Chapter 270 - The Season of Eating Crabs

All people at the imperial court focused their attention on the case in Qingzhou currently, while what the women in the imperial capital cared about recently was the marriage of Yuan Xuepei and Jiang Muting.

As they agreed to get married on Cuihua Mountain, the two families started the official process after returning to the imperial capital. Yuan Xue’e didn’t go to Cuihua Mountain to avoid summer heat this year but lived in the manor with her husband because Lu Guanlun was in poor health these days and the doctor advised them not to move.

Now hearing that her legitimate elder brother would get married, she naturally came back to help as Lu Guanlun was not so sick that she couldn’t leave.

As soon as she saw Song Yixiao, she complained, “You said that you take me as a sister, but you informed me of such a big event only before the six ceremonies of betrothal and marriage. You didn’t tell me any information earlier. It’s a pity that I trust you so much.”

“You wronged me,” Song Yixiao responded hurriedly. “You also know that the Yuan Family and the Jiang Family have different political views. In the beginning, even Marquis Yuan didn’t think that he would marry Muting. Although I found something unusual, how would I dare to speak randomly before they decided? How should I explain if the news spread?”

Then she told the half-truth. “Moreover, you have married Master Guanlun then and moved to the manor with him. We just see each other now and told the servants to send messages in the past. How can I rest assured to let the servants tell you something like this?”

Yuan Xue’e wasn’t really mad at her, but she just thought that it happened all of a sudden and she was surprised and at a loss for what to do. She didn’t ask more after hearing the explanation and just whispered in Song Yixiao’s ear, “I have heard that Muting loves my brother. Is it true?”

Then she sighed before Song Yixiao answered. “I have known Muting since childhood, and I am happy that she will be my sister-in-law, while you also know that my brother’s leg…I am his sister, and of course I can do nothing but feel sad for him after something like this happened to him. However, Muting will be his wife. What if she regrets in the future…”

“You worry too much.” Hearing that, Song Yixiao comforted her. “Think about it. Marquis Yuan’s leg is not a secret. How would Muting not know that? Moreover, the Jiang Family love their daughter all the time and must have confirmed with her several times before agreeing to the marriage. If Muting is unwilling, perhaps her family wouldn’t have agreed so soon.”

Yuan Xue’e was not on Cuihua Mountain then but in the manor, in the countryside, so she was certainly unclear about what happened when they were at the summer resort, and she didn’t know that in fact, the marriage of Yuan Xuepei and Jiang Muting had reached a point of no return.

Hearing Song Yixiao’s words, Yuan Xue’e thought it was true, so she was not worried anymore. Then she excitedly discussed with Song Yixiao how to properly arrange her brother’s wedding and make it bustling.

Song Yixiao gave her advice randomly and pondered in secret. “Xue’e didn’t talk about the dowager consort’s trousseau, so it can be seen that Yuan Xuepei is reliable. He really gave all to Master Guanlun and even kept it from Xue’e?”

She didn’t suspect that Yuan Xuepei would pocket the fifty thousand taels of silver. After all, since he wanted to start with Zhiqin’s marriage and make peace with her, it could be seen that he was a sensible man and knew the general situation. Anyway, he was a hereditary marquis and didn’t plan to be reckless in desperation as he couldn’t live on. How would he do something short-sighted like this?

Now since Yuan Xue’e didn’t mention the trousseau of Dowager Consort of Hengshan, Song Yixiao understood that probably she didn’t know it.

“I almost forget it.” After they talked about Yuan Xuepei’s marriage, Yuan Xue’e suddenly thought of something and told somebody to take out a tiny sanders box from her luggage. Then she added with a smile, “I have heard that you are pregnant, so I found it out. Check it. Can it match my future nephew or niece?”

Song Yixiao knew that it would be given to the baby in her womb, so she didn’t refuse but received it. Then she opened it and found that it was a pair of cicada-shaped jade pendants. The quality of the jade was excellent, and it brightened the box inside. After it was taken out, it was more glittering and translucent obviously, and it was rare that it was warm and soft in hands. It was not big, yet it was absolutely priceless.

