As soon as Guo Xinyue saw Li Wanming getting into the carriage, she affectionately took her arm and said, "Wanming, you've really become a celebrity in the capital these days."
"Even my mother, a woman who rarely leaves the inner chambers, has heard of you and speaks highly of you."
"I've always wanted to visit your inn. But I was afraid that since it's newly opened and you must be swamped with business, so I thought I'd wait a while before going to show my support."
She rattled off these words in a quick and enthusiastic manner, as if Li Wanming were really her long - lost close friend.
Li Wanming felt extremely uncomfortable.
It was as if a slimy snake had coiled around her arm, hissing at her.
Li Wanming pulled her arm out of Guo Xinyue's embrace and forced a smile, saying, "My business is just a small one. It's nothing special."
Seeing her resistance, Guo Xinyue didn't insist. Instead, she started chatting about the latest gossips in the capital.
She was like an expert on all the new dishes in Muyun Pavilion, the new lipsticks in the rouge shops, and the chrysanthemum - viewing party held in Liuyuan during the Mid - Autumn Festival. She told Li Wanming about them one by one.
Sometimes Li Wanming really admired Guo Xinyue.
This girl, no matter how many frictions and grudges she had with Li Wanming before, could act as if nothing had happened the next time they met whenever it was necessary.
She was so calm, kind, and enthusiastic, just like an old friend who hadn't seen her for a long time.
Amazing!
Li Wanming used to think she was like a master of Sichuan Opera face - changing. One second she would call you her dear sister, and the next second she would turn against you and seem eager to take a bite out of you.
But now, Li Wanming had a different view.
Miss Guo, the second daughter of the Guo family, first befriended Sun Miaoqing, then tried to make friends with Li Wanming. After seeing that Li Wanming might snatch away the man she fancied, she turned to Lu Songyuan. After being resented by Lu Songyuan, she sold out Sun Miaoqing to stay out of trouble and protect herself...
Now, since Sun Miaoqing had offended the Princess Royal, she came to find Li Wanming as if nothing had happened.
With her acting skills, tone, speed of face - changing, and calm demeanor... she was not a master of face - changing at all. She was clearly the ultimate opportunist, as flexible as a fragrant tea plant in the wind!
She had no stance at all and simply swayed with the wind.
However, if one could be a good opportunist, it was also quite remarkable.
No matter how strong the wind blew from all directions, one could remain unshaken.
Since ancient times, those who could stand out and laugh last in the fierce court struggles were often just like that little patch of green on the wall.
One had to admit it!
Guo Xinyue chatted all the way, never mentioning Guo Ziyan or the Princess Royal.
Li Wanming was also very patient. She accompanied her in chatting and joking all the way, never saying a word about Sun Miaoqing.
If Guo Xinyue wasn't in a hurry, then Li Wanming was even less so.
After all, they were all in the same boat now. They would either all survive or all perish. No one could get away with it.
...
The carriage swayed for about the time it took to burn an incense stick and finally arrived at the Guo Mansion.
It was quite interesting. Li Wanming and Guo Xinyue had known each other for so long. They were kind of relatives in a roundabout way, but Li Wanming had never been to the Guo Mansion before.
This mansion of the assistant minister looked solemn and spacious with its black - tiled and blue - brick buildings.
It was not luxurious at all, but rather exuded a kind of clarity.
This was a big surprise to Li Wanming.
She had thought that Guo Wei, a man who climbed up the social ladder by sacrificing his son, would be a gluttonous official living a luxurious life.
Unexpectedly, his mansion was so simple.
She couldn't help but recall Xiao Jingnan's evaluation, "Guo Wei is a Jinshi graduate and is extremely arrogant..."
Li Wanming hadn't really believed this at first.
A truly arrogant man wouldn't let his son curry favor with the Princess Royal.
Guo Ziyan was so perverse and vicious. It was hard to say that Guo Wei hadn't indulged him.
And Guo Wei was able to hold the position of assistant minister at a young age. He probably owed it to the Princess Royal's support to some extent.
A man who got promoted by sacrificing his son could hardly be called arrogant...
When they finally reached the inner hall and sat down, Guo Xinyue asked someone to serve tea to Li Wanming. Then she waved the servants away and said gracefully, "Wanming, you've always been a smart person. You should know why I've invited you here today, right?"
Li Wanming replied, "I don't know. I'm a fool."
She didn't like Guo Xinyue's pretentious attitude.
Sun Miaoqing was the daughter - in - law of the Guo family. If something bad were to happen, the Guo family would be the first to suffer.
The Guo family was now in a difficult situation, on the verge of a disaster, but they still pretended to be calm.
Sun Miaoqing was slightly stunned by her retort but didn't get angry. Instead, she smiled and continued, "Wanming is being modest. But then again, the Li family is on the verge of a great disaster. It's really rare that you can remain so calm."
Li Wanming said, "Really? I'd like to hear what this great disaster of the Li family is that even the second miss of the Guo family has to tell me about it?"
She knew it was time to get to the point. All the previous pretenses were no longer necessary.
Guo Xinyue's words were putting pressure on her, trying to force the Li family to take on more responsibilities in this matter.
So, if she could anger Guo Xinyue, maybe she could make the Guo family lose their composure and gain some bargaining chips for herself.
Thinking of this, Li Wanming wrinkled her nose and said, "Also, stop calling me Wanming all the time. It makes it seem like we're really close."
"You..."
No matter how good - tempered Guo Xinyue was, she couldn't stand Li Wanming's repeated rudeness.
Her face flushed slightly, as if she was a bit angry.
But then she thought better of it and suppressed her anger, saying, "Wan... Mrs. Cheng, why are you pretending to be calm here? You just came back from the Li Mansion. Didn't the old lady of the Li family tell you?"
"How did Miss Guo know that I went to the Li Mansion?"
Li Wanming pretended to be surprised and said, "Has Miss Guo been following me secretly? Or did you wait at the entrance of our Zhaoyu Academy all morning, just waiting for me to come back?"
Finally, Guo Xinyue couldn't hold it in anymore. She stood up and said, "Li Wanming, don't go too far! Our Guo family has shown enough sincerity by sending me to invite you here in person today. Don't be ungrateful!"
"Really?"
Li Wanming glanced at her, picked up the teacup on the table and took a slow sip before saying, "I only know that for a normal invitation, one should first send a visiting card to the guest's home, stating the time and the reason. After the guest's reply, one should hold a banquet at home to formally entertain the guest. Only then can it be barely considered as sincere."
She put down the teacup and said, "I don't know what kind of sincerity it is to block someone at the door early in the morning like Miss Guo did?"
Guo Xinyue stared at her for a long time without saying a word. Suddenly, she gave a cold laugh and said, "My father said that Mrs. Cheng is a scheming person. I didn't believe it before, but now it seems that I misjudged you."