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Chapter 4: Reunion – Was that voice just now… his?

Yu Jinnian didn’t disappoint her expectations. In the following days, even when he bumped into Pei Shang and Xie Zhuoguang, he would scowl and glare at them.

He looked every bit the part of an overprotective brother.

Yu Mingyao, choosing peace of mind, avoided seeing them altogether. Aside from the necessary visits to the Madam Dowager of the Pei family, she stayed behind closed doors, not stepping out at all.

Anyone with a shred of perception would realize this girl was clearly not some social climber with her eyes on the Pei family’s prestige.

While Yu Mingyao enjoyed her leisure, Shi Luoshi and Yanyue worried as they watched her growing more listless by the day.

Even if they weren’t her closest blood relatives, the Pei family had treated them with great courtesy. From clothing to lodging, everything had been arranged flawlessly.

Yanyue noticed that after just a few days cooped up indoors, Yu Mingyao’s previously sharp chin had rounded out noticeably.

She couldn’t help but sigh. When is our young master finally going to appear?

“Yanyue, come here.”

Shi Luoshi strolled past their room, pretending to be casual. Seeing Yu Mingyao wasn’t looking their way, she quickly beckoned Yanyue over.

Yanyue peeked to check if Yu Mingyao was distracted—sure enough, she was entirely focused on eating a delicate cloud cake from the capital’s top restaurant. Yanyue tiptoed over to Shi Luoshi.

The two whispered in the corner, thinking they were being discreet. But just a few paces away, Yu Mingyao saw everything clearly.

She had said she wanted to return to Suzhou—at least eight or nine times by now. Yet each time, Shi Luoshi just smiled and nodded, making no move whatsoever. In fact, she seemed to be settling in for the long haul.

And the Pei family? Cunning lot, all of them. They knew perfectly well she didn’t want to stay, and yet not one of them mentioned her departure.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.

“Ahem.”

She deliberately cleared her throat loudly, startling Shi Luoshi and Yanyue.

Seeing their reactions, Yu Mingyao slowly pulled out an embroidered handkerchief and dabbed her mouth with studied nonchalance.

“Grandmother, I’d advise you to give it up. Neither of them are worth considering.”

She knew Shi Luoshi always had good taste. How else would she have favored Xie Zhuoguang and Pei Shang in both lifetimes?

Unfortunately for her, Yu Mingyao had no interest in either.

Returning to Suzhou to find a husband—eight or nine handsome ones, if possible—to enjoy life with daily, now that was the real path.

Why cling to a crooked tree and waste your youth?

“That’s not what I meant,” Shi Luoshi said, leaning on Yanyue’s arm as she approached.

“We’re just worried about your health. Staying cooped up all day isn’t good for you. Even if we’re returning to Suzhou soon, since we’ve come all this way, you and Jinnian should at least go out and see some of the capital’s trends in fashion and jewelry. Don’t waste the trip.”

“No.”

She’d already seen all of the capital’s novelties in the years to come.

In her previous life, she was stuck in the inner quarters, buried in account books and embroidery samples. The only relief came from instructing the Yunlou manager to send in bolts of the latest fabrics, matching whatever was currently in fashion.

Three hundred and sixty-five days a year, she had at least four hundred outfits.

No wonder the Duke Xie household found her hard to stomach.

“Well then, just keep an eye on Jinnian for me. Under the emperor’s very nose, even a falling tile might hit a royal. We’re just a humble household. It’s better to return to Suzhou and stay safe.”

Originally, Yu Mingyao had no intention of agreeing—but once Shi Luoshi mentioned returning to Suzhou again…

Fine. She admitted she was like an old ox being led by the carrot of “Suzhou” dangled before her nose.

When she stepped once again onto the streets where Yunlou was located, the capital was still as prosperous as ever. Honestly, not much had changed from a few years later.

The only difference was in her heart.

The last time she walked this street of noble families, she was cautious with every step, afraid of appearing like a country bumpkin.

Back then, she constantly reminded herself: Mother and father are gone. I can’t bring shame to Grandmother.

So she was humble, obedient, respectful. After the infamous tea incident, she became even more self-effacing around Xie Zhuoguang.

She had bared her heart, only to be left bleeding.

In the end, her grandmother died of sorrow, her brother ruined by scandal and gossip, attempting to earn a future in the military—only for his body to vanish without a trace.

