On the seventh day of the seventh month, as was customary, every household set up a altar in the courtyard, placed incense candles, and placed offerings to burn incense and worship in the direction of Vega. The smell of incense lingered in the air above Linan City for a long time. Lanterns were hung in the courtyards of every household.
Xiu Yuanshuang was the first daughter of a great family, hence she had been the head of household begging for money before. This was the first time she was married and was in charge of this kind of thing, so she was very determined to show off and cause Prince Chu to have a whole new level of respect for her.
Morong Gan bestowed a debt of grace to Qi Hong for them to go to the backyard and beg with the three Consort Wangfei. The five of them knelt on the prayer mat, clasped their hands together, closed their eyes, and made their wishes to the Moon God and Vega.
Bai Qianfan knelt at the left side of Xiu Yuanshuang's back, her small body perfectly straight. Under the moonlight, her sharp chin was slightly raised, and her entire face looked like a piece of blue porcelain, coated with a layer of halo.
Morong Gan stood behind the tree, staring at her without blinking, as if he had lost his mind. After a long while, she moved, knelt down, and as if she had just awoken from a dream, she laughed at himself, and his heroic reputation was ruined for the little girl.
Bai Qianfan closed her eyes and made a wish. As long as they were safe and sound, she would beg everyone she cared about, and as for her, she would beg the Moon God to be a good husband for all the ladies here. Her mother-in-law would love her, and no one would want to harm her.
After worshipping, Xiu Yuanshuang called out, and laughed: "Today's moonlight is not bad, let's go for acupuncture, in fact, we can't compete, I know, in my heart, it's Miss Lv He who got the upper hand."
Lv He said humbly: "Lateral Princess truly values this servant highly, this servant does more needlework everyday. If we are going to talk about it, I think Lateral Princess and Concubine Princess are truly nimble."
Seeing that Lv He did not mention her, Bai Qianfan was slightly dissatisfied, she muttered: "Big Sister Lv He thinks that I'm not a clever person, I know how to pinch people."
Lv He curled her lips. "Princess, come on. We'll just have to embroider a lotus bag and tie it so that ten fingers will be filled with holes. This makes Prince's heart ache even more."
Bai Qianfan was pointed at a weak point, and laughed awkwardly: "It's a pity that I'm not comparing myself to a fool, or else I would definitely win."
When Xiu Yuanshuang heard this sentence: "Your highness, your heart is in extreme pain, your face darkened and quickly returned to normal. You called for the maidservants to bring the needle and thread over, and they separated themselves and pierced the needle and thread facing the moonlight.
This kind of needle was smaller than the usual needlework. The needlepoint was thinner, and it was expensive to look at under the lamp. Under the moonlight, everything was hazy, and one had to concentrate and hold their breath.
Bai Qianfan held the needle in one hand and the thread in the other. Her fingers trembled slightly, and after a long while, she still wasn't sure. She only heard the servant girl report on the side, "Miss Lv He will string in two, Lateral Princess will string in one, Lady Qi Hong will string in one …"
No matter who it was, once a line was pierced, the servant girl would have to sing. Bai Qianfan was extremely upset, she used too much strength and fiercely pricked her finger, causing her to scream in pain.
Yue Xiang, who was at the side, hurried over. Before they could do anything, a tall figure stood in front of them and grabbed that injured finger, holding it in his mouth.
Bai Qianfan, "..."
Xiu Yuanshuang, "..."
Gu Qingdie, "..."
However, Qi Hong and Lv He looked at each other and smiled, indicating that they understood each other.
Bai Qianfan stuttered, "My prince, I didn't wash my hands when I touched the floor just now."
Morong Gan's face was slightly red, but luckily it was so dark that he couldn't see through it. The tip of his tongue circled around that finger, and only then did he loosen it, purposely speaking in a rough voice, "There are so many embroidered bags, and I thought you had made great progress. Look, I thought you had gotten your hands on it again. As he spoke, he used his finger to observe the moonlight. He saw that there was a hint of red on the white fingertip. The blood had already stopped flowing, so he assumed that there was nothing wrong.
Xiu Yuanshuang's heart was thumping fast, did they think of Bai Qianfan as a girl? Who would treat girls like Ge Zi? Wouldn't he be a laughing stock?!
Gu Qingdie looked at Morong Gan, then looked at Xiu Yuanshuang again. She lowered her eyes, there was no expression on her face, it was best if the prince got out of hand and provoked her, she could take it easy. Since she was not jealous of the position of the Crown Princess, she wanted to take it upon herself.
At this time, Lv He had already pierced through seven colorful threads in one breath. Qi Hong and Xiu Yuanshuang both pierced through six, Gu Qingdie pierced through five and Bai Qianfan was still through zero.
Morong Gan saw that she was going to pinch the needles again, so he stopped her, "If you don't listen, then don't wear it. You're not that good of a material."
Bai Qianfan was a little depressed, "My lord, I also want to beg for a favor, to be a smart person in the future."
She always made him laugh. "Who says you're not a smart person? In this king's eyes, the wangfei is the most intelligent person! "
However, Bai Qianfan did not appreciate her words, "Your Highness, your words do not count, I have to wear my own clothes, not to mention too much, at least I can wear one."
Just then, everyone had finished dressing themselves. Since Morong Gan was present, they did not dare to say much.
Morong Gan was unable to refuse Bai Qianfan. After thinking for a moment, he said, "How about I help you wear it?"
Bai Qianfan glanced at him, "Can you please help me eat?"
The little girl was too ungrateful. He did not stop her and looked at her with his hands hanging down, "Alright, you wear it, if you keep on holding it, it'll be worth it."
Bai Qianfan clenched her teeth, the two refined auras twisting around, her eyes squinting as she looked at the small pinhole, the red silk threads slowly moving closer to it, lingering around the entrance of the cave a few times, slowly piercing through. She still did not dare let go, and switched her hands to the other side to receive it, then pulled it down. She exhaled deeply, and with a heart full of joy, she showed it to Morong Gan: "My prince, I've passed through."
She smiled, and the trace of anger Prince Chu felt disappeared without a trace. He looked at her with a beaming smile, "En, not bad.
Bai Qianfan was startled for a moment: "Your highness is wrong, we should reward Sister Lv He. She got the first place."
Morong Gan laughed and said, "Both of you will be rewarded, one with a title and the other with a name. Although you only have one string, your determination to not lose is worth praising.
Bai Qianfan tilted her head and thought for a long time, "I can't think of it at the moment, how about I remember it first, I'll tell the prince about it when I think about it."
Morong Gan laughed and rubbed her head, "Alright, I will remember this. With so many people to testify for you, even this king will not be able to resist." After pausing for a moment, he continued, "As for Lv He, he will be rewarded with ten taels of silver."
The maidservants sucked in a breath of cold air. Even for a maidservant like Lv He, the monthly allowance was only one tael, and now that the Prince had said ten taels, it was equivalent to the monthly allowance of one year from her.
Even though she was so happy that Lv He had quickly kneeled down to show her gratitude, she knew in her heart that this was all part of her fortune.