Chapter 161 Another Scheme [2]
No emotion could be seen from Zi You’s actions. If anyone saw it, he would only think that she was being polite and respectful. No flaws could be picked out.
But Shangguan Lingluo felt that Zi You’s eyes were filled with ridicule and despised Zi You to the extreme.
Shangguan Lingluo hated that she couldn’t go forwards, scratch her beautiful face that was capable of causing the downfall of a country, and gouge out her beautiful pair of eyes. She even started to move.
But she thought about her perfect plan and revealed a light smile.
But this smile contained boundless hatred, making Shangguan Lingluo’s beautiful face look strange. She looked terrifying, like a vampire.
Her scary smile had not disappeared even after she walked over to Zi You.
She picked up a wine jug from a palace maid. She said apologetically, “Mu Xiaojie, it was Bengong’s fault before. Bengong is apologizing to you now. After this cup of wine, shall be friends?”
Zi You faintly smiled as she looked at her, as if trying to see through her.
Those deep eyes were like a transparent lake, as if they wanted to wash her dirty mind clean.
Shangguan Lingluo felt a bit uncomfortable. The hand holding the silver jug of wine trembled.
Just as she was feeling uneasy, Zi You suddenly smiled brilliantly. “Chennu doesn’t dare. Fourth Gongzhu is giving Chennu so much face. How can Chennu dare to disobey?”
Shangguan Lingluo secretly released a sigh of relief. She handed a cup of wine over. “Then, please drink this cup of wine, Mu Xiaojie.”
Zi You took the cup and smiled at Shangguan Lingluo. “Then Fourth Gongzhu should have a cup and drink with Chennu too.”
“Okay.” Shangguan Lingluo smiled from the heart this time. She poured herself a cup of wine from the jug and raised it in front of Zi You.
Zi You clinked her cup against it. She drank all the wine in one gulp. When she finished, she lifted the cup for her to see. “Chennu has drunk it all.”
Shangguan Lingluo saw this and drank her cup of wine too.
They seemed to have dissolved their hatred with two cups of wine. It looked like Fourth Gongzhu was ready to make peace with Mu Zi You.
For a time, everyone thought that Fourth Gongzhu had changed her personality and wasn’t as vindictive as she used to be.
After the banquet ended, everyone moved around freely. Actually, it was the time for every fu’s blind dates for unmarried males and females.
Second w.a.n.gzi sat in his wheelchair and looked at Zi You, forcefully suppressing his desire to go over and talk to her.
Zi You was wearing a blue-colored silk long dress embroidered with green branches and plum blossoms. The blue dress rippled at her feet like a blossoming lotus. She stood out among brilliant purples and reds, making the heavens and earth lose their colors.
She had such a beautiful and refined appearance, but this seemingly delicate and slender girl was actually stronger than a man. When he was performing physical exercises, he was in so much pain that he almost couldn’t move anymore, she would come over to whip him with words.
“If you want to sit in a wheelchair for a lifetime, then you can give up. I already said that I got rid the gu. Whether you can stand up or not depends on your perseverance. Think about all the injustices that you have suffered in the past five years. Are you willing to stay paralyzed in this wheelchair forever?
“Shangguan Boyu, don’t make me look down on you! You are a man, but you can’t even compare to a little girl like me? Do you know how many silver needles I place on myself every day to learn medicine? Do you know how many blisters I have on my feet when I strap sandbags on my legs and climb up mountains to learn qinggong? Do you know how swollen my calves are? Everything I have is obtained through sweat and hard work.”
Yes, he could not have her looking down on him. If Second w.a.n.gzi worked hard because he wanted revenge in the beginning, then at this moment, he wanted to succeed and stand up to prove to her that he was strong. He was strong enough to be worthy of her.
Second w.a.n.gzi was sneaking glances at Zi You, while Taizi and Third w.a.n.gzi were looking at her too. Only, their glances weren’t as hidden as Second w.a.n.gzi’s. They walked over majestically and approached her.
Fortunately, Zi You was not with Liu Ruixue and her other two sworn sisters. Otherwise, how awkward would it be? How sad would Liu Ruixue be?
Zi You looked at Taizi and couldn’t help but be indignant on Liu Ruixue’s behalf.
Taizi was wearing light yellow brocade robes. They were decorated with a silvery green embroidered auspicious dragon motif on the sides. His black hair had an amber cat eye’s jewel hairpin in it. His belt around his waist was of the same pattern. He had a soft white ermine satin cloak draped over him. He looked like an elegant and n.o.ble gongzi. He was so n.o.ble that people didn’t dare to look up at him.
Unlike the Emperor, the dragon on his body had four claws: one less claw than the Emperor’s five clawed-dragon.
Third w.a.n.gzi was wearing a purple robe. His waist was tied with the same colored gold edgedd ribbon. His black hair was bundled into a gilt crown. His slender body was straight. He was handsome and revealed his inherent n.o.bility.
It should be said that the Shangguan family’s genes were very good. Xuanwu Emperor was not bad-looking. An w.a.n.g was also said to be very handsome. Otherwise, Shangguan LingRan wouldn’t look like such an evildoer.
