The noble girl is beautiful.

In the main hall, Shen Ying and Lady Yang sat at the head, while Shen Yourong and her sisters sat below. Shen Qingfeng was bustling in and out, but his mother called him over, “Feng, take a rest.”
He stopped and replied, “Yes.”
He then took a seat next to Shen Yourong. She handed him a cup of tea, saying, “Second Brother, have some tea.”
“Thank you, Sister Yourong.”
He held the tea, his gaze, like everyone else’s, fixed on the doorway.
Soon, a steward ran in and said, “The eldest young master has arrived at the front gate.”
As soon as he finished reporting, a young man entered through the door. He wore a heavy brocade robe and stood tall and handsome, bearing a striking resemblance to Shen Yourong. His cold, frosty demeanor made it seem as though he alone had walked out from a land of ice and snow, despite the hot summer day.
Shen Qinghan and Shen Qingyan both felt slightly restrained upon seeing him.
Shen Shuo walked into the hall, lifted his robe, and performed a grand salute to Shen Ying. “Your unfilial son, Shen Shuo, has returned from afar to pay respects to Father and Mother.”
Shen Ying helped him up and said, “It’s good that you’re back.”
Lady Yang covered her mouth with a handkerchief and said, “The Duke has been very concerned about you while you were away. Now that you’re back and the family is reunited, it’s the best thing that could happen.”
Shen Shuo merely nodded lightly in response to her words.
Shen Qingfeng stepped forward to pay his respects, and the young ladies did the same. Shen Shuo’s cold expression finally softened into a slight smile when his gaze fell upon Shen Yourong.
Looking at his eldest son, Shen Ying, a father not skilled in expressing his concern, only managed to ask, “Was everything well during your travels?”
“Everything was well,” Shen Shuo replied.
“That’s good,” Shen Ying said, rubbing his hands together, wanting to say more but unable to.
Suddenly, another steward entered and said, “The Fourth Prince has heard of our eldest young master’s return and wishes to pay a visit.”
Shen Ying’s expression became serious. “Please invite him in quickly.”
The steward went to deliver the message, and Shen Ying looked at Shen Shuo. “The Fourth Prince is currently staying as a guest in our residence. In the future, when you serve as an official at court, you’ll inevitably meet him. There’s no harm in meeting him now.”
Shen Shuo replied, “I serve as an official for the Emperor. I have returned to the capital to report on my duties, and I haven’t yet seen His Majesty. What sense does it make to see a prince first?”
Shen Ying paused, hearing him continue, “Moreover, he is a legitimate royal, not some relative of our Duke Qi’s household. Any claims of being cousins won’t fool others and will only invite ridicule.”
Shen Ying frowned deeply. Seeing this, Lady Yang spoke up, “Son, that’s not the way to say it…”
Before she could finish, Shen Ying waved her off and interrupted, saying to Shen Shuo, “Go rest for now. This evening, pay your respects to the Old Lady. After you have an audience with the Emperor, then you can meet the Fourth Prince.”
Shen Shuo agreed, and everyone dispersed. Lady Yang began preparations for the evening banquet, assisted by Shen Qinghan. As Shen Yourong was about to leave, Shen Shuo called out to her, “You go ahead. I’ll come to talk to you later.”
“Alright.”
She waited for a while, and before dinner, Shen Shuo came to find her. Hua Mei lifted the curtain, and Du Juan ushered him in. He was known for his cold demeanor, both in speech and behavior. Except for Shen Yourong, he didn’t pay much attention to his other sisters and was strict with the servants.
Hua Mei and Du Juan didn’t dare to joke around in his presence.
Shen Yourong was sitting on the couch, threading beads with a needle. When she saw him, she smiled and said, “Brother, you’re here.”
Hua Mei served tea and stood aside with Du Juan.
He sat down on the other side of the couch and, by the light, examined Shen Yourong. “You’ve grown quite a bit taller since I left.”
She smiled, and he continued, “During the time I was away, has anyone bullied you?”
“Father treats all his daughters equally, and the Old Lady dotes on me. Who could bully me?” She replied with a smile.
He asked coldly, “What about the incident some time ago when you entered the palace and met the Fourth Prince? In our household, there are probably countless people gossiping about you behind your back.”
“It was just meeting Cousin at Aunt’s place. What’s the big deal?” She said nonchalantly.
He suddenly reprimanded, “Since when is he your cousin!”
She paused, putting away her usual faint smile, and said indifferently, “For now, he is just a cousin. According to the wishes of the Empress and the Old Lady, they probably wish to arrange the marriage immediately.”
He frowned deeply. “What does Father think?”
“The same,” She replied. “But Father cares about appearances and doesn’t want me to be too eager.”
He tapped his fingers on the table. “And what about you? What do you think?”
She didn’t answer directly but instead asked, “Brother, what do you think of the Fourth Prince?”
