Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress

The pavilion stood facing Jinhui Mountain, and the view of Jinhui Mountain from the seats was excellent.

The sky was a deep blue, and under the cloudless sky, the golden peaks rose and fell, the blue was blue, the gold was gold, filled with the spirit of autumn.

Under the pavilion of each family, tables were laid with the fruits and snacks of the autumn harvest. People exchanged pleasantries and laughed, discussing whose kite might take the crown this time, creating quite a lively atmosphere.

Perhaps the men of each family felt that kite flying was a pastime for young women, so they held themselves back from participating. Even those who initially wanted to stand out in front of the Empress gave up the idea upon hearing that the young men from noble families were not joining.

Looking at the field, it was mostly young women, not a single young man in sight.

The young men gathered with their fathers, or brothers, or friends under the pavilion, discussing poetry and scholarship.

The women who weren't competing also gathered together, some younger ladies who had been to school talked about what they had learned, while the older women discussed which girls were outstanding and which young men were promising.

The two young ladies from the Qin family, being the sisters of Qin Lang and Bai Jinxiu's sisters-in-law, were also present this time.

The eldest daughter of the Qin family dressed very flamboyantly with exquisite makeup, wholeheartedly looking forward to finding a good match.

Bai Jinzhi, the Commandery Princess of Gaoyi, as the host of this kite contest, arrived on horseback in a martial outfit, announcing that the kite contest would last an hour, and the family whose kite flew the highest by then would be the winner.

At Bai Jinxiu's command, the young ladies of each family, their sleeves rolled up and hair tied back, holding kite strings, ran forward with joy and laughter, hoping their kite would fly higher.

Under the pavilion, the young ladies who were participating in the contest were cheered on by their close friends, shouting encouragements loudly.

Even the recently widowed women were giving it their all, for the prizes for the winners were attractive, and they couldn't help but be tempted.

Mrs. Dong looked at the women striving forward in high spirits under the golden autumn light, their faces filled with smiles and laughter, and the corners of her eyes also held a bright smile. The world was harsh and demanding towards women, emphasizing steadiness and elegance. Rarely did one see young women running and laughing so freely...

But how wonderful it was, Mrs. Dong thought, that daughters across the world could run so freely, laughing openly from their hearts like the young men.

"Empress Dowager, Your Majesty... The Bai Clan Leader's wife has sent some pomegranate juice, saying that... the pomegranates from Shuoyang just ripened and were delivered yesterday. She knew the kite contest was today and specially made some osmanthus pomegranate juice for the Empress Dowager, Her Majesty, and all the ladies to taste," Nanny Qin came forward smiling, "The old servant sees that the clan leader's wife has prepared quite a bit."

In front of outsiders, the loyal servants of the Bai family still addressed Bai Qingyan as Her Majesty and Mrs. Dong as Empress Dowager.

Bai Qingyan saw Mrs. Fang standing respectfully outside the pavilion, followed by servants carrying an ice bucket, and nodded, signaling Wei Zhong to invite Mrs. Fang in.

Mrs. Fang lifted her skirt and approached, bowing and paying her respects, "Greetings to the Empress Dowager, Her Majesty. Though autumn has arrived, the weather is still a bit hot. Just as well, yesterday the pomegranates from Shuoyang arrived, so I prepared some osmanthus pomegranate juice from Shuoyang to let the Empress Dowager, Her Majesty, and the ladies have a taste."

"The clan leader's wife is thoughtful!" Mrs. Dong nodded with a smile, "Let's have a taste then! Don't let the clan leader's wife's efforts go to waste."

"Thank you, Empress Dowager, Her Majesty! I'll serve a bit to you both," Mrs. Fang smiled, indicating for the servants to bring up the ice bucket.

Bai Qingyan looked at Mrs. Fang without betraying any emotion, pondering whether Mrs. Fang's humble demeanor was genuine or if she had hidden motives.

After cleaning her hands, Mrs. Fang ladled the osmanthus pomegranate juice with an exquisitely carved white jade cup and tested it for poison with a silver needle before placing a bowl in front of Mrs. Dong. She then took another bowl from a different ice bucket, repeated the poison test, and placed it in front of Bai Qingyan, "The one for Your Majesty has just been chilled for a short while, so it's not too cold. I've also added some sour plums, hoping it suits Your Majesty's taste better."

Bai Qingyan looked down at the osmanthus blooms floating in the white jade cup, and the green plums sunk below in the bright red broth, smiling and saying, "The clan leader's wife is thoughtful."

After bowing, Mrs. Fang then served Second Madam Mrs. Liu and Third Madam Mrs. Li in turn.

As Mrs. Fang was bringing a bowl over to Mrs. Wang's table, her foot suddenly caught on her skirt, and the bowl of osmanthus pomegranate juice spilled towards her. Mrs. Wang was caught off guard, only managing to raise her sleeve to shield her face. She got the juice all over her, and the jade bowl hit the edge of the table, shattering into pieces, with fragments flying everywhere.

Mrs. Fang looked shocked, nearly in tears, and without caring about her own disheveled state, rushed to Mrs. Wang's side, wiping her with a handkerchief, "Fourth Madam! Are you all right? Did the jade pieces hurt you?"

Fifth Madam Mrs. Qi quickly turned her head, "Go get a cloak!"

Mrs. Li quickly set down her jade cup, pulling out a handkerchief to pass over, "Are you hurt?"

"No, no! I'm not hurt, just got my clothes dirty..." Mrs. Wang first wiped her Buddha beads with the handkerchief, fearing they might get stained by the osmanthus pomegranate juice, then patted the wet osmanthus on her clothes.

Nanny Guan, who was by Mrs. Wang's side, took the cloak that Fifth Madam had someone bring over, wrapped Mrs. Wang in it, and thanked her.

"Madam, let's go change your clothes!" suggested Nanny Guan.

Mrs. Fang hastily supported Mrs. Wang to stand, tearfully saying, "It was my fault! Fourth Madam, let me accompany you to change your clothes! Otherwise, I won't be able to rest easy."

Mrs. Wang, being soft-hearted, saw Mrs. Fang's guilt-ridden expression and nodded, "Then I must trouble the clan leader's wife."

Bai Qingyan watched the commotion with her fourth aunt, her gaze falling on Mrs. Fang, noticing that Mrs. Fang was looking towards a nanny standing outside the pavilion. The nanny nodded to Mrs. Fang, after which Bai Qingyan instructed Wei Zhong, "Follow them from a distance, make sure to protect my fourth aunt..."

Wei Zhong nodded, "Rest assured, Your Majesty!"

No sooner had Mrs. Fang and Nanny Guan helped the cloaked Mrs. Wang than Wei Zhong followed suit.

"This clan leader's wife is quite clever, serving the osmanthus pomegranate juice chilled in the white jade bowl, it really does have a unique flavor!" Second Madam Mrs. Liu exclaimed, clearly enjoying it, "The taste isn't cloyingly sweet, and it carries the fragrance of osmanthus, truly nice..."

"If Second Aunt likes it, I'll have Nanny Luo learn it from the clan leader's wife later," Bai Qingyan said.

The eunuchs quickly cleaned up the broken pieces as if nothing had happened.

Bai Qingyan took a sip of the osmanthus pomegranate juice and then set it down. Mrs. Dong noticed and asked, "I've always noticed you don't like sour things. Do you not like the sweet and sour taste of this either?"