116 No-Makeup Makeup Part I
“Miss ‘Fan Lu’ has light red magic. Her specialty is guqin, especially songs with a fast tempo. She is talkative and cheerful but never loses her manners.” Xiao Chang reported while Bai Yu was in her carriage heading to Zhaocaijinbao, where today’s competition was held.
“Because she’s young, people praise her and compare her to you in your first year of competition, miss.” Xiao Xi skewed her lips.
“I remember that she was a top spender at the anonymous master’s shop.” She slightly opened up the curtain and took a peek at the bustling atmosphere outside.
“That’s right. During the competition, she was dressed so beautifully. And she often wears dark blue dresses, so people keep comparing her to you, miss.”
Bai Yu smiled. “Is it true that she is beautiful despite her age of fifteen?”
“Everyone in the audience agreed, miss.”
Today, Bai Yu wore an all-white dress. Xiao Xi was frustrated by her lack of color, and especially after hearing that the opponent was wearing a dark blue dress as if she was trying to own the color. Furthermore, that woman was not only skilled at seven-strings guqin, but her guqin was also a gift from the Empress.
Some said that this woman named ‘Lu’ from the Fan family was born to replace Miss Bai Yu as the new Meihua Lady. After keeping a low profile for a long time, she finally appeared in public for the competition.
Everyone knew that the main branch of the Wang family had no daughters. The secondary branch had one woman of eligible age, Wang Meili, who had married into the Rui Wang palace as a concubine. Bai Yu assumed that the Empress, who came from the Wang family, had expected to use Wang Meili to pull Ouyang Feilong to their side.
.....
It was as unsuccessful as her attempt to let Bai Yu marry into the Eastern Palace. This time, Empress Wang seemed to be trying to ‘create’ another number one beauty to replace Bai Yu to benefit her son, Taizi, who was being overshadowed by Ouyang Mingxian.
‘Fan Lu’ was the eldest daughter of the Fan family, the family of royal teachers that had been by the side of the Da Yang dynasty for many generations. Her grandfather was the current Emperor’s teacher. Her father, the head of the Fan family, was a friend of the Emperor and also a teacher for almost every prince of this generation. In terms of authority and power, Bai Yu could not afford to underestimate her. But in terms of birth, Fan Lu’s mother was a Laowai woman, so Bai Yu was still a step higher than her.
Fan Lu was rumored to be a sickly child who could not go outside much. She was born noble, yet unfortunate. She could only remain cooped up in her room, spending most of the time being sick. The Empress doted on her to quite a degree, as her father was Ouyang Yongxian’s father. It seemed that her doting had increased over the years without anyone noticing.
The information about Fan Lu that she had received was not in the series. If she had acted as the original Bai Yu would have in the original storyline, then Fan Lu would not have been pulled into this vicious circle.
The name ‘Yu’ and ‘Lu’ were similar in their meanings. What a laughably beautiful and lofty name.
“Welcome, Miss Bai.” The owner came to greet her under the gaze of both the inn’s guests and the people outside. Bai Yu smiled politely but said nothing. She only nodded in response before heading in the direction the owner gestured.
The slender figure in pure white was especially eye-catching today. Her reputation alone was already remarkable, but her appearance was even more so. It was not because of her serenity, but her image as a whole that resembled a goddess, heavenly and out of reach.
The calmness and elegance of the beauty wearing a dark blue dress were instantly eclipsed by the beauty who invoked a sense of protectiveness in everyone that laid eyes on her. Her face seemed bare, not painted on with any kind of cosmetics. A pair of captivating phoenix eyes, pink lips untouched by rouge, ruddy cheeks, and clear white skin. The dimples that appeared when she broke into a smile drew both the gazes and the hearts closer, making the beholders fall in love.
In her hair was a white jade hairpin with strings decorated with small butterflies made from white jade. When she moved, the strings swayed and the butterflies fluttered along with her steps. The Meihua Lady of three years had a simple hairstyle, not too meticulous, but also not careless. When she stopped in front of her opponent, her ethereal beauty was even more apparent.
“Greetings from Fan Lu to Bai Yu jiejie.” Fan Lu curtsied to greet her. The twelve-piece hair accessory set ‘Meihua in Winter’ collided and created soft chimes. She finally lifted her face after bowing to show respect to Bai Yu, who was older than her.
“It’s been a while. You have ‘grown’ so much, Lu-er.” The old Bai Yu had paid her two visits to her mansion. This girl was gaunt and pale at the time.
However, she had now matured and developed the curves of a woman. Her face was painted and drawn with cosmetics in the style that was popular among other noble ladies. Her black hair was pinned half up and set in a tall style in order to accommodate all the accessories from the anonymous master’s shop. Bai Yu had designed the set herself, and it was the only one in the world.
At a glance, this girl was impeccable. She had beauty, manners, and a charming smile. However, her eyes were calm, too calm and refined for her age...
Bai Yu smiled, showing her dimples once again. The audience was momentarily questioned whether who was younger.
Fan Lu’s main strength was the ability that belied her young age. Today, Bai Yu used that strength and turned it into her weakness. She was not sure whether the word ‘precocious’ would suit this girl the best or not.
Luckily, no one was trying to make Bai Yu seem more ‘mature’ when she first participated in the competition like how she was doing to Fan Lu right now. Bai Yu was confident that, even though she was eighteen, she still had youthfulness that she could take advantage of. Combined with simple clothing and ‘no makeup makeup’ technique from her old life, Bai Yu was sure she could win.
The judging for the title of Meihua Lady was not limited to within the performance stage. It had already started the moment she stepped out of her mansion.
“You look much younger today, Miss Bai.” Xu Peipei, who was already there to spectate, commented, further emphasizing the difference between the two competitors within the audience’s minds.
“Really?” Bai Yu tilted her head, then touched her face with a shy look. “I overslept, so I did not have time to get dressed. It’s embarrassing. I’ve left the mansion without putting anything on my face.”
“You’ll lose from the start if you’re not as dedicated to preparing yourself as Miss Fan.” Xu Peipei said it as if she was mocking Bai Yu, though Fan Lu ended up being the person whose smile stiffened.
“By dressing up so beautifully as this, you already have the upper hand. I’ll bet on your side.” Xu Peipei smiled at the beauty in the dark blue garment before moving to the seat she had reserved for the final round.
“Jiejie has embarrassed herself today.” Bai Yu gave a shy smile. The crowd sucked in a breath, trying to control their rising heartbeats. It was such a rare opportunity to be able to see a noble beauty acting shy in front of them.
“No, no, it’s meimei who has to ask Bai Yu jiejie to go easy.” She smiled and slightly bowed her head to Bai Yu. This girl could still remain perfectly calm despite being shaken by Xu Peipei’s ambiguous words.
“Don’t be too humble...” Bai Yu smiled before turning her gaze to the man she had asked to come today. She slowly curtsied. “Blessings to Wei Wang.”
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