Elio’s Notes: We’re moving updates to around 2pm UTC daily. 😁
By the time Fu Xi Yan caught up, Shou Nan Shan was discussing the wedding with Yu Su Huan in complete seriousness. “The Immortal Treasury Palace is too far from Haojing. We might as well use the Wind Division in Haojing as our base for the bridal procession.”
Yu Su Huan countered, “Why not the Rain Division branch?”
The Chief Steward of the Wind Division replied earnestly, “Because the Wind Division is closer.”
The Chief Steward of the Rain Division refused to give an inch. “The Wind Division needs to remain hidden. The Rain Division can operate openly.”
Standing in the doorway, Fu Xi Yan: “…” Aunt Yu, how did even you end up joining in…?
Shou Nan Shan split the difference. “Then how about the Thunder Division? The Young Palace Master picked out the Thunder Division branch last time, so everyone in Haojing already knows where it is. Guests coming to attend the ceremony won’t have to worry about getting lost.”
Yu Su Huan said, “The Immortal Treasury Palace owns a residence in Haojing. That would be more respectable.”
Shou Nan Shan nodded. Respectability was important. “All right. After we fetch the bride, we’ll stay a few days. That way, when the Young Madam makes his return visit to his natal family, he won’t have to travel back and forth.”
“That’s enough, both of you.” Fu Xi Yan truly could not listen anymore. “What I said just now was to my father. What I meant was…”
Shou Nan Shan said to Pei Yuan Jin, “The Young Madam has already raised the matter with his elders. The Immortal Treasury Palace can’t simply ignore that and make Count Yongfeng think we have no manners. I think we should pick a day to report it to the First Chief Steward and ask when the Palace Master will leave seclusion. Then both families can sit down and discuss the betrothal gifts and wedding date.”
Fu Xi Yan clung desperately to Shou Nan Shan’s sleeve. “Listen to me! I was joking with my father earlier. I only wanted to test whether he’d fallen under the Puppet Path’s control.”
“I understand, I understand. Young Madam, don’t get worked up.” Shou Nan Shan personally led Fu Xi Yan to a seat at the side and even poured him a cup of water. Then he turned to Yu Su Huan and said, “The Northern Zhou court should have a Directorate of Astronomy, right? Have them compare the birth charts and choose an auspicious date that promises the couple will grow old together.”
…
Fu Xi Yan collapsed weakly in his chair and patted Pei Yuan Jin beside him. “Is there really no stopping him?”
Pei Yuan Jin said, “There’s still some time before my father leaves seclusion.”
Fu Xi Yan: “…” Should I be grateful I’ve been granted a stay of execution?
In the middle of talking, Shou Nan Shan suddenly turned and stared at Fu Xi Yan.
Fu Xi Yan nervously straightened. “W-what?”
“Does Count Yongfeng’s Estate have any requirements for the betrothal gifts?” Shou Nan Shan asked. “We can start preparing them now.”
Fu Xi Yan said, “Our only requirement is whether you could reconsider the choice of bride.”
Shou Nan Shan abruptly saluted. “Everyone in the Immortal Treasury Palace’s Wind Division follows the Young Madam’s lead and harbors no divided loyalties.” The last time he had said this, he had only pledged himself to follow the Young Madam’s lead. This time, the subject had expanded to the entire Wind Division, clearly showing that his level of acceptance had risen even further.
Fu Xi Yan stood as well and said seriously, “Southern Yu Wall-Breaching Crossbows were used in a large-scale wave of assassinations tonight. The yamen may summon me back tomorrow. I’m going to sleep.”
“Wait.”
Fu Xi Yan instinctively turned around. “I really don’t want to talk about—” Only then did he realize the person who had stopped him was not Shou Nan Shan but Pei Yuan Jin.
Pei Yuan Jin tossed three things to him. “Since they were given to you as meeting gifts, keep them.”
The Cloudsilk Warden, an Origin-Nourishing Pill, and a Longevity Pill.
Fu Xi Yan looked hesitant. He had already learned all too well what happened once he accepted someone else’s gifts—it became much harder to refuse them afterward.
Pei Yuan Jin delivered the final straw that broke the camel’s back. “Whether you accept them or not makes no difference.”
Fu Xi Yan: “…” I hate that what you said makes so much sense!
After Fu Xi Yan left carrying the gifts, Shou Nan Shan spoke. “Young Palace Master…”
Pei Yuan Jin said, “Regretting the gifts already?”
