The Empress’ Livestream

“All right, all right. Stop crying. It has to be fated for couples to marry each other. Why force it when you two aren’t destined to be together?” Master Yuan Jing patted Qing Ning and let his daughter wipe her tear-stained face with his clothes.

However, Qing Ning was a stubborn girl. She learned that Wei Ci did not like her because he liked someone else, so she felt indignant.

“Brother Ci is already 21 years old. Boys of the same age are normally married by now. Those who marry early have kids who can already read and write. Who’s the girl that has stolen his heart?” Qing Ning puckered her mouth. Tears welled up in her eyes and she looked like she could cry right away.

The little girl was very pure. She never thought of forcing Wei Ci to like her. She just felt that the boy she liked was perfect, so other people should like him the way she did. Although it would make her feel awful, it was best if the boy she liked was at least happy.

If Wei Ci really liked someone else, then why was he not married yet?

Master Yuan Jing felt somewhat awkward about her question. “It depends on fate. If fate is present, it’ll come naturally.”

“Could it be that she’s younger than me?” Qing Ning twisted her scarf and pouted.

“She’s older than you,” Master Yuan Jing replied. “Stop crying. Wipe your tears. What if someone sees you like this?”

She’s older than me? Qing Ning suddenly felt even sadder. If she was older than her, did that mean that she was about to turn 15 years old? Was Wei Ci waiting for her to reach the age where she could get married?

“Who is she?” Qing Ning questioned closely. “I want to have a look.” She was not jealous. Instead, it was more of her eagerness and curiosity.

As the youngest daughter of Wei Ci’s mentor, was she not close enough to him? With such an advantage, he still did not like her, but liked another girl instead. It did not make her feel good.

“I’m afraid that you’ll feel even more awful if you meet her.” Master Yuan Jing sighed. “When the time is right, you’ll naturally find out who she is. I’ll find you a boy who’s about your age with good looks and talent. I’ll make sure you live a happy life.”

Qing Ning nodded with tears in her eyes, but she felt somewhat lethargic.

“The Flower Festival is almost here. You must tell me if you’ve taken a fancy to any intelligent man.”

Although the ethos in Dongqing was getting harsher and harsher and the restrictions against women were getting so strict that women could hardly go out, Master Yuan Jing’s thinking was not in the same realm as that of the secular people.

Even if the marriages were all arranged, Master Yuan Jing could not bear to let his daughter suffer. Picking a son-in-law was like choosing a pair of shoes. Only his daughter would know if they were suitable together. It was only a good marriage if her father was satisfied with the man she liked.

Qing Ning was still a bit heartbroken, but she was a little girl, after all. It was easy for her to feel embarrassed when things related to her marriage were mentioned.

“Okay,” she muttered while biting her lip.

Wei Ci only then left after having dinner at Master Yuan Jing’s residence.

However, Sanwu somewhat resented him for being away for a long time, so it tore his sleeves. It then reluctantly released its paws.

Master Yuan Jing’s wife held Sanwu in her arms while caressing its fur. She saw Wei Ci off at the door and covered her smile with her sleeve while she looked at his miserable appearance.

“The Flower Festival is almost here. Go back and prepare some brightly colored clothes. Bright clothes show off your attractiveness. If you wear what you’re wearing now, how will girls take a fancy on you?” Master Yuan Jing’s wife looked at Wei Ci lovingly. Although she was old, she had a good mindset. She still looked young.

Wei Ci blushed. He could not speak a word after he was humored by her.

What was he supposed to do when his elders teased him? Explode on the spot? All he could do was hold it in shyly.

The words “Flower Festival” kept ringing in Wei Ci’s mind when he left Master Yuan Jing’s residence; it was as if he was obsessed with it.

After a while, he sensed that something was not right.

Have I forgotten something? Wei Ci was perplexed. He carefully recalled the Flower Festival… The 12th day of the second lunar month… The birthday of all flowers… Birthday?

Wait a second! Doesn’t her birthday fall on the Flower Festival? Wei Ci seemed to have remembered something. The look on his face changed somewhat.

The Flower Festival was the birthday of all flowers. It was also a good day for a walk in the spring and for young boys and girls to fall in love.

Young girls usually let go of their usual reserved manner by that time. They started to worry about what color their clothes should be and which popular makeup to wear. Although the young boys were not so fussy, they were still somewhat anxious. They wanted to display their best side that day.

On the day filled with such a strange atmosphere, Jiang Pengji was a little bored.

Taxue pulled her out from her bed. She washed up with a sulky face, before a bowl of noodle soup was placed in front of her.

“It’s the longevity noodles again…” Looking at the hair-like, fine noodles that had uniform thickness in the bowl, she suddenly felt energized.

Taxue sighed and said, “You’re not willing to hold a grand birthday celebration… I can understand that. After all, you’re not home. A lot of things are inconvenient, but you still have to eat the longevity noodles. You must eat them in one go and not break them. It has an implied meaning of longevity. Madam has specially ordered me to do this.”

Jiang Pengji did not have to taste it to know that the noodle soup was not seasoned at all. The noodles were boiled. They were tasteless and unpalatable.

“If you don’t eat it now, the noodles will turn mushy,” Taxue urged.

Jiang Pengji closed her eyes, picked up the bowl, and stuffed the longevity noodles into her mouth. She even finished the soup.

“That’s right! You are going to live a long life!” Taxue smiled and put away the dishes.

However, Jiang Pengji muttered with a bitter face, “It’s too bland.” The taste was simply indescribable. She could get used to Master Yuan Jing’s mysterious afternoon tea, but she still could not accept the longevity noodles.

After eating the noodles, Jiang Pengji took a bath and put on the new clothes that Taxue had prepared. The color of her new clothes were bright. Looking at them from afar, they were dazzling.

Taxue was somewhat pleased, but then she sighed immediately.

“It’s such a good day today. Why are you sighing?”

Taxue helped her to straighten her clothes and and put on all sorts of accessories, such as a perfume pouch.

“You’re 15 now. Why does your father insist that you to dress up like a man? You should tie your hair with a hairpin, look for your ideal man, and dress yourself up beautifully. With your beauty, which aristocratic lady can compare to you? Why should you dress yourself up as a man every day?” Taxue suddenly realized that she had said the wrong thing. She hurriedly knelt down and admitted her mistake.

Without changing her facial expression, Jiang Pengji replied, “I like it this way.”

She bent over and helped Taxue to get up. “You and I are like a family. You don’t have to estrange yourself like this.”

Jiang Pengji was now 1.7 meters tall. She was taller than Taxue by half a head and she was not inferior to boys of the same age. Although she looked more like a girl, in the current era where men put on flower hairpins and powder, she actually looked more like a man than most men.

“Speaking of such things––you’re not young anymore. If there’s someone you like, I can definitely settle it for you.”

Xunmei had an unrequited love towards Xu Ke. She was willing to wait for him and drag it on. However, at Taxue’s age, she could no longer drag it on.

Taxue was startled. She immediately lowered her head and wanted to change the subject.

“I really treat you like family. If there’s any difficulty, just tell me,” Jiang Pengji said with a smile. Taxue giggled.

“My life is better than that of the wives of rich businessmen. What difficulty can I face?” She took the sandalwood fan and handed it to Jiang Pengji. “Come back early. We still have to depart on a journey tomorrow. Don’t be blinded by the foxes outside, or else I won’t accept it.”

“Okay.” Jiang Pengji lowered her eyelids, then took the fan and the reins handed to her from the door. She turned around nimbly and rode away on the back of a white horse.