If you were cold and aloof in your past life, why are you crying in this one?

hazy night

Xi Lingxian fiddled with the flower patterns in the embroidery basket, looking at them from left to right, somewhat at a loss as to where to begin.

"Young lady, what brings you to the sewing world today?"

"Ah-Song and I share the same birthday, but women have a coming-of-age ceremony, while men don't; I didn't want him to be too disappointed that day, so I thought of making something for him myself."

"The young lady is very thoughtful."

Looking at the various exquisite patterns, a troubled expression appeared on Xi Lingxian's beautiful face.

When she was young, her nanny taught her needlework, but she was a playful and restless girl, and she couldn't stand the time to do these things.

Her father doted on her and never forced her to do things she didn't like; but her grandmother was furious at the time, scolding her for these being the skills that noble ladies of aristocratic families used to gain fame and security, and that the daughters of the Xi family should never waste them.

Looking back now, she has to thank her grandmother for forcing her at the time; otherwise, she probably wouldn't even know how to hold an embroidery needle.

"A young lady may embroider a handkerchief; your sentiment is more precious than anything else."

Xi Lingxian felt somewhat guilty towards her younger brother, Xi Song, especially since in her previous life, she had been spoiled by her father and brothers, becoming willful and domineering, only caring about her own little world, and barely paying attention to her brother Xi Song, who wasn't very close to her.

By the time she realized something was wrong, Xi Song had been completely spoiled by Madam Yu; her father and elder brother had given her the vast majority of their favor, and while they didn't exactly ignore Xi Song, they had certainly neglected him.

"He doesn't use the handkerchief much, so let's sew him a purse instead. We can put the peace charm we got from Qing'an Temple last time in there."

She was born a year earlier, so she would also be the older sister; since she is the older sister, she will take good care of her younger brother.

Fortunately, there is still a chance.

Xi Lingxian has a discerning eye; she never compromises on her own food, clothing, or daily necessities, let alone the things she gives away.

They selected the finest brocade and the best silk and gold threads, but were not satisfied with the first attempt, so they dismantled it and started embroidering again.

When she cares about someone, that person becomes the most important person to her.

As her coming-of-age banquet approached, the embroiderer brought Xi Lingxian the wedding dress for the day to try on.

She wore a pale yellow, wide-sleeved blouse, an autumn-colored embroidered lotus leaf-patterned half-sleeved blouse, and a flowing skirt in shades of cloud and water blue. The skirt was adorned with lake-blue ribbons on both sides of her knees, which swayed in the wind with her steps, making her look like a fairy.

"It is said that clothes make the man, but a woman with fair skin and beautiful features is beautiful even in a simple dress and hairpin, let alone in such fine clothes."

The embroiderer offered high praise.

Xi Lingxian admired herself in the mirror and was quite satisfied. "You've all worked hard."

Then she instructed Taozhi to distribute the reward money. The embroiderer was overjoyed and said many auspicious words before leaving.

Fearing that her master might hurt his eyes while doing needlework at night, Taozhi lit another oil lamp.

"Young lady, I've heard that the Prince of Chenliu has brought many gardeners and florists to the plum grove these past two days."

"Merlin? It's far too early for plum blossoms to bloom. What are they doing in the plum grove?"

"The Prince of Chenliu promised the head of the family that he would make the young lady's coming-of-age ceremony the envy of everyone, so he naturally had to put in a lot of effort."

Xi Lingxian gave a casual "hmm," and nonchalantly touched the two bamboo leaves she had just embroidered, feeling a great sense of accomplishment.

……

Everyone in the Xi family knew that Xi Lingxian had a particular fondness for plum blossoms.

Prince Chenliu brought a gardener to the mansion to hasten the blooming of plum blossoms before his coming-of-age ceremony, so that he could celebrate the occasion with his family.

He knew all too well that Xi Lingxian, a pampered young lady from a prestigious family, had seen all sorts of good things, and that ordinary men's small favors could not move her at all; only clever ideas and schemes could.

While setting up greenhouses, digging ditches, applying cow dung and sulfur fertilizer, and fumigating with water, fans are used to fan the process.

From beginning to end, the Prince of Chenliu personally took charge of everything.

After lunch, Xi Rui heard that the people in the plum grove had not yet left, so he went to take a look out of curiosity. Unexpectedly, he was almost nauseated by the smell of fertilizer.

"Your Highness Prince Chenliu, these tasks can be done by your servants. Why do you have to work so hard?"

In late autumn, Xiao Yun's face was covered in sweat. Hearing this, he smiled and said, "This is my heartfelt wish for your younger sister; how can I entrust it to someone else?"

Xi Rui broke out in a cold sweat. As the older brother, he naturally hoped that his future brother-in-law would be someone who cared deeply for his sister.

With Wang Jue's groundbreaking achievements preceding him, he really looked down on others.

"Young Master, the two rare military books that you asked me to borrow from the Wang family's library last time have been personally delivered to you by the Second Young Master Wang. Both the book and the man are currently in your study."

Xi Rui was dumbfounded.

Doesn't the Wang family have any servants? He only borrowed two books; why did it take the young master of the Wang family to personally deliver them?

