Marrying Gold and Jade

In the front yard, above the water pavilion.

Lin Yu worked very hard on playing the piano and his skills have reached perfection.

But today my mind was full of that person, and Qin was no longer in my sight. Instead, I was watching Qingdai peeling litchis, and the breeze ruffling the gauze curtain beside the water pavilion.

The song ended before I knew it.

Putting his palms together on the zither, Lin Yu turned around and asked Ming Yuan: "How is it?"

He couldn't speak, and his big hands had never touched the piano, so he could only nod at her seriously.

Just at this moment, a burst of applause came from under the pavilion.

Lin Yu turned back and couldn't see anyone, but could tell that he was showing support.

After a moment, a clear male voice came through the curtain: "I was led here by the sound of the zither. I don't mean to offend you. May I express my opinion?"

He referred to himself as "Your Excellency".

Lin Yu found it very fresh.

Being able to enter the house means at least I am a guest there; since I cannot see his appearance, I am quite curious about what he will say.

She nodded slightly to Qingdai.

Qing Dai then said loudly: "My master has agreed, but you can say it!"

"Well," the man said, "You just played the famous piece "Yishui Spring Breeze". The fingering is skillful and the rhythm is orderly. It can be said to be a masterpiece."

"It can be compared with the meaning of the song..."

He seemed to chuckle softly, "But it seems to have gone astray. I have lost that sense of calm and tranquility. It's like when I'm anxious and terrified, I forcefully play this song to calm my mind, but it has the opposite effect."

"I wonder what troubles you?"

Qingdai, who was delivering the message in front, had a strange look on her face. He sounded fine to her, so why did she find so many faults with him?

Just as Lin Yu was about to give an order to drive the people away, he turned around and saw that the girl, who had been scowling, had relaxed her brows and looked faintly relieved.

He then said in person: "High mountains and flowing water are nothing more than this."

The girl's voice was so soft that Shen Lian was startled.

The water pavilion was built high, and the woman sat deep inside it, so even her shadow could not be seen clearly.

But when she said this, I seemed to have entered the pavilion and sat opposite her.

"Are you here?"

Suddenly, a person appeared from behind him and said, "The refreshments are ready. You are the only one missing."

Shen Lian hadn't reacted yet, but Lin Yu in the pavilion felt a sudden shock in his heart.

This voice is... Cheng Kejia?

Didn’t she come here two days ago? Lin Ji politely rejected her then. Why did she come again?

When Lin Yu heard the footsteps coming up, he no longer cared about the confidant he had never met before, and hurriedly signaled Zhu Lian to pack up his piano and put it away.

When the woman lifted the curtain and came in, there was only a plate of freshly peeled lychees on the stone table in front of Lin Yu.

If she saw the piano, she would force me to play another song and then comment, "It's nothing special."

"Oh, your tea leaves are not fresh enough, but these lychees are crystal clear."

Lin Yu curled the corners of his lips, asked her to sit down, and casually pushed the litchi in front of her.

Unexpectedly, she rolled one into her mouth and said, "I just heard the sound of a zither. Where is your zither?"

"After playing it, I took it back."

"Oh."

As soon as Lin Yu saw her, he forgot about the evening reception and was ready for battle again.

But I didn't expect her to say today: "Your piano has always been pretty good."

It seems like I was praised.

But Lin Yu always felt something was wrong.

Without waiting for further thought, Cheng Kejia took the initiative to explain: "Today, Kesong is coming to visit Mr. Lin, and I heard that you were ill, so I followed you to see you."

"You too, I saw you were full of energy that day, but how come you were sick the next day?"

Kesong is Cheng Kejia’s younger brother, two years younger than her and a few months younger than herself.

Lin Yu recognized him and knew that the person who had just discussed the piano was not him.

"Just the two of you?"

The woman explained nonchalantly: "There is also a man named Shen, who is an old classmate of your brother. He was in the top three this year and is now also working in Songjiang. We came here together."

Lin Yu then found out that the man's surname was Shen.

She was unusually quiet today and looked a little sick. After Cheng Kejia ate a few lychees, her impatient temper became unbearable.

"Okay, I won't beat around the bush. Mr. Lin's birthday is in July, right? Today I just want to ask you what he likes and dislikes, and how I can please him."

Lin Yu blinked.

Confusion appeared on her jade-like face, and the strange feeling in her heart was immediately realized.

"You, two days ago, were not yourself..."

"That day I thought he was using you to shirk responsibility," Cheng Kejia said, "but you did go boating the next day. He didn't lie to me. After looking around, I still think he is the most suitable."

Lin Yu pursed her lips and asked, "What do you like about him?"

"He has outstanding looks, has achieved great success, and acts steadily. Oh, and he is not interested in women, so the inner courtyard will be more stable in the future." Cheng Kejia answered fluently.

Then he immediately asked, "It's your turn now, what should I give you?"

Lin Yu could only answer truthfully: "I don't know."

"How could you not know? You've been her sister for fifteen years!"

Lin Yu couldn't help but think back to his birthdays in previous years. When he was a child, he would give him some small toys, mostly those he had played with when he was young; when he grew up, he would give him inkstones, goat-hair brushes and other things, and every time he wished him success in the imperial examinations.

But whether he likes it or not, I never knew.

Every time he took it calmly and said "thank you" in a flat voice, without showing any like or dislike.

"Why are you so evasive every time I ask you? Lin Yu, what are you really…"

Cheng Kejia had already suspected her feelings for Lin Ji, and now he was anxious and was about to speak without restraint again.

"Me!" Lin Yu suddenly shouted.

The person next to him frowned, "What?"

"I said, me." Lin Yu pointed at himself, "I only know that he doesn't like me."

Cheng Kejia stared at her and thought seriously.

"Then he also took you on a special trip to the lake?"

"It was all mother's idea. He is the most filial one."

"But you have lived in the same house with him for more than ten years after all."

"The courtyards are separated by a large one. He is usually busy studying, so it's hard to see him."

The doubt on the girl's face faded a little, but she still felt a little unwilling.

Lin Yu had to emphasize again: "So, don't ask me about him anymore, I really don't know."

People around me are always skeptical.

Judging from everything that happened in their past lives, Cheng Kejia and Lin Ji had no connection with each other.

Lin Ji had not yet married until she was twenty-three. After Wan Ying appeared, he stayed by her side almost every day.

It's quite funny to say, it seems like fate has destined this man to be left to her cleanly.

……

In the flower hall, Shen Lian and Lin Ji were reminiscing about the past, but Cheng Kesong was the one who talked the most.

"I heard that Brother Lin goes to the Li family's summer banquet every year, so I thought it would be easier and I took Brother Shen to the banquet to look for you."

"I didn't expect it to be such a bad luck this year. Neither you nor Sister Yu came. This is the first time I've come to a disappointment."

"I wanted to come over during my day off a few days ago, and you took Sister Yu out with you. Today is the perfect time, place, and people for you!"

Shen Lian is nineteen years old this year and has not yet been crowned, but he is much more mature than the fifteen-year-old boy. Seeing that he said he was tired, he even moved the teacup to him.