Transmigrated Female Official

11. Coming-of-age ceremony

Having finally gotten rid of Ji Qili, another day has passed.

All the princesses' and princes' costumes are finished, except for Ji Qiran's. The costumes for the gift presentation are also being rushed into production. Chu Qingluo only needs to finish drawing the last few sets of illustrations, and then the costume part will be okay. As for the group of models selected, under the guidance of her assistants, they are basically acceptable. She will train them more rigorously in the remaining month.

When they returned to the Chu family home, it was already past dinner time. Chu's mother instructed the servants to reheat the dishes. "Look at you, you're so busy you haven't even had dinner yet."

"Well, there's nothing I can do. Things will be fine once this month is over," Chu Qingluo replied while shoveling rice into her mouth.

Chu's mother sat down next to her: "I don't care, you just have to make time for the sixth day. It's such an important day, even the Empress would approve your leave."

"My dear mother, I haven't even seen the Empress since I entered the palace. Even if she doesn't want to give me a break, she should at least know who I am, shouldn't she?" Chu Qingluo continued eating with her chopsticks, one after another.

"Look at you, so useless." Chu's mother glanced at her disdainfully, and then said, "Just remember this, and leave the rest to me."

"Okay, sure."

……

On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, Chu Qingluo was woken up early by the Nine-Tailed Fox. "Ugh! Why are you up so early?!" She was annoyed by the Nine-Tailed Fox's relentless alarm-like waking. She finally had a day off, and she couldn't even sleep in!

Chu Qinglu was still grumbling when she woke up, but Jiuwei didn't stop and immediately helped her hang up the bed curtains: "My young lady, if you don't get up soon, Madam will have to come herself!"

Hearing Nine-Tailed Fox bring up Chu's mother, she reluctantly sat up: "Damn, you've got guts."

“Miss, I also want you to sleep a little longer, but getting ready will take time. I heard that the sedan chair bearers are already on their way. Judging from Madam’s attitude, she’s probably determined to make you tour the entire Yancheng today.” Jiuwei said as she handed over tea.

"Huh?! That's too much!" Chu Qingluo took the tea from Jiuwei with a dark face, rinsed her mouth, and then walked to the basin to wash her face.

After she dried her hands, Nine-Tailed Fox helped her change into the dress that Chu's mother had carefully prepared. She wore a pink, floor-length, smoky plum blossom dress, paired with a rose-colored, fitted short cardigan, and a purple tassel belt around her waist.

At this moment, Tongmu also came in carrying jewelry: "Miss, Madam said that all of these pieces of jewelry must be worn."

For this day, Chu's mother even had a new set of jewelry made.

"Okay, put it there. I'll do my own makeup, you two help me comb my hair." Chu Qingluo then found the necessary supplies in a wooden box in front of the dressing table. "Is this foundation?" she asked, pointing to a box of white powder.

"This is face powder; it will make your face even whiter and more delicate," Tongmu explained.

"Oh." She had no intention of using this powder at all; after all, in ancient times, it contained extremely high levels of lead. She was truly fortunate to be fair-skinned and have good skin. She picked up a box of dark blue setting powder and asked, "Is this for drawing eyebrows?"

Tongmu: "Yes, this is Luozi Dai."

Chu Qingluo dipped her brush in water, then added some black ink, and with a few swift strokes, she finished drawing her eyebrows. But Tongmu, seeing this, couldn't help but exclaim, "Miss! What kind of eyebrows are these?"

Nine-Tails, who was fixing her hair, couldn't help but turn her head to look, and was equally startled: "This is too peaceful!!"

Chu Qinglu rolled her eyes: "Go away, what do you know? This is called a straight eyebrow. I know you guys like thin eyebrows and willow leaf eyebrows, but when I show my straight eyebrows, I will definitely kill the whole scene and become the new trendsetter."

"..." Nine-Tails and Kirito exchanged glances. Although they did not agree, the eyebrows looked quite good on their young lady's face, so they did not raise any further objections.

Finally, Chu Qingluo picked up the rouge, dabbed it with her fingertip, and gently blended it on her cheeks before applying it to her lips. Ancient people probably saved time and effort when it came to makeup; they likely left the complicated and time-consuming steps to their hair.

"All done." Just when she thought her hair would take a while to style, Nine-Tails finished it in the blink of an eye. The speed was, to say the least, astonishing.

Her sideburns were swept back and coiled into a flower bun on top of her head, with the remaining strands hanging down her back. Tongmu took out a hair ornament and put it on her head. A finely carved gold plaque hung from the top of her head and draped in front of her forehead, with two gold flowers inserted into the bun. Then he put a jade bracelet of emerald green on her head.

