On the day of the Winter Solstice banquet, the main hall of the Jingyuan General's Mansion was brightly lit. Aloeswood incense drifted from a gilt beast-headed censer, mingling with the scent of wintersweet on the tables. Jiang Wan was dressed in the formal Di Yi embroidered with red gold given to her by Old Madam Lu. The golden rice-ear pattern along her skirt hem cast a soft sheen in the candlelight as she spoke with Liyue, until a maid came to announce: "Cousin-Aunt Wu of the Prince of Zhennan's Mansion has arrived."
Before the words had faded, a matron in a treasure-blue woven gold Di Yi stepped gracefully into the hall. A nine-phoenix golden crown adorned with Eastern pearls sat upon her head, emitting a soft tinkling sound with every step she took. Lu Jingyuan said in a low voice, "That is my mother's distant cousin. She spent her early years stationed in the south with her late husband's family and rarely returns to the capital."
Jiang Wan bowed in greeting, but Cousin-Aunt Wu looked her up and down, her gaze lingering on the Mandarin Duck Jade Bracelet on Jiang Wan's wrist. "This bracelet is quite unique. Was it a gift from the Heir of Jingyuan?" Pausing, she curved her lips into an ambiguous smile. "A noble daughter of the Marquis's Mansion is indeed precious. That girl in my household can't even bear to wear a silver bracelet."
Chapter 116