Quick Wear: Cousin, Come to the Bowl Quickly

Ivanov truly lived up to his reputation as a doting husband in Fengtian City.

Since the ball, Mrs. Tasha was in high spirits upon hearing news of her sister, and the gloom that had been on her face for days vanished.

Because of her affection for her sister Fuya, she naturally developed a special fondness for Lin Xi, Fuya's former student who brought the good news.

Subsequently, under the strong influence of this "pillow talk," Ivanov, who had previously been ambiguous about the arms deal, quickly became clear about his stance.

So, on a beautiful, sunny day, Lin Xi and Shen Jingyuan, carrying carefully prepared gifts, formally paid a visit to the Ivan couple's residence.

The air in the reception room was filled with the aroma of tea, and the steaming tea served by the maids helped to ease the awkward atmosphere of their first formal meeting.

Lady Tasha was dressed in an elegant pale purple dress today, her complexion was rosy, and her eyes were gentle, a stark contrast to her worried appearance at the ball a few days ago.

She gracefully pushed a gilded porcelain cup in front of Lin Xi and smiled as she spoke first: "The weather is so nice today, this dress suits you very well."

Today, Lin Xi wore a fitted moon-white cheongsam and her makeup was light and appropriate. Compared with her dazzling appearance at the ball that night, she looked particularly harmless.

Although she knew that Madam Tasha was just saying it casually and didn't mean anything by it, Lin Xi still naturally blushed a little. "Madam, you flatter me. Speaking of clothes... at the ball that day, I was young and ignorant and chose a color similar to yours. I really didn't think it through. Please don't take offense."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Tasha waved her hand gently, her tone very mild, "Don't overthink it. I've long forgotten about that matter. It's just a matter of color; who can claim to have all the beauty? Meeting you that night and learning about Fuya's whereabouts is more important to me than anything else."

“That’s right. Speaking of which, I must thank you both for attending the ball that day.” Ivanov, who was standing to the side, took Mrs. Tasha’s hand and took over the conversation quite naturally. “Tasha has been in a very good mood lately, and her appetite has also improved a lot. I haven’t seen her so happy in a long time.”

Mrs. Tasha smiled gently at him, then turned her gaze back to Lin Xi, and said with concern, "Speaking of which, a few days ago after the ball, my female companion mentioned to me that she seemed to have seen you two having some unpleasantness?"

"Cough cough cough cough!"

Before Mrs. Tasha could finish speaking, Lin Xi, who was taking a sip of tea, suddenly choked on it and coughed violently, her face turning bright red instantly.

Upon seeing this, Shen Jingyuan's expression tightened. He quickly leaned over, gently patting her back to help her catch her breath, while swiftly taking out a clean handkerchief from his pocket and handing it to her.

Lin Xi glared at him angrily, snatched the handkerchief from Shen Jingyuan's hand and covered her mouth. Her cheeks flushed red, whether from choking or something else, it was hard to tell.

"Drink slowly, the freshly brewed black tea is still a bit hot," Mrs. Tasha gently reminded her.

Lin Xi was so embarrassed she almost wanted to disappear into the ground. She quickly cleared her throat and whispered, "Thank you, Madam. I... I'm fine now."

After a while, seeing that Lin Xi had finally calmed down, Shen Jingyuan withdrew his hand from patting her back, sat up straight, looked at Madam Tasha, cleared his throat, lowered his gaze, and explained as if he was a little uncomfortable.

"Madam, please forgive my lack of magnanimity. The other day, when I saw someone invite my wife to dance, I was momentarily... jealous and we exchanged a few words, which disturbed you, Madam."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Tasha paused slightly in her teacup, then smiled faintly, a look of understanding flashing in her eyes. "I see."

Ivanov, standing beside her, laughed heartily, put his arm around Mrs. Tasha, and said with barely suppressed smugness, "Haha, you are quite similar to me in your youth. Whenever there is a ball, I cannot tolerate any other man staying by Tasha's side for even a moment longer."

Upon hearing this, Lady Tasha blushed, gave him a reproachful look, gently pushed Ivan away, straightened her dress, and then turned to Lin Xi, teasingly saying in a light tone, "It's no wonder Li Ke is worried about you. If I had a wife as beautiful as you, I'd probably have to be on guard all the time."

Lin Xi recalled the scene from that night, and felt her face burning even more. She didn't dare to look at Shen Jingyuan's expression beside her, so she could only pick up her teacup to pretend to sip tea.

