High-class Spring Joy

Qinghe was surrounded by the doubts of the other young ladies, while Jiang Qingge looked at her with disdain and provocation.

Just then, a loud announcement came from outside the Red Sleeve Pavilion:

"Princess Jing'an has arrived!!"

After this loud announcement, several maids helped Princess Jing'an walk in step by step from outside. Her demeanor was that of a noblewoman, completely different from the other young ladies.

Although Princess Jing'an's attire today was not particularly flamboyant, nor did she wear any bright colors, but rather a light pink outfit, she looked very youthful, which suited young girls best. She looked youthful, lively, and radiant.

When worn by Princess Jing'an, it evokes a different feeling—a sense of majesty, a nobility and authority that emanates from her very being with every gesture.

It's not just simple youth; it's an innate air of nobility and pride that can't be easily cultivated. Take these young ladies from wealthy families here, for example—who wasn't born with a silver spoon in their mouth, except for Song Yoon-ah?

Young ladies from aristocratic families are generally pampered within their families. They wear gold and silver every day, eat Manchu Han Imperial Feasts, and consume expensive delicacies such as bird's nest, abalone, and swallows. They also use the finest and most superior products. In short, they are either rich or noble.

She was also pampered, and even if she wasn't, the things she used would naturally be of high quality, piled high with precious items. But how many young ladies from noble families could have the demeanor and pride of Princess Jing'an?

Such an aura cannot be cultivated without being in that position, or without receiving that kind of treatment, without having that kind of lineage, or without growing up in that kind of environment.

Princess Jing'an entered with her servants, and immediately the entire Hongxiuzhao fell silent. No matter how much these young ladies from noble families argued, quarreled, or schemed against each other, they had no room to speak or dare to cause trouble in front of Princess Jing'an. Even if they had the intention, they didn't have the guts to do so.

Among these young ladies from noble families, a large portion had experienced the events at Xiangguo Temple and witnessed Princess Jing'an's attitude towards Qinghe. It was almost always biased, and not only biased, but they also seemed to have a very good personal relationship. Basically, unless it was a major issue, the Jing'an workers would naturally protect Qinghe and would definitely stand on Qinghe's side.

Therefore, those young ladies from noble families who hadn't spoken earlier felt even more fortunate for their silence.

It's obvious that Princess Jing'an came at this time to support Qinghe. Is there any doubt about that?

The group of young ladies from noble families who hadn't spoken earlier kept their mouths shut even tighter, their gazes constantly shifting between the group of people. Their focus of watching the spectacle had shifted from the initial conflict between Qinghe and Jiang Qingge to the present.

All eyes fell on Jiang Qingge and Princess Jing'an. What a show! Who would have thought that a simple embroidery appreciation event could cause such a commotion?

Jiang Qingge's expression became even more obvious. He clearly hadn't expected Princess Jing'an to appear at this time. Even though he was at Xiangguo Temple at the time, and he was the one who planned the whole thing, Jiang Qingge could guess that Princess Jing'an, with her intelligence and the grudge between Qinghe and him, would easily suspect him. Jiang Qingge hadn't expected to escape everyone's suspicion, but at least Qinghe and Princess Jing'an would definitely suspect her.

But as long as they have no evidence, it's useless for anyone to suspect them, not even if the Heavenly King himself comes. This is where Jiang Qingge's confidence comes from.

Through that incident, Jiang Qingge gained a clearer understanding of Princess Jing'an's attitude towards Qinghe, which made her even more wary of the two of them.

Jiang Qingge was mainly wary of Qinghe, and also a little jealous. He had tried to please Princess Jing'an before; he had tried, and he tried every possible means. How could someone like him, born into the Dali Temple Minister's mansion and raised under such oppression, not try every method to fight for a chance to rise above his circumstances?

Jiang Qingge's first thought from childhood was never about marrying a successful man or marrying into a marquis's family to save herself; such a vision was too short-sighted.