“That’s a trivial matter. I’m not talking about that.” Shou Nan Shan spoke with heartfelt earnestness. “I mean that you and the Young Madam need to spend more time together. If he can’t even recognize your voice, that’s the real problem.”
After winter arrived in Haojing, it rarely rained. When Fu Xi Yan woke the next morning to the soft patter of rain outside, he realized that today was unexpectedly rainy.
He wondered how long it would last. Tomorrow was Lunar New Year’s Eve; who knew whether they would still be able to see fireworks?
He had only just awakened, so his head was filled with entirely inconsequential thoughts.
By the time breakfast was over, the rain had stopped. Soon afterward, he heard Fu Chen Xing come out of his room and stand in the courtyard reading aloud. Although Fu Fu had repeatedly ordered Fu Xi Yan to move into the same courtyard as him, Fu Xi Yan had laughed and brushed him off every time.
When he lived with Fu Chen Xing, he was the older brother—the one whose word carried weight. If he lived with Fu Fu, he would be the son—the one being managed.
Which option was better was obvious at a glance.
“Has Uncle come back?” He summoned a servant and asked.
The servant replied, “Not yet.”
Fu Xi Yan frowned. The end of this year was proving far too difficult. With his hands clasped behind his back, he strolled leisurely toward Fu Fu’s courtyard.
Fu Fu was unusually practicing movements with his treasured saber. The moment he saw Fu Xi Yan arrive, he shouted, “Come! Let’s have a match.”
Ten seconds later.
Fu Xi Yan failed to stop his hand in time, and the treasured saber fell to the ground.
Fu Xi Yan hurriedly bowed. “Father went easy on me!”
Fu Fu picked up the saber and stared at the Cloudsilk Warden on Fu Xi Yan’s hands. “Where did that come from?” When Fu Xi Yan did not answer, he asked again, “Young Palace Master Pei gave it to you?”
“Martial King Shou did.”
“…A betrothal gift?”
Fu Xi Yan hurriedly waved his hands. “There’s been a misunderstanding. What I said yesterday was actually…”
“I’ve thought it all through.” Fu Fu heaved a long sigh. “The waves behind on the Yangtze push the waves ahead, and children and grandchildren have their own fortunes. Some things are good if you think them through yourself and make your own decision.”
This misunderstanding has gotten completely out of hand.
Fu Xi Yan was just about to object when Fu Fu continued, “And it’s good that you’ve managed to come around to it. If you and Young Palace Master Pei have mutual feel—mm, something along those lines—that’s good too. Better than being forced into it later.” He rubbed his thigh. “As your father, I can’t help you with this, and I can’t stop it either. But I won’t hold you back. Decide for yourself. If there’s anything that needs to be prepared, go to your mother. I’ll speak with her later.”
He talked for quite a while without receiving any reply and finally looked up.
Fu Xi Yan was staring blankly at the gray-blue sky.
After pouring out such heartfelt words only to receive no response whatsoever, Fu Fu became a little angry. “What are you looking at?”
“The sky is so gloomy. It feels like it’s pressing down until I can hardly breathe.”
At that moment, Fu Xi Yan’s heart felt just like the sky above him—dark and oppressive.
When faced with the pressure hidden beneath Martial King Shou’s joking, he had always been able to laugh it off because his father and his family were still behind him. He had never truly believed there was nowhere left to retreat. But after hearing what Fu Fu said that morning, he finally understood that he had actually lost his path of retreat long ago.
Every choice had already been determined the moment he swallowed seven Harmonized Yang Pills.
He had no other road.
Neither did Pei Yuan Jin.
Yu Su Huan, Shou Nan Shan, even Pei Yuan Jin… each of them had been telling him this outcome in their own way.
He alone had continued clinging to the fantasy that, like any child facing an impossible problem, he could curl up beneath his father’s wings and find a little room to breathe. But parents were not omnipotent. People eventually had to grow up, and there were many things they eventually had to face for themselves.
When even a traditional father like Fu Fu chose to give way and tacitly accept the situation, that meant there truly was no room left to turn things around.
The answer to the open-book exam had been written on the blackboard all along.
He was simply the one who had refused to put pen to paper.
…
Still, looking on the bright side, the fact that his father could give an answer like that at least proved he had not been controlled by the Puppet Path, right?
