Summer rain comes quickly and departs just as swiftly. As he stepped over the threshold of the Xie residence, he encountered a sudden clearing of the sky. Though clouds had not yet dispersed from the freshly washed firmament, a cascade of light suddenly poured down from their edges. This luminous waterfall flowed over the blue-black roof ridges, spilling down from every dormant tile, creating countless rhythmic patterns of light.
Li Congxin stood beneath the eaves. Having just seen the young lady who had occupied his thoughts for so long, his tumultuous feelings remained unsettled. However, this clear, brilliant world suddenly invigorated him. He drew in a breath and walked lightly down the steps toward his carriage.
The servant holding the whip sat on the shaft watching the distant scenery. Catching sight of someone approaching from the corner of his eye, he quickly jumped down and hurried forward to assist. “Third Young Master, where shall we go now?”
The Marquis of Danyang had a private residence in Youzhou. He boarded the carriage and lowered the curtain, saying, “Home.”
After settling everything, he began preparing for the banquet. If his inability to speak privately with Qingyuan earlier left him somewhat regretful, the upcoming feast gave him renewed hope. He understood Qingyuan’s difficulties – her awkward position in the Xie family, where few among the elders and siblings truly cared for her. She had to watch her every step just to barely survive within those walls. As for feelings, beneath her surface as still as a deep pool, there might well be surging waves. If only he could get her out of that mansion, away from the watchful eyes of the elders, he could carefully explain his thoughts to her. Perhaps after hearing him out, she might see him differently.
The young marquis went to great lengths to create an opportunity for them to be alone. As luck would have it, though he thought he would have to wait several days for Shen Che’s leave, on the third day someone came to announce that both Commander Shen and Administrator Shen had returned to Youzhou.
Li Congxin didn’t delay, immediately heading for the Shen residence. The horse galloped urgently, only reining in before the gate. As his jade-flowered steed reared with a neighing cry, Shen Che happened to emerge, startled by this display. He laughed, “Who’s this? Missing me this much after just half a year?”
The friendship between men is characterized by bold magnanimity. Li Congxin jumped down from his horse as Shen Che came out to meet him. The two clapped hands and bumped shoulders in a familiar greeting before finally walking into the courtyard arm-in-arm.
“How have these past six months been?” Shen Che smiled, personally brewing tea for him. “With you away from Youzhou, our brotherhood has gathered less frequently. Xu Yin was promoted to Light Cavalry Commander last month. He wanted to hold a celebratory feast but postponed it knowing you were returning.”
Li Congxin raised his teacup, and they clinked cups instead of wine. They were friends for many years and didn’t hesitate to discuss private matters. Li Congxin took a sip of tea and shook his head, “When I stay too long in Youzhou, the old lady at home grows restless. Last time, using the excuse of poor health, she summoned me home with an urgent dispatch of over eight hundred li. When I arrived, it turned out to be merely a headache – the letter had made it sound so frightening, that I was nearly scared to death. Once I was home, she wouldn’t let me return to Youzhou no matter what. This time, my father arranged a position for me in the Ministry of Personnel, and I used the pretext of taking office to get away from home.”
Shen Che felt quite envious, “Everything has been arranged for you at home, what more could you want?” He cupped his hands in congratulation, “I haven’t congratulated you yet – you’re now an official, Administrator Li.”
Li Congxin laughed heartily, “What’s there to congratulate about an eighth-rank position? Now Xu Yin is promoted to the fourth rank, which is worth properly celebrating. But we brothers will have plenty of chances to gather. Today I’ve come on someone else’s behalf. Inspector Xie has returned to Jiannan Circuit to report for duty. His elderly mother wishes to thank you all but fears lacking proper hospitality without the master present. She’s asked me to arrange a banquet and invite you and the Palace Commander to honor us with your presence.”
Shen Che made a sound of understanding, “So you’re acting as a son-in-law already, handling such matters?”
