The 27th Hunting Festival

  Other madams took their daughters and left first, while Liang Shi and Gu Yuqiu were also preparing to leave. After exiting the Warming Pavilion, they were invited by the Princess's residence to another elegant pavilion.

  Li Wei was a bit uneasy, but Gu Yuqie was calm and collected. This princess should have some reward.

  As expected, there were already imperial physicians from the Gong Princess's residence waiting in the Ya Ge. Gu Yu Xiang had only suffered external injuries and did not need to trouble the Imperial Physician.

  The doctor carefully cleaned Gu Yuqiu's wound, applied medicine, and bandaged it. Once everything was in order, Princess Pinghu led two maids into the elegant pavilion.

  Liang and Gu Yuqie got up to pay their respects, and were supported by the princess. The princess carefully looked at Gu Yuqie's bandaged wound and smiled, "Just now, I also knew that it was an injustice to you two. It's just that there were too many people earlier, if I had shown favoritism to you, I would have been afraid of causing some other trouble."

  Liáng shì máng gōng shēn shuō dào, "duō xiè gōng zhǔ diàn xià."

  Translation:

  Mr. Liang bowed and said, "Thank you, Your Highness."

  "Actually, anyone with discerning eyes can see what's going on." The princess waved her hand and said with a gentle smile. "But one more thing is not as good as one less thing. One less thing is not as good as no thing at all."

  "The princess is absolutely right." Although Liang said so with her mouth, she was very displeased in her heart. This Princess Pinghu was also a person who could speak loudly without any scruples. If it were her own daughter who was wronged today, she probably wouldn't have ended the matter so lightly.

  But Pinghu Princess is a bit pitiful, nearly fifty years old, yet without any children around her, and she can't experience the feeling of a mother protecting her daughter.

  "It's also because the princess and you, mother and daughter, have a good relationship, especially with Rainy (Rainy is the nickname of 顾雨绮). The princess knew that Liang Shi still had some resentment in her heart, so she continued to say, "Why don't we let Rainy come to the princess's mansion to play more often?" After finishing speaking, she gave a signal to the maid behind her. The maid presented a tray and said, "This is what the princess wants to give you." She used her well-maintained hands to open the brocade cloth covering the tray, took out a jade pendant, and personally hung it on Rainy's waist. "This is the waist card of the princess's mansion. In the future, if you want to come to the princess's mansion, you can come at any time. Don't underestimate this jade pendant. As long as it's within the boundaries of the capital city, this jade pendant will be very useful. Although it's not as valuable as an imperial gift, it's still extremely precious. You must take good care of it and don't lose it. Otherwise, the princess won't forgive you lightly." The princess said with a half-joking and half-threatening smile.

  Gu Yuqie knew what the jade pendant given by the princess represented, and didn't think that the princess was just a figurehead. The Princess of Pinghu in front of her was the only princess in the Great Qi Dynasty with a fiefdom within the capital city, showing how high her status was. As long as it was within the capital city, anyone who held this jade pendant could enter and exit any venue at will, including the Six Ministries. Normally, the princess wouldn't easily give out such a jade pendant, Gu Yuqie was a bit stunned, why would the princess favor her so much after just meeting her once, and hand over something so important to her.

  Is it really because I like her?

  How is it possible

  In her previous life, Zhang Wan'er also had a princess jade pendant, so she could come and go freely in the Princess Mansion, as well as the Hanlin Academy and the Six Ministries. Among many noble ladies, she was simply radiant and unlimited. At that time, she herself had been jealous of this, but unfortunately, there was no way. In her previous life, the princess didn't even bother to give her a glance, let alone give her a jade pendant.

  The jade pendant given by the princess to the princess's mansion goes without saying. It means that the princess has already regarded her as one of her own people.

  Gu Yuqiu suddenly felt a little overwhelmed, she had expected the princess to leave them alone as a reward, but didn't expect it to be such a big surprise. She suddenly felt that her waist was a bit heavy, as if the jade pendant was too heavy.

  Gu Yuqie wanted to push away the things she had tried her best to get in her previous life. In this life, she got them without any effort, but she felt like she was holding a hot potato and couldn't wait to throw it away.

  What is this? This has announced that she will be entangled with these royal relatives in the future! She was afraid to avoid it.