Yu Mingyao’s lips curled slightly.

So much hatred. Truly.

At her side, Yu Jinnian noticed her sudden stop and followed her gaze. Ahead was a beautiful octagonal palace lantern, with gold-speckled calligraphy on silk—a display of wealth and elegance.

He thought she was captivated by the lantern and lightly patted her arm. “Sister, do you want that lantern? I’ll get it for you.”

With that slap, Yu Jinnian inadvertently knocked all her rising bitterness and self-loathing away.

“If you hit any harder, Brother, I’ll have Yanyue fetch a stretcher,” she said with an eye roll.

He opened his mouth to explain—he wasn’t great with words, but he’d noticed her unusual behavior lately too. It wasn’t just Shi Luoshi and Yanyue. He’d been worried as well.

And now that she was finally willing to go out, he didn’t want to mess things up.

“I—”

He had just started when a loud, smug voice called out behind them.

“Well, well, if it isn’t the little Yu girl! Shouldn’t you be at home doing embroidery or flipping through portraits, looking for your golden turtle husband? What brings you to such a wealthy place?”

Yu Mingyao didn’t even have to turn around to know who it was. That annoying tone—there could only be one culprit.

She and Yu Jinnian turned around at the same time.

Pei Shang was still decked out in red silk robes, scented sachets hanging from his belt, flipping his folding fan in a practiced gesture. His already attractive face looked even more like a good-for-nothing dandy.

Yu Jinnian shot him a fierce glare and stepped in front of Yu Mingyao protectively.

He thought he was shielding her—but Yu Mingyao wasn’t paying Pei Shang the slightest attention. Her eyes, involuntarily, were drawn to the figure in blue beside him.

Seven years of marriage—she couldn’t tear her eyes away.

From the moment she met Xie Zhuoguang, he had worn nothing but shades of blue: robes, jackets, cloaks…

Raven blue, bamboo blue, mist blue, snow blue. All kinds.

She had once been utterly obsessed with that color.

And this man—so beautiful, with lashes like crow feathers and eyebrows as elegant as green bamboo—was her type in every way.

She had often stared at his slightly ragged breath in the dead of night, wondering how such a perfect face could exist.

And it was that face that ruined her life.

Yu Mingyao looked down with a bitter smile—just in time to miss the glance Xie Zhuoguang had cast her way.

Pei Shang sneered, “You country bumpkins wouldn’t know this, but that’s a palace lantern—just for decoration. Don’t think a few coins in your pocket means you can swagger around the capital.”

Though he was speaking to Yu Jinnian, his eyes never once left Yu Mingyao. There was mockery in his gaze, thinly veiled behind curiosity.

Yu Mingyao had always loved beauty. In her last life, it was only during her years with the Pei family and early marriage that she toned down her style.

This life, having let go, she dressed comfortably again.

Though still in mourning, she hadn’t gone for anything flamboyant.

Today she wore a silver-white cross-collared robe with a pale blue skirt. Her hair was pinned up with a single jade hairpin—simple and elegant.

Despite her stunning looks, her outfit was modest, creating a strange dissonance that Xie Zhuoguang couldn’t ignore.

Though he came from a duke’s family, his maternal grandfather was a powerful general.

He had trained in martial arts since childhood and was extremely sensitive to being watched.

When Pei Shang first fretted that she was trying to latch onto him, Xie Zhuoguang had dismissed it.

But now, though she appeared to be looking at Pei Shang, he caught that fleeting, watery glance she gave him.

That one look was enough to convince him: This woman is trouble.

So beautiful, yet clearly not content to stay in her place.

Even now, he felt a strange pull in his chest.

Xie Zhuoguang looked solemnly at Yu Jinnian.

Such a protective brother, yet his sister was already so flirtatious.

Tension rose sharply. Bystanders began to think a fight might break out.

Just then, Yu Mingyao let out a long sigh and tugged on Yu Jinnian’s sleeve.

“Forget it,” she said quietly, not sparing even a glance for Pei Shang. “Let’s go look at some jewelry.”

Yu Jinnian let her drag him off, spitting twice at Pei Shang on the way out.

“We’re leaving too,” Pei Shang said, his eyes gleaming—completely missing the depth in Xie Zhuoguang’s gaze as he stared at Yu Mingyao’s departing figure.

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