The Double
Chapter 118 - 118 78 Entering the Palace_5

118: Chapter 78 Entering the Palace_5 118: Chapter 78 Entering the Palace_5 Jiang Youyao had thought that Jiang Li, on her first visit to the palace, would certainly be at a loss and overly nervous.

If she could witness Jiang Li embarrass herself, nothing could be better.

Yet, when she turned her head, she saw Jiang Li lifting her dress subtly, walking with exceptional ease.

It was as if the palace was her own backyard.

Jiang Youyao couldn’t help feeling stifled with irritation.

Even when she first entered the palace, she was trembling, afraid of making a mistake.

However, Jiang Li seemed not to be nervous in the slightest.

Jiang Youyao intended to find fault in Jiang Li, yet until they nearly reached their destination, Jiang Li had been flawless, without showing any signs of error.

Madam Jiang the Elder was very pleased.

After all, among the youngsters present today, only Jiang Li was the most unfamiliar with the palace.

She was terribly worried that Jiang Li would slip up, but now it seemed that Jiang Li had performed quite well and was unlikely to cause any trouble.

At this moment, many official families’ members had already arrived at the grand hall of Yuming Hall.

These ladies and noblewomen were from the families of Yanjing officials of the Third Rank and above, holding prestigious statuses.

Because the night banquet had not yet started, most were chatting with those they were familiar with.

At such palace banquets, daughters would all make an effort to dress themselves up beautifully.

Among these women, some had come of age, while others had not, yet all wished to make a good impression at the palace banquet.

As there were many sons of official families, young talents among those visiting the palace today, and the customs of Northern Yan were more open than those of the former dynasty, as long as the young men and women did nothing inappropriate, mutual affection was acceptable and they could make marriage proposals through official visits.

And in a place like a palace banquet, where most of the attendees were of equal social standing, this was a significant convenience.

Seated in the east direction was a pair of mother and daughter, with the daughter around sixteen or seventeen years old, dressed in a jade-colored flowered brocade dress, wearing a jade butterfly-patterned headdress.

She was also quite beautiful.

Although the woman seated beside her was also luxuriously dressed, when compared to the other ladies around, her demeanor was less natural, carrying a hint of provincial modesty.

These two were the mother and sister of Shen Yurong, Shen Ruyun.

Now that Shen Yurong was Assistant Head Writer, Shen Ruyun and Mother Shen naturally could attend the palace banquet.

Although Shen Yurong was a widower, the people of Yanjing City all knew that it was Shen Yurong’s wife, Xue Fangfei, who had eloped with someone else.

A wife like that dying was seen as divine retribution.

Shen Yurong himself was young and promising with limitless prospects, and being extraordinarily handsome, refined, and courteous, many families had set their sights on him, pondering on sending their daughters to the Shen family.

The Shen family only had a simple household, with just Shen Ruyun and Mother Shen, and once Shen Ruyun married off, whichever daughter married into the family could take charge, without needing to manage relations with a sister-in-law, but only needing to maintain a harmonious relationship with the mother-in-law.

For many pampered daughters, this was already quite appealing.

Since these considerations were in mind, many noble women approached Mother Shen in light of Shen Yurong’s presence to form connections.

They did not disdain Mother Shen’s modest origins and praised her warmly, casting compliments on Shen Ruyun as well, which gave Shen Ruyun a sense of elation.

Nie Xiaoshuang and Zhu Xiner, the two Misses from Mingyi Hall who were in the same group with Jiang Li during the last Imperial Archery examination, were also gathered around Shen Ruyun, conversing.

Liu Xu, upon seeing this, huffed softly and whispered to Madam Liu, “I’ve never seen anyone so eager to be someone’s second wife.”

Madam Liu tapped Liu Xu’s forehead gently and murmured, “Always you with the chatter!”

“It’s true!” Liu Xu muttered under her breath.

She simply couldn’t stomach the behavior of her peers, who were from some of the most distinguished families of Yanjing City.

The Top Scholar, Shen Yurong, had only recently lost his wife, and regardless of what kind of person Xue Fangfei was, Shen Yurong appeared to be deeply and sincerely mourning his late wife.

Those girls should consider more closely—if he was truly so devoted to his deceased wife, how could he remarry so soon?

And if he did remarry quickly, then Shen Yurong wouldn’t be as deep in his affections as he seemed, proving himself to be duplicitous.

While speaking, someone else remarked, “I’ve heard that the marriage between the Marquis Ningyuan’s princely heir and the third daughter of Chief Minister Jiang’s family is set for the end of next winter.”

This statement instantly changed Shen Ruyun’s expression.

She asked, “Is that true?”

“It’s true,” replied Nie Xiaoshuang.

“My mother mentioned it a few days ago as well.

The marriage between Youyao and Prince Zhou had been settled quite some time ago; now, it’s simply that the date has been decided, which is to be expected.”

Unable to suppress the resentment in her heart, Shen Ruyun retorted sarcastically, “As I recall, it was Miss Jiang the Second who was initially betrothed to Prince Zhou.”

The others exchanged glances.

Shen Ruyun’s words were unkind, and no one dared to respond.

To do so would mean offending the Jiang family—Jiang Yuanbai was the current Grand Secretary, and who would dare to slight his daughter?

But since it was the sister of the Assistant Head Writer who spoke, they dare not offend her either, so they kept silent.

Yet in that silence, the same thought inevitably arose—that it was indeed Jiang Li, the sister, who was initially engaged to Zhou Yanbang.

This younger sister taking over her sister’s engagement was not exactly honorable.

Everyone then looked at Madam Ningyuan to gauge her reaction.

Madam Ningyuan appeared to be oblivious to all this, laughing and chatting with the wife of a Yilang-ranked official, Lady Ji Chen, who was also the elder sister of Lady Ji Chen.

It was as if she had not heard the surrounding whispers.

But whether she had heard or not, only she herself knew.

Liu Xu wanted to defend Jiang Li but didn’t know quite what to say, merely glancing repeatedly towards the entrance, wondering why Jiang Li had not yet arrived.

Just then, a palace maid announced that the daughter of the Jiang family had arrived.

All eyes turned toward the entrance to see Madam Jiang the Elder leading the way, with Ji Shuran ahead, followed closely by Lady Lu and then Lady Yang, along with the Jiang family girls, who gracefully made their entrance.