Taizi, Second w.a.n.gzi, and Third w.a.n.gzi were handsome men, but Second w.a.n.gzi looked more exquisite.
Their temperaments were all different, however. If Taizi was warm like jade, then Third w.a.n.gzi was like spring who brought a warmth to everyone. Second w.a.n.gzi was like a solitary moon, exuding coldness and loneliness.
But no matter how outstanding they were, they could not cause a ripple in Zi You’s heart.
Zi You provided treatment to Second w.a.n.gzi because she thought of him like a chess piece to use against Taizi and Third w.a.n.gzi.
Only that shameless evildoer…… Zi You didn’t know why she suddenly thought of Shangguan LingRan. She looked towards his direction before glancing away.
Shangguan LingRan was surrounded by several gongzis and xiaojies. But he seemed to have a connection with Zi You. His devilishly charming phoenix eyes also looked quietly at her.
Their eyes collided, making their hearts jump crazily!
Zi You immediately turned her head. Her face turned slightly red.
Shangguan LingRan smiled pleasantly, in a good mood. This smile made him seem more devilishly charming!
He was wearing a lake blue embroidered silver robe. There was a deep blue jade-embellished belt around his waist. A blue-edged white embroidered pouch with auspicious clouds on it hung from his belt. It was garnished with shiny blue tourmaline beads. His raven-black hair was loosely gathered with a jade crown. The glow from the lanterns plated his handsome face with a layer of gold and softened his facial features.
If someone did not see the devilish charm in his phoenix eyes, he would look just like a refined gongzi. However, his eyes were too wicked. One glance at them and no one would think him as a gentleman.
But even so, a lot of xiaojies flew over to him in droves. After all, his appearance and An w.a.n.g Shizifei’s ident.i.ty were too tempting. There was also the Empress Dowager’s insurmountable doting on him.
Yu Meilian had been slighted by him once, but still didn’t give up. She dragged Minister of War’s Di granddaughter Ke Yuner over.
The person Ke Yuner wanted to marry was Ming w.a.n.g Shizi Shangguan Weiran. Although Shangguan Weiran was as “notorious” as his tangdi [younger male patrilineal cousin] Shangguan LingRan, he was also handsome. Although he did not look as much like an evildoer as Shangguan LingRan, he did not lose out to Taizi and Third w.a.n.gzi.
The key point was that Shangguan Weiran had yet to be engaged. He was already seventeen years old and didn’t have a Shizifei. Taizi and Third w.a.n.gzi were good, but one had a Zhengfei and cefei and the other had a Zhengfei candidate already. Ke Yuner was the Di granddaughter of a first-rank official. She did not want to be a cefei. She wanted to be a Zhengfei.
Shangguan Weiran was romantic, but not lecherous. He had many female confidantes, but he never brought them back to the w.a.n.g fu. This was thanks to his father, Ming w.a.n.g. Ming w.a.n.g was not the Emperor’s direct brother, but he was very trusted by the Emperor. He was in charge of the Imperial Household Department. He was very good at doing business and the wealthiest out of the Emperor’s brothers.
Moreover, Ming w.a.n.g was very upright. He had one Zhengfei and one cefei. There were no other women in his fu. He was considered a good man in the capital’s high society.
Zhengfei had no children. Shangguan Weiran and his sister, fourteen-year-old Mingxia Junzhu [daughter of imperial relatives] were born from cefei Nee Wu.
It was said that Ming w.a.n.g was really fond of Zhengfei Nee Li. But she had a congenital heart disease and couldn’t give birth, so Ming w.a.n.g reluctantly married Nee Wu. After Nee Wu gave birth to two children, Ming w.a.n.g had never favored her again. He also put Nee Wu’s children under Zhengfei Nee Li’s name to raise.
Shangguan Weiran did not know that his birth mother was Nee Wu. He used to ridicule and insult her. He later learned that Nee Wu was his birth mother. From then on, his personality had changed and he started to turn bad.
This Nee Li was the Empress’ mother’s niece: Duke Weiguo’s Di eldest daughter.
The Empress’ aunt married Duke Weiguo, the person who had arrived first at the Palace gate, but did not enter the Palace first.
The thing that Ke Yuner liked was the simple environment in Ming w.a.n.g fu. Shangguan Weiran was dissolute, but which young man wasn’t dissolute?
But he had no brothers to compete over property with him. He also had no mother-in-law for her to serve. This was something that other fus did not have.
The other “Four Tyrants” of the capital, disregarding the Emperor’s favored consort Li Pin’s brother Wei Mingrui, had a weak family background. His father was just an a.s.sistant Minister of Appointments. The other three’s family backgrounds were not weak.
Duke Yongguo Shizi, Zhu Likang’s father, was one of the five dukes of Great Yan. Duke Yongguo was the Emperor’s son-in-law and was married to the Emperor’s eldest sister, Chuyang Gongzhu.
Such an aristocratic gongzi with good looks and could paint, even if he was useless in everything, he would still cause some vain women’s adoration.