Usually, the young marquis would have enjoyed such a beautiful misunderstanding, but today was different. The more sincere his feelings for Qingyuan grew, the more he wanted to avoid such ambiguous rumors. So he explained with a smile, “What son-in-law? I’m merely acquainted with the Inspector’s three sons. Since the old lady entrusted me with this task, I couldn’t refuse for their sake.”
But Shen Che didn’t believe him and asked with a smile, “Last time the Xie family’s Fourth Miss came to find me with a name card, saying you had recommended her – what exactly is your relationship with this Fourth Miss?”
He seemed to have developed a strange condition – whenever anyone mentioned Qingyuan, his heart felt an extremely subtle pull. However, given how his previous rashness had brought her so much trouble, he no longer dared to tacitly accept romantic rumors as he had before.
“There’s nothing between us. We merely happened to meet at the Spring Banquet, and because of her brothers, we became somewhat closer, that’s all.”
Shen Che grew more skeptical, “Just somewhat closer? The Xie family has several young ladies – how come I never saw you give your register to any other miss, only to her?”
Li Congxin indeed fell silent at this, lowering his eyes, his long lashes covering his pupils. After a while, he said, “To be honest, I do have some feelings for her. While in Hengtang, I even asked my family about sending someone to propose marriage, but…” He slowly shook his head, “Since the Palace Guard Bureau handled the supervision of the Xie family, you must know everything about the Fourth Miss’s background. That’s precisely why my family doesn’t entirely approve.”
“What about Fourth Miss’s feelings toward you?” Shen Che probed intentionally, smiling as he said, “Perhaps she’s hoping the young marquis will rescue her from the tiger’s den?”
Li Congxin said no, sighing with profound regret: “If she had such feelings, I would dare to act more boldly. Last time when I asked my mother to send a matchmaker, my mother ended up severely humiliating them, causing Fourth Miss to be scolded. I still feel very sorry about that to this day. With her personality, she won’t speak of her grievances, she just keeps her distance. When I saw her two days ago, she seemed more reserved than before. I don’t know if it was because family elders were present, or if she had never cared for me at all…”
Shen Che could barely keep from laughing, “Young Marquis, you’ve always moved easily among powder and rouge, what’s happened now? Fretting over a mere concubine’s daughter – how am I supposed to look at you?”
Li Congxin thought for a moment and laughed self-deprecatingly, “When you accumulate too many romantic debts, you’re bound to pay them back eventually. She is indeed different from the young ladies I’ve known before. Speaking of allure, she maintains perfect deportment and never crosses any boundaries, yet somehow I can’t stop thinking about her. I’ve been thinking, our family needs such a mistress to manage the household. Perhaps with her in charge, I might even improve somewhat.”
Shen Che couldn’t help but laugh in amazement – so he wasn’t the only one who thought this way. Did this Fourth Miss have some special “mistress qualities”? In the end, such matters came down to beauty being in the eye of the beholder. He had seen Xie Qingyuan himself but never believed such a young girl could handle the complexities of managing an entire household.
After chatting for quite a while, they finally returned to the main topic. Li Congxin said, “I’ve arranged a banquet at my private residence on the sixth. You must come then, and the Xie siblings will all be present as well.”
Just as Shen Che was about to agree, a voice came from behind the screen door, “The sixth happens to be our rest day. The authorities have been considerate of the Palace Guard Bureau’s hard work lately and granted two extra days to make up for previous shortages.”
Both Shen Che and Li Congxin stood up. As soon as the voice finished speaking, its owner appeared at the door. Shen Run had a gentle, clean-cut appearance, and even in casual settings, he lacked an imposing air, instead appearing relaxed and elegant with scholarly refinement. Smiling, he said as he walked, “Last time we attended the Xie family’s banquet, we haven’t had a chance to reciprocate. I suggest we hold it at our residence instead. We can’t have people laughing at us martial families for not knowing proper etiquette.”
Li Congxin hesitated somewhat. Though he knew Shen Che and had certainly crossed paths with Shen Run before, he had never realized the latter was such a thorough person.
