Hearing the Eldest Princess’s question, Jiang Li snapped her head up. If her guess was correct, the two young masters the Eldest Princess referred to were the second sons of Prince An’s Mansion and Prince Kang Mansion.
She remembered it was precisely this year—though perhaps not at the Princess Mansion’s flower-viewing banquet, but at some other gathering—that these two young masters had taken a fancy to the same girl. Originally, that girl had her heart set on the second son of Prince Kang Mansion, but she was snatched away midway by the second son of Prince An’s Mansion. Consequently, Prince Kang Mansion was forced to swallow this bitter pill.
Rumor had it that the two Prince Manors had a feud dating back to the previous generation. No one knew the exact details, but it was a fact that bad blood existed between them. Not only that, but after this very flower-viewing banquet, Prince An’s Mansion would target Prince Kang Mansion at every turn, causing the young masters and misses of Prince Kang Mansion to struggle with marriage prospects for a long time. Had this not happened, Jiang Li wouldn’t have had the opportunity in her past life to arrange for Yin Ranshuang to marry into Prince Kang Mansion.
Indeed, the second son of Prince Kang Mansion was none other than Yin Ranshuang’s husband from her past life, Wei Zhaohe. And the girl who shared a mutual affection with Wei Zhaohe this time was the Fourth Miss of the Yongning Marquis Mansion, Xia Shixi.
Wei Zilang, the second son of Prince An’s Mansion, drove a wedge between them. However, after marrying Xia Shixi, he didn’t cherish her at all. Perhaps from the very beginning, Wei Zilang had only seen Xia Shixi as a tool to compete with Wei Zhaohe; winning was his only goal. Barely two years after they wed, Xia Shixi went mad.
Jiang Li hadn’t thought much about it before, but now, reflecting deeply on these events from her past life, she felt that there ought to be a different ending.
She had heard that Xia Shixi had a gentle and tranquil temperament. If she could marry a man of noble character and moral integrity like Wei Zhaohe, perhaps her life would be much better. If Wei Zhaohe got married now, it would completely sever any possibility of Yin Ranshuang marrying him in the future.
Jiang Li was worried about unexpected complications, so she wanted to play matchmaker for Xia Shixi and Wei Zhaohe. After all, their feelings were mutual. It was just that Jiang Li couldn’t be entirely certain if she could actually change their fates.
Her gaze swept across the flower hall. Having never met Xia Shixi or known what she looked like, it was difficult to pick her out from the crowd.
Just then, she heard someone call out, "Fourth Miss Xia." She looked toward the voice and happened to spot a girl with a sweet and demure appearance.
With just one glance, Jiang Li understood why Wei Zilang had insisted on fighting Wei Zhaohe for her. Aside from the old feud between the two mansions, it was likely due to Xia Shixi’s striking beauty. The young girl wore a moon-white dress that made her skin look as pale as snow. Her oval face featured delicate, exquisite features, and when the corners of her lips curled up slightly, two shallow dimples appeared. Let alone a man, even Jiang Li was nearly mesmerized by the sight.
At that moment, the senior maid beside the Eldest Princess walked over and summoned Jiang Li. Jiang Li stepped forward and paid her respects.
Upon seeing her, the Eldest Princess’s eyes instantly curved into a warm smile. She deeply respected Mr. Ting Shan, so she naturally harbored goodwill toward his granddaughter—not to mention that this girl had saved her daughter. Although Jiang Li had kept some things hidden, helping to capture those human traffickers was still a commendable deed.
Commandery Princess Baoqing blinked, examining Jiang Li earnestly before looking at the gaudily dressed "butterfly" standing behind her. "Didn’t they say Miss Jiang has a generous dowry? Why is Sister Jiang dressed so plainly, while the maid beside her is decked out so extravagantly?"
Being called a maid made Yin Ranshuang’s face contort. She dared not vent her rising anger; after all, the person speaking was a Commandery Princess. She forced a bitter smile and tried to speak, but was sharply reprimanded by the senior maid.
"You lowly servant! The Commandery Princess didn’t ask you a question. Since when is it your turn to speak?"
Startled, Yin Ranshuang hastily snapped her mouth shut, keeping her head bowed in fear. The Eldest Princess shot the senior maid a glance, and the woman instantly fell silent.
