Chapter 521 - Twists and Turns
Also, who was this Feudal Princess Jinan that they kept talking about? Didn’t they say that the Imperial Plantation was completely managed by the lass, Yu Xiaocao? Did she give the back mountains to Feudal Princess Jinan to plant fruit trees?
“That uh...this Older Sister, forgive me for interrupting. I truly admire this Feudal Princess Jinan you’re talking about, but would you happen to know who she is? Is she here today?” Wu Junling had been silently listening for a bit and finally found a chance to ask some questions.
The noble maiden she had asked the question to was the daughter of the fourth-ranked assistant official in the office in charge of the crown prince’s affairs. That girl gave her a side-long glance full of contempt and let out a cold laugh before she replied, “You don’t even recognize Feudal Princess Jinan, eh? You must be new to the capital, right?”
Wu Junling had never endured such poor treatment before. However, at this entire table, she was the one with the lowest rank out of all of the maidens. Thus, she could only grit her teeth while keeping a smile on her face as she said, “Older Sister’s observational skills are very good. This younger sister has only been in the capital for a few months and there are many people that I’m unfamiliar with!”
“No wonder!” The daughter of the assistant official had an air of conferring a great favor as she pointed towards the main table and said, “Do you see that table? The person who’s wearing the light pink qi-style attire is Feudal Princess Jinan. The emperor personally titled her.”
Following that, she ignored the alarmed Wu Junling and continued to chat about the previous topic with her good friends, “A few days ago, plums entered the market. Have any of you had the chance to try any? In the past, I hated eating plums the most. I always felt like they were incredibly sour fruits but the plums grown on the back mountains of the Imperial Plantation have a sweet and fresh taste. They don’t even have a hint of acidity in them. I could probably eat three to four of them in one sitting! Unfortunately, it’s very hard to buy them. Eating only a little bit isn’t enough to satisfy my cravings!”
Another young maiden interjected, “Isn’t that right. If only during that flower war banquet, when Feudal Princess Jinan was being dismissed, I had come out and spoken up for her, wouldn’t that mean I would be one of the people by her side right now?”
“Stop dreaming! Haven’t you looked at the people interacting with Feudal Princess Jinan now? Which one of them isn’t the daughter of a first-ranked official at court? The feudal princess looks down upon lower-ranked people like us!” This young maiden, who was commenting sourly, had noticed that as soon as she finished speaking, the other young maidens around the table, other than the country bumpkin, were regarding her with eyes wide with shock. The two girls who were sitting next to her had even scooted their chairs away from her and had an expression on their faces that showed that they didn't want to interact with her.
After she figured out just what she had said, she hurriedly tried to explain, “I didn’t mean it that way, I...I was trying to say that Feudal Princess Jinan is a feudal princess that the emperor had personally titled. She’s talented beyond measure and thus attracts people of the same standing. Those who are able to become friends with her are only the noble ladies whose fathers are grand first-ranked officials or the relatives of the imperial family...I wasn’t trying to imply earlier that she only toadys to the powerful…” The last sentence was spoken in almost a half sob and this girl’s face had turned white from fear.
The other young maidens all acted differently. Some lowered their heads, pretending to drink tea. There were some who picked up a few sweet grapes from the plate to eat. Some looked out the windows as if they were admiring the beautiful scenery in the courtyard...none of them wanted to talk to that girl as if they were afraid a particular someone would misunderstand and think that they agreed with this young lady. Last year, during the flower war banquet, Li Meirou had gotten into conflict with Miss Yu. Now, no one knew what godforsaken corner she had been sent to. Furthermore, they all knew the astonishing ending of the Li Family...all of the young maidens shuddered for a second. The table they were sitting at suddenly fell silent.
