Chapter 167
Chapter 167
Ji Hanyi listened to Shen Si in a daze. His hot breath brushed her face, while the calm assurance in his voice swept away her uncertainty and confusion. She could not help gazing into his eyes and nodding softly in reply.
The night breeze lifted a corner of the carriage curtain, sending flickering light over them. Only when the cool air touched her did Ji Hanyi realize how intimate their position was. Shen Si had nearly pinned her into the corner, and his chest filled her entire view.
She was not yet accustomed to such intimacy or having him so close.
Even though she had agreed to marry him, she harbored no presumptuous expectations. She only wanted to help him dutifully, do her best to be worthy of becoming his wife, and avoid causing him any trouble.
Ji Hanyi shifted again, but she did not know how to ask Shen Si to move away.
After they had remained like that for a long while, Shen Si’s hoarse voice finally sounded above her once more. “Don’t overthink things when you return. I’ll make all the arrangements. Leave everything to me.”
“I’ll come see you again tomorrow.”
He paused, his heated breath drawing closer, then asked, “Do you still want those candied cakes?”
Ji Hanyi froze at his question before shaking her head and replying softly, “If you’re busy, Lord Shen, there’s no need to bring them.”
Hearing her address him as the same distant and courteous “Lord Shen,” Shen Si lowered his gaze to her slightly averted face. She still did not seem accustomed to their closeness, and her fair, unadorned features held a restrained shyness.
If one did not know she had been married before, one would never have guessed it.
Shen Si smiled soundlessly, then said in a low voice, “It’s no trouble. I want to see you too.”
Even after Ji Hanyi stepped down from the carriage, everything still felt hazy and unreal.
The night breeze swept past. When she looked up, she saw Shen Si still seated inside the carriage, holding the curtain aside as he watched her. His deep voice drifted through the darkness. “Hanyi, come to me if anything happens.”
Ji Hanyi nodded.
Knowing Shen Si was still watching her, she lowered her eyes and turned away in some haste.
—
Ji Hanyi actually slept very well that night.
Once she had made up her mind and reached a decision, she would no longer waver back and forth. With nothing weighing on her heart, there was no reason for her to lie awake at night.
Thus, by the time Ji Hanyi woke the next morning, daylight was already streaming in. It had been a long time since she had slept so soundly.
Hearing movement, Rongchun came in with tea for her to moisten her throat. Ji Hanyi was still leaning groggily against the large decorative bolster, but after taking a sip, she felt much more awake.
She rose, dressed, and headed to her mother’s quarters, intending to have a proper talk with her about her decision.
As she passed through the covered corridor, she saw that the sky outside was once again overcast, with a fine drizzle falling. Ji Hanyi paused beneath the eaves to look out. The pale blue, plum-blossom-patterned fabric of her clothes shifted with her subtle movements, and the white jade clasp at her waist swayed gently before she stepped into the room.
Ji Hanyi lifted the heavy curtain and entered. Madam Gu looked much better and was seated by the window, arranging the flowering branches Gu Yan had sent her.
Madam Gu had always enjoyed such pastimes. She had once been a pampered noblewoman whose husband held a lofty position, possessed striking good looks, and navigated official circles with ease. With no mother-in-law to keep her under her thumb, she had spent her days on the refined and genteel amusements of the inner residence. She was a delicate woman sheltered in her chambers, unused to weathering life’s storms.
Now that her health had improved enough for her to leave her bed, such things remained her only diversions.
Ji Hanyi walked over to her mother. Seeing her arrive, Madam Gu set down the small silver scissors in her hand and drew Ji Hanyi over to sit with her on the daybed. Smiling, she said, “I had Chunju collect morning dew to brew tea. You’ve come at just the right time.”
Ji Hanyi sat slightly turned toward her mother. On the small table beside them, plum blossom tea simmered over a little red-clay stove as she watched her mother pour her a cup.
Noticing the faint smile on Madam Gu’s face, Ji Hanyi told her mother what she had decided.
Madam Gu set the teacup before Ji Hanyi, then looked up at her and said softly, “The Shen Family has always treated us with great kindness. Hanyi, there is nothing wrong with your decision.”
“The Shen Family has always had an excellent reputation, and Marquis Shen is an exceptionally good man – someone Xie Yuheng could never compare to.”
“Since he asked for your help, he will surely make all the necessary arrangements for you. Truthfully, that puts my mind at ease as well.”
Hearing her mother say this lifted another weight from Ji Hanyi’s heart. She then brought up the reply they needed to send to Second Uncle.
Ji Hanyi still felt guilty. The residence next door had already been put in order, and begonias had even been planted there. After all the time and effort spent preparing it, she felt terrible about suddenly telling them they would no longer be coming.
Madam Gu said, “You needn’t worry about that. I’ll write back to your Second Uncle. I’m sure he will understand.”
Ji Hanyi asked, “Should we send Second Uncle some silver? He paid out of his own pocket to renovate and clean the residence, and he even had the rear courtyard tidied up. We can’t let all that expense go to waste.”
Madam Gu nodded. “You have a point. Even if we aren’t going, we should still send what we owe. Whether they accept it is another matter, but at least our consciences will be clear.”
The two of them were still discussing the details when Rongchun came in from outside. The moment she entered, she leaned close and whispered something into Ji Hanyi’s ear.
Ji Hanyi paused, then turned to tell her mother to rest while she stepped out for a moment.
Once they were outside, Rongchun kept her voice low as she said, “The Xie Family followed First Madam Gu here.”
“This servant went to open the gate, and they barged in together with First Madam Gu. They’re probably sitting in the front hall now.”
Ji Hanyi pressed her lips together, then said quietly to Rongchun, “Have Chunju stay inside and take good care of Mother. Don’t tell her that the Xie Family is here.”
“Mother is already prone to brooding. I don’t want the Xie Family upsetting her.”
Rongchun quickly nodded. “Rest assured, miss. Madam doesn’t know yet.”
Ji Hanyi nodded, glanced at the rain falling in a misty blue-gray curtain, then headed toward the front hall.
She had only just reached the covered walkway outside the hall when she saw Eldest Maternal Aunt waiting for her. As soon as Ji Hanyi approached, the woman put on a troubled expression and pulled her aside.
“Hanyi, please don’t blame me. I didn’t want to bring them here either,” she whispered.
“Young Master Yan is on duty today, so I thought I’d bring your mother some fine bird’s nest to help build up her strength. Who could have guessed that I’d run into the Xie Family’s carriage at the mouth of the alley? You know they also live in the eastern part of the city.”
“I didn’t pay them any mind at first, but who would have thought they would be so calculating? They followed my carriage all the way here.”
“When I got out to knock on the gate, they came up beside me and entered at the same time. By the time I realized what they were doing, it was already too late.”
Ji Hanyi pressed her lips together and quietly watched Eldest Maternal Aunt explain herself. Ever since her father’s downfall, Eldest Maternal Aunt had rarely bothered to hide her displeasure. Now, her eyes seemed full of guilt as she offered excuse after excuse, but to Ji Hanyi, it all looked utterly false.
She had never believed in such convenient coincidences.
How could someone who once begrudged them even a single candle suddenly be willing to bring them the finest bird’s nest?