Duke Jing's younger sister

Everyone who comes is a guest. As a member of the Shen family, Shen Li naturally cannot refuse the guest's request for such a small thing as drinking tea.

After thinking about it, she agreed.

Then he turned around and called out, "Zi..."

The gentle voice suddenly stopped. Xingping, who was standing behind her, was startled and immediately reacted.

The girl is not used to this yet, because usually no matter where she goes, she always takes Ziyuan with her.

Thinking of Ziyuan, Xingping felt a lump in her throat.

"Miss, I will go back and get it right away."

Xingping had already guessed what the girl was thinking. After paying her respects, she hurried back to Qinghui Courtyard to get the girl's favorite tea set.

The girl doesn't like drinking tea, but she loves making tea very much.

In the Shen residence, everyone said that Aunt Qin, who was by the Madam's side, was the best at making tea. But Xingping knew that the girl's tea-making skills were much better than Aunt Qin's.

It’s just that the girl doesn’t like to show off. When she was practicing making tea every day in the past few years, she and Ziyuan were the only ones by her side.

The Dragon Boat Festival is just a few days away, and the hottest summer of the year in Jiangdu City is also about to arrive.

The sun, with its scorching breath, penetrated the clouds and poured down over the city of Jiangdu.

In the courtyard of Cuibai Hall, pomegranate flowers are in full bloom. The bright red flowers are like flames hanging on the green branches.

Three people sat in order at the stone table under the tree.

Shen Li rolled up her sleeves, revealing her slender white arms, and placed the top-quality purple clay tea set neatly on the table.

She methodically boiled the kettle with boiling water and then used a teaspoon to scoop the top-quality snow-capped emerald green into the teapot. Her movements were very skillful, as if it was something she did every day, as ordinary as eating and drinking.

Luo Jue probably guessed that Third Miss Shen was worried about something, so he didn't say much, and just tapped the table with his fingertips out of boredom, making a slight "tap tap" sound.

All that was left was the clear sound of flowing water when she stretched out and raised her hand.

Shen Beiqi sat quietly on the stone bench, his eyes always fixed on her cheek.

She said nothing, and calmly concentrated on making tea. Her long and thick eyelashes were half-drooped, casting a fan-shaped shadow under her eyelids.

She seemed to have grown taller, and her originally round cheeks became thinner, with a clear jawline and smooth lines, adding a touch of elegance to her gentleness and agility.

The immaturity of her teenage years has quietly faded away, and now little A'li has become a graceful, pretty and beautiful girl with a pretty face.

But there seemed to be a sorrow and resentment shrouding those delicate eyebrows and eyes, which could not be dispelled for a long time.

Shen Beiqi naturally knew where her resentment came from.

In the eyes of many people, it is ridiculous for a master to be so sad for a maid.

Even Shen Zhiyan, who was always kindhearted, only sighed for Zi Yuan after hearing what happened to her yesterday, and then paid some funeral money out of her own pocket for Zi Yuan's younger brother and widowed mother.

This is the greatest kindness a master can show.

When advising Shen Li, Shen Zhiyan only said to bury Ziyuan properly, and then look for her mother another day and assign a few more capable servants to serve her.

In the eyes of most of the high-ranking children from aristocratic families, slaves and maids are like objects, even worse than the cats and dogs in the house. Very few of them treat servants as human beings from the bottom of their hearts.

Harsh criticism and beatings were common, and in their view, it was justified for slaves to serve their masters wholeheartedly and until their death.

Even if someone is kind-hearted and treats servants well, they will not be sad because of their death. At most, they will be merciful and give them more silver. Even if they don't give it, no one will say anything.

But Shen Li is different from them after all.

Although she came from a prominent family, her family fell into poverty. If she had not been young, she would probably be a prostitute now.

Prostitution is a status even lower than slavery.

She could empathize because she had also been at the lowest point, experienced the fickleness of human nature, and seen the vicissitudes of the world. She knew how difficult life was for them as slaves.

When she saw that Ziyuan's happiness, which was within her reach, was destroyed because of her, a strong sense of self-blame surged over her like a tide and instantly destroyed her.

Guilt, regret, pain...all kinds of emotions intertwined together, like an invisible net, binding her tightly and making it impossible for her to breathe.

Shen Beiqi sighed secretly and silently withdrew his gaze.

She has always had a good temper and a good personality, but the premise of her good temper is that no one deliberately provokes her.

If someone touches her reverse scale, she will be the kind of person who will take revenge.

In her heart, Ziyuan was afraid that the matter would not be over so quickly.

After a while, the tea was ready. Shen Li slowly filled the teacup, held it in both hands, and handed it to Luo Jue first.

In the purple clay teacup, the tea is clear and fragrant.

Luo Jue took the tea she handed over and took a sip. He felt that the tea had an elegant and lasting aroma, and it was refreshing and sweet. He was quite amazed for a moment and praised it immediately.

"I didn't expect Third Miss Shen's tea art to be so exquisite. Even Yue Niang, who claims to be the best tea artist in Xing'anfang, would have to admit defeat if she met Third Miss Shen."

Yue Niang is the owner of the Muxue Teahouse in Xing'anfang. She is an outsider woman who has managed to gain a foothold in Jiangdu City with her tea-making skills.

Luo Jue and Shen Beiqi often go to Yue Ji to drink tea and are considered regular customers of the teahouse.

Shen Li smiled and said, "Brother Luo, you are so kind. I just read ancient tea books and learned a little bit. How can I compare with the tea master who is proficient in the tea ceremony in the teahouse?"

As she spoke, she raised her hand and handed another cup of tea to Shen Beiqi.

He took a sip and found that Luo Jue was not exaggerating. Her tea making skills were indeed excellent. The tea she brewed was emerald green in color and the soup was bright.

When it comes to making tea, people who are not proficient in it are just like Yueyang, who throws in some tea leaves, pours boiling water, and thinks that the job is done.

Those who are proficient in this technique have precise control over the water temperature, heat, and duration. Even the slightest difference can make a huge difference in the taste of the tea.

"How is it? Is this tea much better than the one brewed by Yue Niang?" Luo Jue asked.

"That's true." Shen Beiqi praised.

He knew that she had been learning tea art in her early years.

Unfortunately, he went to the battlefield before she had finished learning, and now this cup of tea was the first time he tasted her craftsmanship.

I didn't know she did so well.

He found that he seemed to know very little about her. Apart from the fact that she liked to eat white jade cakes, he seemed to know nothing else.

As the military book says, only those who know both themselves and their enemy can win a hundred battles without danger.

Only by knowing your enemy well enough can you win the battle.

And now, the enemy that Shen Beiqi wants to attack is Shen Li.

The city he wanted to plunder was her heart.

In that case, he must first understand her, her likes and dislikes.

Of course, he would not ask her in person. To get the intelligence, all he needed was a surveyor. Not only did he have to investigate carefully, but he also had to do it quietly so that the other party could not detect it.

Otherwise, it would alert the enemy and make them wary. The most appropriate thing to do is to start with the people around her.

His gaze slowly turned to Xingping.

Xingping felt a chill on her back and got goose bumps all over her body. She looked up at the sunny sky and felt a little puzzled.

Shen Li knew that his brother and Luo Jue still had something to discuss, so he didn't stay long after making the tea.

After coming out of Cuibai Hall, Shen Li went back to Qinghui Courtyard to get some silver, and took Xingping to Ziyuan's house.