The young ladies of the Liu family from Guidong Lane in Yunyang City?
Upon hearing this, Ren Yaoqi’s heart stirred, and she glanced toward Ren Yaohua beside her.
Although Ren Yaohua did not look at Ren Yaoqi, she seemed to sense her gaze and gave an almost imperceptible nod.
Ren Yaoqi understood—today, First Madam had come to assess one of these two young ladies as a potential match for Ren Yijun. She just didn’t know which one exactly.
When the two young ladies heard they were from the Ren Family, they also looked over curiously, likely aware of the day’s purpose.
However, Ren Yaoqi felt neither of them was quite suitable. The younger one, with some charm in her appearance, had a bold and unguarded gaze, especially when staring at Yun Wenfang. Though only twelve or thirteen, she already carried a hint of coquettishness.
The older one was more proper in demeanor, but her face, barely considered delicate, wore an icy expression. She spoke only to her cousin surnamed Tang beside her and barely acknowledged their greetings.
Given First Madam’s discerning eye, neither of these young ladies would pass her scrutiny, so today’s matchmaking was likely doomed to fail.
Just as Ren Yaoqi was pondering Ren Yijun’s situation, Su Yunchen’s next words immediately captured her full attention.
“On the eighth day of next month is my elder brother’s wedding. You must come to witness the ceremony.”
Su Yunchen’s elder brother, Su Yunyu, the eldest son of the Su family’s main branch—Ren Yaoqi remembered him.
His soon-to-be wife was surnamed Zeng, a distant niece of the wife of the heir to the Marquis of Xichang. Her uncle was Zeng Pu, who would become the Ningxia Regional Commander three years later.
Even after living through a lifetime, hearing about people and matters related to the Zeng family still sent a chill down Ren Yaoqi’s spine.
At this time, Zeng Pu was still in the capital, holding a nominal sixth-rank military title as a Loyalty and Merit Captain, relying on his family’s influence to get by. Who could have imagined that in just three years, he would gain the favor of the powerful minister Yan Ding through relentless maneuvering and eventually be sent by the court as a major pawn to counterbalance the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion.
People at the time couldn’t understand why the Su family would arrange for the eldest grandson of the main branch to marry such a distant relative from a declining noble family.
Since the current wife of the Su family head was a second wife, Eldest Master Su Keqin of the main branch and the married daughter Su Yi, who had wed into the Ren Family, were born to the first wife. Thus, many speculated that Old Madam Su had deliberately arranged this mismatched marriage for the eldest grandson left by the first wife.
Just then, a maidservant hurried over, whispering something into the ear of the eldest Liu daughter. Though her expression remained icy, a faint blush colored her cheeks.
“Understood. My sister and I will go now.”
“Cousin Yun, is Aunt calling you and Cousin Zhu over?” the eldest son of the Tang family asked softly.
Liu Yun nodded and said to Liu Zhu, “Mother is consulting the abbot about a divination slip and wants us to go draw one as well. Let’s go now and not keep her waiting.”
Liu Zhu withdrew her gaze from Yun Wenfang and responded with a charming smile before following her sister.
The two Liu sisters curtsied to the group and left the pavilion.
Seeing the demeanor of the Liu sisters, Ren Yaoqi felt uneasy about Ren Yijun. She wondered if these two sisters were the ill-fated stars destined to cross his path.After hesitating for a long time, Ren Yaoqi decided to follow and see what would happen. If anything occurred, she could intervene in time to stop Ren Yijun from causing more trouble.
After all, a life was at stake.
"Third Sister, I need to freshen up," Ren Yaoqi whispered to Ren Yaohua.
Ren Yaohua frowned and glanced around. "There’s likely no place nearby for that. You’ll have to return to the temple."
"Then I’ll go back first and come find you all later."
Ren Yaohua nodded without saying anything.
Ren Yaoqi curtsied to the group and left with her maids and attendants.
Not long after walking a short distance, Ren Yaoqi sensed someone following her. Turning around, she saw Yun Wenfang strolling leisurely in her direction.
Ren Yaoqi stopped and smiled at him. "Young Master Wen, please go ahead."
Yun Wenfang ignored her and stopped beside her.
Ren Yaoqi sighed and looked directly at him. "Young Master Wen, I need to freshen up."
Yun Wenfang glanced at her and replied, "Hmm," but made no move to leave.
Left with no choice, Ren Yaoqi ignored him and continued on her way. Yun Wenfang followed at a leisurely pace. After sending an attendant to inquire about Ren Yaoyin’s resting room, she turned and finally noticed that Yun Wenfang had left.
Ren Yaoqi immediately turned back toward the area where First Madam and the others were seeking divination sticks.
Unfortunately, by the time she arrived, First Madam and the others had already left. She asked a monk and learned that First Madam and Madam Liu had gone to a side hall reserved for distinguished guests to rest.
Ren Yaoqi headed toward the side hall the monk mentioned.
Just after leaving the main hall and turning a corner, she spotted Ren Yijun’s figure.
However, it seemed Ren Yijun wasn’t alone—standing opposite him were the two Liu sisters.
