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

The veil in Shen Junshan's hands was carefully folded, showing how much he cherished it.

"Miss Qi, please don't be offended. When I found your veil last time, it wasn't out of intention to keep it to myself. I was just worried that with so many people around, it would ruin your reputation. After all, a veil is a personal item, and I didn't want to put you in a difficult position."

"I see." Qi Yunli's heart, which had been in her throat, relaxed slightly. She shyly pursed her lips and accepted her veil.

But there was one thing she still wanted to confirm, and she hinted at it to the other party:

"Young Master Shen, are you married?"

Shen Junshan quickly waved his hand: "I come from a humble background and have never married. I studied hard for many years and only managed to pass the imperial examination. I am fortunate to have obtained a minor official position of the ninth rank, which is already a great honor. I still want to strive for further success in my official career and have not yet had the opportunity to get married."

After saying that, he paused again, as if to add to himself, "Not only that, my family has never arranged any marriage for me."

He spoke rather hastily and directly. After he finished speaking, he realized that he had said too much and that he seemed to be trying to cover up something, so he quickly lowered his head.

"So..." Qi Yunli breathed a sigh of relief. Shen Junshan was loyal to her and a true gentleman.

He didn't want to make her feel uneasy by mentioning that he had found the veil, so he found an opportunity to return the veil and then openly try to be with her.

"The celebrations of the Marquis of Dingyuan's mansion and the Duke of Qi's mansion are exceptionally lively. After this celebration is over, perhaps... other happy events will occur," Shen Junshan said through gritted teeth.

Qi Yunli understood what he meant, lowered her head with her eyelashes down, and muttered softly:

"Young Master Shen, my daughter will be returning now."

The two walked one after the other, with Qi Yunli in front and Shen Junshan following behind, keeping a moderate distance so that no one would notice anything amiss.

With a man standing behind her, Qi Yunli felt a strange sensation, as if she had found someone to rely on.

Although this person wasn't a powerful figure, nor did he hold a high-ranking official position, and didn't wield immense power to bully her, at least he was a decent and upright man. For that alone, she was content.

As dusk fell, the golden clouds on the horizon were dazzling, and the edge of the hunting grounds was dyed a warm red.

Halfway through the time it takes for three incense sticks to burn, a man on horseback emerged from the entrance of the hunting grounds. He was tall and straight, with a sharp edge in his eyes, a result of his experience.

Even more shocking was the enormous prey he was dragging behind him—a fully grown black bear! Its fur was glossy, its body robust, its limbs pierced by two arrows, and its entire body bound with thick hemp rope, slumping heavily behind the horse. The bear was still struggling, clearly having been hunted recently.

Beside the black bear were two golden pheasants and an antelope. Although the antelope was rather thin, its fur was intact, indicating it was a skilled hunter capable of killing with a single arrow.

The quality of prey is not only determined by its species, but also by the condition of its fur. Hunted prey has many uses: it can be eaten, and after skinning, it can be made into fur clothing to present to noble people.

Before the three incense sticks had even burned out, the second young master of the Rong Prince's Mansion had already hunted these with his excellent archery skills and extraordinary courage.

One look at these prey items and it's clear that he's the undisputed winner of this hunt.

"Young Master Su, you have great courage!"

"That black bear looks really majestic. Young Master Su is quite the hidden talent!"

The men and women in the arena cheered for him. Amidst the cheers and chaos, Qi Yunli quietly returned to the ranks of the women of the Wei family.

Looking at Su Jingran from afar, he truly possessed a remarkable air about him.

Wei Ruolan whispered, "It's a pity, the second young master of the Rong Prince's Mansion is already married. If you want to marry him, you can only become his concubine."

Qin Xue lightly touched her lips with her index finger, smiling without saying a word.

The hunt was truly a spectacle. Especially since women couldn't participate directly and had relatively few opportunities to watch.

Many noble ladies were seeing this for the first time; in the past, they had only ever seen it from afar when a carriage passed by.

Now, being able to admire up close the prey brought back by those dashing young men, even if the prey was dying and covered in blood, the noble ladies couldn't care less about the gore and were only focused on admiring the young men's dashing figures.

As the three incense sticks burned out, the hunting horn sounded leisurely, signaling the end of the hunt.

The young men from various families returned one after another, some laden with wild rabbits and pheasants, while others dragged fat deer and carried wine jugs.

They handed the game over to the steward of the Duke of Qi's mansion for counting. Each time the game was counted, the steward would loudly announce the name and quantity of the game, and the guests would listen from afar, wondering who would win first place.

"It's a pity that big brother couldn't come." Wei Ruowei sighed deeply. "None of these young masters are as good-looking as big brother."

Wei Ruolan said with some disdain, "My eldest brother is a civil official. He's so handsome. What if he falls off his horse and not only fails to win first place but also gets disfigured?"

"You're talking nonsense! Big brother is so dashing and heroic. Even if he's a civil official, he's no less capable than them. Even if he doesn't win first place, he can still hunt one or two prey so we can roast them and eat them."

Wei Ruowei argued her case forcefully. Both of them were the eldest daughters of concubines. Wei Ruowei usually didn't bother with her over trivial matters, but she cared a lot when it came to her older brother.

"Actually, all you're thinking about is food," Wei Ruolan said, hitting the nail on the head.

Over there, the steward of the Duke of Qi's mansion quickly finalized the decision and announced it loudly:

"The winner of this hunt is Su Jingran, the second young master of the Rong Prince's Mansion! Since Young Master Su did not participate in the hunt with a team, the second place goes to Commander Fu Chong of the Embroidered Uniform Guard!"

The first place winner receives a curved knife, while the second place winner receives a BMW.

Qi Yunli sized up the commander. He was handsome and dignified, but had more wrinkles around his eyes. He resembled Guan Yu, but was much more handsome.

This is the person who was at odds with Wei Jun.

On the viewing platform in front of the women, servants brought out many spring peaches. These peaches were pink and tender, each one carefully selected, plump and round, and neatly piled on the plate, arranged with great elegance.

The noble ladies naturally loved these lovely fruits, and they elegantly covered the peach pits with handkerchiefs and spat them out on the edge of the dining table.

After the men finished their hunt and the winner was decided, it was time for the women to go out and stroll in the woods.

Many noble ladies were eager to try, but some were worried that they couldn't ride horses and might startle the horse, fall off, and get injured, which would be a serious matter.

The stewards of the Duke of Qi's mansion also loudly reminded the ladies, "If the young ladies have not learned how to ride horses, please be careful. When riding to the woods, please have your maids serve you. The Duke has chosen these horses to ensure the young ladies can enjoy themselves properly."

Wei Ruowei's mind wandered. She could ride horses, but as she grew older, her mother's expectations for her increased, making her focus on learning music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Activities like horseback riding and Cuju (ancient Chinese football) gradually faded away and she no longer touched them.

Qin Xue led the way towards the hunting grounds: "Come on, let me introduce you to my horse, 'Jade-Crowned Snow'!"

Wei Ruowei secretly glanced at the Third Madam. Seeing this, the Third Madam shook her head slightly: "Go ahead, keep Miss Qin company, and don't let yourself ride off on horseback and get lost."

Wei Ruolan skipped along, pulling Qi Yunli along, "Thank you, Mother! Mother is the best mother in the world. When I come back, I'll roast a rabbit for you!"

The third wife shouted from behind, "I never gave you permission to shoot arrows!"