Chapter 10 The Banquet Glance
At the family banquet, the newlyweds across from me were all sweet whispers and lingering looks.
I couldn’t quite name the feeling in my chest. Using the excuse of offering a toast, I stepped forward and teased Pei Du.
“A few months ago when I left, Second Uncle was still a lone man. How did you rush into marriage so quickly?”
When I returned, I saw that unfamiliar yet strikingly beautiful face and thought she was some cousin from my mother’s side who had come to visit.
Pei Du answered calmly, “When feelings match, there is no need to wait.”
“And what about you and Miss Jiang? How are things going now that you’ve returned from Jiangnan together?”
I brushed it off vaguely.
Jiang Qinghan and I grew up together. Our families were well-matched, and she was beautiful. Of course I liked her.
Not long ago, my mother sent word that the matter of that country girl had been dealt with, so I planned to come back and settle the engagement.
But…
My gaze drifted, almost against my will, to Pei Du’s new wife.
I had thought Jiang Qinghan was already beautiful enough.
Yet this young woman I was supposed to call Second Aunt was even more so.
Her eyes, nose, lips—they all landed exactly where they struck deepest in my heart.
The first time I saw her upon my return, I really thought she was a cousin from my mother’s family.
I never expected Second Uncle to get there first.
Back in my courtyard, I summoned a servant to inquire.
“What is the background of this new Second Aunt? Does her family have any other sisters?”
The servant thought for a moment. “Second Young Master, the Second Aunt is surnamed Wen. Her family is not prominent. I heard she is an orphan with no relatives at all, let alone sisters.”
Disappointment settled in my chest.
I had been thinking—if this Second Aunt had a sister who looked just as lovely…
“Wait.”
Something felt off. I frowned. “You said her surname is what?”
“The masters all call her Miss Wen.”
“Wen as in the character with the door radical?”
“Yes, Second Young Master.”
I fell silent for several breaths before asking abruptly, “How was the fiancée my father arranged for me handled?”
The servant reminded me gently, “Have you forgotten? Before you left, you asked Second Master to deal with her. As for how Second Master resolved the matter with that country girl, this servant does not know.”
I said nothing more, but a faint suspicion had already taken root in my heart.