CHAPTER 755: CHAPTER 755: FAIR DEALING TO YOUNG AND OLD ALIKE

When Beauty Zhao heard this, she felt as though a weight had been lifted; she had exchanged the jewelry out of desperation, not out of desire, and now she could account for it.

Changzai Zhou stood beside her, seemingly deep in thought.

For such a grand banquet, wearing plain attire was not just a matter of looking bad, especially for the Longevity Event. Even the common folk would spontaneously dress in festive clothing on this day. If the women of the Harem dressed too simply, and especially if they were stripped of all their jewelry on their heads, hands, and waists, looking completely bare, worse than if they were mourning, it would be utterly disrespectful.

Moreover, the dresses and adornments of the Concubines were all matched with their jewelry. At this moment, it was utterly impossible for them to go back and change their outfits.

Those who were reluctant to exchange their jewelry suddenly became unsettled, signing the debt notes with tears of humiliation in their eyes. Once they saw the amount of Silver listed on the debt notes, they suddenly felt it was not that big of a deal, all within their means to bear. Although Beauty Lian was not that great of a person, when she said "fair dealings with all," she indeed meant fair dealings with all. Redeeming a hairpin for three or five taels, or a bracelet for ten taels, when compared to the value of the jewelry, was really just trivial, like buying gold for the price of cabbage.

The atmosphere livened up again, and everyone finally had genuine smiles on their faces. After retrieving their jewelry, they were afraid of not having enough time, and they eagerly put on their jewelry right there and then.

The game of pitch-pot had inadvertently turned into a dressing room, and the Concubines who redeemed their jewelry all shared a joy of regained possessions, with even some whispering gratitude towards Lian Hua, thinking that she was actually not bad, true to her word and not that difficult to deal with. Their attitude towards Lian Hua indeed became much more sincere.

For everyone present, it was as if a villain had done a good deed, prompting an immediate change of heart.

Lian Hua counted the pile of debt notes with immense joy. This was all pure Silver! Ah, after the Longevity Event, she would send Pang Ya with the Young Eunuchs of Star Palace to collect the debts. One represented Nanny Qi, and one was His Majesty’s person – who would dare to resist!

"Master, only the jewelry of Beauty Zhao and Attendant Zhou remains, as well as a single hairpin," Xiao Linzi said with a shy smile, glancing at the few items left on the table.

He felt that he had not been with Master Lian for long, but had already experienced many things he never had in the decade prior, always new and exciting. He had written more than ten debt notes in a row and received great praise from his master for his good memory, as he made no mistakes. Brother Xiao Ji even joked that he had become Steward Lin.

Lian Hua glanced over and saw two sets of jewelry and a magpie perched on a plum blossom hairpin carved of black ebony wood left. She generously waved her hand: "Oh, they belong to Beauty Zhao and Attendant Zhou, don’t they? No need to exchange them, just return them directly."

Attendant Zhou, who had just come forward, immediately insisted on declining, while Beauty Zhao hesitated for a moment. Seeing Attendant Zhou decline, she also spoke up to refuse.

Lian Hua waved her hand nonchalantly, "Don’t be polite with me. Without you two, I couldn’t have won so much."

The other Concubines who had retrieved their jewelry immediately looked at Zhao and Zhou with suspicion and uncertainty. Could it be that this was a trap? A ploy orchestrated by Beauty Zhao and Attendant Zhou?

These words were really too misleading. As soon as Attendant Zhou heard them, she immediately laughed and clarified, "It’s all thanks to Elder Sister Lian’s skills. We even lost our dresses to you." Her attitude was candid, which instantly dispelled the doubts of the others.

Beauty Zhao followed up, "It was all just to have a bit of fun. Thanks to Sister Lian, we had a great time. How could we have the nerve to ask Sister Lian to return the winnings to us?" Although that was what she said, her expression betrayed her interest.

Upon hearing this, Lian Hua said: "Alright, Xiao Linzi, write up a debt note for Beauty Zhao."