Ren Yaoqi happened to hear the girl named Liu Zhu sneering, "...My elder sister simply doesn’t fancy you, so she’s letting you know in advance. How dare you call my elder sister an ugly wench? You’re the sickly one, a consumptive ghost! Anyone can see you’re short-lived. Whoever marries you is doomed to live as a widow!"
Ren Yaoqi’s heart sank, and she quickly looked at Ren Yijun. Sure enough, his face was dark with fury.
The girl named Liu Zhu, adopting a shrewish manner she must have learned somewhere, continued, "Someone like you should have your family prepare a coffin early—die soon and be reborn sooner! Why come out and ruin decent girls..."
"Enough!"
This was simply too much. Ren Yaoqi couldn’t bear to listen any longer and coldly cut off Liu Zhu, walking toward Ren Yijun.
"Are you that Ren Family young lady from the pavilion earlier?" Liu Zhu, displeased at being interrupted, glanced sideways at Ren Yaoqi.
Ren Yaoqi didn’t even look at her. Instead, she turned to Ren Yijun and gently chided him, "Third Brother, we’ve been looking for you for a while. Why did you come here? This temple is a mixed crowd, with all sorts of unsavory lowlifes. If you accidentally run into them, it’s best not to engage."
Then, before anyone could react, Ren Yaoqi turned and instructed her attendant, "Go and reward those two blocking the way with five taels of silver each. Our Ren Family has always been generous in rewarding talented performers. We won’t let such a fine voice go unrecognized."
"You... you’re calling me... a performer?" Liu Zhu stammered, pointing at Ren Yaoqi after realizing the insult.Before she could raise her hand, something flew over and struck her, causing her to let out a sharp cry in pain.
A copper coin clattered to the ground, rolling a few times near her feet.
Ren Yaoqi turned around and saw Yun Wenfang standing there with a slight smirk on his face, looking as though he had come to join the commotion.
“Second Young Master Yun, what do you mean by this!” Liu Yun, the eldest daughter of the Liu family, who had been standing by watching her sister’s antics, said coldly.
Yun Wenfang curled his lips lazily. “I thought you performed well, so I gave you a reward. Keep going, and I’ll keep rewarding you.”
Liu Yun’s face flushed red with anger, unsure whether to speak or remain silent.
Finally, Liu Zhu, who was standing beside her, burst into tears with a loud “Waa—”, her voice indeed clear and piercing.
Afraid that the two sisters would attract onlookers and not wanting to make a scene, Ren Yaoqi grabbed Ren Yijun and quickly walked away.
Only when they could no longer hear the sisters’ voices did Ren Yaoqi turn to look at Ren Yijun, who had remained silent the entire time.
Ren Yijun’s face was expressionless. Just as Ren Yaoqi was about to try to distract him and ease his anger, Ren Yijun unexpectedly burst into laughter without warning.
Ren Yaoqi stared at him, speechless, as he laughed without a care for his appearance.
When Ren Yijun finally stopped laughing, Ren Yaoqi sighed helplessly. “Third Brother, don’t scare me like that.”
Ren Yijun studied her for a moment. “I thought your temper had improved lately, but it seems you’re still just as…”
Seeing that Ren Yijun was in a much better mood, Ren Yaoqi relaxed and asked, “Still just as what?”
Ren Yijun frowned, thinking for a moment, then shook his head and said nothing more.
Ren Yaoqi didn’t press further. In the past, Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yijun had likely disliked each other.
“Third Brother, are you still angry? Do you still want to vent?” Ren Yaoqi asked tentatively. As long as Ren Yijun didn’t resort to extreme measures or cause any serious trouble, she wouldn’t stop him if he wanted to teach the Liu sisters a small lesson.
Back then, Ren Yijun had taken her to angrily smash the ancestral hall. Now, she was helping him play a prank on those girls.
In a way, it was Ren Yijun who taught Ren Yaoqi that sometimes it was okay to set aside one’s principles and morals to let off a little steam.
Unexpectedly, Ren Yijun replied with little interest, “Forget it. I already cursed them back.”
Ren Yaoqi learned from him that the Liu sisters had secretly called Ren Yijun aside and told him not to even think about marrying a girl from the Liu family. Ren Yijun casually retorted that he wouldn’t marry an ugly monster, and then the argument broke out.
As the two were talking, a slightly teasing and disappointed voice chimed in. “I also brought some reward money to watch the commotion. Why did it end so quickly?”
Qiu Yun and Yun Wenfang, who hadn’t followed earlier, appeared before them.
Behind them were Ren Yaohua and Ren Yaoyu.
Clearly, they had all come after hearing the news.
Ren Yaoyu said, “I could tell at a glance that the Liu family’s second daughter was no good. After asking around, I found out she’s just the daughter of a concubine of questionable background.”
It’s the last day of the month. Does anyone still have pink votes they haven’t cast yet?
Biting my handkerchief, begging for votes～
〒_〒
Thank you to Ai Naihe and Shui Yu Linglong for three pink votes～
Thank you to zhutouhunao and hougenn88 for your rewards～(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian () to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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