Having caught up on her sleep, Xu Rong was in good spirits. In the afternoon, she summoned the maids to tidy up her belongings. Most of her dowry was piled up in the back room, which was used as a storeroom. Xu Rong didn't touch it for the time being, but instead focused on sorting and arranging her own clothes and other daily necessities. This was no easy task, and half a day passed by in the blink of an eye.
Two women, Cai Die and Cui Ting, came to pay their respects to her. They were originally from the Xiao family, and this was a formal way of acknowledging the mistress of the house. Xu Rong didn't take it to heart, asked them a couple of questions in a friendly manner, and then gave each of them a purse before leaving.
The maids were quite interested and couldn't help but compare themselves. After everyone left, Xin Cheng said, "I think they're all a bit clumsy, not as steady as Sister Bai Fu."
"that is."
"She's nowhere near as good as Sister Bai Fu."
Red pomegranates and green dates echoed in unison.
Xu Rong sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) and nodded with a smile: "Yes."
Bai Fu was an honest person. Although she had experienced some things and become more mature, she still couldn't resist the flattery of the crowd. She blushed and said, "Don't mention it. Miss, you're laughing at me along with them."
"Anyone who laughs at you is just telling the truth."
With Xu Rong involved, Xin Cheng became even more enthusiastic: "That Cai Die is alright, just a bit dull. The other one, Cui Ting, is hilarious. Did you see that? Her eyes are constantly darting around, looking at things on the ground and then at the girl. Her eyes are simply too busy to keep up."
The ground was covered with chests and boxes, and because they were being tidied up, the lids were all open, revealing a magnificent and dazzling interior.
“She’s not very proper.” Bai Fu couldn’t help but shake her head. “She probably hasn’t served by the master’s side before. It’s one thing to look at things, but she also keeps glancing at the young lady. The young lady has a good temper, so she doesn’t hold it against her.”
Hongliu, who was squatting on the ground, suddenly blurted out, "I think she's just looking at how pretty the girl is."
Xu Rong nodded seriously and replied, "I'm not as thin-skinned as your sister Bai Fu, I think so."
All the maids in the room burst into laughter.
The atmosphere remained harmonious until evening. Once everything in the house was tidied up, it was time to set out dinner.
Xiao Xin finally emerged from the east side room. His eyes were vacant—not that he had truly lost his spirit, but rather that he seemed to be so engrossed in his own world that he was oblivious to reality. Just like at noon, he remained silent and focused on eating.
They ate quite a lot.
Seeing this, Xu Rong stopped worrying—no matter how crazy they looked, as long as they could eat, it was fine.
She felt a sense of familiarity; which college entrance exam candidate hadn't gone through this? After Xiao Xin finished his meal in a flash and finally had a moment to relax and drink some tea, she seized the opportunity to ask, "Second Young Master, with your dedication to studying day and night, your knowledge must be very refined. Do you plan to take the exam this year?"
After witnessing firsthand how Xiao Xin studied, she felt that she might have underestimated him and could boldly speed up the timeline a bit more.
"...Cough cough!"
Xiao Xin suddenly choked. The tea was hot, and he not only choked but also burned his tongue. He dropped the teacup, frowned, covered his mouth, and glared at the person.
Those eyes suddenly became bright and alert.
Bai Fu hurriedly grabbed a cloth to wipe the table that had been soaked with tea. Xu Rong half-stood up and leaned over: "Did you get burned? Let me see, are you alright?"
Xiao Xin refused to put his hand down, pressing his tongue against his cheek for a while before shaking his head.
Xu Rong felt relieved, looked up and poured him another cup of tea, saying, "Second Young Master, what I just said—"
Xiao Xin suddenly stood up.
Xu Rong asked, puzzled, "Huh?"
“I,” Xiao Xin finally spoke, his voice muffled and unlike his usual cold and deep tone, perhaps because he had burned his tongue, “I’m not going this year.”
Xu Rong was used to his taciturn nature, so she nodded: "Going next year is fine too, the chances will be better next year. Second Young Master, I didn't mean to urge you, I was just asking casually, don't feel pressured." After thinking for a moment, she praised him, "With Second Young Master's hard work, you will surely have a place on the list of successful candidates in the future."
Xiao Xin: "..."
He didn't say anything, turned around, and went back into the east side room after lifting the curtain.
Bai Fu was taken aback for a moment, then whispered, "The Second Young Master hasn't had his tea yet."
One of the two cups of tea was spilled, and the other remained untouched.
No sooner had he finished speaking than Xiao Xin turned back and looked at Xu Rong, saying, "I'll sleep over there tonight."
