A new nanny named Xu arrived at Feihua Courtyard. She had a remarkably kind and generous face and was assigned to teach Pei You the proper rules and etiquette.
Pei You respectfully bowed to Nanny Xu and received a polite bow in return. She blinked her rounded apricot eyes with curiosity; this Nanny Xu seemed entirely different from Mother Du.
She was indeed very different. After spending a whole day learning etiquette under her guidance, Pei You did not receive a single stroke of the cane, and she thoroughly enjoyed her lunch. Nanny Xu always praised her with a pleasant smile: "My lady is doing wonderfully, you learned it all on the first try."
Pei You blushed with pride at the compliments and remained in high spirits all the way until evening, when it was time to attend the banquet.
As she stepped into the carriage, Pei You offered Chen Boyuan and Chang Wan an exceptionally standard and graceful curtsy.
"It seems you have made some progress after studying etiquette for two days."
Having received Chen Boyuan's approval, Pei You's eyes sparkled. She would study the new customs of the Capital diligently; perhaps by doing so, she could finally earn the recognition of her father and mother.
"She is only now learning what Xiner already knew as a child; learning quickly is only to be expected," Chang Wan remarked with indifference.
The little stars in Pei You's eyes instantly vanished. Yet everyone had previously told her that this etiquette was extremely difficult to learn and could not be mastered in a short time. Confusion clouded her mind for a moment as she climbed into the carriage.
She had always felt that the Marquis Manor's carriage was not very comfortable; even with the plush blankets laid inside, it could only be described as slightly better.
Carriages were not allowed to be driven into the imperial palace, so the party from Wangyuan Marquis Manor had to dismount at the gates and proceed on foot.
Noticing Pei You silently rubbing her lower back, Chen Yunxin smiled and spoke, "Is younger sister unaccustomed to walking? Having to enjoy the comforts of a carriage all of a sudden has made you rather delicate."
"My fiancée is entitled to ride in a palanquin carried by men if she so chooses."
A voice tinged with latent anger came from a sedan chair surrounded by sheer gauze. Just as Pei You felt the voice was vaguely familiar, she saw the members of the Marquis Manor bow deeply. "Greetings, Ninth Prince."
It turned out to be an old acquaintance she had met once before. Pei You bent down in a proper manner to prepare her greeting, only to be interrupted by Cheng Yunyin.
"Get in."
A maidservant stepped forward to lift the sheer gauze, inviting Pei You to enter. She hesitated for a moment, wondering whether she should leave the Marquis Manor's group.
"Get in quickly." Chen Boyuan respectfully cupped his hands toward the sedan chair while urging Pei You to hurry aboard. When had the Ninth Prince's notoriously foul temper ever allowed anyone to share his ride? It seemed that bringing Pei You back home had been a thoroughly correct decision.
Seeing her father's anxious expression, Pei You followed his instructions and boarded the palanquin.
Once inside, she saw Cheng Yunyin draped in a dark robe patterned with snake scales. Ignoring his gloomy and dangerous aura, Pei You curved her lips into a smile by way of greeting.
The palanquin moved forward, and through the thin gauze, Pei You watched the hazy shadows of the Marquis Manor's entourage fade away.
"A hundred liang of gold to cure my legs."
Pei You's eyes lit up. A hundred liang of gold! She was finally no longer the most useless child in the village! She was actually going to earn money from a prince.
Without the slightest hesitation upon receiving this confirmation, Pei You nodded directly. "Alright, no problem."
Her utter decisiveness took Cheng Yunyin aback. "If you cannot cure them, I will have your head chopped off and hung at the vegetable market for public display for three days."
Pei You looked at him calmly and blinked. He was just trying to scare her, wasn't he? But was such a minor illness really cause for that? Still, he was a prince, after all; Pei You decided she should probably feel scared.
So she shrank back slightly, her round eyes locking with Cheng Yunyin's. "I'm so scared."
Cheng Yunyin fell into a rare silence. Could she at least put some heart into her act? He rubbed his brow in irritation. If it weren't for the fact that after returning from Feiyi Workshop that day, he had consulted the estate physician only to receive the same verdict of incurability, he would never have pinned his hopes on this woman who seemed to possess no special skills whatsoever.
As Cheng Yunyin's gaze swept over Pei You's delicate and intelligent features, he mentally revised "possessing no special skills" to "possessing only her beauty."
Having finished her feigned "fright," Pei You straightened her small face and began taking his pulse with professional solemnity. Watching Pei You's expression gradually darken, Cheng Yunyin couldn't help but sneer, "If you tell me this is beyond medical help..."
"You didn't sleep last night, and you stayed in a freezing environment for an entire hour. Are you in that much of a hurry to die?" Pei You frowned, her pretty lips pressing into a thin line, her voice dropping into a rare tone of severity.
Never in his life had Cheng Yunyin been reprimanded in such a tone. Ordinarily, he would have had anyone showing such insubordination dragged out and punished. Yet everything Pei You said was entirely true; he really had spent the whole of last night by the cold pool.
Pei You calmly withdrew her hand, picked up a brush with her fair fingers, and began listing a medicinal prescription on the blank paper prepared on the table.
