Chapter 14 My innocent wish is for my cousin to be healthy, happy, and for everything to go smoothly. ...
"It's no use trying to please me. Don't even think about avoiding this problem." Song Zhaohan tightened his grip on her hand, his eyes dark and stubborn.
"No, I want to like you." Zhu Xuanning answered softly, looking at him intently, her sorrowful, misty eyes constantly tugging at Song Zhaohan's emotions.
That long-awaited "I like you" made Song Zhaohan's eyelashes tremble with surprise.
She parted her lips slightly, sniffed sadly, and suppressed the urge to cry, her voice trembling: "But I am not worthy of her. I am just a cousin fostered in the Zhu family."
"Even being a merchant's wife is difficult, let alone marrying you."
Upon hearing that Zhu Xuanning's reluctance to marry him wasn't due to dislike, Song Zhaohan's expression brightened, and a rare, triumphant gleam appeared between her brows: "Xuanning, don't worry, I will definitely marry you. If my family disagrees, I can ask my uncle and my grandmother."
When ambiguous emotions reach their peak, young people often make absurd and unrealistic promises.
Zhu Xuanning didn't believe it, but she still put on a touched expression.
A glimmer of light appeared in her eyes, and she gave a deep "Mmm," gazing at Song Zhaohan with unwavering trust. Song Zhaohan's heart softened at the sight, and she pulled her into her arms and kissed her.
"I've been mentioning it to my family these past few days." Song Zhaohan's breathing became increasingly erratic, her desire to marry him growing stronger.
Zhu Xuanning refused: "Ah Zhao, can you bring this up again when our relationship is a little deeper?"
Song Zhaohan remained silent, staring at Zhu Xuanning for a long time. Suspicion arose in her heart, but seeing her eyes gradually reddening, she could only soften and agree in the end.
"As long as you don't go to your cousin, I'll grant your request."
At this point, Song Zhaohan only considered Mei Jiashan as someone to be wary of.
Zhu Xuanning comforted Song Zhaohan and left Fuyao Pavilion only after no trace of the marks could be seen on her face.
After leaving Fuyou Pavilion, Yan Hengdan was in a foul mood. He took several pills to relieve the pain and feel better. Then he took the jade pendant from his waist and smashed it down to vent his anger.
"A heartless person actually believes he has fallen in love with someone? He must be insane!"
Yan Hengdan grew angrier and angrier, and soon she couldn't breathe again.
Absurd, ridiculous, and incomprehensible! Does he even know what marriage means to people like them? Can they make that decision? Are they even qualified to make that decision?
Knowing that Yan Hengdan would take effect, Yu Xuan brought a snuff bottle to him, hoping to make his friend feel better with the smell of the medicine.
"Don't you know what kind of person Ah Zhao is? His family spoils him. The more you try to stop him, the more he'll take it. You might as well let him be and wait until he loses his novelty."
Yu Xuan felt that Song Zhaohan's public declaration of wanting to get married was just a fit of anger and embarrassment at losing face.
Even if it's genuine, how long can his sincerity last?
"I'm so angry! He's completely absurd! He even asked me to apologize!" Up until now, Yan Hengdan still thought Song Zhaohan was crazy to say such things, but who knew that this person would become even crazier, even saying things like promising marriage in public.
Yan Hengdan was still indignant, but she still impatiently ordered her servants to investigate the man's identity.
Upon learning Zhu Xuanning's identity, the already furious Yan Hengdan crumpled the letter in her hand into a ball and slammed it onto the car, yelling, "You two are a scoundrel!"
Yu Xuan glanced at him, picked up the crumpled paper that had rolled to his feet, unfolded it and examined it closely. A subtle expression appeared on his beautiful face.
"I knew I wouldn't dislike someone without reason at first sight." Yan Hengdan's anger was completely transferred to Zhu Xuanning, a hint of ferocity rising on her pale face: "What audacity! One is clinging to my cousin, the other is eyeing the young lady of the Zhenguo Mansion."
"They all want to climb the social ladder? I'll show them whether they're even worthy!"
Yan Hengdan smiled, a hint of gloom in her indifferent eyes, similar to that of Song Zhaohan.
Miss Zhu, a cousin of the Zhu family, traveled by boat with the young master of the Mei family to the capital in seven days and received much care from him.
The short sentence on the paper aroused Yan Hengdan's suspicion.
Yu Xuan held the paper, lowered her head slightly, and didn't let him see the complex emotion that flashed in her eyes.
Mei Jiashan sent a letter home without consulting Mei Shuxian. By the time Mei Shuxian found out, the letter had already reached the destination.
Mei Shuxian, who always doted on her younger brother, hit Mei Jiashan for the first time.
"You! How could you be so naive!" Mei Shuxian's hand holding the thorny branch trembled as she spoke angrily.
