Xu Wu walked in with a radiant smile, cast a glance at Pei Han, and then curtsied to Old Master Xu with a cup of tea in hand. “Grandfather, this is Anji White Tea. It releases a rich fragrance when brewed and tastes wonderfully crisp and refreshing. Knowing it suits your palate, I brewed some and brought it over.”
Old Master Xu took it with a smile and said to Xu Wu, “Your Cousin Pei is here.”
Only then did Xu Wu turn around. Her eyes were graced with a gentle smile as she softly greeted, “Cousin.”
Pei Han lowered his gaze to look at the well-behaved and docile Xu Wu before him, narrowing his eyes slightly. “Hmm.”
Xu Wu was deeply grateful to Pei Han for bailing her out just a moment ago, yet she also felt a little bit vexed that he had left her hanging there in the silence.
Still, gratitude ultimately outweighed the rest.
Therefore, despite his cool and aloof response, Xu Wu still took the various-sized paper parcels from her maid’s hands and smiled as she placed them on the low table to Pei Han’s right. “Cousin, these are the most delicious snacks from Linqing Street.”
Pei Han glanced sideways at the pile of snacks that completely filled the space, furrowing his brow coldly. “Hmm?”
Hmm. It meant he didn’t really want to engage, yet it signaled for her to continue speaking.
Catching the underlying meaning of his response, Xu Wu patiently explained, “You are kept busy handling cases at the Court of Judicial Review, Cousin. When you are too busy to have a proper meal, you can use these to tide yourself over and take them with you to the court.” With that, Xu Wu pointed to the paper parcels. “This one is honey pastry, this is apricot crisps, preserved plums with ginger, and this pack over here is purple perilla paste, golden silk-threaded dried plums, and fragrant citron.” In any case, Xu Wu had practically bought out every single delicious treat Linqing Street had to offer.
Looking at the items that were practically about to break the legs of the table, Pei Han felt a strange sensation in his heart.
Those paper parcels even had the names of the respective snacks neatly labeled on them. To be honest, such a gentle and considerate young girl was extremely endearing.
Did she treat Li Jingling the exact same way before? Was that why Li Jingling pursued her so relentlessly, refusing to let go even after his face was scratched?
Pei Han pondered inwardly, but then heard Xu Wu suddenly cry out with a tone of dismay, “Oh dear, I forgot the vegetarian woven sugar ribbons from the Zhuqiao Night Market.”
Before Pei Han could even react, Xu Wu took the initiative to tug at his sleeve. “Cousin, when you take your rest days in a few days, let us go together. There are so many delicious things at that Zhuqiao Night Market.”
Pei Han instinctively wanted to pull away, but as he lowered his gaze, he caught sight of Xu Wu’s hands emerging from her padded jacket. The lining of her little jacket was embroidered with charming red plums, her wrists were fair, smooth, and delicate, and a single piece of jade bracelet swayed gently on her slender wrist, blurring the chill in his eyes just a fraction.
Seeing the two of them acting this way, Old Master Xu was slightly startled at first, but then he began fiddling with the divination tube on the table. After letting out an exclamation of surprise, he pulled his granddaughter closer and asked, “Did things fall apart between you and the Sixth Prince?”
Xu Wu glanced at the three copper coins that had appeared on the table, the worst possible divination hexagram, which indeed meant things had fallen apart.
“Earlier, the Sixth Younger Sister offended Imperial Concubine Yi, and the Sixth Highness and Consort Wang sent people to our home to call off the engagement,” Xu Wu said casually, her fingers idly flipping the copper coins on the table.
Old Master Xu had previously served as the Chief Astronomer at the Astronomical Bureau, so he knew the inner workings of the palace better than anyone.
There had to be hidden reasons behind offending Imperial Concubine Yi as well.
“I heard that Imperial Concubine Yi and Attendant Zheng were both present at the time, and for some reason, Attendant Zheng even fainted,” Xu Wu said, looking at the contemplative Old Master Xu as she continued. “Imperial Concubine Yi was anxious to hurry over and happened to step on Attendant Zheng’s hand. The Sixth Younger Sister was terrified by Imperial Concubine Yi’s forceful stride, and her footing slipped. Fortunately, His Majesty showed mercy and treated the Sixth Younger Sister leniently.”
Xu Wu spoke softly, though her voice carried a trace of subtle perplexity.
Old Master Xu remained silent, and Pei Han slightly lowered his brow. This affair was most likely a fallout from court concubines fighting for favor. Imperial Concubine Yi and Attendant Zheng were vying for jealousy, and the Sixth Younger Sister, Xu Runyue, happened to witness it, and there was bound to be more to the story.
However, Xu Runyue was only eight years old and had been frightened by Imperial Concubine Yi, so she couldn’t articulate the details clearly.
Since the Emperor handled the matter so leniently, he naturally must have caught wind of the hidden truths.
Old Master Xu raised a hand to pat Xu Wu’s head and said heavily, “It has truly wronged my Wuwu.”
Seeing Old Master Xu worry about her, Xu Wu explained, “It is fine. Your granddaughter is not someone who lets herself be wronged.”