After a pleasant exchange of pleasantries, Ivanov led Shen Jingyuan into the study, clearly intending to discuss serious matters, while Madam Tasha took Lin Xi's hand affectionately and led her for a stroll in the garden.

The garden is lush with vegetation, with several tall plane trees bearing abundant branches and leaves. In the flowerbeds on both sides, roses, lilies, and dahlias are in full bloom, creating a colorful spectacle. The whole garden presents a vibrant and thriving scene.

The two walked slowly along the cobblestone path for a while, their foreheads beaded with a thin layer of sweat.

Mrs. Tasha led Lin Xi to a white bench under a lush sycamore tree. A gentle breeze carried the sweet fragrance of jasmine and slightly dispelled the summer heat.

Lin Xi took out a silk handkerchief and gently wiped the fine sweat from her neck. When she looked up, her gaze was inadvertently drawn to a corner of the garden.

There stands a small and exquisite glass greenhouse, its dome sparkling in the morning light. The greenhouse is surrounded by pale purple irises, which blend seamlessly with the other scenery in the garden, yet are also uniquely ingenious.

"The combination of the greenhouse and the iris bushes is truly wonderful," Lin Xi couldn't help but exclaim.

Mrs. Tasha followed her gaze, her eyes softening slightly. "That was a gardener Ivan specially hired a couple of years ago to renovate the garden, modeled after the one in my old home in St. Petersburg."

Her tone was calm, yet it revealed a tenderness that she herself was unaware of: "He said he was afraid I would miss my homeland, so he tried to bring the scenery from my memories over."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xi's heart stirred slightly. Her gaze shifted from the glass greenhouse that shimmered in the sunlight back to Mrs. Tasha's softly profiled face, and she couldn't help but exclaim, "You and Mr. Ivan have such a good relationship."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Tasha's lips curved into a faint smile. "Are you getting along well?"

"Of course!" Lin Xi nodded vigorously, her tone somewhat exaggerated, "Who in the entire Fengtian doesn't know how much Mr. Ivan admires you?"

Seeing her exaggerated expression, Mrs. Tasha couldn't help but chuckle and touched the corner of her lips with her handkerchief.

"Actually, I didn't like him at first, I even... you could say I was annoyed by him."

"Huh?" Lin Xi blinked in surprise, as if she hadn't expected her to say that. "How could that be?"

"Unexpected, isn't it?" A smile flashed in Mrs. Tasha's eyes as she caught a glimpse of the lively expression on her face. She paused, then suddenly sighed softly, leaning back in her chair as if she had suddenly felt the urge to confide in someone. She spoke slowly in a low voice.

“He was seven years older than me.” A helpless smile appeared on her lips as she shook her head. “Among the young talents who surrounded me at the time, his appearance was not particularly outstanding, and his personality was too domineering and mature, always looking old-fashioned.”

"In addition, my parents intended to arrange a marriage between our two families," Mrs. Tasha wrinkled her delicate nose, "so when I first met him, I was extremely reluctant."

At this point, she turned to Lin Xi and winked, with a hint of girlish slyness, "Later, she made up all sorts of excuses and refused his invitations several times in a row."

"This..." Lin Xi opened her mouth, not knowing how to respond for a moment. Seeing this, Madam Tasha smiled, gently patted the back of her hand, and continued.

"When I was young, I was quite the center of attention in St. Petersburg's social circles," Madame Tasha said, a hint of reminiscence unconsciously appearing in her eyes, as if she had transformed back into that radiant noblewoman at the ball.

"She loves to talk and laugh, and she also loves to paint and recite poetry. She is never short of enthusiastic suitors. Those young and handsome noblemen go to great lengths and use all sorts of tricks to get a dance with me." She shook her head with a light laugh. "Ivan's rigid and boring personality is naturally not pleasing to my eye."

Looking at Mrs. Tasha, whose eyes and brows were now brimming with life, Lin Xi couldn't help but smile and asked curiously, "And then what happened?"

"Later..." Mrs. Tasha paused, her long eyelashes trembled slightly, and a hint of bitterness appeared between her brows and eyes. "Later, because of Fuya's... words and deeds that were considered heretical in the aristocratic circle, our entire family was implicated, and my reputation plummeted."

She looked up at Lin Xi, her gaze carrying a hint of worldly wisdom and indifference. "That circle can tolerate the scandalous affairs of married socialites as gossip, but it cannot accept a young woman of marriageable age declaring that she will never marry and will wander the world."