After some fussing, Chu Qingluo carefully examined herself in the bronze mirror. Even dressed in finery and adorned with gold and jade, she couldn't hide her innate freshness and elegance, untouched by worldly concerns. She smiled at the mirror with great satisfaction.

"Miss, do you think my skills are alright?" Nine-Tailed Fox couldn't resist asking for credit.

“Even with her hair down, Miss is as beautiful as an angel.” Tongmu was unimpressed by his skill.

Nine-Tailed Fly glared at Kirito: "Why do you always disagree with me?"

Kiriki: "I'm just telling the truth."

Seeing that Nine-Tailed Fox was about to get anxious, Chu Qingluo interrupted the two with a smile: "Alright! Aren't we in a hurry?"

"Yes, yes, I won't argue with you." Nine-Tailed Fox grunted. "Let's go, Miss." After saying that, she helped Chu Qingluo out of the house.

Chu's mother and Chu Yilin were already waiting in the main hall. When they saw Chu Qingluo come out, Chu's mother said with pride, "Our Chu family's daughter is indeed a beauty of unparalleled grace and radiance."

"Of course, the most outstanding one is naturally Mother." Chu Yilin flattered from the side.

Chu's mother glanced at him and said with a smile, "Don't think that I'll stop nagging you just because you say that."

"Speaking of our Chu family, the one with the sweetest tongue is none other than our second brother." Chu Qingluo overheard Chu Yilin's flattery and couldn't help but tease him a bit.

"Third sister, you flatter me."

Mother Chu pulled Chu Qingluo around, looking her over carefully from head to toe, before saying with relief, "Daughter, congratulations on your coming-of-age ceremony. Today you're touring the city; if you see a man you like, bring him back." She then nodded to Tongmu.

Tongmu handed over the tray, on which lay a red sachet. Chu Qingluo picked it up, and a faint floral fragrance wafted out. A snow lotus was embroidered on the sachet, and something seemed to be inside, with a cool touch. "What is this?"

Mother Chu smiled gently: "This sachet contains dried flower petals and a small piece of jade. When you see a man you like, throw this to him; if not, just let fate decide."

"Huh? Such a waste? Don't other people just toss a handkerchief and call it a day?" Chu Qinglu pouted slightly, genuinely feeling sorry for the jade inside the sachet.

"What nonsense are you talking about? How can our Chu family just settle things with a handkerchief? Remember, this sachet cannot be taken back; it must be thrown away today." Mother Chu repeatedly reminded her.

Chu Qinglu tied the sachet to her waist and said, "I understand."

Only then did Chu's mother nod in relief and say, "Let's go."

Chu Qingluo turned and walked towards the gate, then suddenly remembered something and said, "Second Brother, can you see me off?"

"Huh?! Hey hey hey—" Chu Yilin was pulled out of the door by Chu Qingluo without saying a word. "What are you doing? You're touring the city, but I'm not."

After confirming that her mother hadn't come along, Chu Qingluo lowered her voice and asked, "Second brother, there's something I've wanted to ask you for a long time, but I haven't had the chance yet."

Chu Yilin straightened his outer garment, which she had pulled open, and said, "You little rascal, go ahead and ask."

"Does that seventh prince have any... special relationship with me, the one I had before?"

"Um..." Seeing Qinglu blinking, he didn't know how to answer. If he said they were very close, Ji Qiran would probably skin him alive; if he said they weren't, he'd be lying. This was a really difficult question to answer...

"How would I know? Go ask the Seventh Prince." He tossed the question aside and quickly slipped out, his voice drifting back from behind him: "Third Sister, congratulations on your coming-of-age ceremony. I have other matters to attend to, so I won't see you off."

"What?!... Ugh!" Chu Qinglu rolled her eyes helplessly. Seeing that Jiuwei and Tongmu were already waiting by the sedan chair, she walked towards the six-person sedan chair.

The sedan chair had red pillars at its four corners and a canopy on top, adorned with flowers. Pale yellow gauze curtains cascaded down from above, spaced out around the perimeter. The arrangement resembled a modern wedding pavilion. A cushioned chair back stood in the center of the chair. Several musicians played ceremonial music in front of and behind the chair. This setup was far more luxurious than the one she had seen for the second young lady of the Huang family before.

"Thank you all for your hard work." Chu Qingluo nodded slightly to the sedan bearers and then sat down.

The sedan chair was lifted, and ceremonial music began. The large group of people walked into the city.