His first attempt was, of course, to curry favor. His primary target was Princess Jing'an. Someone as strong-willed as Jiang Qingge, even if she wanted to curry favor, wouldn't do it from the daughter of a marquis or the only daughter of a noble family. Since he was going to curry favor, the word itself carried a sense of humility and ingratiation. Naturally, it required him to set aside his pride, dignity, and arrogance. Jiang Qingge wasn't incapable of doing so, but once she did, she was bound to receive the corresponding reward or return. Since he was willing to abandon his pride and dignity to curry favor, why not go and curry favor with the most prestigious person, the one who held a leading position among the noble ladies?

After much deliberation, Princess Jing'an was naturally the first choice.

Princess Jing'an was the only princess, and she was deeply loved by the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, the Crown Prince, and all the princes. She was showered with affection and grew up with a silver spoon in her mouth. Even the phrases "too precious to hold in one's mouth" and "too delicate to drop in one's hands" are somewhat inadequate to describe the favor she received.

Therefore, from birth, Princess Jing'an was naturally the object of admiration for all the noble ladies of Bianjing. Jiang Qingge naturally chose Princess Jing'an at first glance. However, since Princess Jing'an had grown up being pampered, while her temper might not necessarily be bad, under the royal upbringing, Princess Jing'an was actually quite sensible and discerning. Moreover, she was no less capable than men in both literary and martial arts, a princess who had been exceptionally well-trained. But one thing was certain: Princess Jing'an's personality was too straightforward and direct, and she possessed the pride and dignity of a princess. At times, her words were not pleasant to hear and carried a somewhat condescending tone.

Such words were not an imposing aura deliberately created by Princess Jing'an. Rather, since she grew up in the palace, the people she had come into contact with, whether it was the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, or her brothers and the Crown Prince, all carried a sense of superiority and control towards ordinary people and even those who served them.

Those traits came from within, not from deliberate creation. Growing up in such an environment, Princess Jing'an naturally absorbed them as well.

At that time, no matter how much Jiang Qingge tried to please Princess Jing'an, Princess Jing'an remained unmoved and even saw through Jiang Qingge's ulterior motives at a glance. So, since she didn't like her to begin with, and after several attempts to drive her away failed, she could only humiliate Jiang Qingge in front of everyone, which finally dispelled Jiang Qingge's shameful attempts to curry favor.

But for Jiang Qingge, he had already put aside his pride, dignity, and arrogance, yet he was met with such ridicule.

Having tried so much only to be humiliated, she naturally wouldn't like Princess Jing'an very much.

But for a person, especially someone with dignity, pride, and a desire to save face, if that person also considers themselves to have a high social standing and a higher social status than the average person, then things that were unattainable in their youth, especially things that they worked hard to obtain, will become a knot in their heart even if they later convince themselves that they don't want them.

This is why Jiang Qingge, who had tried so hard to please Princess Qinghe in the past but failed to move her in the slightest and instead received a public humiliation, now showed great importance, favoritism, and care for this lowly maid, Qinghe.

How could Jiang Qingge not hate him? She already disliked Qinghe, and at that moment, her hatred for Qinghe intensified.

So when he saw Princess Jing'an arrive, he immediately stood in front of Qinghe and took two steps forward, clearly indicating that he was protecting Qinghe behind him.

The meaning was self-evident; there was no need to ask or say more. The young ladies from noble families could all see Princess Jing'an's attitude, and it was precisely this scene that made Jiang Qingge's eyes redden even more.

Jiang Qingge clenched the handkerchief in his hand. He couldn't understand why he couldn't obtain the things he had put in so much effort, a thousand times more effort, yet others could obtain them so easily. Moreover, it was the same person who obtained them, someone of such lowly status and humble origins—a lowly maidservant sold into the Marquis's mansion to bring good fortune?

Aside from embroidery, Jiang Qingge couldn't find any merits in this lowly maid to convince herself. She didn't understand where this lowly maid was better than her, and she couldn't understand where she lost.

But now that Princess Jing'an was here, he had no right to interrupt, nor any opportunity to stir up trouble or target Qinghe. Jiang Qingge could only bite her lower lip until it turned white, clearly furious. Her nails were almost digging into her flesh, but even so, she maintained a perfectly appropriate smile on her face.

In this setting, besides Jiang Qingge, Song Yun'er's emotions were even more pronounced, and her smile was naturally even wider than before.

