This time, it happened that Fourth Miss Wang had returned to her maternal family. Her brother, Wang Rui, came today. Unexpectedly, Fourth Miss Wang returned to the city at dusk and rushed over, truly someone who never misses a lively event.
Wang Rui poured a cup of wine for Fourth Miss Wang, who slowly drank it under everyone’s gaze, dressed in a peach-red jacket and skirt. Regardless of Fourth Miss Wang’s reputation, Ji Cheng had to admit she possessed a unique charm.
Among the ladies present, many outranked Fourth Miss Wang in status, and many had more beautiful features. Yet, whenever Fourth Miss Wang arrived, she always became the center of attention, with no one able to steal her spotlight.
However, the focus of those in love was naturally different. For instance, Shen Qian had already moved to Chu Zhen’s side, shyly asking, “Cousin Zhen, could you win me a bowl of sugar-steamed cream?”
The cream was sprinkled with hawthorn and raisins, arranged in a delicate little mountain. However, the bowl was about the same size as the bamboo ring in Chu Zhen’s hand, making it quite challenging to win. It had to be circled just right; otherwise, it would slide to the side.
The table below was spinning, and the cream was placed far away. Several people before had tried to win it but failed.
Chu Zhen, intending to show off in front of his love interest, glanced at Ji Cheng, saw that she was also watching, and nodded to Shen Qian. He carefully aimed at the bowl of cream, and with a raise of his hand, the bamboo ring steadily landed right on top of the cream.
Everyone cheered, and Ji Cheng joined in the applause.
Chu Zhen, not far from Ji Cheng and Shen Yuan, leaned over after winning the cream for Shen Qian and asked, “Cousin and younger cousin, is there anything you’d like to drink?”
Shen Yuan quickly answered, “I want a cup of kumquat honey.” Kumquat honey was just what Shen Yuan needed to alleviate her hangover and quench her thirst.
Whether it was kumquat honey or the sugar-steamed cream Shen Qian had asked for earlier, both were cool foods. The cream needed to be set and, after steaming, had to be chilled in an ice cellar for three hours. It was especially refreshing to eat after drinking hot alcohol.
The bamboo ring toss might not have attracted the eyes of these noble sons and daughters, but the people of the Prince’s mansion had arranged it well. If you, old sir, had drunk too much and wanted to cool down with something cold, you could only come to play ring toss. This created a lively atmosphere that everyone enjoyed.
Chu Zhen easily won a kumquat honey, and when it was Ji Cheng’s turn, she didn’t dare to make a direct request like Shen Yuan. Shen Che was standing right there, his gaze lingering on Chu Zhen and Shen Qian. He must have noticed his sister’s feelings.
Yet Chu Zhen’s eyes on her were burning hot. Ji Cheng didn’t want to be a stubborn fool, and there was no need to upset Shen Che at this moment.
Ji Cheng looked around, desperately needing her brother or Shen Jing, but these two were nowhere to be seen. So Ji Cheng simply turned to Shen Che with a sweet smile, “Cousin Che, could you win me that tangerine?” Ji Cheng coquettishly pointed at the bright yellow tangerine farthest away downstairs.
Ji Cheng didn’t want to be so obsequious, but if she had fewer thoughts, she wouldn’t be all skin and bones from just eating. Unfortunately, she had too many worries, always considering the pros and cons of everything she said or did, which made her seem sycophantic.
But if it weren’t for Shen Che’s earlier actions, Ji Cheng wouldn’t have dared to act familiar with him in public. Observant as she was, when Shen Che had asked her for a handkerchief to wipe off her lip print earlier, Ji Cheng had vaguely sensed something. In the future, when she and Shen Che met secretly, they might have to use her “infatuation” as a pretext.
Sure enough, Shen Che didn’t give her a cold look, but instead responded with a gentle “Alright.” This “Alright” from his tongue was filled with ambiguity. His voice was naturally low and magnetic, and when deliberately acting this way, it was so pleasant to hear that one wanted to cover their ears, fearing their heart might be stolen by just one voice.
Ji Cheng couldn’t help but shiver, goosebumps rising. He truly was a romantic rake; his act of being deeply in love was convincingly real.
“Is it that one?” Shen Che leaned closer to Ji Cheng, the ambiguous atmosphere almost palpable.
Those with discerning eyes in the crowd noticed but tacitly agreed to say nothing, only smiling to themselves.
This large group of drunk men and women together, noble ladies and gentlemen though they may be, were just ordinary women and men at their core. In such an atmosphere, what else could they do but flirt? They were taking advantage of this opportunity to fish in troubled waters. If they happened to catch each other’s eye, those who could marry would, and those who couldn’t might still engage in some secret dalliances.
So the flirtation between Shen Che and Ji Cheng was nothing out of the ordinary. There were even those secretly holding hands under their sleeves, foolishly thinking others couldn’t see.
“Yes, that one,” Ji Cheng said coquettishly, her voice making her grow goosebumps again.
Chu Zhen’s face stiffened slightly, but fortunately, he was naturally stern-faced, so Shen Qian didn’t notice anything amiss.
Just as Shen Che was about to throw the bamboo ring, he was interrupted by someone behind him. It was Wang Rui, Fourth Miss Wang’s brother.
“Although I don’t know if the Second Young Master has the skill to hit a target a hundred paces away, this ring toss seems like using a butcher’s knife to kill a chicken. Surely the Second Young Master isn’t satisfied with this,” Wang Rui said. As soon as he finished speaking, a crowd of people chimed in agreement.
Shen Che smiled, feigning helplessness, “Oh? Then what should I do?”
