Lin Chen remained calm, showing no distress whatsoever because of Shen Siqi's words, and he had no need for Shen Siqi to protect him.
However, he couldn't say this to Shen Yunxi's face, for fear that Shen Yunxi would think he was ungrateful, so he didn't directly reprimand Shen Siqi.
"Thank you for your protection, Miss Seven. However, everyone here is here to enjoy themselves, and the scholars' poetry recitations are quite lively. As for me, I have been in officialdom for three years, so of course I don't have their quick wit. They are far more talented than me," Lin Chen replied.
Having heard Lin Chen's words to this extent, Shen Siqi naturally couldn't say much more and could only mutter "I understand."
The atmosphere was a bit strange. Just then, a few people walked over from not far away, which made Shen Yunxi's face light up with a bright smile.
"Sister and Ying'er are here. How come Wei Ran is with Sister?" Shen Yunxi asked.
Jiang Weiran smiled and approached Shen Yunxi. "I met Sister Qiuyan at the entrance. Our carriages almost collided. It was fate. The Lotus Festival is very lively today. I saw many familiar faces just now. I also noticed that Lu Wanqing came, but they were at the back."
Shen Yunxi was not surprised at all that Lu Wanqing would attend the Lotus Viewing Festival. She would attend any such occasion, always wanting to stand out and improve her reputation so that she would be more worthy of Junxuan.
In her past life, she and Lu Wanqing were mortal enemies for Jun Xuan, engaging in numerous open and covert struggles.
“Let’s each do our own thing today and not interfere with each other,” Shen Yunxi chuckled.
Hearing her say that, everyone understood that she didn't intend to contact Lu Wanqing anymore, and the two no longer needed to fight.
Shen Leyi was very disappointed. She wished that Lu Wanqing and Shen Yunxi would fight to the death so that she would have a chance to get close to Jun Xuan. Unfortunately, she never thought that she had no ability to get close to Jun Xuan at all.
The last time she was confined to her quarters, the Empress Dowager lifted her confinement before the allotted time was up. All the young ladies from noble families knew this.
"Yunxi, what are you planning to do next?" Shen Qiuyan asked.
As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Ying broke free from Shen Qiuyan's hand and went straight to Shen Yunxi's side, happily reaching out to take her hand. "Auntie, Ying'er wants to eat green lotus leaf rice. Mother said it's especially delicious."
"Alright, then Auntie will take you to eat Green Lotus Leaf Rice." Shen Yunxi squeezed Jiang Ying's small hand back. "Brother Lin, do you want to come along?"
Lin Chen smiled and nodded, "Of course, we came together, so we'll go together."
It would be even better if Shen Siqi and Shen Leyi didn't come along. He could tell how the two sisters treated Shen Yunxi, and if they did anything to harm her, he would definitely protect her.
“Let’s go together. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Third Sister. It’s rare for her to go out today, so we sisters should go together.” Shen Leyi smiled at Shen Qiuyan, then seemed to remember something. “I heard there are new varieties of lotus planted last year in the north. I haven’t seen them yet. Shall we go and take a look together later?”
Shen Yunxi looked at Shen Leyi with a half-smile, "So Fourth Sister had already inquired about it. It seems she's also looking forward to today's Lotus Viewing Festival. But are the new varieties of lotus really that attractive?"
Shen Leyi's smile was a little stiff. "Well, that's for sure. You know I've always loved lotus flowers."
Upon hearing this, Shen Yunxi looked puzzled. "Ah? So Fourth Sister likes lotus flowers? I thought Fourth Sister liked orchids. Am I remembering wrong?"
"Well, people always change. I used to like orchids, and it's normal for me to like orchids now too." Shen Leyi gritted her teeth secretly.
You brat, stop talking now. If you keep going, she won't know how to explain herself later. Besides, she only likes orchids to put on an act.
However, Shen Yunxi seemed not to notice her unease. She simply nodded and said, "Alright, let's go take a look later. We should at least go and see, otherwise, wouldn't we be letting down Fourth Sister's good intentions?"
Shen Leyi felt that Shen Yunxi's words sounded strange, but there was nothing wrong with them, so she could only smile and agree.
“Okay, let’s go take a look later.” Shen Leyi nodded.
Jiang Weiran could tell at a glance that Shen Leyi was up to no good, but since Shen Yunxi agreed so easily and deliberately said something ambiguous, she didn't say anything more.
Shen Yunxi is no longer the little girl who could be manipulated by others; these people can't bully her anymore.
Since she agreed, she must have a plan. They should just watch the show.
Shen Siqi didn't think much of it. Her gaze was fixed on Lin Chen, and she didn't pay any attention to the conversation between Shen Leyi and Shen Yunxi. She just knew that Shen Yunxi wouldn't have a good ending today, and she didn't care about anything else.
Shen Yunxi took in the expressions of the two sisters, and then took Jiang Ying to buy green lotus root rice.
Several people went together, but Jiang Ying was the happiest, because her mother took her out to play with her aunt, who bought her green lotus leaf rice, and her uncle also gave her delicious candied hawthorns.
Reaching a pavilion, Shen Yunxi looked at Jiang Weiran and said, "Weiran, would you like to paint a picture? The scenery here is so pleasant."
Just then, one of the painters in the pavilion finished his painting, and since no one was around, another painter was finishing up.
Jiang Weiran nodded, "Okay, let's go."
Lin Chen suddenly stepped forward, “If Yunxi and Miss Jiang don’t mind, how about I paint for you? I’ll go borrow the artist’s paper and brush, and pay as usual.”
“Very well, Young Master Lin is a renowned scholar in the capital. He was the third-ranked scholar three years ago, so I’m sure his painting skills are quite remarkable. In that case, I must thank Yunxi. If it weren’t for Yunxi here today, I wouldn’t have had the honor of receiving Young Master Lin’s precious painting.” Jiang Weiran said with a smile.
Shen Yunxi chuckled, "Not at all, but Brother Lin's painting skills are beyond question. We are truly blessed today."
"I want one too. Would Young Master Lin like to paint one for me as well?" Shen Siqi seized the opportunity.
In the past, men would not casually paint a woman's portrait, but today is the Lotus Viewing Festival, so it is different; otherwise, there wouldn't be so many painters.
Some painters were inside the pavilion, while others were on the bridge, all to paint portraits of the daughters and sons of noble families, since they were paying them so much.
If they encountered a painter who painted very well, the young ladies would give him more money.
Most of these painters were preparing to take the imperial examinations, and many of them came from poor families. They painted only to earn more money, as taking the imperial examinations was a very expensive affair.
However, the imperial examination originally scheduled for this year has been postponed to next year due to the one-year mourning period following the death of the late emperor, but they still need to make preparations.
Just then, two people approached from not far away.
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