On the 29th day of the ninth lunar month, on the eve of the Cold Food Festival.
Liu Huashan carried a bamboo cage and found Caiyu. "Here, this is what you asked for a few days ago. Our brothers took some spare time these days and went out to look for them for you. It's almost winter, and these snakes are hard to find!"
Caiyu took it and slightly lifted the lid tied to the cage.
A scarlet snake tongue shot out from inside. Liu Huashan was quick - eyed and covered it for her in time.
"Be careful! Some of these snakes are venomous. If you get bitten, you'll feel awful for several days!"
"Venomous... " Caiyu's eyes flickered slightly. "Thank you all for taking risks to catch these snakes for me. I'll make snake wine tomorrow and send each of you a jar."
Liu Huashan had no resistance to a beautiful and kind - hearted girl like Caiyu. He quickly waved his hands and laughed.
"It's okay. Speaking of wine, we owe it to you last time, Miss Caiyu. Otherwise, the Lord would have blamed us. It's the first time we've seen a girl who could leave the Lord speechless. Hehe!"
Since Caiyu had used her eloquence to silence Song Yinghuai and forced him to make new rules, these rough men had become more and more convinced of her.
Caiyu said, "It was my fault in the first place. I couldn't let you all take the blame for me. Since the Lord doesn't allow you to drink in Lianyin Pavilion, I'll brew the wine and let you take it home to drink slowly. That should be okay, right?"
She lifted the cage closer and tried to identify the snakes through the gaps in the cage. "Which ones are venomous?"
Liu Huashan immediately leaned over to the other side and explained to her. "That one, the golden - bodied forest snake, and the one with red background and black patterns is called the red - banded snake... Aren't you really scared, girl?"
After a while, Caiyu straightened up and said with a smile, "Thank you, Brother Liu, for your guidance. I'll go and deal with them now. I'll be careful."
Caiyu carried the snake cage outside the wall of the back garden.
Lianyin Pavilion occupied a large area and there were many deserted places, some of which were rarely visited.
The jars of chrysanthemum wine Caiyu had brewed before were also hidden here. Later, when Song Yinghuai made new rules to ban alcohol and meat, she asked Liu Huashan and the others to move the jars outside the wall.
As the saying goes, "You have your strategies, and I have my counter - measures."
It shouldn't count as breaking the rules outside the wall, right?
Fortunately, Caiyu had adjusted her strategy these days and started to win people's hearts. Otherwise, how could she have found someone to help with these wine jars and snakes?
Caiyu took out the red - banded snake from the cage. The soft snake, held by its seventh - inch point, coiled around her wrist and was then thrown into a small cage beside.
The remaining snakes were all poured into the wine jars and sealed.
The Book of Songs, "Odes of Bin - July" once mentioned that "In the seventh month, the fire star moves down; in the ninth month, people are given winter clothes."
From the ninth month, the weather gradually turns cold. People in the Daye Dynasty all buy warm clothes. Therefore, the first day of the tenth month becomes the Cold Food Festival.
At this time, the maple leaves on Xiangshan Mountain in Yanjing are bright red, covering the mountains like a sea of fire.
The old princess of the Yan Mansion would climb Xiangshan Mountain every Cold Food Festival to pay tribute to the deceased and give winter clothes to everyone in the mansion.
Caiyu, along with a group of maids, guards, and servants, stood below, listening to Concubine Yao and Song Yinghuai worshiping their ancestors and the soldiers who had died in the border over the years.
The setting sun was like molten gold, and the twilight was closing in.
The fiery orange maple leaves fluttered in the vast gray - blue sky and then fell into the mountain stream with the wind.
Incense was burning on the sacrificial altar, and the cloud - flags were fluttering.
In the center of the divine table, there was a freshly - hunted antelope. Surrounding it were beautiful flowers, fragrant grass, cassia wine, pepper wine, and the ascending spiritual incense was slowly rising straight to the sky.
Concubine Yao wore a phoenix crown with three - fan sidepieces and nine halcyons and four phoenixes, and a cloud - python and cloud - wild - goose - embroidered cape. She stood shoulder to shoulder with Song Yinghuai, who was also in court clothes.
