The maid behind Song Yinghuai was dressed in a lotus-colored silk jacket, a cyan satin vest with piping, and a water-green skirt below. There were no ornaments on her hands or body, only a plain silver plum blossom hairpin on her head and very simple ear pendants were faintly visible.
However, even this plain and ordinary maid's attire couldn't hide her well - proportioned figure. With each graceful step, it was as if lotus flowers were blooming under her feet.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew up, disturbing the bangs beside Caiyu's temples. The young girl raised her hand to tuck her hair behind her ear, and the face that had been hanging low was lifted up, instantly catching everyone's eyes.
The plum blossom petals all over the sky were blown down by the wind, flying down from the air like a cage of red snow, and falling one after another on her fair - as - snow face.
The young girl's long, thick eyelashes like raven feathers trembled slightly, covering her clear and lively pupils. They were like butterflies about to take flight, fragile and beautiful, as if they would shatter at a touch.
As she walked daintily, she outshone all the noble ladies around her who were bedecked in jewels.
With that face, all her inexpensive clothes seemed to become exquisitely crafted and priceless in an instant.
She was truly a beauty to topple cities and kingdoms, neither flower nor mist, standing alone among the spring breeze.
The bustling Plum Blossom Villa instantly fell silent. You could even hear a pin drop, and there was no more sound of footsteps.
It seemed that everyone was stunned.
Time and space also seemed to stand still.
Dong Yurong, Jiang Jinyue and other noble ladies all glared angrily. They felt that Caiyu's appearance had stolen their limelight, but they couldn't find any fault with her.
After all, she was dressed in a proper maid's clothes.
But precisely because of this, they felt even more embarrassed.
If a maid's clothes could outshine them, if she were also adorned with jewels, who in this world could compare with her?
Dong Yurong suppressed the hostility in her eyes.
Her desire to get rid of Caiyu became even stronger.
A smile appeared on her face. Seeing Dong Fangzhuo leading Song Yinghuai walking towards her, she quickly bowed and said:
"My lord is so kind. Rong'er feels extremely honored."
When she said this, everyone was even more convinced that Song Yinghuai had come for Dong Yurong.
Song Yinghuai responded indifferently and didn't expose Dong Yurong's little trick.
His purpose today was not Dong Yurong, but -
His eyes fell on Dong Fangzhuo beside him.
Dong Fangzhuo, the Commissioner of Revenue, dressed in a purple and noble - looking robe, looked fat - faced and shiny - skinned beside Song Yinghuai, just like a nouveau riche.
He made a gesture of invitation to Song Yinghuai. "My lord, please forgive my daughter's rudeness. The seats for male guests are over there. Please follow me, my lord."
Although Caiyu was a maid accompanying them, she had been invited by Dong Yurong, so according to etiquette, she stayed with the female guests.
Dong Yurong immediately greeted everyone to sit down and also said to Caiyu:
"Miss Caiyu, don't just stand there. You are my honored guest today. Please don't bring your habit of serving your master to the banquet!"
A burst of giggles rang out.
Although Dong Yurong seemed enthusiastic, she deliberately mentioned Caiyu's identity as a maid, which made everyone look at Caiyu with contempt.
Caiyu had long expected that Dong Yurong's invitation to her was a feast with ill intentions. She was not at all shy and gracefully returned the greeting and thanked her:
"Thank you, Miss Dong, for your advice. Since that's the case, Caiyu will sit down as Miss Dong said. If any of the ladies here need to be served during the banquet, just call the maids waiting in the distance. We don't want to disgrace Miss Dong."
Dong Yurong's face froze. She didn't expect Caiyu to turn the tables on her.
Before Caiyu came, everyone had discussed that they would each order Caiyu to serve them one by one!
Who would have thought that her words would cut off everyone's retreat.
Everyone sat down one after another, with constipated - looking faces, scolding Dong Yurong for her stupidity in their hearts.
Why did she have to bring up such a thing? There were so many polite words she could have said, but she had to say this one.
Caiyu calmly sat in her seat and observed everyone's expressions.
She had been beautiful since childhood and had always been ostracized in the circle of noble ladies in Jincheng. She had grown up in these intrigues since she was young.
