against
Su Tong looked over Jiang Yi's shoulder and saw He Lin, so she couldn't help but scold, "Why didn't Lin'er come with you? That's really inappropriate."
Jiang paused for a moment, her mind racing, and said, "He... was painting in his study, so I came by myself."
Su Tong pulled Jiang Yi to sit on the stone bench, "This child..."
“It’s okay, I can do it myself.” Jiang Yi took a mahogany box from Xia Zhi, opened it, took out the contents, and excitedly held it out to Su Tong, saying, “Mother, I saw this hairpin while I was shopping and thought it would suit you, so I bought it.”
Her happy expression resembled that of a child who had bought candy and wanted to share it with an adult. Seeing this, Su Tong felt a pang of tenderness and relief, and couldn't help but gently pat Jiang Yi's hand.
"Good boy."
"Does Mother like it?"
"I love it, I love it so much."
Seeing this, Qinglian smiled and said, "Young Madam has excellent taste. Our Madam doesn't like wearing gold and silver, so this wooden hairpin is probably just what she wants."
Su Tong looked at it, rubbed the auspicious cloud pattern carved on it with her thumb a few times, and a deep smile appeared in her eyes: "You child, you are so thoughtful."
Jiang Yi chuckled and said, "I'm glad Mother doesn't mind."
How could that be?
In truth, Jiang Yi was very grateful to Su Tong. She was alone and had come to this strange place for no reason, but Su Tong genuinely cared for her and treated her like family. Even if He Lin didn't say anything, she could guess that it was probably because Su Tong pleaded for her that the First Madam temporarily stopped pursuing the matter.
"Shall I help Mother put it on?"
"Okay, come on."
Jiang Yi picked up the hairpin, went around behind Su Tong, and carefully inserted the hairpin into the thick hair bun, afraid of pricking her scalp. Although Xia Zhi had taught her the technique before she came, she was still clumsy and had to be careful and cautious.
After doing all this, she took off the bracelet and held it out to Su Tong, intending to return it to her, "Mother, this bracelet is too precious, I..."
Wealthy families don't produce fakes. The color of the jadeite clearly indicates that it's top-quality. Qinglian just mentioned that Su Tong doesn't like gold and silver, so this is probably the best thing she can offer as a gift. After thinking about it, Jiang Yi decided to return it to its rightful owner.
To everyone's surprise, Su Tong picked up the bracelet and put it back on her wrist, saying with a smile, "There's no reason for your mother to take back something she gave you. Just wear it properly."
He grabbed Jiang Yi's hand and examined it closely. Half of her porcelain-white forearm was exposed, and the jade bracelet hanging on it was quite beautiful.
“I’ve worn this bracelet since I was a young lady, for many years. There was originally a pair, one with me and the other with my sister, but…”
At this point, the light in Su Tong's eyes dimmed for a moment, as if she suddenly remembered some sad old memories. She stopped talking about it and simply said, "It was originally intended to be a gift for Lin's daughter-in-law as a greeting gift, so you don't need to refuse."
Jiang Yi nodded obediently: "Since it is Mother's treasured possession, I will definitely take good care of it."
Su Tong pulled her along, patted the back of her hand, and smiled.
·
On that day, the He family mansion was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, and there was a lot of gonging and drumming, making outsiders think that a wedding was about to take place.
Everyone in the manor had been busy since early morning. Upon inquiring, they learned that He Yu was coming back.
Jiang Yi was speechless. It was just going home, why make such a fuss? This person wasn't a great contributor to the family, just going out to accompany the Crown Prince on a trip, was it really necessary to make such a big deal out of it?
So he lay in bed, covered his ears, rolled his eyes, and decided to play dead and continue sleeping.
In the capital, only Jiang Yi didn't care about this matter. The palace was already bustling with activity. As the eldest princess, the First Madam not only had to attend the palace banquets but also had to go home to be with her beloved son. She was running back and forth between the palace and the general's mansion, wishing she could be in two places at once. She had no time to care about her and had long forgotten about the arson.
Jiang Yi may not understand what the Crown Prince's trip means, but everyone in the capital who is influential knows exactly what it means. On the surface, it is a trip for leisure, but in reality, it is a covert investigation into the people's conditions. It is clear that the Emperor still places great hopes on the Crown Prince.
The courtyard was quiet for a short while before He Lin pulled Jiang Yi to the front hall to meet people.
The two people sitting directly in front were He Wei and Qi Shuangyun. When Jiang Yi and He Lin went over, they saw a man dressed in a dark-colored robe just getting up, seemingly kowtowing to an elder.
Qi Shuangyun's eyes reddened with heartache, and she quickly helped him up, while Jiang Yi secretly pouted.
Hearing footsteps behind him, the man turned around and saw that it was He Lin. A broad smile spread across his face.
"Second brother, you've arrived."
He Lin nodded to him: "Big Brother."
Only then did Jiang Yi see He Yu's true face. Hmm, he was good-looking, exceptionally handsome, with an air of arrogance in his eyes and brows. He had a straight nose, sword-like eyebrows, and bright, piercing eyes, as if he were a carbon copy of his father.
Unlike He Lin's refined appearance, compared to He Yu, He Lin looks more like a pretty boy.
Jiang Yi glanced at He Yu, then turned to look at He Lin. Well, there's a reason why the male lead is the male lead; He Lin's looks still hold the top spot.
He Yu patted He Lin on the shoulder, beaming with joy, and teased, "So that's why you didn't come with us back then! You got married at home! This must be your wife, brother?"
At first glance, there seemed to be nothing wrong with what he said, but Jiang Yi's lips twitched. She bowed respectfully and followed He Lin in calling out, "Big Brother."
He Yu glanced at her subtly, then nodded in response.
