Chapter 27 Ripples (Part 5) Their gazes darted around, searching for knowledge…
It was strange to hear such words from Wei Yuanzhan, as if a king who always wore fine clothes had suddenly donned the clothes of a commoner, becoming humble and speaking in a low voice.
Zhi Rou was a little uncomfortable and remained silent for a moment before smiling and saying, "Each has its own merits."
Zhi Rou turned slightly to the side, propped her head up with one hand, and looked directly into Wei Yuanzhan's eyes, staring at him for a long time.
Suddenly, she smiled and said, "You're great in every way, except for your bad temper."
The previous praise of Sheng Xingyun had been too long, and the more Wei Yuanzhan listened, the more indifferent his expression became. Then she suddenly uttered this sentence. It was just one sentence, but it was more pleasing to the ear than all of the previous ones.
Wei Yuanzhan paused in surprise.
The moonlight bathed her eyes, pure and vibrant, like a butterfly fluttering towards him, leaving two ripples in his heart.
Suddenly he didn't dare to look at her, so he turned his face away, quietly calming himself down, and a barely perceptible smile slowly appeared on his lips.
"You are fine too."
Anywhere is fine.
Zhi Rou readily admitted, "I know."
She pulled her hand away and lay back down, turning her gaze back to the sky, and continued munching on the unfinished pear.
Wei Yuanzhan smiled slightly at her confidence, and teasingly followed up her words, "Oh, what else do you know?"
“Yesterday, you had Lan Ye guard me.”
Upon hearing this, Wei Yuanzhan's smile froze, and he quickly frowned, inwardly cursing Lan Ye: How could he be of any use!
But then Zhi Rou praised him, "Well done. I've received your apology, so let's call it even."
The next day at the family school, Lan Ye was nowhere to be seen; only Chang Huai stood like a wooden stake beside Wei Yuanzhan. Zhi Rou was somewhat confused; why was it always Lan Ye who was unlucky? She quite liked him.
Several days passed quickly, and it was Jiang Luoya's birthday. It wasn't her coming-of-age ceremony, so the Jiang family didn't hold a grand celebration. They simply had a small banquet and invited a few relatives and friends to their home for fun.
Zhi Rou went there after school ended in the afternoon, just as the Jiang family was having a banquet. She was led by a maid to Jiang Luoya's boudoir.
After not seeing her for several days, Jiang Luoya heard someone announce that "Fourth Miss has arrived." She grabbed her skirt, stepped out of the room, and affectionately took her arm, saying, "You've finally come!"
Zhi Rou smiled and handed her the gift: "Happy birthday, may all your wishes come true."
Jiang Luoya directed her to sit on the tatami mat, while she herself unpacked the box and began to groom herself in front of the mirror. From the side, the girl's nose bridge was somewhat flat, but the tip was small and delicate, like a lazy kitten.
"Does it look good?" She picked the jade hairpin she had received into her hair and turned to ask Zhirou.
Zhi Rou nodded: "It looks good."
She deliberately suppressed her smile and slowly put on other jewelry: "If it weren't for my birthday, would you not have planned to see me?" She glanced at Zhi Rou in the mirror, her tone both reproachful and resentful.
"I practice martial arts, and I can't afford to slack off." Zhi Rou smiled slightly. "Don't you know that?"
Jiang Luoya put down the earring in her hand, her brows furrowing slightly: "What's the use of you being a girl who doesn't hold a martial arts position? If you go out with me, you'll have attendants who know martial arts and can't hurt us."
Perhaps it was because she was born into such a family—her father was a merchant who eventually became a scholar, and her mother was a daughter of an official—that she was instilled with the idea from a young age that all other professions are inferior, only studying is superior.
Zhi Rou disagreed, but since it was Jiang Luoya's birthday, she didn't want to spoil her mood, so she moved to sit next to her and changed the subject: "I probably won't be going to the spring banquet this year. I'm just letting you know so you don't have to look for me then."
