An Eight-year-old Princess novel Chapter 143

Prince Jing remained silent for a while, and then called the chamberlain and asked him to lead Emperor Ning to the east wing. After the chamberlain escorted Emperor Ning away, the atmosphere became more active. Someone said, "I heard that it was extremely hard to invite Qian Qian to perform. If she dislikes you, she won't perform for you even if you send a goldmine to her as a gift. Prince Jing, how did you succeed in inviting Qian Qian here?"

Prince Jing raised his eyebrows as he heard the statement, "Actually, it wasn't me who invited Qian Qian. She is here at someone else's request. But it's not convenient for me to tell you who this person is."

The following performance was quite good. However, after enjoying Qian Qian's dance, the guests had lost interest. Since Emperor Ning had left, they began to drink a toast to each other unabashedly.

Yun Shang furrowed her brows when she saw Prince Jing drinking several cups of wine, 'His wound...'

She dropped this matter after thinking for a moment and continued to enjoy the show being held on the stage quietly.

Qian Yin walked to Yun Shang and whispered something in her ear. Yun Shang's eyes lit up as she turned to Prince Jing and smiled, "Uncle, the ladies might feel bored now. How about I taking them to the backyard to rest?"

It took a second for Prince Jing to focus on Yun Shang. He steadied the hand in which he held the wine cup. Then he smiled, "Okay!"

Yun Shang returned his smile before standing. Since the ladies did not drink, and the performance was not as excellent as Qian Qian's, these ladies eagerly stood and followed Yun Shang to the backyard. They chatting amongst each other.

"Princess Yun Shang, you are right. Qian Qian is indeed a talented lady. I saw her standing on the lotus leaf and guessed that her Qinggong must be as good as my brother's. She is also brilliant as a showgirl, and I really admire her. I guess she must be good at Kung Fu too. If given a chance, I would like to compete with her in Kung Fu." Jinyan walked behind Yun Shang and stated in a cheerful voice.

Yun Shang narrowed her eyes and nodded, "It was indeed surprising."

"She is just a courtesan from the brothel and doesn't deserve your praise. Do you think you are not as good as a courtesan?" A cold and sardonic voice sounded. Yun Shang narrowed her eyes and looked at Cangyang Yu'er who had just spoken.

"We should respect talented people of various origins. Yu'er, I heard you were also from a humble family before the Chief Councilor adopted you." Yun Shang stated in a nonchalant voice, but Yu'er's expression changed. Of course, she knew what kind of life she had lived before the Chief Councilor adopted her. Princess Yun Shang had not uncovered Yu'er's real situation at that time. Actually, Yu'er's family had suffered during a flood, and she had been a beggar for a while. Since the Chief Councilor adopted her, Yu'er had taken every step to ensure that no one discovered her past. How did Yun Shang know all this?

The light pity in Yun Shang's eyes made Yu'er even more angry. She questioned with a long face, "What do you mean by that?"

Jinyan walked in front of Yun Shang and blocked Yu'er's sight. She asked in a cold voice, "Lady Cangyang, what are you going to do?"

Yun Shang gave a tiny smile, "This is the State of Ning. I believe Lady Cangyang would not be that willful."

Yu'er's eyes darkened as she ground her teeth and stood, "I'm not feeling well. Please excuse me, I need to go to the restroom."

As soon as Yu'er left, Yun Shang heard a sneer from behind, "She is just a foreigner and a sworn daughter of the Chief Councilor. How dare a sworn daughter expect everyone to obey her? What a naive lady!"

Yun Shang turned to the person who had just spoken and found that she was an acquaintance. She had briefly met Li Yingying on New Year's Eve.

Yun Shang said nothing as she took a seat and smiled, "Ladies, please have a seat. There is nothing interesting in Prince Jing's Mansion. How about we play Pass the Flower*?"

(*TN: Pass the Flower is a game in which people sit in a circle and pass a flower to around. When the drum stops, the person holding the flower will be punished.)

Wen Ruxin, the wife of the eldest son of Prince Shun Qing smiled when she heard the suggestion, "This game is only for young ladies. We are not participating. Princess Yun Shang, play the game with the other young ladies here. I will lead the older ladies to the pavilion there to talk."

Yun Shang flashed Lady Ruxin a grateful smile, "Your Ladyship, that's very thoughtful of you. Thank you so much."

The wives of the officials followed Lady Ruxin to the pavilion nearby. Since only the teenage daughters of officials remained, the atmosphere became more lively. Someone suggested, "Since it's Pass the Flower, the loser must be punished."

Yun Shang nodded, "Of course. I will ask the servant to prepare a lot pot. When the drumbeat stops, the lady holding the flower should draw a lot and accept the punishment written on it. As for the punishments, everyone writes a punishment for the lot. What do you think of the idea?"

Everyone agreed with Yun Shang's suggestion. A servant nearby immediately prepared everything needed and distributed the lots to the ladies. The ladies wrote punishments on the lots and put them into the lot pot. Then the ladies formed a circle.

As the ladies waited for the servants to place the chairs, Jinyan got close to Yun Shang and whispered, "I saw a servant girl of Yu'er leaving right now. I guess she might have some schemes. Your Highness, you should ask someone to check where the servant went."

Yun Shang knew Jinyan worried about her. So she patted Jinyan's hand, "Don't worry. This is Prince Jing's Mansion. Though there are few servants here, the mansion is heavily guarded. There won't be any major incidents."

Jinyan nodded as she heard Yun Shang's explanation and sat down beside her.

The drummer was blindfolded. Yun Shang held a flower made of silk cloth and smiled, "Ladies, are you ready? If yes, then we shall start the game.."

Yun Shang's words increased everyone's enthusiasm for the game. They couldn't wait to start. Yun Shang shouted, "The game starts!"

The drumbeats sounded.

People passed the flower to the person sitting on their left quickly. Suddenly, the drumbeats stopped. Yun Shang raised her eyebrows and looked at the lady who had the flower.

"She is the third daughter of Field Marshal Qin, and her mother is a concubine. She has no notable talent." Jinyan whispered in Yun Shang's ear.

Yun Shang nodded, "Lady Qin, you are lucky to be the first of us to get the flower. Lady Qin, please draw a lot."

Lady Qin looked around before she walked to the lot pot. She drew a lot and gave it to Yun Shang. Yun Shang lowered her head to check the lot and then gave a bland smile, "Play Guqin*. It's a simple punishment."

(*TN: Guqin is a seven-stringed plucked instrument in some ways similar to the zither.)

Lady Qin was relieved. She took the Guqin handed by the servant and played a tune.

The drumbeats started again. This time, the flower was in the hands of a lady dressed in carmine. Yun Shang looked at the lady, raised her eyebrows and sighed, 'Jing Wenxi! A troublemaker!'