As the saying goes, three women make a drama.
At a banquet like this with all kinds of women, it was either about comparison, or frame - up, or verbal attack.
She had a hot temper and didn't like to attend these scheming banquets. But whenever she did, she could upset a large group of noble ladies.
Sure enough, as soon as everyone sat down, Guan Ning, the daughter of the Yanjing prefect, looked at the complicated gold - based, kingfisher - inlaid six - phoenix hairpin with tassels on Dong Yurong's head and flattered:
"Miss Dong's hairpin is really beautiful today! It must have cost a lot of silver, right?"
Dong Fangzhuo was her father's superior, so Guan Ning naturally had to be the first to flatter.
Dong Yurong touched the tassels and smiled. "This is something that money can't buy. It was a gift from Concubine Dong. It's said to be carefully crafted by the imperial craftsman. There is no such craftsmanship in the civilian world."
"A gift from Concubine Dong. It must be priceless! The Dong family has produced a concubine. It's really a matter of bringing glory to the ancestors!" Guan Ning was extremely envious.
Others also flattered one after another.
The reason why Dong Fangzhuo could become the Commissioner of Revenue was not only because of the family's glory but also because of the help of his younger sister, Concubine Dong.
After everyone flattered, Guan Ning turned her attention to Caiyu's head.
Looking at the plain silver plum blossom hairpin on Caiyu's bun, Guan Ning said maliciously:
"Miss Caiyu, you are dressed too simply today. People who know you know that you are a maid and can't afford valuable head - ornaments. But people who don't know might suspect that you deliberately dressed like this because you don't value the Dong family's invitation!"
Indeed, except for Caiyu, everyone else was sitting around, bedecked in jewels.
Everyone's eyes immediately focused on Caiyu, with expressions of watching a show on their faces.
This low - class maid would probably cry if she couldn't bear the humiliation, right?
Caiyu lowered her eyes, her face unchanged, and only responded softly:
"Miss Guan is right. I'm just a low - ranked maid."
"Although the lord usually rewards me generously and has given me a lot of things like kingfisher - inlaid hairpins and gilded flower - adorned tassel hairpins, I've always known my place. I know that these are just the lord's gifts to his servant and I can't just wear them on my head to show off..."
"I'm not qualified to wear valuable head - ornaments. If I were to wear head - ornaments that don't match my status, for example..."
Her eyes stared directly at the six lifelike flying phoenixes on Dong Yurong's head, and there was a hint of mockery on her lips:
"For example, if I were to wear a phoenix hairpin, I would not only be laughed at as a pheasant pretending to be a phoenix, but also be targeted by those with ulterior motives and be charged with disrespect to the queen."
As soon as Caiyu finished speaking, the faces of Dong Yurong and the other noble ladies changed.
Especially Dong Yurong, who was extremely flustered.
In every dynasty, the phoenix was a symbol of the queen.
The founding queen of the Great Ye, Queen Ma, was open - minded and allowed concubines and other female relatives of the royal family to wear phoenix crowns.
But the number of phoenixes that female relatives of different ranks could wear was different.
As a concubine in the harem, according to her rank, Concubine Dong could wear at most a five - phoenix head - ornament.
But Concubine Dong, relying on the emperor's favor, had boldly added one more phoenix.
Six dragons and six phoenixes and above were the exclusive honor of the queen.
Concubine Dong had committed the crime of disrespect!
Dong Yurong had even worn it on her own head. As the daughter of a Commissioner of Revenue, she had no right to wear a phoenix except on her wedding day!
Dong Yurong couldn't sit still anymore. In a hurry, she knocked over the wine cup in front of her, and her delicate and gorgeous dress was soaked with wine.
She forced a smile on her face. "Oh, look at my clumsiness. I'll go and change my clothes first. You all drink first."
She left in a hurry, rushing to change the troublesome hairpin on her head.
After Dong Yurong left, everyone lost interest and gradually distanced themselves from Caiyu.
Caiyu was glad to be left alone. She didn't dare to eat the food at the banquet casually, so she also excused herself to go to the toilet and left the banquet. She went to a secluded place to relax.
Unexpectedly, there were faint voices of conversation in the plum grove.