Phoenix's Requiem

Chapter 171: At the Yi Manor

By noon, Yun Moxiao and Yun Ruoyan’s carriage was ready. As the siblings headed to the front entrance of the manor, they coincidentally encountered the Yun matriarch, who was being carried on a palanquin. From afar, she could clearly see that Yun Ruoyan wasn’t wearing the lake-green dress she had commissioned.

Once Yun Ruoyan approached, the Yun matriarch asked, “Ruoyan, where did this dress come from? This is the first time I’ve seen you wearing it.”

“Grandmother, this was a dress that the Slaughtering King himself handed me. Because there were some issues with the dress even after being modified, I decided to wear this one instead.”

Yun Ruoyan had found that Li Mo was an excellent excuse for everything. Whenever she was asked a sensitive question, she would always claim that it had something to do with Li Mo; after all, no one would dare to ask about Li Mo’s affairs, given his status.

For example, even after having suffered such disgrace, even Pei Ziao had given up trying to right his name. Yun Lan had long since told the Yun matriarch about the Slaughtering King’s betrothal with Yun Ruoyan, and the Yun matriarch was naturally jubilant to hear that the dress had come from him.

“The Slaughtering King has very good taste,” she praised. “This dress combines the qualities unique to formal- and casualwear, making you look both dignified and graceful. I used to have a friend in the palace who loved to embroider these colored butterflies by her sleeves, and I’m sure the Slaughtering King must have used her work as reference.”

The Yun matriarch then turned to Yun Moxiao, who was walking on her other side. He stood tall and straight, handsome and composed in a way that reminded her of his father. The Yun matriarch sighed: although Lin Yuemei had passed away, she had left behind two remarkable descendants carrying the flame of the Yun family.

Yun Ruoyan and Yun Moxiao helped the Yun matriarch into the carriage, but Madam An didn’t show up even after a considerable wait. Frowning, the Yun matriarch was about to send Xiao Lan in search of Madam An when she finally walked up to the carriage, Yun Ruoyan and Yun Ruoyao supporting her from either side.

“Mother, I apologize for my lateness,” Madam An croaked weakly.

As Xiao Lan drew back the curtains, Madam An’s pallor was made visible to all. The Yun matriarch had intended on criticizing her behavior, but Madam An’s appearance caused the words to stick to her mouth.

“Why are you so ill? Have you seen a physician?”

“Yes, Mother. It’s simply a common cold, and I should be fine after some rest.”

“You have to take care of your body, but Qianying’s always been close to you, and it’s necessary for you to make an appearance at the wedding. After the ceremony, if you’re still feeling unwell, you may return early.” The Yun matriarch motioned for Xiao Lan to draw the curtains closed once more. “Let’s depart.”

Yun Ruoyan and Yun Moxiao naturally sat together in the same carriage, the smallest one, whereas Madam An, Yun Ruoyao, and Yun Ruoyu took the slightly larger one in the middle.

Yun Lan had headed to court early in the morning, and he would head directly to the crown prince’s mansion in celebration, rather than the Yi manor.

The procession of carriages arrived at the Yi manor on the southern side of the capital within two hours. The Yi manor was bustling with activity: after all, even in the capital, the crown prince marrying a concubine was a not-insignificant event.

On her palanquin, the Yun matriarch, Madam An, and the Yun siblings were led toward the reception hall by the Yi family’s female head of house. Although the Yi name carried less prestige than it used to in the past, it was still considered a noble house. Based on external appearance alone, the Yi manor appeared similar to the Yun manor, but the differences were apparent upon walking in.

The corridors in the Yun manor were made of high-quality redwood, and some servants were regularly assigned to maintain the wood against moisture and rot. As a result, despite being centuries old, the manor looked as good as new. On the other hand, the roof and railing of the corridors in the Yi manor had suffered large patches of damage, and part of the wood was even turning black.

The unusual flower species of the Yun gardens and greenhouse would never wilt; on the other hand, despite the fact that it was still summer, the Yi gardens were largely yellowed and lifeless. The Yun family pond was pellucid and filled with expensive fish; the Yi family pond was turbid and contained no sign of life.

Yun Ruoyan couldn’t help but think back to the Slaughtering King’s manor. Although it gave off the impression of being unkempt and disorganized, the manor’s grounds were verdant and full of vitality. In particular, the pond of lotus flowers right outside the small guest chamber was so fragrant and eye-catching that she remembered it as clear as day.

And although the Lin family was small, Lin Zainan still spent a considerable amount of wealth on landscaping. All the residences—Lin Zainan’s own quarters, Lin Qingchen’s bamboo gardens, Lin Qingxue’s cottage, and even the Zhuo siblings’ temporary refuge—were each elegant and tasteful, and constructed in a harmonious fashion.

Even the greatest inheritance could be frittered away without the ability to maintain it, and the Yi family appeared on the brink of destitution.

The Yun family was led to the reception chamber to find a rather significant crowd already present. The current head of the Yi family, Yi Qianying’s second uncle, was a rather middling court official, and the guests that had shown up were also of approximately the same status. None of the largest, most prosperous noble families were in attendance, because all of those guests had gone to the crown prince’s mansion instead.

