The Princess's Notebook

May passed by like an arrow.

On the first day of June, Mrs. Qian of the Shangshu Mansion of the Ministry of Justice begged Mrs. Song, the mother-in-law of Wang Sishi, the fourth master's in-law, to accompany her to the house to talk. In her words, she said that the girl of the Wang family was very good and could be a match. The fourth lady Qiao Xin had already received the words from her eldest sister-in-law, and now that she saw that she really came to the house, she smiled and agreed, and there was no reason to refuse.

Qiao Xin's greatest wish is that the young ladies in the four branches of the Wang family all get married smoothly and that the young men all find good wives.

After a few people exchanged greetings, Mrs. Song, the mother-in-law of Shisiniang, smiled and said, "Why don't you let the young ladies come out to meet me? I heard that the young ladies of the Wang family are all very iconic figures. Although I have seen them before, it has been a while, and I think the girls are even more lovely."

After hearing this, Qiao Xin felt that there was nothing wrong with it, so he waved his hand and asked someone to invite a few young ladies.

In a short while, the Sixteenth Lady, Seventeenth Lady, Eighteenth Lady, and Nineteenth Lady came in elegantly and quietly. There were gusts of fragrant wind and the jingling of rings and pendants. Everyone saw the first lady, wearing a goose yellow dress, tall and thin, walking with lotus steps, coming slowly. After that, several young ladies, except for the two younger ones, another one with an ordinary hairstyle and a purple skirt, deliberately covering her figure, fell behind the Sixteenth Lady.

Mrs. Qian had seen Sixteen, so she naturally understood the reason behind this. The young lady in the purple basil skirt behind Sixteen was the Seventeenth Lady who had not been seen that day. She was dressed like this today, which was very good. She knew the limits and etiquette.

It seems that the Wang family is not as bad as the rumors outside say.

After the young ladies greeted her, Mrs. Qian asked them to come forward, took out the gifts that had been prepared long ago, and delivered them one by one.

The one given to Shiliu Niang was naturally the most valuable, a pair of jade bracelets carved with plum blossoms, which were warm and smooth, except for the red plum blossoms on them. It didn't take a close look to tell that they were excellent items. The remaining sisters each had a pair of twisted wire earrings, which were also extraordinary items.

The sisters accepted the gift, thanked Madam Qian, sat a little more relaxed in the hall, and listened to the ladies praising Shiliu Niang.

At one point, Madam Qian asked, "I wonder how old your wife, Lady Sixteen, is now?"

Qiao Xin: "She is fifteen this year. She grew up by my side and is very filial. She said she would stay with me for two more years. A few days ago, she embroidered a pair of socks for me. The parrot on them is so lifelike. When I saw it suddenly, I was afraid that the parrot would jump out and talk."

On such an important day, Qiao Xin stopped quarreling with Wang Kang and smiled happily.

After hearing this, Mrs. Qian knew why Qiao Xin said this. Even if it was a bit of an exaggeration, it was human nature. Besides, she believed in her own judgment.

He smiled and said, "Madam, you said that, it shows that your daughter has not found a husband yet. Now, with Madam Song as the middleman, I will flatter you and talk about my little third son. Madams, take a look, okay?"

Several ladies smiled and asked about the third young master.

The young ladies at the table couldn't sit still. Sixteenth Lady was blushing. Seventeenth Lady smiled and lowered her head to look at Sixteenth Lady. The remaining two young ladies looked at each other, and finally, they all looked at Sixteenth Lady.

This made Shiliu Niang unable to speak clearly, "You, you..."

The ladies in the first group heard this and laughed, "Look, Sixteenth Lady is shy. You sisters, go back and play by yourselves. You don't have to stay here. If there is any news later, someone will tell you. Let's go now."

Seeing Qiao Xin nod, the girls bowed and left. Madam Qian saw the flirting between the girls and Qiao Xin, and she was even more certain.

In this way, the ladies chatted outside and the wives discussed inside.

Let’s talk about the young ladies, who were chattering one after another, and surrounded Sixteenth Lady and came to the wisteria trellis in Qiu Shuang’s residence. They ordered the maids to put out some dried fruits and snacks, and three or two round stools, and continued to chat and laugh.

