The Battle of the Noble Ladies

Chapter 71 - Unexpected Arrival

The next morning, Nanny Xu helped Song Chuyi get dressed and urged her to drink some soup before heading to Ningde Courtyard to pay her respects.

After Song Chuyi finished a few words with the Old Lady, the First and Second Ladies came in. Since they were going to Huangjue Temple to offer incense, the First Lady had risen early to prepare for the outing, and there were faint dark circles under her eyes, giving her a visibly fatigued appearance.

In contrast, the Second Lady looked energetic, her fair skin glowing with a hint of color, and she wore two jade earrings beside her ears, making her look even more radiant.

Old Lady Song inquired about what they were taking with them and nodded, saying, "When you go to the temple, take a few maids and let Master Yuankong take a look at them. Also, remember to prepare some incense money for the married ladies."

The three married girls were all from the First Household, so the First Lady naturally smiled in agreement.

Old Lady Song thought for a moment and then asked her, "How is your daughter-in-law, Jue'er?"

Li shi's heart suddenly skipped a beat as she recalled her daughter mentioning that Li Qingzi might be pregnant. If this were an ordinary time, it wouldn't matter much, but now that Song Yi had gone on an official assignment, she found this news particularly jarring—especially since Old Lady had been pressing her about grandchildren lately...

However, the First Lady didn't appear overly happy; with a hint of worry, she shook her head. "This child, I don't know what's wrong. She's been so weak... Earlier, she said she felt unwell, and the imperial physician came to see her and prescribed some medicine. She felt better for a while, but now she's not well again..."

Li Qingzi was after all her niece. If there were issues regarding her having children, she felt guilty for her son and also somewhat remorseful. If she had known, she would have found someone more suitable to bear children...

Old Lady Song sighed and took a moment before saying, "If that's the case, don't let her go out this time. Let her rest well. Tomorrow, we can find a physician from the Qianjin Department to take a look at her."

In front of Song Chuyi, the First Lady couldn't say too much, so she forced a smile in agreement.

Soon, Song Chumi and others also came to pay their respects.

Recently, Song Chubin had new servants attending to her.  Although they are much more dedicated and respectful to her than the previous Nanny Qiu and others, the Fifth Lady has been missing for the past few days, and Nanny Qiu and other people who used to serve her have also disappeared. This made her feel quite uneasy, and she kept her head down, afraid to speak up.

Song Chubin's personality was indeed rather unlikable. Old Lady Song looked at her with a heavy gaze for a while, determined to urge the First Lady to invite the female officials from the palace to come to teach her the rules of etiquette.

Once everything was ready, the First Lady led them out. Since there had been a previous incident with a wild horse, she specifically ordered twelve guards to accompany them, and Song Jue brought four attendants along.

Huangjue Temple was located in the eastern suburbs of the capital, and it took the carriage two hours after leaving the city to arrive.

The reception monk had already heard the news and came out to greet them, respectfully leading the First Lady and the others into the temple.

The high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital often went to the temple to offer incense to avoid conflicts with the womenfolk and for safety reasons. This time, Huangjue Temple had posted a notice yesterday stating that the temple would be closed today.

The First Lady had just finished washing her hands and was about to ask the abbot when he would be free to give a sermon when she heard Jin Ling say that Song Jue had arrived.

Song Jue looked somewhat displeased. Upon entering and glancing at the crowd, he went straight up to the First Lady and said, "Mother, the wife of the deputy commander of the Wucheng Army has come together with our in-laws."

What a coincidence?!

How could such a coincidence happen? The First Lady's expression turned a bit unpleasant. She was aware that Song Chuyi's carriage had encountered trouble on the road, and that the deputy commander had made things difficult for them. Now, that woman she usually disliked, Lady Xiao, had come to Huangjue Temple with the deputy commander's wife...

Li Shi glanced at Song Chuyi, her expression wavering between uncertainty and foreboding.

They were already at the door; could they really pretend not to know? The First Lady suppressed her frustration and noticed the reception monk looking troubled. She softened her expression and smiled, saying, "What a coincidence this is. Although we are cleaning the temple in advance, we shouldn't obstruct someone's sincere heart toward Buddha. Fortunately, they are all women, so it won't be an issue. Masters, please feel free."

The reception monk let out a sigh of relief and quickly nodded in agreement, turning to go out and make arrangements.

Before long, news came that Lady Xiao and Fang Shi had come specifically to express their gratitude. The First Lady had anticipated this and had someone welcome them inside.

Lady Xiao entered with a smile, first greeting the First Lady and Li shi, then pulling the First Lady close and laughing, "No wonder I heard magpies calling just before I left today; it turns out I would run into you, my dear family!"

She then led Fang Shi forward to greet everyone: "This is the wife of the deputy commander of the Wucheng Army, who came with me."

Fang Shi exchanged pleasantries with the First Lady and immediately asked, "I wonder if your sixth miss is here today?"

Sure enough, her intentions were not pure. The First Lady glanced at her with less enthusiasm, replying, "Do you know my sixth miss, Lady Fang?"

Lady Xiao nervously looked at Fang Shi, trying to smooth things over. "Lady Fang said she heard from the deputy commander yesterday that your sixth miss encountered a wild horse on the road and was a bit worried."

The First Lady looked at her, noncommittal, and nodded slightly. "You are thoughtful, Lady Fang. My sixth miss is fine; she just experienced a bit of a scare."

In the end, she still didn't clarify whether or not she was present.

Lady Xiao quickly recognized Song Chuyi among the crowd and smiled, waving at her, calling out, "Sixth Miss, come over so I can have a look at you!"

Now that she called her out, as an elder, Song Chuyi couldn't pretend she hadn't heard, so she smiled and stepped forward to bow.

Fang Shi, quick to act, pulled her over and looked her up and down, laughing, "You really do have an air of cleverness about you. No wonder you weren't scared at all in such a dangerous situation yesterday. My husband came back and praised you highly, saying you are even smarter than my son, who has already entered the Imperial Academy."

The First Lady couldn't hold back any longer and shot her a glance, frowning as she said, "What does Lady Fang mean by that? What's so clever about a little child? If it weren't for the household guards protecting her, who knows what might have happened. Even later on, it was thanks to His Highness the Heir Apparent that she was spared an unwarranted disaster. What does that have to do with her?"

If word got out that such a young girl was overly clever, it wouldn't be a good thing; there would be all sorts of trouble associated with it.

Song Chuyi also kept her head down, appearing somewhat shy, like a frightened little rabbit: "Today, Auntie specially brought me to the temple to pray and calm my nerves... Lady Fang, you flatter me."

Lady Fang's smile faltered for a moment as she looked at the First Lady and then at Lady Xiao, forcing a laugh and pretending to scold herself: "I spoke out of turn. I just think it's rare for such a young girl like the Sixth Miss to remain so calm."