“You saw my third sister at the temple fair before. You couldn’t get her out of your mind, and you even asked me to give her the Mohele…” As she spoke of the Mohele, it was still in Shen Yunshu’s hands.
At that time, she still held prejudice against Pei Huaian, unwilling for her third sister to have any entanglement with him, so the Mohele remained tucked away in her own room.
“I didn’t keep thinking about her…” Although, admittedly, he had thought of her for a few days back then, but now, nearly a month had passed, and he had already forgotten about her. “Besides, I’m still young. I’d rather enjoy a few more years of fun than marry a wife who’ll tie me down every day.”
“If you think a wife will tie you down, then you should all the more marry my third sister,” Shen Yunshu said with a bright smile. “My third sister was pampered by our father since childhood. She’s easygoing and fond of leisure and quiet, so she’ll be too lazy to mind you. Besides, she loves eating, drinking, and playing just like you. She’s excellent at both wood archery and pitch-pot. The two of you are sure to get along well in the future…”
“Oh?” Now that was to his liking. “Then, will she force me to study? Urge me to be ambitious?”
“She herself doesn’t like studying, but she’s very fond of reading storybooks.”
“Will she despise me for idling about and not doing anything proper?”
“With the family business your father has built up, as long as you don’t frequent brothels or gamble or spend extravagantly, you’ll have a lifetime of riches and fine food, carefree and worry-free. That’s exactly the kind of life she likes. Why would she dislike you?”
“By that logic, your third sister and I are indeed a perfect match.” In any case, he’d have to marry someday. If this Third Miss Shen was as suitable as she said, then marrying her would surely be better than any other girl.
Just then, his stomach rumbled, and Pei Huaian couldn’t stand the hunger any longer. Rubbing his belly, he said, “The day after tomorrow, I’ll fetch Grandmother from the manor. Then I’ll tell her everything. If she agrees, I’ll have a matchmaker sent to propose.”
“Be quick about it! You know how beautiful my third sister is; there are plenty who want to marry her,” Shen Yunshu said, worried about unforeseen changes. She must secure her sister’s engagement before Lu Yi was released. “If Old Madam disagrees, please let me know quickly, so I can find a good match for my third sister elsewhere…”
“Alright, alright,” his grandmother always doted on him. If it was a girl he wanted to marry, how could she not agree? “I’ll go eat now. I’m so hungry I’m seeing stars.”
“Mm, go on.”
The youth dashed off, his jet-black hair tied high with a jade crown, swinging with reckless arcs. In a moment, he’d disappeared into the restaurant.
He must truly be starving.
Shen Yunshu pursed her lips with a smile, found the carriage Tinglan had hired, and with her maid, set off back to the Shen residence.
On the way home, Shen Yunshu kept pondering the match between Pei Huaian and her third sister, and the more she thought, the more perfect it seemed.
They were the same age, both grew up surrounded by luxury and had never known hardship. Their temperaments were similar—one loved fun, the other was a little lazy.
Pei Huaian had a father whose wealth flowed like water, and an uncle and cousins who were officials at court. The family’s glory did not rest on his shoulders. Even if he lacked ambition, her third sister would still live a life of splendor and honor if she married him.
What’s more, as the elder sister married into the Pei family, she would become both eldest sister and eldest sister-in-law. With her around, Pei Huaian wouldn’t dare bully her third sister.
Thinking back, that day when Pei Huaian inadvertently ruined her sister’s marriage at the temple fair, perhaps it was all fate. Her sister marrying into the Pei family was far better than marrying into the Liang family.
Today truly was a double blessing: one, sending Lu Yi to prison; and two, securing her third sister’s marriage prospects. Overcome with joy, Shen Yunshu returned to the Shen residence with a spring in her step.
She’d wanted to tell her third sister right away, but it was likely her sister was napping at this hour, so Shen Yunshu decided not to disturb her.
She herself was a bit exhausted—after all, she’d plotted these matters for three whole days. Now, with her worries finally laid to rest, she breathed a long sigh of relief, took off her outer robe, and prepared to rest for a while.
Her gauzy robe floated down, but Shen Yunshu suddenly froze. All traces of joy vanished from her face: the bamboo tube hidden in her sleeve was gone!
Shen Yunshu quickly put her clothes back on and summoned Tinglan, asking her to fetch a page boy and chase after the hired carriage to check if the bamboo tube had been left inside. If not, she was to hurry to Fengle Pavilion, find Pei Huaian’s carriage, and see if it was left there…
Pei Huaian quickly filled his stomach. Remembering that his friends said they were going to the pleasure quarters to secretly listen to music, he had wanted to join them, but then he remembered he was about to propose to Third Miss Shen. He figured it best to behave, so he told the driver to take him home.
As the carriage started, something rolled out from beneath the seat.
Pei Huaian looked down and saw a bamboo tube. He picked it up casually.
It must have been left behind by Shen Yunshu.
It felt heavy in his hand. He opened it and sniffed—it was wine, Fengle Pavilion’s own brewed yellow wine. The aroma was mellow, and it wasn’t strong.
Since it wasn’t anything valuable, Pei Huaian didn’t plan to return it. He idly played with it the whole way home, and when he got out, he brought the bamboo tube into his own courtyard.
