Chapter 89 - Meeting on a Narrow Road
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nQin Yunuan took her hairpin off while talking, and then inserted backhand into Qin Yunzhuang’s hair bun, causing Qin Yunzhuang’s body seemed to be agitated by cold water and tremble all of a sudden.
n“Yunzhuang, you are going to marry soon,” said Yunuan, “I don’t have much to give you so for now give you my hairpin as a gift.” Qin Yunuan smiled sideways and a bit of sincere joy showed up on her peachy face. It seemed that she was happy for her sister from her heart.
nAfter briefing miscellaneous stuff to Yunzhuang, the two knew it was time for them to leave. Qin Yunuan lent her support to somewhat paralyzed Qin Yunzhuang and walked down the path in garden slowly. Qin Yunzhuang was very unwilling to let Qin Yunuan to touch her but this time she was not able to walk by herself.
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nEmpress Chen made Sima Ray stay for a while longer. When Sima Ray came out, it was already dusk. The bloody afterglow smeared the sky with a layer of blush, shining on the blue tiles and showing a light layer of strange dark green.
n“Did you find it out?” Sima Ray asked Liu Bao in a deep voice as he walked out of the palace gate.
n“I still have not found the young eunuch leading the way yet,” said Liu Bao, “I guess he is not even a staff in our palace.”
nSima Ray rubbed his nose. He had expected the result long before.
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n“Ok, you are free to leave.”
nEmpress Chen did a great job on the surface. On the palace road, there were already two sedans parking there. Four people in the clothing of eunuch waited humbly for the two girls of Qin Family.
nRight before getting on the sedan, Qin Yunzhuang looked back painfully on Qin Yunuan and said, “Now you are satisfied with my situation? Are you happy?”
n“It is still early,” said Qin Yunuan in a cold voice, “There is still a lot that I have not done for Mom and Baochuan.”
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nHer words were as cold as the chilly wind. Qin Yunzhuang’s heart came up and down in the pace of the sedan. She was so tired that she was not able to think carefully about it.
nTwo rivals met on a narrow road. Not arriving at the Rosefinch Gate yet, Qin Yunuan saw a familiar shadow. In a pretty celestial dress, a bright and delicate golden phenix-shaped hair accessory, being covered with a row of beaded curtains, the person in the sedan was so mysterious and elusive.
nThat was Infanta Shuhua. Qin Yunuan recognized it immediately.
nWhen she thought about that Queen Mother intended to match Leng Changxi with Infanta Shuhua, she felt bitter. She became increasingly vigilant when she saw the sedan approaching her.
nAccording to the rules, Qin Yunzhuang and Qin Yunuan without a grade were supposed to salute grade-four Infanta Shuhua.
nWhen the two teams were a few steps away, Qin Yunuan and Qin Yunzhuang got off the sedan. When they were saluting Infanta Shuhua, Shuhua who was lying lazily on a soft pillow suddenly raised her voice, “It is fine, you don’t need to do this.”
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nThe palace was the turf of Infanta Shuhua. Qin Yunuan knew clearly that Infanta Shuhua didn’t just want to waive their salute. She did not know the proud Infanta Shuhua well but she heard a lot about her and knew what a unreasonable person she was. She had already seen her temperament in the embroidery before.
nAs a result, Infanta Shuhua said, “Not everyone can salute me. You do not deserve it.”
nQin Yunzhaung felt a little surprised and said in a deep voice, “We know you are a noble woman and not the type of people with which we, the rural people, are qualified to associate.”
nInfanta Shuhua were very satisfied with the flatter. Separated by the beaded curtain, she said, “How about you? I assume you are less than a hillbilly.” She then laughed slightly. Her slivery voice had a feeling of arrogance. In the absence of Leng Changxi, who could help the baseborn girl?
nQin Yunuan owed her body and said in a faint tone with a smile, “I have never thought I am a hillbilly,” she had a look at Qin Yunzhuang, “but I don’t think there is anything wrong with hillbilly. The clothes you are in, the crop you have as food, the wine you drink are all from hard-working hillbilly. If I dislike them, I also offend you, Infanta Shuhua, which is the last thing I want to do.”
nInfanta Shuhua said only a sentence but responded by Qin Yunuan quite a few sentences and her argument was so rational and logical that Shuhua was supposed to feel guilty about herself. Nevertheless, Shuhua was not the kind of person that gave up a war without a fight.
n“You are such an undisciplined girl! You want to be in a quarrel with me so much for my sentence?” Infanta Shuhua looked at a nanny next to her, “Nanny Sun, how should I punish people who go against me?”
nNanny Sun was also very good in flattering. She immediately bowed and said, “According to the rules, 80 times hit by the stick.”
