"Seventh Senior Brother!"
Jing Chen caught the young girl who had pounced on his chest and took a step back to steady himself. He looked down and said in surprise, "Shui, Shui Yun?"
The young girl in his arms raised her head, her fair face full of joy. The corners of her moist eyes were a little red, and her soft voice had a little grievance as she called out, "Senior Brother, I missed you so much."
Yu Shu stood beside the two of them. Her gaze moved from the unknown young girl's arm around Jing Chen's waist to Jing Chen's hand on her shoulder, and then the two of them looking at each other. She gently raised her eyebrows and had a guess about the young girl's identity. She coughed and cleared her throat, breaking the atmosphere of reunion without hesitation, "Jing Chen, who is this young girl?"
Hearing this, the young girl seemed to realize that there was someone else in the room. She hurriedly let go of Jing Chen, pushed his chest and took a step back. She lowered her head and wiped the corners of her eyes with her sleeve.
"This is my junior sister, Shui Yun." Jing Chen answered Yu Shu, then turned to look at the young girl in front of him. He frowned slightly and asked her, "Why did you come down the mountain? Do Uncle-Master and Master know?"
Shui Yun hurriedly nodded and said, "They know. Father allowed me to come down the mountain to find you. If you don't believe me, you can ask Chong. Jing Chen looked at Liu Tan who was sitting by the table.
Liu Tan testified, "It was Zhenren Huai Yun who asked me to bring little Shigu down the mountain."
Jing Chen was puzzled, "Then why didn't I hear you mention it when I was living in the palace these days?"
Liu Tan looked at Shui Yun who was winking at him and said with a wry smile, "It was little Shigu who didn't allow me to talk about it."
"Chong Yun!" Shui Yun scolded him. Seeing Jing Chen's confused gaze, she lowered her head and said embarrassedly, "Senior Brother, you finally got to see your family. I think you must have many things to ask the Emperor. I don't want you to be distracted, so I told Zhongyun to hide it from you …"
As she said this, she raised her head and looked at him who was unharmed. Her eyes reddened. "I heard from Chong Yun that you encountered bad people on the road and lost your memory. Thank goodness, thank goodness you are safe and sound."
Jing Chen's expression softened. He raised his hand and gently placed it on the top of her head. He said gently, "I've made you worry again."
Shui Yun bit her lips and slowly raised her hand to grab the corner of his sleeve.
Yu Shu quietly watched this pair of brothers and sisters interact as if there was no one else around. Her eyes flashed, but this time she didn't say anything to disturb them. Instead, she turned around and walked to the table. She bowed to Liu Tan and greeted, "Ninth Highness, I apologize for my lack of manners just now."
Liu Tan waved his hand and said, "It's nothing. Miss Lianfang, please sit."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
As soon as Yu Shu sat down, a cup of tea was handed to her hand. The tea was glistening and still had water vapor rising from it.
"This is the flower tea freshly picked this month. It's sweet and not bitter.
She tilted her head to look at Xue Rui. She picked up the cup of tea and sniffed it. As expected, it had a light fragrance. It wasn't the bitter tea she wasn't used to drinking.
"Thank you." She took a small sip. The taste wasn't bad.
Xue Rui looked at Jing Chen and Shui Yun who were standing next to the screen and talking in low voices. He withdrew his gaze and said to Yu Shu, "It seems that His Majesty's imperial edict has arrived. How is it? Are you satisfied with the reward?"
Yu Shu smiled and said, "I can't hide anything from you." Thinking of the box of gold ingots, her mood improved for some reason.
Liu Tan, who was sitting to the side, said, "Of course I can't hide it from him. This is the —" He suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
Yu Shu curiously asked, "What is it?"
Someone stepped on his foot under the table. Liu Tan had no choice but to change his words, "This is what you deserve."
Without waiting for Yu Shu to think about his incoherent words, Xue Rui opened his mouth and asked her, "Have you eaten? I ordered some food and wine. Do you want to eat some more?"
Yu Shu nodded. Just now, she was in her room reading Xia Mingming's letter and didn't eat much.
She couldn't help but turn her head to look in Jing Chen's direction. After thinking for a bit, she asked Liu Tan, "May I ask Your Highness, does your sect also have female disciples?"
She had always thought that Daoist priests were all male, but Jing Chen clearly said that Shui Yun was his junior sister. Obviously, they were from the same sect. This was strange.
Hearing this, Xue Rui and Liu Tan both laughed. The latter explained to her, "Of course there are. Daoism and Buddhism are different. Both men and women can cultivate and pursue the Great Way. Daoists pay attention to letting nature take its course and nothing can be forced. Therefore, many Daoist sects allow their disciples to get married and have children. Unlike Buddhism, who insist on the purity of the six senses and cut off the mortal world."
"So that's how it is. I've learned a lot." Yu Shu cupped her hands towards Liu Tan.
At this time, the pair of brother and sister also finished speaking. When Yu Shu looked up, she saw Shui Yun walking over and stopping in front of her. She lowered her head and clasped her hands together, bowed to her, and said gratefully, "Miss Yu, thank you for saving my Seventh Senior Brother and protecting him all the way. Shui Yun can't thank you enough. In the future, I will definitely repay your great kindness."
Yu Shu looked at her and then looked at Jing Chen, who was standing behind her. Seeing that his expression was normal after listening to her thanks, she smiled faintly and stood up. She raised her hand to support her junior sister and said, "There's no need to do this. Jing Chen also saved my life. If you want to talk about repayment, he has already done so."
Shui Yun straightened up and looked at Yu Shu. A smile suddenly appeared on her tranquil face, "Senior Brother is right. You really are a good person."
"…" Yu Shu was speechless. She thought that this pair of brother and sister were indeed from the same sect. They both didn't know how to read the situation. How did she look like a good person? Was it written on her forehead or was it written on her face?