As soon as the Yun matriarch entered the hall, the present guests immediately stood up and paid their respects to her, their gazes lingering on Yun Ruoyan, Yun Ruoyao, Yun Ruoyu, and Yun Moxiao.

After all, those scions of the Yun family had yet to be betrothed, and there was hardly a family present who wouldn’t want to be linked to the Yuns by marriage. But on second thought, they decided to give up—after all, the Yun family so dwarfed the remaining guests that there might as well have been an insurmountable gap between them.

However, to her surprise, Yun Ruoyan noticed a familiar silhouette: Pei Ziao.

Pei Ziao had clearly seen her. He looked toward her with a complicated expression on his face, but when Yun Ruoyan glanced back, Pei Ziao immediately turned away.

Yun Ruoyan was inwardly gleeful. Although she hadn’t been able to get rid of him entirely, at least he would stop trying to flit toward her whenever he saw her, as a moth toward a flame. And while she hadn’t been able to cause him physical harm, the emotional and psychological damage he’d suffered would likely persist for the short term.

As the Yun family sat down in seats that had been specially designated for them, the head of the Yi family, Yi Mingzheng, hurriedly rushed in from outside to greet the Yun matriarch and Madam An.

“And these must be my nephew and nieces!” Yi Mingzheng turned to Yun Ruoyan and the others, then honed in on Yun Moxiao. As if deeply moved, he began, “Nephew, you’ve really grown up! I remember meeting you many years ago, when I went to the Yun manor with my brother to visit my relatives. Your mother was holding you in her hands, and you were just a little baby then.”

Because of his excitement, Yi Mingzheng’s pale, chubby face was turning a rather bright red. When he spoke with the Yun matriarch, he bowed his waist and lowered his gaze, but as soon as he turned to others, he immediately straightened up his little stomach and raised his jaw.

He spoke with Yun Moxiao as though he was Yun Moxiao’s elder, and he had no other choice but to politely chat with him for a little. When Yun Ruoyan saw that Yi Mingzheng had turned from her brother to her, she immediately turned away.

Despite having lived two lives, Yun Ruoyan’s upbringing had been rather isolated, and everyone she knew, benevolent or malicious, had had a noble’s bearing. Although Yi Mingzheng looked amiable enough, his eyes and gestures made him appear somewhat small-minded, and Yun Ruoyan didn’t like him.

Her turning away made the situation somewhat awkward, but Yi Mingzheng didn’t seem to mind. “Qianying’s finishing up her preparations in the back, so why don’t you sisters go find her?”

“Uncle Yi, we’d love to see Sister Qianying,” Yun Ruoyu replied obediently, “but there’s no one to bring us there. It’s the first time we’ve been to the Yi manor, and I’m afraid we don’t know where to go.”

“My, my, I’m sorry. Let me have someone take you there immediately.”

By right, Madam An should have gone along with the girls. However, her condition really was quite severe, and after dropping off a small dowry and chatting with Yi Mingzheng’s wife, she had retired to a guest room to rest.

While Yun Ruoyan didn’t want to meet Yi Qianying, she knew that she would have to at least be superficially polite. Under the guidance of a servant, Yun Ruoyan, Yun Ruoyao, and Yun Ruoyu arrived at Yi Qianying’s chambers, where she awaited the main event.

By this time, Yi Qianying had already put on her wedding dress. She sat alone on the bright red wedding bed, as though she were an exquisitely carved wooden puppet. Despite being surrounded by an air of festivity, she didn’t look happy or excited at all.

When she heard that the Yun siblings were here, she immediately began chatting away with Yun Ruoyao and Yun Ruoyu on the wedding bed, while Yun Ruoyan casually sat by a stool in the far corner.

“Sister Ruoyao, Sister Ruoyu, please leave me for a moment. There’s something that I’d like to talk with Sister Ruoyan about personally,” she suddenly exclaimed.

The two girls looked dubiously at Yun Ruoyan before walking out. On the other hand, Yun Ruoyan was quite amused. What was there for Yi Qianying to discuss with her, especially right before her wedding?

Yi Qianying got up from the bed and sat down right beside Yun Ruoyan. Seriously, she continued, “There’s no one else present, and I have a question for you, Sister. Will you tell me the truth?”

Yun Ruoyan raised an eyebrow as she looked at Yi Qianying. “What would I lie to you about?”

“Were you the one who set Brother Ziao up at the Yichun brothel?”

“No,” Yun Ruoyan replied without hesitation.

“Liar! That morning, I saw you appear outside the Yichun brothel!”

Yi Qianying didn’t know that Yun Ruoyan had seen her.

“Oh?” Yun Ruoyan pretended to be shocked and even clasped a hand over her mouth. “You saw me? What proof do you have?”

“I…” Yi Qianying suppressed her anger and continued, “I saw you myself! Not only did you head to the Yichun brothel, you were even dressed up like a young man. I even saw you rescue Huahua, who had fallen out of a window on the second floor!”