Chapter 408

"That means Father has agreed," Jiang Sheng reacted quickly. "Father is the best, thank you so much."

She threw herself over, holding on to the reassuring large palm.

"Don't thank me too early," Jiang Jizu resumed his sternness. "The Imperial City is different from the ordinary, with complex lines of sight and branches everywhere. Every sentence needs to be considered three times to prevent people with ulterior motives from speculating and making a fuss out of minor issues."

"Have you learned the etiquette for those banquet invitations? Can you recognize the familiar noble housewives and young ladies? You have to prepare the clothes and jewelry to wear when attending banquets. Since you are representing the Jiang Family, you must look like a young lady from a noble house."

"You will also meet the imperial concubines in the Imperial City. Not only do you need to greet them properly, but you also need to know which noble houses are behind them and who their children are and what taboos you cannot mention..."

Being a young lady from a prestigious house was never a simple thing.

Jiang Sheng listened blankly, her head almost mushy, but when she thought of her destitute Fifth Brother, she immediately sobered up and gritted her teeth, "Learn, I will learn them all."

Even the most lazy person has moments of striving and exertion.

For Fifth Brother, these are nothing!

Jiang Sheng clenched her fist, go all out, and went back to the Jiang Family with her father that day.

As soon as she mentioned the banquet invitation, Old Lady Jiang really disapproved, but she was an open-minded elder. After Jiang Sheng's persistent pleadings, she reluctantly waved her hand in agreement, only urging, "When the time comes, stay close to your Second Aunt. If anything unexpected happens, you can also ask Cousin Si Qing for help. Remember?"

"I remember, Grandmother." Jiang Sheng crispily responded. She suddenly thought of something and asked, "Isn't Xiao Yu going too?"

The madness of Lady Liao, General Liao's wife, in Fengjing was not a secret. Old Lady Jiang was also getting older, so the burden of banquet invitations and interactions fell on the Second Madam.

As the legitimate daughter of the Second Madam, Jiang Chengyu should not have been absent.

"Her..." Old Lady Jiang hesitated. "She is unreliable." So Jiang Chengyu was still attending the Spring Appreciation Banquet after all. It was just that because her personality was not mature and steady enough, Grandmother excluded her from the list of people to ask for help.

Fortunately, she did not know about it, otherwise she would definitely be angry enough to stomp her feet.

Jiang Sheng covered her mouth and laughed secretly.

The next few days were very busy for the Jiang Family.

Not only did they have to invite Madam Xi to teach etiquette and rules, they also had to force Jiang Sheng to memorize the lineage of Fengjing's prestigious houses, recognize portraits of imperial concubines and princes and princesses.

That was not even the hardest part yet. The most troublesome thing was making the ceremonial clothes.

The long banquet was only a few days away, and Jiang Sheng had already lost several catties from worrying, and now with both learning and fatigue, she unknowingly lost even more weight.

When taking measurements for clothes that fit just right, a finger could be inserted into the waistline after just two days.

The ceremonial dress had not been tailored to size yet when it no longer fit. Remaking measurements meant redoing the work, and ceremonial dresses were different from ordinary clothes. Even with ten embroiderers working simultaneously, it would still take three to five days to finish stitching.

Tan Yue was anxious enough to have steam coming out of her head as she paced around frantically, "Young Lady, eat more, eat some more, don't get any thinner!"

The Jiang Family's master chefs showed off their skills again, placing a dazzling array of foods on the table: pork, mutton, beef, chicken, birds, things that fly in the sky, run on the ground, and swim in the water - as long as they were available on the market, they were brought over.

Jiang Sheng also ate, but with things weighing on her mind and punishment marks on her palms from Madam Xi’s strikes, she no longer had the appetite she used to.

"If it really doesn't work, just buy ready-made clothes for the young lady," He Rui, who was now working in Old Lady Jiang's courtyard, couldn't bear to see his sweetheart suffer and boldly suggested.

