The Tan's Roast Duck in Yunyang City indeed tasted different from the one in the capital. Ren Yaoqi couldn't quite put her finger on the difference, though the cooking time and sauce seemed no different. If forced to say which one was better, Ren Yaoqi truly couldn't. She didn't have the same kind of obsession with food as Xiao Jinglin.
Ren Yaoqi felt that Xiao Jinglin was very satisfied with her meal, because by the time they finished, there were basically no leftovers on Xiao Jinglin's table. She recalled that Princess Xiao seemed to have a good habit of not wasting food.
The three of them finished their lunch in their own quiet way. Then, maids came in to serve them for rinsing their mouths and cleaning their hands, and to clear away the dishes.
When they sat down in the inner room for tea, Ren Yaoqi said, "Young Master Xiao, I wonder if I might borrow one of your men?" Seeing Xiao Jingxi look over, Ren Yaoqi quickly added, "It's just to deliver a letter for me."
"Let Hongying go," Xiao Jinglin said from the side.
Ren Yaoqi was taken aback for a moment, then remembered that the maids by Xiao Jinglin's side also knew martial arts. Their skills were likely no worse than Dongsheng's.
"Hongying's skills are good, but if it's a matter of sneaking into an inner residence, it's better to use my people," Xiao Jingxi said with a slight smile. "It's not like they've never delivered letters before."
He glanced at Ren Yaoqi with a smile.
Ren Yaoqi couldn't help but feel a little awkward under his meaningful gaze.
The last time she had Dongsheng deliver a letter for her, she hadn't asked for his master Xiao Jingxi's permission. Although Xiao Jingxi didn't seem like he was going to hold it against her, it made her current inquiry feel a bit pretentious.
Xiao Jinglin didn't notice the atmosphere between Xiao Jingxi and Ren Yaoqi. She thought for a moment and said no more. Her maids had always been with her at the border. Although their martial arts were good, they were certainly not as familiar with the situations of the various households in Yunyang City as the people by Xiao Jingxi's side.
This large private room was presumably used by people of status on a regular basis, including some scholars and refined gentlemen, so a two-foot-tall mahogany desk was placed against the wall, with the Four Treasures of the Study on it.
Ren Yaoqi walked over, picked up the paper and ink, and examined them. They were all of good quality, but they were things that could be bought in the stationery shops of Yunyang City, nothing special.
Hongying hurried over and asked in a low voice, "Does Young Miss need to use the brush and ink?"
Ren Yaoqi nodded. She had originally intended to call for Pingguo, who was standing in the outer room, but Hongying had already stepped forward to help her grind the ink. Ren Yaoqi let her be.
A moment later, Ren Yaoqi held the brush in her left hand and stood before the desk, dipping the brush in ink and beginning to write.
Light shone in from the half-open window, landing right on her left hand as it held the brush. Her fingertips were as translucent as pure snow, dazzling at first glance, yet the force with which she held the brush was steady, without the slightest hesitation.
Xiao Jingxi had, at some point, walked over and was standing to the side, watching her write.
Ren Yaoqi smelled a clear, medicinal fragrance, which only served to help her focus her mind on the brush in her hand.
Only when the last stroke was complete did Xiao Jingxi's voice sound nearby. "Are you used to writing with your left hand?"
Xiao Jingxi calmly withdrew his gaze from Ren Yaoqi's fingertips.
He asked because although the characters Ren Yaoqi wrote with her left hand had no particular flair, they were extremely neat, clearly the result of many years of practice. Given Ren Yaoqi's age, if she normally used her right hand to write, it should be impossible for her to have practiced her left-handed writing so well, nor would there be any need to.
But he remembered that Ren Yaoqi had clearly used her right hand when holding chopsticks and picking up chess pieces, so he couldn't help but be curious.
Ren Yaoqi looked back at Xiao Jingxi, thought for a moment, and switched the brush to her right hand. Then she took out a new sheet of white paper and wrote the character "Jing" on it.
Although it was only a single character, a discerning eye could tell at a glance that it was not written by the same person who had written the previous words with her left hand. Ren Yaoqi's calligraphy was excellent, her elegant script carrying a free-spirited and magnanimous air, very much in the style of a famous master. Even her father was very pleased with this point.
"I write with my left hand simply so people won't recognize it," Ren Yaoqi explained with a smile.
She had been practicing her right-handed calligraphy for over twenty years; even if she tried to change her style, someone familiar with it would be able to recognize it. Fortunately, her left-handed writing was also presentable.
Xiao Jingxi, however, stared at the character "Jing" for a moment, stunned.
In truth, Ren Yaoqi had written it casually, perhaps because Xiao Jinglin was standing on the opposite side of the desk. Since they were already friends, she hadn't bothered with the so-called taboo of avoiding names. She had just forgotten that Xiao Jingxi's name also contained the character "Jing."
Fortunately, Xiao Jingxi's expression quickly returned to calm. He nonchalantly picked up the piece of paper and compared it with the finished letter Ren Yaoqi was holding. "Your right-handed calligraphy is better than your left-handed," he commented objectively.