Hearing this, Pei Han raised an eyebrow and broke tradition by chiming in with an agreement, “Indeed, she is not one to be wronged.” After all, she was capable of attending a banquet right after having her engagement broken, then having Li Jingling chase after her, and upon being chased, giving him three good scratches.
Hearing this, Old Master Xu looked suspiciously at Pei Han, acting quite protective of his own as he retorted, “He broke off the engagement and walked away scot-free, but who is going to look after my granddaughter’s reputation? And you call that not being wronged? Of course she has been wronged! Did you actually see the two of them arguing?”
Old Master Xu adored Xu Wu, frequently shielded her, and had always looked upon her as his own biological granddaughter.
Pei Han knew Old Master Xu possessed an eccentric disposition, but seeing him fiercely protective of Xu Wu like this, he found it rather amusing. “I never saw the two of them argue.” He never made a habit of lying; it was just that Xu Wu was deliberately covering things up, and he saw no need to meddle or spell out the rest.
Besides, it hadn’t been an argument between the two of them; it was purely his cousin unilaterally scratching the Sixth Highness.
Fearing that Pei Han might blurt out what actually happened, Xu Wu hurriedly tried to cover it up, saying carefully, “There was no argument to speak of; it is just that your granddaughter must pay closer attention to matters of etiquette in the future.”
Xu Wu’s voice dropped low, and she glanced at him from time to time, terrified that he would expose her.
In truth, he had no interest in any of this, and it had nothing to do with him, so he had never intended to expose her in the first place.
Yet Xu Wu’s heart was beating anxiously, unable to guess Pei Han’s thoughts, so she did her utmost to project a respectful, submissive, and obedient attitude, as if she were eagerly seeking her cousin’s guidance.
Before Pei Han could make his stance clear, Old Master Xu burst into laughter upon seeing his adorable and obedient granddaughter.
Hearing the laughter, Xu Wu turned around in a daze and asked Old Master Xu, “Grandfather, did Wuwu say something wrong?”
Old Master Xu waved his hand in denial. He wasn’t laughing at his precious granddaughter; he was laughing at Pei Han. This cold block of ice had always been a blunt and straight-laced person who never spared anyone’s face, never conceding a single move even when playing chess with the Emperor. Yet, toward his own granddaughter, his level of patience was remarkably high.
Pei Han saw right through Old Master Xu’s attitude and said coldly to Xu Wu, “You should indeed study etiquette properly.”
Old Master Xu raised an eyebrow, gave his luopan compass a spin, and smiled at Xu Wu. “You should learn more from your Cousin Pei in the future.”
Xu Wu didn’t quite understand what the two of them were driving at, but she could clearly sense that Pei Han wasn’t angry, and her grandfather seemed rather pleased with himself. Thus, she obediently replied, “Yes.”
With his mind occupied by matters of the luopan and celestial phenomena, and seeing that the two of them were no longer locking horns, Old Master Xu said to Pei Han, “You are busy with matters at the Court of Judicial Review, so go tend to them. If His Majesty asks about the lunar phase, just tell him there are no anomalies.”
With that, Old Master Xu turned and went inside, while Pei Han naturally turned around to leave.
Their style of communication was utterly effortless, speaking and then parting ways, each attending to their own duties. If Xu Wu hadn’t shown up, they would have already dispersed long ago.
Watching the two of them act this way, Xu Wu couldn’t help frowning slightly. Thank goodness one had stepped down from the court while the other was a powerful minister; otherwise, such cold and indifferent dispositions that ignored everyone else around them would have likely kept them from rising in rank for eight lifetimes.
Pei Han walked straight out of the courtyard gate, only to find Xu Wu walking out right behind him carrying those paper parcels. With practiced naturalness, she pulled open his hand and draped the strings of the paper packages over his large hand.
Pei Han glanced down at the packages hanging from his hand and stated bluntly, “I do not like sweets.”
“But I do,” Xu Wu promptly added.
Pei Han swept a glance over her tender face and found it somewhat amusing. She liked them, so he was supposed to carry them all the way to the Court of Judicial Review? The logic made zero sense. Yet, instead of refuting her, he simply accepted them naturally and handed them off to the servant standing nearby.
“Cousin, on the fifteenth day of the first month, the Duke of Yingguo’s estate is hosting a lantern banquet. The Duke of Yingguo’s estate is filled with plum blossoms, so let us go take a look,” Xu Wu said earnestly, looking straight at Pei Han.
“On the fifteenth, the Court of Judicial Review has matters to attend to,” Pei Han replied indifferently as he walked forward. He detested attending such small banquets, finding them an annoying clutter to the mind.
“But Grandfather said I should follow Cousin Pei to properly learn rituals and decorum,” Xu Wu quickly countered.
“But I never agreed,” Pei Han replied coldly, turning around to leave.
Seeing him stride away, Xu Wu hurriedly reached out and grabbed his sleeve. “The Duke of Yingguo estate’s young lady, Zhang Ruopei, will also be attending. She has been gifted at writing poetry since she was a child.”
Pei Han frowned, wanting to pull his sleeve free, but she held onto it with a death grip.
Pei Han looked back at Xu Wu and let out a soft sigh. With a firm motion of his large palm, he shook her hand off and said heavily, “What does it matter to me whether she goes or not? You might as well just say that you are going.”