I Am This Type of Woman

How could Cheng’an Bo, such a refined and elegant gentleman, appear in the same place as Ban Hua?

Xie Wanyu froze, only regaining her senses after a long while. She turned her head, worriedly looking at her friend Shi Feixian. As expected, Shi Feixian's face was quite unsightly.

“Feixian,” Xie Wanyu grasped Shi Feixian’s hand, “Don’t overthink it. Perhaps they just happened to meet and came back together.”

Shi Feixian forced a smile. “Who Cheng’an Bo has a good relationship with has nothing to do with me.”

Xie Wanyu knew she was feeling upset. She gritted her teeth. “Don’t worry, I’ll find a chance to make her suffer.”

“Wanyu, thank you, but don’t do that. If it causes trouble and affects your good impression in front of His Majesty and the Second Prince, what then?” Shi Feixian hurriedly grabbed her hand. “Don’t be impulsive.”

Xie Wanyu then remembered that she was the future daughter-in-law of the imperial family and should act with decorum. If she were to go and cause trouble for Ban Hua, and if it escalated, it would definitely not be beneficial for her. Thinking of this, she abandoned the idea of seeking trouble with Ban Hua.

It turned out that she was such a selfish person.

The more Xie Wanyu thought about it, the more guilt she felt. Her gaze drifted, not daring to meet Shi Feixian’s eyes.

Shi Feixian pretended not to see Xie Wanyu avoiding her gaze. She grasped her hand and smiled. “Let’s go. His Majesty is hosting a barbecue banquet soon. We mustn’t be late.”

“Mm.” Looking at her friend like this, Xie Wanyu felt even more guilty.

Having promised to present His Majesty with game, she had to do so. Ban Hua had always been a woman of her word.

Emperor Yunqing’s tent was situated in the center. Black in color, embroidered with a soaring golden dragon, it was clearly the imperial tent.

Prince Changqing, along with Ban Hua and others, stood outside the tent, awaiting Emperor Yunqing's summons.

Emperor Yunqing had also just returned from hunting. After changing into a dry robe and hearing that Prince Changqing and several younger generations had arrived, he immediately summoned them in.

After the customary greetings, Emperor Yunqing saw the live fox in Ban Hua’s hands and laughed. “Hua Hua, what are you doing with that fox?”

“Your Majesty, I'm here to present you with a gift!” Ban Hua widened her eyes. “Before we left, didn’t we agree that if we hunted anything good, we would offer it to you?”

Emperor Yunqing was taken aback. He had previously thought that the little girl was just joking and hadn't taken her words seriously. He never expected that she would actually hunt something good.

“Wang De, put away the game Junzhu has given me. I think this pelt is quite good. When the weather gets cold, we'll use it to make a scarf.” Emperor Yunqing’s face beamed with delight, and he teased her, “You were out for so long, and you only hunted this one fox?”

“I hunted other things too, but they were just some scruffy grey rabbits and little sparrows. I was too embarrassed to bring them and offend your eyes,” Ban Hua said somewhat bashfully. “Only this white fox is barely presentable enough to offer to you.”

“For a young lady like you, being able to hunt so much is already quite good.” Emperor Yunqing, contrary to expectations, comforted Ban Hua with a smile. He even rewarded her with a plump rabbit and a jin of venison. These were personally hunted by Emperor Yunqing, making them exceptionally meaningful.

Prince Changqing, Cheng’an Bo, and the others also received rewards. Emperor Yunqing wanted to speak with Prince Changqing, so Ban Hua and the others withdrew.

“Cheng’an Bo,” Ban Hua held the bundled venison and rabbit, not wanting anyone else to help. She turned to look at Rong Xia. “Thank you for what happened earlier.”

“Junzhu Ban is too kind,” Rong Xia saw her happy expression as she held the game. “I was merely passing by. Even if it weren't me today, someone else would have been willing to stand up for Junzhu.”

“That may be so, but the person who stood in front of me today was you.” Ban Hua thought for a moment and took a pheasant and a grey rabbit from an accompanying guard. “A token of my gratitude!”

Looking at the pheasant, still dripping blood, Rong Xia reached out and accepted it, smiling. “Thank you. As luck would have it, I didn't manage to catch a single pheasant today.”

“You’re welcome.” Ban Hua waved her hand generously, then took another pheasant and handed it to Rong Xia. “Here, take it.”

Looking at this bloody pheasant, Rong Xia still accepted it with a smile.

“I’m going to find my father and brother. Farewell.” Holding the rewards from the emperor, Ban Hua could only give Rong Xia a somewhat awkward curtsy before turning and running towards where Ban Huai and Ban Heng were.

“Lord Bo, let me take those,” Rong Xia’s guard said, looking at the pheasant with blood dripping from its belly and its neck stubbornly bent. He felt that for Junzhu Ban, a proper young lady, to carry such a messy thing barehanded was truly unrefined.

“No need,” Rong Xia’s smile was somewhat peculiar. “This is the first time a young lady has given me game to console me.”

Because he didn't hunt any pheasants, she gave him her own. She didn't even consider whether a man like him would lose face by being gifted game by a woman.

“Sister, the rabbit you brought back is so fat. It’ll definitely be delicious roasted,” Ban Heng said, spotting the plump rabbit in Ban Hua’s hands. He immediately called for a guard to process the rabbit. “I also brought a jar of chili sauce from the barbarian lands. It will definitely be flavorful when we roast it.”