Shen Che immediately understood and smiled, “That’s good. Fangchun has told me she quite likes the Xie family’s Fourth Miss. If we hold the banquet at our place, she’ll be pleased to hear it.”
Their enthusiasm surprised Li Congxin. The entire Shen family had once been condemned, and the Shen brothers had endured humiliation to achieve their current positions. Shen Che had it somewhat better, not suffering too much under his brother’s protection, but Shen Run was different. The burden of reviving the family fortune fell entirely on his shoulders, and over the years he had seen through the world’s warmth and coldness, disliking lively occasions and avoiding close associations with others. Besides Shen Che’s wedding, the Shen family had never held any banquets. That they would make an exception now was truly puzzling.
“The sixth it is, then.” Shen Run ignored Li Congxin’s hesitation. “Our household will handle all the preparations. You and the Xie family members need only arrive on time.”
The Commander was indeed the Commander – his words always carried an unquestionable firmness. Li Congxin frowned with a smile, and though doubts remained in his heart, he couldn’t argue against it directly. So he said, “Since it’s the Palace Commander’s wish, I’ll certainly convey it to the Xie family. I only fear the old lady will take offense – it was originally meant to be their treat, and now you’re bearing the expense.”
Shen Che just laughed it off, “Fangchun hasn’t been feeling well lately and can’t go out. Hosting at home allows her to enjoy some liveliness while also saving you trouble.”
With matters having reached this point, Li Congxin had no choice but to acquiesce. Upon leaving the Commander’s residence, he sent someone to relay the message to the Xie family. Though he didn’t understand Shen Run’s intentions at present, being able to spend half a day with Qingyuan outside the Xie residence had already achieved his purpose.
When the old lady received Li Congxin’s message the previous day, invitation cards arrived at their door the next day. She summoned the Qinghe sisters to Huifang Garden and carefully instructed them: “Originally we meant to trouble the Third Young Master to host the banquet for us, but now plans have changed, and the Commander’s residence will host on the sixth. Though this brings honor to us, you must be extremely careful in your every word and action. You know well how much silver was spent on the master’s affair last time, and nobody truly knows what intentions Commander Shen harbors. Remember this well – as long as we have financial dealings with them, we must remain vigilant. Even in casual conversation, keep your guard up, lest you let slip something that gives them leverage and creates new problems.”
Qingru had always been simple-minded. Having heard the old lady’s instructions, she privately disapproved and muttered softly, “If we have to attend a banquet but fear saying the wrong thing, why go at all? We might as well host our feast and invite Brother Chunzhi over. We can make excuses to the Shen family about being ill, saving ourselves from such anxiety where we can barely breathe.”
Though the old lady was sixty years old, her hearing was still excellent. Upon catching Qingru’s ungracious words, her face immediately darkened as she scolded, “When someone sends an invitation card, you think you can simply decline as you please? Do you imagine they can’t deal with you? Don’t think that just because the master has overcome his current difficulties, everything will be smooth sailing from now on. They are close ministers to the emperor, while the master is an official posted abroad – use that brain of yours to think about the difference in intimacy! When has scholarly learning ever compared to pillow talk? If only you had read more books, you wouldn’t speak such thoughtless words today.”
This tirade from the old lady frightened Qingru. She stared with wide eyes, looking fearfully toward Madam Hu. Madam Hu could only try to smooth things over, saying gently, “Mother, please calm down. The second miss just speaks her mind directly, worried that she might inadvertently break taboos at their residence and bring trouble to the family.”
Truth be told, the old lady sometimes despised Qingru’s single-mindedness. She had been born fortunate, entering the first wife’s womb, but if no one guided and protected her at every turn, she would have been schemed against until nothing remained, not even bones.