  Just as Gu Yuqie was about to return the jade pendant, Princess Su waved her hand and said, "Alright, it's getting late, and Rainy needs to take care of her injured hand. You all should head back to the manor early." After finishing speaking, she left first, not even giving Gu Yuqie a chance to reconsider.

  What the heck is going on?!

  Although the Liang family had only recently arrived in the capital, they were also aware of the power of the Princess's Mansion. Their daughter had received a jade pendant personally bestowed by the princess, and she was naturally overjoyed. At that moment, she didn't think about anything else and left the Ya Pavilion with Gu Yuqiu.

  In the distant corridor, the princess's personal maid stood beside Princess Pinghu and watched as the mother and daughter of the Liang family left. She couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, why did you give such an important token to that young lady from the Hou Manor who we've only met once?"

  Princess Pinghu revealed a hint of a profound smile, "Have you ever seen three princes take a liking to the same girl at the same time?"

  The maid thought for a moment and then exclaimed in surprise.

  Others may not have noticed, but Pinghu Princess, who was born and raised in the palace, how could she not be aware of her surroundings? In the warm pavilion, Gu Yuqie's calm and composed demeanor made people look at her with new eyes. Her composure, Zhang Wanji's unexpected betrayal, turned the situation around in an instant. This kind of intelligence and poise is not something that ordinary noblewomen can achieve. At first, she thought it was Gu Yuqie who pushed those three people into the water, but after careful consideration, even someone as clever as her realized what had really happened. What surprised her the most was that Yunyi's gaze had been fixed on Gu Yuqie since she entered the warm pavilion, and the Crown Prince, who had always been cautious in his words and actions, also looked at her several times. Finally, there was Qiuyun Ke, who usually didn't show any emotion, but if you paid close attention, you could see that his gaze was also fixed on Gu Yuqie. How interesting! As a mother-in-law, she had never seen three princes pay attention to the same girl at the same time before.

  Gu Yuqie was young, but if she could really push the two Zhao sisters into the water, it wouldn't be a small feat. At least her martial arts foundation was somewhat decent. As for the bet, the Crown Prince would likely lose. As for how capable Gu Yuqie truly was, that would have to wait until the hunt to be tested.

  "But isn't Your Highness afraid that this young lady will show off the princess's jade pendant everywhere?" The maid asked again.

  "What the palace bestows can naturally be retrieved. Ah, yes, later instruct someone to send a jade pendant to Zhang Wan'er as well. The palace won't go in person." Princess Pinghu said languidly, "Oh dear, I'm so tired. Later, call for the imperial physician not to leave and have him take my pulse too." After finishing speaking, Princess Pinghu slowly turned around and left.

  Back at the Hou Mansion, Gu Yuqie couldn't sleep all night. After dealing with the incident of falling into the water, Yun Ke's words "Gu Zai Ren" kept echoing in her ears like a nightmare. And what was the meaning of that mysterious title "Talented Lady"? Gu Yuqie tossed and turned on her bed, feeling like a fish being roasted over an open flame. This guy had also been reborn! The thought sprouted in her mind like weeds, growing wildly, making it impossible for her to sleep. What should she do? Hiding was probably not going to work! Given his personality, he wouldn't deliberately wait on the shore for her, and if he did, it meant he wouldn't let her off easily.

  I'm going crazy! Gu Yuqie was so annoyed that she wanted to dismantle the bed, she tossed and turned all night, finally deciding that anyway, she couldn't avoid it, at worst, she would just pretend not to acknowledge it. Yun Ke's current attention towards her was probably due to his unwillingness to give up, perhaps with time, after he gets married, and then becomes busy plotting for the throne, he wouldn't put too much energy into her anymore.

  This capital city can't be stayed for long, and the idea of cultivating Du Xia into her own husband is also half abandoned. She must make good use of these years to cultivate some of her own foundation, and when the time is ripe, she will immediately take her mother's package and leave with a pat on the horse's back.

  Yun Ke is only a future emperor, but this land of Da Qi may be too small for him, so she wants to plan ahead and settle abroad.

