Pastoral Splendor

Xiao Laoda's courtyard was bustling with activity. Sihua and several young girls were washing and peeling peaches by the wall. Under the peach trees next to the wall, Liuhua was looking up at Jian Yifei in the tree, her eyes crinkling with laughter, her two tufts of hair on her head flapping incessantly: "Brother Jian, have you picked a basketful yet?"

These peach trees were quite old, probably planted by Xiao Laoda's great-grandfather, hence their lush foliage and thick trunks, strong enough to support Jian Yifei standing on them. Yan Ying looked up and saw a corner of a white robe standing out amidst the swaying branches, with white and red peaches hanging heavily on the branches, as if embroidered on the garment.

Jian Yifei is truly a woman of many talents, equally adept in the kitchen and in the living room. Her martial arts skills not only allow her to subdue bad guys, but she's also a great help with chores. Yan Ying smiled and waved to Jian Yifei, "Hurry up and get down, you're going to crush this tree."

Jian Yifei was picking peaches when she looked down at Yan Ying's smiling face, which was as radiant as a flower. She felt a shy joy in her heart, quickly picked a few more peaches to fill the basket, and then landed on the ground. The corner of her clothes fluttered like butterfly wings in the summer breeze.

"Sanhua, what else do you want me to do?" Jian Yifei handed the basket to Liuhua, stood under the tree, and took a step to walk towards Yanying, but he just couldn't lift his foot. He stood there, not moving at all, grinning, unable to close his mouth.

Liu Hua, watching Jian Yifei's expression, chuckled and said, "Brother Jian, why do you blush whenever you see my three families?"

"Why am I blushing?" Jian Yifei felt unusually weak when she spoke, her voice soft and limp. She wanted to reach out and touch her face, but she didn't dare. She just stood there blankly, her eyes occasionally glancing at Yan Ying before quickly looking away.

Yan Ying walked over confidently, raised her hand, and several strings of green rice dumplings swayed under her fingers: "Brother Jian, I think it's getting late. You should go back to the villa, lest Prince Xu keep looking for you everywhere. These are rice dumplings I just wrapped. There are three flavors. The ones tied with red thread are candied dates, the ones tied with green thread are chestnut paste, salted egg yolk, and salted meat, and the ones tied with white thread are made with ordinary mung beans and red beans, except I added the canned fruit from our shop."

With the Dragon Boat Festival approaching, Yan Ying wanted to sell zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) as well. She asked Aunt Xiao and learned that Da Zhou zongzi were usually wrapped with mung beans or red beans, while wealthier families would choose candied dates or cured meat as fillings for meat zongzi. After learning about the ingredients, Yan Ying made up her mind to wrap several new styles herself, which she could sell as a side dish when her shop opened on the third day of the fifth lunar month.

"Oh." Jian Yifei took the rice dumplings in a daze, feeling their weight in her hands: "Why did you give me so many of those Sanhua ones?"

Yan Ying smiled and pursed her lips: "Brother Jian, I gave you two skewers of each. One of them is for you to take to Prince Xu. He likes to eat new things the most, so let him try them out."

"So that's how it is." Jian Yifei suddenly felt a pang of sadness in her heart. Sanhua still cared about Xu Yixuan, and even remembered to bring him a portion of the zongzi she was making, treating him the same way she did.

“Brother Jian, I gave Prince Xu the zongzi as a token of my gratitude. The zongzi for you…” Yan Ying noticed Jian Yifei’s slight frown and wondered if he was jealous. So this all-around capable Jian Yifei also has his little emotions, just like everyone else. Yan Ying smiled slightly at Jian Yifei: “Brother Jian, because you’re family, I’m more casual with you and haven’t pointed it out. Don’t mind.”

Hearing Yan Ying call him family, Jian Yifei became happy again. He nodded to Yan Ying while carrying the zongzi, and said somewhat shyly, "I don't mind, I..." After saying the word "I", Jian Yifei didn't know how to continue. Yan Ying's eyes kept moving in front of him, bright and clear like a spring. He quickly turned around, picked up the zongzi, and walked out quickly.

"Third Sister, what's wrong with Brother Jian?" Liu Hua looked at Jian Yifei's back with a puzzled expression and tugged at Yan Ying's sleeve: "Brother Jian seems to be angry."

