That is to say, everyone saw her chasing after Yuan Yunzhong and speaking with him!
Song Jiyun once again experienced the force of the saying "A lie grows as it goes."
She inwardly sighed.
Madam Qian, however, pursed her lips in a smile as she glanced towards the hall.
The silhouette of Yuan Yunzhong drinking tea, cast onto the colored-glaze inlaid partition, appeared as elegant as distant verdant hills.
Madam Qian lowered her voice and said, "It’s good I delayed a bit and just happened to encounter Young Master Yuan. From Young Master Yuan’s tone, it seems the Young Master Hong was quite polite to you all at the Hong Family. It shows that although Young Master Yuan has an ordinary background, he can still uphold his family’s dignity when out in the world. You heard it yourself, even the Eleventh Grand Master praised Young Master Yuan for his proper conduct!"
Song Jiyun was speechless.
She changed the subject to her father’s funeral ceremony on the seventh day of the seventh month.
Madam Qian deemed it a significant matter.
She glanced at the partition again, pondered for a moment, then led Song Jiyun out of the inner chambers, taking seats to the left and right of Yuan Yunzhong in the hall. She began to discuss the details of Song Youliang’s ceremony, "At that time, the Taoist priest from Gratitude Temple, the Monk from Nameless Temple, and the nuns from The Eight Immortals Nunnery will send people to perform rituals. Mr. Yin-Yang calculated that the Chen Hour is auspicious; we will finish breakfast and go to your father’s grave to burn joss paper, returning in time for lunch. Since many are attending, lunch will be catered by chefs from Little Banquet Mountain with four dried fruits, four cold dishes, six hot dishes, nearly the same menu as your father’s funeral..."
Song Jiyun, seeing everything so well arranged, began to praise her mother, "I am not very familiar with these matters; they really should be discussed with the clan elders!"
Unity brings strength strong enough to cut through metal.
There were only a few people in the Song family’s second branch; she would soon concentrate more on the family’s business. If her mother did not stand firm in managing household and social affairs, even if she were extremely capable, it would not be enough.
Otherwise, why would future generations always talk about the importance of team spirit?
She needed to cultivate the talents of everyone in the family.
Including her sister Song Jiyu, who was as soft as Madam Qian, and the still young Song Jixue.
Madam Qian was indeed pleased after hearing this; she even pulled Song Jiyun aside to discuss which maids would stay at home during the day of the ceremony.
If it hadn’t been for Nanny Zheng, seeing it was getting late, coming in and asking where to set up lunch, Madam Qian might have even forgotten about the meal.
Even so, after Yuan Yunzhong left and Song Jiyun had lunch with Madam Qian, by the time she left her mother’s courtyard, it was already past the Wei Hour.
Song Jiyun was still preoccupied with the commission for specially made porcelain for the Hong Family.
The Zhao Family Village where she and Yuan Yunzhong had lost their way was part of the Hong Family’s territory.
After those who had pursued them were taken away, she hadn’t even dared to send someone to inquire about what happened next.
How could Yuan Yunzhong’s words not leave her deep in thought?
Song Jiyun quietly instructed Zheng Quan to gather information on the Hong family, then she went back to her room to change into casual home attire, and ordered the kitchen to make Dingsheng Cake. Taking Xiang Zhan, she went to Yinyu Hall.
Though it was already autumn, the midday sunlight still carried the remnants of summer’s fierceness.
Shao Qing stood under the corridor in the courtyard, supervising several new servant boys practicing horse stances under the sun.
Seeing Song Jiyun arrive, he quickly walked over to greet her.
The servant boys, however, did not shift their gaze even slightly.
Whose instructions were those?
In just a few days, Shao Qing had trained them so well.
Ordinary families could not achieve this.
Song Jiyun was secretly astonished, but her face showed no sign as she smiled and handed the snack box carried by Xiang Zhan to Shao Qing, asking, "Where is Young Master Yuan?"
Shao Qing took the snack box, thanked her, and grinned, "The young master is lying on the bed reading a book! I will go inform him immediately."
