Marquis Wei Shao was approaching on horseback, no more than half an arrow’s flight away when Wei Yan finally rode forward to greet him, calling out, “Second Brother, what a coincidence! I’ve just returned from hunting and we meet here!”
Wei Shao had already spotted Wei Yan’s group. He slowly brought his horse to a stop in the middle of the road, the two large horses facing each other. A smile appeared on his face as he asked, “How was today’s hunt?”
“See for yourself, Second Brother!”
Wei Yan turned his head, pointing to the game hanging from the sides of his followers’ horses, swaying back and forth.
Wei Shao glanced at the catch and praised, “Indeed, quite a bountiful harvest!”
Wei Yan laughed, “If you have time, come to my place again. Last time we brothers had such a merry drinking session. This time, with wild game to accompany the wine, it should be even more enjoyable!”
“That suits me perfectly!” Wei Shao replied. As they spoke, his gaze had already shifted to Qiao Ci behind Wei Yan.
Qiao Ci had been sitting dazed on his horse at first. After hearing the exchange between Wei Yan and this young man, even in his naivety, he guessed that this must be Marquis Yan, Wei Shao – his brother-in-law. Noticing the two gazes sweeping towards him, though still bearing the smile from talking with Wei Yan, he sensed no warmth in those eyes. Hurriedly, he dismounted and stood on the ground.
Following Wei Shao’s gaze, Wei Yan turned his head and then said with a smile, “This is your sister-in-law’s younger brother, the young master of the Qiao family from Yanzhou. He’s your younger brother-in-law, Second Brother. You happened to be out of town these past two days, so following Grandmother’s instructions, I’ve been showing young Master Qiao around as host. We just returned from hunting at Yu Mountain and happened to meet you here.”
As Wei Yan spoke, Qiao Ci noticed Wei Shao’s gaze fixed on him, somewhat cold. He recalled his sister’s repeated warnings from yesterday about how his brother-in-law was mature and reserved, with an aloof personality. Now that he saw him in person, it proved to be true. Feeling nervous, he hesitated before taking two steps forward. He bowed to Wei Shao, calling him “Brother-in-law,” then fell silent, standing motionless.
Wei Shao had been practicing archery since the age of four, following his father. His skill was exquisite, and he had developed eagle-like eyesight. He had spotted the young man riding alongside Wei Yan from afar. Seeing the facial features resembling those of Xiao Qiao, he immediately guessed it must be his wife’s younger brother, Qiao Ci, who had arrived.
In Wei Shao’s mind, he not only lacked any expectations for this northern journey of the envoy from Yanzhou but also felt a faint annoyance.
Subconsciously, he had no desire to have any further dealings or entanglements with anyone from the Qiao family, except for Xiao Qiao.
But this was just a thought. After all, whether it was due to his grandmother’s command or to utilize Yanzhou’s geographical advantage, he had already married the Qiao daughter. The wedding ceremony had taken place without anyone holding a sword to his throat. Not much time had passed, and at least for now, it was impossible for him to completely sever ties with the Qiao family.
So, a few days ago, when the group from Yanzhou was about to reach Yuyang, sudden news came from Zhuo Commandery that an unexpected situation had arisen, requiring his immediate attention. He naturally and without any psychological burden left to handle what he deemed more important.
The night before his departure, when he informed Xiao Qiao of this news in his study, he had indeed noticed a fleeting look of disappointment in her bright eyes.
He did hesitate for a moment then, wondering if he should explain. But the hesitation passed in a flash.
He disdained and felt it entirely unnecessary to explain such a coincidence to her.
Then he went to Zhuo Commandery. The first day passed normally, but at night, for some reason, every time he closed his eyes, the image of her eyes looking at him with disappointment the previous night kept appearing in his mind, along with her final smile. He felt a bit empty inside and found it difficult to sleep alone.
On the second night, which was last night, during his most sleepless moment, he got up and went out for a solitary horse ride. When he returned, it was already midnight. As he pushed open the door, he saw a beauty lying on his bed. It turned out that the newly promoted prefect of Zhuo Commandery, being quite “perceptive,” had personally sent her to his room after he had left.
Wei Shao, formerly nicknamed “Little Tyrant,” was known not only for his violent actions and unrivaled attitude but also for his quick temper. Upon entering and seeing the beauty lying on his bed, something inexplicably triggered his anger. He immediately drew his sword and with one strike, cut down the bedpost. Half of the canopy came crashing down with a loud noise, frightening the beauty who screamed and scrambled out of the room.
Early this morning, Wei Shao dismissed the prefect who had overstepped with his flattery, quickly concluded his business, and immediately set out to return. He had only arrived by evening. Unexpectedly, he encountered his brother-in-law here. Seeing him riding side by side with Wei Yan from afar, appearing very close and chatting happily, but then becoming distant upon meeting him, Wei Shao felt inexplicably irritated again. His expression didn’t improve. He didn’t dismount either, just nodded slightly to Qiao Ci and asked, “When did you arrive?”
