After the members of the Duke Yong's Mansion left, only the siblings Su Qingyu and Su Zeqian remained in the middle of the grand hall, along with the shattered jade on the ground.
By now, Su Qingyu had changed her expression. Looking extremely sad, she knelt on the ground and collected the broken jade pieces one by one with her bandaged hands. Tears welled up in her eyes and fell uncontrollably.
"This jade pendant was carved by my master himself. After my master passed away, no one in this world can carve another one like it."
She didn't deliberately lower her voice, so many people on both sides of the banquet heard her words.
Su Qingyu was already good-looking. When she looked dejected with downcast eyes and tears rolling down her cheeks, she appeared even more pitiful. Unconsciously, most people present felt pity for her.
The emperor and the empress had already punished Su Zeqian. How could the Duke Yong's Mansion break the girl's most cherished jade pendant and leave without even an apology? They were really getting carried away with their newfound power!
Su Zeqian knelt beside her, helping to collect the broken jade. He said in a low voice, "The Duke Yong's Mansion has gone too far. From now on, the Marquis Pingyang's Mansion will be at odds with them."
Su Qingyu quickly said to him, "Brother, please don't think like that. Sister Yuanbao fell into the water and wasn't feeling well, which is why she dropped the jade pendant. Moreover, it was my fault in the first place. I deserve all this."
Su Zeqian sighed. "Yu'er, it's my fault. I've let you down again this time."
His eyes darkened as he secretly made a decision in his heart.
"Don't worry. Brother will find a way to make sure you can perform music for the empress tonight. If you can please her, maybe your merits will offset your faults and you won't have to endure those punishments. The Autumn Festival Banquet isn't over yet. We still have a chance."
This was exactly what Su Qingyu wanted to hear. She carefully glanced at the emperor and the empress chatting happily on the main seats, then at Cang Xuan who was sipping his tea. She replied in a low voice,
"Brother, is this a good idea? The emperor and the empress just punished us. It's obvious that they're dissatisfied with the marquis's mansion. If we step forward again, won't we anger them?"
Su Zeqian said, "You don't need to worry. Just go back to your seat and wait patiently."
Su Qingyu nodded, wrapped the broken jade, picked up her guqin, and returned to the banquet.
After returning to Shengjing, she had naturally made some like-minded little sisters. When they saw her, they immediately showed concern.
"Qingyu, your jade pendant was unique in the world. It's really a pity that it broke."
"Why don't you find a craftsman to repair it after you go back?"
Su Qingyu pretended to be in low spirits, but in fact, she was extremely anxious. She forced a smile and said,
"No need. It's broken, and it was my carelessness that caused it to be lost in the first place. It's all my fault. I don't blame Sister Yuanbao. She didn't do it on purpose..."
Although every word sounded full of regret, there was a hint of gritted teeth in her tone.
Hearing her mention this, the little sisters were all very angry.
"Qingyu, you're so kind. You still call her sister!"
"That's right. Qingyu made a mistake, but she apologized and was punished by the empress. That fool broke her jade pendant. She should have apologized!"
"Exactly. The duke's mansion just took her away like that. They're so arrogant!"
"Qingyu, you're so unlucky. You could have successfully performed music for the empress. Who would have thought you'd run into that stupid young lady from the Duke Yong's Mansion? If it were me and my carefully prepared performance was ruined, I'd fight to the death with that person. Pushing her into the water would be too light a punishment."
The one who said this was the young lady of the Earl Changyong's Mansion. She was the closest to Su Qingyu on weekdays, so she could best understand how Su Qingyu felt.
"In my opinion, the duchess shouldn't have brought that stupid daughter to the Autumn Festival Banquet. Who knows if that fool will suddenly go crazy and ruin everyone's fun?"
"From now on, we should stay away from that fool. We don't want to be harmed by her and end up having to kowtow and apologize to her."
Su Qingyu lowered her eyes to hide the coldness in them and whispered, "I've said that I'll protect her in the future. Don't cause any trouble."
But at this moment, who would listen to her? The noble young ladies exchanged a knowing look, and a certain tacit understanding had secretly formed.
...
Su Yuanyuan had no idea that she had inexplicably incurred hatred. At this moment, she, Mo Shi, and the others were led by a eunuch into a side hall in the Qingyi Garden.
There, maids had already prepared several sets of different clothes for Su Yuanyuan. In addition, a court physician was waiting inside.
The empress of the Great Chu Kingdom valued face very much. Sure enough, she had everything arranged properly. This also suited Mo Shi's wishes.
After entering the room, Mo Shi first asked the court physician to feel Su Yuanyuan's pulse.
The court physician felt her pulse and let out a surprised sound. "Madam Mo, did your daughter really fall into the water just now?"
Mo Shi gave him a disdainful look. "My Yuanbao's hair is still wet. Can this be fake?"
The court physician bowed and said, "Madam Mo, please don't be angry. Your daughter's pulse is steady. It doesn't seem like she's suffered from the cold. That's why I asked."
As soon as the court physician said this, not only Mo Shi and Wei Linlang but also Su Yuanyuan herself were very surprised.
Was it because this court physician's medical skills were not good enough, or was it because the original body had a very good constitution?
Although the court physician didn't diagnose anything, he still prescribed a prescription to dispel the cold for Su Yuanyuan and asked the maid to go and boil the medicine immediately.
After the court physician left, Mo Shi helped Su Yuanyuan change out of her wet clothes and kept muttering.
"Yuanbao, you really scared mother this time. Why did you run away from mother for no reason?"
"Shengjing is different from Mobei. People here are very scheming. Many people look like good people on the surface, but secretly they wish to see you fall flat on your face."
"Mother's Yuanbao is the most obedient. Please don't be naughty and run around on your own in the future. No matter where you go, you must always stay close to mother, okay?"
These words were more for herself than for Su Yuanyuan. She was warning herself that in the future, she must take good care of her daughter and not let her be bullied like today.
Su Yuanyuan looked up and met Mo Shi's caring eyes. Her nose felt sour, and she leaned her face against Mo Shi's palm and softly called, "Mother, Yuanbao is obedient and won't run around."
Mo Shi was already used to talking to her daughter without getting a response. She never expected to hear such words from her daughter. She almost cried.
She hugged Su Yuanyuan and stroked her hair again and again, choking with sobs. "Mother's Yuanbao has been wronged."
Maybe it was because she felt the warmth from Mo Shi, or maybe it was because she finally put on clean clothes. The cold on Su Yuanyuan's body was completely dispelled, and it warmed her heart.
She looked down at her intact palm and flexible fingers and sighed in her heart again. It felt so good to be alive.