
Ji Zizhao tilted her head slightly, her expression as calm as still water, "North is above, south below. West is left, east is right. 'Looking south' should refer to the king character below the watching character. The lone star is a single dot. The crescent moon can be seen as the moon at the beginning of the month, shaped like a hook."
Ji Ziyan, who had already understood, suddenly realized, "A hook added to the left of the king character, a dot above the king character. The three combine... isn't it precisely 'Zhuang'?"
As soon as the answer was given, the surroundings fell into silence.
Just as the commoners were still pondering Ji Zizhao's answer, Lu Yong, who had been silent all along, suddenly shouted loudly, "Good—!"
The sudden sound startled everyone present.
Xie Jinglin almost fell off the second floor again.
Stabilizing himself, Xie Jinglin turned his head and glared furiously, "Good for what? Good where? Quickly think of some other riddles. If a useless person wins today, how will I have any face to mix in the imperial city in the future?"
Ma Jingbo, "..."
The dandies who had already witnessed the Ji family's eldest young lady's prowess, "..."
Seventh Prince, do you have a misunderstanding of the word "useless"?
As for this eldest young lady of the Ji family...
She doesn't seem to fit those three words no matter how you look at her!
"Quick, quick, quickly, you all think for me!"
Under the pressure of the current Seventh Prince, the dandies racked their brains, using all their lifelong knowledge, to come up with a few riddles.
Ma Jingbo, taking the lead, said, "Fire and smoke do not approach, so feel at ease. Please, eldest young lady of the Ji family, enlighten me."
Ji Zizhao's eyes flickered slightly, and after a short while, she replied, "The answer is 'En'."
Seeing this, the other dandies followed suit, "Coming and going in the wind, geese fly in a slanted line before the peaks."
Ji Zizhao's expression remained unchanged, "Fengxian."
"The visitor is a guest from Penglai."
"Shan."
"Four sides of mountains and streams, shrimp play in the water."
"Si." Suda Novel Network
Outside Xiangshan Tower, question and answer, flowing like poetry.
Ji Zizhao stood calmly, her long hair cascading down her waist, swaying gently in the wind. Her plain water-patterned dress danced with it.
Under the lamplight, her slender figure was full and graceful, standing tall and elegant. With moon-like eyebrows and star-like eyes, she was truly as graceful as a startled swan and as fluid as a swimming dragon.
The commoners of the imperial city only now realized that the eldest young lady of the Ji family was not only beautiful but also immensely learned and talented.
The wealthy young men of Sheng Huang City, though dandies, were not without knowledge.
Now...
They were utterly defeated and in disarray.
Xie Jinglin, seeing that everyone was completely routed, was stunned.
Helpless, Xie Jinglin turned to seek help, only to find Xie Jinglan already standing up and heading downstairs.
Xie Jinglin exclaimed, "Fourth Brother, where are you going?"
Xie Jinglan said calmly, "It's too noisy upstairs, I'm going out for a walk."
Xie Jinglin, "..."
If you want to abandon me to my fate, just say so.
In front of Xiangshan Tower, the cheers and applause of the commoners rose one after another, ceaselessly.
Ji Ziyan looked at her eldest sister, whose expression remained as calm as ever, and for a moment, she couldn't articulate her feelings.
Even when her eldest sister rescued her from the Zhao family's hellish den a few days ago, she hadn't dared to hold much hope for the Ji family's future. The imperial power reigned supreme; even a military family was insignificant.
But now, looking at her eldest sister, who remained unperturbed by glory or disgrace, she suddenly felt a glimmer of hope for the future.
Ji Zixiu, however, had no time for such thoughts. Seeing that no one was calling out riddles anymore, she urged the stall owner to quickly hand over the prize money hanging at the highest point.
The stall owner dared not offend the second young lady of the Ji family from the imperial city. He quickly nodded in agreement and handed over the silver bag, "Second young lady of the Ji family, please."
However, before Ji Zixiu could reach out to take it, the crowd on the street suddenly began to surge violently.