Chapter 427: First Update on Shangsi Festival (5)_1
After Cai Wei and the three sisters of the Du family alighted from the carriage, they saw a number of horse carriages, each one richly decorated, all from prestigious families parked in front of the palace gate. This was exactly the time when all the prestigious families’ noble ladies would enter the palace, so there were quite a few people at the gate.
Yet it was quiet all around, with no one daring to talk loud in front of the grand palace gate. They all followed etiquette when they greeted each other, even if they were familiar with each other, they would only nod slightly. No one was having idle chats or laughter here.
The young ladies all followed the palace’s assigned old maids decorously, treading with tiny steps, making their way to the Imperial Garden.
This year’s Shangsi Festival Banquet was arranged in the Waterside Pavilion in the Imperial Garden. The zigzag corridor was artistically arranged with many tables and chairs. The Waterside Pavilion was used as a dividing line. On the left, were seats for female guests, and on the right, was the male guest section.
This arrangement not only satisfied the traditional requirements of separate seating for men and women but also allowed both sides to see each other’s appearances.
The Shangsi Festival originally was a day for people to cleanse themselves near the water and worship their ancestors. Now, it has evolved into a festival of feasting near the water, and a spring outing in the suburbs. The Shangsi Festival held annually by the Empress of the Great Jin Nation was in fact, a disguised matchmaking event - a day when those noble young men and women of marriageable age but still unmarried could meet each other.
Therefore, every Shangsi Festival, children from various families in the court would dress up and come cheerfully. They were hoping that they could meet someone they liked.
Especially those young masters, they would arrive early at the Waterside Pavilion. With the arrival of each house’s woman, their attention would be drawn immediately.
If they found a woman they liked, they would then send people to investigate the woman’s background, name, age, etc. Then they would note it down, go home and discuss with the elders. If the elders also agreed on this match, the male side would then immediately send people to the female’s house to propose a marriage.
If, four or five days after the Shangsi Festival, the young ladies who attended it still did not find any matchmakers at their doorstep, it meant that her performance at the festival was not good enough and nobody fancied her, which was a very shameful thing for the girl’s family.