“Yesterday at noon,” Qiao Ci replied. He thought to himself that his sister was indeed correct. This brother-in-law was truly aloof and unapproachable, completely different from Cousin Wei. Fortunately, he had been warned by his sister beforehand; otherwise, not knowing this, he might have already offended him.
He also thought about how difficult it must be for his sister to live with such a man every day.
Being still young, Qiao Ci couldn’t hide his thoughts on his face. As he looked at Wei Shao, his expression became increasingly distant.
The brother-in-law and younger brother-in-law fell silent. Wei Shao paused for a moment, then turned to Wei Yan and said, “It’s getting late. Shall we head back together? We’ll host a banquet tonight to welcome him. Elder Brother, please join us as well.”
Wei Yan agreed with a smile. Wei Shao glanced at Qiao Ci, tugged on his reins, and continued riding forward. Wei Yan followed, and the entourage of attendants quickly mounted their horses to follow. Seeing this, Qiao Ci hurriedly got back on his horse. The grand procession, with its impressive display, headed straight through the city gates towards the Wei mansion.
…
Upon entering, Wei Shao ordered a banquet to be prepared for the guests and then went directly to the west chamber.
His steps were initially hurried, but as he entered the inner courtyard, he resumed his usual pace. Finally, he pushed open the door and stepped over the threshold, raising his eyes to look ahead, but he didn’t see Xiao Qiao coming out to greet him as usual. He walked in a few more steps and lifted the bed curtains, but didn’t see her there either.
Wei Shao turned back, seeing that a servant woman had already followed him in, and asked, “Where is the Lady?”
The servant woman bowed and replied, “There’s a Buddhist ceremony at Jinlong Temple today. The Old Madam took the Madam and the Lady there early this morning. They haven’t returned yet.”
Wei Shao paused for a moment.
…
As night was falling, the side hall of the Wei mansion was already brightly lit, with roaring fire torches in all four corners. A long rectangular banquet table was set up in the hall. Marquis Wei Shao, who had returned from Zhuo Commandery in the evening, was hosting his wife’s younger brother Qiao Ci, and the envoy Yang Feng, who had come from afar.
Among the accompanying guests were Wei Yan, Li Dian, Wei Liang, and others. Wei Shao sat at the head of the table, with Qiao Ci to his left, followed by Yang Feng. Wei Yan was seated to Wei Shao’s lower right, opposite Qiao Ci. The rest of the guests, including Li Dian and Wei Liang, were seated according to their rank and age, filling the long banquet table.
The table was laden with sumptuous dishes, including beef, lamb, pork, and venison. Beautiful serving girls constantly refilled the guests’ cups with fine wine. To enhance the festive atmosphere, bare-chested, muscular warriors performed ghost-faced dances to the beat of thunderous drums. The courtyard could not have been more splendid, nor the feast more lavish.
However, the atmosphere at this lavish banquet was somewhat subdued.
At the beginning of the feast, Yang Feng, the envoy from Yanzhou, raised his wine cup with both hands and respectfully conveyed Qiao Yue’s words of gratitude to Wei Shao. He praised Wei Shao’s previous military assistance as having saved them from dire straits and rescued them from a burning crisis, expressing their boundless gratitude for his heavenly virtue and life-saving kindness. He went on and on with such effusive praise.
Objectively speaking, Wei Shao’s alliance with Yang Xin to attack Xuzhou and relieve the siege on Yanzhou could indeed be described as saving them from dire straits and a burning crisis. But when spoken by Yang Feng in such a tone, it sounded like mere flattery, with an overwhelming sense of sycophancy.
Qiao Ci listened with a flushed face. He noticed that all of Wei Shao’s officials and generals were looking at him and Yang Feng, and the room had fallen silent except for Yang Feng’s incessant voice. Given his position next to Wei Shao, he couldn’t help but notice the clear disgust in Wei Shao’s eyes when Yang Feng first started speaking. As Yang Feng continued his long-winded speech, it seemed Wei Shao was forcibly restraining himself from interrupting. Qiao Ci recalled his sister’s words from their meeting yesterday about relying on oneself rather than seeking favors from others and felt even more ashamed. Despite the array of delicacies and fine wines before him, how could he have any appetite for the feast?
Finally, when Yang Feng finished his words of gratitude, Wei Shao merely raised his cup perfunctorily and gave a faint response. The atmosphere immediately became awkward. Fortunately, Wei Yan, sitting opposite, spoke up to smooth things over, allowing the banquet to continue.
Throughout the entire feast, Qiao Ci barely spoke beyond answering a few necessary questions.
