Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Shen Qinglan was the apple of Madam Shen and Shen Huaizhi's eye.

Though they didn't know why their son or younger brother had acted as he did today, they could see he intended to sell the orchid at a high price, and naturally they were happy to help him along.

Master Shen and his eldest son caught on and were furious.

His wife and children had always been strong-willed and always making a scene. If it were a major matter, he could still assert his authority, but making a fuss over such a trivial thing would only invite ridicule.

With no other choice, after some thought, they accepted their loss and reluctantly joined the bidding.

Master Shen: "One thousand one hundred taels..."

Shen Huairen: "One thousand one hundred fifty taels..."

Shen Huaizhi: "Father, big brother, you're being too stingy. Such a rare orchid isn't worth just this much silver. If you're unwilling to spend, I am willing—one thousand three hundred taels!"

Master Shen: "You bastard, are you deliberately opposing me?"

Shen Huairen: "Second brother, can you cut it out?!"

Shen Huaizhi: "...No. I'll raise the bid. One thousand four hundred taels."

Master Shen: "..."

Shen Huairen: "..."

What a bastard, bastard, bastard!

They say important things need repeating three times.

But no matter how much they cursed, it was useless. Shen Huaizhi was utterly unrepentant, and with Madam Shen backing him up, in the end, Master Shen got the upper hand and secured the orchid for the exorbitant price of 1,600 taels.

Madam Shen looked at her husband in surprise: "Didn't I strip your private treasury clean long ago? How did you manage to save up so much silver so quickly?"

Master Shen's face darkened: "...And you still dare to admit it?"

Was she not even going to pretend anymore?

Madam Shen gave an awkward laugh.

Then she put on a confused expression: "Oh dear, what thing? Admit what? I don't understand what you're saying, husband."

"You... you ignorant woman. I won't bother arguing with you. Just keep indulging them like this!"

Master Shen, choked by his wife's shamelessness and unable to do anything about her, could only pick up the orchid in a huff and turn to leave.

"Mother, we'll head back to our courtyard as well."

Seeing the orchid was out of reach, Shen Huairen left in disappointment.

Shen Qingquan also bowed and followed closely behind.

Once they were far away and only the mother and her two sons remained in the courtyard, the atmosphere finally became warm and cozy.

Madam Shen quickly asked the question that had been on her mind.

"Lan Ge'er, you still haven't told me—where did you get such a rare orchid as the Thousand-Armed Guanyin?"

Shen Huaizhi nodded in agreement: "Don't tell us you just picked it up on the street. That excuse won't fool me or Mother."

Put on the spot, Shen Qinglan forced himself to stay calm and feigned a spoiled tone:

"Second brother, you really think I'd just make something up like that?"

Then he explained: "The orchid was brought by Shopkeeper Wang. He said a poor scholar who writes storybooks at the bookshop asked him to sell it on his behalf. Shopkeeper Wang doesn't have many connections, so he came to me for help."

"I saw that the orchid was of excellent quality. If I could find a good buyer, I could easily pocket one or two hundred taels of silver. It was such a good deal that I decided to set up this banquet to play Father and big brother..."

His story was a mix of truth and lies, not completely hiding Han Zhang's involvement.

Because the more he tried to cover things up, the more suspicious it would be. By mixing truth with falsehood, when his mother eventually dug into it, she wouldn't discover how close he and Brother Han really were.

Seeing him so candid, Madam Shen's expression softened, and she smiled warmly:

"I see. You really are lucky. One or two hundred taels may not be a huge sum, but it's still a nice little sum. My son is indeed clever—you got my eye for making money!"

Shen Qinglan puffed out his chest proudly: "Of course, I'm your own flesh and blood..."

Shen Huaizhi laughed and tapped his younger brother on the head:

"Look at you, all smug. If it weren't for me and Mother helping you out, you'd have had a much harder time getting that price for that orchid. I helped you so much—how are you gonna repay me?"

"How about I give you a recipe for a snack? I got a new recipe a few days ago—it's called cotton candy. It's sweet, fluffy, and delicious. Take it back and have the cook make it for sister-in-law. It'll definitely win her over."

Shen Qinglan said with a grin.

Madam Shen feigned jealousy: "And what about me, your mother?"

"Mother, of course I'll make it for you myself!"

Shen Qinglan's sweet talk had Madam Shen beaming with joy.

After the playful banter.

Madam Shen steered the conversation back to his marriage prospects.

"By the way, Lan Ge'er, if you're planning to enter the palace for the selection, you can't be careless about the rules. I'm thinking of hiring a palace matron to teach you. For the next few months, you can't keep goofing off. You need to learn all the palace rules and the things you can't say outright thoroughly."

At this, Shen Qinglan immediately became alert.

Being the emperor's favorite was old news. Now all he wanted was to marry Brother Han!

He quickly cut his mother off: "Hold on, Mom, I think I gotta reconsider entering the palace..."

