"Your highness gave an unchaste name to Feng Zhiyao, would she still have thoughts for you?"The speaker is Beitang Ziqian who was at the moment playing chess against the patriarch of the second-ranked clan[1]. Situ Yuelei, he wore a long green robe, had a tall body, and beautiful features, handsome and impeccable. This man is the patriarch of the third-ranked clan, he had a frank personality, and he speaks very directly. See, he straightforwardly pointed out the fault of the Prince of Qi, but he was good friends with the Prince of Qi, therefore the Prince of Qi and his friends were used to his straightforwardness.
Situ Yuelei has been engaged to the Prince of Qi's sister Princess Lingxi even before birth, it seems that by the spring of next year, he would have to honor the engagement with Princess Lingxi, and marry her.
"Ziqian, can you not be so straightforward every time?" Xuanyuan Haofei creased his eyebrows upon hearing that, if it wasn't for the long friendship that they had, he really wanted to beat him to death, but he wanted that seat[2] a lot, so he must behave himself, and continue to receive help from them.
He had an impulse at that moment to just strangle Beitang Ziqian, "Sigh! Ziqian, why do you need to bring that up[3]!"
"My dear future brother-in-law, she is the most beautiful girl and you just accused her of being unchaste, that is very cruel of you!" Situ Yuelei who was clad in orange gave a sigh, you didn't like the girl, why do you have to spoil her name?[4]
"Future brother-in-law, and you guys, this idea came from you all at the start! Don't try to dump your chamber pots on me one by one! I am very innocent!" Xuanyuan Haofei looked at his friends, and his beautiful lips twitched, giving a cold snort.
He only asked them how to let him break the engagement successfully and at the same time not let the prime minister find fault in him, and they gave the idea of making the girl unchaste.
"Actually future brother-in-law, did you or did you not touch Feng Zhiyao?" Situ Yuelei had a face filled with suggestiveness.
"I only sent someone to drug her, I am not that kind of underhanded person, she is still a virgin!" Xuanyuan Haofei gave a weak smile and spoke as-a-matter-of-factly.
"Wait, look, isn't that Feng Zhiyao coming down from the carriage? Why does she seem like she has changed!" Su Muyan looked at the person who came out of the horse carriage, and couldn't help but stare.
Feng Zhiyao wore a white flowing butterfly veil skirt, her large cardigan was embroidered with pink flower patterns, on her arms was a one zhang[5] long cotton gaze-thin silk satin, her dress pleats that flowed with the wind were embroidered with silver colored haidangs on it, and held on with a white belt on her thin waist.
Her cute and attractive shoulder bones were given the right amount of exposure[6], her silky smooth hair was laid loosely behind her back, laced together at the end using three hairpins set with crystal beads, lightly circling her black as ink hair, leaving two clumps of hair like ink-black seaweeds, soft and smooth, shaking as she took her steps.
Her snow like wrists had two jade bracelets when she held her hands up they click and resonate with each other to make a beautiful sound. Her delicate white hands held a silk handkerchief tightly, the light pink handkerchief was embroidered with sakura petals, on her feet were a pair of emerald-colored gold-threaded shoes, they may seem to be without decorations, but when you look closely, the white and blue lines make up two beautiful irises[7].
At this moment, Feng Zhiyao's beautiful eyes turned, graceful and elegant, she smiled lightly, very attractive and seductive.
It wasn't Wen Xingyuan's first time seeing Feng Zhiyao, but for the Feng Zhiyao who would smile at him so seductively, this is the first time.
As expected she is a timeless beauty, that aura that couldn't be neglected emitted from her whole body, that beauty that cannot be found in the mortal realm, that eyes deep as a water spring, the curve of her slightly arcing lips, made Wen Xingyuan who was used to seeing beauties gasp in awe, he sighed in his heart, there is such a beauty on this earth.
The pearl that the Prince of Qi doesn't want! Can he, take it?
"Your Highness, it seems that Feng Zhiyao has changed!" She is so beautiful that nothing can compare! That last sentence, Wen Xingyuan did not let it leave his mouth, it is unclear whether it was because he wanted to keep her to himself, or saying it out will make him a laughing stock, anyways, his sword-like eyebrows creased a bit.
"No matter how she changes, she is still the Feng Zhiyao who chases relentlessly after our prince!" Upon finishing his sentence, Beitang Ziqian looked towards the direction Wen Xingyuan was looking, "This... this lady who is smiling seductively at me, how can she be that poised Feng Zhiyao? No, no, my eyes must be seeing things!" How could a learned young lady smile like that of a prostitute, so extraordinary that everyone wanted to see, again and again, making them itch in their heart.
"What?" Beitang Ziqian just ended his sentence and Situ Yuelei became curious, so he crossed his arms behind his back and stood at the window, his sight laid on Feng Zhiyao who was smiling and looking up at them. "She... she is really Feng Zhiyao?" This is such a big change!
You should know that the Feng Zhiyao of the past will stick herself to the Prince of Qi, towards his friends, she would nod at the most, and won't ever smile at them.
