High-class Spring Joy

"Is it possible that... Young Master's luck has improved recently?"

Chen Sha said, scratching his head, somewhat confused. He couldn't figure out what had made the young master's luck improve, and he felt that it was no different from before.

Zheji, who was standing next to him, didn't understand at first, but after hearing what Chensha said, he suddenly seemed to have found some inspiration, and his gaze inadvertently fell on Qinghe next to him.

If there's anything different about this year's young master compared to the past, it seems the only difference is the people around him.

Zheji remained silent, then recalled that the reason Qinghe was bought into the mansion by the old lady was to bring good fortune to the fifth young master.

Qinghe seems to have a rare lucky fate. Even when she was born, the doctor said that she was weak and would have a difficult life. She was afraid that she would be sickly for the rest of her life.

Spending more time with Qinghe actually helped him gradually improve.

Could it be that there really is such a mysterious thing as destiny in this world?

Zheji originally didn't believe it. Not only did he not believe it, but people like them who practiced martial arts, and who used to hang their heads on their belts, probably didn't really believe in mysterious things like gods, Buddhas, and fate.

But Qinghe's lucky koi fate seems to be really hard to explain, at least there is no way to explain the setback.

Qinghe stayed by the Fifth Young Master's side for decades, and the Fifth Young Master's frail body gradually became healthy, until now he is no different from a normal person.

Just as Miss Qinghe and the young master were getting closer, the young master's glasses started to improve. To put it another way, the incident outside Xiangguo Temple where the young master fell while holding Miss Qinghe should have been a sign that his eyes were almost healed, given how serious his head injury was.

But this matter is related to Qinghe, so even something that sounds so dangerous can actually turn out for the better?

Thinking about this, Zheji really felt it was becoming more and more mysterious and inexplicable.

He's probably overthinking it, right?

Zheji shook his head and didn't think about it anymore.

That night, after the Third Young Master returned with Chen Sha and Zhe Ji, Qing He couldn't sleep.

Qinghe lay on the bed, surrounded by darkness. She had already blown out the lamp, and the only light coming through was from outside.

For some reason, when Qinghe closed his eyes, the scene in the kitchen that appeared in his mind was the one he had seen earlier, from when he was cooking noodles for the Third Young Master, including the times he couldn't help but look at the Third Young Master while cooking the noodles, and the cold and noble air about the Third Young Master as he tapped his fingertips on the table.

In the end, it turned into the Third Young Master staring at her with bloodshot eyes, shocked yet at a loss.

Qinghe couldn't describe how she felt when she was being watched, let alone how she felt when she was being looked at with that kind of gaze. Before, she at least knew that the Third Young Master couldn't see her.

So whether the Third Young Master looks at her or not doesn't really matter.

Qinghe never expected that the Third Young Master could actually see it, especially under those circumstances.

In such dim light, could the Third Young Master see what she looked like? Did the Third Young Master realize that the person in front of him was her?

Thinking of this, Qinghe couldn't help but touch her face again. What did he look like back then? What did the Third Young Master see him like? Was he ugly? Was he haggard? Was he not refined at all? Qinghe was already about to go to sleep at that time.

She made sure to wash off all the makeup before going to bed, and she rarely uses it anymore, ever since she got pregnant.

Will she look scary or ugly without makeup?

The Third Young Master finally managed to see her, but all he saw was her bare, unadorned face?

The moment the thought crossed Qinghe's mind, she felt her blood freeze. An impulse surged from the depths of her heart, and Qinghe immediately sat up and lit the oil lamp without a second thought.

In the middle of the night, I sat down at the dressing table next to me and carefully looked at myself in the bronze mirror, trying to see if there was anything scary on my face.

Check your face for wrinkles, blemishes, and whether they look scary or unattractive.

Qinghe had no idea what was going on, nor did she realize that she had gotten up late at night just because she was worried about how she would look in someone else's eyes.

This had never happened before, even when she still harbored feelings for Chu Jingyu.

Looking at herself in the bronze mirror, in the dim light, her complexion appeared somewhat sallow, not very refined, and far from being considered beautiful.

Compared to those rich young ladies, she can't even be considered pretty.

She could probably be considered a country bumpkin.

Qinghe's gaze fell on her hands. Like those rich young ladies, her fingers were delicate and tender, like scallions, white and smooth. They looked extremely exquisite and smooth.

Her hands... while not exactly ugly, have been constantly pricked and injured by needles since she started learning embroidery.