Song Yinghuai usually dressed in plain Buddhist robes. Today, in his bright red court clothes embroidered with white cranes flying through auspicious clouds in gold and silver double - thread, and wearing a seven - beam gold - cloud crown, he looked even more like a bright moon in the sky, with red lips like blood and an air of nobility and coldness.
The two held three incense sticks. Concubine Yao recited:
"The gods in the sky are worshiped; the gods on the earth are sacrificed; the ghosts of the dead are offered..."
After a long and rambling sacrificial speech, there were also various long - drawn - out ceremonies.
Everyone didn't dare to slack off the slightest bit and lay prostrate on the ground without moving.
After all the ceremonies, the sacrifice to the ancestors by burning the five - colored paper winter clothes finally ended.
After the sacrifice, Concubine Yao ordered people to distribute the newly - made five - colored winter clothes to everyone.
Huaping and other second - class maids stood behind Caiyu, stroking the newly - received winter clothes and saying happily,
"The materials for this year's winter clothes are even more valuable. We maids actually got silver - fox jackets and gold - embroidered brocade skirts!"
"Yes, probably because the industries of our mansion had a good harvest this year?"
Caiyu wasn't overly surprised by these clothes. After all, when she was the daughter of the Marquis of Yongchang, she had worn even more gorgeous clothes. These clothes for a chamber - maid were nothing in her eyes.
At this moment, the red - banded snake hidden in her chest was lazily hibernating and very quiet.
Caiyu stroked it and was thinking about when would be the most suitable time to act.
After the winter clothes were distributed, Concubine Yao allowed everyone to move freely.
The people who had been confined in Lianyin Pavilion for a long time finally got some leisure today. They scattered like wild horses off the reins.
People gathered in groups of three or four, laughing and chatting. Ji Ming brought out sugar cakes, honey cakes, baked golden - flower cakes, chrysanthemum cakes, cherry sugar jelly, flower - patterned glutinous rice cakes, maltose, golden milk pastries...
All were the sweet snacks that the maids and boys loved.
As soon as they saw them, people swarmed around without any regard for hierarchy.
Today, the strict order of hierarchy didn't seem so important anymore, and no one cared about the maids and boys' lack of manners.
Ji Ming just instructed, "Don't take too much. People behind haven't got any yet!"
Huaping and the others exchanged glances. Then -
Whenever Caiyu reached out to take something, someone beside her would always reach out faster and grab the pastry she wanted first.
"Oops! Is this the one Sister Caiyu wants to eat?" Suier took a bite of the honey cake she had just snatched and pretended to be surprised. "Sorry, Sister Caiyu. I didn't notice you also wanted this honey cake."
Caiyu looked at her over - confident look, lowered her eyes, and said calmly,
"It's okay. I'll eat something else."
She then reached for the golden milk pastry beside.
The next second, the whole plate of golden milk pastries was taken away by someone.
Xiangye carried the plate of golden milk pastries and greeted everyone. "Come and eat! These golden milk pastries taste really good!"
Huaping led more than a dozen young maids from Lianyin Pavilion and rushed Caiyu around. They rushed out of the crowd and happily shared the golden milk pastries.
Caiyu was left outside the crowd. A bright red maple leaf fluttered down on her shoulder and then twirled to the ground, looking extremely desolate.
"Is this all you're capable of?" A cold sneer came from behind her. "I thought you had improved these days and had won over everyone in the pavilion."
Caiyu turned around and saw Song Yinghuai standing behind her. His bright red court clothes were like rolling red clouds.
"My Lord." Caiyu bowed to him. "My Lord is making fun of this servant. You know no one in the pavilion likes Caiyu. The only person I can rely on is you, my Lord."
The implication was that she would rely on him.
Although the words lacked backbone, Song Yinghuai was quite pleased.
He sneered and lightly scolded, "You're my chief maid. Instead of following me and serving me, you come here to fight with a bunch of young maids for food. You have no sense!"
"I'm going to the top of the mountain to enjoy the red leaves. Come with me."
Caiyu's eyes flickered. This was exactly what she had been waiting for. She immediately responded and followed Song Yinghuai step by step up the mountain.
Huaping and the others, who had been eyeing Caiyu jealously, were so angry that their noses were crooked when they saw this!