Chongfei Manual

Chapter 76

Behind the divider screen with the landscape painting, the little girl had finished changing her clothing. Instead of looking excessively grand, the cherry red palace robe with a pink layer beneath seemed to be very complementary with the girl that was wearing it. She had a naturally beautiful appearance and could afford to wear clothes with such grandeur. Empress Chen had originally been worried that this clothing wouldn’t be suitable for her. But now, seeing Wei Luo wearing this robe, her heart immediately dropped to her stomach.

Wei Luo was holding a creamy white, pure silk wrap and was currently wrapping it around her arms. She raised head and saw that Empress Chen and Duke Zhen’s wife had come here together. She hurriedly saluted and said, “Greetings Your Majesty…”

(Note: On the third cover of ChongFei Manual, the artist used green with a white flower pattern instead of the creamy white that’s described in the novel for the wrap.)

Empress Chen stepped forward to hold her arms, allowed her to stand up from saluting, carefully looked her up and down in satisfaction, then she smilingly said, “You took so long to change your clothes that this empress thought these clothes didn’t fit you. From what I see now, I was thinking too much. Doesn’t this look quite good?”

The palace clothing had vividly, bright colors and was mired in enchantingly elaborate embroidery. The clothing made the young girl seem even more beautifully bright. She looked like an overly elaborate doll that had been repeatedly polished. She was absolutely exquisite.

Even Duke Zhen’s wife couldn’t resist looking at her a few extra times and praising, “Wei-shi is truly a beauty.”

Wei Luo’s face showed her embarrassment. She secretly clutched the golden butterfly hairpin that was hidden in her sleeve. She guiltily said, “I made Your Majesty wait too long. It took me a while to tie the waist accessory…”

Empress Chen wasn’t in a hurry. She was only worried that Wei Luo had met something troublesome. Seeing that was she perfectly all right, she felt reassured as she said, “It’s fine. You don’t need to hurry with changing your clothes. This empress will wait for you outside.”

Wei Luo nodded in acceptance. She didn’t let out a sigh in relief until Empress Chen and Duke Zhen’s wife left. When she had heard their footsteps before, she almost cried out in fear. Fortunately, she had enough time to hastily change her clothes after Zhao Jie left and before Empress Chen came.

She had subconsciously hidden the hairpin that Zhao Jie gave her into her sleeve. She didn’t want other people to know. This hairpin was too similar to the one that he had given Zhao Liuli. It wouldn’t be difficult for other people to guess that he had also given her this hairpin. She was an unmarried girl. She won’t even mention the other issues. Just wearing something a man gave her wouldn’t be good for her reputation.

Thinking about this matter with Zhao Jie… She couldn’t help thinking about Song Hui.

Regardless of her relationship with Zhao Jie, her engagement with Song Hui should be broken. She didn’t like Song Hui and wasn’t willing to marry him. It wouldn’t be okay to keep dragging this out. After all, from the time she was reborn, she hadn’t want to be his wife. After several years of interactions with him, she didn’t have any more bias against him. He had sincerely treated her well. Regardless of his reason for getting engaged with Wei Zheng in her previous life, he had concentrated his thoughts and efforts on being her older brother Song Hui in this life. Unfortunately, she still didn’t have romantic feelings towards him. No matter how well he treated her, it didn’t move her heart.

While letting her imagination run wild, she lifted up the silk wrap and walked out from behind the divider screen.

After being recently reprimanded by Empress Chen, the servant girl outside the divider screen didn’t dare to be even slightly negligent. She respectfully led Wei Luo towards the Chinese cedar dressing table outlined in gold to sit down, then she brushed her hair out from her original hairstyle. In a short period of time, she coiled Wei Luo’s hair into a shuang huan wang xian hairstyle and inserted golden hairpins with flowers and jade hairpins with stylized cicadas and small birds into her hair. She wasn’t finished with Wei Luo until she did the last step of putting on a pair of golden lantern earrings.

Just as Wei Luo was about stand up, Zhao Liuli’s personal servant girl, Yun Zi, came over to say, “Miss Wei, Her Highness is requesting you go to warm room where she is.”