Song Yun'er wasn't actually very confident beforehand, at least not about Princess Jing'an personally leaving the palace to support Qinghe and save face. She hadn't anticipated this, and her decision to risk everything at this moment, and to publicly compete with Jiang Qingge in front of all the young ladies from noble families, was solely for her own purpose.

Song Yoon-ah is choosing her comrades-in-arms and her partners. Choosing a partner is a very important matter, because if a partner is chosen wrong and something goes wrong, the consequences could be disastrous. In that case, she might not have chosen a partner, but a backstabbing ingrate or a black-hearted person who can be easily bought off.

When looking for a partner, the first thing to do is to distinguish whether the person you are testing is a human or a ghost. If it is a ghost, then there is no need to cooperate at all, just like Jiang Qingge, a ghostly accomplice.

For the first fourteen years of her life, Song Yun'er struggled and fought in the Song family mansion, vying for power every day. She devised countless schemes and used countless clever tricks to transform herself into a master of palace intrigue. Only by doing so could she survive in the Song family mansion to this day, keep her own life, and at this age, avoid being sold by the cruel first wife to an elderly wealthy man as a concubine. Song Yun'er was already quite satisfied with herself.

But since he's survived, he should think about what to do after he's alive. He can't spend his whole life fighting and scheming in the Song family mansion. Song Yun'er doesn't like fighting, and he doesn't like scheming and backstabbing in the mansion. These past ten years of struggle have made him more and more energetic, and they've also made him see things more clearly, and he's seen what he really wants. So he's managed to keep his marriage from being arranged yet, and he hasn't been betrothed to that old man as a concubine. But who knows, maybe one day, that marriage will come and catch him off guard. If he tries to find a solution then, he'll be in a real bind.

Rather than living in constant fear at Lord Song's mansion, worrying about how much his marriage would cost, who he would marry, or who his own father would sell him to, he decided to take control of his own destiny.

This is the simplest cause and effect, the simplest method, the most direct method, but also the most difficult method. She was a helpless concubine's daughter, unloved by her father, without her mother, and with the scheming wife and the favored concubine also around. For her to want to take control of her own destiny and the rest of her life was simply an impossible task.

But no matter how difficult or impossible it may be, Song Yoon-ah must give it a try.

But Song Yun'er felt that her only solution wasn't to immediately find a man to arrange a marriage. She knew all too well that in her biological father's eyes, her marriage and she herself weren't considered a daughter at all; she wasn't even a person, just a transaction. A bargaining chip in that transaction. As long as a suitable person could offer her biological father what he wanted, this pawn, this daughter, could be sold off in a heartbeat. So even if Song Yun'er randomly found a young master, even if she orchestrated a marriage for herself, her biological father, Lord Song, might not agree.

So there's only one way left: to make her no longer lonely and helpless, no longer like a duckweed, no longer without a branch to lean on, at least she needs to find herself a support.

Song Yoon-ah doesn't favor men as a reliable backer; in fact, she feels that men aren't necessarily good backers, while she finds women more dependable.

Regarding Jiang Qingge's plan at Xiangguo Temple last time, Song Yun'er didn't necessarily have to carry it out. He could have devised a plan or set a trap to prevent himself from attending the Buddhist ceremony. If he couldn't be in the prayer hall, he naturally wouldn't get involved in Jiang Qingge's matter.

The reason Song Yun'er got involved was twofold: firstly, Jiang Qingge was indeed pressuring her, and secondly, what Song Yun'er needed most right now was to see clearly what the situation was like among the young ladies of noble families throughout Bianjing.

So it was just a matter of lotus leaf tea. To the outside world, it was just a maid doing some eager things to please the Empress Dowager, which aroused the jealousy and contempt of the young ladies, leading to some jealousy and rivalry.

But it was this one incident that made Song Yun'er see the situation clearly, and more importantly, it made her see Qing He for who he really was.

Although Song Yoon-ah didn't completely understand what kind of personality Song Yoon-ah had, a person is complex and multifaceted, and cannot be one-dimensional. Some people may not be able to see through a person even after ten or twenty years, but Song Yoon-ah only needed to see a few things.

That is, whether Qinghe is kind, reliable, trustworthy, and has powerful backers.

