The four imperial princes and one imperial princess were trailing at the end. The Fourth Prince and Third Princess followed their mothers with lowered heads, while the Second and Fifth Princes were the most silent.
Those with mothers are not necessarily the same, while those without are extremely similar.
Jiang Sheng felt a little heartache for Fifth Brother. She dared to only glance at him briefly with the corner of her eyes, faintly feeling that he seemed to have grown much taller.
Only when the Imperial Court led the harem to sit down and she got up to pay her respects, did she hastily raise her head to briefly make eye contact with the calm and composed youth.
Chang Yan nodded slightly, concern evident in his eyes.
Jiang Sheng shook her head, telling him not to worry.
As they took their seats, the banquet officially began.
Although Ju Noble Consort was overbearing and arrogant, her handling of matters was laudable. She had made the entire concubine selection banquet gently joyful. The young masters could write poetry and exchange verses by the pavilions and lakes, while the young ladies could wander and chat in the imperial gardens.
There were also songs and dances for the elders to appreciate, and the delicacies provided were steaming hot despite the February chill.
Some young ladies from prominent families with ambitions like the Yang Family and Meng Family were already cheering each other on to fly paper kites in the imperial gardens, fully displaying their feminine charm.
In contrast, the ladies from families like the Jiang, Dou and Yao did not dare to leave their elders' sides.
Initially, the imperial princes could still restrain themselves, but as more and more ladies got up to go to the imperial gardens, these few continued to sit steadily and properly.
The Fourth Prince could no longer restrain himself. He sidled up to Yao Siqing and asked with a red face, "The gardens have cultivated some extremely beautiful new flowers recently. May I invite Miss Yao to take a look?"
This was an obvious show of interest. With the lady's consent and followed by the approval of the Noble Consort Dowager, a marriage decree would be granted.
However, Yao Siqing smiled and shook her head. "Thank you, Your Highness. But I have to accompany my younger sisters, so I shall not go."
On either side of her stood two strapping ladies, accentuating her increasingly slender and delicate figure.
The Fourth Prince's face fell in disappointment, but he did not dare to force her. He could only turn away dejectedly.
Jiang Chengyu sneered softly, "He still dares to come after being rejected repeatedly. Can't he see how pathetic he is, to think he even dares to covet Sister Yao?"
If lameness was counted as a demerit, the Fourth Prince's contributions to the country probably could not even match the Second Prince's.
Speaking of which, where was the Second Prince?
Jiang Sheng looked up only to realize the gloomy and reticent prince was missing. He was neither competing in poetry and lyrics, nor strolling in the imperial gardens, nor even appreciating the dances and delicacies.
She could not even find the eldest prince.
Only the Fourth Prince was left with his head drooping, the Fifth Prince at his side trying to comfort him, and the Third Princess constantly edging closer to the pavilions by the lake.
Just as Jiang Sheng was about to warn Jiang Chengyu, several palace maids came over with steaming fruit tea.
As one of them approached the Jiang's seats, she suddenly stumbled hard. The tea bowl flew up then dropped down, perfectly splashing its contents all over Jiang Chengyu.
Fortunately it was cold and she was wearing thick clothes so she was not scalded, but having half her body soaked in hot liquid was obviously uncomfortable.
Jiang Chengyu's face was icy as she forcibly suppressed her anger to prevent it from bursting out.
Old Lady Jiang frowned while Second Madam Jiang cried out in shock. Even the singing and dancing at the center of the banquet paused briefly.
"What is going on?" The stern voice of the Imperial Court rang out.
Just as Second Madam Jiang was about to kneel and report, Ju Noble Consort responded with a laugh, "It must have been a palace maid's accident that affected the Jiang's young lady. Your Majesty may rest assured, this servant will handle it properly."
The music and dance struck back up again, and the mood of the banquet turned harmonious once more. The Imperial Court hesitated briefly before ultimately letting the matter rest as it were.
What crude means!
To first pretend to soak the lady's clothes in order to bring her away to change, then at halfway sneak in a prince to peek at her fair skin with his own eyes, and thus have no choice but to marry her.
Prominent families cared deeply about their bloodline and would have aligned themselves accordingly to aid the prince in fighting for the throne.
Old Lady Jiang was cunning enough to analyze the cause and effect instantly, but the cruder the method, the more effective it was – Jiang Chengyu obviously could not continue at the banquet with her wet clothes in such cold weather.