“He’s not angry at all.” Yan Ying patted Liu Hua’s head: “Hurry up and take the basket over.”

As she followed him to the door, just as Jian Yifei had untied the reins from the tree, Yan Ying called out in a loud voice, "Yifei!"

Jian Yifei suddenly turned her back and stammered, "Hey...hey!"

Yan Ying laughed so hard she bent over, and nodded to Jian Yifei: "Take the zongzi back with your apprentice and try them out. See which ones taste the best. The shop opens the day after tomorrow, and I want to make more zongzi to sell there."

"It's all good, it's all good." Jian Yifei grinned happily. This was the first time Sanhua had called him so affectionately. He felt sweeter than if he had eaten honey.

"How do you know it's delicious if you haven't even eaten any?" Yan Ying looked at Jian Yifei with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. The strings of rice dumplings were steaming in his hands, and water was still dripping from the green bamboo leaves. There was a black mark at his feet.

"Anything you make is delicious." Jian Yifei mounted the horse, her face flushed with embarrassment, not daring to look at Yan Ying, but she really wanted to look at her more. She cursed herself inwardly for being so useless, not even daring to look at her fiancée.

"That's not necessarily true." Yan Ying leaned against the door, her jet-black hair blowing in the May breeze, obscuring half of her snow-white face, revealing only one watery eye and a high nose. "Go and try it first, and tell me again tomorrow, especially Prince Xu. By the way, it would be even better if you could invite Princess Yu to try it..." Yan Ying thought for a moment, perhaps she could also give it to Princess Yu to try. She wanted to see what kind of zongzi wealthy families liked to eat, so she could make it according to market demand.

Ordinary mung bean and red bean rice dumplings would sell for no more than four or five coins, so there was no need for her to go through the trouble of making them herself. Her target customers were the wealthy households in Yuzhou City, so she needed to understand their tastes. If Xu Yixuan and the Princess Consort of Yu tasted them and liked them, they could promote her shop's rice dumplings, and she wouldn't have to worry about finding customers.

"Gold Medal Recommendation: Zongzi praised even by the Princess Consort and the Crown Prince..." Yan Ying had already come up with this advertising slogan in her mind. If she posted this sign at the shop entrance, she was afraid that wealthy families would rush to buy it.

Yan Ying leaned against the wall, lost in thought. A long queue seemed to appear before her eyes, with people holding loose silver coins and shouting, "Give me a string of chestnut and salted egg yolk rice dumplings!" Meanwhile, Jian Yifei's mood plummeted, especially for Xu Shizi... In Sanhua's heart, Xu Shizi was more useful than him, wasn't he?

It's no wonder Sanhua thought that way. After all, Xu Yixuan was the heir of the Prince of Yu, and his status could earn Sanhua a lot of money. She was just an ordinary guard, and even if he had another identity, he still couldn't compare to Xu Yixuan. Jian Yifei sat upright on his horse, looking at Yan Ying's slightly curved lips and smile, and couldn't help but feel a sour taste in his mouth.

He rode back to the villa, where he found Jian Yifei. Seeing Jian Yifei return, Xu Yixuan rushed over and grabbed his arm. "Master, where have you been? I've been looking for you all day!" Looking down at the strings of zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) Jian Yifei was carrying, Xu Yixuan's mouth dropped open. "Did Master go to Yuzhou City to buy me zongzi?"

These days, Xu Yixuan has been counting on his fingers, trying to figure out when Princess Yu will leave the villa. He has already sent people to the capital to secretly sabotage the process, sending messages to the villa that Prince Yu has bought the latest jewelry for Consort Zhu at the Jin Yu Fang store, and that Prince Yu has gained another beauty in his harem... But Princess Yu has been living steadily in the villa, showing no sign of wanting to return to the capital.

Xu Yixuan thought that the Dragon Boat Festival was approaching, and his mother should return to the capital. After all, there were only a few festivals each year. Did his mother not want to reunite with his father? But even today, the Princess Consort of Yu still hadn't had a carriage prepared. It seemed that she wanted to stay here and spend the Dragon Boat Festival with him.