Mei Jiashan was struck with a stick and knelt on the ground: "Sister, I only want to marry her."
"Mei Jiashan!" Mei Shuxian grabbed the thorny branch again and lashed it hard against him, again and again, trying to wake him up.
But Mei Jiashan remained kneeling, only bending down to kowtow to Mei Shuxian, without uttering a sound of pain: "My heart is as firm as a rock, unyielding. I only ask that after you finish scolding and beating me, you speak well of me to the elders."
"What if your stubbornness kills her? Would you still do it?" Mei Shuxian's voice became shrill as she spoke.
Mei Jiashan, who was kneeling on the ground, suddenly stiffened.
"You don't believe me?" Mei Shuxian, who was initially agitated, gradually calmed down at this moment.
"Why do you think I would willingly enter the Rongguo Mansion in a small sedan chair? Have you forgotten how fierce my temperament was back then?"
Mei Shuxian spoke in a calm tone, as if she were talking about something unrelated. Mei Jiashan looked up in disbelief.
She looked at her younger brother, recalling the past, and finally burst into tears: "Brother, you fool, marrying a wife and taking a concubine and then making her the legal wife would have been the best choice, why did you have to do this?"
"The Zhenguo Mansion has already set its sights on you. If you stop looking at the prospective brides now, how will you appease their anger? How much resources and money will you have to spend?"
Mei Jiashan's eyes reddened, and she moved her lips, but didn't know what to say.
Mei Shuxian's hand slipped from her grasp. She knelt down, hugged Mei Jiashan, and said through tears, "Let it go. Brother, listen to me. If you don't want her to be a concubine and then promoted to the position of principal wife, then wait until you have a firm foothold and are powerful enough to send your wife away before asking her for marriage."
"But I can't bring myself to do it." He couldn't bring himself to harm another innocent woman, and he didn't want to keep Ah Ning waiting for him for too long.
"Then forget it, okay?" Mei Shuxian's words finally brought tears to Mei Jiashan's eyes.
He grabbed his older sister's sleeve and cried for a long time.
After leaving the Mei residence, Mei Shuxian went to the Zhu residence on the way. While she was talking to Madam Zhu, the servants of the Zhu residence informed Zhu Xuanning.
"What a lovely and charming girl. It's a pity that we don't have a suitable match in our family. I can only hear this lovely girl call me 'cousin' and nothing else." Mei Shuxian held Zhu Xuanning's hand, her heart and eyes full of affection.
Zhu Xuanning smiled sweetly: "It's my good fortune to be called your cousin. As for anything else, I dare not think about it."
As soon as Zhu Xuanning finished speaking, she saw a fleeting look of pity in Mei Shuxian's eyes, but there was nothing else besides that.
"What a humble child. No wonder I liked you at first sight." Mei Shuxian was extremely satisfied, and even the smile on her face became more genuine.
Before leaving, Mei Shuxian made sure to increase the amount of gifts she had prepared, as a gift for her first visit to Zhu Xuanning's residence.
Madam Zhu snorted and instead of carrying these things to her own storeroom, she had the servants carry them all to Zhu Xuanning's small storeroom.
“Miss, if you want to see the young master, just tell him to splash ink. There’s no need to look at this jade pendant so intently.”
When Zhu Xuanning returned to her room, she was lost in thought, turning the jade pendant in her hand. Po Mo came up and tore off the cooled bird's nest, teasing her.
Zhu Xuanning put down the jade pendant in her hand, rested her chin on her hand, and looked out the window. The plum blossoms that had bloomed in the past were long gone, leaving only bare trunks, which looked ugly.
“I wasn’t thinking about him.” Zhu Xuanning lowered her eyes, ignoring the slight melancholy. “Return the jade pendant to him.”
Po Mo was stunned. He wanted to ask something, but seeing Zhu Xuanning's somewhat downcast expression, he decided not to make her cry and obediently took the jade pendant and left.
As night fell, at the Mei residence, Po Mo personally returned the jade pendant to Mei Jiashan.
Mei Jiashan held the cool jade pendant in her hands, her noble and gentle face showing a hint of fragility.
After thinking about Zhu Xuanning's absent-minded gaze, Po Mo added, "Miss wishes the young master all the best in the future."
Miss didn't say it, but Po Mo felt that Zhu Xuanning thought the same way at the time.
Mei Jiashan gave a barely audible "hmm": "I wish my cousin good health, happiness, and all the best."
After the ink splashing left, Mei Jiashan held the jade pendant close to the cheek where Zhu Xuanning had once kissed him. He tried to raise the corners of his mouth, but only tears fell.
