"Didn't you say you were at Baiweilou? Why did you come out for no reason and even argue with someone on the street?" After her rapid heartbeat gradually calmed down, she looked at her daughter with a hint of reproach.
"Come and see what's going on. What's the point of staying inside all the time?" Wei Yingzhi played with the tiger lamp in her hand, then handed it to Wei Chengyue beside her, hugging her arm and said coquettishly.
"Mother, how come you came back so soon? Have you seen Lingfu in the palace? I don't know what he has been busy with recently. He hasn't come to our house for a long time."
"I know what Lingfu is busy with." Before Shen Xinyan could answer her, Wei Chengyue came over stealthily.
"You know?" Wei Yingzhi looked at him suspiciously.
"Of course I know, Lingfu is busy choosing a wife!" Wei Chengyue smiled.
Wei Yingzhi's eyes widened: "Have you decided?"
"He hasn't come to our house to look for us for such a long time. I guess he has already made his choice and is trying hard to please his future wife. How could he care about us?" Wei Chengyue answered seriously.
"Really? Whose girl is she? Do I know her?" Wei Yingzhi became even more curious.
"You believe what Brother Yue said?" A sudden interruption interrupted Wei Chengyue who was about to continue talking nonsense. Everyone looked and saw that Lin Fu was breathing heavily and had come without knowing when.
Talking about someone behind their back, being caught red-handed, even Wei Chengyue, who is usually thick-skinned, felt a little embarrassed.
Just now, she was talking about Lin Fu, who she hadn't seen for a long time. Unexpectedly, he showed up right away. Wei Yingzhi called out in surprise, "Lin Fu!"
Lin Fu called Shen Xinyan "Madam", then smiled at her, with a bit of complaint in his tone: "Why are you running around everywhere? It took me a long time to look for you."
Obviously, he left the palace much earlier than his wife, but he wandered around the streets for a long time and couldn't find them.
Wei Yingzhi giggled: "Why don't you look around during the holidays? Are you going to stay in one place? It's because you are stupid that you took so long to look for me. My mother found me in no time."
"If I had known this, I would have waited for my wife to come out of the palace to look for you."
"Okay, let's not stand on the street. Let's find a place to sit for a while and go see the lanterns later." Seeing that more and more people were on the street, Shen Xinyan interrupted them directly.
Everyone had no objection. After all, now was not the best time to see the lanterns, so it would be nice to sit down and rest for a while.
As usual, Yan Fu and Wei Yingzhi supported Shen Xinyan on the left and right, while brothers Wei Chengzhao and Wei Chengyue followed closely behind them.
Shen Xinyan felt a little helpless. Being supported like this, she always felt like she was already in her seventies or eighties.
But this is the children's filial piety, so she couldn't say anything.
The group arrived at the room on the upper floor of Baiwei Restaurant, which they had booked earlier and sat down. Wei Chengyue touched Lin Fu's shoulder and smiled ambiguously, "Have you been enjoying yourself among beautiful women lately?"
"What a bunch of beauties! What nonsense!" Ping Fu glared at him.
"I thought I didn't know! The Imperial Concubine is choosing a wife for you, why doesn't she summon all the beauties in the capital for you to choose from?"
"Really? Do you have anyone you like? Tell me about it and I'll help you take a closer look." Wei Yingzhi immediately became interested. Even Wei Chengzhao, who always liked to imitate Wei Chenglin's seriousness, looked over curiously.
Pingfu felt uncomfortable being stared at by them.
Shen Xinyan, who was sitting quietly at the side, couldn't help but laugh when she heard what they said, and said jokingly: "I also want to know, has Pingfu ever taken a fancy to any girl?"
Lin Fu blushed, glanced at Wei Yingzhi quickly, and called out somewhat shyly and reluctantly: "Madam..."
Everyone laughed when they saw this.
Shen Xinyan covered her mouth and chuckled.
This silly boy!
For a moment, I felt a little emotional. Time flies so fast. It seems that in the blink of an eye, the little kid who was so stubborn about signing a living contract with me has now grown up to be old enough to start a family and build a career.
She wanted to ask him which girl he liked, but she was afraid that he might be shy, so she gave up in the end.
Wei Chengyue and his friends were not so kind. They kept asking Pingfu which girl he had his eyes on. However, Pingfu just pursed his lips tightly and refused to speak no matter how they threatened or tempted him.
Wei Yingzhi, who had always loved Lin Fu, was also itching inside, but she still placed her hands on the table with great dignity and glared at Wei Chengyue: "Lin Fu doesn't want to talk anymore, Brother Yue, you are not allowed to force him!"
Seeing that she was only targeting her brother, Wei Chengzhao cleverly sat a little further away from Wei Chengyue and pretended nothing had happened as he began to sip his tea and have snacks.
Wei Chengyue touched his nose and muttered, "If you don't want to ask, then don't ask. I don't believe you don't want to know."
After thinking for a while, she still felt a little unwilling, and said, "Fourth sister, you can't do this. Lingfu is older than you. Why do you always protect him like a younger brother?"
