Zhu Jiayu, far away in Heling, was unaware of everything that was happening in Yujing City. At this moment, she looked down at the white jade lotus in front of her and could only recall the noble eyebrows and eyes of the young nobleman under the moonlight, just like the white jade lotus at his waist, exquisite and flawless.
She shook her head, ultimately defining it as a repayment.
She summarized the not-so-complicated story between her and Wei Qinglou in one sentence: "I saved that person's life without asking for anything in return, but he probably felt uneasy about it, so he gave me this jade pendant."
This is all the interaction between her and Wei Qinglou. If nothing unexpected happens, their paths will likely only cross this line in their lives.
Her eyes were deep and her expression sincere as she spoke. She did not shy away from Qiu Lingyan's probing gaze, and it was easy to tell whether she was telling the truth or not.
Qiu Lingyan found it boring and smiled, "This is a good thing. This lotus jade pendant is beautiful and suits you well."
As they talked, they arrived at White Deer Mountain.
Qiu Zhuqing and the others got off the car one by one, with Zhu Jiayu being the last.
Because the academy's dean is taking the students to listen to a great Confucian scholar's lecture today, there are already many students dressed in blue robes at the foot of the mountain.
Song Yushan was among them.
He was talking with a few friends when suddenly his friend stopped talking. He turned his head to look in his direction, wondering what had happened.
Then, a girl with bright eyes and white teeth, pure and beautiful, stepped down from a carriage not far away.
At the foot of Bailu Mountain, on the horizon of azure sky, she walked out from the apricot blossoms and light rain, startling the light of the sky and the sea.
Song Yushan was the first to come to his senses, and then he heard the gasps of breath rising and falling around him.
"...So that's what 'beauty is in books' means," someone murmured.
"What's the meaning?"
"If we hadn't come to study at Bailu Academy, how would we have known that such a beautiful woman existed in the world?"
Song Yushan found it amusing, and then he saw a Song family carriage stop right next to the Qiu family carriage.
A young girl in a red dress lifted the carriage curtain, revealing delicate eyebrows and willow-leaf hair, with fair wrists like snow. Despite wearing red, she did not appear overtly flamboyant; instead, she exuded a captivating charm and elegance.
This is Song Jiangmei, the cousin of the Song family.
Someone nearby sighed inwardly, "Good heavens! What a wonderful day it is today! Even the Song family's cousin has come!"
Someone joked with Song Yushan: "Miss Song must have come to visit Young Master Song. It's just that our Bailu Academy is built too high. Even we find it difficult to climb up the mountain, let alone Miss Song, who is more beautiful than flowers. It's only because of today's perfect timing that we are able to see her."
Song Yushan smiled slightly, remained silent, and turned back to continue talking to his friend in front of him.
Qiu Songdao stood beside Zhu Jiayu, enjoying the envious glances from everyone for a while, before pulling Qiu Zhuqing toward the dean.
Qiu Lingyan and Zhu Jiayu stood far to the side, whispering to her, "Did you see that? That's Song Jiangmei over there. Don't let her pitiful appearance fool you, she's a very cunning vixen!"
She couldn't find anyone to say these things to before, and anyone who heard them would think she was jealous of Song Jiangmei and was therefore slandering her.
Now that Zhu Jiayu is here, she finally has someone to talk to.
After hearing her words, Zhu Jiayu went to look at Song Jiangmei and thought she was pretty, but he couldn't tell whether she was scheming or not.
Just then, Song Jiangmei's eyes met hers.
Zhu Jiayu smiled subconsciously, and Song Jiangmei smiled back. When she lowered her head again, she was already whispering to her personal maid: "I've never seen the girl next to Qiu San before."
Zhu Jiayu's beauty instilled in her a deep sense of crisis.
The maid glanced at Zhu Jiayu and said hesitantly, "I don't think I've ever heard of such a person in the city before."
"It's alright, we can find out about it later."
No matter what her background is, no one can stand in her way. Song Jiangmei lowered her head and thought to herself.
After talking with the dean for a while, Qiu Zhuqing returned to find her two younger sisters and said, "I asked the teacher, and he will be back at noon. Why don't you two go for a stroll in the street later, and then we can go to Yanxi Restaurant for lunch together?"
The two naturally agreed to meet, and after bidding farewell to the elder brother, they boarded the carriage and returned to Qingping Street.
Song Jiangmei glanced in the direction the Qiu family carriage had left before gracefully approaching Song Yushan.
She handed the food box to Song Yushan and said softly, "Cousin, I made apricot blossom cake at home. I brought it for you to try."
Song Yushan took it, his face stern and unsmiling, and said, "There are cooks and servants at home who make pastries, why should you do it yourself?"
In the past, Song Jiangmei would be frightened by Song Yushan's cold face. She was frail and sickly all year round. Everyone spoke softly and kindly in front of her, treating her like a delicate porcelain vase, afraid that they might break her if they were not careful.
She was used to being treated this way.
But as time went on, she realized that her cousin had always been such a cold person, treating everyone the same.
No, they're not the same.
My cousin is cold to everyone, but he's gentler around her. She's the one who's favored.
She smiled and said, "It's not tiring. I made quite a lot, so you can share it with your friend."
Song Yushan hummed in agreement: "Thank you. It's windy outside, so don't stay out too long. Go back early."
Song Jiangmei nodded, then looked at him without saying a word.
Song Yushan understood what she meant and said calmly, "I will be back at the end of the month."
With the provincial examination just over six months away, Song Yushan was determined to take it and was willing to put in the hard work. After arriving at the academy in the spring, he rarely returned home. Sometimes, when Madam Song missed him, she would send someone to the academy to invite him back.
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