Nineteen smiled with her eyebrows like a crescent moon, "Sixteenth sister, have you achieved what you wanted now?"

Sixteen's face was still red, and he stood up and pretended to hit Nineteen, "You little Nineteen, just wait for me. You are making fun of me with such a ridiculous thing. I think you have taken advantage of me for a few days and have forgotten my fierceness in the past."

Eighteen cares about his younger sister, and is even more afraid that his sixteenth sister will say something bad when she is happy.

"Sixteenth sister, I think Madam Qian seems to be a very opinionated person. If someone knows about your past, what will happen?"

Before hitting Nineteen, Sixteen turned around to look for Eighteen, "I said you were a good person, and you were waiting for me here. Good things are coming for you. Madam has chosen me, and you won't be far away."

Shiqi Niang suddenly asked, "Do you know the third son of the Minister of Justice? It would be very easy for the third son of a second-rank minister to find a princess, so why did he choose our family?"

Sixteen: "Seventeen, don't belittle yourself. Our family's reputation is not very respectable. But Madam Qian is attracted to me as a person, not anything else. You can rest assured about this. What I said when I entered the palace was not false. I have made thorough inquiries. The third son of the Minister of Justice is a talented person."

Seventeen: "But I always feel something is weird."

Sixteen: "Seventeen, you want to find an ordinary husband yourself, don't you just want to see others get rid of this mess and live a good life?"

Sixteenth Lady said this loudly. If she had no doubts in her heart, it would be impossible for this marriage to happen. However, for a family like theirs, it was extremely rare to find such a good opportunity.

Sixteen just doesn't want to give up.

Seeing her like this, Shiqi Niang hurriedly explained, "Sixteenth sister, I don't think so. I hope that the girls in the fourth branch of our Wang family will have a good home and a good husband, so that they don't have to live like this in the future. That day in the carriage, I also sincerely congratulated Sixteenth sister. If the third young master is a good person, everything will be fine. If there is something wrong, even if the marriage is to be completed, I also want Sixteenth sister to know in advance and be prepared. If you marry in confusion and only know after hearing a few words from outsiders, wouldn't it be a loss of opportunity."

Eighteenth held Nineteenth with one hand, asking her not to do anything weird. "Yes, Sixteenth Sister, our family is already like this. We don't have any quarrels or jealousies. If there are any, they were in the early years. Now we all hope that Sixteenth Sister will be well and get rid of those dirty things. Don't be like Madam in the past..."

Eighteen felt something was wrong when he said this. Madam Qiao Xin was blind back then, but she had treated the girls well over the years, although she was strict.

Perhaps after hearing them mention Madam Qiao Xin's experience, Shiliu Niang raised her head and said, "Look at what you said. If there is any secret in this matter, you can find it out. You are all married ladies, what can you do?"

Eighteen and Seventeen smiled similarly, looking at her stubborn expression.

Seventeen: "Our young lady doesn't know, but brother doesn't know either. Today is the day of Xiu Mu, let's go ask Brother Ten."

The tenth brother they were talking about was the second son of the fourth house of the Wang family, born to Madam Qiao Xin. Before him, there was a ninth brother born to Madam Li in the fourth house. The two brothers were almost the same age. The tenth brother, named Du, was already twenty-four years old. I don't know what Madam thinks, Wang Du has not yet married.

Wang Du's residence was an acre of land, a very spacious place in the front yard of the four rooms.

Several young ladies came to Yimu Field with laughter and saw Wang Du being served by a servant, making tea beside Yangliu River. Yangliu River is not big, it crosses Xuandefang, winding from south to north. Wang Du holds a scroll in his hand, wearing a long green robe, and stands alone in the curling tea fragrance, looking like a hermit immortal.

He seemed to hear the ladies' laughter and turned around, "Why do you guys come to my place instead of staying in the backyard?" Having said that, he had already asked the servants to bring round stools, bowls and dishes, etc. to take good care of the sisters.

Nineteen smiled and said, "Oh, I told you so. Brother Ten must be studying. Why are we disturbing him? Sisters, we'd better go back."