Ignoring the matter of the Prince of Chenliu, Xi Rui strode off with the steward.

"Brother Qingyu, I am already very grateful that you were willing to lend me this rare copy, how could I dare to trouble you to deliver it in person?"

"Brother You'an, you're too kind."

"I heard that your household is cleverly employing a floral arrangement technique?"

The man took a sip of tea and spoke slowly and casually.

Xi Rui's expression turned slightly embarrassed.

Wang Jue's desire to marry his sister never died. Chen Liu Wang Cuihua's intention was clearly to curry favor with his sister. What could he, as her elder brother, say?

"...It's because my little sister's coming-of-age ceremony is coming up soon. Father loves this girl and wants to make it unique and original. She has always loved red plum blossoms, so that's why we're having this event to encourage the flowers to bloom."

"Skilled craftsmen with such expertise are rare among the common people. May I ask where you found such a master craftsman?"

Xi Rui pursed his lips and smiled, "Brother Qingyu, don't pretend you don't know. I don't believe you don't know."

"Do you know what he's up to, You'an?"

The man glanced at the lights in the inner courtyard, his words seemingly carrying a profound meaning.

Without hesitation, Xi Rui replied, "He's just another man who wants to be my brother-in-law. I've seen plenty of those since I was a kid."

Wang Jue took a deep breath. "If the Xi family were to marry into the imperial family, they would become an anomaly in the eyes of other noble families."

The royal family and aristocratic families must be kept strictly separate; if they are mixed together, the consequences will be unimaginable.

Xi Rui was not as quick-witted as Wang Jue, but he was not stupid either.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. Playing around is fine, but I would never let Fanfan have anything with a prince from the royal family. Although he said so confidently that he would abandon blood ties and serve the Xi family like a beast of burden, only a fool would believe that."

Wang Jue's eyes deepened.

Xi Rui cleared his throat and looked away. "But his tricks for winning a girl's heart are really impressive. He doesn't mind the smelly fertilizer at all and does it himself. If Fanfan knew, I wonder if she would be moved a little."

Wang Jue was in a daze for a moment.

"But when she was assassinated outside Qing'an Temple, it was all a staged rescue orchestrated by the Prince of Chenliu. Would Lord Xi tolerate someone risking his precious daughter like that?"

"What?!" Xi Rui's expression changed drastically. "There's such a thing? When did you find out? How come I didn't know about it?"

"There were too many trivial matters before, and I didn't have time to tell you and Uncle."

Xi Rui's face was ashen, and his eyes blazed with fury.

"Brother Qingyu, wait here for me a moment. I have something to explain to my father first."

Wang Jue raised his hand: "Please do as you wish."

The study fell silent for a moment. Wang Jue looked out at the setting sun through the open window, then got up and put on his cloak.

The servant boy in the corridor asked, "Isn't the second young master waiting for our young master to return?"

"I've heard that your residence has a bamboo grove planted using a formation, and I'd like to take a look since I have some free time today."

"Shall I show you the way, young master?"

"No need. You stay here and wait for your young master to return so he can go to the bamboo forest to find me."

As the sun sets in the west, the clouds in the west gradually turn orange-red.

Distant mountains are like dark eyebrows, and weary birds return to their nests.

In the octagonal pavilion by the carp pond

Xi Lingxian leaned against the railing, holding a bowl of fish food in her hand, occasionally scattering a little bit into the pond, which attracted the fish to leap out of the water and compete for the food.

She heard hurried footsteps behind her and turned around.

Xi Song jogged over; the boy's features bore a striking resemblance to hers.

"Sister, what's so mysterious that you had to call me out? You weren't punished by Grandmother to copy books again, were you made to write them for her?"

"Go." Xi Lingxian flicked his forehead, took it out from her sleeve, and handed it to him.

Xi Song looked down and saw a dark blue purse with a brocade surface, embroidered with a cluster of green bamboo. The bamboo joints were upright, the leaves were sparse and neat, and the stitches were fine.

The purse was also adorned with a row of small beads at the corners, with tassels woven from dark blue and moon white silk threads hanging down.

"Sister, did you embroider this?"

"What do you mean? You doubt me?"

"...Did you do something wrong?" Xi Song asked, genuinely puzzled.

"I spent two days and one night embroidering this birthday gift for you. If you don't want it, fine, give it back to me."

Xi Song dodged to the side, holding the purse, and chuckled foolishly, "So it's a birthday gift. Who told you not to explain clearly?"

"It's because I, as the older sister, am too kind-hearted. I had my coming-of-age ceremony, but you didn't. I really couldn't bear to see you upset."

Xi Lingxian crossed her arms and looked smug.

Xi Song breathed a sigh of relief, "As long as you don't cook, anything is fine. The hibiscus cake you made last time made my teeth hurt for three days."

Why is this younger brother so annoying!

Xi Lingxian playfully pinched his ear, but Xi Song tilted his head to avoid it, and the two siblings started making a ruckus.

not far away

Wang Jue stood by the pillar, half of his body hidden in the shadows, taking in the whole scene.