Xu Rong met his gaze for a moment, then smiled and nodded: "Okay."
Bai Fu looked around in a daze and panic—this had happened so suddenly, yet there seemed to be some unspoken understanding between the two that she couldn't intrude upon. As soon as Xiao Xin's figure disappeared from behind the curtain, she hurriedly said, "Miss, isn't the Second Young Master coming to the bridal chamber?"
Xu Rong replied naturally, "If the second young master wants to study, you can just send him a pot of tea later."
Bai Fu hesitated for a moment, but she had seen Xiao Xin's hard work and knew that Xu Rong and Xiao Xin were talking freely, so it didn't seem like they had argued and ended up sleeping in separate rooms. She couldn't say anything, so she could only agree.
Xu Rong had nothing to do after finishing his meal. He took a bath and went to bed to rest, sleeping soundly through the night.
**
I woke up in the morning.
The so-called tea ceremony is, to some extent, the first social activity a new bride undertakes after arriving at her husband's family home. Its main purpose is to get acquainted with the family and to receive and exchange gifts.
Bai Fu carefully counted the items in the mother-of-pearl box in front of her again: "The eldest young lady's, the second young lady's, the third young master's, the fourth young master's..."
The Xiao family has many members. Besides his eldest brother Xiao Lun, Xiao Xin has several younger brothers and sisters-in-law. Among them, the eldest daughter and the fourth son are also born out of wedlock, and their birth mother is Aunt Ruan, another concubine of Marquis Xiao. The second daughter and the third son belong to the second branch of the family. Since they live in the same mansion, their birth order is counted together. They will all appear today, and Xu Rong needs to give them a gift.
After confirming that everything was correct, Bai Fu reported to Xu Rong: "Miss, everything is ready."
"Okay, let's go."
The curtain was lifted, and Xiao Xin's tall and slender body leaned against the door of the main room, one foot on the threshold, in a waiting posture.
Hearing the noise, he turned his cold, handsome face around, his eyebrows slightly raised.
Xu Rong gestured, "Second Young Master, please."
Xiao Xin straightened up and walked out with her.
Bai Fu followed behind, carrying the box. Seeing the two figures side by side, the worry in her heart gradually disappeared: the young lady and the second young master seemed to treat each other with respect and were quite a good match.
They had a peaceful day and, as was customary, arrived at the main courtyard a little early. When they arrived, Madam Xiao was still having breakfast in her room.
The maid came out and replied, "The eldest mistress is serving the madam her meal. Please wait a moment, second young master and second mistress."
So they waited in the courtyard.
Xu Rong seemed to be deep in thought.
Xiao Xin glanced at her, looked away, and then glanced at her again a moment later.
Xu Rong sensed it and looked up to ask him, "Is there something you need, Second Young Master?"
Xiao Xin hesitated for a moment: "—You're the one who has something to do."
Xu Rong asked in surprise, "What?"
She stood there quietly, saying and doing nothing.
Xiao Xin remained silent, his expression indifferent, neither angry nor willing to continue the conversation.
Xu Rong was completely baffled. Bai Fu couldn't help but tug at her quietly, lowering her voice to a whisper: "Miss, you heard 'Madam'... and your expression changed."
The change was quite obvious; even she noticed it at a glance. How could the Second Young Master not have any doubts?
Everyone knows who this "Grandma" should originally be.
"Oh." Xu Rong suddenly realized and explained, "You heard what that girl said, the eldest mistress is serving inside now, she arrived even earlier than us, doesn't that mean she has to get up before dawn?"
She lowered her voice a little, "I'm thinking, what if they keep asking me to do that in the future? I can't get up that early."
It's not like we're counting money.
Bai Fu's expression froze: "..."
Xiao Xin suddenly turned his face away.
Xu Rong felt he must have heard her; he was clearly trying to suppress his laughter. Even if she couldn't see it, she could guess. Maturely, she didn't expose him, but instead asked him, "Second Young Master, are such rules always strictly enforced in the manor? How many wives does Madam usually have to serve her meals?"
"I don't know." Xiao Xin cleared his throat before turning back to his face, his expression calm. "My wife only had her first daughter-in-law at the end of last year."
Xu Rong thought about it and agreed. Then she put the question out of her mind—she didn't intend to be Madam Xiao's dutiful daughter-in-law, and Madam Xiao should be prepared for that as well.
Madam Xiao ate her breakfast slowly and deliberately. Xu Rong waited for a while, but no one in the house or courtyard paid any attention to them. Instead, two people, one big and one small, slowly walked in from outside the courtyard gate.