Wei Luo tilted her head and asked, “Did she say why?”

Yin Zi shook her head.

She put down the double-edged fine-toothed comb and followed Yun Zi towards the warm room.

Zhao Liuli had recently taken a bath. At the moment, she had a lotus colored gown draped over her and she was sitting on the couch with red eyes. She wouldn’t let anyone near her. It seemed as if she was sulking.

After Wei Luo stepped forward and asked, she learned that Liuli was having a disagreement with Yang Zhen. It wasn’t a big matter. Today was Liuli’s fifteenth birthday and she only had one request. She wanted Yang Zhen to stay at her side. But, that block of wood had disappeared this morning and didn’t come back until now. When he came back, he didn’t say a single word to her before turning around to do something else.

What could he be busy with? Wasn’t his most important task to protect her?

Zhao Liuli puffed out her cheeks as she said, “… so I’m angry.”

Wei Luo didn’t know whether she should laugh or cry. At this time, the hairpin ceremony would soon start. How could she still have the energy to be angry? She could only try to coax Liuli into obediently changing her clothes, having her hair arranged, and waiting until after the hairpin ceremony to find Yang Zhen. She could be properly angry with him then.

After Wei Luo spent a lot of effort talking and Liuli was finished complaining, Liuli didn’t hold onto her small temper. Fortunately, Liuli wasn’t an unreasonable little girl. Even though Liuli wasn’t happy, she started to earnestly change into her clothes.

Wei Luo left the warm room, past a turn in the corner, and coincidentally heard two voices ahead of them. It was Empress Chen talking to someone.

Empress Chen called the other person Wen-shi. Wei Luo thought about it. The only person that came here and had this name was Duke Ding’s wife, Wen Xing.

Why were they talking here? Was there something urgent?

Wei Luo subconsciously paused and only heard Empress Chen say, “If this empress remembered correctly, the Third Young Master in your family is eighteen years old this year…”

In a respectful and modest tone, Wei-shi said, “Yes, Your Majesty remembered correctly. Xun-er turned eighteen earlier this year.”

Empress Chen slowly said, “En, I remember that Xun-er was an amiable, courteous, cheerful, open-minded, and talented person. There are probably many girls who like him?”

Wen-shi lightly laughed and frankly said, “I’m not afraid that Your Majesty will laugh. Xun-er is very eccentric and doesn’t like to talk with girls. Even now, he’s not engaged.”

Empress Chen said in puzzlement, “Oh. This Empress remembers that he was a lively child. He even came to Zhao Yang Hall several times and played along well with Liuli back then. How did he become eccentric?”

Wen-shi said, “Your Majesty, you don’t know…”

Wei Luo didn’t hear the rest of her words. She turned around to take another path to leave the back of the hall.

The meaning of Empress Chen’s previous words was already clear enough. Zhao Liuli had reached the marriageable age. At the longest, she would be married within a year or two. At the moment, Empress Chen didn’t know about Liuli’s relationship with Yang Zhen. If she knew, then no matter what, she wouldn’t be willing for her precious daughter to marry a bodyguard. Empress Chen had only mentioned Third Young Master Gao Cong Xun. But, she would probably be planning their wedding soon…

Even if it wasn’t Gao Cong Xun, it would still be a young master from a noble family.

She didn’t know what the ending for Zhao Liuli and Yang Zhen would be.

Wei Luo walked closer to the back of the hall. As she was thinking about her worries, Li Xiang coincidentally came out from inside. The two of them met at the doorway. Li Xiang slanted her head to look at her with a provocative gaze that seemed as if she was rejoicing in someone’s misfortune.

Wei Luo furrowed her eyebrows. She didn’t know why Li Xiang was here. Shouldn’t she be at the front of the hall? However, she didn’t have the time to think too much about this. A servant girl came by with a red sandalwood box that had a plum blossom pattern and brought it over to her.

The servant girl said, “Miss Wei, the hairpin ceremony has already started. Please go to the front of the hall.”

Wei Luo nodded and accepted the box.

The box contained the hairpin that Zhao Liuli would be using in the hairpin ceremony. It was a golden butterfly hairpin that was similar to the one that Zhao Jie had given her. She had already seen it several times, so she walked directly to the front of the hall without opening the box to look inside.