Situ Yuelei won't know that in the future because of Feng Zhiyao he would become Princess Lingxi's unfaithful heartless man, of course, this is a story for later.
Xuanyuan Haofei heard them saying Feng Zhiyao has changed, so he became curious when he saw her making that kind of face at his face, his handsome face turned black for the first time, this woman is so shameless, she was actually making faces at men on the streets!
He couldn't figure out what was wrong with him, seeing Feng Zhiyao making faces at other men, especially his best friends, in his heart he felt as bad as having swallowed a fly, he wanted to vomit but couldn't!
Feng Zhiyao who was walking briskly looked up and saw five beautiful men, with either surprise or wonder, or disdain looking at her, she felt much happier, today is such a lucky day, there are so many beautiful men, which one should she kidnap and take to an inn to XXOO for a while?
"Eldest miss, they are all friends of the Prince of Qi, gosh, that terrible prince is there too!" Meixi[8] doesn't know them, but being Feng Zhiyao's personal maid Ziyun is very familiar with them, so she reminded her in a whisper.
"The Prince of Qi? Ziyun, did I hear wrong? You just mentioned the Prince of Qi! That Prince of Qi that wants to annul our wedding engagement?" Feng Ziyao apparently thought that she heard wrong.
Ziyun remembered that Feng Zhiyao has forgotten everything about the past, and introduced to her the five men who were standing by the window.
"Ziyun, when I was engaged to the Prince of Qi, were there any tokens?" If there are any, she can just give him back at this meeting.
"Yes there is, the pair of bracelets that you are wearing is the token, it was when the Prince of Qi was in love with you, the token of love that he gave to you!" Ziyun gave a sigh, now Eldest Miss has forgotten about the past, that's good, at least she won't be heartbroken over a bastard of the Prince of Qi, becoming frail and forlorn.
"Let's go Ziyun, we will go upstairs to meet him, I will personally return these bracelets to him!" Anyway, he has not come to break the engagement, she wants to break it.
Since it is like this, instead of choosing a date why not just do it[9], let's finish this matter of annulling the engagement!
With the amount of pampering her father gives her, he won't be objecting! Meixi cleared her mind, looked down at the glistening, crystal clear jade bracelets and smirked, thinking that it was a good chance to remove this burden, giving her the life of playing with beautiful men as she has been doing in her past life.
"Hey there, elder sis, how are you free today? Are you here to eat at Songhe Restaurant?" Two beautifully dressed women stepped out of a horse carriage from the other side.
The one speaking mockingly was the Second Miss of the Feng family, Feng Zhiqiong[10]. The other beautifully dressed lady was the sister of the Prince of Qi, Xuanyuan Lingxi.
"Your Highness, the two women who make you bewildered are here now, ho ho ho..." Beitang Ziqian rolled his sleeves up and sat down happily, finally there is going to be a nice show going on, losing chess pieces to Situ Yuelei made him quite depressed, finally, a nice act is coming on, of course, the clouds surrounding his heart cleared up.
"Princess Lingxi is quite clingy to you eh!" Su Muyan smiled and teased Situ Yuelei.
Situ Yuelei smiled silently, but his eyes sank and showed a shimmer of disgust.
If it wasn't the engagement determined by their parents, he won't agree to marry the uppity, pretentious princess, but his father was right, if the Situ family wasn't a royal merchant, then their status as the second clan would be unstable, and they will be replaced by other clans!
"Zhiyao greets the Prince of Qi, Young Master Su, Gongzi[11] Wen, two patriarchs." Feng Zhiyao walked into the room, lightly brushing them one by one as she walked past, stepping lightly and mincingly, graceful and willowy, her expression was indifferent and alienating, she doesn't pay much attention to them, however this is the vicious feudal society, with rigid hierarchy, so she has to pay her respects to them.
In Nanshao, the most powerful are the three great clans, two manors, one fort, that's why, as the di daughter of the prime minister Feng Zhiyao bowed to them.
"Thank you Yao'er[12], are you here because you miss me?" Xuanyuan Haofei thought of the words his mother gave him while pulling his ear, making him cozy up to the prime minister, that is why Xuanyuan Haofei is acting like a tender Valentine.
[1]Seems like 世家 translates to clan, not family as in the previous chapter, forgive me
[2]The throne lol
[3]OT is 哪壶不开提哪壶, taking the pot that is not boiled instead of the boiled ones, an idiom
[4]Ancient Chinese place a lot of importance on the chastity of a woman, especially during the surge of conservativism during the Song dynasty, called 程朱理学
[5]Unit of length, around 3 metres
[6]OT is 不偏不倚, idiom meaning even, equally balanced
[7]OT is 紫鸢花, Iris tectorum
[8]How many of you have forgotten her original name?
[9]OT is 择日不如撞日, a saying for doing things today instead of scheduling for future
[10]Yay! Catfight come on! All for a stupid prince
[11]公子, Young man of noble birth, I decided to leave it untranslated because I really can't come up with a better word
[12]OT is 瑶儿有礼了, Yao'er is polite, just a way of saying