AWB Chapter 41 A Failed First Kiss
Chapter 41 A Failed First Kiss
Recently, a game called mahjong has become popular among the women of wealthy families in Beijing.
The reason was that the eldest princess and Lady Zuo often invited their female relatives who were on good terms to play mahjong at their residence.
These two women, one being Emperor Shun'an's elder sister and the other Empress's sister-in-law, held significant positions among the women of the capital.
It can be said that their every move was a barometer for the women of Beijing.
Initially, it was just the eldest princess and Lady Zuo inviting people to their residence to play, but those who had played before felt it wasn't enough, so they all made their own sets based on the shape of mahjong.
Winter is cold, so people tend to stay at home. Mahjong is an indoor game that is easy to learn and play, and it quickly became popular in every household.
By the time Pei Rujing learned the news, mahjong had already begun to expand its reach, spreading to the lower and middle classes.
During lunch, Pei Rujing mentioned the matter to Wen Zongji: "I only gave Mother and Zuo San a set of mahjong tiles, I didn't expect it to cause such a big reaction. Now there are even mahjong-related societies in the capital."
Wen Zongji raised an eyebrow: "Form a society? What for?"
"The goal of researching more ways to play mahjong is to make it more interesting and to make it the most popular game in the Great Chu."
Wen Zongji was curious about who was so enthusiastic about mahjong: "Who founded this association?"
Pei Rujing blinked: "Take a guess."
Wen Zongji understood: "Do I know this person?"
Pei Rujing nodded.
Wen Zongji pondered for a moment: "Miss Zuo?"
Pei Rujing nodded: "It's her! How did you guess?"
Wen Zongji laughed and said, "The other day, Miss Zuo came to play mahjong with the county magistrate every day, which shows her obsession with mahjong. It's not surprising that she formed a club to find more ways to play."
Pei Rujing said, "Zuo San has always liked interesting things and is obsessed with playing games. Mahjong is so interesting, it suits her taste perfectly."
Wen Zongji asked Pei Rujing curiously, "Didn't Miss Zuo invite the County Princess to join the society?"
Pei Rujing is also quite good at playing mahjong.
Pei Rujing said, "I was invited, but I didn't accept."
Why?
Pei Rujing looked at him and said, "I'm already married, how can I still join a society?"
The customs of the Great Chu were relatively open. Women did not need to cover their faces when leaving the mansion. Families who doted on their daughters would not restrict the number of times they could leave the mansion before their daughters got married. They could leave the mansion whenever they wanted.
However, after marriage, it is generally accepted that a woman's focus should be on her family, and that being a good wife and mother is her responsibility.
This is why people generally feel that women are more free before they get married.
Wen Zongji had the food cleared away, then pulled Pei Rujing to sit on the couch and said gently, "I am currently studying behind closed doors and have very little time to spend with you, County Princess. If I pass the imperial examination next year and enter the court, I will have one day off every five days, so I won't be able to spend much time with you either. Staying cooped up in the mansion all the time will inevitably be boring. Joining a society will give you something to do and will help relieve your boredom."
Pei Rujing stared intently at him: "Ordinary men always hope their wives stay at home to be good wives and mothers. Why do you want me to do other things instead?"
Wen Zongji mimicked Pei Rujing's previous arrogant demeanor, slightly raising his chin and saying, "You yourself said he was just an ordinary man! I am the husband of Princess Anhe, how could I be an ordinary person?"
Pei Rujing smiled, her eyes full of joy. For some reason, she felt as sweet as if she had eaten honey. She threw herself into Wen Zongji's arms and hugged his neck: "Wen Zongji, you are so good."
Wen Zongji put his arm around her waist and whispered in her ear, "I'm so good, how does the county princess plan to reward me?"
Her breath tickled Pei Rujing's ear, causing her earlobe to involuntarily turn red. Thinking of the several adult novels she had recently been secretly reading, tears welled up in her eyes.
Pei Rujing looked up at Wen Zongji, but dared not look him in the eye. Her gaze fell on his lips, which were of moderate thickness, and she gritted her teeth and kissed them.
next moment
"oops--"
The two immediately separated, each covering their mouths as they stood up.
It turned out that Pei Rujing was inexperienced and nervous, so she kissed him too hard and bumped her teeth against Wen Zongji's.
There was no romance in the kiss, only the discomfort of a toothache.
Seeing Pei Rujing's eyes welling up with tears from the pain, Wen Zongji couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Princess, this reward of yours is truly unique."
Pei Rujing covered her mouth, her face slightly flushed, and said shyly and angrily, "I've never tried this before."
She was in a terrible mood.
I finally made up my mind, but it ended up in this embarrassing situation.
Wen Zongji reached out and hugged her: "Okay, we have no experience, we can learn together in the future."
One sentence instantly brightened Pei Rujing's mood.
Although it was already known that Wen Zongji had no maids serving him closely, nor any concubines.
Hearing Wen Zongji say this in person still made Pei Rujing overjoyed.
At the same time, she made up her mind that she would study hard and refused to believe that she could not learn it.
Wen Zongji was unaware that his words of comfort had only fueled Pei Rujing's fighting spirit.
……
Wangchunlou, third floor private room
Since the establishment of the society, Zuo Mingxuan, as the initiator and president of the society, booked a private room on the third floor of Wangchunlou and agreed to meet there once every five days.
As the most famous restaurant in the capital, Wangchunlou has always been very popular. There are only ten private rooms on the third floor, and they are always in short supply. Ordinary people have to book a private room at least one or two months in advance.
The fact that Zuo Mingxuan could get Wangchunlou to reserve a private room for her society's gatherings demonstrates the power and influence of the Zuo family.
The association was established a few days ago, and today was not supposed to be the time for a gathering, but Zuo Mingxuan said that there was an important announcement, so she temporarily gathered the members together.
Besides Zuo Mingxuan, the society has five members, all of whom are unmarried women from wealthy families. They all enjoy playing mahjong and joined the society as soon as they learned that Zuo Mingxuan had founded it.
"What do you think is the big deal the president was talking about?"
"Could it be that they've discovered a new way to play mahjong?"
"If that's the case, that would be great. I'll go back and teach it to my mother; at least that way I can coax her into giving me more pocket money."
"More and more people in Beijing are playing mahjong these days. If we can develop new ways to play, we'll definitely attract more people to join our club."
"With more members, we won't have to worry about finding mahjong partners anymore."
There are many societies in the capital, not to mention poetry societies, painting societies, chess societies, etc., all of which are for refined people.
But apart from that, clubs like cockfighting clubs and football clubs are all clubs that focus on having fun, and mahjong clubs belong to this category.
Whether it's highbrow or lowbrow, a society is essentially a gathering of people with similar interests to do what they want to do.
At this moment, Zuo Mingxuan walked in and called out, "Look who's here, everyone!"
She stepped aside, revealing the person behind her.
Pei Rujing wore a white fox fur cloak and no makeup, yet her delicate face was still as exquisite as a figure in a painting.
She stood there, like a fairy descended to earth, attracting all eyes.
Even women would be attracted to her.
Pei Rujing raised her eyebrows and said, "From now on, I will be the vice president of the society."
Although she was being treated as inferior to Zuo Mingxuan, the society was, after all, founded by Zuo Mingxuan, and Pei Rujing was willing to make a concession.
Everyone then came to their senses and excitedly said, "Greetings, Vice President."
I heard that this mahjong game originated from Princess Anhe. Now that Princess Anhe has joined, it will definitely make mahjong even more interesting.