"I'm happy with it, what's it to you?" Wei Yingzhi raised her head proudly.
Originally, Ling Fu was happily enjoying her care that had remained unchanged for many years, but when he heard what Wei Chengyue said, he was stunned.
After hearing Wei Yingzhi's answer, his handsome face immediately turned red, and he stammered, "I, I'm not your brother, your brother, your brother is, is Xiang Ge'er!"
"Do I need you to tell me that my brother is Xiang Ge'er?" Wei Yingzhi glanced at him strangely.
Before Lingfu could say anything, Wei Yingzhi pointed outside the window and shouted in surprise, "Look, the lights are on!"
When people looked out the window, they saw lanterns hanging in the streets and alleys being lit up one after another. In a moment, the whole capital was bathed in light.
"Hey, isn't that my eldest brother?" Wei Chengzhao spotted Wei Chenglin in the crowd with his sharp eyes.
Shen Xinyan looked toward the street and immediately saw her son in the crowd.
The streets were bustling with people of all ages, men and women, coming and going. Although he was wearing the most ordinary blue cloth clothes, he was still the most eye-catching one in the crowd. Several girls who passed by him shyly wanted to throw their handkerchiefs to him, but he kept a straight face and looked straight ahead, as if he didn't notice the admiring eyes around him at all.
"Brother is really unromantic!" Wei Chengyue suddenly let out a long sigh.
Shen Xinyan glanced at him with amusement, and somehow remembered that when he was a child, Yang always loved to scold him for liking pretty girls at a young age.
"It's better to be unromantic than to be too affectionate in the future!" Wei Yingzhi would never let her own brother be bullied by others, so she immediately retorted.
After saying that, he called out "Brother" loudly in the direction of Wei Chenglin.
Perhaps because he heard her voice, or perhaps because he felt the presence of a loved one, Wei Chenglin suddenly looked up and met Shen Xinyan's eyes.
Shen Xinyan saw a smile suddenly appear on his face.
The next moment, he seemed to whisper something to the two thin men beside him, and then he strode out of the crowd.
"Did brother see us?" Wei Yingzhi asked in surprise.
"He should have seen it." Lin Fu nodded to confirm her guess, "He should be here by now."
In just a moment, the door was gently pushed open from the outside, and Wei Chenglin's figure appeared in front of everyone.
"Have some tea and take a rest first. There are so many people here today, and I'm sure you've been busy since morning until now." After everyone met each other, Shen Xinyan personally poured a cup of tea for her son and said softly.
"Thank you, mother." Wei Chenglin took the teacup and took a few sips.
"There are people coming and going on the street. Even though there are police officers patrolling, you still have to be careful and don't wander around. Mother and fourth sister are left to you. You must ensure their safety, understand?" After all, he had an errand to complete, so Wei Chenglin didn't need to stay long. He gave a few worried instructions and then said to Wei Chengzhao and his brother and Ling Fu with a serious face.
"Yes, don't worry, big brother/brother Chenglin!" The three of them were in awe of him. Upon hearing his words, they immediately sat up straight and answered seriously.
"You should also be careful when you are on duty." Shen Xinyan did not dare to keep him too long. She hurriedly gave him a few instructions and then watched him leave.
The kids were very excited to go to the street to see the lanterns, but Shen Xinyan was no longer at the age where she loved to join in the fun, so she simply stayed inside and let the four of them go downstairs happily.
In an instant, only Shen Xinyan and Chunliu, the master and servant, were left in the box.
"The Marquis is about the same age as the Fourth Young Lady, and they grew up together. Has Madam ever thought of bringing them together?" Chun Liu couldn't help but ask after holding it in for a long time.
She had this question when she heard the lady and several young masters questioning the Marquis about his marriage.
Shen Xinyan shook her head and smiled: "Ying'er has regarded Linfu as her younger brother since she was young. It is not easy to make her develop romantic feelings for Linfu. Besides... the noble concubine will not agree to this marriage."
"Why? Our fourth young lady comes from a prominent family. She is virtuous, eloquent, and talented. She is also the most legitimate daughter. Why would the royal concubine not like her?" Chun Liu was puzzled.
"Sometimes I disagree with a marriage, not because I don't like the other girl, but because I think they are not suitable for each other. I know my daughter well. Ying'er is indeed virtuous, beautiful, and eloquent, but she has been spoiled since she was a child. Although she has become more sensible in recent years, her personality is a little straightforward. She has no problem managing the household, but she is still lacking in something to be the head of a family."
"What's the big deal? With the fourth lady's intelligence, if she is well taught, she will know what it means to be a clan wife or not. Is it possible that she cannot be one?" Chun Liu disagreed.
Shen Xinyan laughed dumbly.
"You are right. She is intelligent. If we are willing to teach her, it is not a problem even if she is a clan lady. However, the Royal Concubine's perception of her is already solid. It will be difficult to change her. Besides, the Duke and I do not want to see her bear such a heavy responsibility for the rest of her life."
When her daughter was still young, she and Wei Junhang had already reached a consensus that the future son-in-law should not be the eldest son or the only son.