All Hail Cousin Brother

218 Showing Off Her Cousin

This time, when she received Eldest Miss Yu’s invitation, she was originally unwilling to come over. However, her mother insisted that she come over, saying that the Tang and Yu families were close. If she did not come, it would be rude, so she could only bite the bullet and agree.

Unexpectedly, just as she was about to leave, Tang Yunmeng dressed up and came over. “Fifth Sister is a little timid and doesn’t go out much usually. Father is worried that Fifth Sister will be rude in another family, so he asked me to follow and watch over her.”

Her mother fell back in anger, but there was nothing she could do.

She was short and fat, and she did not look outstanding. Her father always felt that she was embarrassing, but her mother did not dare to make a fuss because of her feelings. She could only pinch her nose and accept it.

This was the first time she had seen Tang Yunmeng suffer.

Tang Yunxi pursed her lips, a careful smile in her eyes. When she turned her head, Eldest Miss Yu, who was beside her, was smiling like a begonia tree she had just seen. She was extremely charming. When she spoke, she did not forget to look at her. She was not talking to her but she did not neglect her.

Due to this, Third Miss Song and Sixth Miss Qi also looked at her from time to time.

After crossing the lotus lake, they arrived at the Bamboo garden. Tang Yunxi saw a small hole in a thick bamboo and couldn’t help but ask softly, “Why is there a small hole in the bamboo?”

Yu Youyao took a look and explained with a smile, “This is light bamboo. There’s bamboo water in the joints. According to The Golden Gate Records, there will be rain at noon on May 5th. If you cut the bamboo quickly, there’ll definitely be divine water in it. We can drain it and use it as medicine. Every May, when it rains, our family has to cut bamboo to make tea. This water is good for the body and tastes good. The holes in the bamboo are left behind after we drained the water in the past.”

Qi Sinian was also interested. “Is there bamboo water in the bamboo joints now? Shall we get some for tea later?”

Yu Youyao shook her head. “Probably not. I heard that bamboo water only appears after the rain. When it rains, I’ll collect more and send some to you.”

Tang Yunxi’s eyes lit up.

Song Wanhui quickly nodded. “Since you said so, don’t forget.”

When they arrived at the Jade Courtyard, their horizons were broadened.

Their families were not weak, and their residences were also the best in the capital. Their houses were also large, and they were all the first daughters of their families. The courtyard they lived in was also the best in the family, but it was still much inferior to Yu Youyao’s Jade Courtyard.

Not only was the Jade Courtyard big, but it was also close to water.

Yu Youyao brought them into the courtyard. Yu Shuangbai and Yu Jianjia walked over together. Yu Youyao introduced them, and everyone greeted each other before heading to the reception pavilion.

Qi Sinian pointed at a painting on the wall, and his eyes widened. “This painting was drawn by Cousin Zhou?”

Yu Youyao nodded. “That’s right.” She pointed at the piece of paper beside her and a painting of spring apricot. “These are all Cousin’s ink and brushwork. I like Cousin’s ink and brushwork and always pester him to send them to me. Cousin can’t reject me, so he can only agree.”

When she finished, her eyes lit up.

Song Wanhui was young, but she already had some talent outside. She had good taste. “Cousin Zhou is young, but his attainments in calligraphy and painting are peerless. My brother is better at calligraphy, but I’ve never seen him paint. He learns the brush strokes carefully, so he’s good at calligraphy. Mr. Xian Yun took a fancy to my brother’s calligraphy back then, so he accepted him as his disciple.”

Her tone inevitably revealed a hint of showing off.

When Qi Sinian and Tang Yunxi heard this, they listened in silence.

They also had brothers in the family who were famous in the capital. However, compared to the talented Song Mingzhao and Zhou Linghuai, who were amazing, they were far inferior. How could they show off?

Yu Youyao’s eyes dimmed a little, but the smile on her lips did not fade. “My cousin wrote Wang Xizhi’s calligraphy. I’m also learning it now, and I’m practicing my cousin’s calligraphy.”

If she practiced calligraphy from her heart, her strokes would definitely look good!

The brush did not lie, but people did. Only the human heart knew if one was righteous or not. How could one see the real thing from the handwriting?

She had no intention of blaming everything that had happened in the nightmare on Song Mingzhao in reality.

However, one couldn’t judge a book by its cover.

Tang Yunxi’s interest was piqued. She said in a low voice, “Writing requires an extremely high wrist strength. My wrist strength isn’t good, so I learned smaller scale calligraphy.” She looked at the wall and pointed at a piece of calligraphy. “Was that calligraphy written by you?”

A few days ago, when she had nothing to do, she had come to the part of “The Book of Medicine” that her cousin had written. “I wish that my body will be like glass. Clear inside and out. Pure and untainted. Bright and vast. Filled with merit. I wish for my body to be good and stable. To burn like a flame. Brighter than the sun and the moon. Enlighten all living beings in the Netherworld. Freedom to do whatever I want.”

Yu Youyao almost covered her face. She wished she could rush up and take the calligraphy down. She turned to glare at Chun Xiao. “When did this calligraphy piece get hung there?”

Chun Xiao smiled and said, “It was hung up a few days ago. Young Master said that Young Miss’s handwriting had improved a lot, so he specially instructed us to hang it up.”

Yu Youyao stomped her feet. “Why didn’t Cousin say anything?”

Although she had practiced calligraphy for a period of time and had also mastered the art of calligraphy, there was still a gap between her calligraphy and the young misses who had started practicing since they were young.

As soon as Qi Sinian saw this handwriting, he knew that it was still lacking and had only been practiced recently. However, Eldest Miss Yu’s handwriting was smooth and natural, revealing her talent. “You’re showing off. Your handwriting is impressive. Compared to you, our Hairpin Flower Small Script is more feminine. It’s only good in appearance but not in style.”

She wasn’t lying.

The calligraphy was strong and did not depend on the appearance. The hairpin script was feminine and it was obvious who was better.

The cousins liked to show off each others’ work. Wasn’t Zhou Linghuai asking the maidservant to hang this to show off his cousin?

Yu Jianjia looked at Yu Youyao. Taking advantage of Zhou Linghuai’s limelight, she pursed her lips slightly and looked up at the letter that Yu Youyao had written. She suddenly remembered the calligraphy piece that Zhou Linghuai had given her the day he entered the residence.

Yu Youyao studied calligraphy for a while, but her handwriting looked very much like Zhou Linghuai’s.

The snacks and tea were served endlessly.

The few of them ate and chatted happily. Tang Yunmeng was unwilling to be left out, so she looked around and saw the two maidservants in front of Third Miss Yu talking softly not far away.

She pretended to be casual and took a few steps forward. Without attracting anyone’s attention, she tilted her ear—

“Today is Eldest Miss’s birthday. Third Miss has instructed us to bring a few exquisite snacks to the Hanlu Courtyard so that Fourth Miss can bask in Eldest Miss’s joy. It’s not easy for Fourth Miss to be detained in the courtyard to learn the rules.”

Upon hearing this, Tang Yunmeng’s eyes darted around again. After thinking carefully for a moment, she remembered that there was another fourth young miss in the Yu Residence.

However, today was Yu Youyao’s tenth birthday. She had even invited the fifth and sixth young misses of the second branch, but she had not invited this fourth young miss. There must be some inside story.