Hearing this, Ren Yaoqi smiled and turned to look at him, saying half-jokingly, "That's only natural. I usually use my right hand. I mostly use my left hand when I'm up to no good."
Xiao Jingxi looked at the smiling face so close to him and listened to her teasing, and he couldn't help but smile as well.
From the other side of the desk, what Xiao Jinglin saw was the pair behind it—one a gentleman as flawless as jade, the other gentle and beautiful. Each held a piece of ink-stained paper, and after a tacit, shared smile, they spoke in low whispers. The scene was so perfectly harmonious that one couldn't bear to break it.
As if possessed, the Commandery Princess, who had never been fond of poetry or sentimental melancholy, opened her mouth and softly murmured, "From now on, green-black hair will proofread the drafts, and red sleeves will add fragrance to the ink. A couple so perfect they seem like immortals, their writings will bring glory to the nation."
Her voice was very soft, so Ren Yaoqi didn't hear it. Nor did she see the expression on Xiao Jingxi's face, who was standing beside her, suddenly turn very strange.
By the time she noticed, Second Young Master Xiao had already changed his expression back to normal as if by magic. It was just that the tips of his ears, for some unknown reason, had suddenly and inexplicably turned red.
Ren Yaoqi was discussing the subsequent arrangements with him and didn't pay particular attention to the expression on his face.
Xiao Jingxi lowered his head, watching Ren Yaoqi's eyelashes tremble slightly as she spoke. The voice that entered his ears was very light, soft and pleasant, causing the steps he had intended to take to leave to freeze in place, unable to move an inch.
The feeling was very strange, as if his senses of hearing, sight, and smell had all suddenly become exceptionally sharp, yet he had also fallen into some kind of reverie where everything he heard, saw, and smelled was related only to that specific person. As a result, his body's movements were instead imprisoned.
Xiao Jingxi was suddenly a little dazed. Logically, such an expression should never appear on the face of the infallible, immortal-like Young Master Xiao.
Facts proved that no one was truly omnipotent. At the very least, in the life of the all-powerful Second Young Master Xiao, there were also mysteries that even he could not fathom.
Of course, with our Second Young Master Xiao's abilities, figuring these things out was only a matter of time and experience. For now, he was, after all, just a young man who appeared so powerful that it was easy to overlook his age.
"Young Master Xiao?" Seeing that Xiao Jingxi hadn't responded to her, Ren Yaoqi couldn't help but turn and call out, only to see him staring at her motionlessly, lost in thought.
Fortunately, her call brought Xiao Jingxi back to his senses. Second Young Master Xiao lowered his gaze and said calmly, "Let Tong Xi go instead."
Ren Yaoqi gave Xiao Jingxi a strange look. She had just asked him if Dongsheng could deliver the letter. Then Xiao Jingxi thought for a long time and replied to her to let Tong Xi go.
Weren't Dongsheng and Tong Xi the same person? Ren Yaoqi couldn't help but twitch the corner of her mouth.
Or did Xiao Jingxi have a strange quirk, believing that anyone he employed must accept the name he gave them? Did he have to express his domineering nature in such a subtle and "dignified" way? The world of immortals was truly beyond the comprehension of ordinary mortals.
Ren Yaoqi was silent for a moment, then nodded obediently with a smile. "Alright."
As long as Xiao Jingxi was willing to help, she didn't mind indulging his little quirk.
Xiao Jingxi had Hongying call Dongsheng in. Ren Yaoqi folded the now-dry paper and handed it to Dongsheng, then gave him a few detailed instructions.
Xiao Jingxi did not interfere with their conversation. He walked to the table, sat down, and drank his tea.
Xiao Jinglin also sat back down opposite him, rare for her, staring thoughtfully at Xiao Jingxi's face.
"You were blushing again just now," Xiao Jinglin said, her voice very low this time, audible only to her and Xiao Jingxi.
"You saw wrong." Xiao Jingxi's hand, holding the teacup, paused, but his tone remained calm and gentle, without a hint of guilt. He even gave his sister a gentle and confident smile.
Xiao Jinglin propped up her chin and studied him carefully for a long while, then concluded with a deadpan expression, "You're lying."
Xiao Jingxi: "..."
When Ren Yaoqi returned after instructing Dongsheng, she saw the brother and sister sitting at the table, not speaking, the atmosphere a little strange. She couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"
Xiao Jinglin opened her mouth to speak, but was gently interrupted by Xiao Jingxi first. "It's nothing. It's just that Lin'er was thinking about the upcoming Thousand Gold Banquet and is worried about what talent to perform."
Ren Yaoqi looked at Xiao Jinglin, only to see her face seem to stiffen.
Just as she was about to ask, she heard Xiao Jingxi say with a gentle smile, "Mother has specially invited a zither master into the residence and also plans to personally teach her painting and calligraphy. So if she wants to go out in the future... I'm afraid it will be a bit more difficult."
As he spoke, Xiao Jingxi gave Xiao Jinglin a meaningful look, his smile exactly that of an elder brother doting on his younger sister.
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