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nInfanta Shuhua looked at Qin Yunuan proudly. She seemed to say, “You are screwed up.”
nBut Qin Yunuan knew that Infanta Shuhua was not real about the punishment, she was just bluffing. If she was real about that, juts made her think about the money she owed so she did not dare to do anything arbitrarily.
nAs Yunuan expected, infanta Shuhua shook her head and said, “You heard that. I spare you the punishment today out of mercy. You owe me once this time.” The lotus-like arm climbed into her hair bun, slowly took off the gold hair accessory, gently pinched the phoenix-shaped hair accessory out of the beaded curtain and the hand deliberately loosened. People could hear the crunchy sound that the golden hair accessory hit the ground on which a few white pearls as thin as hair scattered around. It was afraid that the golden hair accessory was already broken.
nQin Yunuan looked at Infanta Shuhua coldly. She wanted to find out what tricks she was going to play.
n“You come here,” infanta Shuhua hooked her finger at Qin Yunuan and then pointed down at the discrete hair accessory, “pick it up for me.”
nQin Yunuan suddenly raised a disdainful smile at the corner of her mouth. Infanta Shuhua and Imperial Concubine Yun were the same kind of people. One was the favor of the Queen Mother, the other was the grace of the emperor. Their characters were kept the simplest.
nInfanta Shuhua seemed to be choked by Qin Yunuan’s laugh. She raised her voice, “If you don’t pick it up, I will tell others that this is broken by you. This golden hair accessory is made of gold and pearls on it are imported from East Qin. One golden string on it is super expensive.”
n“Why should I be afraid?” Qin Yunuan looked around. She could even see the sneering expressions of Qin Yunzhuang and these eunuchs and maids, “People are all witnesses here. You cannot frame me for breaking the golden hair accessory.”
nIt was like a hard hit on the cotton. Infanta Shuhua opened her eyes, moved the beaded curtain and stared at Qin Yunuan angrily.
nQin Yunuan laughed again, “I know everything you have done is just you want to pick up on me but you really don’t need to do this. You live in the palace. I am a family living in the mansion of Grand Commandant. You can ask everything you want from Queen Mother. I am just the daughter of a concubine of Qin Family who lives carefully. We don’t have relationships and I don’t deserve your attention at all.”
nThese words made Infanta Shuhua feel a little comfortable. She pouted and said impatiently, “Since then, you should stay away from Leng Changxi.”
nQin Yunuan felt a little surprised. She did not expect Infanta Shuhua did all those for….
n“Though I don’t like him, he is the person recognized by Queen Mother and matched for me. He cannot be touched by other girls.” Infanta Shuhua said, “Especially he cannot be touched by girls like you.”
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n“You are right. I am born by concubine.” Yunuan said coldly, “but I have never intended to climb. I cannot determine who General Leng wants to marry and get close to.”
n“So you don’t want to marry him?” Infanta Shuhua said impatiently.
nYunuan inclined towards Infanta Shuhua and said, “The marriage does not depend on my willingness. Do you think anyone on the earth can force Leng Changxi, the first general of Qi, to do anything he doesn’t want to do? I suggest you’d better spend time with Queen Mother but not threaten me. You are so arbitrary because you are Queen Mother’s favorite. What if one day you anger Queen Mother, I am afraid what you receive is more than a bill.”
nInfanta Shuhua wanted to keep on this bicker but Qin Yunuan took a few steps back and saluted to Infanta Shuhua politely and said, “This is the salute I was spared moments ago. The palace gate is going to close and we need to leave soon.”
nAfter this, Yunuan stepped up the sedan right away. Qin Yunzhuang saw this and also saluted Infanta Shuhua politely. She wanted to take the opportunity to compliment Infanta Shuhua and said, “My sister is impolite….”
n“Fuck off!” Infanta Shuhua did not want to involve in this dialogue anymore and scolded to Qin Yunzhuang, “You are so pretentious, ** off!”
nQin Yunzhuang retreated and saw Yunuan’s extremely cool eyes when she turned back. She knew Yunuan, the vicious women, saw through her trick. She felt as cold as ice on her back. Nevertheless, Qin Yunuan was only a comcubine-born daughter. Qin Yunzhaung comforted herself. After getting home, She and her mother must figure out a way to destroy Qin Yunuan completely. The best way is to marry her to someone in rural area, to marry her to a farmer and lead a poor life which should be overworked and anxious for meals every day.
n“Bite me!” After Qin Yunuan left, Infanta Shuhua was still angry. She said to Nanny Sun, “What a bad temper she has. What the hell is that I rely on Queen Mother. Am I such a disgraceful person? Cannot I live without Queen Mother?”
nNanny Sun suddenly covered Infanta Shuhua’s mouth and warned in a low voice, “My dear, you cannot be so arbitrary. Everything we have now is given by Queen Mother. Be careful, there might be someone hearing us talking in confidence.”
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