One was a middle-aged man around forty years old, dressed in a red robe and jade belt, with an extraordinary air about him. Xu Rong narrowed her eyes and felt that he looked familiar—he looked very much like Xiao Lun, whom she had met once before. Not only his facial features, but also his official demeanor, as if they were carved from the same mold.
Xu Rong could immediately confirm that it was Lord Xiao.
"My lord."
"This servant greets Your Excellency."
The gentle greetings from the maids coming from all directions confirmed her guess.
Xu Rong's gaze fell downwards, and there was a boy of about ten years old being led by the hand of Lord Xiao.
The boy's clothes were exquisite, with pearls inlaid on his sheepskin boots. His appearance was also exquisite, with big eyes and a pointed chin. Although he was small, his height of less than four feet exuded the noble air of someone from a wealthy and prosperous village.
Xu Rong looked at him, then turned to look at him again.
The boy didn't resemble Lord Xiao in appearance, but rather looked a bit like Xiao Xin beside her—his chin was also pointed, unlike Lord Xiao and Xiao Lun, who both had square chins.
But this is the only similarity between the two, one big and one small. Xiao Xin's shoes are not only covered with pearls, but the edges are also frosted. His temperament is not reserved or precious, but cold and fierce, as if he is about to freeze and splatter ice shards all over people's faces.
"Second Brother!"
The boy was the first to call out, and being handsome, he had a sweet smile: "Second brother, is this your new sister-in-law?"
Xiao Xin bowed to Lord Xiao and replied briefly, "Hmm."
"The new second sister-in-law is so pretty," the boy said sweetly.
Xu Rong smiled at him and then glanced at him.
She recognized the voice; it was the one who had said by the roadside during the wedding ceremony the night before, "What's so interesting about the new sister-in-law? I just saw her once last month."
The boy seemed to have the talkativeness typical of children, and said, "Second brother, do you know Mr. Su, the great scholar of Qixia Academy? He has come to the capital, and Father is going to take me to visit him today."
Xu Rong's heart stirred, and he looked at Lord Xiao. Lord Xiao did not speak, but released the boy's hand and went into the east courtyard.
The boy remained where he was, staring intently at Xiao Xin with his big eyes, until Xiao Xin said, "I don't know, I don't recognize you."
He gave a disappointed "Oh," but then perked up and said, "It's okay, Second Brother, I'll tell you."
He vividly described Mr. Su's scholarship, saying that he was very knowledgeable and famous, and many students wanted to meet him and hopefully become his students.
Xu Rong realized: Was he showing off?
That's just showing off.
She was both amused and exasperated. How could such a young child have such a cunning mind?
Xiao Xin didn't give any response until the boy himself got bored and stopped, then walked to the side of the main room and looked out into the east courtyard.
Xu Rong turned his head and asked in a low voice, "Second Young Master, is this your fourth brother?"
Xiao Xin nodded.
Xu Rong sighed, "The competition in your household is truly fierce."
These kids are already getting into family feuds at such a young age.
Xiao Xin: "...?"
Xu Rong laughed and said, "Look at Brother Zhang, he's fifteen or sixteen years old and he can still roll around in the mud."
This refers to the time when Xu Huazhang came to challenge Xiao Xin to a fight. Xiao Xin's lips twitched as he remembered, but he declined to comment.
Xu Rong felt that his mood had been not good ever since Lord Xiao appeared, which was normal. Lord Xiao was biased to no end. Even Xu Huazhang had heard about Xiao Xin's hard work in his studies. Lord Xiao couldn't possibly not know that. Now that there was a great scholar to pay respects to, he took his youngest son but didn't mention taking Xiao Xin.
Xu Rong thought for a moment. She didn't have a great Confucian scholar, and she couldn't conjure one up in a short time, but she could still say a few nice words. So she said, "Second Young Master, I'm afraid the tree next to our courtyard gate won't survive. I plan to have someone uproot it in a while and plant a new osmanthus tree in its place, wishing you success in the imperial examination."
She truly intended to do so, and her eyes were sincere, earnest, and full of trust, as if she could already see Xiao Xin's name shining brightly on the list of successful candidates.
Xiao Xin's expression shifted slightly. He seemed to struggle with the question for a moment before finally speaking, "I'm not sure—"
"Second Young Master can definitely do it," Xu Rong encouraged him. "Hard work pays off. Besides, this is just for good luck; many scholarly families do this. If Second Young Master really doesn't like osmanthus, then forget it."
"No."
Xiao Xin paused, then lowered his tone and softened his voice: "If you want to plant it, then plant it."
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