“It’s too valuable!” Song Yixiao stated involuntarily after seeing it.

“What are you talking about? When I got married, you gave me a pair of blood jade pendants, and I accepted them without saying anything.” Yuan Xue’e pretended to be angry. “If you say that, I will get mad.”

Song Yixiao smiled and put the jade pendants back in the box. She didn’t give it to the maid but put it in her pocket. “I just said that. I didn’t say that I wouldn’t accept them. Even if you regret and want to take them back, I won’t agree.”

Yuan Xue’e beat her with a smile. “That’s right.”

They talked happily for a while. Song Yixiao found that it was late, so she said goodbye.

“Madam, this was sent from the imperial palace.” As soon as she went to the backyard after returning home, Liyu who was left at home reported, “The visitor also brought two bottles of Fragrans Liquid and said that the Empress Dowager gave it to you.”

“I am moved as the Empress Dowager loves me so much.” Song Yixiao knew that because of her husband and their unborn baby, the Empress Dowager cared about her, but she didn’t feel resentful. She spoke civilities and then received a letter from Liyu. She opened it and found that it was an invitation to the banquet on Mid-Autumn Festival. “Take out the new clothes which were made in the past. I will have a try, in case that I will be a laughingstock if they are not fit for me.”

When she told somebody to make new clothes, she hadn’t expected that she would get pregnant. Although her belly was not prominent as she was pregnant for less than four months, she felt that her waist had become fatter when she had a bath. It was fine at ordinary times, but she would join the banquet in the imperial palace, so she couldn’t neglect her dressing. Instead, she should make preparations in advance.

After she tried only two sets, Jian Xubai came back home and advised her, “Why do you bother to do that? Just tell somebody to measure you and make some clothes which are bigger than your current size. Isn’t it okay?”

“It’s the Mid-Autumn Festival only a few days later, and the diyi is not the informal dress. It will take a long time to make it.” Song Yixiao changed into a housecoat and meanwhile explained, “It’s better to repair them than to push them to make some urgently. Moreover, when I tried them just now, I felt them tight, but I can wear them. It will be fine if we make them a little wider.”

Seeing that her husband wanted to say more, she hurriedly changed the subject. “The Empress Dowager told somebody to give us two bottles of Fragrans Liquid. I found that it smells good. Do you want to drink it?”

“It is quite sweet.” Jian Xubai shook his head. “You women like to drink it, while it never agrees with me. I think Grandma specially gave it to you.”

While speaking, he thought of the Fragrant Green Liquid and chuckled. “Don’t tell me that the Fragrant Green Liquid is still in the closet.”

He said in a playful tone because when the couple had a heart-heart talk in the past, his wife took the Fragrant Green Liquid as an example. Now he remembered it and asked casually.

“How is it possible?” Song Yixiao gently shook the moon-shaped fan and leered at him, saying with a faint smile, “Xue’e told me earlier that Master Guanlun was sad and didn’t want to eat or drink. I remembered that Dowager Consort of Hengshan said people would have a better appetite after drinking that, so I gave all to them. I have forgotten it if you don’t mention it. When I saw Xue’e today, I should have asked her if it worked. If Master Guanlun feels better after drinking it…”

“Are you going to give him all the Fragrant Green Liquid distributed to us in the future?” Hearing that, Jian Xubai took a sip of tea and looked at his wife meaningfully. “You are so nice to him.”

Song Yixiao burst into laughter and pointed at him with the fan. “I knew that you would be jealous. I want to say that if Master Guanlun feels better after drinking it, I will be relieved. I was just afraid that Xue’e would be worried, and it was several bottles of Fragrant Green Liquid. Since you don’t like drinking it, and I can live without it, so I gave it to them. Look at you. You are so jealous.”

“Why am I jealous?” Jian Xubai’s expression didn’t change. “I just think that you are pregnant now, and you should worry less. Isn’t it right?” He leered at his wife. “But you always think that I am narrow-minded. Gee!”