Her hands might be considered slender and fair, but her skin wasn't particularly smooth. Having been a maid for so many years, she hadn't done many dirty, tiring, or hard jobs because she was Chu Jingyu's personal maid.

Even so, Qinghe's hands were not considered beautiful, and compared to those of the daughters of officials, they were far inferior.

She seems to be...

No, what is she thinking right now?

Why would she suddenly stand in front of a bronze mirror to see what she looks like so late at night? Is it because she's worried that if the Third Young Master sees her, it will leave a bad impression?

Why would she care so much about how the Third Young Master sees her face?

What was he thinking? He actually compared himself to those rich young ladies, while she was just an ordinary person who had worked hard for ten years to finally escape from slavery.

She actually dared to compare herself to those rich young ladies.

He's really gone mad. Is it because he stayed up too late tonight and his mind isn't quite clear?

Qinghe shook her head violently, rushed to the backyard, and splashed cold water on her face to clear her mind.

She must be crazy, she must be crazy...

"Why are you thinking about all this nonsense instead of sleeping at night?"

Qinghe cursed herself, went back to her room, lay down on the bed, pulled the blanket over her head.

-

The next day was the time that Qinghe and Hu Shisi Niang had agreed upon.

Hu Shisi Niang's promotion of Qinghe's embroidery on Hongxiuzhao a few days ago has already attracted the attention of many young ladies from prominent families, and many of them are now paying attention.

Today marks the day that Qinghe's first embroidery piece will be auctioned off on Hongxiuzhao.

The first thing, the first day, the first time—anything related to "first" basically carries a special meaning.

According to Hu Shisi Niang, since it is the first item and the first time it has been put on the market, it is necessary to make a great start and sell it at an excellent price in order to create momentum for subsequent auctions.

As soon as Qinghe entered Hongxiuzhao, she saw a group of young ladies from prominent families, some of whom she had met before at Xiangguo Temple.

Jiang Qingge was still present at the scene. Almost as soon as Qinghe entered, she looked up and met Jiang Qingge's gaze. There was a hint of ruthlessness in his eyes, but then he became extremely calm.

It seems like what Qinghe just experienced was a hallucination.

The young ladies were excitedly discussing today's embroidery pieces when Qinghe stood in front of the shopkeeper's counter, quietly inquiring about the day's events.

"Miss Qinghe, you've come at the perfect time. The first auction is about to begin. According to our proprietress, these young ladies will bid, and the highest bidder wins. As for your embroidery, the proprietress has already instructed us to store several pieces and frame them. Later, we'll bring out some other items first, and then your embroidery will be brought out last. You can just sit on the second floor and look around."

Qinghe nodded and was about to turn around and walk to the second floor when she was stopped by some people.

Jiang Qingge walked up and looked at Qinghe with concern, saying, "It's been quite a while since we parted at Xiangguo Temple. I wonder how you've been doing at the Marquis's residence?"

Upon hearing Jiang Qingge's words, the young ladies nearby became interested. After looking Qinghe up and down a few times, they turned to Jiang Qingge and asked, "Who is this person? Sister Jiang, how do you know her? We don't recognize her at all. Does Sister Jiang have some friends I don't know?"

Jiang Qingge looked at Qinghe and chuckled, her eyes crinkling with amusement. "She's just a young lady I met while staying at the Marquis's residence for a few days. If you've seen A-Jing, you should have seen this young lady; she's always by A-Jing's side, inseparable."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the ladies next to Jiang Qingge changed, their eyes revealing emotions that were difficult to decipher.

As everyone knows, the fifth young master of the Marquis's mansion rarely interacts with other women besides Jiang Qingge. Apart from Jiang Qingge, the only people who can stay by the fifth young master's side all the time are the maids who serve him.

None of the people present were brainless; they could understand this fact without much thought, and naturally, they could also understand the identity of the woman in front of them that Jiang Qingge was referring to.

The ladies then spoke up directly.

"What's wrong with your Red Sleeve Pavilion?? I can just let any Tom, Dick, or Harry in. Does he want to attend our appreciation event too??"

The speaker was a young lady, but Qinghe's face was unfamiliar; at least she hadn't seen her before at Xiangguo Temple.

Standing next to this unfamiliar young lady was Jiang Qingge, and as soon as the young lady spoke, several other unfamiliar young ladies chimed in:

"Yeah, judging from her clothes and appearance, she doesn't seem like someone who can afford to spend money, does she?"

