Chapter 64 – Who Will Wear The Phoenix-Patterned Hairpin With Nine Strings Of Beads
“Mother-in-law, then I’ll leave with the two girls!” Lady Zhang saw that it was about the time and bid farewell to the Madam Dowager with a smile. The Madam Dowager agreed.
When the group arrived at the parking place, two carriages were already parked there. Lady Zhang looked at Wei Yan and Wei Yuewu and was about to let Wei Yuewu take the same carriage with her, when she heard Wei Yan saying, “Third Aunt, how about Sixth Younger Sister and I sharing a carriage and you riding the other one?”
Lady Zhang was surprised. The two of them fought like sworn enemies yesterday and now they were going to sit in the same carriage like friends. This seemed too strange to her. Nevertheless, she would not speak out such a thought. She smiled and nodded in agreement.
Wei Yuewu and Wei Yan got into the second carriage.
“Sixth Younger Sister, have a look at my hairpins. Are there any you think dazzling and beautiful? When we go to the palace, all the imperial consorts would like to see us dressed up in a bright and splendid fashion, and even more so since it is during the Spring Festival. It would be terrible if we offended some imperial consort just because we dress too plainly.”
Wei Yan looked like she was sincerely teaching Wei Yuewu. Hardly had Wei Yuewu sat down with Jin Ling when she started to earnestly instruct Wei Yuewu and asked Shuiyue to take out all the accessories.
In the large jewelry case, each piece was exquisite, but it was obvious that the phoenix-patterned hairpin laid on top was the most outstanding. It matched the hairpin on Wei Yan’s head.
At the exquisite mouth of the phoenix were raised up nine strings of beads in the shape of a fan. Each string was separated from the next one by a thin golden thread. The pearls were like water droplets falling on the hair.
The hairpin was very beautiful and eye-catching.
Wei Yan stretched out her hand and touched the phoenix-patterned hairpin. She raised her face and said to Wei Yuewu smilingly, “Sixth Younger Sister, pick this one. I’m wearing the same type. If we wear this pair, we’ll look both brilliant and sisterly.”
The phoenix-patterned hairpin with nine strings of beads?
Wei Yuewu’s eyes flashed with a trace of coldness. If she were really a girl from the countryside who was totally ignorant of the royal etiquette, she would definitely be deceived by Wei Yan.
However, although she kept a low profile under her granny’s instruction, her granny had personally taught her and repeated to her the rules of the palace over and over again. Her granny had even invited Nanny Xiu, a nurse who had retired from the palace, to teach her.
The lessons lasted for many years and Wei Yuewu learned very well. Therefore, she was very familiar with the rules in the palace.
If Wei Yuewu was not mistaken, the hairpin in front of her was a phoenix-patterned hairpin with a nine-branched tail.
Only the royal family in the palace was entitled to wear accessories with the phoenix pattern, let alone a phoenix-patterned hairpin with a nine-branched tail.
Nine represented ultra-high status. Only the Empress had the right to wear such a hairpin. Nevertheless, the hairpin Wei Yan presented to her was a complete phoenix-patterned hairpin with a nine-branched tail.
If Wei Yuewu really had the guts to wear it, needless to say, she would violate the rule and bring fatal consequences to herself because of it.
Wei Yuewu had already noticed the one on Wei Yan’s head, and so had the Madam Dowager and Lady Zhang. However, they had said nothing about it. That was partly because Wei Yan promised that she would put away the hairpin, and it also showed that her hairpin was not a genuine phoenix-patterned hairpin with a nine-branched tail.
Hers lacked a rice-sized small crown on the phoenix, the main body of the hairpin, so it could not be considered a real one. Yet, since the hairpin was really small, the rice-sized crown was not conspicuous. In fact, no one would notice the absence of the little crown when one looked at the shining phoenix-patterned hairpin.
However, the one Wei Yan handed over to her was a real one with all essential parts.
No wonder Wei Yan showed such kindness to her today and also wore one on her own head. Wei Yan wanted to divert her attention so that she would fall into her trap and choose this hairpin.
Wei Yuewu rolled her clear eyes but didn’t show any sign on her face. She took the hairpin from Wei Yan’s hand and smiled. “Thank you, Second Elder Sister. This hairpin is indeed beautiful. I’ll choose this one!”
Seeing that Wei Yuewu fell into the trap and even let her maid help her try on the hairpin, Wei Yan couldn’t help revealing a smug look. A trace of malice flashed across her face. It was to her surprise that her plan worked so easily. She succeeded in trapping Wei Yuewu without using other follow-ups. This was perfect, since it saved her a lot of trouble.
In order to achieve the purpose of this trip, she had actually prepared a lot of traps for Wei Yuewu…
“Sixth Younger Sister, put it away for the moment. You don’t have to look too eye-catching when you just arrive at the palace. We’ll have to redo our makeup before the banquet officially begins. When that time comes, we’ll wear them together, okay?” Wei Yan suggested smilingly as she saw Wei Yuewu was too fond of the hairpin in her hands to put it down.
She asked Shuiyue to help her take down her hairpin too and place it in a small brocade case. Shuiyue handed Jin Ling an identical box and helped Wei Yan put on another hairpin that was also gorgeous but much inferior.
“Thank you for your consideration, Second Elder Sister.” Wei Yuewu nodded and calmly handed the hairpin to Jin Ling. Her eyes were smiling, but she silently glanced at the brocade box in Shuiyue’s hand.