As she wrote the final character, a eunuch's sharp and melodious voice drifted in from outside the palanquin, "His Highness the Ninth Prince, we have arrived at the banquet hall."
Cheng Yunyin's wheelchair was parked right outside the palanquin. Fulu, the head eunuch who had come specifically to welcome the Ninth Prince, bowed low and waited, only to catch sight of a pale lotus-pink skirt within his field of vision.
"Might I ask if the people from Wangyuan Marquis Manor have entered?" asked a gentle, sweet female voice.
Fulu looked up to see a woman stepping down from the palanquin. She had actually ignored the Ninth Prince and gotten down directly! Looking closer at those naturally beautiful yet unfamiliar features, he figured this must be the true young lady whom the Wangyuan Marquis Manor had recently found and brought back.
Fulu weighed the situation in his mind and replied respectfully, "Replying to the young lady, the Marquis and his party have already entered the hall."
Pushing himself alongside Pei You with the help of his guards, Cheng Yunyin said, "If you do not wish to stay with the Wangyuan Marquis Manor, joining me is also an option."
Pei You raised an eyebrow slightly. "Are the dishes on your side better?"
Cheng Yunyin was momentarily stunned, the lingering gloom that perpetually shadowed his brow scattering quite a bit. "The banquet dishes are all set according to standard."
"Since the food is all the same anyway, why should I sit with you?" Still somewhat angry at her patient for maltreating himself, Pei You finished speaking on her own accord and turned to walk into the banquet hall.
Fulu hurriedly exchanged a glance with his adopted son, Qingping. The small and sharp-witted young eunuch trotted quickly to Pei You's side. "Young lady, this slave will show you the way."
The grand hall was resplendent with gold and jade, the wine vessels and bowls of exquisite craftsmanship. In the center of the hall, dancers in light pink dresses fluttered and spun, while the clinking of cups and goblets created a joyous festive atmosphere.
"This must be that younger sister your family has just recently found."
Pei You raised her eyes to see an elegant beauty dressed in a cross-collared cyan-and-white patterned long dress.
"It's her," Chen Yunxin said with a helpless expression. "She really shouldn't have been brought along, but she insisted... there was nothing we could do."
"Well, that's understandable. An opportunity to enter the palace is rare, so she naturally wants to come and broaden her horizons. It's just that there are many noble personages in the palace, and arriving late is hardly a good idea." The woman's smile failed to reach her eyes; although her deportment complied with every rule, she inexplicably made Pei You feel a hint of danger.
"Look at me, I was so busy talking I forgot to make introductions. Pei You, this is Shang Tinghuan, the daughter of the Censorate's Censor-in-Chief." Chen Yunxin took a sip of tea, set down her cup, and made the introduction.
Pei You smiled, her brows curving as she greeted, "Hello, Miss Shang."
Having been trained under his adoptive father Fulu for a long time, Qingping was naturally as shrewd as they came. Compared to the Shang family's young lady, currying favor with Miss Pei, who had gained the Ninth Prince's favor, was undoubtedly the much wiser choice.
"Miss Shang is mistaken. Miss Pei arrived in the company of His Highness the Ninth Prince, so she is certainly not late."
Seeing Shang Tinghuan's expression stiffen slightly, Chen Yunxin put on a stern face and scolded, "What kind of eunuch are you? Is it your place to speak?"
Qingping frequently walked in the imperial presence alongside his adoptive father Fulu. As the adopted son of the emperor's premier head eunuch, although he was a eunuch, he was usually treated with deference and respect by others; it was rare indeed for anyone to call him a eunuch right to his face.
With a smile that didn't reach his eyes, Qingping replied, "It is this slave who has disturbed the young ladies' refined mood."
Hearing this, Shang Tinghuan broke out in a cold sweat. Eunuchs were utterly cold-hearted and merciless, especially those who served directly before the emperor. One couldn't even find a way to properly serve them as masters, yet this idiot Chen Yunxin had actually gone ahead and offended one directly.
"What is Attendant Qingping saying? This humble girl was merely curious as to why Miss Pei did not arrive together with Miss Chen."
Even after hearing Shang Tinghuan's explanation, Qingping's smile remained unchanged while his eyes turned icy. "This slave's only purpose today was to obey His Highness the Ninth Prince's command to escort Miss Pei here." He turned, bowed with a smile toward Pei You, and said, "Please take your seat, my lady; this slave will take his leave. If you need anything at all, just send someone with a word."
Pei You didn't understand the complex intrigues between them, so she just smiled at Qingping and thanked him.
Qingping was taken aback. Ordinary people always regarded eunuchs as less than human; even if they humbled themselves before you on account of your status, behind your back they would hurl every kind of foul and filthy abuse. Someone like Pei You, possessing a pure heart and treating everyone with equal regard, was a rare sight indeed.
Unaware that she had just scored extra points in Qingping's estimation, Pei You calmly took her seat.
"For daughters of noble families, making a good match is merely the icing on the cake; one must have genuine capability of her own to stand firm. You cannot simply rely on a man's power to project false majesty, can you? Am I right, Miss Pei?" Shang Tinghuan fiddled with her fingernail guards and spoke with casual indifference.