"Didn't we agree that today's embroidery was embroidered by Qinghe, the young lady whose work was admired by the Empress Dowager? We all came here specifically for that young lady's embroidery. The rule is that the highest bidder wins, so you need to invite people who can afford to pay the price. Are you suggesting we invite someone like her to compete with us?"

"Who says otherwise? We can understand that your Hongxiuzhao is open for business, but since you said you were hosting a special appreciation event today, you should have cleared the area beforehand. How could you let just anyone in? It's spoiling our enjoyment."

The innkeeper quickly stepped forward to smooth things over: "Ladies, please calm down. This young lady isn't here for today's appreciation event. There's no need to be angry, and she's not here to compete with you. Please don't worry, she's just here to watch the fun. Please return to your seats."

The young ladies standing next to Jiang Qingge were clearly her close friends. They knew that Jiang Qingge and one of Chu Jingyu's maids didn't get along, so they readily stood up for their good friends. As for Qinghe, it was definitely not something that could be eased by the shopkeeper saying a few nice words.

Just then, the time for the appreciation event arrived, and the staff of Hongxiuzhao carefully brought out the embroidered portrait of Qinghe, which had already been embroidered and framed by Hongxiuzhao.

At this moment, the group of young ladies were still surrounding Qinghe. Most of them had seen Qinghe before, and they all remained silent, wisely protecting themselves and not wanting to get involved in the matter.

After saying those two sentences, Jiang Qingge didn't continue talking; only her girlfriends were talking.

She was the daughter of the magistrate of Bianjing County.

Qinghe had seen it once before, seemingly at a banquet, but she didn't remember it very clearly. Now that she had seen it for a while, it seemed somewhat familiar.

The daughter of the magistrate of Bianjing County, although she was from an official family, her father's rank was not high. Among the noble ladies of Bianjing, she was not only not ranked at all, but basically no one really treated her as a lady.

Therefore, Zhou Xianxian, the daughter of the magistrate of Bianjing County, always followed Jiang Qingge's lead, which is why she was able to stand out among the young ladies of Bianjing.

Now that she had finally found an opportunity to vent her anger for Jiang Qingge, Zhou Xianxian was naturally not going to let it go easily.

Zhou Xianxian looked at her and snorted coldly, "Don't you even know who we are? Our commotion is something only one of his maids can watch whenever she wants. You're completely disregarding us! What kind of business is Hongxiuzhao? Don't you even understand the proper roles of your guests?"

"My lady, I'm certainly not here to watch the spectacle, nor am I here to attend this appreciation event. But I must be here because I embroidered that piece."

With a smile that was neither humble nor arrogant, Qinghe finished speaking and saw that all the young ladies were looking at her. Without hesitation, she raised her hand and pointed to the framed portrait.

Seeing Zhou Xianxian's expression change as she spoke, Jiang Qingge turned to look at her, her brows furrowing slightly, wanting to confirm the matter.

Jiang Qingge gave her a look, then smiled and said, "Miss Qinghe's embroidery skills are still so impressive, I feel completely outmatched. However, this portrait doesn't seem like it was embroidered by Miss Qinghe. Some of the stitches and habits don't seem to match your style. Because this portrait differs from the one presented to the Empress Dowager..."

Jiang Qingge spoke just right, leaving a suspenseful question for the ladies present to ponder.

This suspense continued to build, naturally leading to different speculations in everyone's mind.

At this moment, Zhou Xianxian seemed to have found a powerful backer: "Exactly! Just because you embroidered it doesn't mean it's good! We want something of the same quality as your previous embroidery. Who knows if you were just trying to fool us with those? Besides, your Hongxiuzhao embroidery shop is known for having embroiderers favored by the Empress Dowager. Without proof, who knows if she really likes them? I simply don't believe a maid from a marquis's household could embroider something so good and gain the Empress Dowager's appreciation!"

The other young ladies nearby, unaware of the truth, echoed her words, seemingly influenced by Zhou Xianxian's influence.

He remained oblivious to the fact that some of the ladies nearby were simply drinking their tea with their heads down, without saying a word.

"The ladies have been going on and on, but their only concern is that my embroidered portrait isn't stunning enough, finding it rather ordinary. Since the proprietress of Hongxiuzhao dared to hold this appreciation event, this piece must have already been verified by her. If you ladies don't believe me, you can simply not raise the price. But if any of you ladies like it, you must keep it. Once this portrait has an owner, I can unlock its secrets. I guarantee that my embroidered portrait will not disappoint any of you ladies."

