Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 524 - 522

Chapter 524: 522

Shangguan Ruixi, carrying a scroll, returned to the pavilion on the other side. He presented the painting for everyone to see, making many unable to believe their own eyes.

"I have heard that Rui’an County’s ruler has an amazing knack for remembering details, yet I didn’t expect she would remember such minute things. That day, I found the mung bean cake too sweet, took a bite, and put it back on the plate without eating anymore. Look, she even drew the partly eaten mung bean cake."

"Not to mention her amazing painting skills, just her memory alone is breathtaking."

"Looking at myself in the painting, it’s like looking in a mirror."

...

This painting deepened everyone’s admiration for the talents of the ruler of Rui’an County.

Shangguan Xuanyi glanced at his own image in the painting. He knew there was something Xiao’er had painted incorrectly, which was the look in his eyes. His gaze towards the maid was anything but calm, it was filled with deep affection.

"Sixth Prince, you’ve really stumbled upon a treasure!" Shangguan Ruixi exclaimed.

Zhao Youwei, looking across the lake at the beautiful figure, absolutely agreed with this statement. The talents of the ruler of Rui’an County extended far beyond just painting.

Gong Qingnian thought while looking at the painting: It’s not a treasure, it’s a treasure trove. A treasure trove filled with unknown riches, mysterious and yet tempting to explore.

Chu Die and Princess Ling’er listened to the continuous praises coming from the other side. Both of them were disdainful.

It’s just a painting, isn’t it? Does it warrant such continuous praises and astonishment from everyone?!

Seeing this, Shangguan Wanru was delighted: "Rui’an County’s ruler, you truly are a kindred spirit. Thank you for your gift!"

"You’re too kind, Princess. I’m glad you don’t find my gift too simple." Xiao’er laughed and thought: It would be better if you’re just a kindred spirit, not a lover.

Many of the girls present came to woo Shangguan Ruixi. They inquired about Princess Wanru’s hobbies and purchased expensive western trinkets as gifts, all with the intention of getting on her good side and thus gaining a chance to visit the Wang Mansion. Yet they hadn’t expected that what the imperial son and the princess liked was painting. This was a miscalculation.

Shangguan Ruixi instructed someone to return the painting to Princess Wanru. After receiving it, Chu Die said to Princess Wanru : "Princess, I would also like to see this painting. I have heard of Rui’an County ruler’s amazing painting skills but have never seen them for myself."

Without giving it too much thought, Shangguan Wanru instructed her maid to hand over the painting, but couldn’t help but warn: "Be careful, don’t damage or dirty it."

Chu Die nodded: "Rest assured, princess. I too am a lover of art."

The other girls also wanted a closer look. After all, everyone present, to varying degrees, was well-versed in art and wanted to study it.

Li Mingfang also went over to have a look. She hadn’t seen the painting before and now, seeing everyone praising it, she was curious about what Rui’an County’s ruler had painted to garner such admiration.

Although she didn’t understand art, upon closer inspection, she was still surprised by the lifelike portrayal of the characters in the painting.

Seeing this, Chu Die scoffed in her heart. The last time Rui’an County’s ruler had caused her betrothal to almost be called off, she had garnered disapproval from her future in-laws even before the marriage. Now that everyone was praising this painting, she wanted to destroy it as a small form of revenge!

And this was just a bit of the interest!

After faking a few praises, Chu Die handed the painting over to Li Mingfang. Li Mingfang took it, stared at it for a few moments, and then passed it to Ruan Weizhen. Apart from the fact that the characters were incredibly lifelike, she couldn’t really understand its beauty. After closely examining the painting, Ruan Weizhen felt inferior and then passed the painting to Gu Qiqi.

Watching them pass the painting around, Shangguan Wanru felt anxious, fearing that they would accidentally dirty or damage it. And they were all standing at the edge of the pavilion that was built over the water. As soon as she was about to demand the painting be returned to her, she saw it fly into the lake.

A chorus of shocked gasps filled the air.

Shangguan Wanru quickly rose to her feet and said to her maid, "Quickly, retrieve the painting!"

The maids hurriedly went to find something to fish the painting out of the lake.

As Shangguan Wanru watched her painting floating in the water, she gritted her teeth in anger.

Ruan Weizhen and Gu Qiqi looked at each other with surprise.

"Once the painting is fished out, isn’t it essentially useless?!" Chu Die, taking pleasure in their misfortune, couldn’t help but comment while watching the maids run around.

"Shut up! If not for you, would my painting be in the water now?" Shangguan Wanru, driven by anger, walked forward and slapped Chu Die.

Chu Die’s fair face instantly sported a clear handprint.

"Princess, why are you hitting me? It’s not like the painting fell from my hands! Even if you’re the princess, you can’t disregard right from wrong and violently treat the daughter of an imperial official at will! " Chu Die hadn’t expected that at the end of her perfect plan to deflect blame, she would be the one suffering.

"If you hadn’t passed my painting around without my permission, would it have ended up in the water?" Shangguan Wanru retorted angrily.

"Princess, calm down. Let’s clarify things first! If the painting is ruined, we can make a new one." Xiao’er gently pulled at Shangguan Wanru’s hand, signalling her to calm down.

Today was her birthday, and the princess’ mother had purposely invited many boys and girls of the same age to come over, with the intention to select a daughter and son-in-law. With Princess Wanru impulsively slapping someone, displaying such a fiery temper, any of the potential suitors who saw this scene would hesitate to marry her.

She was really hoping that someone would take this princess off their hands!

Princess Wanru, like the Fifth Princess, was one of the noblest girls in the Imperial city. Their nobility was a given, so regardless of their choice, they would be marrying beneath their status.

With such a high status, marrying anyone would put them above their husbands. Add to that their fiery temper, no one would dare to marry them!

"Wei Zhen, Qiqi, what happened just now? How did the painting fly out?"

The painting flew out of her hands and fell into the water. Ruan Weizhen also felt guilty inside. She spoke apologetically: "I’m sorry, Princess. I didn’t hold the scroll tightly enough. As soon as I passed the painting to Qiqi and just loosened my grip, someone bumped into my elbow and the painting flew away."

"I just reached out to take the painting. My fingertips barely touched the scroll when it suddenly flew away." Gu Qiqi also added.

"Who bumped into you?" Shangguan Wanru looked at Ruan Weizhen and asked.

Ruan Weizhen shook her head. She had been fully focused on the painting and hadn’t noticed anyone behind her.

"Who accidentally bumped Wei Zhen’s hand?" Shangguan Wanru looked at the crowd and asked.

She asked this hoping that someone would step forward, admit their mistake, and she could forgive them for their honesty. If no one admitted it, she would have to consider the possibility that someone intentionally ruined her painting!

Reflecting on the resounding slap Chu Die had just received, everyone quickly shook their heads.

"Not me."

"Not me!"

.....

After thinking for a while, Gu Qiqi, remembering who was behind Ruan Weizhen at the time, spoke up: "Miss Chu, earlier I saw you standing behind Wei Zhen...."

"What are you implying? Don’t try to falsely accuse me. It wasn’t me who bumped into her! There wasn’t just me standing behind her just now." Chu Die, hearing those words, vehemently denied.