Shen Shuo paused for a moment and said, “He’s young and proud, not someone who would suit you well.”
“What do you think will happen if I marry him?”
His voice was calm, “If you marry him, and the Fourth Prince ascends to the throne, you will become the Empress. But the Fourth Prince isn’t foolish.
With both the Empress Dowager and the Empress from the Shen family, if you give birth to the Crown Prince, the Duke of Qi’s household would be the maternal family of the Crown Princes for two reigns. This would be a major threat to the Emperor.”
“Right now, marrying a girl from our family is the keystone of the alliance between the Fourth Prince and the Duke of Qi’s household.
When the Fourth Prince ascends to the throne, the Duke of Qi’s household might become too powerful, and the first person to be discarded would be this girl.” He looked at her. “You must understand this logic.”
She replied, “It’s not that I don’t understand, but it’s not up to me to decide. So why should I think so much about it?”
He scrutinized her, “That doesn’t sound like you.”
Shen Yourong just smiled silently.
Seeing that she didn’t want to talk about it, he didn’t press further. He placed a box in front of her. When she opened it, she saw a pair of large, lustrous golden pearls, a pair of fist-sized black jade gemstones, and a pair of jade bracelets of pure green ice variety.
The brilliance of these items was such that even the Duke of Qi’s household couldn’t match it.
“The silks and hairpins from before were just toys,” he said. “These are the real treasures I’ve gathered.”
He also took out a pouch containing banknotes worth five thousand taels of silver. “Each of your three uncles contributed one thousand taels, and Grandfather gave two thousand taels.”
Shen Yourong asked, “Why did they suddenly give such a large amount of money?”
Her mother hailed from a prestigious family in Jin Ling, a lineage that had lasted for centuries.
However, the family had declined over time, with its prominent figures long gone, and the remaining members scattered to various places, fearing to attract the Emperor’s attention.
The Duke of Qi’s household had risen to prominence through military achievements but was often criticized for being uncouth. That’s why they sought an alliance with the aristocratic Zhou family.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Zhou passed away shortly after turning thirty, and the relationship between the two families faded. Apart from exchanging customary gifts during festivals, they had little interaction.
When Shen Shuo served as an official in another region, he stayed with the Zhou family for a while, which helped reestablish the connection between the Zhou family and Shen Shuo’s siblings.
He glanced at the banknotes and said, “They said it’s for your makeup.”
Shen Yourong paused and asked, “Do they think I’m going to marry the Fourth Prince?”
He scoffed, “You know what they think.”
“I haven’t even begun anything with the Fourth Prince, why are they so anxious?” She was puzzled.
“Whether it succeeds or not doesn’t matter,” he said. “If it succeeds, it’s makeup for the future Empress. If it doesn’t, it’s still makeup for a niece. Either way, it’s not given in vain.”
She replied, “Then why not just say it’s the wish of your uncles and grandparents? Why always assume the worst?”
He sipped his tea. “If it’s not entirely sincere, then naturally, I can’t be grateful.”
“I suppose you don’t have many trusted friends around you,” She laughed. “With your cold demeanor and sharp tongue, it’s no wonder the old Lady doesn’t like you.”
He set down his teacup and chuckled, “You and I are the same kind of people.”
She smiled, her lips pressed together. Hua Mei collected the neatly written characters that She had just finished and asked, “Miss, should I deliver them to the East Pavilion now?”
Shen Yourong took them back and checked once more before replying, “Yes, they’re ready.”
“What’s this?” Shen Shuo took the papers. “Practicing calligraphy? Not bad, you’ve improved a lot.”
Hearing the praise, She felt pleased, thinking to herself that she knew she had written well.
“Why did you suddenly decide to practice calligraphy?” He asked.
“It’s an assignment from the Master,” She complained. “He said my handwriting was terrible and made me practice every day. I thought I could skip it today since you’re back, but then he said, ‘Send them over later’… as if delaying it by two hours would be generous enough.”
“The Master,” he asked, “is it the Crown Prince?”
She nodded, “He also gave me a copybook.”
She handed the copybook to him. “The characters in this copybook are much more difficult than the ones I got from you.”
“This is a copybook personally written by the him.” He flipped through the copybook. “The Crown Prince studied under a great scholar and is proficient in various styles of calligraphy, with Wei stele being his specialty.
It’s ancient and grand, with a smooth and beautiful flow. Some have even offered a thousand taels of gold for a scroll of his handwriting, but His Highness refused. Now that he’s willing to write a copybook for you, you should treasure it.”
Shen Yourong didn’t realize her copybook was so valuable and muttered to herself, “In that case, the Crown Prince really is a good teacher.”
He remained silent, continuing to flip through the copybook. Shen Yourong said, “Now that I know how valuable this copybook is, it’s only right to repay this favor.”
Shen Shuo closed the copybook. “As a young lady, it’s not convenient for you to have too much interaction with him. I’ll repay this favor for you.”