“This rabbit wasn’t hunted by me. His Majesty gave it to me.” Ban Hua handed the venison to the guard as well, instructing him to process it together. “I shared some of the game I hunted with Mother, so there’s not enough left.”

Ban Heng leaned close to Ban Hua’s ear and whispered, “Flatterer!”

“If you have the guts, don’t eat any later!” Ban Hua rolled her eyes at him.

Ban Heng immediately changed his tune. “Sister, I’m your own brother.”

“If you weren’t my brother, with your loose tongue, you wouldn’t have lived to see this day.” Ban Hua glared at him. “Where’s the game you hunted?”

Ban Heng: …

Why bring up sore subjects? She clearly knew he wasn’t good at riding and archery.

A female guard brought over clean water. After Ban Hua washed the bloodstains from her hands, another female guard brought over lemon water. Ban Hua soaked her hands in the water for a while, then took them out and wiped them dry with a handkerchief. “Try not to drink too much alcohol later. The imperial physician said drinking too early is bad for your health.”

Ban Heng nodded. “Don’t worry, I won’t drink. No one would dare to force me.”

Ban Hua thought about it and nodded. “That’s true.”

It was said that over a decade ago, someone forced their father to drink. After getting drunk, her father went on a rampage, smashing whatever he could get his hands on and attacking anyone he saw. From then on, no one dared to force him to drink again.

Ban Hua once suspected that her father was just pretending to be drunk and causing trouble on purpose.

However, with their father’s personality, such a triumphant story would have been bragged about countless times. Yet, he had never mentioned it, which suggested it was a genuine drunken rampage.

The autumn hunt was originally an activity for the emperor and his officials to enjoy. So, after midday, many grills were set up in the central clearing. Some were for the nobles to cook themselves, while others were for the servants to prepare and then present to the nobles.

Although Ban Huai held no real power, because his mother was the Grand Princess, the Ban family’s grill was relatively close to the emperor’s.

As the future in-laws of the imperial family, the Zhongping Bo household’s grill was placed next to the Ban family’s.

Everyone in the court knew that these two families didn’t get along. Now, their grills were placed together, making people suspect that the eunuch in charge of arrangements was incompetent. Regardless of the reason, the emperor was already seated at the head. If those below started switching places for better positions, it wouldn't be pleasant for the emperor.

Zhongping Bo and Ban Huai glared at each other. Ban Huai said to his guard, “Move the meat a bit to the right, don’t let it spoil the flavor.”

Zhongping Bo sneered, acting as if he didn’t care.

Seeing Zhongping Bo clearly angry but pretending to be indifferent, Ban Huai felt a sense of satisfaction.

As a woman, Ban Hua didn’t sit with them. Instead, she was on the other side with the Empress, princesses, and other female members of the court.

She had the best relationship with Princess Anle, the Empress’s daughter. Her relationships with the other princesses were merely superficial, some not even that. This was understandable. As princesses, they were less favored in front of their father than a cousin, making it difficult for them to have much affection for Ban Hua.

However, these princesses were intelligent. They knew that their father respected the Empress the most and valued legitimate children the most. So, despite their jealousy towards Ban Hua, they appeared amiable on the surface.

“So spicy!” Princess Anle drank several mouthfuls of water before suppressing the spiciness on her tongue. “I can’t handle this stuff.”

Ban Hua handed her a skewer of roasted rabbit meat. “Try this.”

Princess Anle took the roasted meat off the skewer and onto her plate, picking it up with chopsticks to taste it. The roasted meat still had a spicy kick, but the dominant flavor was the aroma of the meat.

The Empress glanced at Ban Hua, who was chatting and laughing with Anle, then looked at Shi Feixian and Xie Wanyu sitting on the other side.

As a mother, she naturally understood her son’s feelings. Shi Feixian came from a prominent family and had a grandfather who was the Right Prime Minister. Her status was indeed more prestigious than Xie Wanyu’s. However, the Emperor was unwilling to let her second son marry Shi Feixian, and there was nothing she could do about it.

After the news of Ban Hua and Shen Yu’s broken engagement spread, she had worried that the Emperor would want her second son to marry Ban Hua. Fortunately, the Emperor wasn't that muddle-headed and didn’t intend to bring such an imperial daughter-in-law into the family.

In the Empress’s view, Ban Hua was indeed quite likable, but that was all.

“Your Majesty, His Majesty personally roasted some rabbit meat and asked this servant to bring it over for you to try His Majesty’s handiwork.”

Wang De came over holding a plate with several skewers of meat.

Ban Hua glanced at it. The meat was reddish-black, its appearance rather unappetizing. It seemed Wang De wasn't lying. Only His Majesty would send something like this to the Empress.

Looking at the disgusting-looking thing, the Empress internally refused. However, with so many people present, she had to give the Emperor face. So, she not only ate two skewers but also praised the Emperor’s culinary skills.

“Junzhu Ban,” Concubine Kangning said to Ban Hua, “It seems you were truly looking forward to this autumn hunt, even bringing chili sauce from the barbarian lands.”

Ban Hua looked at the chili sauce in front of her and after a moment, said, “Oh.”

So, what was the point?

ʕ◉ᴥ◉ʔ

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