After saying that, Jiang Luoya's eyes widened slightly. After a long while, she pouted pitifully and said, "If you don't go, I won't go either. Anyway, those people look down on me, a merchant's daughter. Let Mother blame me."
This is to keep her here.
Zhi Rou felt a little helpless and called out, "Luo Luo."
"What's so interesting about them? Aren't they all the same? There are plenty of important people in the capital, and I think they're all pretty much the same."
"How can the Ling family of Qinyang be the same?"
Jiang Luoya suddenly stood up from the stool, her voice rising slightly.
"That's the head of the northern aristocratic families. Even His Highness the Crown Prince once sought to marry a daughter of the Ling family, but failed. Later, for some unknown reason, the Ling family resigned and returned to Qinyang. I heard that the Ling family's sons are all incredibly beautiful, with celestial appearances."
Zhi Rou leaned back slightly and looked up at her: "You weren't even born when His Highness the Crown Prince was selecting candidates, were you? Where did you hear that from?"
Besides, she had never actually seen a deity; if there were, it must be her mother.
Jiang Luoya quickly turned back, smoothed her skirt, and sat down: "My mother said it was for me." She pulled Zhi Rou's hand and placed it in her own palm. "My mother told me to go and befriend Miss Ling. You really can't accompany me?"
Zhi Rou looked troubled: "I'll have my third sister accompany you."
Song Hanjin. Jiang Luoya scoffed inwardly and released her grip: "Your third sister probably doesn't want to see me."
Zhi Rou had never understood what the rift was between the two of them, and was about to ask when she suddenly smiled and said, "Never mind, let's not talk about that. Father hired a chef for me from the south. He used to work in a restaurant, and his cooking is excellent. The food will be served in a little while, so you can have a good taste."
As evening fell, carriages from the Song family came from both sides to greet her. After Zhi Rou landed on flat ground, she took two steps forward and saw Song Congzhao lean out of the carriage.
Zhi Rou straightened her clothes and smiled, "Father."
Song Congzhao looked her up and down as she stepped off the carriage bench: "So early today?"
"Today is Luo Luo's birthday, so I didn't go back to Qiyun Garden. I plan to practice at home, which is just as good," Zhi Rou said as she walked with him into the mansion.
Song Congzhao's face showed a hint of pleasure: "Good, it's good that you came back early. I happen to have two things to ask you."
As he stepped over the threshold, he turned and said, "I heard from your mother that you don't want to go to the spring banquet this year?"
Zhi Rou was somewhat surprised: "Mother agreed?"
The third sister's intervention was surprisingly effective; the second wife, whom she had tried to persuade with all her might, finally changed her mind.
But Song Congzhao shook his head, smiled and said, "Your mother has good intentions, don't blame her."
Although Xu Yueyuan was aloof to others, she was already very kind to Zhirou. She didn't need to hold a grudge over such a small matter, so she lowered her head and said softly, "How could I?"
"I know you don't know how, and I know you don't like it, but it won't hurt for you to participate in such social gatherings. There's no need to hide your talents all the time. A person can be a little sharp; it can save you a lot of unnecessary trouble."
Zhi Rou paused slightly, seemingly surprised that her father had said such things to her.
She never complained about those noble ladies in front of him. How did her father know about her situation?
Seeing her stop, Song Congzhao turned around and looked back, his slender figure still as elegant as it had been five years ago: "What, did your father say something wrong?"
"No." Zhi Rou snapped out of her daze, quickly followed, and bowed her head, saying, "Your daughter has learned something."
"Where has Qi Zhang been hanging around lately?"
Without warning, a single sentence caused Zhi Rou's previously calmed mind to tense up instantly, though she showed no sign of it on her face.
She smiled and said, "I don't know why my father asked me that."
"You don't know, and no one in the entire Song family will ever know."
