As Shen Yu left Minnong Garden, he passed by Heron Hill and saw his second brother Shen Che coming down. “Oh?” he exclaimed, “Second Brother is home today?”
This Second Young Master Shen was known for his elusive nature, often unseen at home, which prompted Shen Yu’s question.
Shen Che chuckled lightly, “One must spend a few days being filial to parents.”
Shen Yu immediately understood, nodding at Shen Che as they walked together towards Pine Path. “You’re not getting any younger. It’s time to settle down, lest the Princess keeps nagging you.”
Shen Che laughed, “Big Brother knows I’m eager to marry. It’s just that Mother is always so picky.”
Shen Yu looked at Shen Che and said after a moment of silence, “Though there’s no evidence, I’m certain those previous incidents were your doing.”
Shen Che merely smiled faintly without a word.
“If not for the Princess, you should settle down for Great-Grandmother’s sake. She dotes on you the most,” Shen Yu advised. He wasn’t usually talkative, nor one to meddle in his brother’s affairs. But Shen Che’s unrestrained ways were beyond the old lady’s control, so she often complained to Shen Yu. Having heard much, he felt obliged to say a few words.
“I’ve told Great-Grandmother long ago, whoever she approves, just swap the birth charts and be done with it,” Shen Che said carelessly.
Shen Yu knew further words were futile. Though a man himself, he couldn’t understand the appeal of those flashy women outside. Their pungent fragrances and affected manners turned his stomach. But each had their preferences, and he couldn’t force Shen Che to be like himself.
“Big Brother, your unprecedented lecture today – is it because Great-Grandmother has been pestering you too?” Shen Che hit the nail on the head, exposing Shen Yu’s hidden agenda. He was looking for someone to share his misery.
Shen Yu’s darker complexion concealed his embarrassment behind his rugged features. He remained silent.
Shen Che laughed, “Whoever Great-Grandmother suggests for you, I’ll help investigate thoroughly. We must find someone virtuous and healthy, to avoid frequent replacements.”
This was Shen Che’s tacit admission that he had indeed sabotaged his previous almost successful marriage arrangements.
Shen Yu was at a loss with this brother. Shen Che was capable; though appearing idle daily, there was no problem he couldn’t solve. Blessed with a face as fair and beautiful as jade, more handsome than Pan An, more beautiful than Wei Jie, even without being flirtatious, he naturally exuded charm. People flocked to him like moths to a flame, regardless of gender.
Shen Yu remembered most clearly a time at Mingyue Tower when they encountered the Duke’s son-in-law. His recently acquired favorite male companion, Liu Lingkun, insisted on offering himself to Shen Che, risking the Duke’s wrath.
Only then did Shen Yu realize that male beauty could also possess such city-toppling, life-risking power.
Most remarkably, the usually domineering Duke Zheng Kuo handed Liu Lingkun over to Shen Che without a word.
“If Second Brother needs any help, I won’t hesitate to ask,” Shen Yu said. In truth, their marriages were also a gamble. Those young ladies from prominent families all wore masks in public. Without sharing a bed for some time, no one could see their true faces beneath the masks.
As they talked, they saw a pink sleeve appear around the corner ahead. With only one path on this section of Pine Path, an encounter was unavoidable.
Meanwhile, Ji Cheng stood in Plucking Moon Pavilion atop Heron Hill, overlooking Pine Path. This spot was the highest point in Qing Garden.
Fourth Miss Wang, Wang Yueniang, and Shen Qian were talking to Shen Yu. Another man as tall as Shen Yu looked unfamiliar to Ji Cheng, who was certain she had never seen him before.
However, Ji Cheng only glanced briefly, losing interest. Someone whom the Wang sisters schemed to intercept by taking the near path with Shen Qian was not within Ji Cheng’s consideration.
Unexpectedly, the unfamiliar man on Pine Path suddenly looked up. Ji Cheng inexplicably wanted to take a step back but quickly suppressed the urge. It was strange to have such a feeling from such a distance, especially when she had done nothing wrong.
