Chapter 440 - Misunderstanding (1/2)
The day before the flower war banquet, Zhu Junyang, who usually couldn’t be found, had finally appeared for some reason. The little lass looked like she had grown taller again and was now at the height of his chest. He was worried about her and reminded her, “Lass, if anyone tries to bully you, don’t keep it inside of you. Come back and tell me…” After not seeing the young royal prince for over a month, the only thought Yu Xiaocao had going through her head now was——this fellow is even more bewitching now! She didn’t dare to look deeply into that pair of alluring phoenix eyes as she was afraid that, if she wasn’t careful, she might get lost in their depths. Someone needed to take this guy down a notch because otherwise he was going to harm everyone else!
When she heard this, Xiaocao, who was somewhat lost in her thoughts, burst out into laughter. She lifted her tiny head and looked at that devilishly handsome face and said, “Why do I need to tell you? Are you going to beat them up?”
Zhu Junyang was speechless for a second and then coldly huffed, “Although I don’t hit women, these girls do have brothers you know…”
Yu Xiaocao silently gave a moment of silence to the brothers of the maidens who were planning on making things difficult for her. She then faintly smiled, “In actuality, you don’t have to go through so much trouble. We just won’t allow the families of those who are stupid enough to try to bully me to buy vegetables or fruits then. In any case, if she looks down on my background as a farmer, then she shouldn’t be eating fruits and vegetables grown by this farmer’s daughter, right? As for next year’s fruit and watermelon harvest, we also won’t sell it to them. When the canned and jarred fruits come out, we won’t sell those to them either!”
Wasn’t the reason why those people looked down upon her because they came from wealthy and powerful families? However, if they had the money but were still unable to buy popular goods, would they still believe that they were better than others?
Apparently his little lass wasn’t a little white bunny who was easily bullied by others. Instead, she was a tiny cat who hid her sharp claws until she needed them. Usually she looked quite gentle, obedient and adorable. However, whenever she was unhappy, she would reveal those claws and leave a bloody mark on you that you could never forget!
Zhu Junyang, who had been escorted to the gate of the outer courtyard, helped Xiaocao by pulling her cloak and furry little hat into place. He smiled, “Recently I haven’t spent much time with you. When winter is in full swing, I’ll have more time to spend with you. Whoever tries to bully you, remember them and tell me. I will make sure to get them all back for you!”
In actuality, for the past month or so, Xiaocao had been even more busy than Royal Prince Yang. She was the only one in charge of the vegetable stand in Tanggu and also was in the midst of managing the pharmaceutical factory’s new products. Recently, Tongren Medicine Hall came up with a few new pills for nurturing the body, which were the masterpieces of her work from the past month. So...the young royal prince didn’t have to be concerned about Xiaocao pining for him. In fact, she was too busy to even think about him!
The next day, early in the morning, Yu Xiaocao changed into the set of Qi-style clothing that Older Sister Siniang had personally designed and sewn for her. Her hair was combed into a pair of cute flower buns with two side braids that were expertly arranged on her head to make it look like she had two elegant flowers on her head. The buns were decorated throughout with hair pins encrusted with pink pearls. The remaining lower layers of hair were combed into small braids to swing at the front of her chest. It made her look younger by about two years and she looked especially adorable and unique.
When Xiaocao entered the inner courtyard of the Duke Zhenguo’s estate, countless pairs of curious eyes looked at her from head to toe. She was dressed in a simple and elegant Qi-style dress that was a light pink. Her white sleeves resembled the petals of lilies as they had two to three layers. She wore a rose red outer short coat that was dotted with clouds embroidered with gold and the collar was embroidered with icy white lotuses in full bloom. To combat the cold of the winter, the collars and cuffs of her clothing all had puffs of white fur lining it, which looked very cute. On closer look, the pleated skirt on her dress had artful layers that were colored a rosy-pink. It contrasted very elegantly with the icy white lotuses and harmonized perfectly.
One of the maidens there, who had sharp eyes, had noticed that this girl’s clothing had a tell-tale seal on it. She was incredibly surprised. This set of clothing was clearly the handicraft of Jiang’s Exquisite Garments. In fact, it had to be made by the owner of the shop herself and was a brand new style. The clothing not only broke through the previous conventions of how dresses should be styled but also showed a brand new design. It was truly a stunning piece of work.
The young maidens who had arrived at the gathering early all looked at this strange little face that had skin as transparent and luminous as jade. They were all trying to guess who she was. Which family’s young miss was fortunate enough to catch the eye of Modiste Jiang and be able to show off her new work in this type of setting?
“Oh ho! Which family are you from, little sister? You don’t look familiar to me. Is this the first time you’re attending a gathering with us fellow sisters ah?” Royal Princess Minglan couldn’t help but smile and stand up when she saw this unfamiliar, adorable little girl. She was previously sitting next to He Wanning, who was a beauty and had a personality that complimented with hers.
Lady Fang was a bit worried about her daughter attending such a party, so she had Linglong accompany Xiaocao. The maid quietly reminded her and Yu Xiaocao hurriedly placed her delicate white hands on her abdomen and bowed a greeting. She used a dulcet voice as sweet as a skylark to reply, “I am Yu Xiaocao. Greetings to Royal Princess Minglan and the other older sisters here.”
Yu Xiaocao? Who was that? When the unfamiliar little girl said her name, everyone had a confused look on their faces. There was only one official that was surnamed ‘Yu’ [1] in the capital. He had just taken up a position last year at the Ministry of Appointments and was the Left Assistant Minister, Yu Yonghe. It was said that his younger daughter was around ten years old. Was this little girl in front of them his daughter? The daughter of the Right Assistant Minister at the Ministry of Appointments, Li Meirou, smiled as she walked over. She intimately pulled on Xiaocao’s hand and used a familiar tone of voice to address her, “So it’s the little sister from the Yu Family ah! I have long wanted to meet you and wished to invite you to my family as a guest. However, your honored mother always said that your health wasn’t good, so you couldn’t leave the residence. From what I see today, you must be feeling better, right?”
Xiaocao had a more weak and delicate looking body. The Qi-style clothing cinched in at the waist, which made her seem even more dainty and ethereal. In addition, with her slightly bony chin and a large pair of eyes that seemed to overwhelm her face, it made her egg-shaped face seem even smaller. Luckily, her pale skin had a rosy glow to it. Otherwise, it would really look like she had just recovered from a great illness!
“Young Miss, she is Miss Li, the daughter of the Right Assistant Minister at the Ministry of Appointments.” Although Linglong was a bit perplexed at the other girl’s enthusiasm, she didn’t forget her status and made sure to remind her young miss.
This...type of attitude didn’t seem quite right! Why was she pretending to be on familiar terms with her? Was this some type of trap? Despite her doubts, Yu Xiaocao didn’t show any of her confusion on her face and instead revealed a sweet smile as she politely replied, “Many thanks, Miss Li, for your kind thoughts.”
“It’s what I should do!” Li Meirou pulled on Xiaocao’s tiny hand and waved gracefully at the group of young maidens as she said, “Come, Older Sister will introduce you to a few good sisters to let you become familiar with them.”
Everyone who she met in the warm room had revealed a kind smile at her. Although they were not as warm in attitude to her as the young miss from the assistant minister’s family, they also weren't cold.