The Eldest Princess chuckled. "Miss Jiang is exceptionally clever and well-read in etiquette, but it seems you’re a bit too indulgent with your maid."
How could the Eldest Princess not see that this flashy "butterfly" wasn’t a maid at all? It wasn’t hard to guess. Jiang Li had no sisters by her side; the only person who could accompany her to the flower-viewing banquet would be Miss Yin. The Eldest Princess had long felt pity for Jiang Li. As the orphaned daughter of the Jiang family, she had been forced to marry a memorial tablet to enter the Yin Family. Now, seeing the contrast in attire between Jiang Li and Miss Yin, it was easy to deduce that her life in the Yin Family was far from easy. The Eldest Princess said this on purpose; she had no intention of being cordial to anyone who bullied Jiang Li.
Jiang Li cast a sidelong glance at the pale-faced Yin Ranshuang, finding the situation utterly hilarious. In her past life, with Jiang Li’s guidance, Yin Ranshuang had never breached etiquette on such occasions, nor had she ever been mistaken for a maid. The slight grievance Yin Ranshuang suffered now—what did it amount to compared to everything Jiang Li had endured in her previous life?
However, Jiang Li didn’t let Yin Ranshuang squirm in embarrassment for too long before explaining on her behalf. "Your Highness, she is a daughter of my husband’s family, not a maid."
Hearing this, the Eldest Princess gave a cold snort. "So she’s a young miss of the Yin Family. I don’t recall sending an invitation to the Yin Family."
She looked at her senior maid, who instantly caught her meaning and replied, "The invitation was delivered to the Yin Family’s residence, but it was specifically addressed to Miss Jiang."
Put that way, everyone present understood immediately: Yin Ranshuang had tagged along on someone else’s invitation.
Tagging along wasn’t entirely uncommon. Often, only one invitation was sent to a household, and the recipient would bring close family members with them. But having this fact laid bare in public made Yin Ranshuang’s expression turn incredibly ugly. She kept her head down, unable to bear the pointed stares and scrutinizing whispers from the surrounding guests.
"That will be all. I didn’t summon you, so you may return to your seat," the Eldest Princess said. These words were directed at Yin Ranshuang.
Feeling as though she had been granted a grand pardon, Yin Ranshuang hastily bowed and retreated.
Following that, the Eldest Princess pulled Jiang Li to sit beside her, chatting with her about everyday matters. The female guests present were all shrewd individuals. Even if they hadn’t previously known of any connection between Jiang Li and the Eldest Princess, they could clearly see now that Jiang Li was favored by her. Building a good relationship with her certainly couldn’t hurt.
Jiang Li behaved with perfect propriety in front of the Eldest Princess. Having learned manners and etiquette from her grandmother since childhood, her only goal had always been to uphold the Jiang family’s reputation in public. Now, she handled the social situation with effortless grace.
Seeing this, the Eldest Princess felt even more compassion for her. She worried that this child, having focused so much on learning rules from a young age, might not know how to protect herself, making her an easy target for the Yin Family’s bullying. The Eldest Princess then led Jiang Li into a side hall to give her some private advice, warning her not to be foolish and let the Yin Family swindle her out of her wealth.
After the Eldest Princess finished speaking, Jiang Li knelt before her. "I thank Your Highness for your concern. To have the fate to meet Your Highness is truly my greatest blessing."
Seeing her act this way, the Eldest Princess’s heart ached even more. She quickly ordered her senior maid to help the girl up. "You shouldn’t say that. If you hadn’t saved Aweng, I really don’t know what would have happened."
Commandery Princess Baoqing still trembled slightly at the mention of that day’s events. "I never expected that a five or six-year-old girl would actually deceive me."
The Eldest Princess realized something was amiss. The person who had deceived her daughter was a little girl? Why hadn’t Jiang Li mentioned what that little girl had done?
Jiang Li hurriedly explained, "A Gua is a pitiful child. She said that after her birth mother died of illness, she was taken in by those people. They forced her to trick others. If she disobeyed, they would starve and beat her. The child is still young; with careful guidance, she can be set on the right path. A minor punishment from the Commandery Princess will suffice as a warning. Please do not be too harsh on her."