Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 290 Past
Xie Yuyan reached out and stroked the porcelain vase, then suddenly paused, touching an uneven spot on the surface. It was due to glaze shrinkage caused by improper firing.

Since he was going to do porcelain trading, Xie Yuyan needed to know something about porcelain firing. He had heard a lot about this from the craftsmen when he was at the Yang family porcelain kiln.

If glaze shrinkage occurs, the porcelain is essentially ruined during firing.

Xie Yuyan was certain that her mother's porcelain vase did not have such a flaw.

Logically speaking, such porcelain should not have left the kiln, so how could it have been preserved? Xie Yuyan's gaze fell on the crane and longevity painting.

In her past life, because of the porcelain vase left by her mother, she had a great fondness for white porcelain with carved patterns, but she had never seen an identical porcelain vase, or even a similar pattern.

It wasn't because she missed her mother that she felt this way; when you see something many times, you inevitably develop a preference for it. Besides, those things, like her, had all been discarded by her mother, and perhaps from the beginning, this shared fate won her favor.

The porcelain was indeed quite unique; the paintings exuded a sense of freedom and spontaneity, and the more you looked at them, the more you could feel the artistic conception they conveyed.

I wonder if this painting was done by a craftsman, or if someone else painted it and gave it to the craftsman?
It seems we need to send someone to Zizhou to inquire about this porcelain vase.

Xie Yuyan placed the porcelain vase back on the table. She rarely thought of her father and mother. After she became aware of things, all she had ever seen were their portraits. People drawn on paper are hard to leave any impression on her.

Her father passed away when she was a little over one year old. Her mother left her with her grandmother, and the two rarely saw each other. When she was three years old, her mother also fell seriously ill and followed her father.

After that, she only heard about them occasionally from other people.

Even if outsiders were deeply moved, she would not show similar emotions, which angered her mother and family members, who would gossip about her behind her back.

A child who doesn't understand the kindness of his parents, who refuses to miss his parents, and who doesn't shed tears for them.

Some even say she wasn't her mother's biological daughter, but rather the daughter of her father's mistress.

When Grandmother overheard these words, she immediately reprimanded them and forbade them from saying such things again.

She always seemed to be like this, naturally knowing how to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, and unwilling to be hypocritical with the sisters in the clan. Therefore, the sisters of the same age all kept their distance from her, and only her grandmother was willing to protect her.

She was also pampered by her grandmother as she grew up.

This situation made her cling tightly to her grandmother and follow her arrangements, although she would occasionally have doubts: was this deep bond between grandmother and granddaughter genuine? Why couldn't her grandmother's protection move her? In the end, she blamed herself for her own coldness.

Until she is sent to the palace.

Her suspicions were confirmed; she was indeed cold-hearted, but this familial affection was also fake.

A marriage made her realize that her grandmother raised her only because she was useful; she was beautiful, intelligent, and could bring benefits to the Xie family.

Wang Huai's frequent visits to the Xie family to see her were also a result of his grandparents' careful arrangements. If Wang Yan hadn't passed away and the Wang family hadn't fallen out of favor with the Xie family, she might have actually married Wang Huai.

There was no coincidental acquaintance, no innocent playmates.

Man proposes, God disposes; Wang Yan suddenly passed away, leaving the Xie family with no choice but to change their plans.

All emotions are just like this; they can all be measured by benefits, the difference being how much benefit is gained.

From the moment she agreed to enter the palace, she began to scheme for herself. On the surface, she was complying with the Xie family's arrangements, but in reality, she had already begun to use the Xie family to accumulate her own power.

In the end, however, she still failed to fully understand the Xie family.

She thought her grandfather could gain merit through the war and further benefit from it in Daliang, but she never expected that they had already planned to betray them.

As for her grandfather's final words about her background, saying that she was not a member of the Xie family... what was his intention? Was it because he needed to distance himself from her in order to serve the Qi people? Or did he have other intentions, or was it really true? Xie Yuyan sat back down in her chair, her mind still racing with thoughts, when she suddenly felt a weight in her arms. Then a large head squeezed out of her arms, and a pair of glassy eyes stared at her intently. When she didn't respond, it reached out its claws to reach for her arm.

Xie Yuyan's heart softened, and he reached out to stroke the cat's big head.

Zhang's voice came from outside the door: "Is there anyone else in the house?"

Mother Yu said softly, "No, that's all."

"Then let Ayan rest for a while. She's been staying in the house all day; she needs to move around a bit."

Then the door was pushed open, and Zhang walked quickly into the room.

Sunlight followed Zhang into the room, carrying a food box in her hand.

“This is a medicinal meal sent by the doctor,” Zhang said. “He said he had nothing to do today, so he brewed it himself.”

Would a doctor deliver a food box?
It was probably made by someone else, right?
Zhang said in a low voice, "I opened it and it looks pretty much the same as what I brewed. The only downside is that the medicinal herbs are not bad. I wonder what it tastes like."

Zhang is a person who knows how to save face for others. If she says there's no difference, then she must be inferior to her.

Xie Yuyan thought of a certain "doctor," then looked at Zhang Shi in front of him.

"What are you standing there for? Hurry up and drink it while it's hot." Zhang placed the bowl in front of her.

Xie Yuyan took it, scooped up a spoonful and brought it to his mouth. Surprisingly, it wasn't as bad as he had imagined, but it was a bit too bland. Was Lord Wang reluctant to add salt?

The warm soup made me feel warm all over.

“After you finish eating, come with me for a walk in the yard,” Zhang said. “It’s not cold outside, so we can stretch our legs.”

Xie Yuyan looked at Madam Zhang: "I'm going to the capital soon. Would you and Qin'er like to come with me?"

Zhang was taken aback at first, then overjoyed: "We can go too?"

Xie Yuyan nodded: "If we stay in the capital for a long time, we'll find a tutor for Qin Ge'er."

Zhang had been worried about this matter for a long time. She was afraid that Ayan would go to the capital alone and there would be no one to take care of her. Although Yu Mama was a good person, she could only obey Ayan's orders and dared not offer any advice.

If she could come along, that would be even better.

"What about the family...?" Zhang asked.

Xie Yuyan said, "With the eldest branch and the Yang family keeping an eye on things, nothing will go wrong." She had already taken good care of the Yang family. Even if she wasn't in Daming Prefecture, everyone just needed to do their job.

"Well... I'll pack up quickly," Zhang said with a smile. "I've never been to Bianjing before, so I don't want to cause any trouble." She was going to help, so she couldn't just become a burden to Xie Yuyan.

After saying this, Zhang watched as Xie Yuyan finished the medicinal meal, then pulled her out of the house.

Seeing the two people walking ahead, Madam Yu breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't know why her eldest daughter-in-law had suddenly become angry, but thankfully Zhang Niangzi had come.

Who says Madam Zhang is useless? In her opinion, the third branch of the family can't do without her.

As for the food box...

Mother Yu clearly saw something similar in Sang Dian's hands. The item has been delivered, but she doesn't know when the person will arrive.