"Why? Haven't we already talked about this? The emperor is a little older, but other than that, what's not to like?"

Madam Shen looked at him, confused.

Shen Huaizhi also gave him a questioning look.

Shen Qinglan's heart was in his throat, but he kept his face straight and let out a big sigh:

"It's the age thing! Even though entering the palace means wealth and honor, the idea that the emperor is even older than Father—maybe even looks older than Father—I'm kinda scared."

Madam Shen heard this and felt for him: "I can't bear to part with you either, but I'd rather you not live in poverty in the future. As they say, 'Better to be a concubine in a rich house than a wife to a poor man.' You've been spoiled by me since childhood—how could you handle marrying down or moving far away?"

Shen Huaizhi also looked worried.

He couldn't bear to see his younger brother forced into a bad marriage by that old man, nor did he want his brother to marry a mediocre husband.

His brother was stunningly beautiful, lively and adorable, and deserved a husband who was both talented and handsome. It was all the fault of those who had harmed his brother!

Shen Huaizhi looked at his extraordinarily handsome younger brother and couldn't help suggesting:

"Mother, how about this: on the one hand, we hire a palace nanny to teach brother the court rules; on the other hand, we also look for suitable young gentlemen in the capital, covering both bases. If we can find a good match before the selection, brother won't have to enter the palace and endure those restrictions."

Shen Qinglan heard this and quickly nodded in agreement: "Mother, I think Second Brother's idea is excellent! Please look into it for me again."

"Alright then, Mother will set things up for you again..."

Lady Shen doted on her son, so she naturally agreed, and couldn't help adding affectionately: "Though our Lang'er's reputation may not be the best, his appearance is truly handsome."

"What man doesn't love a beautiful face? If we spread your portrait around, how could we not attract a few lovesick young men?"

Shen Huaizhi expressed deep agreement: "Mother is right. Brother's appearance is indeed enough to fool people."

"Mother, Second Brother..."

Shen Qinglan was both shy and annoyed at what they said.

He was brilliant and stunningly handsome, even Brother Han had been dazed when he first saw him disguised as a man.

Yet Mother and Second Brother spoke as if he couldn't find a husband!

Shen Qinglan refused to believe it. He was very confident in himself.

Lady Shen and Shen Huaizhi saw his radiant expression and a gratified smile appeared in their eyes.

—Despite three consecutive marriage setbacks, Lang'er could still laugh so cheerfully; it seemed he wasn't upset. That was good.

…

Having successfully sold the orchid at a high price and made his father and eldest brother suffer a setback, Shen Qinglan was overjoyed.

That very night, he stayed up energetically for most of the night to write a reply to Han Zhang. The next day, he hurriedly sent Qiao Dong with the letter and banknotes to the study, asking Manager Wang to pass them on to Han Zhang.

After receiving the reply, Han Zhang was quite surprised to see a thick stack of banknotes.

There were actually 1,600 silver taels!

Although the 'Thousand-Hand Guanyin' was indeed rare and selling for over a thousand taels on the market was normal, the price of plants and flowers, like antiques, often had a market price without actual transactions, and the specific transaction prices fluctuated greatly.

He thought selling this orchid for eight hundred to a thousand taels would be good, never expecting it to be so much.

Could it be that this young gentleman Shen Qinglan had paid out of his own pocket to avoid disappointing him?

Thinking of this possibility, Han Zhang felt on the one hand that the other party was innocent and a bit silly, and on the other hand felt a joy he couldn't describe.

He couldn't help but smile.

Then after finishing the letter, he knew why the orchid had sold for so much silver.

"Brother Han, you don't know, originally according to the market, this orchid could at most sell for eight hundred to a thousand taels at best. But your humble brother here had a sudden inspiration: I had a stroke of genius!"

"I deliberately leaked the news of the orchid to the master and the eldest young master of the mansion. They have always been fond of elegant things. As expected, they ended up competing and kept raising the price—like a battle between snipe and clam, we, the fisherman, gained 1,600 taels!"

"Brother Han, tell me, am I not very clever? Absolutely unmatched in intelligence? Strategically brilliant... Brother Han, quick, praise me!"

"So, Brother Han... how will you thank your very best little brother?"

The youth's lively and carefree, proud and slightly smug demeanor seemed to leap off the page.

It made Han Zhang's eyes crinkle with a smile, and a stirring feeling rose in his heart.

In his life so far, he had never seen such an interesting boy, with a personality both passionate and pure, as warm and inviting as sunlight, attracting a person like him who had crawled out of the mud and darkness.

He was a greedy person, so such warm sunshine should shine only on him.

Han Zhang mimicking the young man's tone, replied with a smile:

"Humble brother's brilliant plan, I, your foolish brother, am in awe, prostrating myself. Such a great achievement deserves a great reward! I wonder if your foolish brother may invite my very best humble brother to visit the temple fair in the south of the city in a few days—will you come?"