0009 Little Lilac (Part 5)
Zhan Yaoguang indeed went to the adjacent bathhouse. What he did with the soothing cream is unknown, but when he returned, he was still a fresh-faced and handsome young man.
Just as he was about to say something, A-Jian's voice rang out from outside the door again: "Miss, the maids have brought you your breakfast."
Zhan Yaoguang consciously found a place to hide, and Shu Fu then called out to let the other party in.
A-Jian led in two young maids with their hair in a bun. She herself carried a copper basin, a towel, and all the necessary washing utensils, while the two maids behind her each carried a food box. The maids quietly opened the boxes and set out the food, and A-Jian then helped Shu-Fu wash her mouth and face.
"Miss, I have something to report."
Shufu wiped her hands, gesturing for her to explain in detail.
A-Jian then said, "When I returned from the kitchen with breakfast, I saw the eldest young lady standing in front of Chunwan Tower, saying that she wanted to see you in person. I told her that you had not yet eaten breakfast and it was inconvenient to receive guests, so she said that she was willing to wait for you to finish eating and was currently drinking tea and waiting in the room downstairs."
Shufu spat out the water she had used to rinse her mouth and said with a clear conscience, "Then let my older sister wait."
A-Jian immediately had a thought: the eldest young lady must have been involved in the incident at the Xu family's Spring Festival banquet yesterday that upset the young lady.
She quietly pulled the young woman out of her own camp of good people and spat at her fiercely.
"If there's nothing else, go downstairs and keep an eye on things. Remember to serve tea and other refreshments. Don't neglect your elder sister. Come back up in a quarter of an hour to clean up the dishes."
A-Jian and the others nodded in agreement.
Shu Fu thought for a moment and added, "Prepare more tooth powder and soft towels for washing in the bathroom, so we don't have to keep replenishing them later."
The three men, without any suspicion, agreed again.
After the others had gone some distance, Shu Fu asked Zhan Yaoguang to have breakfast with her.
After the meal, Shu Fu had someone bring Shu Wei over, while she herself sat at the table brewing a cup of tea.
As soon as Shu Wei entered, she saw the elegant young woman sitting behind the table, her hair neatly styled in a lily bun, her eyes like spring water, her face like a lotus blossom.
Just then, sunlight, like scattered gold, filtered in, dancing with the wisps of mist in front of her, as if embracing flowers blooming in the Azure Emperor's Heaven.
Shu Wei felt a complex mix of emotions that were difficult to express.
She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen her half-sister. Before, she'd only thought the younger sister was beautiful and charming, and deeply respected her as her elder sister—a sister she couldn't have been more agreeable to. But she never imagined that this sister would make such a choice in her past life.
Shu Wei's thoughts raced, and she turned her head to wave away the maids following her. After the maids left one by one, Shu Wei sat down opposite Shu Fu with a smile, and reached out to hold Shu Fu's hand: "A-Fu didn't come to greet me, are you still angry with your elder sister?"
The Dali era valued seniority and followed the proper order of birth; there was no reason for the younger sister to remain seated at home and not greet the elder sister when she visited.
Upon hearing this, Shu Fu smiled brightly, pulled her hand out of Shu Wei's, and pushed the tea she had brewed to Shu Wei: "Sister is always talking nonsense."
Shu Wei: "..." She really wasn't being polite at all.
Despite being treated this way by Shu Fu, Shu Wei was not annoyed at all. Instead, she smiled even more gently and said, "A Fu is still as straightforward and lovely as ever. But before you get angry with your older sister, could you please listen to what your older sister has to say?"
Shufu looked up at her.
Shu Wei continued, "Afu is so angry because she feels that Liang Dalang's actions have ruined her sincerity. I know that Afu has always been intolerant of any imperfections in her relationships, but looking at things from a different perspective may not be a bad thing."
Shu Wei took a sip of tea: "Although Afu lost face yesterday, I also helped Afu see the true face behind that 'upright and honest' gentleman. He's nothing but a lustful glutton who doesn't even spare his own wife's younger sister. Isn't that better than Afu only finding out after marrying him and then regretting it too late?"
Shu Fu almost laughed in exasperation: "Does my sister think she's still helping me?"
Although Shu Wei didn't speak, she looked at her meaningfully.
“My sister and I still don’t understand each other. If my sister had known about Liang Zhiyan’s character earlier and told me directly, Afu would have been extremely grateful to her. But my sister shouldn’t have schemed against him for doing something shameful in public, needlessly damaging her own reputation; she shouldn’t have left a loose end for Madam Xu to find out that it was my sister who did it, making people question the Shu family’s upbringing and my parents’ usual character; and she shouldn’t have schemed against my third sister, ruining her reputation and causing us sisters to drift apart now.”
Shu Wei was somewhat taken aback upon hearing this; she truly hadn't expected Shu Fu to be upset about these things. Liang Zhiyan's betrayal didn't stir any emotion in her heart; on the contrary, the shame upon her parents and the severing of her sisterly bond were far more distressing.
No wonder she hated almost everyone around her in her past life, but this younger sister was still a bright and cheerful figure in her heart.
Shu Wei softened her voice and took Shu Fu's hand again: "Sister didn't know that this was what angered Afu. Now that you understand, please apologize to Afu and go to Madam and Third Sister another day to apologize, ask Madam to punish you, and ask Third Sister to forgive you."
Upon hearing this, Shu Fu's expression softened: "I also want to apologize to my elder sister. I shouldn't have said those things to her."
Arguing between a younger sister and an older sister is always considered rude, regardless of the circumstances.
Seeing that Shu Fu was willing to ease tensions, Shu Wei felt relieved and quickly said, "In that case, why don't you come out with me today, Afu, and I'll pick out a few things to give you as an apology."
Shu Fu agreed. After Shu Wei left, Zhan Yaoguang suddenly appeared out of nowhere, glaring at Shu Fu and saying, "Are you going to leave me alone in this room?"
Shu Fu felt inexplicably guilty, but then she remembered that Li Miao had never taken her beloved lion cat everywhere, so she replied confidently, "Of course."
Seeing the boy's eyes dim, Shu Fu softened again without any principles.
Remembering that he had mentioned at breakfast that his favorite dish was the translucent rice cake, she figured he liked sweet food, so she said, "Don't give me that look. How about I bring you something delicious when I come back? Don't be angry with me, okay?"
The girl's sweet voice made his heart skip a beat, and his bones felt as if they had been pulled out of his body, leaving him unable to utter a word of refusal.
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