It's strange, in other families the brothers get along well, but in the Song family, it was the fourth daughter, who had just returned to the capital, who became a couple with Song Qizhang.
Song Congzhao said, "Your uncle asked me to inquire about how his good son managed to slip away from his men without anyone noticing and then wander off somewhere until late afternoon before returning home."
Second brother's methods are limited to just one trick.
Enticement.
His ability to entice others is far superior to his uncle's; sometimes he doesn't even need to use money or valuables because he knows exactly what others want.
Song Congzhao glanced at her sideways and smiled slightly: "Don't worry, I'm not really asking you anything. I just hope you can give your second brother a little nudge when you have time."
Zhi Rou smiled slightly: "Then I will pass on Father's words to my second brother and tell him to come home earlier in the future."
She refused to admit that she knew his "location".
Song Congzhao looked at her and said, "You are too clever. If you were a man, you would be good at pursuing an official career."
Zhi Rou took it as a compliment and didn't refute it. The next day, she told Song Qizhang everything exactly as it was said.
"I was wondering why my father hadn't sent anyone to follow me these past few days. It turns out he was planning to capture me without firing a single shot."
Song Qizhang sat with his legs crossed on the back of the King of Wu, listening to Zhi Rou recount the matter, and let out an unpleasant laugh.
Zhi Rou hesitated and said, "I think Father already knows you're at Xunyinzhai, but he doesn't want to do the 'informing' business. Second brother, you shouldn't go there anymore."
Upon hearing this, Song Qizhang was not upset as expected. Instead, he readily agreed, "Alright, then I will follow Fourth Sister from now on."
Startled, Zhirou straightened up, moving away from the pillar: "No, why are you following me? Doesn't Second Brother have anything else important to say?"
“What business do I have? Our family is supported by Father and Second Uncle, and below them, there’s also Eldest Brother. I’m just the most idle person in our family, just wanting to find some fun and pass the time.”
Zhi Rou stared at him for a while, then secretly shook her head: "It's meaningless."
Song Qizhang smiled lightly, casually picked a peach blossom that was about to bloom, admired it for a moment, and then tossed it aside. He said to Zhi Rou, "You should do me the honor of attending the spring banquet the day after tomorrow. I suddenly thought of something interesting."
During the Spring Equinox, flowers and trees are in full bloom, and the beautiful spring sunshine paints the Chinese dresses in the garden with a captivating golden hue.
To avoid the scions of prominent families, Wei Mingying did not attend the banquet with Wei Yuanzhan, and instead practiced her dance at home. Wei Yuanzhan, feeling carefree, nimbly boarded the carriage with Changhuai and Lanye.
Upon entering Changhe Street, they encountered Song Qizhang standing at the head of the garden, seemingly observing someone. Wei Yuanzhan happened to get off the carriage and greeted him.
Upon seeing Wei Yuanzhan arrive, Song Qizhang straightened up and smiled slightly: "Cousin Wei, are you alone?"
"Hmm." Wei Yuanzhan glanced at the Song family carriage twice. "Are you alone too?"
"My eldest brother has another appointment. My third and fourth sisters just went in, so they should be up ahead."
They walked side by side into the garden, and since Song Zhirou wasn't there, this was the maximum amount of negotiation they could manage.
The garden was a riot of color, with people lingering around. Wei Yuanzhan and his companion, however, showed no interest in their surroundings, their gazes constantly shifting, searching for Zhi Rou.
After a while, when Song Qizhang was distracted by another figure, Wei Yuanzhan spotted her at a glance.
The sun was at its zenith, and sunlight filtered through the flowers, falling on the girl, who remained silent like a single star.
Wei Yuanzhan slightly curled his lips, and as he walked over, a man's figure suddenly appeared in his field of vision.
The person was standing opposite Zhi Rou, but was obscured by the apricot blossom tree and could not be seen clearly.
The joy in Wei Yuanzhan's eyes vanished in an instant, and he lost his footing.
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