“Who thinks that you are narrow-minded?” Song Yixiao held back her laughter and didn’t expose him. She just pretended to be angry. “It’s you who worries too much. Forget it. I won’t talk about it with you. What I will wear at the banquet on the Mid-Autumn Festival is okay. You need to help me decide the gifts to all people.”

While speaking, she rested her head on her husband’s shoulder weakly, saying with a sly smile, “Don’t forget that I am pregnant now and should worry less, so you need to help me finish the trifles.”

Jian Xubai put on a long face and refused, letting her play the woman close to him. Then he finally agreed and told somebody to bring the gift list, so that he would check it. A few days passed soon, and the fifteenth day of the lunar eighth month came.

Because of the case in Qingzhou, this banquet in the imperial palace was turbulent secretly.

Especially both Emperor Xianjia and Empress Su who held the banquet looked unwell. The emperor looked sick, and the empress wore heavy make-up, yet it couldn’t conceal her haggard face.

Under the situation, all people didn’t dare to relax and just ate and drank cautiously.

“Madam!” Although it was said that it was proper to eat the female crabs in the ninth lunar month and eat the male crabs in the tenth month, there were many crabs on the Mid-Autumn Festival, so a plate of crabs was served in the middle of the banquet. Song Yixiao glanced at them, while Jinxun bent over and whispered in her ear, “The Empress Dowager’s maid Yuguo came just now and said that the crabs are cold-natured, and you are pregnant, so you’d better not eat them.”

Song Yixiao withdrew her hand in a hurry and thought of Sikong Yiluo, who had an accident in the season of eating crabs. It would be the anniversary of her death in just a few days. That girl who was sensible and skilled in dancing with long sleeves toasted to her and Wei Yinlian at the dinner party that day, but she passed away the next day.

At this thought, Song Yixiao felt sad.

As she thought of the first young lady of the Sikong Family, she inevitably glanced at the second young lady of that family, the current Princess Consort of Liang for several times, to see that the princess consort rolled up her sleeves and received eight tools to eat crabs from her servant, concentrating on opening that cooked crab with a red shell.

Song Yixiao was shocked upon seeing that and instantly looked back, telling Jinxun, “Look. Princess Consort of Liang is going to eat a crab. Go and remind her now.”

While speaking, she inevitably glanced at the table of the consorts in the front, yet she saw that Consort Cui was talking happily with an imperial concubine dressed in beautiful clothes and didn’t even give Princess Consort of Liang a glance. Song Yixiao frowned in secret and thought, “This mother-in-law is so careless. Even the Empress Dowager remembered to remind me not to eat something cold by mistake, but why didn’t Consort Cui tell Princess Consort of Liang? I happened to see that. It would be fine if there is nothing wrong with Princess Consort of Liang later. If there is something wrong, it will be late when they regret it.”

However, Jinxun came back later and told her with a grievance, “I told a maid of Princess Consort of Liang, but she was indifferent. Although she didn’t say it, judging from her expression, she must think that I have a big mouth.”

Hearing that, Song Yixiao glanced at Princess Consort of Liang again subconsciously and found that she put a piece of crab meat in a small plate with ginger and vinegar to dip it and then enjoyed it. Obviously, her maid got impatient when Jinxun reminded her and didn’t tell her master. Song Yixiao pondered for a moment and then asked, “Do you remember if that maid serves Princess Consort of Liang since she was a young lady in the Sikong Family?”

“Madam, please forgive me.” Jinxun was baffled and replied, “I am not familiar with the maids of Princess Consort of Liang.”

Song Yixiao played with a porcelain cup in her hand and expressed after pondering for a while, “It’s not your fault. I don’t like talking with her at ordinary times… I will find somebody later to inquire about it.”

As she ordered, she couldn’t help but sigh secretly. “When wouldn’t this Princess Consort of Liang need others to worry about her?”

However, on second thought, she smiled. “Princess Consort of Liang never asked me to worry about her. In the final analysis, I ask for it.”