“Any new information about yesterday’s assassinations?” Fu Xi Yan abruptly changed the subject.
“Hm?” Fu Fu paused before replying, “I went to the Capital Prefecture yamen first thing this morning to ask. There were sixteen assassination attempts last night, all carried out with Southern Yu Wall-Breaching Crossbows. Twelve people died and three were injured. You were the only one who came through completely unscathed.”
Fu Xi Yan was stunned. “The Wall-Breaching Crossbow is that powerful?” Pei Yuan Jin had stopped yesterday’s bolt, so Fu Xi Yan had not personally felt how frightening the weapon was.
“Northern Zhou excels in soldiers; Southern Yu excels in machinery. The Wall-Breaching Crossbow is one of the finest examples. Were it not for the fact that its tremendous power means each crossbow can fire only a single bolt, the Southern Yu emperor of old probably would never have been content to remain confined to the south. And yesterday’s attacks came without warning. Southern Yu had prepared while their targets had not, and the bolts were coated in poisonous upas-tree sap. Someone without martial arts simply had no way to avoid them. Other than you, the people who survived were all military officers. Not only did they avoid being struck in vital places, they immediately sacrificed the poisoned limb to save their lives. Only then did they survive by sheer luck.”
Elio’s Notes: The upas tree, Antiaris toxicaria, produces highly toxic sap that has historically been used as an arrow and dart poison.
Fu Xi Yan asked, “Are we certain it was Southern Yu?”
Fu Fu said, “The crossbows were Southern Yu’s, and the poison was Southern Yu’s. If not them, then who? Northern Zhou wanted to exploit Southern Yu’s internal turmoil and kick them while they were down using a trumped-up charge. Since Southern Yu was already being saddled with the accusation, they simply went all the way and staged an assassination campaign in retaliation, making the accusation true. That young Southern Yu emperor is ruthless and far from simple. In any case, out of sixteen assassination attempts, you alone came away without so much as a scratch. That attracts attention. Fortunately, tomorrow is Lunar New Year’s Eve. Stay home and rest. Don’t go parading yourself around outside.”
“How do they know I was attacked too?”
“Didn’t Martial King Shou leave the assassin’s corpse on the bank of the Chan River?”
Fu Xi Yan: “…”
Fu Fu frowned. “What kind of expression is that?”
“I thought an organization like the Immortal Treasury Palace would always have someone come along afterward to clean up after a killing.”
Fu Fu said, “Clean up how? Hide the assassin’s body? Wouldn’t that make people think you had a guilty conscience and some secret connection with the assassin?”
Fu Xi Yan suddenly understood. “That makes sense.” A moment ago, he had still been secretly criticizing Shou Nan Shan for handling things carelessly. Thinking about it now, Fu Xi Yan realized he had simply been too shallow.
“The Capital Prefecture yamen will probably send someone to question you today. Think about what you’re going to say.”
Fu Xi Yan did not care in the slightest. “What am I going to say? The truth, obviously.”
…
The people from the Capital Prefecture yamen did not arrive until that afternoon. The constable’s first several questions were all within Fu Xi Yan’s expectations, but then came this one—
“May I ask why Lord Fu chose last night to take a fishing boat alone with the Young Palace Master of the Immortal Treasury Palace and tour the Chan River?”
Fu Xi Yan fell silent for a moment. If he told the truth, he would have to explain his suspicions regarding Tie Rong Rong’s identity, as well as the struggle between the emperor and the Rong family. A subject studying his emperor was hardly something that could be discussed openly and aboveboard.
But if he did not tell the truth, then he needed to make something up.
Fu Xi Yan smiled. “Young Palace Master Pei has been in Haojing for so long without properly going out to see the city. I heard the Chan River was beautiful at night, so I wanted to take him there.”
The constable was an experienced man and immediately pressed him. “But yesterday, Lord Fu and Young Palace Master Pei did not take a pleasure boat.”
“A pleasure boat had only just been involved in an incident. I thought a fishing boat would be safer because it was small enough that everything aboard could be seen clearly.” That explanation was difficult to refute. If Lou Wu Zai had boarded a fishing boat that morning, he probably would have spotted the Thunderclap Bombs immediately.
The constable said, “After the two of you rowed to the middle of the river, you remained there for roughly half an incense stick’s time. There was neither beautiful scenery nor beautiful women nearby. May I ask what made the two of you linger there for so long?”
