"It's you?"
Yu Shu had a good memory, especially when it came to people. Moreover, with Zhu Qingjue's appearance, it would be hard for her to forget him even if she only saw him once.
It was very easy for her to recognize that the handsome man in a green robe by Xue Rui's side was the chess player she'd met in the pergola at the corner of the garden after she'd been promoted in the Dual Yang Association and went to the Directorate of Astronomy to retrieve her brush.
Seeing the expression on Yu Shu's face, Xue Rui retracted his gaze from her and turned to look at Zhu Qingjue. He was a little surprised that these two people actually knew each other.
Zhu Qingjue did not care about the surrounding gazes. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Yu Shu for a moment. Suddenly, he smiled and turned back to meet Xue Rui's gaze.
"A beauty is indeed a beauty. I wonder if this beauty in front of me is also Lord Xue's sweetheart?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the surroundings went silent. Everyone present had heard Xue Rui's evaluation earlier, and those with discerning gazes were able to discern that his words were directed at Yu Shu who'd arrived late. So when Zhu Qingjue asked this question, it caused everyone to be unable to help but think too much.
Originally, the thoughts of men and women at the Hibiscus Gentlemen's Banquet were pardonable. Even if it was said, it would not be a laughing stock. At most, it would cause a few words of discussion.
Therefore, no one felt that Zhu Qingjue's sudden question was wrong.
However, the expressions of the two people involved, Xue Rui and Yu Shu, changed slightly. The former looked at the latter, and the latter frowned.
Xue Rui sighed in his heart. His face was impeccable. He walked to Yu Shu's side and stood beside her. He turned to Zhu Qingjue and sneered,
"Second Young Master Zhu, please be careful with your words. This is my sworn sister, Dayan Maiden, Yu Shu. Don't you know her?"
No one noticed that Jing Chen, who was being pestered by Zhan Xueyuan, moved his ears and looked back.
Hearing Xue Rui's explanation, Yu Shu heaved a sigh of relief. She glanced sideways at his dignified and handsome face and felt a little awkward in her heart.
They were clearly lovers, but they acted like thieves and couldn't let anyone know.
Zhu Qingjue obviously did not know where Yu Shu came from. When she heard this, she looked a little surprised. Her gaze changed, and she looked at Yu Shu.
"You're the female fortune-teller who's ranked third in two rankings?"
Most of the men and women present recognized Yu Shu, but there were also those from noble families who had only heard of her name but had never seen her before. Now that they knew the name of the beauty in white in front of them, they were as surprised as Zhu Qingjue.
Some people were puzzled.
He had heard that this new female fortune teller was a shrew who dared to challenge Han Wenguang, but he had never heard that she was such a rare beauty.
Yu Shu's first impression of Zhu Qingjue was mediocre. She didn't have a good impression of Zhu Qingjue at all. Thus, she nodded her head indifferently.
Seeing her attitude, Zhu Qingjue's interest in her eyes grew stronger.
"Hehe, so it's Yu Suanzi. It's my fault that I didn't recognize you when I saw you changed your clothes." A sweet laugh interrupted them.
Xi Wen held her beauty fan and moved two steps forward. She looked at Yu Shu, who was dressed in white and crystal, which highlighted her cold temperament. She secretly gritted her teeth.
She suggested that Xue Rui judge the beauty, but she didn't expect that Yu Shu came at the right time. Accompanied by Xue Rui's beauty theory, she stole all the limelight as soon as she appeared.
Accompanied by Xue Rui's beauty theory, Yu Shu successfully stole all the limelight as soon as she appeared. Instead, she, the main character, was left to the side and became a wallflower.
"Sister Zizhu, come and meet her. This is the one I mentioned to you before." Xi Wen waved at Rui Zizhu, who was also left out in the cold. She pointed at Yu Shu and introduced her to Rui Zizhu.
Rui Zizhu pursed her lips and looked at the woman who stood next to Xue Rui. She felt that the woman looked familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen her before. Because of Xi Wen's words, she was unhappy. However, due to her upbringing, she forced herself to smile at Yu Shu.
"Nice to meet you, Yu Suanzi."
She didn't know Yu Shu, and Yu Shu wasn't familiar with her either. She only remembered that they had met by chance in the Xin family's Big Exchange Shop. She didn't know that the Xue family and the Count's Mansion were privately discussing the marriage of their children. She also didn't know that this beautiful girl in front of her was Xue Rui's grandfather's granddaughter-in-law.
"This is?" Yu Shu didn't know how to address Xue Rui, so she turned to ask Xue Rui.
Xue Rui didn't even blink and said to her: "This is the daughter of Count Zhongyong's Mansion, Miss Rui. You know Rui Lin. This is his sister."
Yu Shu nodded and greeted Rui Zizhu. She was too lazy to pay attention to the pretentious Xi Wen. Fortunately, she didn't have to bow to a princess because of her status as a fourth-rank female fortune teller.
At this moment, the spectators nearby saw that there was no more excitement, so they dispersed in twos and threes.
"The banquet is about to start. Lord Xue, don't forget the bet with me." Zhu Qingjue threw a sentence at Xue Rui and glanced at Yu Shu. Then she flung her sleeves and strode away.
Xin Liu anxiously moved forward, "Lotus Room, let's go over there to talk."
Yu Shu looked at Xue Rui. Xue Rui warmly smiled and said: "Go, don't go too far. Guifei niangniang and Wangfei should be arriving soon."
"En."
