Chapter 86: Asking the Heavens
Xiu'er suggested taking Qixi Festival as the theme and let her cousin take the lead in writing poems. She wanted to embarrass her cousin, but she never thought that her cousin's words were shocking and she won the first place. Seeing that everyone admired her cousin, Xiu'er was even more angry. She had to hurry up to divert her cousin's attention and not let people continue to praise her cousin. Writing poems was not okay. The draft she had prepared was already surpassed by her cousin. After all, she was Xiu'er, she was smart. She rolled her eyes and changed the subject and said:
"My cousin's wife's poem is beautiful, but poetry without a zither is like wine without songs, which is not lively at all. Xiu'er will present a song for you all to wish you a good time."
After he finished speaking, without waiting for anyone to speak, he took the zither from Bing Xin, casually placed it on the table, plucked it a few times to test the sound, and then began to play it softly.
Xiu'er's piano skills were truly amazing. With just a few pluckings, she successfully diverted everyone's attention. The flower hall instantly became quiet. Only the night breeze and Xiu'er's flowing piano sounds echoed in the air. Xiao Jun gradually became fascinated.
Seeing that the Second Master was listening intently, Mengxi felt that the couple was a perfect match and she was really a superfluous person here. After a busy day, she was a little tired, so she quietly stood up and said something to the old lady. The old lady nodded in agreement and she quietly left with Zhiqiu and others.
After the song ended, it took a long time for everyone to come to their senses and they kept praising her. Even the old lady kept praising Xiu'er for her cleverness and dexterity. Xiu'er saw that her cousin also nodded approvingly and finally breathed a sigh of relief. She won this round.
A faint fragrance drifted into Xiao Jun's nose with the wind, and he took a sip:
"Chun'er, what do you have on you? It smells so good."
"Father, this is the purse that mother gave me. It has a very special fragrance. Chun'er has never seen it before. Chun'er likes it very much. Father, please smell it."
Xiao Jun took Chun'er's purse and sniffed it. It was something he had never smelled before. It should be a mixture of several scents, faint, almost imperceptible, very elegant, and gave him a sense of security.
In fact, the spices that Mengxi prepared for children have a calming effect .
Xiao Jun was naturally fond of all kinds of exotic fragrances. When he saw it today, he wanted to ask his daughter for it and keep it for himself. Xi'er had such a subtle fragrance, but she didn't give it to him. Didn't she know that he was naturally fond of these? He thought of the fragrance that made his heart beat in the sedan chair that day. He turned around and looked. There was no trace of the plain-faced man. He felt a sense of loss in his heart, as if he had lost something very important.
Mengxi brought Zhiqiu back to the east wing. Having drunk some wine, he was a little excited. Looking at the Qiqiao fruits he had made by himself, he had an idea and thought of begging for skills. He ordered Zhiqiu and others to put the incense table in the backyard, put Qiqiao fruits, tea, wine, etc. on it, put candlesticks and incense burners, and light incense and candles. He then ordered the maids to leave and close the garden gate.
Mengxi picked up the needle and thread that she had prepared in advance, twisted the thread, aligned it with the eye of the needle, then closed her eyes and silently recited:
"God, I, Li Mengxi, do not seek wealth and honor, I only hope to leave the Xiao Mansion safely. I hope to find a good man in this life, and live a life of a man farming and a woman weaving, a couple for life. If this wish can be fulfilled, I will thread the needle with a thread."
After saying that, he opened his eyes, looked at the eye of the needle, and went through it.
empty!
The thread didn't even go through the eye of the needle. Mengxi stared blankly at the needle and thread in her hand. She was suddenly filled with sorrow and sadness. Although she had been preparing to leave the mansion, she knew that in this ancient time where men were superior to women, she had been branded by the Xiao family, and it would be extremely difficult to leave the Xiao mansion.
Is it destined that she will have to face the ancient Buddha alone in this life? She was unwilling to accept this. A trace of despair arose in her heart, and she looked up at the sky. Just a moment ago, the sky was full of stars, but now there were dots of dark clouds floating, covering the crescent moon. The long-term repression in the Xiao Mansion suddenly broke out, and her chest was suddenly filled with anger. She looked at the sky and said angrily:
"God, are you blind? I am a ghost, Li Mengxi, who came to this Da Qi with no relatives all by myself, and was forced to marry my elder sister. Since the Xiao family has an ancestral precept that concubines cannot become the legitimate wife of the head of the Xiao family, I have no intention of offending them, and I don't ask for the Xiao family's wealth. I just want to be able to leave safely one day when I am divorced, find a good man, and live a life together for the rest of my life. Is this too much to ask? Why don't you agree!"
Mengxi pointed to the high blue sky and asked:
"God, Buddha said: In this world, all beings are equal. But why can a husband remarry, but a wife cannot remarry? Since the Xiao family's ancestral precepts do not allow me, why can't I leave and find another good man? Why can he have three wives and four concubines, but I have to live with the green lamp forever? Is this what you call fate? Men and women should be equal, but you insist on men being superior to women and treating women harshly. Aren't you raised by women? God is unfair, unjust, and unjust. I, Li Mengxi, am dissatisfied, unwilling, and indignant. Since God does not agree with my wish today, from now on, I! Li Mengxi swears not to believe that God has eyes. My life is in my own hands, not in the hands of God!"
As he was cursing, dark clouds had gathered in the sky. Suddenly, accompanied by flashes of lightning, loud thunderclaps came and woke up the angry Mengxi.
Damn, God! You don't want to kill me, do you? I just complained a few times, but I didn't really have an affair, so you hit me with lightning!
The heavy rain poured down, extinguishing Mengxi's anger. Her heart gradually calmed down. Standing in the rain, Mengxi discovered that the anger of God was much more powerful than the anger of their Master Xiao. It was better to avoid him. Doesn't the precepts for women say "The best way to cultivate oneself is to be respectful, and the best way to avoid the strong is to be submissive"?
After going through the storm, the anger in Mengxi's heart has subsided and her heart has become stronger, but tonight's begging for skills has left an indelible shadow in her heart.
After the Qiqiao Festival, Xiao Jun, whose body had fully recovered, became even busier, often going out early and coming back late. Miss Xiu came to Xiaoxiangyuan less often. She had fought enough with her aunt, and she was too lazy to come when her cousin was not around. Miss Xiu spent most of her time coaxing the old lady and the first wife. She knew that these two people were very important if she wanted to enter the Xiao Mansion.
Although Miss Xiu didn't come, the Second Master still lived in the upper room and rarely went to the gardens. On this day, the Second Master came back very early and asked someone to call Mengxi to pack up. He would be away for half a month. Mengxi really didn't know what the ancient people had to prepare when they went out. She didn't know whether the items in this ancient inn were also fully equipped like modern five-star hotels, and she could just live there directly. She didn't know the Second Master's daily habits, so she wanted to ask, but when she looked at that icy face, she swallowed the words that were about to come to her mouth, and asked someone to call the eldest aunt to come, and directly told her to make arrangements. The eldest aunt listened and looked at the Second Wife in confusion. Why did the Second Wife let her do such a good opportunity to get close to the Second Master?
The Second Master was away on a long trip, and Mengxi's long-cherished worry came to life again. She had long wanted to sneak out of the house for a stroll, but she had no chance. The Second Master had been away for half a month, so this was a rare opportunity.