Tan Yue glared, "How can that be, which young lady from a prestigious house wears ready-made clothes? Our Jiang Family's young ladies must certainly not be inferior to others." After speaking, she looked again at the lifeless Jiang Sheng and pleaded, "Young Lady, do eat more, don't lose any more weight. It is said that it is easy for sick people to lose weight, could the young lady be ill?"

She vaguely felt it made sense and was about to call the family doctor over.

It was He Rui who resolutely stopped her, "Sister Tan Yue, calm down. I think the young lady does not seem ill, but rather, seems to have grown taller."

Oh right, growing taller.

Due to the many hardships suffered in the past, after Jiang Sheng briefly surpassed her Fourth and Fifth Brother in height when she was eight years old, she stagnated again.

As Chang Yan gradually transitioned from children to teenagers, Wen Zhiyun also grew accordingly, and once again the little sister became the shortest.

Even in the Jiang Family, the two granddaughters who were close in age - Jiang Chengyu was close to 5 chi while Jiang Sheng was not even 4 chi.

If she could really grow taller, that would obviously be best.

Finally, Tan Yue let go of the mouth full of blisters, took out a wooden ruler to measure Jiang Sheng’s height, and cautiously made three sets of ceremonial dresses in large, medium and small sizes. In mid May, the charity banquet held under the name of Spring Appreciation was finally held at the Imperial City's Baohe Hall.

The embroiderers sent over the three sets of ceremonial dresses. Tan Yue took the opportunity to measure Jiang Sheng again from head to toe. Adding both together, there was a difference as small as double eyelids.

Although hardly noticeable, it had only been a few days! It was enough to make Tan Yue delighted enough to grin from ear to ear.

When trying the ceremonial dresses again, the middle set barely fit.

Because of this Spring Appreciation banquet, the entire Jiang Family’s main house was in turmoil.

Finally when the dust settled, Tan Yue waited upon Jiang Sheng to change into her ceremonial dress, and styled an elaborate hair style befitting of nobility yet not losing a maiden's charm for her, the Zhihe chignon, and finally inserted custom-made pure gold ornaments.

There is a saying that Buddha relies on gold decorations and people rely on clothing.

Previously, Jiang Sheng always wore simple cotton clothes and ordinary double looped buns. She never wore any jewelry for fear of losing it and only tied a red ribbon to her hair at most. From afar, one would only feel that this child was healthy and sturdy, easy to feed.

But now, wearing a satin lined jacket of rich brocade, a pleated gold embroidered skirt with real gold made silk embroidery, neck adorned with a long and luxurious strand of pearls, wrists laced with flawless jade and agate bangles that jingled crisply at every step.

Her face was surely powdered and her lips reddened. Along with the rich outfit, she really did seem to metamorphosize into a different person.

Old Lady Jiang was in rare shock. Jiang Jizu frowned slightly while the other maids and servant boys vied with one another to watch the spectacle.

Jiang Sheng shrank back for a moment, then remembered Madam Xi's teachings and straightened her back, walked out as gracefully as she could on bent knees, "Greetings to Father, greetings to Grandmother."

If not for the dozen years that were lost, this should have been the exact appearance of a legitimate daughter of the Jiang Family.

Old Lady Jiang's eyes reddened as she stretched out both hands, "Good child, rise." Over these days, it must have been difficult for you."

Jiang Sheng shook her head. The ornament in her hair jangled and she immediately steadied her head, not daring to shake it recklessly.

Her careful manner couldn't help but make people chuckle.

"Young Lady, the Second Madam and Fourth Young Lady are already waiting outside," Tan Yue came in to report.

As Jiang Jizong was an official in court, he was still at the Golden Sacred Hall. The only women from the Jiang Family that came were a few madams.

Jiang Sheng slowly walked to the front gate, bade her father and grandmother farewell with her most perfect etiquette and manners. Finally, she touched the hundred thousand silver tickets in her bosom and resolutely stepped onto the carriage.

The coachman grabbed the reins outside, "Go!"

In the distance, the young lords all sighed. One couldn't tell if it was for the little sister made over until they couldn't recognize her, or for the brother who secretly slipped away but was about to reunite.