  Thinking of this, Gu Yuqie immediately revived with full blood and blue, regardless of the fact that it was already midnight. She jumped out of bed barefoot, grabbed a pair of velvet slippers, threw on a dark red sable cloak and rushed to Gu Huaizhong's study. Gu Huaizhong's military achievements were won on horseback, so his study naturally had the most complete maps of the nine states.

  Yun Ke, who was also sleepless, was only fifteen years old and had not yet married or been granted a title. He still lived in the Si Xian study within the palace. He sat blankly in his study for several hours, with a white silk fan with golden sprinkles spread out on the table in front of him, bearing the poem he had written himself: "The sun rises over the river, and the flowers are red, victorious over fire." The ink marks had long since dried.

  "Your Highness." A familiar voice came from the darkness, and Yun Ke only then suddenly snapped back to reality. "If you have something to say, then speak."

  "Your Highness, the children you arranged for have been training for about a month. I've selected those who are suitable and will continue to cultivate them. Here is the list, please take a look." A figure emerged from the shadows of the study, like a ghostly apparition. He knelt before Yun Ke and handed over a roster.

  Yun Ke opened the register, hastily scanned it, then picked up his pen, wanting to strike out a few names, only to find that the ink in the inkstone had already dried up.

  It wasn't until then that he realized he had been lost in thought for so long without even noticing.

  "Get rid of these few people." He put down his pen, pointed out a few names on the roster to the man in black. After he finished speaking, he thought for a moment and shook his head, "Forget it, just leave them be. And cultivate these four people carefully." He pointed out four more names for the man in black to see, "Did you remember?"

  "Remember that." The man in black nodded.

  "Point them out to me?" Yun Ke said calmly, he had always been cautious in his actions. After seeing the man in black accurately point out the four people he wanted, he handed the name list back to him, "Go."

  "Yes." The man in black took the name list and flashed away, disappearing into the darkness without leaving a single trace.

  The few people he pointed out at the beginning were the ones who betrayed him later. He had thought of getting rid of them now, but after some thought, it was better to leave them be. Since they already knew they would betray him, why not make use of them?

  It's actually the four people who came later, especially Du Xia, that need to be cultivated.

  How interesting, that woman actually said Du Xia is her man! It's hilarious, this future world belongs to him alone! What right does that woman have to point fingers and draw pictures?

  It's hard to say, but if I were to be reborn, would that woman's goal become Du Xia?

  Also, the future Marquis of Town, had only one wife in his life and died without illness. Whatever way you look at it, they were a well-matched couple.

  Gu Yuqie's eyesight was quite good, she chose herself in her previous life and Du Xia in this life.

  But... did she think that just because she toyed with him in her past life, making him pine for her his whole life, he would easily forgive her this time around? If she didn't have the memories of their past life, it would be one thing, perhaps he wouldn't put too much energy into dealing with her this time. But the fact was, just like him, she also had the memories of their past life, even though she refused to acknowledge them.

  Recalling today at the Princess's Manor, Gu Yuqie's eyes flashed with a moment of astonishment and terror when he suddenly called her "Gu Cairen", and his heart surged with an inexplicable excitement.

  She remembers him is good

  The next morning, Gu Huai Zhong had to go to court early, and before dawn, he hurriedly went from the Wàng Yuè Jū to the study to fetch something. It was only then that he discovered his eldest daughter, Gu Yu Gui, hugging a volume of Jiǔ Zhōu Zhì and sleeping soundly on his large desk. He had naturally heard about what happened in the Princess's courtyard, and he had originally wanted to go see how his daughter was doing, but yesterday, Liu Shi said she had chest tightness and clung to him, so he didn't make it to Dan Xia Yuan. Now, seeing Gu Yu Gui in his study, his heart softened a little.

  The daughter's long hair was scattered behind her, with both arms crossed under her head, and thick gauze wrapped around the wrist of her right hand and the palm of her left. She was barefoot, with one shoe hanging from her foot and the other kicked to the side of the door. Under her long eyelashes, a small section of dark blue-black was faintly visible. The candle on the desk still shone brightly, and the wax had burned down to the end, indicating that Gu Yuqie had been reading for a very long time.

  Gu Huai Zhong picked up Gu Yu Qiu, letting the scroll of Jiuzhou Zhi slip from her arms.