The two often saw each other in private. There were too many people tonight, so it wasn't suitable for them to be together.
Xin Liu pulled Yu Shu to the side, his eyes shining as he looked her up and down. He first stared at her face for a long time, as if it was the first day he knew her.
"Quickly look, I almost didn't recognize you. I say, Lotus Room, did you change your face?"
Before going out, Yu Shu looked in the mirror and knew that tonight's makeup was really brilliant. Her facial features were delicate, but her eyebrows were too light, the bridge of her nose was too straight, and the shape of her lips was not plump and delicate.
But under her suggestion and the skillful hands of Rouge Lady, these flaws were corrected. She raised the end of her eyebrows, raised the corner of her eyes, and drew the line of her lips. After a careful grooming, she turned the rotten into the magical. Her original five points of beauty were increased by ten points.
Xin Liu was curious enough and turned his attention to other parts of her body. He clicked his tongue and tilted his head to Miss Ning,
"What's the value of the purple jade bracelet? What's there to see with the hibiscus jade? Have you seen what she is wearing? Ning 'er, let me tell you, these are all treasures. Just the white crystal bead in my hand is envied by everyone who has seen it. There are many people who are willing to pay money to buy it. Even this can't be obtained. She dares to make such a complete set with great fanfare. It's purely because she is afraid that people won't be jealous and impatient. "
Miss Ning is a rich young lady who has seen the world. She gets closer and looks at the whole set of gem carvings on Yu Shu's body. She is even more amazed.
The string of sparkling and translucent gemstones woven into Yu Shu's hair was actually made up of many delicate and small hibiscus flowers with different postures, and countless round and flat hibiscus lotus leaves were connected together.
What was even more amazing was the cinnabar-like redness on her forehead. It was actually a fingertip-sized red lotus carved into dozens of petals, imprinted on her forehead and eyebrows, glistening with every frown and smile of hers.
Then there are the pink, white, gold, and red on her ears, neck, wrists, and waist. They are all shaped with water lotuses, hibiscus flower bones, and cold fragrance. Each of them is a rare treasure she has never seen before.
"You are right. I am afraid that no one will be jealous."
Yu Shu glances at Xin Liu with a smile. She holds her hair with one hand and rotates her sore neck. She is happily thinking that after the Hibiscus Gentlemen's Banquet, she will give the set of jewelry she is wearing tonight to Pei Jing and resell it. What kind of sky-high price will she be able to get?
Not to mention that she was a money-grubber, she was really short of money these days. Yi Xue was a profession that burned a lot of money. If she couldn't make ends meet, how was she going to support her family? She had to take care of her parents and children.
After talking for a while, Yu Shu finds that Situ Qinglan is not there, so she asks Xin Liu.
"You mean Situ? She was with us just now," Xin Liu looks left and right, overlooking the bridge corridor, and points to Yu Shu, "Look, she is over there."
There are many shadows on the bridge. Yu Shu can't tell which is which. She takes a glance and passes. But when she turns her head, she meets a pair of eyes that are silently watching her. Her smile is halved. After a glance, she tilts her head to avoid it.
.....
Jing Chen looks at Yu Shu's slender figure from afar. His eyes and mind are filled with her shadow. He only feels that tonight she is very much like the water lotus fairy in the legendary story. She is indescribably beautiful, a side that he has never seen before.
Zhan Xueyuan stands beside Jing Chen and talks for a long time, but she doesn't get any response. She notices that Jing Chen is looking at something strange. She looks in the direction of his eyes. Without any effort, she is sure that where Jing Chen is looking at, there is also a white dress.
"That is … Yu Suanzi?"
Zhan Xueyuan doesn't have good eyesight like Jing Chen. She takes a hard look for a while. If she doesn't see Xin Liu beside her, she really can't recognize that it is Yu Shu.
Seeing Jing Chen nod, Zhan Xueyuan's eyes turn sour. She can't help muttering,
"What bad luck. There is still someone wearing white on such a happy day."
"…" Jing Chen lowered her head to look at herself. What entered her eyes was a spotless, fair skin.
"…" Zhan Xueyuan realizes that she said something wrong. She blushes in embarrassment.
"I, I am not talking about you. Academician Jing, don't misunderstand."
Jing Chen frowns. He puts on a serious face and says seriously,
"In Taoism, white is the best color. It is said to be simple and unadorned. The so-called white funeral among the people is just a Confucian practice. The origin of Yi and Taoism are actually of the same origin. Those who learn Yi are half a member of Taoism. You are also a descendant of an aristocratic family. Why do you follow the Confucian practice? "
Zhan Xueyuan is speechless after being lectured by him.
Jing Chen sees that she is dull and not clever at all. He knows that she is a common person who can't be enlightened. He shakes his head and doesn't want to talk to her. He turns around and walks away. He doesn't go far. He can see her just by turning his head.
Tonight, there are so many people, so it is easy for something to happen. Big Tiao has warned him to be careful of sneak attacks. He is also afraid that someone will die. So he has to keep an eye on Zhan Xueyuan, the target, in case she is killed.
.....
After a cup of tea, Xin Liu is still coaxing and pestering Yu Shu. After the banquet, he will take off the pink hibiscus flower bracelet from her hand and let her play with it for a few days.
Yu Shu is not moved at all. Instead, she promises a white crystal pendant to the good-tempered Miss Ning.
The night is completely open. It is a quarter past seven. Just when everyone is chatting, a loud voice suddenly comes from the Dingbo Lake. It is the eunuch who guards the east gate —
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