Rong Sui stared blankly for a long while, frowning as he looked at her.
Shi Ning'an added, "No, what I want to ask is... I know that as a member of the Rong family, the family precept prohibits taking concubines. But the people around you, whether it's the Crown Prince or Yin Taiping, they are all of royal blood and will have numerous wives and concubines in the future. Haven't you ever thought about..."
"Never," Rong Sui replied calmly, looking at her. "I've never thought about it. Ning'an, I've known since I was a child that I'm a member of the Rong family. I know my mission and what my future life will be like."
Shi Ning'an fell silent, opening her mouth as if to ask something but not knowing what to say.
Rong Sui continued, "Yin Taiping is not really a philanderer. Most of the time, we all have our own helplessness."
"What about you? Are you so cold and uninterested in women because of helplessness too?"
Shi Ning'an took a deep breath and quickly shook her head. "Cousin... I didn't mean anything else. I'm happy for Sister Tang on one hand, but on the other hand, I'm worried that Yin Taiping is not a good match."
Rong Sui nodded slowly and didn't say anything else.
Shi Ning'an smiled. "Cousin must not have rested well last night. You promised Fourth Cousin to buy snacks for him today."
Rong Sui called Rong Ping over. "Go and buy the snacks Fourth Master likes and send them to him later. Ning'an, what do you want to eat? Tell Rong Ping to buy it for you too."
Shi Ning'an shook her head. "I don't have anything I particularly like."
Rong Sui asked, "I've heard that girls like to eat snacks. Why don't you?"
Shi Ning'an thought for a while before answering, "When I was a child, I went to the fields with Cousin Zeng and picked a kind of wild fruit. It was sour and sweet. I really liked it. But we haven't eaten it since we grew up... Cousin also said that his grandmother made pastries with those fruits, and they were very delicious, but I've never had them."
Rong Sui asked, "What's the name of that fruit?"
Shi Ning'an shook her head, as if in reminiscence or thinking about something else. "It's just an unnamed fruit. Maybe I don't miss the fruit itself. I just think that childhood was really carefree."
Rong Sui looked at her but didn't say a word.
Not long after, a servant came in and said that someone from the Xia family had come and asked the young master and young lady to go and meet them.
Shi Ning'an followed Rong Sui to the main hall and saw that Rong Heng had already arrived. He was whispering something to the young man in the hall.
When they saw the two coming in, Rong Heng quickly waved. "Brother, Ning'an, come quickly."
Xia Anhai was in the capital for the first time. He had met Rong Sui in Wuyun before, but they were still young at that time, so they felt a bit strange seeing each other now.
Mrs. Xia looked at them lovingly and was about to introduce Shi Ning'an. "Ning'an, this is your cousin from the Xia family. Ah Hai, this is your cousin Ning'an."
Shi Ning'an greeted him and called out, "Cousin."
Rong Sui frowned slightly, and the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.
Princess Zhaoming asked, "What's wrong with Sui'er? You don't look very well."
Rong Sui said indifferently, "Recently... I've had a bit of a toothache."
Xia Anhai didn't have a mansion in the capital. Since the Xia family had a marriage alliance with the Rong family and the two families had always had a good relationship, Princess Zhaoming didn't let Xia Anhai stay anywhere else. She had the guest rooms in the outer courtyard cleaned up for him and told him to stay there comfortably.
Of course, she also had the intention of observing him carefully.
Rong Heng was overjoyed. He pulled Xia Anhai and said, "I've been so bored in the capital that I'm about to mold. I've been forcing my cousin to practice martial arts with me. It's great that you're here. Now I have someone to practice with me."
Hearing this, Shi Ning'an looked at Xia Anhai's face with more sincerity. She almost wanted to raise her hands and shout welcome.
Xia Anhai looked up at the thin girl in front of him and couldn't help but sigh in his heart. It was really a torture for such a delicate girl to be dragged by Rong Heng to practice martial arts. There was a bit of sympathy in his eyes.
Mrs. Xia nodded in satisfaction. Looking at Xia Anhai and Shi Ning'an, she felt that this marriage was half successful.
Just then, the gatekeeper handed in a visiting card. Princess Zhaoming opened it and was overjoyed. She said to Shi Ning'an, "Ning'an, it's your Second Uncle Zeng. He's bringing your cousin and cousin sister here."
Shi Ning'an quickly went to her aunt's side, took the card and nodded repeatedly. "It's true. Cousin and Cousin Sister are both coming."
Princess Zhaoming exchanged a look with Mrs. Xia and smiled. "They'll come to pay a visit tomorrow. You can have a good reunion with them then."
When Shi Ning'an went out, she was full of excitement.
Rong Heng asked, "Do you have a good relationship with your cousins from the Zeng family?"
Shi Ning'an nodded. "We grew up together. When we were kids, it was Cousin who led us to play all over the mountains. But then I came back to the capital. I haven't seen them for so many years."
Rong Heng laughed. "Cousin only came back to the capital last year. It's not been many years."
Xia Anhai also laughed. "It seems that Cousin has a very good relationship with her cousins from the Zeng family. Just being separated for one year makes it feel like several years."
Shi Ning'an nodded without saying a word. She was thinking that she had seen her cousin sister when she left the Shi family last year, but she really hadn't seen her cousin for more than ten years. It was really a lie to say that she didn't miss him.