His residence, Ciyou Courtyard, lay at the deepest part of the estate—far from the main gate, but wonderfully quiet and elegant, with multicolored flowers and trees everywhere, the scenery changing with every step, exceedingly pleasant.
More importantly, Ciyou Courtyard was next to the back gate, making it easy for him to slip out unnoticed.
However, he had sneaked out too often before, so now someone was always guarding the back gate. Next time, he’d have to climb the wall if he wanted to get out.
There weren’t many servants in Ciyou Courtyard. The maids tended to the flowers and cleaned the rooms, while the pages did heavier chores. The steward of the courtyard was Madam Tang, whom his grandmother had specially assigned from her own side to help manage things.
“Seventh Young Master, why are you back so early today?” Madam Tang’s gaze was soft and kindly as she smiled at him.
She knew that today the young lord was out with a few friends, and usually wouldn’t come back until dark. Today, it was strange to see him back before mid-afternoon.
Pei Huaian didn’t want to say that he’d left his friends because he had to see his future sister-in-law, so he casually brushed it off, “I ate too much and got sleepy, so I came back for a nap…”
“The sun is hot at noon. I see you’ve worked up a sweat, would you like to bathe before resting?”
“No need.”
Pei Huaian stepped into his room, closed the screen door, loosened his collar, and flopped onto the bed. The bamboo tube rolled out of his hand and landed on the thin quilt.
Suddenly feeling thirsty, Pei Huaian didn’t bother to call for a maid to bring water. He opened the bamboo tube and drank half of the yellow wine. Then he rolled over and drifted off into a daze.
Outside the wide-open window, the summer’s end and autumn’s beginning winds rustled the leaves, bringing a lingering warmth. Inside, all was as quiet as before, and the sleeping youth fell into a dream awash with the fragrance of flowers.
A graceful, mist-shrouded woman lay asleep on a narrow couch, black hair and white robe, plain yet striking. Peach and pear blossom petals drifted down onto her soft cheek, her half-coiled hair, and the hollow of her waist. Her elegant eyes slowly opened, dark almond-shaped eyes flickering, countless threads of affection swirling, drawing him in bit by bit…
In the hazy dream, all he could see were her moist eyes, slender neck, and the faint flush blooming on her snow-white skin.
The young man’s hand, as fair and delicate as jade bamboo, clenched the thin quilt, the veins under his pale skin standing out as he tensed, and finally, with a sigh, the tension faded away.
Pei Huaian slowly awakened, his body still tingling with a lingering numbness.
The indescribable pleasure was something he’d never experienced before. Embracing the quilt, he was reluctant to wake, but the sticky mess between his thighs made him uncomfortable. Half-dazed, he sat up, lifting the quilt to see what had happened…
Then his eyes went wide.
Madam Tang was sitting under the corridor, watching the servants busy about the courtyard, when suddenly a shriek came from the bedroom. She hurried to the door.
“Seventh Young Master, what’s happened?” Madam Tang stood outside the screen, asking with concern.
“I-I’m fine,” behind the screen, Pei Huaian covered half his body with the quilt, feeling as if he might catch fire from embarrassment, “Madam Tang, I need to bathe. Please have someone prepare the water quickly…”
“Yes, Young Master. I’ll see to it at once.”
Madam Tang didn’t think too much of it and immediately arranged for hot water to be brought from the kitchen.
Inside the bedroom, Pei Huaian’s face was burning red. He quickly fetched a handkerchief to clean himself up, changed his clothes, and as for the soiled garments and the equally stained handkerchief, not wanting anyone to see, he bundled them up and shoved them under the bed.
Only after all this did he breathe a sigh of relief, sitting on the edge of the bed, starting to reflect on why he would have such a dream.
Especially since the brows and eyes in that dream were so familiar—they were clearly…
He pressed his pounding heart, trying to convince himself: It must be because his sister-in-law wanted to match him with Third Miss Shen, that’s why he had such a dream. The woman in the dream must have been Third Miss Shen…
Shameless!
He slapped himself mentally: He hadn’t even been formally betrothed, yet he’d already defiled her in his dreams. How utterly disgraceful.
His gaze landed on the bamboo tube by the pillow. Sweaty and parched, he reached over, pulled out the stopper, and finished the rest of the yellow wine in one gulp.
It quenched his thirst and calmed his nerves.
Before long, a maid knocked, saying the hot water was ready.
Pei Huaian got up and went to the bath.
Though the water was only warm, he felt hotter and hotter as he washed, and had to keep calling for someone to add cold water.
His attendant Qingwu, who helped with the water, came in for the third time. Qingwu reached into the tub to test the water and said in surprise, “Young Master, the water’s already cold. Do you still want more?”
“Add it.” Clutching the edge of the tub, his knuckles whitening, the youth’s brows furrowed tightly, as if enduring something.
Noticing his master’s unusual expression, Qingwu poured the rest of the half bucket of cold water into the tub and asked, “Young Master, are you feeling unwell anywhere?”
Qingwu had grown up with him, two years his senior. The two were both master and servant and close friends who told each other everything. There were some matters he couldn’t tell anyone else—Pei Huaian could only confide in him.
“Qingwu,” the heat in his body was getting stronger and stronger. The young man, his voice hoarse with shame, said, “I… I want a woman.”