"Alright, if you have anything to say, sit down and talk. It just so happens that we met here today, and there's nothing else to do. Take your time and talk." Xue Rui raised his hand and motioned for them to sit down and talk.
Shui Yun sat down next to Yu Shu and patted her other side, indicating for Jing Chen to sit down. She reached out for the teapot and teacup, poured water for him, and watched him drink the tea with a smile. When he finished drinking, she spoke to him, "Senior Brother, have you eaten?"
"I have."
"The food here is better than the food on the mountain, right?"
"Yes."
"Is it as good as the food I make?"
"Hehe, Senior Brother, you're still the same, pretending to be mute when you can't answer."
Yu Shu sat next to them, listening to their questions and answers. Suddenly, she felt a little unhappy. This feeling was like she had spent a lot of effort to solve a difficult problem. Only after a long time did she realize that this problem had been solved by someone a long time ago. She was not the first person to discover this problem, nor was she the first person to try to solve it.
She shook her head, dispelling this ridiculous thought. She raised her cup to drink tea, but found that the cup was empty. Just as she was about to take the teapot, she heard someone beside her say in a low voice, "If you want to eat later, don't drink too much tea. Otherwise, you'll have a stomachache during dinner."
Although Xue Rui was talking to Liu Tan, he did not forget to pay attention to Yu Shu's movements. Seeing that she drank three or four cups of water and still wanted to pour, he stopped her.
"Oh." Yu Shu withdrew her hand and leaned to the side. She might as well listen to Xue Rui and Liu Tan's conversation. With this distraction, she no longer cared about what the two of them were talking about.
"This year's Double Yang Gathering will definitely be very lively. Not only will the Southern Head's Xia Jiang Clan be in the capital, I just heard the day before yesterday that the Sixth Young Master of the Wenchen Clan is also participating in the Da Yan Examination. I wonder if they will come and cause trouble."
"Cousin, don't worry. With the Xin Clan's Great Exchange Shop and my Xiao Shigu, even if I don't win this time's Double Yang Gathering, I won't make a fool of myself."
Yu Shu heard them mention the "Double Yang Gathering" a few times. Curious, she interrupted: "Big Brother, what is the Double Yang Gathering?"
Xue Rui and Liu Tan looked at each other, then turned to her and explained: "Every year that there is a Da Yan Examination, starting from the Dragon Festival on the second day of the second month, there will be a grand gathering in the city of An Ling. It will last for forty-nine days. It is organized by the imperial court, and all the major exchange shops in the capital will participate. Merchants from all clans will gather there to compete. Whoever can come out on top will be bestowed with the golden plaque of 'The World's Best Shop' by the Emperor. It is a glorious event. It is called the 'Double Yang Gathering'."
Yu Shu looked at Liu Tan and asked in confusion: "Then why did His Highness say earlier? Are you going as well?"
Liu Tan faintly smiled, but didn't answer her. At this time, a servant knocked on the door and brought the dishes and wine. The topic stopped there. Yu Shu could see that he didn't want to talk to her more, so she tactfully didn't ask again. It was just that in this moment of silence, she heard the voice on the other side.
"Senior Martial Brother, try this. I ate it the last time I was here. It's not greasy at all."
"And this, it should suit your taste."
"Senior Martial Brother, let me help you fill the soup."
Jing Chen looked at the small mountain of plates and bowls in front of him. His chopsticks stopped in mid-air and he didn't know where to start. He had eaten lunch with Yu Shu before, so he was already full. In fact, he didn't have an appetite now. He didn't want to force himself to eat, but he also didn't want to brush off her good intentions.
Yu Shu glanced at Jing Chen's embarrassed look and secretly laughed. 'Serves you right.' She rolled her eyes and reached out to pick up a big and fat chicken leg. She passed Shui Yun and steadily piled it on top of Jing Chen's bowl. When he looked at her, she smiled sweetly at him: "Here you are. Don't you like eating chicken legs the most? Eat more."
Hearing this, Shui Yun was very puzzled: "Senior Martial Brother, when did you like eating chicken legs?" If she remembered correctly, her Seventh Senior Martial Brother rarely ate meat all year round, let alone chicken drumsticks. Jing Chen looked at the chicken drumstick on the bowl and thought of something. There was a smile in his eyes. He moved his chopsticks and picked it up. "Hmm." He put it into his mouth.
Yu Shu bowed her head and smiled. The dissatisfaction in her heart disappeared. She didn't know that her every move was seen by another man, and she couldn't ignore it.
Xue Rui shook the wine cup in his hand, and a figure was reflected in his eyes. He only felt that this fragrant and smooth Jinquan wine was a little astringent today. After drinking a cup, there was a bitter taste in his mouth. However, he liked this taste, so he could only drink one cup after another. When he was a little drunk, he suddenly thought of a sentence to describe himself: it was nothing more than asking for trouble.
The meal lasted until the afternoon. Jing Chen was going back to the palace, and Liu Tan happened to be going with him. Shui Yun was temporarily staying in Liu Tan's guesthouse, so they had to send her back first. Yu Shu didn't want to join in the fun, so she didn't go with them. Instead, she and Xue Rui sent the three of them to the back door.
Watching the two carriages leave one after another, Yu Shu turned around and said to Xue Rui: "Big Brother, I'm going upstairs to check the accounts of these days. What about you? Do you want to go somewhere else? "
Xue Rui touched his forehead with one hand and shook his head lazily: "I'm going back to my room to sleep. Call me when you're done checking the accounts."
Yu Shu saw that he was indeed drunk. She thought that he must be tired after handling cases for days, so she quickly waved her hand and said: "Then you go and rest quickly. I'll ask the kitchen to make you a hangover soup and send it to you later."
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