Young girls developing romantic feelings was as natural as flowers blooming in spring and bearing fruit in autumn, but one couldn’t solely think about fulfilling one’s desires. While making a connection with the Marquis of Danyang’s family would certainly be good, shouldn’t they also curry favor with the new nobles who held burning influence in court? Since the Shen residence was hosting a banquet, it couldn’t be without reason. Even if there truly were no ulterior motives, it would still be good for the sisters to socialize there.
Qingyuan left the main hall without saying anything, merely sighing softly.
Baoqin asked, “Miss, do you not wish to attend that banquet?”
Qingyuan squinted at the distant trees, murmuring, “I fear it may be an ambush banquet.”
Baoqin was startled, “Then what does Miss plan to do? Perhaps we could do as Second Miss suggested and feign illness. As long as we don’t attend, no changes can be blamed on Miss.”
But if they had set a trap, wouldn’t avoiding it only make them target you more? Qingyuan frowned and shook her head, “You can dodge the first but not the fifteenth. We’ll attend the banquet as expected, and you just stay by my side at all times. If trouble still comes knocking… we might as well lay everything out in the open. They’re experienced people – surely they won’t make things difficult for a mere girl.”
Having made up her mind, there wasn’t much left to worry about. She found the jade pendant she hadn’t been able to return that day, planning to leave it somewhere Shen Run would see while he was at the residence. They were all clever people – once she returned the original item, he would have nothing to make an issue of.
The next day was the sixth, and everyone prepared to set out after bidding farewell to the old lady. This banquet of uncertain prospects didn’t inspire the same good mood as the Spring Banquet had. Qingru, still smarting from the old lady’s scolding the previous day, took out all her anger on Qingyuan. Beyond the daily necessity of sarcastic jabs, she sighed theatrically while passing by: “Fourth Sister has truly caught the attention of Commander Shen’s brothers now. Today we’ll get to see the Shen residence thanks to your connections.”
Such was the way of the Xie family – even if you sacrificed everything, you’d never hear a kind word. Hearing Qingru’s veiled barbs, Qingyuan felt more settled. Watching them each board their carriages, as Baoqin moved to help her onto the footsteps, she withdrew her hand and turned toward Qingru’s carriage instead.
Qingru was about to lower the curtain, but seeing her approach, she suddenly became flustered, shifting backward saying, “What do you want?”
Qingyuan always maintained her harmless expression. She reached inside and whispered, “Second Sister, please take this.”
Qingru didn’t understand her intentions, seeing her holding a silk pouch made of mirror-patterned fabric, and hesitated to accept it.
Qingyuan forced it into her hand and said softly, “Does the Second Sister know what this is?”
Qingru shook her head.
“It’s what the Third Young Master gave me before.” Qingyuan’s face showed a hint of sadness as she said dejectedly, “Things between him and me can never work out, but as a sister has noticed, he still has feelings for me. I’ve thought it over – continuing like this isn’t good for either of us. Let’s use today’s banquet to make a clean break. I’m giving this item to Second Sister – you must keep it safe.”
Qingru and Lvzhui exchanged glances. Though they didn’t believe she could be so kind, they couldn’t resist the attraction to Brother Chunzhi. So she opened the pouch’s drawstring while warning, “You’d better not be trying to trick me…” What fell out was a beast-faced jade pendant.
Qingru was stunned for a moment. Such an item was a man’s possession. Though they hated Qingyuan enough to grind their teeth, they knew that besides Li Congxin, she had no interaction with other men, so they could almost certainly conclude this belonged to Li Congxin.
“Why give it to me?” Qingru glanced at her sideways. “What are you planning?”
Qingyuan blinked her deer-like innocent eyes, “Doesn’t Second Sister have feelings for the Third Young Master…? Or have I misunderstood? If Second Sister doesn’t want it, then return it to me, and we can pretend this never happened.”
She made a motion to take it back, but naturally, Qingru wouldn’t let go. Seeing this, she didn’t press the matter, just softly advised, “Find a way to let him see it. The Third Young Master is clever – he’ll understand the meaning immediately.” With that, she gave an encouraging smile and turned back to her carriage.