Wei Shao’s expression remained composed throughout, and he didn’t say much either.
The brother-in-law and younger brother-in-law unintentionally became a pair of silent gourds, leaving the other guests naturally disinterested. It was only thanks to Wei Yan’s animated conversation and the occasional responses from Li Dian, Wei Liang, and others that the banquet didn’t fall completely flat.
But it ended early nonetheless.
…
Wei Shao returned to the west chamber once again. The candles in the room had already been lit by the servants, but his grandmother had not yet brought Xiao Qiao back.
Wei Shao went to his study instead, sat at his desk, and picked up the scroll he hadn’t finished reading the night before he left for Zhuo Commandery. He focused on perusing it.
A moment later, he suddenly turned his head to look out the window. With a “pat,” he put down the scroll and quickly stood up to leave.
Since he had nothing else to do and it was getting late, he decided it would be best to personally go and escort his grandmother back.
Just as Wei Shao stepped out of the study, he heard faint voices of women coming from the end of the corridor leading to the bedroom, including Chun Niang’s voice.
Wei Shao retreated inside. He sat down again and finally finished reading the scroll in his hand. He rolled it up neatly and put it back in its original place before getting up and returning to the bedroom.
…
Xiao Qiao had followed Madam Xu to Jinlong Temple in the north of the city early in the morning.
In these tumultuous times, Buddhism, Taoism, and even shamanism and immortality cults were unprecedentedly prosperous. The Buddhist ceremony at Jinlong Temple lasted from morning until evening, with devout men and women listening attentively. Throughout the day, they only took a brief rest at noon. By now, not only was Zhu Shi’s mind elsewhere but even Xiao Qiao was feeling strained.
She secretly glanced at Madam Xu beside her. To her surprise, the older woman still appeared fully attentive, or at least her expression showed no signs of fatigue.
Finally, when the ceremony ended, Madam Xu offered incense oil and was respectfully seen off by the Buddhist master before they set out to return to the Wei mansion.
Having been out all day, Xiao Qiao had just changed out of her outer garments and was sitting at her dressing table, cleansing her face and removing her makeup while undoing her hair bun when the door behind her was pushed open. She turned her head to see Wei Shao entering.
She didn’t show any particular expression. Since her hair was only half undone, she didn’t stand up, but just smiled slightly at him and said in her usual tone, “My lord has returned? Please wait a moment, and I’ll help you change your clothes.”
Wei Shao walked in and stopped a few steps behind her. His gaze fell on her face reflected in the bronze mirror. He waved his hand, and the few maids originally surrounding Xiao Qiao all stood up, bowed to Wei Shao, and then left the room.
Wei Shao came to stand behind Xiao Qiao, knelt, and reached out to remove a golden hairpin from her bun.
Immediately, her black hair cascaded down like a waterfall. Wei Shao’s other hand opened to catch it, grasping a bundle of cool, smooth black hair in his palm, slowly rubbing it a few times.
Wei Shao’s body was tall and imposing, and as they sat front and back like this, he was still a full head taller than her.
Xiao Qiao didn’t turn around or move, she just raised her eyes to look at Wei Shao sitting behind her in the bronze mirror.
The surface of the bronze mirror was polished as smooth as water, clearly reflecting the two faces, one in front and one behind. Even the individual hairs of his eyebrows could be seen clearly.
Wei Shao brought the handful of black hair to his nose and inhaled deeply. His lips then moved to her ear, whispering, “I only returned at dusk. I held a family banquet to welcome your brother.”
Xiao Qiao lowered her eyes and softly responded, “Mm, I found out when I returned.”
Wei Shao then grasped her waist with both hands, turning her entire body like a doll to face him. He lowered his head, his lips touching her forehead, which was as pure as moonlight, and slowly moved downward.
His lips were slightly dry, and when they touched her soft cheeks, which had just been moistened with water, it created a slightly rough, sandy sensation.
He took her two arms and placed them on his shoulders, looking into her eyes and commanding her to hold tight to his neck.
Xiao Qiao’s eyelashes trembled slightly, and she closed her eyes.
She felt her body lighten as he lifted her into the air.
…
In reality, they had only been apart for two nights.
But Xiao Qiao could sense his urgency. It was as if he hadn’t touched her for a very long time.
Unlike his usual forceful manner, tonight he seemed to have a hint of trying to please her. Although she could feel his urgency, he didn’t immediately force their union. He waited until she was gradually aroused by his caresses, her face flushed and her breathing becoming soft pants, before he took her.
Throughout the entire process, Xiao Qiao kept her eyes closed most of the time. She felt a bit dizzy, but her entire body was very comfortable. In the end, it was as if a warm current washed over her, causing her whole body to shiver slightly and her toes to curl tightly.
It could even be said that this was the best experience she had had since becoming his wife.