CH 127.1

Chapter 127.1 – Bargaining

The first day of New Year was still during holiday, but there were actually a lot of things that needed to be done.

Qi Yang and Lu Qipei had a day of leisure on the first day of New Year, then on the second day, they went to the palace to meet the Emperor and the Crown Prince. On the third day of New Year, they had to go visit relatives – of course, all of them were Qi Yang’s. Although she had a mediocre relationship with her brothers and sisters of the same generation, she unexpectedly got along well with the elders. So during New Years, there were a lot of uncles and aunts’ homes she had to visit.

When the hustle and bustle ended, New Year was almost over, and when the holiday ended on the ninth day, everyone had to reel back their minds and start working again. But although the people who came back after New Year were full of energy, obviously it was hard for them to immediately focus on their official duties.

The Head Minister of the Court of Judicial Review was tolerant, and after seeing this, he only said, “Forget it, New Year only really ends after the Lantern Festival. Let’s take it easy these few days.”

The holiday ended on the ninth, while the Lantern Festival started on the thirteenth and ended on the fifteenth. During the Lantern Festival, the officials could get a day off to go home and accompany their families to go and enjoy the lanterns. Although they had just returned from the annual leave, they were still thinking of the merriment of the Lantern Festival inside, so how could they focus? Plus, the Court of Judicial Review was fortunate this year and there were no urgent cases to deal with recently.

Because of the Head Minister’s words, the atmosphere in the Court of Judicial Review had been quite relaxed these days. Occasionally, the colleagues would meet up to have a drink after work. Lu Qipei had also participated twice, and went home early the rest of the time.

A few days passed in a blink of an eye, and starting from the thirteenth day of the first lunar month, lanterns were hung on the streets one after another.

Lanterns without the moon were not entertaining, and it was not Spring if it was just the moon without the lanterns. Shangyuan Festival, also known as the Lantern Festival, was the busiest holiday after the New Year’s Eve. On this day, not only was the city filled with lanterns and colorful decorations, but even the Emperor would make an appearance, and enjoy the lanterns’ view together with the people.

It took time to make and adjust the lanterns, so usually every household would hang them starting from the thirteen.

Wealthier families tend to prepare more attentively, and some also had the custom of having a “lantern competition” – each family would try their best to make the most beautiful lantern and hang them outside, allowing passersby to judge them. If the lanterns could attract others with their beauty, then it would also honor the owner.

It was even said that the more people stopped outside their doors to watch the lantern, the more popularity and blessings would come to the house’s owner.

Regardless if the myth was reliable or not, with the existence of such saying, a lot of people participated in the lantern competition. Each family put up lanterns and tried their best to attract more people to stop and see them.

The princess’s mansion had also been playing with lanterns these past two days, but they’re not like regular households who made them themselves, or like some wealthy families who bought them directly.

The lanterns in the princess’s mansion were prepared by the Ministry of Engineering – they served the royal family, so naturally they gathered the best craftsmen in Liang State. Whether it was the fireworks on New Year’s Eve or the lanterns for the Lantern Festival, none of the stuff that came from them were ordinary.

When Lu Qipei returned home from work, she saw that the two red lanterns at the entrance had been replaced with peach blossom lanterns.

Qi Yang was also persistent, and for several years there would be peach blossom lanterns hanging outside the princess’s mansion for the Lantern Festival. Thanks to the ingenuity of the Ministry of Engineering’s craftsmen, different peach blossom lanterns were made every year, and it became even better and better after understanding the Princess’s preferences.

Lu Qipei also liked peach blossoms. Even though she didn’t like them before, she had become fond of them after affirming her love to Qi Yang. She took a few more glances at the peach blossom lanterns under the eaves, then walked inside the mansion with a happy mood. When she made it back to the courtyard and saw Qi Yang, she found that the other party was looking at Lu Sheng’s face, and couldn’t help asking, “What’s wrong?”

When Qi Yang saw her return, she couldn’t help telling her, “Today, the Ministry of Engineering sent a lot of lanterns, and you should have seen them outside. But Ah Sheng didn’t like any of them, and just wants a rabbit lantern.”

Rabbit lanterns were actually the most common type of festival lantern, and there were many hawkers selling them on the street every year. They’re the most popular among children. Of course, the Ministry of Engineering could also make rabbit lanterns, and they were very exquisitely crafted. But the princess’s mansion didn’t have an official little master, and the others were not sure about Qi Yang’s attitude towards Lu Sheng. To stay on the safe side, naturally no one would send such children’s toy to the princess’s mansion.

After raising the rabbit, Lu Sheng became particularly fond of them. It wasn’t clear where she learned about rabbit lanterns from, and now she wanted one. This wasn’t a difficult request, and even if you didn’t ask the Ministry of Engineering, it wasn’t a big deal to go out and buy one.

Lu Qipei was more straightforward, and took off her fur coat after hearing this. She said, “Since Ah Sheng likes rabbit lanterns, have some people make the preparations. Ah Sheng and I will make one.”

Her Prince Consort had always been versatile, and Qi Yang was not surprised to hear this. As she saw that the maid had received her instructions to prepare the materials, she propped her chin up and looked at the person in front of her, saying quietly, “I like peach blossom lanterns.”

There were peach blossom lanterns hanging outside the princess’s mansion every year, and the whole capital knew that she liked them. Was there still any need to emphasize it?

Lu Qipei gave an understanding look towards Qi Yang, and showed a doting smile, “Okay, then I’ll make another peach blossom lantern.”