  Gu Yuqie looked at the map and Jiuzhou Zhi for a whole night, and finally fell asleep. She wouldn't wake up even if there was thunder, but instead found a comfortable position in Gu Huaizhong's arms to continue sleeping.

  He felt his daughter's arm around his neck, and in the bottom of Gu Huai Zhong's heart was a soft spot. His feelings for Liang Huai Yu were unclear even to himself. When he was young, he had truly liked Liang Huai Yu, but later... it was better not to mention it. He was still afraid of Liang Huai Yu even now, so he also felt distant from this daughter whom he hadn't seen in ten years.

  However, after getting in touch with her for a while, he felt more and more that his eldest daughter might really be his pride. The thing about blood ties is indeed mysterious.

  Especially yesterday, her actions at the Princess's mansion were exaggerated by others, even he, as a father, felt proud and thought that his guidance was correct. Even Princess Pinghu looked at Gu Yuqiu with favor, it seems that this daughter will have unlimited prospects in the future.

  He didn't send Gu Yuqie back to Danxia Courtyard, but instead sent her to Wanhua Chamber, because he suddenly wanted to see his wife, Liang Huaiyu.

  The sky was still dark, and the door of the Guanxin Building was still tightly closed. Gu Huaizhong knocked on the door a few times, but he didn't dare to use too much force for fear of waking up Gu Yuqiu. The sleepy maid who came to open the door after hearing the knock was startled to find that it was her own young master standing outside, and she hastily invited him in.

  Liang Huaiyu was also asleep, and in her dream, she heard that Lord Hou had arrived. She opened the door somewhat reluctantly, only to find her daughter sleeping soundly in Gu Huai's arms, looking utterly adorable.

  Gu Huai Zhong put his daughter on Liang Huai Yu's bed and explained, then looked at his wife who had just woken up from her sleep.

  She now has a plain face, wearing only a white undergarment, her long hair naturally scattered on her shoulders, and she looks even younger than usual, young enough to remind him of the way she looked when they first met.

  Looking at Gu Huaizhong staring at herself, Liang Huaiyu couldn't help but frown slightly. "A Rong has also sent it over, is there anything else, Master Hou?" She pulled up the quilt to cover her daughter and touched her daughter's feet, which were icy cold. She quickly took out the hot water bottle from the head of the bed, wrapped it in a cloth, and placed it under her daughter's feet to warm them up.

  Gu Huaizhong saw that Liang Huaiyu didn't have the slightest thought of him, and his words seemed to be driving him away. His heart felt cool, "I'll go attend court, I'll come back and see you later." He could only say in a low voice.

  "Don't bother, Your Excellency." Liang Huaiyu smiled coldly and also got into bed, embracing the sleeping Gu Yuqie. "When my daughter returned injured, did you even go to see her?" As soon as she finished speaking, she waved her hand and let down the mosquito net, blocking Gu Huai's line of sight.

  Gu Huai was dazed for a long time before he let out a long sigh and slowly walked away.

  The two women seemed to have been separated from him by something, just like that veil, they had their own world, and he stood on this side, unable to see or touch.

  The pinch marks on Gu Yuqiu's right hand healed in just a few days, but her left hand was more seriously injured. Liang Shi found various medicines to apply to her wounds and applied pearl powder every day to prevent scarring. Gu Yuqiu rested and recovered from her injuries. At first, Liang Huaiyu did not want her to continue practicing martial arts, jumping around everywhere, but after seeing her daughter sulking for two days, getting anxious and scratching her ears, she relented. Speaking of which, she was also a bit frightened, if Gu Yuqiu hadn't learned martial arts for self-defense, that day in the other courtyard, it would have been Gu Yuqiu who fell into the water.

  Those three people didn't appreciate Yu Qian's kindness and pushed her into the water, but they would still try to rescue her.

  Just thinking about this made Liang so angry that he wanted to roll up his sleeves and go back to the Zhao residence to drag out those three mother-daughter and beat them up again to vent his anger.

  So Gu Yuqie said she wanted to practice martial arts, and she was more diligent than before.

  Another month passed and Gu Yuqie's hand had fully recovered, leaving only a faint white scar.

  Five days before the Winter Hunting Festival, Gu Huai brought an invitation from the Princess's Manor, inviting Gu Yuqiu to go hunting in Dongshan together.

