Chapter 24: Affection. What he valued was her affection.

Could it be that they…

Gu Yuanchen’s lips tightened into a thin line, forcing himself not to think about it any further.

That night, he summoned the manor’s guards, Li Feng and Zhang Ying, to his study and asked, “Has there been anything unusual in the manor these past few days?”

“No. Rest assured, Heir Apparent. The Marquis’s manor is heavily guarded; no one would dare trespass.”

Gu Yuanchen nodded lightly. “With you on guard, I am naturally at ease. As for the West Wing Courtyard…”

“Four of our brothers take turns guarding the West Wing Courtyard every day. There haven’t been any problems there either.”

Gu Yuanchen asked again, “Does Miss Su remain indoors every day?”

The two guards shook their heads in unison. “No, Miss Su occasionally goes out.”

Gu Yuanchen’s heart sank. “Where does she go?”

As he expected, he heard the guard reply, “To Qingfeng Courtyard, I believe?”

“Qingfeng Courtyard?”

“Yes. Perhaps out of gratitude for Young Master Shen’s life-saving grace, Miss Su often visits Qingfeng Courtyard,” Li Feng answered thoughtfully.

“What does she do there?”

The two guards exchanged a look and answered vaguely, “Nothing much, just occasionally delivering some fruits and the like.”

Gu Yuanchen’s eyelids lowered slightly. It sounded like a normal exchange. But what about that bracelet?

“Oh, right,” Li Feng added, recalling something. “This afternoon, Miss Su stayed in Qingfeng Courtyard for a very long time.”

“How long?”

“Over two shichen. However, Young Master Shen had gone out early on. We don’t know what Miss Su was doing there all by herself.”

Gu Yuanchen was silent for a moment. “I understand. You may leave. You are not to tell anyone about what we discussed today.”

“Yes, sir.” The two men bowed and withdrew.

Quiet returned to the study.

But Gu Yuanchen’s heart could not find peace. He had a faint feeling that something was going on between A’Yue and Shen Ji.

…

For Su Zhenyue, the day had been quite fruitful.

She had paid respects to her elders, honed her horse-riding skills, and even received a pair of heavy gold bracelets. The only slight imperfection was that she hadn’t managed to use the opportunity to induce Shen Ji into promising an early engagement with her.

But she was very content. If not today, then another day.

There was still a month, after all.

The next day was the Laba Festival. It was a custom in the capital for relatives and friends to exchange Laba Congee on that day to pray for blessings and ward off pestilence.

Early in the morning, the West Wing Courtyard received two portions of Laba Congee.

One was from the eldest young miss, Gu Yuanzhen, who said it was a gift from the palace and that she had specially set some aside.

The other was delivered by Ping An.

As he presented the congee, he chattered away, “Miss Su, you have no idea. This is the congee given out by the Golden Buddha Temple. I went to queue for it before dawn. There was only one jar in total, and I’ve given you this much of it.”

He even used his hands to show her the amount.

“Thank you, thank you. You’ve really gone to a lot of trouble.” Su Zhenyue smiled and stuffed a handful of pine nuts into his hand.

Ping An accepted them with a grin and was about to leave when he was called back.

“Don’t be in such a hurry. Wait a moment.”

“Miss Su, do you have other instructions?”

“No instructions, but I do have two bowls of Laba Congee,” Su Zhenyue said, gesturing with her hand.

It turned out to be Doukou, approaching with a wooden tray on which sat two bowls of Laba Congee.

Doukou said with a smile, “Our young miss cooked this early this morning. One for you, and one for your young master.”

—To cook this Laba Congee, the long-unused small kitchen in the West Wing Courtyard had been put back into service.

“There’s one for me too?” Ping An’s eyes lit up.

Su Zhenyue smiled faintly. “Of course.”

Overjoyed, Ping An packed the Laba Congee and headed back to Qingfeng Courtyard, carrying the food box.

The moment he pushed open the gate, he announced loudly, “Young Master, I’m back. Miss Su, she…”

He had only gotten a few words out when he caught sight of the Heir Apparent standing in the courtyard. He gave a somewhat awkward smile. “Heir Apparent.”

—Gu Yuanchen had arrived only moments before. Knowing that A’Yue was unwilling to see him, he had decided to seek out Shen Ji to get to the bottom of things.

At that moment, Shen Ji was just emerging from his study, not yet having descended the steps.

Seeing Gu Yuanchen’s strange expression, Shen Ji simply assumed it was due to his cool and aloof nature and his dislike for commotion. He explained, “Ping An is young and likes to fool around. Heir Apparent, please don’t mind him.”

