When Xue Rui heard that Jiang Miya personally sent an invitation to Yu Shu, his expression was a little strange. Seeing that she specially went to pick out a gift today, he didn't know how to explain it to her.
Madam Wei, who quietly entered the capital, unexpectedly held a big birthday banquet. It could be said that she had ulterior motives. It was said that with Princess Chang Shu's presence, many prestigious families in Anling City accepted the invitation and made sure to bring young ladies of suitable age from their residences. Even their Xue Residence was no exception. The day before yesterday, his grandfather even called him over and told him to bring Jinxun.
Xue Rui would never let his precious sister marry to Ningdong City, which was far away from Tianhan, even if he had a good relationship with Prince of Dongjing. Xue Lingnan obviously had the same intention. Xue Jinxun's family background was good, but with her appearance and temperament, Madam Wei would not like her. So it was a good thing to bring her along.
But Ah Shu … Xue Rui hoped that he was overthinking and that Jiang Miya invited her on a whim and not with ulterior motives.
"Big Brother, you have met Madam Wei before. Help me decide which set of red crystals or purple crystals is suitable to give away?" Yu Shu opened two square brocade boxes. On the soft velvet cloth laid out were a full set of crystal jewelry of two colors. There were hairpins, nails, earrings, bracelets, pendants, and rings. There were a total of six pieces. The luster of the jewelry and the craftsmanship of the carving were all rare and very presentable.
Xue Rui put his mind at ease and smiled at her, "Madam Wei is from the prestigious Wang family of Shandong. Her birth mother was the late Emperor's sister, Princess Yao Guang. She married the previous Prince of Dongjing and lived far away in Ningdong for thirty years. She does not care about trifles and is magnanimous and dignified. The red set is too sharp, so choose this set of purple."
Yu Shu nodded. If not for Xue Rui telling her, she would not have known that Jiang Miya's mother was the cousin of the current Emperor.
"I will listen to you." Yu Shu put away the purple set and took the red set outside. She instructed Xu Qing to send it back to the treasure house so that she wouldn't forget it later.
After saying a few more words, the corner of her mouth twitches in pain. Yu Shu hurriedly takes a cup of tea and drinks it. Xue Rui sees her secretly gritting her teeth on the way back. He only thinks that she is suffering from the wind while sitting on the horse. Now he feels something is wrong and asks:
"What happened to your mouth?"
Yu Shu got angry at the mention of this. She gulped down a few mouthfuls of tea and said, "I've been suffering from internal heat for the past two days. My mouth has blisters, and it hurts whenever I speak."
When Xue Rui heard this, he reached out to pinch her chin and said, "Let me see."
Yu Shu tried to dodge but failed. She could only open her mouth to let him see. Just inside the corner of her mouth, Xue Rui saw it at a glance. Two sesame-sized fire bubbles, white from the heat, and close to each other. No wonder she bared her teeth.
"You have internal heat. Have you taken your medicine?"
Yu Shu said guiltily, "No." He frowned and got up to go outside. He called Gui Qi and gave some instructions. After a while, she saw the cook Xiuqing wiping her hands and coming to the door. She didn't even take off her apron.
"Miss, what's wrong?" Xiuqing invited Yu Shu to the couch and sat down to feel her pulse. She looked at her mouth ulcers and turned to Xue Rui and said, "Don't worry, young master. It's okay. I'll go ahead to write a prescription and ask Gui Qi to get the medicine."
Xue Rui nodded and said, "Change to a few light dishes for lunch. Remove the fish and shrimp soup and stew some soup to relieve internal heat. Serve it after the meal."
Xiu Qing agreed one by one, then hurriedly left. She was the head chef of this Wang Ji Restaurant. Without her, the kitchen would be in chaos for even a moment.
Xue Rui didn't hide it from her. Yu Shu already knew that the people working in Wang Ji Restaurant were all capable people. The cook knew how to treat illnesses and get medicine. The people who swept the floor and sprinkled water were all martial arts masters. Once, when she woke up early, she saw the usually naive Ah Ping holding a broom. He stepped on the wall and flew to the roof of the third floor to sweep the fallen leaves. She was so shocked that she held back her urine.
She really didn't know where Xue Rui recruited these weirdos. She never asked him, but hid this curiosity in her heart.
After closing the door, Xue Rui came back and sat beside her. He stared at her for a while and suddenly sighed. He reached out and pulled her into his arms. He said in a low voice, "What can't you discuss with me? Why do you have to be anxious alone? You, you're too competitive. "
She was not a broad-minded person. For her to be so angry without any reason, she must have encountered something troubling her. It was also his fault. These days, he couldn't let go of the knot in his heart. He intentionally or unintentionally avoided seeing her.
Yu Shu hadn't been close to him for a long time, so she was a little shy. But when she heard his gentle voice, she couldn't bear to push him away. She put her hands on his knees and leaned against his shoulder.
"I can solve it myself. Why should I trouble you?"
She didn't say it, but don't think that she didn't care about him. The official business of the Supreme Court was much busier than that of the Celestial Commissioner. She only needed to sit and work every day. Once he encountered a case, he had to run around. He had to listen to trials in court and torture in prison. Wasn't it more tiring than her?
Moreover, she didn't dare to tell him about the embarrassing thing that happened at Assistant Minister Yin's residence.
In the end, Xue Rui didn't ask her. He hugged her shoulder and temporarily solved his yearning for a few days. When he heard the knock on the door, he let go. Yu Shu quickly sat up and tidied her hair. Only then did she call for someone to come in and serve the dishes.
She was deceiving herself. She didn't know that the people of Wangji Tower had already guessed the relationship between the two of them. They were just willing to be blind.