“Turn around and throw it. Only if you can hit the target that way will it count as skill,” said the grandson of Princess Changhui.
Shen Che indeed turned around, complying with everyone’s wishes.
Wang Rui stirred things up again, “If you miss, you’ll have to drink a penalty, you know.”
The crowd cheered in agreement. While other items needed to be won through ring toss, wine was in abundant supply, especially when it came to penalties.
Shen Che looked at Ji Cheng and smiled, “If I miss, will you drink half the penalty for me, little sister Cheng?” His gaze was like that of a soul-snatching demon with a soul-locking chain. If Ji Cheng’s heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys weren’t made of stone, she might have been captivated.
Ji Cheng was still having trouble adjusting to this flirtatious rhythm. Although she had once tried to flirt with Qi Zheng, that kind of flirtation was much more subtle. Shen Che and the other’s way of playing was somewhat blatant.
Ji Cheng didn’t respond. Her earlier request for Shen Che to win the tangerine was just a convenient ploy to show she had no interest in Chu Zhen and wouldn’t compete with Shen Qian. But she didn’t want to get too deeply involved. The sharp glares from Fourth Miss Wang and the not-so-obvious jealousy from Su Yun were already more than Ji Cheng could handle, not to mention there were other girls as well.
Ji Cheng only needed a glance to realize that this “cousin” Shen Che had probably caused trouble for many of his “female cousins.” Any girl with even a slight connection to the royal family could be considered his cousin.
Shen Che threw the bamboo ring backward, and it steadily circled the tangerine, as if he had eyes in the back of his head. The crowd cheered again.
With the game becoming more challenging, everyone’s enthusiasm grew. Even Chu De, who arrived later, joined in the excitement. Even from three feet away, Ji Cheng could smell the cheap perfume on Chu De’s body, indicating he had come out after finishing his entertainment.
In the end, Ji Cheng was also urged by Shen Yuan, Shen Qian, and others to participate in the ring toss. She didn’t have eyes in the back of her head, and her first few attempts all missed the mark. She was made to drink quite a bit of wine. Later, Su Yun seemed to hold a grudge against her, constantly urging her to throw at this or that target. Ji Cheng thought to herself how unfortunate she was. She had nothing going on with Shen Che, yet she was being drowned in Su Yun’s jealousy. She could only let Su Yun force her to drink, hoping the young lady would vent her anger.
After all, they had been sisters for these few months, usually chatting and laughing together. Ji Cheng didn’t want to cause a misunderstanding with Su Yun, but this girl had terrible taste in men, actually taking a liking to a demon like Shen Che. Ji Cheng pitied her to some extent.
While Su Yun had vented some of her anger by getting Ji Cheng drunk, Fourth Miss Wang was still clear-headed, her anger not dissipating at all.
On the way home, as Wang Rui was escorting Fourth Miss Wang, he touched the corner of his mouth and smiled, “Shen Che is blessed with the ladies. Those girls from the Shen family are all quite charming.”
Fourth Miss Wang gave Wang Rui a sidelong glance without saying a word.
“Oh, right, that girl who asked Shen Che to win the tangerine today, what’s her background? She’s really beautiful, with such rosy lips.” As Wang Rui spoke, he wondered if her lower lips were just as pretty. “And that figure is truly enchanting.” Wang Rui could tell at a glance that although the girl wasn’t voluptuous and her buttocks weren’t particularly large, her waist was thin and strong. Proportionally, such a slim waist could only be paired with buttocks of that size to look good. In Wang Rui’s experience with women, a figure like that would be incredibly alluring in bed.
Fourth Miss Wang frowned in disgust. Her brother had been useless since childhood, always immersed in the world of women, and dared to say all sorts of vulgar things. “Brother, why are you saying such filthy things to me?”
Wang Rui, drunk on alcohol, had let his tongue loose in front of Fourth Miss Wang. Now being reprimanded, he quickly apologized, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”
Fourth Miss Wang snorted coldly, “She’s not from any remarkable family, just merchants. They do have quite a bit of money though. If you’re interested, you could ask Father to take her as a concubine for you.”
Upon hearing about money, Wang Rui’s heart burned with urgency. What he lacked most now was money. No matter how wealthy the Wang family was, if young master Wang had no money, even the courtesans in the brothels wouldn’t favor him, and those madams wouldn’t treat him kindly either.
“Take her as a concubine? That’s not impossible,” Wang Rui stroked his chin. When he first laid eyes on Ji Cheng, his bones had already melted, but with the tigress at home causing trouble, Wang Rui hadn’t thought about bringing anyone into the family. Now hearing that the Ji family was wealthy, things were different.
Fourth Miss Wang smiled and said no more. Even if she had any plans, she would have to wait until Wang Rui sobered up to discuss them.
While Wang Rui’s drunkenness hadn’t subsided, Ji Cheng woke up with a splitting headache. She had never been drunk before in her life. Last night, everyone had gone wild, behaving unlike their usual selves. Excessive drinking and feasting indeed bewildered the mind.
Hearing movement inside the curtains, Liu Ye’er quickly lifted them and helped Ji Cheng sit up. “Miss, do you have a headache?”
Ji Cheng nodded, “Thirsty.”
Liu Ye’er hurriedly brought a cup of water to Ji Cheng’s lips. Ji Cheng drank five cups in succession but still felt her lungs burning and her mouth parched. She struggled to half-open her eyelids and looked out the window. Although the rooster had already crowed, it was still dark outside. Ji Cheng had Liu Ye’er help her dress, and after washing up, without even combing her hair, she just used a jade comb to brush her black hair back and headed for the garden.