Liu Yun never liked being among the first to arrive at a banquet, nor among the last. She preferred to be somewhere in the middle.
Arriving too early or too late made one stand out, and that was what she avoided most.
Blending quietly into the crowd, unnoticed—this state of being suited Liu Yun perfectly.
As she arrived at Princess Changyang's estate, perhaps it was psychological, but before she even stepped through the gates, she seemed to catch the fragrance of the garden's flowers.
Taking a few discreet deep breaths, Liu Yun approached the entrance and had Jin He present the invitation for the gatekeeper of Princess Changyang's estate to inspect.
The mistress and her maid entered the estate without trouble. Seeing the ladies already gathered in small clusters, Liu Yun smiled sweetly and joined the group she knew best.
"Sisters!" she called out cheerfully, exchanging greetings all around.
"Yunniang!" "Yunniang." "Yunniang~"
Upon seeing familiar faces, everyone greeted each other warmly and amiably, exchanging soft words and light laughter that added a touch of vibrant beauty to an already colorful season.
The moment she stepped into the estate, peonies in endless variety appeared before her eyes.
They covered every color imaginable—single-petaled, double-petaled, some with names she knew, some she didn't.
In pots and clusters, they dazzled the eyes.
Before Liu Yun could even reach out to touch them, she was called away by her familiar companions.
Looking around, the young ladies gathered in groups of three or five, chatting and smiling—themselves like clusters of beautiful flowers.
Zhenzhen had been delayed by something and hadn't arrived yet, so Liu Yun chatted with the other ladies about everyday matters.
Her birthday banquet had just passed, and many of the ladies had greatly enjoyed the lip balm she'd given out. After praising it, they pressed Liu Yun on how she'd made it, saying they wanted to try it at home.
Liu Yun wasn't a merchant in the lip balm business, so she had no reason to keep secrets. She patiently explained the process to each of them.
Time slipped by unnoticed. More and more ladies arrived for the banquet, and the young men had all gathered as well—every one of them in the prime of youth, spirited and full of vigor.
Without a doubt, every man and woman attending today knew the purpose of this peony banquet. They exchanged glances, all wearing expressions of anticipation.
From a distance, Liu Yun heard the words "Princess Changyang" and "His Highness."
Following everyone's gaze, she saw the royal siblings approaching.
Princess Changyang was dressed in resplendent, dignified attire, her face radiant. She walked over with a smile, and that unique royal bearing overshadowed the brilliance of all the other ladies present.
But even so, it could not dim the splendor of the young crown prince at her side.
He wore a robe of purple-gold with wide sleeves, a golden crown gleaming atop his head, a jade belt cinching the narrow waist hidden beneath his robes. His phoenix eyes were bright and piercing, sharp edges glinting.
As siblings born of the same mother, both possessed a pair of noble, sharp phoenix eyes. The difference was that Princess Changyang was always smiling, while the Crown Prince rarely did.
Liu Yun's heart gave a jolt.
Though the Crown Prince had done her family a favor last time, her intuition told her that running into him never boded well.
It seemed she'd need to stay alert today.
For instance, she must not be caught alone.
Because every time, it seemed, she'd encountered that ominous figure—the Crown Prince—only when she was by herself, and then she'd suffered some ordeal of the heart or body.
Having resolved this, Liu Yun felt much calmer.
Seeing that the hosts had arrived, and of such exalted status, the ladies gathered around to pay their respects.
"Your Highness, Princess Changyang, this humble daughter pays her respects."
The soft voices of the many ladies layered together, sounding gentle and melodious, like the singing of orioles and swallows.
"Rise, rise. No need for such formalities today. Ladies and gentlemen, feel free to enjoy the flowers at your leisure!"
There was still some time before the midday meal, so admiring the flowers was the perfect activity.
It was then that Liu Yun finally saw Zhenzhen, who had arrived late.
"Zhenzhen! Zhenzhen! You're finally here!"
The two young ladies linked arms and found a quiet spot under a tree away from the crowd, where they could share their private words.
"How are things with Ling Erlang?"
The freshest topic between them was Zhenzhen's recent courtship with Ling Erlang, and Liu Yun couldn't help but pry a little.
As soon as she spoke, however, the other girl sighed and gave a small eye roll.
"It's over."
Liu Yun asked in surprise, "Why? What happened?"
She'd thought Ling Erlang was a decent sort, good enough to match Zhenzhen, and had hoped it might work out.
Speaking of such private matters, Chen Wei leaned in closer and whispered, "Shanshan, remember how I said earlier that something about Ling Erlang's way of speaking felt off?"
"Yes, I remember. And then?"
"When I went home and asked my mother, I found out that Ling Erlang looks down on our family!"