“It’s no matter.” Gu Yuanchen’s gaze swept over the food box in Ping An’s hand as he asked casually, “What about Miss Su?”

“Miss Su is fine! I was saying that Miss Su sent over Laba Congee, and there’s a portion for me too.”

Gu Yuanchen’s expression was unreadable.

“Ping An, take the things to the Warm Pavilion first,” Shen Ji instructed, then turned back to Gu Yuanchen. “It’s cold out here. Heir Apparent, please follow me to the study to talk.”

Gu Yuanchen withdrew his gaze from the food box and gave Shen Ji a slight nod. “Very well.”

Upon entering the study, Gu Yuanchen immediately noticed the wintersweet on the table, and the celadon vase it was in.

That celadon vase was exceptionally familiar; it was clearly the one his mother had sent over when A’Yue first arrived at the manor. How did it end up here with Shen Ji?

Gu Yuanchen pressed his lips together. “This is…”

“Wintersweet. A gift from a friend,” Shen Ji replied with the same explanation, though a smile unconsciously flashed in his eyes.

“I remember there’s a wintersweet tree in the West Wing Courtyard…” Gu Yuanchen’s hand, hidden in his sleeve, tightened involuntarily.

Shen Ji’s brow twitched slightly. “The Heir Apparent has a good memory.”

He felt a faint sense of strangeness but couldn’t pinpoint the reason. On second thought, this was Gu Yuanchen’s own manor; what was so odd about him remembering which courtyard had which tree?

Shen Ji poured a cup of tea for each of them.

As Gu Yuanchen’s gaze roamed, it landed on a pen pouch on the desk that resembled a sachet.

—Shen Ji had kept this pen pouch stored away until the day he had made it clear he would marry her in the future, only then did he start using it. He had always cherished it, and it still looked as good as new.

Gu Yuanchen’s expression shifted slightly.

That design, that stitchwork, was clearly A’Yue’s handiwork.

He asked, as if joking, “Is that a sachet from your beloved?”

“No, it’s a pen pouch.” Shen Ji glanced at him and smoothly put the pouch away in a drawer.

—As they were not yet formally engaged, he did not wish to discuss the matter further, as it involved a woman’s reputation.

But Gu Yuanchen’s heart skipped a beat. Shen Ji had only corrected him that it wasn’t a sachet; he hadn’t denied that it was a gift from his beloved.

Moreover, as Shen Ji put the pen pouch into the drawer, Gu Yuanchen’s sharp eyes caught sight of a hand warmer inside. His heart instantly sank to the bottom of a valley.

A’Yue rarely did needlework. It was only because he usually slept poorly that she had given him a sachet she had made herself, filled with calming herbs, for his birthday.

And here with Shen Ji, he had now seen two such items with his own eyes.

Who knew how many more there were that he hadn’t seen.

When had A’Yue and Shen Ji become so close?

Could it be that they really…

Noticing his strange expression, Shen Ji frowned slightly. “May I ask why the Heir Apparent was looking for me?”

“Oh, it’s like this.” Gu Yuanchen smiled, his expression already back to normal. “My maternal grandmother’s family has a younger female cousin, two years younger than you, Brother Shen. She comes from a prestigious family and is exquisitely beautiful, a fine match for you…”

“Thank you for your kindness, Heir Apparent, but I already have someone in my heart,” Shen Ji politely declined before he could finish.

“Oh? I wonder which family’s young lady it is?” Gu Yuanchen asked.

Shen Ji just smiled, a rare gentleness appearing in his eyes. “After the examination results are announced, the Heir Apparent will know.”

Although he hadn’t said it outright, Gu Yuanchen was now almost certain: it was A’Yue. That person had to be A’Yue.

But how could it be A’Yue? Just two months ago, she had still…

Suppressing the tumultuous emotions churning within him, Gu Yuanchen forced himself to sit for a while longer before taking his leave.

As soon as he left, Ping An came over with a bowl. “Young Master, would you like to have the congee now? It’s just the right temperature, not too hot and not too cold.”

“Let me try it.”

The Laba Congee was sweet, fragrant, and soft, with wisps of steam still rising from it.

“Doukou said Miss Su cooked this herself,” Ping An said with a grin.

“Is that so?” Shen Ji raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

Imagining her personally cooking in the kitchen, Shen Ji gently shook his head, a warmth filling his chest.

Actually, she didn’t have to do all this. As long as it was a gift from her, he would like it, regardless of whether it was made by someone else or bought from outside.

What he valued was her, and her affection.