One of his main assignments today was to sound Fu Xi Yan out and determine exactly what he and Pei Yuan Jin had discussed in private while they were alone in the middle of the river with no third person present.
Fu Xi Yan clearly realized what the constable was targeting. With a faintly amused smile, he said, “Two men, somewhere no one can disturb them, talking about anything and everything to their hearts’ content. Isn’t that a perfectly pleasant and natural thing to do?”
Normally, once the questioning reached this point, a constable ought to recognize the warning and back off. Unfortunately, before coming, Tu Mu had specifically ordered him to get to the bottom of the matter. He could only grit his teeth and continue. “One of you is a court official and the other a young master of the jianghu. May I ask what the two of you spoke about so freely?”
Even someone as good-tempered as Fu Xi Yan was becoming irritated. He leaned slightly forward, exerting a faint pressure as he replied, “Wind, flowers, snow, and moon. Romance. Do you also want to ask which gust of wind, which flower, which patch of snow, and which moon?”
Even with the atmosphere having reached this point, the constable still endured Fu Xi Yan’s displeased stare and added one more question. “Lord Fu and Young Palace Master Pei have the sort of relationship where you sit together discussing romance?”
Fu Xi Yan: “…”
“I’m finished.” Before Fu Xi Yan could truly lose his temper, the constable wisely stood and hurried away.
Fu Xi Yan could not resist complaining to Fu Fu, who had been hiding behind a screen and eavesdropping. “What exactly is Lord Tu Mu trying to do?”
Fu Fu stepped out from behind the screen. “So many Southern Yu spies were hiding in Haojing, and now so many people have been killed. Tu Mu cannot escape responsibility. He’s a desperate patient trying every doctor he can find. He wants to squeeze some useful information out of you, use it to curry favor with His Majesty, and redeem himself.”
Fu Xi Yan rolled his eyes. “What could I possibly know that would help him redeem himself?”
“Hard to say. Tu Mu has been driven into a corner this time. To save his own life, there’s no telling what he might do.” Fu Fu’s expression turned grave. “It’s better to strike first. You’re the Capital Patrol Commissioner. Submit an impeachment against him before he can act! That way, even if he tries to frame you afterward, people will assume he’s retaliating.”
Fu Xi Yan had always preferred to get along with people and disliked making enemies, but neither was he a lump of dough anyone could knead and carve up however they pleased. Besides, Tu Mu truly had accomplished nothing while occupying his post and drawing a salary. Impeaching him was part of Fu Xi Yan’s duty anyway.
The Censorate was already on holiday, so Fu Xi Yan personally delivered his impeachment memorial to the Office of Transmission. As Capital Patrol Commissioner, he was entitled to submit a memorial directly for the emperor’s review, but exactly when the emperor would read it was another matter.
Elio’s Notes: The Office of Transmission was a court bureau responsible for receiving memorials and petitions and forwarding them to the throne.
He casually glanced at the register of memorials waiting to be submitted. It was densely packed. Fu Xi Yan had arrived almost exactly at closing time, which already counted as very late.
He casually asked the clerk, “Don’t you get Lunar New Year’s Eve off?”
The clerk pulled a miserable face. “Normally we would only need to leave a few people on duty, but after something like this, public sentiment is boiling over. One or two people probably won’t be enough to handle everything. We can only hope tomorrow will be better.”
But everyone knew that Southern Yu’s slap across Northern Zhou’s face had been both precise and vicious. There was no possibility of the situation calming down in a short time.
Northern Zhou’s military officials submitted memorial after memorial demanding war. There were antiwar voices among the civil officials, but with twelve lives lying behind the issue, none of them could comfortably oppose war in public. They could only whisper their objections into the emperor’s ear behind closed doors.
Chancellor Pu Jiu Lin was their most prominent representative. “Southern Yu’s internal conflict is like the snipe and clam struggling against each other. If Northern Zhou remains still, we can be the fisherman who profits. If we intervene rashly, the snipe and clam may join forces in order to survive, and the result would instead be unfavorable to us.”
Elio’s Notes: This refers to the fable behind 鹬蚌相争，渔翁得利: a snipe and a clam become locked in a struggle, allowing a fisherman to capture them both. The idiom describes a third party profiting while two others fight.
Emperor Jianhong said, “Important ministers of Northern Zhou—Chancellor Pu’s own colleagues—were murdered here in Haojing, directly beneath Our eyes. Everyone knows who the mastermind is, yet Chancellor Pu believes We should swallow this humiliation and wait for Heaven to destroy Southern Yu for Us?”
