4 – Offering Tea
After hearing Ye Chen’s words, Granny Li approached him and whispered, “Duke, today’s breakfast will be served after paying respects with tea to the Old Duke and Old Madam.”
Shen Qiu, who had keen hearing, asked Ye Chen, “Can we eat after paying respects?”
Ye Chen beamed with joy when he heard Shen Qiu’s question and looked at her, asking, “You want to eat with Grandfather and Grandmother?”
Not understanding why Ye Chen was so pleased, Shen Qiu nodded and said, “Following the rules is always safe.”
Hearing this, Ye Chen froze for a moment. He had witnessed her unrestrained nature before and understood that the current Shen Qiu wasn’t her true self. It seemed the wounds from yesterday would take a long time to heal.
Ye Chen didn’t say anything more but instructed Granny Li, “Take Xing Er and deliver that box to Grandmother first. Tell them we’ll arrive shortly.”
After Granny Li left with Xing Er, Ye Chen led Shen Qiu in another direction. Soon they arrived at a large lotus pond, in the center of which stood a Water Pavilion. The characters on the plaque were hard to make out from the shore.
Shen Qiu knew the Duke Manor was spacious, but she hadn’t expected it to be this vast – the distance from the shore to the Water Pavilion was several dozen yards. As she wondered why Ye Chen had brought her here, she heard him ask, “Do you like this place? This is my study. How about we move here in a few days?”
Shen Qiu thought she had misheard, “What?”
Ye Chen looked at her and explained, “The dog days of summer are approaching. This Water Pavilion is surrounded by water, making it an excellent place to escape the heat.”
“I’ve renamed it Cherishing Autumn Pavilion. What do you think, Qiu’er?”
Shen Qiu remained silent, truly unable to grasp Ye Chen’s intentions.
Ye Chen sighed quietly and pointed to a bamboo grove across the way, saying, “That will be where you practice martial arts with Xing Er and Ming Yue in the future. Would you like to take a look?”
Shen Qiu lowered her head and replied, “Thank you for your consideration, Duke, but I don’t think that’s necessary. I’ve already instructed Ming Yue and Xing Er – there will be no more morning practice sessions.”
“Also, please rest assured, Duke. Even for the sake of the Shen family, I will play my part well with you and guarantee I won’t make any mistakes in front of Grandfather and Grandmother.”
Without waiting for Ye Chen’s response, Shen Qiu tore off the bandage wrapped around her wound – injuries she had inflicted on herself while enduring humiliation the previous night. She said, “With this, my injuries can’t be concealed anymore, so I might as well remove it.”
Ye Chen stared blankly at Shen Qiu, his heart truly bleeding. He knew the words he had spoken to his Qiu’er last night were utterly despicable. Seeing her like this now, he felt no anger, only heartache for his Qiu’er. She had torn the bandage off so forcefully – he didn’t know if the wound was bleeding again.
Shen Qiu looked at Ye Chen and asked, “Duke, shouldn’t we be going to see Grandfather and Grandmother now?”
Ye Chen smiled bitterly and nodded, then reached out to wrap his arm around Shen Qiu’s waist. She skillfully avoided him, but Ye Chen seemed determined to hold her and shamelessly pursued her.
When he finally succeeded in putting his arm around her waist, he secretly smiled like a child who had obtained candy.
When the group arrived at the Hall of Glory and Majesty, Xing Er stood at the entrance, winked at Ming Yue, and said to Ye Chen, “Duke, the Old Madam is waiting.”
Ye Chen nodded and, tightening his arm around Shen Qiu, led her into the courtyard.At the main hall entrance, a young maid had already lifted the curtain. As the hottest period of summer was approaching, the curtain was made of lightweight gauze, letting a hint of coolness seep from inside—clearly, ice blocks had been placed in the room early on.
Entering the room, Ye Chen held Shen Qiu with one arm while supporting her elbow with his other hand.
Seated at the head was a silver-haired elderly lady, none other than Xiao Hong’an, the Old Madam of the Duke Manor.
Seeing Ye Chen assisting Shen Qiu inside, Xiao Old Madam nodded with a smile, evidently pleased with her grandson’s demeanor.
Beside her, a woman adorned with golden hair ornaments snorted coldly at the sight and remarked, “So affected. As if none of us have been brides before.”
Next to her, another woman dressed in plain attire chuckled and said, “Second Sister-in-law, it’s a good thing Xiao Chen dotes on his new bride. This Miss Shen is fortunate, though it’s a pity about the Gu Family’s Third Miss, who originally—”
“Third Aunt, mind your words,” Ye Chen interrupted sharply, his brow furrowed and his gaze as cold as ice, seeming to freeze the very air.
The two speaking women were both daughters-in-law of the Old Duke’s younger brother, making them Ye Chen’s aunts by marriage. One was Second Aunt Zhang Shi, the other Third Aunt Li Shi.
Li Shi glanced at Ye Chen, shivered involuntarily, twitched her lips, and lowered her head.
Shen Qiu subtly tugged at Ye Chen’s sleeve. Feeling this, Ye Chen’s heart instantly blossomed with joy, and he looked down at her with a smile.
Then, leading Shen Qiu, he knelt before the Old Madam, and both bowed their heads, addressing her, “Grandmother.”
Xiao Old Madam smiled. By then, a maid had already brought tea. Shen Qiu took the teacup, holding it with both hands raised above her head.
“Grandmother, please have some tea.”
“Good,” Grandmother Xiao replied cheerfully, taking the cup and sipping the tea. She then beckoned to the maid beside her, who promptly presented a tray covered with a red cloth.
Grandmother Xiao lifted the cloth to reveal a complete South Sea Pearl Headdress Set: two hairpins with dangling ornaments, one hairpin, a pair of earrings, and a necklace. While pearl headdress sets weren’t particularly rare for families of their status, this set was exceptional.
The pearls on the two dangling hairpins and the single hairpin were each the size of pigeon eggs, shimmering with a faint purple glow. The pearl on the necklace was slightly larger than those on the hairpins, also radiating the same purple light.
Each dangling hairpin was set with two pearls, the hairpin had one, and the necklace featured one as well.
The appearance of this set made everyone gasp. It was clear that Xiao Taijun truly favored her granddaughter-in-law; such extravagance was remarkable even in the capital.
Ye Chen looked at the headdress set and then at Shen Qiu, who stood stunned beside him. His Qiu’er—this set was perfectly suited for her.
Without waiting for Shen Qiu to react, Ye Chen reached out and took it, smiling as he said to Xiao Taijun, “Thank you, Grandmother. This headdress set is just right for Qiu’er.”
Xiao Taijun pointed at Ye Chen, laughing, “You! This is for your wife—how could you snatch it away?”
Ye Chen chuckled, “Qiu’er is my wife and the one dearest to my heart. How could I snatch it from her? I was just afraid she’d be too shy to take it, so I accepted it on her behalf.”
Then, Ye Chen picked up the pearl hairpin from the tray and gently inserted it into Shen Qiu’s hair bun.
Xiao Taijun nodded approvingly with another smile and said, “Enough kneeling now. Rise, rise.””Qiu’er, come, Grandmother will introduce you to everyone.” With that, Xiao Taijun stood up and took Shen Qiu’s hand, beginning introductions from the left side.
Those who had been seated rose to their feet upon seeing the elderly madam stand.
As Xiao Taijun introduced each person, Shen Qiu would perform a bow of respect toward them, then take a teacup from the maid’s hands to offer tea in salute.
Normally Shen Qiu would have knelt while serving tea to elders, but with Xiao Taijun holding her hand, she couldn’t kneel even if she wanted to, and could only perform a curtsey instead.