"It's quite unfortunate, Second Sister-in-law. I was traveling with the Crown Prince and had to hide my identity to avoid unnecessary trouble. I haven't been in contact with my family for a long time, so I didn't know you married my second brother. I'm sorry there weren't any gifts for you among the ones I bought this time."
Jiang Yi forced down the twitching at the corner of her mouth and forced a smile: "It's alright." Then she asked insincerely, "Is everything going smoothly for you on your journey south, brother?"
"Yes, thank you for your concern."
After saying that, He Yu turned to He Lin and said, "Second brother, I know you have always liked to paint quietly. On the way back to the capital, I bought a fine wolf hair brush at a high price as a wedding gift for you two."
He Lin smiled and said, "Thank you, big brother."
"Why are you being so polite with us, brothers?"
Jiang Yi was slightly surprised. She hadn't expected the two He brothers to have such a good relationship. It turned out that she had been prejudiced against them.
"By the way, where is Aunt Tong? I brought back a few packets of fresh Biluochun tea to give to her."
Before He Lin could answer, Qi Shuangyun calmly put down her cup, took out a handkerchief to wipe her mouth, and reminded him, "Yu'er, it's getting late, come with me to the palace first."
"mother?"
Qi Shuangyun stood up and walked slowly to the group. She glanced at Jiang Yi out of the corner of her eye, her contempt evident in her eyes.
Then, looking ahead, he snorted softly, "Our General's Mansion's main hall isn't a place for just anyone to step into. Su Tong is merely a concubine, so naturally she has no right to be here. You come from a lowly merchant family; if it weren't for His Majesty bestowing upon He Lin the title of his principal wife, you probably wouldn't even have the right to enter the General's Mansion. I advise some people not to dream of rising to the top in one step..."
Does this mean that Madam Tong is not worthy of entering the main hall, and that she is not worthy of entering the General's Mansion?!
"I……"
Jiang Yi's blood rushed to her head, and she momentarily lost her senses. She glared at Qi Shuangyun and was about to confront her when He Lin accurately predicted her movement. He grabbed Jiang Yi's hand first and squeezed her palm tightly, signaling her not to act impulsively.
The warm touch on her skin was real. She pulled her hand away from He Lin's and gave a fake smile, curtsying slightly: "I think what the First Madam said is true."
Jiang Yi was indeed bowing, but her eyes were fixed on Qi Shuangyun, filled with defiance and stubbornness.
He Yu clearly sensed that something was wrong. In all his life, he had never seen anyone dare to be so arrogant and presumptuous in front of his mother.
He looked at He Lin and winked, as if to ask: What's going on?
"Yu'er, the Empress Dowager was just talking about you recently. Hurry up and go, or you'll miss the appointed time. Don't waste your breath on people who aren't worth it."
He Yu paused, seemingly wanting to say something. After exchanging a glance with He Lin, he swallowed the words he was about to say, turned around, bowed, and clasped his hands in a salute to He Wei. Then, he and Qi Shuangyun walked out of the main hall one after the other. He Wei put his hands behind his back and sighed softly: "Lin'er, go to Qinxiang Garden to see your mother, and also deliver the gifts your elder brother brought back."
"Okay, sure."
On the way to Qinxiang Garden, Jiang Yi walked very fast and didn't say a word to He Lin the whole way. It wasn't until she stopped at the entrance of Qinxiang Garden that she smiled and raised the corners of her mouth, pretending to be happy. She reached out and took He Lin's arm as if nothing had happened.
After spending some time together, He Lin had a pretty good grasp of Jiang Yi's temperament and was no longer surprised by her quick changes of expression.
For her, love seems to be love and hate seems to be hate, and she gets angry very easily, but she's also very easy to coax; a good meal is all it takes to win her over...
"mother."
"Lin'er, Yi'er?" Su Tong smiled broadly when she saw the two walking towards her hand in hand. "Come and try the pastries your mother made."
"..."
A full moon hangs high above the branches in the courtyard, a gentle breeze caresses the ground, and falling petals rustle softly.
Since Jiang Yi moved into He Lin's room, the two have never slept in the same bed, a fact unknown to anyone but the two of them.
There was a daybed under the window for people to rest on, with a small, movable square table on it. After He Lin gave his bed to Jiang Yi, he slept on that daybed every night.
Jiang Yi was only wearing a white undergarment. She casually picked up her embroidered shoes and walked around the screen to come out.
"He Lin, wait a minute, don't go to sleep yet, I forgot to write you an IOU!"
Hearing the noise, He Lin hurriedly put on his outer robe and said helplessly, "No need."
“That won’t do. I, Jiang Yi, always keep my word.”
"You're not angry with me anymore?"
"Hmph, what's it to you? Are you a coward or a piece of trash?" Jiang Yi took a thin brush from the pen holder and wrote something on the white paper, swaying it as she tried to steady herself by supporting her right elbow with her left hand. "If it weren't for the chestnut cake and peach blossom pastry that my mother made, I wouldn't want to talk to you."
He Lin looked down at the scribbles she had written, and to avoid hurting his eyes, he slowly looked away and stopped looking.
Why do you always pick on the First Madam?
Jiang Yi looked up at him in disbelief, her eyes filled with the same disbelief she had of someone who looked at her like she was an idiot.
"Are you sure you're okay? It's clearly her who's making trouble for me, okay?"
He Lin looked at her, opened his mouth, and finally decided to say, "The First Madam is not a bad person by nature, she just has a sharp tongue. Otherwise, my mother and I would not be alive today."
That's true. He Wei is stationed at the border year-round and can only return to the capital to report for duty and reunite with his family by imperial decree. If Qi Shuangyun is truly a vicious person, given her status and methods, even if He Lin and Su Tong are extremely careful, there will always be loopholes and times when they can't prevent her from doing so...
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