In the blink of an eye, it was the day of Madame Wei's birthday. Yu Shu didn't have a rest today. In the morning, she went to Kun Ling Bureau as usual and approved a few documents before leaving.
Because she wanted to return to the residence to change, she didn't make an appointment with Xue Rui.
A little before noon, Yu Shu's sedan chair arrived at Huating Street. The road ahead was blocked. Lu Hong asked her outside if she wanted to wait for a while or get down to walk.
Yu Shu thought that she wasn't a noble person, so she got down the sedan chair and waved at Abe Kuizo, who was riding a mule behind her. The child quickly got down and trotted forward.
"Master."
"Take the congratulatory gift and follow me."
The sedan chair bearers found a place to rest. Yu Shu took a maidservant and two guards through the streets that were congested with carriages and horses and arrived at the entrance of the Prince of Dongjing's residence.
The Jiang Family was a marquis with a different surname. They had been guarding outside for many years. This residence had been empty for many years, but it didn't seem to be in dire straits today. Bright red lanterns were hung up in broad daylight. A pair of white jade lions reclining in front of the door was scrubbed clean and specially tied with red silk around their necks. A scarlet carpet was laid on the doorstep and extended to the middle of the road. It was a festive scene.
The person welcoming the guests at the door wasn't an ordinary person. There were only women in the residence, so it wasn't appropriate for them to receive guests in the front yard. Thus, Madame Wei invited a cousin of Liu's clan, Duke of Guangping, Liu Deyong, to stand at the door.
Although the duke was almost forty years old, he had to call Madame Wei little aunt in terms of seniority.
When Yu Shu saw the unfamiliar face at the door, she cleverly took a few steps back. When other guests came forward to greet him, she realized that he was a second-rank duke. She led Abe Kuizi up the stairs, handed over the invitation, reported her name, and paid respects to the door god.
After the Duke of Guangping saw the invitation, he couldn't help but take note of it. He smiled amiably and said, "So this is Maid Yu. I didn't expect you to be so young. I've always loved to learn and be mysterious. I respect people like Maid Yu the most. When I send the invitation to your residence, you must come."
Yu Shu thought that he was just being polite, so she replied humbly. After entering the door, she was led to the backyard by a maidservant because she was a female guest. Along the way, she met a few familiar faces and exchanged pleasantries.
There was a man-made lake in the east of the garden of the Prince of Dongjing's mansion. There were pavilions on the lake, and the banquet was placed in the middle of the pavilions. There were no less than a hundred tables, and there were really a lot of people.
Yu Shu was invited to a table in the middle. Before she sat down, she looked around for traces of Xue Rui. Yesterday, Xue Rui asked her to help the aunt of the Xue family bring Xue Jin to the banquet. Today, Xue Rui stayed in the front yard and asked Yu Shu to take care of his younger sister.
Yu Shu was duty-bound. Xue Rui's younger sister was also her younger sister.
She was looking at others, but someone behind her saw her first. Xin Liu and Situ Qinglan were sitting together, separated by two carved railings. Xin Liu pointed to the east and said,
"Lanlan, look, isn't that the lotus house?"
Situ Qinglan turned her head, and the smile on her face faded a little. She said, "It seems to be her."
Xin Liu pulled her and said, "Let's go, let's go find her."
Situ Qinglan sat still and persuaded her, "The banquet is about to start, don't run around."
Xin Liu was reluctant. Her mother was sitting on the side, talking to Mrs. Qin and couldn't care about her. Qin Yuerou was also there. If she didn't take this chance to find the lotus house, she wouldn't be able to escape when the banquet started.
"Forget it, if you don't want to go, I'll go."
"Wait, look." Situ Qinglan pulled her and pointed to Yu Shu. They saw a tall girl wearing a fiery red beard and a fiery red crown stride towards Yu Shu and affectionately put her arm around her shoulder. The two talked and laughed as they went to the main table together.
They all knew who the fiery girl was. She was Prince of Dongjing Jiang Huaiying's younger sister, the pearl of Madam Wei, Princess Chunwei, Jiang Miya.
"Sit down," Situ Qinglan sneered and said to Xin Liu, "How can she see us?"
Xin Liu pouted and sat down. She turned her head and stared at Situ Qinglan, "What do you mean by that?"
Situ Qinglan shook her head and didn't say anything.
Xin Liu was stubborn and said in a low voice, "Don't think I don't know. You're blaming her for not going to your birthday celebration. I told you long ago that she's in the government office. She must be so busy that she forgot. You didn't go and ask her, so you're blaming her first."
Situ Qinglan's face stiffened. She wanted to refute but couldn't say anything. She could only smile bitterly and look up at Yu Shu's back. She couldn't tell if she was sad or envious.
It was her birthday in late July. She had invited Yu Shu early, and she had promised to come. Who knew that on that day, Yu Shu wouldn't come even after waiting for a long time. After that, her cousins in the family laughed at her behind her back. How could she feel good?
"Alright, don't think too much. We'll find a chance to ask her later." Xin Liu thought that she understood Yu Shu and didn't want Situ Qinglan to misunderstand her.
While the two were talking, Yu Shu had already been led by Jiang Miya to greet Madam Wei and introduced her.
"Mother, this is the Miss Yu I mentioned to you before. She's the first friend I made in the capital. You can call her Lotus Fang."
She didn't mention Yu Shu's official position or her title. She just casually brought her to Madam Wei.
Madame Wei glared at her daughter before turning around and smiling kindly at Yu Shu. She said, "My daughter isn't particular about etiquette. It must have been hard for you to play with her. You must have suffered a lot from her. Good child, do you have a small name? Or should I call you Lianfang?"
Yu Shu agreed, "Madam can call me Lotus Fang."
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