Spring banquets became more frequent. Normally, given Zhu Xuanning's status, she wouldn't receive so many invitations. However, the matriarch of the □□ Kingdom's mansion fell ill, and Mei Shuxian took over the management of the household affairs. An invitation was sent to the Zhu family, inviting Zhu Xuanning to attend. During the banquet, Mei Shuxian even asked Zhu Xuanning to sit next to her, showing their close relationship.
Zhu Xuanning was exceptionally beautiful. Although she wasn't the type of woman many matriarchs preferred, there were still young men who were captivated by her.
As a result, Zhu Xuanning's name spread throughout the circle, and she received more and more posts. Several ladies even specifically inquired about her marriage with Madam Zhu, but Madam Zhu evaded the question.
Zhu Xuanning sat upright in front of the mirror, stroking her thick, black hair, and constantly practicing her facial expressions.
They may be charming, innocent, or pitiful.
Po Mo was stunned. It took him a long time to find his voice. He then told Zhu Xuanning about the information he had gathered: not many of those young masters were good.
"Our Splash Ink is really amazing, he's practically the best informant in Kyoto." Zhu Xuanning affectionately tapped Splash Ink's smooth forehead.
Po Mo blushed: "Not entirely. Some of the information that I couldn't find out was told to me by Sister Ruyu through Young Master Biao."
Zhu Xuanning gradually withdrew her outstretched fingertips, her expression becoming slightly unnatural.
Po Mo glanced at him discreetly and lowered his voice: "The Mei family is about to make the matchmaking public. Sister Ruyu begged me to ask you if you would be willing to see the young master one last time the day after tomorrow."
Zhu Xuanning remained silent. Mei Jiashan, who had long since lost his usefulness, was not worth seeing one last time for her. However, she thought of the care Mei Shuxian had given her during this time and finally nodded.
"Let's meet," Zhu Xuanning agreed.
When Mei Jiashan learned that Ruyu had taken it upon herself to plead with Zhu Xuanning, he remained silent. He looked coldly at Ruyu kneeling on the ground without uttering a word.
"Young Master, are you going to refuse Miss Biao?" Ruyu knelt with her forehead pressed to the ground, her tone as respectful as ever.
Mei Jiashan felt a pang of pain in his heart, but he couldn't bring himself to refuse. He gave a bitter smile and closed his eyes: "This is the second time you've made a decision for me, Ruyu. After this, go back to your grandmother's side and learn some manners."
Ruyu calmly said "yes," and remained kneeling until the young master's robes left her side.
A maid who was on good terms with her secretly helped her up, but Ruyu refused: "Although the young master did not tell me to kneel, it is my choice to kneel. I have already overstepped my master's authority twice."
She knew she would be punished for doing this, but there were some things that her master couldn't say, and she had to point them out; it was their duty.
At every banquet hosted by Miss Zhu, the young master would arrive early, but he would always take a quick look from the shadows before leaving. Ruyu knew that the young master was thinking of Miss Zhu.
As the Zhu family's carriage set off, those secretly watching began to report the news.
When Yan Hengdan received the message, he was playing chess with Yu Xuan. He put down his chess piece, sneered, and his robe embroidered with cranes fluttered slightly: "Let's go, call Wei Liu and Song Ming to catch them in the act."
Yu Xuan's fingers twitched as he touched the chess piece, then he stopped Yan Hengdan, who was radiating cold anger, and said slowly, "Are you sure that if you call these two people, they won't take their anger out on each other and start fighting?"
Yan Hengdan stopped, her eyes narrowed, and her gaze swept over Yu Xuan, the anger on her face gradually subsiding.
Yu Xuan remained expressionless. Yan Hengdan stared at him for a while, then raised her pointed chin and continued to sneer: "It would be better if they fought. I may not be able to beat Song Ming, but surely Wei Liu, that bull-like guy, can't beat Song Ming?"
"It would be best to beat Song Ming so badly that he can't get out of bed."
Yan Hengdan walked out as she spoke, but when she got into the carriage, she just stared at the Zhenguo Mansion without going in.
Yan Hengdan pulled Song Zhaohan out, ignoring his dark expression.
"You'd better really have something to do." Song Zhaohan hadn't been in a good mood these past few days, and Zhu Xuanning was busy attending banquets, so he couldn't get her to come out at all.
He also tried to attend banquets where Zhu Xuanning was present, but one young lady would twist her ankle or another would fall down. Before he could even say a word to Zhu Xuanning, she would be separated from him by the other young ladies, which annoyed Song Zhaohan to no end.
In an effort to win Zhu Xuanning's favor, he even promised her that he would no longer freely enter or leave her room, which meant he couldn't be close to his beloved every day, completely shooting himself in the foot.
"Something's wrong, of course something's wrong."
"I'd like to invite you to a wonderful show."
Yan Hengdan smiled, a chilling smile that made Song Zhaohan frown.
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