Rong Heng looked up at Rong Sui. Seeing his strange expression, as if he was touching his right cheek, he asked, "Brother, what's wrong with your tooth? Does it hurt a lot?"
The next day, Shi Ning'an got up early again. She sat beside Princess Zhaoming and stared eagerly at the door. From time to time, she stroked her skirt to check if it was wrinkled.
Princess Zhaoming exchanged a look with Mrs. Xia. They felt that this cousin from the Zeng family might be more to Shi Ning'an's liking. On one hand, they felt a bit regretful, thinking that Xia Anhai might be a better match. On the other hand, they were relieved. After all, they were both good young men. As long as Ning'an liked them, it would be better.
When the maid came in again, Shi Ning'an stood up again. She stared intently. When she heard that it wasn't the Zeng family coming, her eyes immediately dimmed. Princess Zhaoming couldn't hold back her laughter anymore.
"Ning'an, it's only Chen hour now. Even if the Zeng family is coming, they won't come at this hour. They should come at Si hour..."
"I know," Shi Ning'an said restlessly. She turned around and pointed to her hair. "Aunt, help Ning'an check if my hair is messy?"
Princess Zhaoming asked with a smile, "Why are you so particular today, Ning'an? Are you excited because you're going to see someone?"
Shi Ning'an wrinkled her nose and nodded. "Yes, Aunt doesn't know my cousin sister. If I look messy, she'll laugh at me for being slovenly. If I'm too formal, she'll think I'm eager to wait for her."
Princess Zhaoming laughed. "Aren't you just waiting for them? Alright, go and wait at the decorated gateway."
Shi Ning'an was overjoyed. She quickly bowed to the elders and ran out with a smile.
Mrs. Xia felt a bit regretful. "It turns out it's for her cousin sister..."
But Princess Zhaoming understood the girl's mind very well. She shook her head and said, "Not necessarily. Maybe she's just too shy to say what's on her mind."
The two were talking in riddles, which made Rong Feichi a bit confused. He wanted to ask but couldn't find out.
Today, the father - in - law and the elder brother had something to do and went out. It was Rong Feichi who had nothing to do and stayed at home waiting to receive the Zeng family's relatives.
Princess Zhaoming carefully told her younger brother - in - law and his wife about the Zeng family.
Rong Feichi nodded and replied, "I naturally know the Zeng family. Their protégés are all over the Great Zhou. When the elder master of the Zeng family was young, he donated medicinal herbs to the army and personally escorted them there. Coincidentally, a war broke out. The number of wounded increased greatly and there were not enough military doctors. The elder master of the Zeng family left his nephews and protégés in the military camp. They ate and lived with the soldiers for two whole months. In this way, we can be called comrades - in - arms."
Thinking of the things back then, Rong Feichi sighed with emotion. "The Zeng family believes in equality among all beings. The wounded in the army were only treated according to the severity of their injuries. At that time, I was shot in the back. He just took a casual look and then handed me over to a young boy to pull out the arrow. The boy was too young and didn't have a steady hand when pulling out the arrow. It really gave me a hard time. Even so, the elder master of the Zeng family still said that my arrow wound wasn't life - threatening and a young boy was enough to deal with it. He had to go and save the more seriously wounded. How could he take care of me?"
Princess Zhaoming asked in surprise, "Really?"
Rong Feichi nodded. "Not only that. After he cured our injuries, he even took his protégés to treat our horses, saying that horses are also living beings and we can't ignore them just because they're animals."
Mrs. Xia nodded along. "Speaking of which, the Zeng family is really worthy of respect. It's a pity that he didn't want to be a military doctor. He only said that there are so many illnesses in the world and the mission of the Zeng family is to travel all over the country and relieve the worries of thousands of people."
Princess Zhaoming let out a long sigh. "No wonder the old lady of the Zeng family dared to send her nephews to propose marriage to Ning'an. It's not just because of the family relationship. More importantly, the Zeng family is so unassuming. Speaking of which, even though our Duke Rong's Mansion has such a high prestige, in front of them, we're no different from ordinary people."
Rong Feichi laughed. "That's not entirely true. When we returned to the capital last year during the heavy snow in Huai'an, when our Rong family's army went to provide disaster relief, we met many people from the folk who were also helping. Among them, we also met the nephews of the Zeng family. Although the elder master of the Zeng family didn't go out, when his nephews came to pay a visit, they were all respectful to me. It's not only because I'm a member of the Rong family. They also said that the head of the Zeng family once went to Wuyun and by chance, lived in the military camp with me. He really admired the self - sacrificing spirit of me and the Rong family's army. Speaking of which, I'm a bit ashamed. It's my mission as a member of the Rong family, but compared with their noble righteousness, I'm far inferior to the Zeng family."
Princess Zhaoming nodded and said to Mrs. Xia, "Originally, I preferred your nephew Ah Hai from your maiden family. But after hearing what my younger brother - in - law said, I think the young man from the Zeng family might be a more suitable match. Such a humble family won't rely on the reputation of our Rong family. They definitely won't care about Ning'an's background."
Mrs. Xia nodded along. "Sister - in - law is right. Ning'an grew up in the Zeng family. She and the young man from the Zeng family are childhood sweethearts. I think they have more in common. If Ning'an marries into the Zeng family, it will be like going home. It's not bad."