Wang Du smiled and said: "You little girl, you want to come and drink my tea, but you are actually entertaining me." As he spoke, the servant had already prepared everything, and the young ladies sat down.

After some casual greetings, it was obvious that it was time to get down to business, but Sixteenth Lady was awkward and didn't say anything. The other young ladies only then remembered that it seemed inappropriate to take the initiative to inquire about a young man, so they kept silent.

Wang Du has always been concerned about his sisters, so how could he not know the excitement in the inner courtyard? "You came to look for me, what do you want to ask me?"

No one answered.

"If you don't ask, you can only drink a few cups of tea."

Seventeenth Lady couldn't help but look at Sixteenth Sister, "Tenth Brother, do you know the Third Young Master of the Minister of Justice's Mansion? What kind of person is he?"

After saying that, Seventeen received a sharp look from Sixteen, as if complaining: You want to say it! But she blushed with shame, more like a scolding. The remaining young ladies all looked at Wang Du eagerly.

Wang Du looked at Shiliu Niang and said with some concern, "I am just an idle job in the Taichang Temple and I am not familiar with the Hanlin Academy. As for the third son of the Minister of Justice, as far as I know, he is talented in writing and has an extraordinary appearance. Although he is a second-class Jinshi, he has already made a name for himself in front of His Majesty with his article "Governing Agriculture and Asking about Sangmulberry". His Majesty praised him for being pragmatic and having the talent of a capable minister in governing the country. However..."

"But what?" Several young ladies held their breath, afraid that they might miss something.

"However, I am curious about one thing. The Third Young Master was born in a prosperous family. I have never heard of him traveling to study. His famous teacher is Mr. Zhan, who is famous for his flowers and plants. How can he be so familiar with local government affairs and agricultural irrigation? I don't know the reason, so I'm just guessing. Sisters, just listen and forget it."

If the backyard hadn't been talking about the marriage between the Third Young Master and the Sixteenth Lady, Wang Du wouldn't have said anything. He was cautious by nature and never made irresponsible comments about others, which was very different from his father, the Fourth Master Wang.

At this point, Shiliu Niang was unwilling to give in, but because of Wang Du, she could only grit her teeth and say, "Tenth Brother, what you said is not right. What if the Third Young Master is a genius? What if he knew all this since birth..."

As she spoke, Shiliu Niang became less and less confident. She thanked Wang Du hastily and left in despair.

Things turned out like this, Seventeen blamed himself, Eighteen and Nineteen stopped smiling immediately, but they just sat there for a while, chatted for a while, and then left.

Finally, Wang Du quietly comforted Shiqi Niang.

"You are a kind person, and Shiliu Niang is not the kind of person who doesn't know what's good for her. No matter what happens with this marriage, it will be fine in a few days."

"Thank you, Brother Ten."

Having said that, at night, Shiqi Niang heard that the lady had already agreed with someone that after some time, after the court paid tribute to the late emperor and the empress dowager, she would choose a day to send a matchmaker to the house.

Because of this, Shiqi Niang, who had let it go, became worried again. The sisters grew up together and played together. The biggest unhappiness they had in the past ten years was just the quarrels and arguments they had when they were young.

The temple is small, the evil wind is strong, the pond is shallow, and there are many turtles. I have been through it smoothly. There is no reason to jump into the fire pit again when the end comes.

If the news about the tenth brother is not true, then it is good. But if it is true, then there is no telling how many unknown scandals there are in the mansion of the Minister of Justice.

I can't just stand by and watch Sixteenth Sister behave like this.

Where should we go to find out everyone's secrets?

Suddenly, she thought of Zhao Feiran, the young master of an unknown clan who seemed to her to be from some unknown family.

Shiqi Niang chuckled, thinking that she was very smart. This man was in a high position, so it was no problem for him to find out some private secrets. But how could she convince him to do something for her?

Sweet words to coax him to death?
It should be feasible for ordinary things, but this... this concerns the private affairs of an important official, and there is no reason for him to be suspected by His Majesty.

Sex...seduction?

Tell him that you already know how to solve the shared dream?
……

After much thought, Shiqi Niang still couldn't come up with a foolproof method.

(End of this chapter)