She shook her head, a sarcastic smile playing on her lips. "In an instant, all those young men who had sworn to marry no one but me vanished without a trace."

“Just when I was at my lowest point,” Mrs. Tasha’s tone softened, and a warm light appeared in her eyes, “only Ivan… instead of avoiding me like the others, stood firmly by my side.”

Her gaze drifted into the distance, as if she were returning to those embarrassing yet cherished moments: "He would book the best box at the theater for me in front of everyone, and at deserted banquets where no one dared to invite me to dance, he would ignore the strange looks and invite me to dance again and again..."

Lin Xi was completely captivated by Mrs. Tasha's story. After all, firsthand recollections from the person involved were far more impactful than any romance novel, ancient or modern, Chinese or foreign.

Perhaps it was because Lin Xi's gaze was too intense that Madam Tasha finally snapped out of her reverie, unfolded the fan she had been holding, fanned herself gently, and then continued speaking.

"But that alone might not be enough to make me fall for him. What truly made me decide to entrust my life to him was his attitude towards Fuya."

"With his rigid personality, he certainly couldn't understand Fuya's choice, but because he was considerate of my feelings, he didn't hesitate to use his connections and risk his life to help me rescue Fuya from the church and put her in a safe place."

At this point, she suddenly leaned forward and lowered her voice, saying, "I once asked him if he wasn't afraid people would say he married the sister of a 'crazy woman,' causing unnecessary gossip. Guess what he said?"

Mrs. Tasha looked at Lin Xi, her eyes gleaming. "He said, 'If you judge a person solely by listening to rumors, then you don't need to keep your eyes open either.'"

“So,” Mrs. Tasha leaned back in her chair, spread her hands slightly, and gave a relieved smile, “when he proposed to me again later, I said yes.”

Her gaze turned warm and deep as she looked directly into Lin Xi's eyes, her tone firm, "Having gone through all this, I truly understand that to judge a man, you shouldn't just listen to what he says, but also look at what he does for you."

As she spoke, she gently took Lin Xi's hand, her palm warm and soft, and said, "Actions always carry more weight than words."

Then, before Lin Xi could react, she suddenly changed the subject and teased, "You and Li Ke must have been newlyweds, right?"

Lin Xi hadn't yet recovered from the dramatic love story of the Ivan couple when she suddenly heard this question. Immediately, the image of Shen Jingyuan's blush-inducing confession under the dim light that night, and the sleepless nights she had spent thinking about it, flashed through her mind. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she nodded vaguely.

"Hmm...yes, it is indeed quite 'new'."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Tasha's eyes flashed with understanding, and she nodded with a smile, "Indeed, only newlyweds would have that kind of look in their eyes."

"Huh?" Lin Xi blinked in confusion. "What kind of look is that?"

Mrs. Tasha smiled meaningfully, "What other kind of look could it be? While we were having tea, Li's gaze never left you."

As she spoke, she sighed with a touch of wistfulness, "Youth is truly wonderful. A little quarrel can turn into a sweet and loving relationship in the blink of an eye."

Realizing what was happening, Lin Xi blushed instantly. She had been so focused on dealing with Madam Tasha that she hadn't noticed what Shen Jingyuan was looking at. She quickly explained, "Madam, you're mistaken! He... he just didn't get enough rest last night, and his eyelids are just twitching a little!"

Upon hearing this, Lady Tasha smiled gently and did not argue with her. She simply said in a gentle tone, "That's good. You two are in the prime of your lives and it's a great blessing that you can see each other's feelings so early on. Unlike me and Ivan, who wasted a long time and went through many twists and turns before finally getting together."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xi's embarrassment faded slightly. She remained silent for a moment, then suddenly stood up, walked to the flowerbed beside her, picked a white rose in full bloom, and went to Mrs. Tasha.

She slowly knelt down in front of Tasha, looked at her with clear eyes, held out the white rose to Tasha, and said sincerely.

"It is precisely because you and Mr. Ivan have gone through those extraordinary years together and faced the storms together that this friendship is so unbreakable and precious."

"Just like this white rose, it is only through the baptism of wind and rain and the scorching sun that it can develop such a moving fragrance over the years."

Lady Tasha looked down at the sincere-looking girl in front of her, a hint of emotion flashing in her eyes.

She reached out and took the white rose, lowered her head and smelled it for a moment, but did not keep it. Instead, she gently tucked it into Lin Xi's hair.

The pure white petals set off the girl's young and beautiful face, as if conveying a silent blessing and expectation.

"Then I hope to pass this beauty on to you."