Song Jiyun nodded her head.
She had discovered when she confined Yuan Yunzhong in her gauze cupboard that he was not a person of action, quite embodying the spirit of "if you can sit, don’t stand; if you can lie down, don’t sit."
After a while, Shao Qing invited her in.
The room’s windows were wide open, and a gentle breeze was blowing, carrying the fresh scent of the grass and trees from the courtyard.
Yuan Yunzhong, dressed in a plain white Hangzhou silk Taoist robe, was lounging on a Taishi Chair. The bright sunlight illuminated his fair face, his prominent nose, and deep-set eyebrows, making his features appear even more distinct than usual.
Song Jiyun was slightly startled.
Why did she feel that he seemed a bit unhappy?
What had happened?
The thought had barely flashed through her mind, and before she had decided whether to ask or not, Yuan Yunzhong had already lifted his eyelids to look at her, saying indifferently, "You’re here!"
The tone was flat and straightforward, no different from usual.
Perhaps it was just her own illusion!
Jiyun decisively collected her thoughts and smiled, "I brought over some pastries from the kitchen for you to try."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Yunzhong straightened his back and swiftly blocked her off with his response, "Your family is pretty much a local powerhouse in Liang County, isn’t it a piece of cake for you to inquire about the past events?"
Jiyun laughed out of frustration.
So, he knew why she was here.
He even had the nerve to act as if he were warning her!
Considering they had met last night and again this morning, if he had intended to warn her, why didn’t he tell her sooner?
He waited until she had agreed to make porcelain for the Hong family before he mentioned it!
This guy was clearly doing it on purpose!
Jiyun straightforwardly asked, "Young Master Yuan, when did you find out that Eldest Young Master Hong is a concubine’s son?"
Yuan Yunzhong neither confirmed nor denied, leisurely tidying the papers and ink on the table.
Jiyun glared at Yuan Yunzhong.
Shao Qing entered with a Jihong porcelain pedestal tray holding the pure white Dingsheng Cakes.
"Miss Song, what kind of tea would you like?" he placed the pedestal tray on the desk and said with a beaming smile, "I prepared some Qimen Black Tea and Fujian Rock Tea yesterday."
Both teas were good for warming the stomach, perfectly seasonal.
One doesn’t hit a smiling face, and besides, Shao Qing always treated Jiyun with warmth and courtesy. At Zhao Family Village, he had been dressed in full attire, commanding over twenty men in black that appeared in the woods.
Jiyun politely smiled and said, "Thank you, Young Master Shao. I’ll have the Qimen Black Tea."
"Right away!" Shao Qing, like a lively waiter, cheerfully complied and left the room.
Yuan Yunzhong looked around restlessly.
Jiyun couldn’t help but ask, "What are you doing?"
Yuan Yunzhong pointed to the Dingsheng Cakes on the table, expressing some disdain, "Get a fork!"
Jiyun stared at him fixedly.
Under her gaze, Yuan Yunzhong leisurely leaned back in the Taishi Chair, saying, "Aren’t you curious how Hong Family Mountain became Zhao Family Village?"
Hadn’t she dared not to ask?
By saying this, Yuan Yunzhong implicitly admitted that he had known about Hong Xi being a concubine’s son since then.
He advised her not to get too close to the Hong family, and indeed it was related to Zhao Family Village.
Jiyun really wanted to hit him a few times.
She proposed, "Can we share information? Let’s keep each other informed about things."
Standing at different heights, one sees different views.
She could send Zheng Quan to gather information, which would allow her to learn more about the family’s internal secrets at most.
Yuan Yunzhong, however, was different.
At least she couldn’t nurture a talent like Shao Qing by her side.
But recalling what she had just said, her instinct told her that Yuan Yunzhong wouldn’t easily reveal the affairs of the Hong family to her, prompting her to ask involuntarily, "How did you think to check on Young Master Hong?"
After speaking, she pondered briefly, went to the side cabinet, took a fruit fork, and placed it beside the pedestal tray.
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