Beauty Zhao: "?"

"Yes, Master. What about Attendant Zhou’s? Should I write one as well?"

Lian Hua curiously asked, "Why would you? She did not refuse just now. Doesn’t that mean she accepted?" Having said that, Lian Hua began to silently calculate how much Silver was in this stack of debt notes.

Beauty Zhao: "..." Her face turned black at once! She just said that as a matter of politeness; don’t people usually refuse a few times before finally accepting, to appear high-minded and not so eager? How come with Beauty Lian it was overdone!

"Oh, okay, Master." Xiao Linzi, having received his orders, started to write the IOU with great flourish, neither he nor Lian Hua noticed Beauty Zhao’s face growing increasingly darker.

Changzai Zhou couldn’t hold back and let out a "Pfft" of laughter, thinking to herself that Beauty Lian truly was a delightful person; how had she never noticed before?

Being conscious of Beauty Zhao’s complexion beside her, Changzai Zhou quickly used a handkerchief to cover her mouth, feigning a cough to conceal her amusement. Feeling somewhat satisfied, she no longer declined and deliberately ignored Beauty Zhao, letting her maidservant receive the jewelry Xiao Qing had passed over and thanked Lian Hua.

Beauty Zhao’s face grew even more unsightly.

Xiao Jizi stood respectfully aside, inwardly sneering. Not everyone could enjoy the Master’s favor—Kong Yinyin was an exception. Normally, the Master couldn’t be bothered to speculate about others’ desires. If they were willing, then good; if not, then let it be—this pushing back and forth was not in fashion.

Concubine Fang looked at Lian Hua with even more gentleness in her eyes, such an unpretentious person was indeed her Sister Lian.

She said, "What is Sister Lian doing? Do you need your sister’s help?"

Lian Hua was not reserved at all and handed over part of the stack of IOUs: "Sister Fang, help me calculate how much Silver it is. It’ll be faster with two people." The feast was about to start; the sooner they finished, the better.

Concubine Fang happily began to calculate, while Jin Xi muttered under her breath. Her mistress had never liked these tasteless trinkets before, deeming them vulgar and distasteful. However, she had switched her stance so quickly with Master Lian and if only her temper could also be bent, that would be even better...

On Xiao Linzi’s end, he efficiently finished the IOU. Beauty Zhao, with a dark face, had the Palace Maid take back her jewelry to put it on herself again.

In the end, there was one Plum Blossom hairpin left, made of black rosewood with a magpie perched on a branch. Xiao Linzi asked, "Master, no one wants this hairpin, what should we do with it?"

This hairpin was precisely the one left by a Concubine who had cried and made a scene earlier, refusing to give Lian Hua the promised hair accessory. It was borrowed from someone else, and she naturally wouldn’t pay a price to redeem it.

Off to the side, Beauty Zhao’s eyes flickered, and she felt a sudden surge of panic, the anger she had felt before vanishing.

Lian Hua counted the bills contentedly and, after looking at the hairpin and fiddling with the bills in her hand, she stuffed them into Xiao Jizi’s hands: "Let me see." She stood up intent on taking a closer look at the hairpin.

Beauty Zhao felt her heart jump to her throat.

Changzai Zhou, having finished arranging her hair, suddenly spoke up: "Elder Sister Lian, the Longevity Banquet seems to be starting."

"Hmm?" Lian Hua perked up her ears to listen: "It does seem so."

She heard Consort De’s voice coming from the Qianqiu Hall and immediately shifted her attention, excitedly calling everyone to finish up: "Sister Fang, Xiao Yinyi, let’s go. There’s a lot of delicious food at the feast today." With dishes like Formless Divine Soup, Boiled Cabbage in Broth, Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, Immortal Pig, Glutinous Rice Eight-Treasure Duck, and so on. So many complicated dishes, which are quite a treat, coupled with the pots she had designed for the Imperial Kitchen so the dishes would retain their warmth—these were mentioned to her during Consort Xu De’s previous visit, and she was quite looking forward to them.