Among these many delicacies, a bowl of lotus root and pork rib soup is particularly eye-catching. It's not that Li Gui's family made it as delicious as phoenix liver and marrow, but that the lotus root was dug by Wen himself.
"Despite the freezing weather, she's not afraid of getting sick."
The old lady spoke angrily, while the old marquis silently drank his soup without saying anything.
However, after drinking the soup for only a few days, the old lady and the old marquis softened their hearts, because Wen not only went to the fields to pick lotus roots at this time of year, but also fell ill from the cold.
“Wan’er, after you finish attending Princess Nan’an’s snow-viewing banquet tomorrow, bring your wife back.”
Upon hearing the old Marquis's words, Jiang Shuwan glanced at the old lady and saw that the old lady's brow twitched but she didn't say anything, so she knew that this was also the old lady's intention.
"Yes, daughter-in-law understands."
Jiang Shuwan nodded slightly; she wasn't surprised.
Lady Wen bore two sons and a daughter for the Marquis's family. If she hadn't committed an unforgivable mistake, the Marquis's family would never have kept her at Lotus Manor for the rest of her life.
"You go with Wan'er."
Just when Jiang Shuwan thought the conversation was over and they could finish their meal and go their separate ways, the old lady suddenly pointed at Pei Yanzhi and said this.
The old lady actually asked Pei Yanzhi to accompany her to pick up Wen Shi.
"Yes, Grandmother."
The young man responded softly, showing no unusual expression, but Liu Yunyan's face darkened slightly.
However, she dared not say anything. After all, she wouldn't even have the right to attend such a family gathering for a meal if it weren't for the old lady's kindness towards her.
However, she felt uncomfortable listening to it, especially Jiang Shuwan's constant use of "daughter-in-law" and "granddaughter-in-law," which made her feel suffocated.
I couldn't eat anymore, so I made an excuse that I wasn't feeling well and went back to my room.
As soon as she entered the room, she sat on the embroidered bed and tore a handkerchief.
"The old lady is too biased. I just said when I paid my respects to her this morning, 'The Earl's family is pregnant again and they will be getting married on the same day, but the Marquis's family hasn't even started yet,' and the old lady told my cousin and Jiang Shuwan to go and bring the lady back."
"This is clearly a deliberate attempt to create an opportunity for my cousin and Jiang Shuwan to be alone together. My cousin is so busy at the yamen and preparing for the imperial examinations. I haven't even seen him for several days."
"I was so looking forward to having a banquet hosted by Princess Nan'an tomorrow, and I was thinking of brewing tea with my cousin after the banquet. But now, my cousin is going to pick up Lady Wen and he'll be with Jiang Shuwan."
"A round trip takes up most of the day."
"What kind of behavior is it for a lone man and woman to ride together in a carriage!"
"...Miss, what are you saying? The young mistress and the young master are husband and wife!"
Granny Xia looked at her with a face full of shame. Even though she was wholeheartedly thinking of Liu Yunyan, she felt that what she said was really a bit too much.
"So what if we're husband and wife? My cousin is mine. We grew up together, and I just don't want him to get close to other women."
Liu Yunyan said angrily, then remembered the old lady's favoritism and coughed several times in anger.
"The old lady is very biased. She watched me grow up, while Jiang Shuwan has only been married into the family for a year. She has never seen Jiang Shuwan be very respectful to her. She is not as eager to greet her as I am. Instead, she always favors Jiang Shuwan."
"If I had known, I wouldn't have gone to pay my respects today!"
"It's all your fault! If you hadn't told me to fawn over the old lady, I wouldn't have gone to pay my respects to her this morning!"
As Liu Yunyan spoke, she angrily grabbed a pillow with exquisite embroidery from the bed and threw it hard at Granny Xia.
Granny Xia quickly grabbed the pillow and advised with concern, "My dear girl, you can't be willful. A while ago you pretended to be sick and didn't want to go out with the young mistress to look at clothes, which has already angered the old lady."
"You've rejected the marriage proposal from the Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and the old lady is becoming increasingly cold towards you. If we don't try to curry favor with her, are we supposed to wait for her to fawn over us?"
"The Liu family is not what it used to be. The old lady and the young master are your biggest support. You can't be willful!"
Hearing these words, Liu Yunyan snorted coldly, but she also knew that what Granny Xia said made sense.
Suddenly, she looked at Granny Xia expectantly.
"Granny, my cousin said he'll tell the old lady tonight that he wants to take me into the household. Do you think the old lady will agree?"
"Whether the old lady agrees or not is not important; what matters is the young master's wishes."
*********
In the dining room, Jiang Shuwan finished her meal and was about to leave when she chatted with Chang's mother for a few words at the door. Then she heard the sound of a teacup falling to the ground.
Then came the old lady's angry voice again.
"What did you say!"
"Say it again?"
"You actually..."
"Go away, I don't want to see you right now..."
Then came the old lady's disappointed voice from inside, and it was unclear what Pei Yanzhi had said.
Jiang Shuwan stood outside the door in a daze. In just a short while, Pei Yanzhi lifted the curtain and came out of the room.
The young man was taken aback when he saw Jiang Shuwan there.
Then, a smirk appeared on his lips, and he said, "It's dark and the roads are slippery, shall I take you home?"
His voice was soft and gentle, with a hint of a smile in it.
Without waiting for Jiang Shuwan to refuse, he waved away the maid who was going to carry the lantern for her, and personally took a lantern and walked in front to lead the way for her.
That's really strange.
He was just scolded by the old lady, so why is he in such a good mood?
Jiang Shuwan pondered to herself, feeling increasingly unable to understand what this person was thinking.
The night was as still as water, and the snow scene in the courtyard was shrouded in the soft moonlight, exuding a tranquil beauty.
The young man wore a moon-white robe, without even a jade crown on his head. His long, ink-black hair was tied only with a blue ribbon, and he exuded a relaxed and carefree aura.
He held a delicate palace lantern steadily in his hand, the light casting a warm halo in the darkness and illuminating the path ahead.
Jiang Shuwan moved with light, graceful steps, the girl trailing behind him by half a step.
She walked very slowly, step by step, as if strolling through a park. However, with so few lights at night, there was not much scenery to see.
So it wasn't that she wanted to walk slowly, but that Pei Yanzhi ahead of her was walking slowly, so she had no choice but to walk slowly as well.
Fortunately, it wasn't snowing or windy at this time, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to stand walking so slowly.
Why is he walking so slowly?
"Could it be that he was forced to kneel inside and couldn't put any weight on his legs?"
Jiang Shuwan glanced at the tall, elegant man in front of her and secretly speculated.
Qingxing was also behind her, craning her neck to look ahead.
Noticing the two gazes behind her, the person in front looked back at her.
"What's wrong?"
"nothing."
"I just want you to walk faster. You're so annoying being so slow. I miss my warm bed," Jiang Shuwan thought to herself, but her face remained smiling.
He glanced at her fake smile, chuckled inwardly, but kept his expression hidden. He continued walking slowly until he reached a snowdrift. He then raised his lamp and pointed at the snowdrift.
"What does this look like?"
"Like a dog."
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