"This is truly mortifying for the Jiang lady." Ju Noble Consort came over with some palace maids, a carefree smile full on her face. "This servant will surely punish the palace maid, but your clothes must be changed immediately. I will have someone lead you to the rear court."
Her words had just fallen when a stern-looking matron of thirty years or so stepped up. "Miss Jiang, come with this slave."
Jiang Chengyu and Jiang Sheng looked at each other.
The clothes had to be changed, but they could not fall into the trap. They needed to work together to overcome this difficulty.
"I will come now." Jiang Chengyu pretended to be weak and timid. "But I wish for sister to accompany me."
The matron looked back at Ju Noble Consort.
Ju Noble Consort smiled. "It is normal for a young lady to wish for a sister's company in her timidness. Go ahead without worries."
Jiang Chengyu also smiled. She followed behind with Jiang Sheng, and surprisingly not just one sister – Yao Siqing also stepped up to join them.
Three ladies held the same position. The difficulty had certainly increased.
Ju Noble Consort's expression faded a little, though it was but a passing moment before her radiant smile returned.
Old Lady Jiang watched her coldly, displeased but without saying anything.
Even Second Madam Jiang did not seem too worried.
The three ladies thus accompanied the matron to the rear court, collected fitting attire, and entered a side room to change.
After shutting the door, Jiang Sheng's heart started thumping wildly as she scurried around the room like a big moth, keying in to check the windows of the wardrobe and even flipping up the bedframe to peer underneath.
There were no hidden people, nor any other entrances.
"Or did we guess wrongly? The First Prince doesn't plan to use Chengyu's innocence to take a wife?" Jiang Sheng was confused beyond belief.
Yao Siqing was helping Jiang Chengyu undo her sash as she said, "No matter what, the clothes need changing first. I've checked and this is quality fabric from Fengjing Tailors, nothing out of the ordinary."
It was miserably cold with wet clothes on after all.
Jiang Sheng kept silent, staring fixedly on the doorway with the balls of her feet braced against the doorframe, fully on guard.
Only Jiang Chengyu remained carefree as she stripped off her undergarment to change into a new one, even joking, "Luckily I don't have the habit of embroidering my name on undergarments. Even if stolen, it does not matter."
Children from wealthy households often had names embroidered on ankle bands and collars of undergarments to prevent confusion when worn. It was similar to handkerchiefs.
With Jiang Chengyu being the only daughter in the Jiang Family currently, there was no possibility of wearing the wrong one, hence no need for embroidery.
Just when the two had almost finished helping her into the new clothes, only the waist sash remained, the main doors were pushed – once, then again and again, seemingly fierce knocks.
Yao Siqing instantly changed color. She hurriedly shoved her two younger sisters behind herself.
But what use was that when her figure was so slender?
Jiang Sheng grit her teeth and darted out to stand right in front. "I'm no young lady either and do not fear infamy. Let it be me then."
As she spoke, the wooden doors shuddered more intensely. The door bolt looked to be on the verge of breaking.
In the split second that Jiang Sheng was still holding the waist sash, Jiang Chengyu charged forward and yanked the doors open, lifting a leg in a standard side kick.
With a cry, the person outside crashed onto the ground.
Jiang Chengyu clapped her hands. Under the dumbstruck stares of her two sisters, she gathered up her skirt and said, "You've forgotten that the Jiang Family is descended from military generals."
Not only were the boys highly skilled in martial arts, so were the Jiang girls extraordinary among their peers.
No wonder Old Lady Jiang had been exceptionally calm. No wonder Second Madam Jiang did not worry. It turned out they knew that the First Prince was simply no match for Jiang Chengyu.
"So Grandmother came along in case Chengyu injures the First Prince, specifically to plead for mercy?" Jiang Sheng mumbled in a daze.
Jiang Chengyu was still stroking her nose and grinning foolishly, unaware if her sister was praising her.
Only Yao Siqing noticed something amiss. She frowned and stepped forward. "No, this is not the First Prince."
It was the matron who had led their way just now.
If Jiang Chengyu being deliberately drenched was not part of the First Prince's scheme, then why bring them here?
And making use of the matron to create a din to startle them - if they were all meek as mice, they should have been frozen stiff in a corner.
When the ladies did not appear, presumably only the young ladies of the Dou and Qi families would remain in the hall.
"Oh no!" Jiang Sheng and Yao Siqing exclaimed simultaneously. "This is drawing the tiger away from the mountain!"