"No wonder he kept going on about how my father is only a sixth-rank official, not as good as his father, the fifth-rank Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. He even kept suggesting my parents hire a etiquette tutor for me, saying that although I'm plain in looks and talent, I should at least learn proper manners…"
The reason the two had been friends for so many years was that they were similar in temperament. In fact, strictly speaking, Chen Wei was even more carefree and thick-skinned, slower to pick up on others' malice.
That was why Chen Wei hadn't noticed Ling Erlang's faults at first and had happily gone along with the courtship.
Now that she knew the truth, Chen Wei wanted nothing more to do with him.
Her family may only be a sixth-rank official, but that doesn't mean they'd willingly offer themselves up to be looked down upon. Why must they fawn over that Second Son of the Ling family?
Upon hearing this, Liu Yun also felt indignant on her friend's behalf. She furrowed her brows and said angrily, "How can he be like this? Zhenzhen, we don't want him!"
"Mm-hm, mm-hm!"
Chen Wei nodded with a serious expression, and the two of them chattered on about other amusing matters.
On the low couch, the siblings sat on opposite ends, conversing at leisure.
"Look, little brother, aren't this year's peonies especially pleasing to the eye?"
Pretending not to notice the furtive glances her brother occasionally cast her way, Princess Changyang curled her lips into a light smile.
Xiao Heng's thoughts were disturbed, and he felt somewhat displeased. But since the person before him was his own elder sister, he at least mustered some patience and gave a perfunctory "Mm" through a somewhat stuffy nose. "They're alright, I suppose."
Clearly lacking any sincerity, which made Princess Changyang somewhat dissatisfied.
But remembering what she was about to do next, she perked up again and made her move with a cheerful laugh.
"Is that so? Well, this year your sister specially cultivated a new variety of peony. Here, take a look…"
She raised her hand, and a serving maid brought forth a pot of peonies in early bloom, presenting it before the Crown Prince with head bowed and eyes lowered.
The heart of each flower was a tender pink that gradually faded to snow-white toward the edges. Layer upon layer of petals made the blooms full and round—a variety unique to this estate.
Xiao Heng gave it only a single glance before dismissing it from his mind, saying merely, "Mm, beautiful indeed."
He wasn't particularly interested in flowers and plants, even ones bearing the title of King of Flowers.
His gaze drifted lazily away from the peonies, and Xiao Heng resumed his earlier wandering look, as if casually taking in the scenery around him.
Princess Changyang watched her brother's affected demeanor and let out a light snort of laughter.
As siblings who had grown up together, it would be inexcusable for her not to understand her own brother.
It had always been this way since childhood—whatever he liked, whatever he wanted, his eyes would practically stick to it, and he'd find a way to obtain it no matter what.
But now that he was older, he'd learned restraint and even how to disguise his feelings.
Yet how could he escape her keen eye?
It was terribly clumsy.
Tsk, tsk…
She had no intention of letting her brother off today. Princess Changyang stroked the soft, pinkish-white petals of the peony, as if talking to herself, yet also as if posing a question: "This flower hasn't been named yet. How about calling it Yunyun, little brother?"
As if some switch had been flipped, Xiao Heng whipped his head around to look at her, his pupils trembling.
As if afraid Xiao Heng hadn't heard clearly, Princess Changyang drawled out the words again with a beaming smile.
"Yun~yun~"
All surrounding sounds seemed to be blocked out by an invisible force, leaving only the words from his sister's mouth.
His spine went rigid, and he didn't know what posture to adopt before his sister.
He barely managed to maintain a composed and indifferent expression, but his lips had gone numb, as if they'd lost their flesh and blood, stiff and hard to part.
"Wh-what?"
Having received the abnormal reaction she'd expected from her brother, Princess Changyang was still not satisfied. Her red lips bright, she pressed her advantage: "The Yun from Liu Yunniang—surely little brother is quite familiar with that name?"
Every muscle in Xiao Heng's body tensed, even the muscles in his face hardening like stone. Unfortunately, his jaw was trembling inexplicably, causing him to lose control over his expression.
"What does Sister mean by that?"
Xiao Heng thought he still sounded fairly composed, but in the eyes of Princess Changyang, who knew him so well, her brother couldn't hide anything at all.
Having seen enough, Princess Changyang stopped tormenting him. She took a sip of iced wine and spoke plainly.
"Pfft."
"Stop pretending. Your sister has already seen through it all."
Xiao Heng mounted his final resistance, saying coldly, "Seen through what?"
Princess Changyang watched her brother's attitude of refusing to shed tears until he saw the coffin, and waving her kingfisher-feather fan, she dropped her bombshell: "I can see that you like her~"
Like a sharp arrow piercing through clouds and moon, plunging into layers of deep water, striking the tender sprout hidden beneath the surface that swayed with the wind and waves.
Xiao Heng gripped the edge of the low couch tightly, the tips of his ears red as if about to drip blood.