On the second day after the Hibiscus Banquet, Yu Shu's house in the south of the city welcomed her first visitor.
She didn't want to return home, so she stayed at Wangji Lou. She wanted to hide in peace, but someone found her the next day.
In a private room on the second floor, Yu Shu was leaning against a rattan chair with one leg curled up. She was flipping through a rare edition of the "Spirit Chess Scripture" that Xia Jiangmin had previously copied for her. There was a small square table next to her, with half a plate of green grapes and a plate full of grape skins.
"… My grandfather asked me to invite you to our house as a guest tomorrow. He said he wanted to thank you in person for saving me in Xuan Chun Garden."
Xin Liu awkwardly sat on the chair opposite Yu Shu, passing the message on behalf of the elders in the family.
Yu Shu looked up at her with a smile on her face: "When I saved you, didn't your ancestor give me a copy of Qiao Qiao and Rare Objects? How long has it been? Do you still want to thank me again?"
If it was someone else who was invited by the master of the Xin family, such as Celestial Commissioner Xin Zuo, to be a guest, they would immediately agree.
But Yu Shu wasn't someone else. She was a female fortune teller, and her value had increased exponentially. She was a master of changing her body from white to white. To put it bluntly, she was like a fragrant and piping hot bowl of red braised pork. If it was placed in front of a group of people who had never eaten fish before, who wouldn't want to come closer to smell it and take a bite?
Today, Xin Zuo invited her, and tomorrow, he would invite her to Taixi Lou for tea.
This Xin Zuo Gui was really uninteresting. It was clear that he came for her Death Sentence Strange Technique, but he still found a dignified excuse to order Xin Liuer around.
Xin Liu scratched his head. He also felt that his grandfather's excuse was too fake, so he might as well tell the truth. "Father called me over to ask about you, and also wanted me to bring you back. I was also afraid that he would have designs on that strange technique of yours, so I especially repeated what you said at the Hibiscus Banquet. Grandfather promised me that he wouldn't ask about your secret, so I agreed to look for you."
After that, he looked at Yu Shu eagerly, waiting for her reply.
Yu Shu put down the book and sat cross-legged. She asked her, "Don't you get anything out of this trip?"
Xin Liu blushed a little and said in a small voice: "Grandfather said, if you are willing to come, you must give me the two Longevity Beads that he treasures. Those are my Fifth Brother's treasured items, I will exchange them with him for some small toys."
Hearing her honest confession, Yu Shu was not angry. After thinking for a while, she said straightforwardly,
"Okay, I'll go with you. Tomorrow, I'll go to Taishi Library first. I'll look for you after class."
Xin Liu was delighted to hear this. He twisted his body and sat next to Yu Shu. He hooked his arm and said intimately,
"Lotus Room, you're so kind. Tomorrow, I'll have the mansion prepare good food and drinks to entertain you."
Yu Shu pinched her round cheeks. After talking for a while, Xin Liu happily went back to report on the completion of the mission.
As soon as she left, Yu Shu calmed down. At this critical moment, she agreed to visit the Xin Family. On the one hand, it was because of Xin Liu. On the other hand, it was for her own consideration.
Although she clearly stated the interests of the "Death Severing Magic Art" at the banquet, there would still be a large group of people who did not give up. Among these people, some were easy to get rid of, and some were not. She could not always hide from them.
With Xin Liu's relationship, the Xin family would not do anything outrageous. She could use this trip to review their attitude and spread the news through the mouths of the Xin family. If she met someone in the future, at least there would be a precedent and it would not be difficult.
In the evening, when Xue Rui came back, he heard Yu Shu mention Xin Liu's invitation. He knew that she accepted. After thinking for a while, he said,
"It's good for you to go. But I have something to tell you about Left Judge Xin's character."
"Big brother, please speak."
"Xin Ya has held the position of the Celestial Commissioner's Left Judge for ten years. It's not that she doesn't have any methods. Ji Huaishan, you have seen it. To be able to become a high ranking official like the Celestial Commissioner, which one of them is not a schemer? My second aunt is a daughter of the Xin family. Although the two fu are in-laws, they are not close. Do you know why?"
Xue Rui answered his own question: "That is because the Ninth Prince is away from the capital. He thought himself clever and went to get close to the Seventh Prince. Grandfather does not like him being two-faced, so they rarely interact. This is to tell you privately. A few months ago, he helped Ning Wang to trip up Jing Wang. His Majesty is still angry. "
Yu Shu raised her eyebrows. She thought that Xin Liu was a good bamboo shoot. Why did it sound like her grandfather was a bad bamboo?
"I'm telling you this because I want you to be careful. When you see him tomorrow, don't be fooled by his kind face." Xue Rui patted Yu Shu's shoulder and went into the inner room to change.
Yu Shu remembered his reminder. At first, she didn't really think much of it. She wasn't a real little girl. How could she not distinguish between good and bad?
But when she saw Xin Ya the next day, she realized that Xue Rui's reminder at this time was very necessary.
On the ninth day of the sixth month, Yu Shu returned to Taishi Shu Garden for class. In the morning, there were many people in the garden. She did not deliberately take the small path and received a lot of attention along the way. She arrived safely at Xushui Tang where Fang Zijing was lecturing. It was inevitable that some 'tails' followed behind her.
But strangely, on the way, no one dared to come forward to strike up a conversation.
Situ Qinglan had already reserved a seat for her. When she sat down, she looked at the figures lingering outside the door and said to her:
"I thought you wouldn't come today."
Yu Shu put down the pen, ink and books and joked with her: "I'm afraid that Academician Fang will be angry and remove me from the list."
All the affairs of Taishi Shu Garden were decided by the eighteen academicians. For those who were disobedient and stubborn, the academicians could remove them from the list at any time and never teach them again. This was a punishment second only to dropping out of school.
"Grandfather won't do that." Situ Qinglan winked at her and whispered: "You cherish it now."
The two talked in a low voice. More than a dozen people in the same hall wanted to talk, but they couldn't find the right time. It was because Yu Shu rarely interacted with these people, so everyone felt that she was not easy to get close to.
After a while, Fang Zijing arrived. Seeing a group of people outside the door, none of them were his students. He angrily drove them away. When he entered the door, he didn't even look at Yu Shu.
When the class was over, the sloppily dressed old man hurried away with his books again. From beginning to end, he didn't show any extra attention to Yu Shu, which made Yu Shu puzzled.
Fang Zijing, who was proficient in all kinds of magic, should be the one who was most interested in her.
After class, Yu Shu found Xin Liu who had been waiting for a long time at the front door of Taishi Shu Garden and went to Xin's house with him.
It was not the first time she came to Xin's house. Yu Shu came to Xin Liu's hairpin ceremony, so she went back to the side courtyard. Today, Xin Liu directly took her to the main room.
Yu Shu met the current Old Master of Xin's family in the tea room of the main room of Xin's house, Xin Ya, a left judge of the fourth rank.
Before coming, she had imagined what Xin Ya looked like. But when she saw him in person, she couldn't help being stunned.
This is Xin Liu's grandfather? Are you sure he's not Xin Laowu, who sold fans in the south of the city, who changed his clothes and bleached his hair?
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