——–

Inside Zhao Yang Hall, Empress Chen was standing in front of an eight treasure style couch with colorful glass. Zhao Liuli was wearing her selected robe and standing below her. On the sides, there were noble married women and their daughters that were attending the ceremony.

Zhao Liuli was kneeling on red suede carpet and saluting Empress Chen with her hands together.

There were two steps to the hairpin ceremony. The girl’s hair would be gathered up onto the top of her head into a bun, then the hairpin would be inserted into her hair. Wei Luo was standing on the side and waiting for Zhao Liuli’s hair to be put into a bun, so that she could insert the hairpin. Who could have imagined that when she opened the box there was a butterfly missing on the hairpin?! Instead of two butterflies, there was only a lonely butterfly left on the hairpin. This greatly reduced the value of the hairpin.

Where was the other butterfly?

When she saw the hairpin yesterday, it had been fine. Today, it had been in a box all day. No one had touched it. How could a butterfly be missing? This hairpin definitely couldn’t be put onto Zhao Liuli’s head. Empress Chen placed such a huge importance on the hairpin ceremony and would be able to see there was something wrong with it in a single glance. If she messed up, she would humiliate the imperial family and Empress Chen would be extremely unhappy with her.

If this wasn’t an accident, who would intentionally try to harm her?

Wei Luo thought about when she met Li Xiang at the back of the hall’s doorway. Then, she lifted up her eyes to look at Li Xiang.

She saw that Li Xiang was looking at her with a smile. She seemed as if she was going to be watching a good show soon.

Wei Luo dropped her eyes. She had already guessed what happened.

The first step was almost complete. They would soon be waiting for her to step forward to insert the hairpin into Zhao Liuli’s hair. Mama Qiu tilted her head to gesture. Wei Luo settled her mind, raised her head, and without a change in her expression, she took out the hairpin that Zhao Jie gave from her sleeve and used it to replace the hairpin inside the box. Fortunately, the area she was standing in wasn’t conspicuous. No one noticed what she had just done.

Wei Luo stepped forward. First, she saluted Empress Chen, then she stood up, half-kneeled in front of Zhao Liuli, took out the golden butterfly hairpin from the box that was lined with red silk, and inserted the hairpin into Zhao Liuli’s hair.

Zhao Liuli saw the hairpin, immediately opened her eyes wider from surprise, and whispered, “Ah Luo…”

Wei Lui quietly said, “Shh.” Then, she stood up and walked back to her original place.

That hairpin was almost exactly the same as Zhao Liuli’s hairpin with only a few subtle differences. Empress Chen was standing on a higher level. If she weren’t carefully looking, she naturally wouldn’t be able to tell.

When Wei Luo walked back to her spot, she met Li Xiang’s gaze. As expected, there was an incredulous expression on Li Xiang’s face. While Li Xiang was angry, she didn’t dare to stare at Wei Luo. She probably wouldn’t be able to guess how Wei Luo was able to produce an identical hairpin.

After the hairpin ceremony was over, Wei Luo returned to the back of the hall to ask the palace servants if they saw anyone touching this box. She saw Zhao Jie standing inside the entrance. His dark eyes were looking at her. He seemed to have been waiting for a long time.

Wei Luo paused in walking, but she eventually walked over to him.

He looked at red sandalwood box in her hand, then he looked at her. He went straight to the point by asking, “Why did you put the hairpin that this prince gave you into Liuli’s hair?

As expected, he was waiting here for her because he had found out. Was he demanding an explanation of her version of the events?

Wei Luo didn’t want him to misunderstand. She could only open the box to let him see the hairpin inside. “I don’t know who broke Liuli’s hairpin. It’s missing a butterfly. If I didn’t use that one as a replacement, Empress Chen would have definitely been mad.”

The author has something to say:

Zhao Jie: I don’t care. If I give you something, then it’s yours! If someone breaks it, then this prince will break that person!

Li Xiang silently shakes in a corner.

(Note: Just in case you’re confused why this ceremony seemed so simple, we’re only seeing one of seventeen parts of the hairpin ceremony.