Dream of the Red Chamber: Madam, please have some self-respect!

However, the Zhou family did not intentionally leave without saying goodbye; there was a huge reason and unavoidable hardship behind it.

The divination Zhou Kuiri performed for himself came true.

That day, the Zhou family received an imperial edict from the Empress Dowager. Zhou Kui's eldest daughter, Zhou Wanyan, was included in the list of candidates for the Prince of Xin's consort because her father and grandfather had rendered meritorious service in the army and the family had a clean and upright style. She herself was also outstanding in virtue, appearance, speech and merit.

This is both divine grace and a thunderclap.

To avoid suspicion and to ensure the success of the selection of the imperial concubine, the Imperial Household Department immediately ordered the Zhou family to move out of their original location and isolate themselves from outsiders. They were to be instructed by palace maids to follow the rules and not communicate with the outside world at will.

The incident happened suddenly, and the imperial decree was difficult to disobey. The Zhou family packed up almost overnight and were secretly settled in a residence arranged by the Imperial Household Department.

Zhou Yingluo was extremely anxious. She wanted to send a message to Jia Yun, but she was strictly forbidden from doing so. There were people watching her at all times, so she could not pass on even a single word.

She could only anxiously wait for these agonizing days to pass.

Perhaps it was divine intervention, or perhaps it was because Prince Xin, Chen Jian, had a very good impression of Jia Yun, but after finally choosing Zhou Wanyan as his consort, he loosened his control over the Zhou family somewhat.

Zhou's parents, grateful for the "good fortune" Jia Yun had brought them and knowing that their youngest daughter Yingluo was deeply in love with Jia Yun, tacitly allowed her to go out today, hoping to find an opportunity to tell Jia Yun about the changes in the family and the good news that her sister had been selected as a princess, so that he could put his mind at ease and plan for the future.

Zhou Yingluo, having received this tacit approval, felt like a bird released from its cage, her heart filled with both joy and shyness.

She specially changed into a brand new light red silk dress and wore the coral bracelet that Jia Yun had given her before.

The young girl wondered how she should speak to Jia Yun when she saw him, and she also imagined how surprised and happy Jia Yun would be to hear the news...

Just as Zhou Yingluo reached a street corner and casually glanced around, she froze on the spot as if struck by lightning!

The girl saw the figure she had been longing for, but he was accompanied by an extremely beautiful and charming girl!

The girl was extremely beautiful, with slender shoulders, a narrow waist, and a tall, graceful figure, just like a newly blossoming lotus.

The young woman wore a light green Hangzhou silk jacket underneath a silver-red vest, and a willow-yellow cotton skirt underneath. This fashionable outfit was already quite bright among ordinary girls, but it still couldn't hide her natural radiance.

Most striking is her serpentine waist—swaying gently as she walks like a lotus leaf in the wind; her two delicate eyebrows, naturally beautiful without any makeup, and her phoenix eyes, bright and lively.

At this moment, the extremely beautiful girl was slightly turning her head to speak to Jia Yun, her eyes exuding a natural charm.

And Jia Yun... actually nodded slightly in response! Their affectionate interaction made them seem like a perfect couple!

Zhou Yingluo felt a chill run from her feet to the top of her head. She gripped the handkerchief in her hand tightly, and her vision blurred.

She never imagined she would see such a scene.

So that's why... he already had someone new by his side! No wonder we haven't heard from him all this time!

All my worries and longings have now become a huge joke.

She stood there, stunned, staring at the two figures. She felt as if something had ripped into her heart, the pain making it hard for her to breathe.

At this moment, Jia Yun was standing in front of a jewelry stall, picking up a silver hairpin, seemingly asking Qingwen for her opinion.

As Qingwen slightly turned her head, a faint smile played on her lips, and she whispered something.

Jia Yun nodded, bought the hairpin, and handed it to Qingwen!

That scene was like a bolt from the blue for Zhou Yingluo!

He... he was actually shopping with another woman! He even bought her jewelry! They were so close, their expressions were so... "intimate"!

The subtle yet caring words they exchanged during their correspondence still resonate in my ears.

They secretly slipped away to the market together, and Jia Yun bought her a sugar figurine. She laughed at his clumsiness... All those little moments of spending time together and exchanging letters were now deeply etched into her heart!

"So that's how it is..." Zhou Yingluo felt a chill run through her body. "No wonder...no wonder he didn't come looking for me...no wonder he didn't even bother to ask after we moved...it turns out he's found someone new and completely forgotten about me!"

As the world spun around her, Zhou Yingluo felt her vision go black and her chest ached so badly she could barely breathe.

Jia Yun was completely unaware of this. After paying, he handed the hairpin to Qingwen, thinking that since the girl was new, giving her a small favor would make her feel at ease and focused on her work. He had no romantic intentions whatsoever.

Just as Jia Yun was about to turn around and leave the stall, she seemed to catch a glimpse of a familiar figure not far away out of the corner of her eye, and subconsciously wanted to turn around to see what it was.

Just then, Qingwen, who was standing beside him, for reasons unknown, inexplicably tugged at Jia Yun's sleeve and took a half-step to the side.

