The young lady is delicate and soft, yet she criticizes the powerful minister for bowing and scrapin

The news of the engagement between the Marquis of Dingyuan's family and the Duke of Qi's family spread like wildfire throughout the capital as the Marquis's family personally made a grand visit to propose marriage.

The gift chests sent to the Duke's mansion contained betrothal gifts prepared according to the standards for marrying a noble lady, their sheer quantity astonishing. Among them were countless fine silks and paintings by renowned artists, each a genuine and priceless item.

Wherever the procession went, crowds of people gathered to watch and discuss it. In teahouses and restaurants, this became the only topic of conversation all day.

The two families have arranged their marriage in this grand manner, yet it is only an engagement. Both sides are just waiting to choose an auspicious day to hold a formal wedding ceremony.

In the courtyard, Qi Yunli was embroidering bamboo, but the silver needle remained suspended in mid-air, not falling for a long time. Tingyue entered absentmindedly, opened her mouth, but before she could speak, her eyes reddened.

Qi Yunli asked, "What's wrong? Did you encounter any difficulties while shopping today?"

"Miss... the eldest young master is engaged."

"Yes, the news has spread throughout the entire manor, and I am aware of it."

Qi Yunli lowered her head and continued embroidering.

She embroidered bamboo. She had already finished one piece, and now she was embroidering another, so that they could make a pair of boot uppers.

Tingyue plopped down next to her mistress: "I thought you didn't know, Miss! Why have you been so nonchalant these past few days? The eldest young master is about to marry someone else's daughter!"

"He'll get married sooner or later." Qi Yunli lowered her eyelashes and continued her needlework, as if her earlier outburst had never happened. "If it's not the Qi family, it will be the Zhang family or the Li family. This has nothing to do with me."

After Qi Yunli finished speaking, she tried to insert the silver needle into the embroidery frame again, but the needle on her fingertip wouldn't obey her and accidentally pierced her fingertip, causing a large drop of bright red blood to seep out.

She lowered her head silently, watching the drop of blood gradually spread from a small bead to a large drop.

Her eyes were devoid of emotion. She remained silent for a long while, waiting for the blood droplets to slide off on their own before raising her hand and gently wiping them away with the tip of her other finger. She then pressed the wound so that Tingyue wouldn't see it.

The young woman remained silent, listening as Yue continued, head bowed, "That young master is truly a scoundrel. If he wanted to betray your feelings, why... did he feign illness a few days ago to summon you?"

Tingyue was the person closest to Qi Yunli in the household, besides her younger brother.

Before that incident happened, Qi Yunli and Wei Jun were also deceived by that seemingly respectable appearance.

That appearance is so alluring; just standing there at a distance, one can't help but want to get closer.

Moreover, she was not valued in the household to begin with. As a cousin living under someone else's roof, it was inevitable that she would lose herself day after day.

The disparity in their social status naturally made her, who had still harbored some naive fantasies a year ago, waver.

She was even so blinded by her own fantasies that she imagined he might speak up and make her different, just like he had asked to take her and her brother in.

But that girlish excitement completely disappeared after their first encounter.

No matter how much she harbored girlish feelings, she understood that since he had already taken her beforehand and made her lose her virginity, he would not welcome her into the family with a grand wedding ceremony.

"That's all in the past. Now, we each have our own paths to take regarding marriage. He's busy with his engagement, which is just as good."

Qi Yunli didn't know whether she felt sorry for herself last year or felt wronged by the hardships of this year; a sour feeling welled up in her throat.

Feeling very uncomfortable, she put down the silver needles, got up, and symbolically watered the flowers and plants, trying to calm herself down.

At this moment, Wei Ruowei actually came looking for her.

Wei Ruowei rushed in, exclaiming, "Ali, this little courtyard of yours is incredibly hard to find, it's so remote! I asked several maids and servants along the way, but they all gave me the wrong directions. It took me ages to finally find my way here, I'm exhausted!"

After saying that, she hurriedly went inside to drink water, chugging several cups of tea before turning back, hands on her hips, to admire the roses that filled the courtyard.

"Spring's beauty cannot be confined; a single rose blooms on a branch!" For some reason, this line of poetry popped into Wei Ruowei's mind.

"Are you sure... the original line of the poem you recited wasn't 'red apricot'?" Qi Yunli's heart skipped a beat, but she still asked with a smile.

Wei Ruowei: "Yes, yes, yes! Her infidelity has nothing to do with Qiangwei!"

She couldn't enjoy the flowers for long, as Wei Ruowei was already busy with the four arts of playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and had even less time to write and appreciate poetry.

However, she came today on important business.

Wei Ruowei clutched the mutton-fat jade ring between her fingers: "I've come today to return the favor. You gave me such a beautiful gift, so naturally I must give you a 'token of love' in return."

Qi Yunli: "What nonsense are you spouting now? A token of love should be given to your beloved husband."

Wei Ruowei laughed it off: "It's all the same, all the same! Our sisterhood is still a bond!"

She didn't bring any servants today because she was afraid that her mother would find out about the gift she was going to give to A-Li, which would be a real disaster.

"Here, this is for you." Wei Ruowei mysteriously pulled something out of her sleeve.

The object was not contained in any outer packaging, such as a wooden box or enamel box; she simply took out a hairpin inlaid with deep-sea pearls and emeralds.

The pearls on the hairpin are all plump, small and exquisite, and their color is rare, being pinkish-white, which shimmers with a faint rainbow halo in the soft afternoon light in the courtyard.

"You..." Qi Yunli trembled slightly, taken aback by the quality of the gift. "Why did you give me something so valuable?"

Afraid that she would refuse, Wei Ruowei quickly stuffed it into her arms: "For you, that mutton fat jade ring is also an extremely valuable item, not to mention that the plum blossom carving inside is your favorite pattern."

To me, the bond between us is far more precious than this hairpin. Therefore, I give it to you.

"How did you know I prefer plum blossoms to the roses outside the courtyard?" Qi Yunli asked in surprise.

"Of course I know. Your needlework skills are excellent. There's a plum blossom hidden on the back of the purse you embroidered. Ah Li is very thoughtful, so naturally she wouldn't openly display her favorite things outside the courtyard for everyone to admire."

Wei Ruowei raised her eyebrows, looking very smug, and said, "Tell me, am I right?"

Qi Yunli smiled and said, "Among all the people in the world who truly understand Ah Li, none is better than Wei!"

After discussing the gift-giving, Wei Ruowei remembered something else: "I treasure the mutton-fat jade ring you gave me. Even that arrogant young master from the Xie family saw it and kept asking me if I would give it to him for a hundred taels of silver!"

"So how did you refuse?" Qi Yunli asked.

"Of course I won't agree. Although what Ah Li gave me is mine, such a precious gift can only be given to the people I value most, either my parents or my future husband!"

Wei Ruowei said meaningfully, "Ali, you're the same. If you ever need this hairpin in the future, you can either give it away or exchange it for money, it's up to you. You don't need to consider my feelings. Since it's given to you, it's naturally all yours."

After seeing Wei Ruowei off, the courtyard returned to silence. Qi Yunli sat quietly; Wei Jun was engaged, and she should try her best to get out of there too.