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  Chapter 24

  Miss Fangs third daughter, refers to Fang Yuke, the eldest daughter of Duke Anguo, Fang Jinyan.

  The second lady of Yongning Marquiss manor, Lady Jian, had been busy since last December with the marriage of tenth young miss Ming Hui. Originally, she wanted to make a good match by marrying her daughter to the son of the Duke of Dongping, but after visiting the Wang manor several times, the old dowager refused to help, and the duchess also avoided talking about it. Lady Jian was an extremely astute person, knowing that she couldnt reach for the dukes son, so she didnt waste any more time at the Duke of Dongpings manor, instead turning her attention to the Manor of the Duke of Anguo.

  The third son of the An Guo Gong Fu is a legitimate child and is fifteen years old this year. He has also reached the age for marriage talks.

  Jian Shi went to the mansion of Fu Chun Hou and spoke with him. The third son is not the eldest, and will not inherit the title in the future. Ming Yu is already a good match for him in terms of status. Moreover, the second branch of the Gu family has wealth, and Ming Yus dowry is generous. She also has an older sister who is the wife of the crown prince of the junwang. After hearing this, An Guo Gong was somewhat moved.

  Jians family was too clever and calculating, and they were also somewhat stingy, so they didnt get along well with the other noblewomen in Shengjing. Therefore, although Mrs. Anguo was tempted by this marriage proposal, she still had some doubts and hadnt given a clear answer yet.

  But all these were done in private, how would Ronger know?

  Ming Xuans face suddenly didnt look too good, if she had been in her usual temper, she would have made a big fuss, but thinking that Fang Jinyan was inside, if she had made a scene, she would have startled Mrs. Anguo, so she could only swallow her anger, with a sullen face, and silently followed Huan sister and Ming Xuan into the house.

  She cant afford to act rashly. Before she left, Minghe had solemnly told her that among the many men waiting to be married in Shengjing City, it would be hard to find a better family than the Anguo Gongfu, and Fang San was not only talented but also had a good reputation, and he would be able to make a name for himself in the future. This marriage cannot be messed up, otherwise, even Mingwu would be able to trample her underfoot.

  Ming Ru didnt know that Yuanyus mother and the wife of Prince An were both from the Linchuan Yu family, they were close relatives and cousins, and both married into the capital city. Over the past twenty years, they relied on each other for support, their feelings for each other far surpassed those of biological sisters. When the princes wife encountered a difficult decision, she came to the auxiliary mansion to seek her sisters advice, because Yuanyu was steady and calm in handling matters, so she didnt deliberately pressure her.

  If she werent afraid that Ming Yu would unjustly ruin Ming Xuans good fortune, Yuan Jie wouldnt have warned her about such a thing.

  Ming Xuan followed Yinger into the house, Fang Jinyan stood up with a smile, and Ronger and Ruer hurriedly came out to greet her, calling out in unison, "Sister Xuan." These three had met on the 18th of December at Old Lady Zhus birthday celebration, although they hadnt spent much time together, but because their personalities clicked, and with Yinger actively playing matchmaker, this reunion didnt feel strange at all.

  There were also three girls who looked unfamiliar, of different ages, but all resembled Madame Fu Guo.

  Ming Xuan secretly made an educated guess that the girls father had two concubines, but it was said that they had no children. The older brother and younger brother were all born to Madame Yu, so it seemed that she should be the daughter of the third or fourth branch of the Zhu family. In the Zhu family, although there was a distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children, they were all cousins to her. Since she didnt know what to call them, she could only respond with a kind smile.

  Yuans sister saw the situation and knew that Ming Xuan had forgotten again, so she smiled and introduced the girls, "Third Uncles Yu Bing, Fourth Uncles Yu Yan and Yu Ting."

  Ming Xuan and the others exchanged greetings, then heard Yuanyu say, "Originally, we also invited the third and fifth misses of the Zhongshun Marquiss manor, but today they have a banquet at their place, so they cant come. Well just have to entertain ourselves. I dont have much here, just some small trinkets brought back from Ningzhou Prefecture. There are those wooden puppets that move on strings, bamboo whistles, and nine linked rings. Sisters, take whatever you want to play with."

  These things are not rare in the Jiangnan folk, but they are rarely seen among the Shengjing nobles. Everyone thinks its novel and fun. Some people play with linked rings, some play with wooden puppets, even Mingyu, who is usually proud, is playing with a hanging tiger toy. The atmosphere in the house is excellent for a while, and everyone starts chatting and laughing with each other. After playing for a while, Fang Jin-yuan suddenly heard that Mingyu is good at poetry, and he got excited and wanted to start a poetry club on the spot, to compose poems together.

  At that time, the birthday banquet of the noble ladies in Shengjing City was nothing more than inviting some sisters who had been friends for a long time to come home. They would either play liubo, throw dice, pass on orders and beat drums, or play chess against each other, or recite poems and appreciate paintings. Except for Ming Huan, the sisters present were probably all good at composing poetry, and upon hearing this suggestion, they all thought it was a great idea. Sister Jia had already sent someone to fetch pen, ink, paper, and inkstone, and she was rubbing her fists and palms together, having already been brewing up ideas in her mind.

  Yuans sister saw this and took a glance at the red silk handkerchief on her body, not long after, the red silk came back to nod to her.

  She smiled and said, "If were going to have a poetry contest, there should be some rules. Whats the topic, whats the prize for the winner, and whats the punishment for the worst one? Since today is my birthday, Ill take charge this time. Theres a plum blossom forest behind my brothers house, and the plum blossoms are in full bloom now, so lets make plum blossoms the topic."