In the incident at Xiangguo Temple, when Song Yun'er saw Princess Jing'an stand firmly on Qinghe's side without hesitation, she already had a clear answer regarding the points she valued.

So, although Song Yun'er's first meeting with Qinghe was somewhat of a test, after that incident, she genuinely wanted to get closer to her. She also had her own motives, a mixture of self-interest and genuine affection.

However, Song Yun'er's assessment at that time was wrong in one aspect: she underestimated how much Princess Jing'an valued Qinghe.

Originally, Song Yun'er's public display of affection with Jiang Qingge today was primarily intended to extend an olive branch to Qinghe and show her goodwill. This was a given. The reason for doing it in front of so many young ladies from prominent families was to spread the word about this matter, ideally reaching Princess Jing'an's ears as quickly as possible.

Even if Princess Jing'an doesn't completely consider her an ally or friend because of this incident, she at least gains some goodwill from it. Perhaps this goodwill will be enough to support Song Yun'er's subsequent plans.

When Song Yun'er saw that Princess Jing'an had actually come in person, with so many people, and rushed straight to Qinghe, her understanding of how much Princess Jing'an cared about Qinghe was refreshed once again.

That would be entirely beneficial to him, and even a better development direction than she dared to imagine.

There's a saying that goes, "love me, love my dog." While this incident won't necessarily forge a formal friendship between Song Yun'er, Qinghe, and Princess Jing'an, it will at least put Song Yun'er and Qinghe in a friendly relationship. Because Qinghe and Princess Jing'an are close and have a strong bond, Song Yun'er's chances of seeing Princess Jing'an will naturally increase.

Moreover, when Princess Jing'an sees Song Yun'er again in the future, even if she doesn't intentionally protect her, she will at least subconsciously be more friendly.

Some kindness may be small and insufficient to give Song Yun'er a voice in Lord Song's household. But this is a beginning.

Now that we've made a start, things will go more smoothly from here on out; everything is difficult at the beginning.

With this bit of friendliness, Song Yoon-ah had a chance to proceed. Without it, even if her plan wasn't brilliant, she probably wouldn't have been able to make an appearance.

Princess Jing'an stood before Qinghe, her calm eyes containing a series of cold, sharp knives that seemed to slice across the faces of every young lady present. With Princess Jing'an's unique majesty and aura, it was as if she were slowly torturing these young ladies.

That gaze alone was enough to silence the entire room.

Princess Jing'an's gaze finally fell on the embroidery beside her: "I've been quite bored in the palace lately, and then I heard that Hongxiuzhao is actually holding an embroidery appreciation event. It's quite a rare sight. I heard it was embroidered by Qinghe, so I brought my people out of the palace to see the world and join in the fun."

As she spoke, Princess Jing'an paused. Her gaze shifted from the embroidered figure to the assembled young ladies of noble families before her, finally settling on Jiang Qingge's face:

"Who knew that before I even stepped into Hongxiuzhao, I'd already witnessed such a spectacle! Quite a spectacle, one I rarely see even in the palace. A bunch of young ladies from noble families, boasting of their high birth, their supposed mastery of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, their supposed refinement, are chattering away like arguing old women at the East Gate market. I never knew you were so fond of gossiping behind people's backs—no, you're gossiping to their faces! I underestimated you before; I didn't realize you had such audacity and audacity. Now that I'm here, let's get this straight. Hongxiuzhao advertises itself as having embroidery praised even by the Empress Dowager. I'm here to confirm that there's no problem with that. Of course, if you have any doubts..." Or if you don't believe what I'm saying, you can go to the palace now and see my mother, and you'll understand. Wait, I forgot that you noble ladies aren't allowed to enter or leave the palace without imperial decree, right? Yes, yes, entering the palace without permission is tantamount to treason. Looking around, of all these people, only Qinghe can freely enter and leave the palace. Indeed, Qinghe is different from you, just as you say. She is indeed different. As for this embroidery, I quite like it. If you don't like it, you can sell it to me. Qinghe's embroidery is naturally excellent. Her previous double-sided Buddha image is still hanging in the main hall of Xiangguo Temple, receiving incense and worship. If anyone dislikes it, it's because they don't appreciate its value; after all, not everyone can see truly good things.”