The group then followed Yu Qinglan to her study, which was spacious enough to accommodate the dozen or so people attending the banquet without feeling cramped.
As soon as everyone entered, they saw a painting hanging on the wall. The painting depicted craggy rocks with a majestic air, and fragrant orchids and fine trees growing on the rocks, creating a delightful scene.
Someone chuckled, "Transforming heaviness into lightness, achieving a balance of meticulousness and ease—this must be the work of Mr. Chongguang! I've heard that Mr. Chongguang has long since retired from painting. His 'Travelogue,' a work from his youth, was recently purchased by the wealthy businessman Cheng Wu for an astronomical price. This 'Flowers and Longevity Rocks' is a masterpiece from his later, more mature period, showcasing his masterful ink techniques. Compared to 'Travelogue,' I'm afraid its price will be even higher, and its value even greater..."
The speaker swallowed hard, seemingly impressed by Yu Qinglan's courage.
After all, Yu Qinglan was not an expert in this field, but only had some interest. Yet she was able to spend an unimaginable amount of effort and even money to purchase such a work, which was truly amazing.
As they were talking, servants brought over an object with great fanfare: a porcelain vase shaped like a club. The shoulder, neck, and belly of the vase were painted with landscapes, figures, music, chess, calligraphy, painting, and scenes of labor in the four seasons, from spring plowing to autumn harvest. From the scenes to the flowers and trees, and even the expressions and clothing of the figures, everything was meticulously detailed and lifelike.
The third young lady from the Ministry of Personnel's residence tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled sweetly at everyone, saying:
"I apologize for making you all laugh. Since Sister Yu is so generous, I, as her younger sister, shouldn't keep it to myself. So I had a servant bring over the porcelain vase I bought from Qizhenlou last month. This vase is an artifact from the palace of the previous dynasty. The exquisite painting on it alone is enough to show its value."
At this point, she turned to look at Zhu Jiayu, let out a soft "Ah!" and said with annoyance, "Oh dear, I forgot, Sister Zhu grew up in Suiping, I'm afraid she doesn't know much about calligraphy and painting?"
Her actions seemed to be a signal, and soon servants from various mansions carried valuable items to the Yu mansion, ranging from large screens and purple clay teapots to small bonsai and jade ruyi. Even the young ladies who had forgotten about this event turned their heads to find their personal maids and asked them to go back to their mansions to find treasures to send to the Yu mansion. In any case, they wanted to let Zhu Jiayu, this country bumpkin, see the world.
...
Jiang Mansion.
"Hurry up, hurry up! If the young lady loses face, let's see who can take the blame!"
A maid with her hair styled in two buns stood in the courtyard, hands on her hips, bossing the servants around.
Two servants carefully carried a potted coral tree. The fiery red coral was without any impurities or discoloration, and under the sunlight, it appeared even more dazzling and beautiful, almost to the point of being blinding.
Jiang Shaoxing put down the book in his hand, stood up from under the eaves, stepped out of the shadows, and coldly raised his eyes: "What's going on?"
The young man had a somber expression. Behind him were the shadows of houses and eaves, and in front of him was the cold, clear light of September. He had handsome features and a straight lip line, and was a well-known figure in the capital city, a man of exceptional talent and elegance.
The maidservant was startled to see him so suddenly. After hurriedly bowing, she carefully replied, "Miss is attending a banquet at the Yu residence. All the young ladies sent over precious items for appraisal and evaluation. Miss forgot about this and asked me to have someone move the red coral from her room over there..."
She was kneeling slightly bent, and since she hadn't heard the young master's voice, she didn't dare to get up and raise her head, and remained in the bowing posture.
The servants carrying the red coral stopped and bowed, not daring to show the slightest disrespect.
...Although they had delayed Miss Biao's affairs and angered her, they would not feel good. However, when Miss Biao lashed out, it was at least much gentler than the young master's methods of punishment, and it would not kill them.
Thinking this, the group lowered their heads even further, not daring to utter a sound, silently praying that the young master would have mercy and let them leave for the Yu residence soon.
"banquet?"
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
The maid breathed a sigh of relief and spilled everything she knew, such as who was attending the banquet that day and the purpose of preparing these treasures...
Jiang Shaoxing's expression remained indifferent as he listened quietly without uttering a word.
The maid mustered her courage and secretly glanced at him. In that one glance, she felt that the man in front of her, although still the young master, seemed to be a completely different person. His eyes looked like he wanted to devour people. If she had to describe it, the maid lowered her head and felt that he was like the terrifying and wicked demon Rakshasa described in Buddhist scriptures.
"Okay, you can go now."
Jiang Shaoxing finally spoke calmly, and the maids and servants hurriedly bowed their heads in agreement and left the courtyard.
However, instead of returning to study under the eaves, he ordered his men to prepare a horse and galloped to the Yu residence. He then used the excuse of asking Lord Yu for advice on his writings to enter the mansion.
...
"Cousin, you've come all of a sudden, is there something you need?"
When Xu Yuanrui heard from the servants of the Yu family that her cousin had arrived, her first reaction was disbelief. However, after the servants repeatedly assured her, she decided to go with them to see for herself.
But to my surprise, I actually met my cousin.
You see, her cousin rarely went out. Usually, when he did go out, he was with the young master of the Xi family, going to bookstores or music halls, places she would never go.
This was the first time she had seen him outside the Jiang residence.
The two fell silent upon meeting. After a long silence, she finally couldn't hold back and cautiously asked.
Jiang Shaoxing pursed his lips, unsure how to begin.
Because she heard from her maid that these noble ladies were gathered together and were planning to make things difficult for Zhu Jiayu, she was worried about her and wanted to come to the Yu residence to help her out.
Such a reason was so absurd that he couldn't even bring himself to say it.
After a long pause, he said casually, "I was just passing by and thought I'd drop by to see you."
Unlike the servants of the Jiang family who greatly respected and feared Jiang Shaoxing, Xu Yuanrui was not particularly afraid of him.
Jiang Shaoxing lived in the Xu family for a few years when he was young, and the two had a very good relationship. Although Xu Yuanrui visited the Jiang family this year and found that her cousin had become much more aloof, in Xu Yuanrui's memory, Jiang Shaoxing was still the cousin who would take her to fly kites and buy her pastries.
Hearing him say he was coming to see her made her even happier. Without him asking any questions, she rattled off a whole story about what had happened that day to Jiang Shaoxing.
"...We originally just wanted to play a trick on her, but we didn't expect her to be so knowledgeable. She spoke fluently about many things that I didn't even know! Things like Kunshan white jade, Wudu inlaid gold Boshan incense burner, and Jiangbei exquisite incense fan. I don't know where she, the daughter of a small merchant, got such extensive knowledge!"
She's so angry!
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