Princess Yu was very strict with Xu Yixuan. It seemed that if he was not around for even a short while, she would hurriedly send his mother to find him: "Xuan'er, besides practicing martial arts with Master Jian, you also need to study more. You can't be idle and always thinking about running around outside."

Xu Yixuan frowned, looking unhappy: "Master Jian's articles are also very good, and he usually teaches me to read."

He originally wanted to sneak off to Xiaojia Village to see Sanhua, but Xiuyun kept a close eye on him and followed him closely. When she saw that he was thinking of sneaking out, she quickly reminded him: "Young Master, the Princess Consort may come looking for you to go to the main courtyard soon. You should stay in the other courtyard."

Xu Yixuan wanted to slam his fist on the table and yell at Xiuyun to leave several times, but thinking of his mother's nagging prowess, he forced himself to hold back. No matter how much his mother delayed, she couldn't stay for too long. How could such a large palace be without a mistress? Xu Yixuan decided to release Xiuyun for the time being and give her a good dressing down after the Princess Consort of Yu left.

Before Princess Yu was in the villa, he was the most powerful person there, his word was law, he was fearless, and he could even go out for a stroll. But now that Princess Yu has arrived, Xu Yixuan feels as if he is being crushed by a stone slab, unable to move no matter what he does. Princess Yu's care and consideration are like an invisible net that covers him, tightening more and more.

The Dragon Boat Festival was fast approaching, and Xu Yixuan pondered over and over, wanting to give something to Miss Xiao. After practicing martial arts with Jian Yifei today, he returned to his courtyard to bathe and change. As he walked, a question came to mind: "Xiuyun, why give fans for the Dragon Boat Festival?"

Xiuyun paused for a moment, then shook her head: "I don't know either, maybe it's just because the weather is hot?"

The old woman next to her chuckled: "Xiuyun, you're wrong. Giving fans on Dragon Boat Festival has a meaning. When a son-in-law gives a fan to his father-in-law, it shows his thoughtfulness, because fans bring a gentle breeze. Some unmarried couples also give each other fans to express their mutual affection. These are all folk customs."

So that's how it is. Xu Yixuan suddenly became happy. Should he buy a fan for Miss Xiao? She must be very tired from working in the fields. When she rests, she can use the fan to cool herself down. Seeing the fan will remind her of him.

Chapter Ninety-Eight: The Deep Mansion

The green bamboo leaves have fine black veins, each one very clear. There are no more water droplets dripping from them, but you can still feel the dampness.

"Did Miss Xiao give these to me?" Xu Yixuan asked with a broad smile, holding the three strings of zongzi. "Did she make them herself?"

"Yes." Seeing Xu Yixuan's happy mood, Jian Yifei felt a little displeased. But even if he was Xu Yixuan's master, he couldn't not allow his disciple to be so happy, could he? He had sent the letter back home for quite some time, and he didn't know if his mother had received it. He should send a matchmaker over to propose marriage as soon as possible, so that others wouldn't have any designs on Miss Xiao.

Xu Yixuan held the rice dumplings with great delight, looking at them intently and clicking his tongue in amazement: "There are three flavors? Which one should I try first?"

"Young Master, shouldn't we ask the Princess Consort first? How can we just taste things that are sent in from outside?" Xiuyun winked at an old woman behind her, who understood and tiptoed out.

"That country girl is really hateful," Xiuyun thought angrily, hands on her hips. "That time she brought a sheep and made a few dishes, and she cheated the young master out of twenty taels of silver. After that, the young master was like a man possessed, only thinking about running to Xiao Family Village. He even mobilized the maids and servants in the other courtyard to dig bamboo shoots for that Miss Xiao!"

Last time when she was digging for bamboo shoots, she accidentally tripped on the hem of her skirt and fell to the ground. Luckily, she desperately protected her face, so she didn't get scratched. However, she had a few scars on her wrists and the backs of her hands that hadn't faded yet. Xiuyun had already secretly held a grudge against Yanying for this. This Miss Xiao was a vixen, her eyes were always darting towards the young master. Who knows, she probably had designs on getting into the Prince's mansion as a maid so she could hook up with the young master—it's always good to have a big tree to lean on!