Pu Jiu Lin heard the anger in his voice but remained neither servile nor arrogant. “A small punishment can serve as a great warning. Moderation would be best.”
“Oh? Then what sort of ‘small punishment’ does Chancellor Pu propose?”
“Your Majesty may station troops along the border and order the navy to approach Jiangcheng as a display of military strength, demanding that Southern Yu send an envoy to Haojing to provide an explanation. At the same time, we can send an envoy to Rongcheng and secretly make contact with Qin Zhao, son of the Regent, to strengthen his position.”
Emperor Jianhong said, “We recall sending envoys to the Regent twice before. Both times, they were refused entry.”
“Those days are not these days. In the past, the Regent stood at the height of his power and controlled Southern Yu’s court single-handedly. Naturally, he could afford to look down on everyone. Now the Regent is dead, and his son Qin Zhao has hastily risen in revolt on the strength of his father’s remaining prestige. He is unprepared in every respect and desperately needs assistance. Rongcheng and our dynasty lie to Southern Yu’s south and north, trapping it between us. An alliance benefits both sides. Why would Qin Zhao refuse? As time passes and one side weakens while the other strengthens, Southern Yu will be forced to respond on two fronts and its national strength will inevitably decline. When that happens, sending troops south will follow as naturally as water flowing into a channel.”
Emperor Jianhong said, “And who knows how many years We would have to wait?”
Pu Jiu Lin bowed. “Your Majesty is in the prime of life. You can afford to wait.”
Emperor Jianhong gave no indication whether he agreed.
When the military officials heard that the chancellor had secretly approached the emperor on behalf of the civil faction, they could no longer sit still either. They sent Grand Commandant Liu Yan Sheng, the emperor’s childhood friend.
Emperor Jianhong was much more relaxed when receiving Liu Yan Sheng. He sat cross-legged directly on the couch and patted the space beside him. “Say whatever you came to say.”
Liu Yan Sheng did not dare presume upon their familiarity. He knelt beside the couch instead and began speaking as casually as if they were chatting. “The New Year is almost here. My younger brother sent a letter from the frontier. He said he has no thoughts of returning home. He simply stands on the city wall looking south every day, wondering when he will finally be able to cross the river.”
Northern Zhou had three commanders guarding its borders.
The Commandery Prince of Pingluo guarded the northern frontier, the heir to Duke Haixi guarded the west, and Grand Commandant Liu’s younger brother, General of Agile Cavalry Liu Tan Du, guarded the southern defenses.
Emperor Jianhong laughed. “A fine ambition. A tiger for an elder brother, and a tiger for a younger one.”
Liu Yan Sheng said, “Southern Yu’s actions this time are a provocation against the dignity of our nation. Should Tan Du be ordered to repay them in kind?”
“Southern Yu sent death-sworn assassins. Tan Du is Our trusted and beloved general. The two cannot be compared.” Emperor Jianhong waved a hand and pushed the pastries beside him toward Liu Yan Sheng. “Eat. You’ve always loved sweets and ruined a mouthful of teeth because of it. Your wife keeps such strict control over you that this is probably the only place you can still get any.”
“Thank you for Your Majesty’s grace.” Liu Yan Sheng smiled and ate a pastry.
“How are the marriage discussions between your family and Count Yongfeng’s progressing?”
Realizing the emperor had deliberately changed the subject, Liu Yan Sheng tactfully dropped the previous matter and followed his lead. “As it happens, there’s quite a coincidence. Tan Du has a son who was originally engaged to the local prefect’s daughter. They were supposed to marry after the New Year. Unfortunately, not long ago the Patrol Commissioner exposed that prefect for colluding with Southern Yu. The entire family was arrested and is currently being escorted to Haojing. I received word ahead of time and thought that since the boy is around the same age as Zhi Yuan, he would be just right for one of Count Yongfeng’s daughters. Count Yongfeng himself is in Haojing, so our two families can at least say we know each other’s backgrounds thoroughly.”
“We know each other thoroughly.” Emperor Jianhong repeated the phrase meaningfully, then smiled. “Well said. The Fu family’s foundation lies in the southern defenses. If Tan Du gains the Fu family’s support, a future southern campaign will proceed much more smoothly.”
