Chapter 33: Spring Banquet - Meeting an Old Acquaintance
Xing finished all the reading materials she brought from her brother on the day of the banquet. She slept peacefully till afternoon when Xu Mama brought her heavy palace clothings for her to wear to attend the banquet. She took bath in floral water which greatly refreshed her. After that nearly ten maids surrounded her and started doing stuff around her and she felt heavy after they were finished. Xu mama praised her with clouded eyes that she is a heavenly beauty and no sensible man can take his eyes of her today. Xing looked at the mirror and her hair was made into several buns and almost a hundred pins were pushed in there. Also her face was painted almost identical to an opera performer and the clothes were so heavy it made her movements restricted.
There is no friggin way I’m putting myself through this tribulation today, she decided.
So after thanking them for their hard work, she excused them so she can rest for a while.
As the last maid left, she started removing the layer upon layer of clothes and the surplus amount of hairpins in her hair. She washed her face with water and applied the hair oil to change her hair colour and wore her usual makeup. She then wore the bright blue men’s attire Haru had sent and braided her hair as usual.
She then jumped the window and walked towards her brother’s courtyard. She peeked through the window and Rijun noted Xing in male outfit, peeking and placed his palm on his head. Their father had already planned to show off his daughter in today’s banquet, but looking at her, she did not seem like she cared.
He let out a deep sigh and sent all those who were serving him out since he almost finished getting dressed. He was dressed in light blue palace robes with crane embroidery in the chest that accentuated his scholarly looks and pale skin.
"You look handsome brother. I bet all the women will be looking at you today", she smiled. He got flustered by her praise for a moment. Then he called her in and said, "Seriously sister, have you no sense of proprietary?"
"What sense of.... ,aren’t you dressed?", she asked confused.
I am but you cannot just barge in here, he wanted to say it but it won’t matter to this brazen fellow.
" Why are you here? Aren’t you getting dressed?", he asked tying his hair.
"Yes, there is that problem. I was dressed like a doll and didn’t like it. So I decided to go like this", she said and jumped in.
"You cannot braid your hair in formal banquets. Pull your hair up", Rijun said.