Fortunately, the man only glanced once before lowering his head again. Ji Cheng retreated into the pavilion and sat down. Shen Cui took a teacup from the maid, sipped, and glanced disdainfully down the hill. “That Fourth Miss Wang is quite amusing. In front of us, she puts on airs because of her elder sister being the Virtuous Consort. But when she sees Second Brother, she pounces like a Pekingese dog, foolishly thinking no one notices.”
Only then did Ji Cheng learn the identity of the man below – the notorious second son of the Duke’s mansion. She wondered how someone like Fourth Miss Wang had set her sights on him.
“The funniest part is that Wang Yueniang secretly admires Second Brother too. I wonder if Fourth Miss Wang has noticed. Hah! If Fourth Miss Wang’s sister is so powerful as the palace’s Virtuous Consort, why doesn’t she just ask for an imperial decree of marriage? That would impress me. What’s the point of putting on airs in front of us?” Shen Cui mocked.
Ji Cheng didn’t know where Shen Cui’s complaints came from, nor why she was deemed trustworthy enough to hear them all.
As they drank tea, a young man appeared climbing the stone steps – Shen Jing, Shen Cui’s full brother, and the Shen family’s Fourth Young Master.
Ji Cheng had met this cousin a few days ago while attending to Ji Lan’s illness.
“What brings Fourth Brother here?” Shen Cui asked, seeing Shen Jing. Ji Cheng stood up.
Wearing a blue robe with treasure flower patterns in Tianhua brocade, Shen Jing exuded an air of nobility mixed with elegance. Always courteous, he smiled upon hearing Shen Cui’s voice, “I saw you enjoying tea in the pavilion from afar. It looked so pleasant, I came up to beg a cup of tea.”
Then, Shen Jing turned to Ji Cheng, who was standing with her head slightly bowed, and smiled, “Cousin, please sit. We’re close family, no need for such formality.”
Ji Cheng sat down, and then heard Shen Jing ask, “Xiniang, why are you here?”
Before Xiniang could answer, Shen Cui said, “Second Brother was just here having tea. He left, and we came up. I asked Xiniang to brew us a cup as well.”
Ji Cheng now knew that the plain-looking Xiniang was the maid of the Second Young Master Shen. Shen Che must have seen the young ladies starting to walk around and left hurriedly to avoid suspicion, not even having time to collect the tea set. Little did he know that he would be intercepted by the Wang sisters as soon as he went down.
Of course, Ji Cheng didn’t rule out the possibility that the Second Young Master had left in such a hurry precisely to “accidentally” encounter the Wang sisters downhill.
However, it seemed Shen Cui wasn’t so foolish after all. She was badmouthing the Wang sisters in front of Shen Che’s maid, indicating her disapproval of Fourth Miss Wang as a potential sister-in-law.
Shen Jing couldn’t help but sigh. His sister was bold enough to casually order around even their second brother’s maid. She was likely to face consequences in the future.
“So these are Second Brother’s tea sets. I was wondering how you, with your unrefined tastes, could appreciate such exquisite frozen flower stone cups,” Shen Jing remarked.
Shen Cui’s eyes widened immediately. Ji Cheng was also surprised. How could a brother speak to his sister like this? Didn’t he know what Shen Cui despised most?
Yet Shen Jing said it anyway, and in front of the maid no less.
Ji Cheng wouldn’t take Shen Jing for a fool. This Fourth Cousin was raised by the Old Madam from birth, and later, Ji Lan’s youngest son Shen Zheng was also raised in the Old Madam’s courtyard. Only Shen Cui grew up with Ji Lan. Ji Cheng believed that someone like the Old Madam couldn’t possibly raise a fool.
Besides, who in this world was truly foolish? Even Shen Cui had her schemes.
Therefore, Ji Cheng couldn’t help but think that Shen Jing’s words were meant for Xiniang to hear, though she didn’t rule out the possibility that Shen Jing somewhat looked down on his sister’s behavior.