Liu Yan Sheng lowered his head and continued eating pastries. There was no telling how much of the emperor’s meaning he had taken in.
As the main and collateral branches of the Fu clan had finally buried their old grievances, clan members living in the capital arrived at Count Yongfeng’s Estate with their entire families that Lunar New Year’s Eve to pay respects to their ancestors. Madam Fu had not presided over such a large gathering in years, and despite how busy she was, she could not conceal the radiant energy in her expression.
As the legitimate eldest son, Fu Li An was the leader of the next generation. All the clan members of his generation gathered around him to talk.
Fu Xia Qing followed Madam Fu around and helped entertain the female guests.
Fu Xi Yan had originally intended to find somewhere to hide and be lazy. Unfortunately, Fu Xuan was still guarding the imperial palace, which made Fu Xi Yan the only person in the household other than Fu Fu who currently held an official post. Naturally, part of the burden of entertaining the guests fell on him.
Dealing with elders was exhausting enough, but they had a particular talent for bringing up precisely the subject he least wanted mentioned. Their favorite topic was his marriage.
At first, Fu Xi Yan tried using Fu Dong Wen as a shield. “Third Brother isn’t even engaged yet.”
Unfortunately, when men became gossipy, they were no less relentless than anyone else. “Engagements should be arranged early. Your third brother can start meeting potential matches at the same time.”
Fu Fu had just finished greeting another group when he walked over laughing. “He already has someone he likes. None of you need to worry about him.”
“Oh? He already has a sweetheart? Which family’s young lady is she?” The others immediately became even more interested.
Fu Xi Yan gave his father a sidelong look, waiting to see how he intended to get himself out of this.
Fu Fu remained perfectly calm. “He has loved practicing martial arts since childhood. Didn’t he go traveling recently? He met someone from the jianghu, and after spending some time together, the two took a liking to each other.”
“Someone from the jianghu?” The clan members immediately sounded somewhat dissatisfied.
Fu Fu said, “My expectations for him aren’t high. As long as he genuinely likes the person, the other party comes from a respectable background, and the two can treat each other with mutual respect after marriage and live peacefully together, that is enough.”
The clan members remembered how the old Count Yongfeng had once behaved—throwing the entire household into chaos for the sake of a little power. They naturally assumed Fu Fu wanted Fu Xi Yan to marry beneath his station in order to prevent future struggles between legitimate and concubine-born branches. Thinking that this was also a reasonable way to preserve harmony within the household, they nodded one after another.
“That’s fine, that’s fine.”
“When you marry, we’ll bring gifts.”
“The Fu family built its fortune through military merit in the first place. A future wife for our nephew who knows martial arts is a perfect match!”
Everyone burst into laughter.
Fu Xi Yan’s scalp prickled from listening. He shot Fu Fu a meaningful look.
With both hands clasped behind his back, Fu Fu discreetly waved him away.
Fu Xi Yan felt as though he had received an imperial pardon. Still smiling, he slowly backed away step by step until he escaped the crowded hall.
He could not stay there, but going back to his own room would be too lonely. Without quite realizing it, Fu Xi Yan wandered until he reached the courtyard where he had originally lived.
Shou Nan Shan was outside pasting up Spring Festival couplets. The moment he saw Fu Xi Yan, he burst out laughing. “I knew the Young Madam would definitely come over on a day like this.”
Fu Xi Yan immediately turned around to leave, but Shou Nan Shan hurriedly said, “The Young Palace Master is waiting for you inside.”
Fu Xi Yan asked, “Waiting for me for what?”
“You’ll know once you go in.”
Seeing how mysterious Shou Nan Shan was being, Fu Xi Yan’s curiosity got the better of him. He went inside and found that they had moved the large square table out of the room. Several people he had never seen before were working diligently around it. Some were rolling wrappers, some were folding dumplings, and others were setting up a stove in the open space.
Fu Xi Yan asked in surprise, “Didn’t the kitchen send over any dumplings?”
Yu Su Huan smiled. “How could dumplings sent from the kitchen taste as good as ones you make yourself?”
Fu Xi Yan: “…”
But none of you are actually making them. How is this any different from having the kitchen send them over?
It did not take him long, however, to understand what Yu Su Huan and the others were enjoying. Even merely watching other people make dumplings felt much more like celebrating the New Year than simply sitting down and eating them—especially when all they themselves had to do was put their feet up and crack sunflower seeds.
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