Qiao Lan chatted with Feng Qingyun for a while longer before they left together to find the other noble ladies.
After the two had walked far away, Su Nansheng took Chen Mingzhu to a quiet place and asked,
"I heard from my aunt that you've been busy these days?"
She couldn't imagine what a young, unmarried girl, the beloved daughter of the Chief Clerk, could be so busy with.
"I've been trying to find out who broke Zhou Mingxuan's leg," Chen Mingzhu replied.
She lifted her arms as if to cross them in front of her chest, but then, looking around, she put them down neatly.
"Hasn't this matter been resolved yet?" Su Nansheng asked in surprise. From what she knew of Chen Mingzhu, she wasn't the type to be so persistent.
"Someone secretly stepped in to punish the evil. Of course I want to see who this hero is," Chen Mingzhu said, her face full of admiration, as if she was about to become sworn brothers with this hero the next moment.
Su Nansheng rubbed her forehead. "Have you found out who this hero is?"
She was also quite curious. If it wasn't someone from the Chen family, then who else could hate Zhou Mingxuan?
Hearing this, Chen Mingzhu, who had been so excited just now, immediately wilted. Her head drooped as she whispered,
"I haven't found out. Princess Huici won't let me investigate anymore."
Su Nansheng frowned. Wasn't Princess Huici her good friend? They got along so well. Wasn't she curious?
Or perhaps, she knew who had done it.
Su Nansheng raised her eyebrows slightly. Could it be that Princess Huici had ordered it?
Although she had her suspicions, Su Nansheng didn't say anything to Chen Mingzhu for fear that she would go straight to ask Princess Huici.
If it wasn't her doing, it wouldn't be good for her to be speculating about the princess's thoughts.
So Su Nansheng asked about Shao Tan. There were only a few months left before Chen Xuan was demoted from his official position. She had to hurry.
Chen Mingzhu tilted her head, trying to match the name with the face.
"Shao Tan... the one with the prominent ears?"
Good, she had matched it.
"Yes. The other day I saw him chatting happily with my uncle, but his face doesn't look like that of a good person," Su Nansheng used the same excuse all the way to probe Chen Mingzhu's opinion.
If she agreed with her view, it would be great. She would have an ally.
But if Chen Mingzhu disagreed, she would think of another way. In any case, she wanted to protect Chen Mingzhu, her first friend in this life.
Unexpectedly, Chen Mingzhu slapped her fist.
"So I'm not the only one who thinks so. I knew you, sister - in - law, understand me best."
Su Nansheng smiled. It seemed that she had successfully made contact with her ally.
So she asked Chen Mingzhu to pay more attention to Shao Tan, especially when he came to visit the Chen Mansion. She should keep a close eye on him and try to find out what they were talking about.
And Chen Mingzhu, looking solemn and resolute, said that she would definitely complete the task Su Nansheng had given her.
Hearing this, Su Nansheng finally let out a sigh of relief.
Just then, the maids came to convey Princess Huaqing's message, saying that they were to be taken to the main hall.
Su Nansheng and Chen Mingzhu glanced at each other. They were finally going to find out the real purpose of this flower - viewing banquet.
...
The main hall was resplendent. The sound of silk and bamboo instruments filled the air. From afar, one could see the ladies in their fragrant attire, chatting and laughing merrily.
As they stepped into the hall, it was like a garden had been moved inside. It was filled with clusters of flowers and the air was thick with their fragrance.
The square - shaped hall was divided by more than a dozen embroidered screens. Behind each screen were large clusters of fresh flowers.
The colorful flower clusters were faintly visible through the thin screens, looking rather coy.
Princess Huaqing was seated in a high - position, from where she could overlook the entire hall.
On the lower seats on both sides were several noble ladies, dressed in luxurious clothes and adorned with gold and jewels.
Compared with them, the elegant and noble Chen Wanrong seemed rather plain.
The maids led everyone to their seats and then bowed and retreated.
After everyone was seated, Princess Huaqing smiled and said,
"I was in a hurry to discuss matters with the ladies just now and didn't have time to attend to every guest. Please forgive me if there were any shortcomings in the hospitality."
Everyone immediately politely said that they didn't mind.
Hearing this, Chen Mingzhu quietly nudged Su Nansheng, who gave a faint smile.
The real important guests had been summoned by Princess Huaqing to discuss matters. The rest of them, the less important guests, were left outside to view the flowers. Naturally, they didn't need to be taken care of.
Princess Huaqing scanned the crowd and said,
"Actually, I invited you here this time to ask you to do a good deed together. I'm sure you've all heard about the earthquake in Wang County, Shangzhou the other day."
Here, Princess Huaqing paused to observe everyone's reaction.
Her words immediately sparked discussions among the crowd. Some of them knew about this incident, while others didn't.
Chen Mingzhu also leaned over. "I heard it wasn't too serious."
Su Nansheng just nodded without saying a word.
Although it wasn't considered serious, dozens of houses had still collapsed.
And the crops in the fields were at the time of harvest when this happened. The common people had still been affected quite a bit.
But it couldn't be said that they had suffered a complete loss.
The main thing was the strange phenomenon of the earthquake. Everyone was afraid that something similar might happen in the capital next.
After the discussion, the hall gradually quieted down.
Seeing that everyone understood, Princess Huaqing continued,
"The common people have suffered this unexpected disaster, and the emperor is very worried. Although we women don't involve ourselves in court affairs, we can still do something within our power to relieve the emperor's worries."
"So what does your highness mean?" A sensible lady immediately provided an opening.
Princess Huaqing then said,
"The court officials all donated silver the other day. We ladies should naturally follow our husbands' lead."
As soon as she said this, everyone immediately understood that she wanted them to donate money.
Actually, it wasn't that they couldn't donate money, but it also depended on whose name the money would be donated in.
It was obvious that Princess Huaqing wanted to take credit for others' donations. It was a really good plan.
"But we women don't earn a living, so where would we have extra silver? So I thought, how about donating some jewelry and trinkets to show our sincerity," Princess Huaqing said as she scanned the crowd. Their wealth was dazzling.
Su Nansheng pressed her lips together. Goodness, the sound of her abacus was so loud that it seemed to hit her in the face.
When they came to the princess's mansion for the banquet today, everyone had naturally dressed up carefully, wearing their best and most luxurious clothes and jewelry.
No wonder even she, a concubine, had been invited. So this was the trap laid for them.
She was afraid that they would use the excuse of not bringing any silver.
Su Nansheng looked at the somewhat stiff faces of the crowd and secretly felt lucky that she hadn't worn all her valuables.
The atmosphere was a bit awkward for a moment, but fortunately, everyone had experienced many things in life. They quickly spoke up to ease the atmosphere.
"Princess Huaqing is concerned about the country and the people. She is truly compassionate."
"Naturally, we should all contribute."
The wife of the Duke of Anguo took off a Hetian jade bracelet from her wrist and said,
"The more good deeds, the better."
They had been summoned by Princess Huaqing just for this matter, and they had to support it.