  Fang Jinyan applauded and praised, "Plum blossoms are the gentlemen of flowers. Many have written poems about them, but its hard to come up with new ideas. Sister Yuanyuan has set a good topic, lets go with that!"

  Yans sister slightly raised the corner of her mouth, "In order to be fair, lets wait for my sisters to finish their poems without signing their names. Ill have someone send our poems over and ask my older brother to evaluate them and decide which one is the best and which one is the worst. The best one will receive a generous reward, and she can choose several of these trinkets to take home. As for the worst one, she will have to accept some punishment. How about this: as punishment, shell have to give each sister in the house a handmade purse, to be completed within a month?"

  Embroidering a purse with ones own hands doesnt count for much, the difficulty lies in having many people in the house, if it is to be completed within a month, then some thought and time must be spent on it. This punishment was neither light nor heavy, everyone nodded in agreement, even Mingyu had no objections.

  Yuan Jie smiled and pulled Ming Xuans hand, saying, "It is often said that the plum tree in front of the Yu Ge Pavilion is a top-grade one. Now I will let you see what a truly good plum looks like. Lets go pick a few branches of the best-looking ones and bring them over to our sisters as a reference, how about it?"

  Ming Xuans heart skipped a beat, and she knew that Yan Qingye had arrived. Her sister had found an excuse to bring herself out. She was aware of the reason behind it and was looking forward to seeing Yan Gongzi, so she wouldnt miss this opportunity.

  She nodded slightly tensely, "Okay."

  Yuans sister pulled Ming Xuan to the door, then suddenly turned her head and smiled, saying, "If anyone else wants to go together, come over. If not, just sit here and brew your poetic feelings. Later, Ill send someone to inform Grandma, maybe there will be other surprises."

  The Zhu sisters, who saw each other every day, didnt think it was unusual. Fang Jinyan often came to the Auxiliary Country Dukes mansion to play and didnt pay attention to that patch of plum blossoms either. Meizi had intended to follow along, but she had just quarreled with Mingxuan and Yuansister when they entered, so she felt a bit embarrassed and didnt dare speak up. Seeing them all concentrating on thinking, as if competing for the top prize, her competitive spirit arose, and she wanted to show off her talent in front of Fang Jinyan, so she also took some paper money and started writing.

  Ming Xuan followed Yan Jie out of Ning Xin Garden and said hesitantly, "Is this alright?"

  "Sister, whats wrong with that? Times have changed, it wasnt like twenty years ago when marriages were all arranged without the couple even meeting. Before discussing marriage, we should first look at each others character and appearance. Although its not a hard and fast rule, its become an unwritten agreement. We may be girls, but fortunately, we were born into a noble family and grew up with wealth and status. This marriage is a big deal for our whole lives, so even if the families are compatible, we should at least find each other acceptable, dont you think?"

  She lowered her voice and said, "To be honest, when I saw that person at the time, the scene was much more complicated."

  Yuan Jie had been betrothed last year to Meng Guangting, the second son of the Zhongshun Marquiss manor.

  Ming Xuan felt relieved when she heard the words. According to her impression from her past life, she thought that this kind of behavior was contrary to the values of ancient people. Although she also wanted to see Yan Qingyes appearance and temperament, she was hesitant because of her rural background. When it really came time to go see him, she felt it wasnt appropriate, fearing that her rash actions would make Yan Gongzi feel abrupt and dislike her as a result. After careful consideration, Ming Xuan thought that she was very satisfied with the marriage arrangement with the Yan family, and her willingness to get married wouldnt change because of Yan Qingyes appearance, so there was no need for her to see what he looked like.

  Fortunately, although womens status was subordinate to their families and fathers, brothers, and husbands, noblewomen had relatively more rights of choice.

  The eldest son of the auxiliary king, Zhu Zichun, lived in Qinglangyuan, not far from Ningxiang Garden. Ming Xuan followed her sister and took a shortcut to get there quickly. In no time, they arrived at the plum blossom forest. Because of the dense planting, it looked like a pink flower sea from afar. The plum blossoms were proudly blooming in the cold weather, with dark branches stretching upwards, having both elegance and a hint of charm amidst their cool beauty, truly a wonderful sight.

  Yuan Jie pointed to the servant girl, who cut off a plum branch. "Select some good ones and send them to Old Madame, the young masters wife, and each of the aunties and sisters-in-laws rooms."

  She said as she jumped and dodged into the plum forest, but in an instant she had already gone deep inside.

  Ming Xuan heard a silvery laughter coming from the forest, and called out in a tense yet somewhat helpless tone, "Yuan Jie, wait for me!"

  The tension was because she didnt know when Yan Qingye would appear, or in what way he would appear. She hadnt asked Yinger clearly, and didnt know how to react for the time being. Should she follow Yinger into the plum forest, or stand obediently here and wait? The helplessness was because Yinger, who had always been a steady and reliable person, hadnt explained anything to her, but instead left her behind and ran off...

  Ming Xuan didnt know what to do, so she stared at the plum tree in front of her, looking up along the clear and fragrant branch. She happened to find a beautiful plum branch with elegant posture and blooming flowers. Her heart was delighted, and she couldnt help but tiptoe to pick it, but the branch was too high, and she wasnt tall enough. She stretched out her hand twice, but still couldnt reach it.

  She sighed softly and then somewhat regretfully withdrew her hand.

  At this time, someone suddenly approached from behind, and the person had a faint ink fragrance on their body. He raised his hand to break off the plum branch and handed it over, his voice clear and pleasant, like a sweet spring: "Do you want this branch?"

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