This seemingly unintentional action conveniently blocked Jia Yun's view that might turn in that direction.

Qingwen said softly, "Second Master, look at the fabric in that shop over there; the color seems quite nice?"

To Zhou Yingluo, who was in a state of confusion, her action was clearly the woman's way of coaxing Jia Yun to stop him from looking elsewhere! And Jia Yun obediently stopped turning around.

The two were very close, as if... as if they were embracing!

"Heh..." Zhou Yingluo let out a very soft, cold laugh, took one last look at the "perfect couple" that was so glaring to her, and then suddenly pushed through the crowd and ran away into the distance.

Qingwen noticed the girl who ran away, and her face covered in tears.

A slight thought flickered in her mind, and she vaguely guessed what it was, but she pursed her lips and said nothing.

Jia Yun was stopped by Qingwen, and missed the best opportunity to turn around.

When he looked over again, Zhou Yingluo was nowhere to be seen in the crowd.

Jia Yun only vaguely felt that a familiar figure had flashed by, but he dismissed it as a hallucination.

A few days later, Jia Yun was engrossed in an annotation of Mencius in his room when Qingwen came in with a gold-leaf invitation and said, "Second Master, this is an invitation sent by Feng Ziying. He says there will be a literary gathering at Qinghua Pavilion by the Shichahai seaside tomorrow, and many talented young people from the capital have been invited. He hopes that you will do me the honor of attending and relaxing."

Jia Yun took the gold-painted invitation, his gaze falling on the two characters "Literary Gathering," his mind racing with a thousand thoughts.

Since he passed the imperial examination, he had received quite a few invitations like these, but Jia Yun had always disliked such social occasions. He always felt that when those young masters gathered together, they were mostly just seeking fame and fortune and pretending to be cultured, so he declined them all.

But today... Jia Yun looked out the window at the magnolia tree in full bloom and suddenly remembered that last December, when the Zhou family father and daughter were still at the Sanqing Temple, he and Zhou Yingluo had competed in spear fighting under that old magnolia tree.

The young girl at that time wore a magnolia flower in her hair, her smile as beautiful as a flower...

Now the place is deserted, without even a reason.

An inexplicable sense of frustration and resentment welled up in Jia Yun's heart—since you treat me as nothing, why should I continue to uphold that sense of superiority?

It would be better to go and meet these so-called "talented individuals" than to stay here and let my mind wander.

"Go and tell them that I will be there on time tomorrow." Jia Yun slammed the invitation on the table, her tone carrying a hint of nonchalance.

The next day, Jia Yun changed into a slightly worn blue satin robe, which, though not luxurious, accentuated his tall and elegant figure. He did not take Qingwen with him and traveled alone by carriage to Shichahai.

Qinghua Pavilion is built by the water, offering excellent views.

When Jia Yun arrived, he saw Feng Ziying already waiting at the door. Upon seeing him, Feng Ziying hurriedly came forward and whispered, "Brother Yun, you've finally arrived. These scholars who came today are not like last time; their words are laced with sarcasm. Please bear with them and just treat it as entertainment. If you really can't stand it, just call me. After we leave, we can put on hoods and give them a good beating."

Feng Ziying's words left Jia Yun both amused and exasperated. What? Did he think he was a bandit?

The two entered the inner hall, where they saw many young men in fine clothes chatting loudly in groups of three or five.

However, unlike the last time in Qinfang Garden, the people in this courtyard were all so refined and scholarly that Jia Yun felt he could knock out seven or eight people with one punch.

Feng Ziying led Jia Yun to a relatively quiet corner to sit down, personally poured him a cup of wine, and said with a hint of excitement on his face, "Brother Yun, did you know that good news has recently come from Liaodong? Our army won a great victory in the Battle of Ningyuan! It's truly a cause for celebration!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Yun's heart stirred slightly, but he remained outwardly calm, simply nodding and saying, "I've heard a little about it; it is indeed good news."

He picked up his wine glass and took a small sip, but a sense of doubt and melancholy rose in his heart.

Jia Yun naturally remembered this incident; when he delivered the mahjong set to Prince Xin, he had foreseen the opportunity to win. Strangely, however, Prince Xin never summoned him again after that.

Jia Yun originally thought that through that conversation, he could at least leave an impression on Prince Xin.

In hindsight, he had been overthinking things.

Just as Jia Yun was lost in thought, a somewhat mocking voice rang out from beside him: "Oh, who do we have here? It's none other than the recently famous Young Master Feng from the capital. What's wrong? Drinking alone here, are you looking down on us and disdaining to associate with us?"

When Jia Yun looked up, he saw a young man dressed in a royal blue silk robe and holding a folding fan looking at Feng Ziying beside him with a half-smile. He was accompanied by several other richly dressed companions with contemptuous expressions.

Many people in the hall turned their gazes toward this scene, their expressions a mixture of scrutiny and anticipation.

Good heavens, is this relationship not directed at me? Although Jia Yun didn't know what conflict the other party had with Feng Ziying, he felt he should stand up for his friend who had been ridiculed.