Jin Ling followed Wei Yuewu’s gaze and saw the box in Shuiyue’s hand as well. She nodded her head slightly and silently placed the box in her own hand to the right side because this position was relatively easier for her…
After spending this period of time together, the mistress and the maid were able to understand each other without verbal communication.
The carriage was quite spacious. Wei Yuewu and Wei Yan were sitting opposite to together. The two maids were sitting beside their mistresses but were a little far away from each other. They happened to be sitting face to face. It was almost impossible for Jin Ling to lean over without being noticed by Wei Yan and Shuiyue.
“Sixth Younger Sister, there are really no grudges between us. I was wrong about what happened in the past. I apologize to you, Sixth Younger Sister. In the future, you and I will remain good sisters and love each other. If I can be useful to you in the future, Sixth Younger Sister, just let me know. After all, we are siblings sharing the same surname. No matter what happens to Marquis Jing Yuan and me in the future, it won’t have anything to do with you.”
Wei Yan sighed, her expression becoming even more sincere, as if she was speaking from the bottom of her heart.
Let bygones be bygones? Wei Yuewu sneered in her heart. As long as she thought of how Qin Ruo was pierced through her heart by a sword and how tragically she died, Wei Yuewu would definitely not let them get away.
A trace of hostility flashed through her eyes. So many people lost their lives and left large patches of blood on the snow. Yet when Wei Yan spoke about it, it was nothing more than an insignificant episode in the past.
Since Wei Yuewu had to live in such an environment where the law of the jungle ruled, she wouldn’t be afraid or back out.
She fluttered her long eyelids to conceal the bloodthirsty coldness in her eyes.
When she raised her head again, she smiled gently and said, “Second Elder Sister, you are right.”
Actually, Wei Yuewu knew that Wei Yan was just putting on a show and she should cooperate so that people would see the young ladies of the mansion of Marquis Hua Yang were on friendly terms. This was beneficial to everyone.
The carriage suddenly jerked a little. Wei Yuewu had just finished her words and her body was slightly tilted to one side. Because of this jerk, she seemed to be unable to sit still. She subconsciously reached out to pull Wei Yan to stabilize herself.
Wei Yan did not see this coming. As her clothes were dragged by Wei Yuewu, her body fell to Wei Yuewu’s side. She couldn’t help but cry out in alarm. Shuiyue, who was beside her, hurriedly reached out to pull her.
Jin Ling, who was beside Wei Yuewu, also pounced forward in order to support Wei Yuewu. The two maids knocked into each other by accident so both of them failed to pull their mistresses back.
Wei Yuewu and Wei Yan fell down together. Fortunately, the floor of the carriage was covered with soft cushions. Although Wei Yuewu was pressed by Wei Yan, it was actually nothing.
“Miss, are you alright?” Jin Ling pulled away Shuiyue who bumped into her and squeezed herself through to help Wei Yuewu up. She also pulled Wei Yan up by the way. Shuiyue was not as strong as her, so she could only watch Jin Ling pulling the two mistresses up.
“I’m fine.” Wei Yuewu sat down again and touched her hands and feet. After saying to Jin Ling that she was fine, she turned to Wei Yan and said, “Second Elder Sister, are you alright? Did it hurt? Did you get injured?”
The two of them were going to the palace to attend a banquet. If they really got hurt, it would be troublesome. Wei Yan hurriedly touched her head and hands while she asked Shuiyue, “Is my hair messed up?”
“No, the hairstyle is fine. It’s not messed up.” Shuiyue also examined Wei Yan carefully. The two of them didn’t notice that the positions of the two maids had already been shifted. Shuiyue was now sitting beside Wei Yuewu, while Jin Ling was sitting beside Wei Yan.
Then Jin Ling returned to her own seat and pushed Shuiyue back to hers. She was perfectly calm during the entire process. Only Wei Yuewu, who had been paying attention to Jin Ling, noticed that Jin Ling had put away their jewelry case, while that pair of mistress and maid were totally focused on Wei Yan’s makeup. They didn’t notice this little move at all.
Seeing her mistress looking at her, Jin Ling nodded slightly at Wei Yuewu and smiled silently, which indicated that she had gotten it.
The carriage stopped at the entrance of the palace. Wei Yan and Wei Yuewu followed behind Lady Zhang and entered the gate of the Forbidden Area. Then they got on sedan chairs inside the entrance. Since the palace was too big, it would be difficult for the ladies and young ladies of those aristocratic families to arrive at their destination in a short while.
They rode three sedan chairs that were carried by imperial servants in the palace. Their maids followed by the side of the sedan chair into the palace.
The road was very quiet. This was Wei Yuewu’s first time to the palace. Nanny Xiu had told her about the palace and repeated to her the things she should pay attention to, so she knew that she should not say anything at this time. She did not know where the banquet would be held. It was said that the palace was large. She did not know how long she would have to sit in the sedan chair.
In fact, not long after they got on the road, the carriers stopped. Wei Yuewu got off the sedan chair by holding Jin Ling’s hand. She saw many noble ladies and beautiful young ladies from aristocratic families standing there with blank expressions. It looked like they didn’t know what was going on either.
The sedan chairs were neatly placed at the side.
Wei Yuewu frowned slightly: was it going to be different from the banquets of the past?
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