“Fourth Brother, how can you speak like this? Are you even my real brother?” Shen Cui said angrily.
Ignoring Shen Cui, Shen Jing turned to Ji Cheng and said, “Cousin, you’re in for a treat. Xiniang’s tea-brewing skills are among the best in our capital. Not everyone has the fortune to taste it. Even we can only enjoy a cup when Second Brother is in an exceptionally good mood.”
Xiniang smiled, “Fourth Young Master, please don’t exaggerate so much about Xiniang.”
Ji Cheng now understood that Shen Jing was trying to appease Xiniang. Though it might not be considered appeasing, he certainly didn’t want to offend her. That’s why he first criticized Shen Cui twice. Ji Cheng couldn’t help but think, what an arrogant figure that Second Young Master must be, not allowing even his cats and dogs to be casually ordered around.
Ji Cheng thought that Shen Cui had indeed been somewhat discourteous earlier. Upon reaching Plucking Moon Pavilion and seeing a maid inside wiping tea sets, Ji Cheng had initially thought how thoughtful Madam Huang was to arrange for a dedicated tea-brewing maid even in such a resting pavilion. Only now did she realize it was just a coincidence, yet Shen Cui had casually ordered her cousin’s maid around.
The maid called Xiniang hesitated but said nothing and began brewing tea. At the time, Ji Cheng hadn’t given it much thought. However, it was evident that Xiniang didn’t rely on her status as Shen Che’s maid to ignore Shen Cui’s orders. She was indeed a well-mannered maid.
Lost in thought, Ji Cheng noticed that Xiniang had already brewed two more cups of tea, serving them to Shen Jing and herself.
Ji Cheng took a light sip, feeling the fragrance permeate her mouth and clear her mind. The tea was excellent, the water was good, and the brewer’s skill was impeccable.
Shen Cui snickered, “Fourth Brother, since you’re not uncultured, why don’t you tell us what tea this is, and what water was used?”
Ji Cheng didn’t want to join the siblings’ dispute. She focused on the delicate frozen flower stone teacup in her hand. Her cup had a plum blossom frozen in it. Looking at Shen Jing’s and Shen Cui’s cups, she saw they each had different forms of plum blossoms, marveling at the craftsmanship.
This frozen flower stone was a specialty of the Yue region. Though not particularly precious itself, it was named for its ice-like color and natural frost patterns. Those with frost patterns resembling flowers were especially rare. The plum blossom on this cup was complete and beautifully formed. A small cup like this alone was worth a hundred gold pieces. Seeing that this entire set of frozen flower stone cups all featured plum blossoms, its value must be at least a thousand gold pieces. The value was secondary; the main point was how difficult it must have been to assemble such a set. It might have taken a hundred years to gather enough suitable material from the mined frozen flower stones to create this set of cups.
As Ji Cheng was marveling and appreciating the cups, she heard Shen Jing say, “It’s Snow Bud from Mount Qi, isn’t it?”
Shen Cui had no idea what tea it was and looked at Xiniang, who nodded slightly. Shen Cui scoffed as if to say that Shen Jing’s ability to identify the tea wasn’t much of a skill.
Ji Cheng had truly never heard of Snow Bud from Mount Qi. She prided herself on having studied various tea classics over the years, but this Mount Qi Snow Bud was completely unknown to her. She felt somewhat uncomfortable, realizing that not being born into an aristocratic family meant lacking their depth of knowledge. Even if she achieved her wish of marrying into a great clan, she might still be ridiculed by relatives and friends over such details.
In truth, Ji Cheng had tried very hard. To be able to discern various tea flavors, she had kept her diet extremely bland for years, to the point of tastelessness. She never touched spicy or aromatic seasonings like pepper, Sichuan pepper, cornel, ginger, or even scallions. Yet today, although she could taste that the tea was good, she truly couldn’t identify what kind it was.