  The imperial family of the Great Qi Dynasty has two hunting events every year. One is the autumn hunt, which is held to celebrate the harvest, and the other is the winter hunt. After the Winter Hunt Festival, the heavy snow will seal off the mountains, and in another two months, it will be the Spring Festival. The Winter Hunt is the last hunt of the year, highly valued by the imperial family. At first, only princes and high-ranking officials participated in the Winter Hunt, but over time, it gradually became a grand event that even included imperial consorts, princesses, and the families of high-ranking officials.

  The ancestors of the Daqi imperial family got the world on horseback, and the Winter Hunting Festival of the imperial family was also extraordinary. During the day, there were various hunting activities, and in the evening, there were bonfires, singing and dancing, and acrobatic performances to add to the excitement. The royal hunting ground on the east mountain side is only open twice a year, and the most grandiose one is still the Winter Hunting Festival, which is approaching New Year's Day.

  Both Liang and Gu Yuqiu received invitations from the Princess's residence, and Liu finally couldn't sit still.

  She had endured for a long time, and these days Gu Yuqie and Liang Shi's life was too smooth, and they didn't put her in their eyes at all. What made her even more anxious was that Gu Huai Zhong seemed to be getting closer and closer to Gu Yuqie and her mother. Even in Wang Yue Ju, he mentioned the mother and daughter more and more times.

  Liu could no longer bear it and had a big argument with Gu Huai Zhong. As a result, Gu Huai Zhong not only didn't coax her like before but instead moved to the study in anger and slept for three days straight. It wasn't until she went to apologize with tea that Gu Huai Zhong returned to Wang Yue House.

  She dragged Gu Huai Zhong along, but he was very embarrassed. This kind of hunting festival only allowed bringing wives, where would they bring concubines?

  Liu's family saw that they were definitely not going, so they retreated and asked Gu Huai to take Gu Siyang and Gu Siyu away. Gu Huai was also unwilling to bring them at first, but he couldn't withstand Liu's persistence and finally agreed, bringing his concubine and children who had committed taboos, but it was still acceptable to bring the children born out of wedlock.

  Having obtained Gu Huaizhong's consent, Liu went happily and busily to prepare clothes for her children.

  Gu Yuqiu doesn't need to worry about that side, but her own son and daughter can't be looked down upon when they go out. Gu Siyang and Gu Siyu are already nine years old, and after the new year, they will be ten years old. In a few years, it will be time for them to get married, so she must arrange a good future for them.

  Compared to the joy of the Liu family, Gu Yuqie felt like there was a dark cloud hanging over her head all day.

  Winter hunting! She had participated in it several times in her past life, and it was indeed a lively place. If it were before, she would have been overjoyed, but now just thinking about participating in the winter hunt made her think of Yun Ke, that guy, and she couldn't smile at all.

  Not just Yun Ke, Zhang Wan Yi is also going, how embarrassing

  After the incident at Bieyuan, Zhang Wan'er also sent a post to ask about Gu Yuqiu's well-being. Gu Yuqiu knew that she was showing kindness on one hand and probing her on the other. So she responded with a warm and enthusiastic letter, but made an excuse that she had also caught a cold and it was inconvenient for them to meet.

  But you can't hide from the beginning of the first month, and what's destined to come will eventually arrive.

  Three days later, Gu Yuqie and her mother sat in the spacious carriage of the Hou Mansion under the escort of Dingyuan Hou Gu Huai, heading to the East Mountain hunting ground. Behind their carriage was another one, where Gu Siyang and Gu Siyu were seated.

  Dongshan Hunting Ground is a two-day journey from the capital, and the carriages of various government offices all set out two or three days in advance. Therefore, before the Winter Hunting Festival, the official roads outside the capital become exceptionally lively. The carriages of various government offices are all traveling together, and even the post stations and guest houses along the way are filled with nobles from the capital and their families, exchanging pleasantries and traveling together.

  The Winter Hunting Festival has been going on for a hundred years, and the people along the way have long since become accustomed to it. Some clever ones even clean up their houses near the official road and rent them out, making a good profit from these officials during the festival. Everyone in the capital is used to comparing with each other, so naturally they don't want to be left behind when going out. Instead, the people along the way and the inns have benefited a lot.