Qinghe glanced at the sun outside the window. It was a bright, sunny day with not a cloud in the sky.

Upon hearing Qinghe's words, Zhou Xianxian scoffed even more, "You, my maid, may be good for nothing else, but you're certainly good at scheming. You claim your embroidery is unique, outstanding, and stunning, so why don't you show it to us now? Why wait until we bid on it? What if we pay for it and then find out it's just an ordinary embroidery? Wouldn't we be at a huge loss? Wouldn't we have been completely fooled by you?"

The ladies next to her nodded in agreement, agreeing that what she said made a lot of sense.

"Oh, what's wrong with you ladies?" Hu Shisi Niang swayed down from the second floor, holding a round fan in her hand, fanning herself idly.

"My Red Sleeve Inn has always been excellent at entertaining guests. However, a conflict has arisen between the ladies here. I would like to ask them to tell me who has angered them, or if there is anything lacking in the service of my Red Sleeve Inn. As long as the ladies speak, I will do my best to resolve the issue."

As she spoke, Hu Shisi Niang stood in front of Qing He, seemingly intending to shield Qing He behind her.

Zhou Xianxian said, "Boss lady, you've come at the perfect time. Your Hongxiuzhao specially organized this appreciation event and invited all of us young ladies here. Why didn't you clear the place? Are we not even worth as much as those other commoners? If this one embroidered portrait of yours sells well, it could be equivalent to many days' earnings for you. How can you let this little brat barge in and disturb our enjoyment? Why don't you have someone throw her out right now?"

"Exactly, exactly! And this person in front of me actually claims to have embroidered the portrait. While it's certainly exquisite and of high quality, it's nowhere near as good as you claimed. We, the guests at the appreciation event, wanted to see for ourselves what made this portrait so special. But this wild girl insisted that we bid on it first before she could show us its amazing qualities. Isn't Hongxiuzhao bullying us? We've never seen anything like it before, and you insist that we buy it first before we can see how good it is. We're here precisely because this portrait is unique, right? With you saying that, none of us dare to raise the price."

"Ladies, please don't be angry. I have examined this embroidered portrait very carefully. I can guarantee that as long as you dare to bid and raise the price, I will definitely not disappoint you. However, due to some special reasons, I really cannot show it now. Please forgive me."

Hu Shisi Niang spoke softly, but her demeanor remained unchanged, showing no sign of backing down: "My Hongxiuzhao has been doing business in Bianjing for ten years, and the reputation and word-of-mouth it has built are evident to all of you ladies. I have no reason to deceive you ladies and ruin Hongxiuzhao's own reputation over this embroidery. Today, I guarantee with my Hongxiuzhao's reputation that whoever bids for this portrait will get more than their money's worth and be amazed. However, as for the mystery behind it, it is indeed something I cannot reveal at the moment, so please forgive me. If anyone still wishes to bid on this portrait, please be generous with your bids. If you have any concerns, you can choose not to bid. Consider it my invitation to Hongxiuzhao for a couple of cups of tea and a good show."

After saying this, Hu Shisi Niang used both soft and hard tactics to please the young ladies without weakening her stance as the head of the Red Sleeve Pavilion.

After Hu Shisi Niang finished speaking, the young ladies were willing to sit down, and the appreciation meeting began. The embroidered portrait, which was originally placed last, was brought up as the first item.

Originally, the shopkeeper was supposed to host the event, but now Hu Shisi Niang took over. The staff gave Qinghe a seat on the side so she could see everything that was happening.

Hu Shisi Niang announced loudly, "This embroidered portrait was originally priced at ten taels of silver. If any young lady likes it, it can be sold."

The ladies sat there, looking at each other, but no one dared to shout.

Only Jiang Qingge sat inside. Seeing the awkward silence of the other young ladies, a satisfied and pleased smile flashed across her eyes before she slowly spoke:

"Eleven taels of silver."

After Jiang Qingge finished speaking, the entire room fell silent. It was unclear whether no one wanted to compete with her or no one dared to take it.

After a moment of silence, just as Hu Shisi Niang and Qing He thought that this first embroidered portrait was going to be sold for eleven taels of silver, a soft, gentle voice suddenly came from the corner:

"Twelve taels of silver."

Qinghe looked in the direction of the sound and found that the person in the corner was an old acquaintance—Miss Song Yun'er, the Fifth Miss Song.