What sorcery had Fourth Brother used?

Standing before Wang Shouzhe was a middle-aged woman dressed with exquisite care. A jeweled hairpin adorned her hair, jade bangles circled her wrists, cloud-treading boots graced her feet, and she wore a luxurious silk dress patterned with multicolored clouds. She looked every bit like a noble lady from the city.

Moreover, she had carefully made herself up before coming, powder on her face and a touch of crimson on her lips. She did not look forty in the slightest, but rather like a mature beauty of twenty-seven or twenty-eight, showing how meticulously she usually maintained herself. And Wang Shouxin, her husband, must have doted on and indulged her greatly.

Only, her eyes were slightly bloodshot. Clearly, she had cried not long before.

Most remarkably, she carried a large bamboo basket with its contents covered by a red cloth.

The moment Xu saw Wang Shouzhe being so courteous, much of her nervousness and hostility immediately dissipated. She hurriedly returned the greeting properly. "Xu pays respects to Fourth Uncle."

"You are too polite, Sister-in-law." Wang Shouzhe smiled with utmost sincerity. "Come, Sister-in-law, please rest in the side hall. My aunt is there as well." As he spoke, he courteously led Xu into the side hall.

Xu's expression tightened. Upon seeing Gongsun Hui, she hurriedly bowed respectfully. "Xu pays respects to Aunt Hui." She had always been proud and arrogant. As a direct-line daughter of the Changning Xu Clan, she had married Wang Shouxin with the mindset that she was marrying beneath herself. Yet no matter how proud she was, she did not dare put on airs before a legitimate daughter of the Shanyang Gongsun Clan.

What was more, Gongsun Hui had been the former Clan Leader's wife, was the current Clan Leader's legitimate mother, and was also Xu's elder!

"Oh, so Shouxin's wife has come. What wind has blown you here?" Gongsun Hui's words carried a faint pressure, though her face was wreathed in smiles. "Come, come, sit and talk. You can also try the Shanyang Small Spirit Seed personally grown by Shouzhe's maternal grandfather."

She assumed the bearing of an elder. With a single phrase—"Shouxin's wife"—she directly emphasized Xu's identity as Wang Shouxin's wife, clearly carrying a note of warning.

"No, no, how would I dare sit before Aunt Hui?" Xu smiled awkwardly. She had never expected Aunt Gongsun to be here; otherwise, she would never have dared come looking for Wang Shouzhe at this time, not even if beaten to death.

And the tea the mother and son were drinking was, from the sound of it, Spirit Seed tea. Given her standing in the Changning Xu Clan, how could she ever have had the chance to drink spirit tea? As for after marrying Wang Shouxin, that was even less worth mentioning...

"Fourth Uncle, you are the pillar holding up this family." Xu revealed a slightly ingratiating smile and handed over the basket. "Sister-in-law saw how hard you train every day, so I brought some fresh ingredients to nourish you. I will not disturb the mother and son while you catch up..."

With that, she set down the basket and prepared to leave.

"Wait a moment, Sister-in-law." Wang Shouzhe stopped her with a smile. "It is rare for you to come here. Have a cup of tea first. Besides, I have not seen Elder Brother Shouxin in quite some time. I heard he happened to return to the main residence on business, so I will have a servant invite him over. We can have a meal and talk together."

"This..." Xu was flattered beyond measure, yet she looked toward Gongsun Hui with considerable apprehension.

"Shouzhe is the Wang Clan Leader. If he tells you to sit, then sit." Gongsun Hui's manner softened somewhat.

Only then did Xu sit down, somewhat awkwardly. Though she was dressed in finery from head to toe, before the more plainly dressed Gongsun Hui, she could not display the slightest air of nobility.

Wang Shouzhe summoned Wang Gui and instructed, "Tell the main kitchen to cook a large chunk of the pork Fourth Grand-Uncle sent over. Do not stew it too soft. Also, find a skilled cook and have her set up a small stove in our courtyard. Slice two jin of Spirit-Horn Yak meat. Hmm, bring that pot of Spirit Wine too. As for the other fresh fruits and vegetables, use your judgment."

"Yes, Clan Leader. Oh, Sixth Master had someone send a fresh Red-Scaled Eel into the clan ice cellar. The most precious spirit eel blood has also been made into blood tofu. He said that you caught it personally, Clan Leader, so it counts as ingredients from your private stores and only you are allowed to eat it." Wang Gui offered a reminder from the side.

"Hehe, ignore him." Wang Shouzhe laughed. "Cut the finest section from the middle of the Red-Scaled Eel, and bring the blood tofu as well. Put the rest into the public stores and distribute it as needed, so everyone can have a taste. Once you have arranged everything, go invite my Elder Brother Shouxin."

"Yes, Clan Leader." Wang Gui accepted the order and withdrew.

"Fourth Uncle, this, this is too lavish... You are spending far too much." Xu's body trembled as she said weakly, "Make it simpler, please. Something simple."

"What are you saying, Sister-in-law? Wang Shouxin is my elder brother, and you are my sister-in-law. It is rare for our family to gather for a meal. How could we be casual about it?" Wang Shouzhe personally took a teacup and poured Xu a cup of spirit tea. "Sister-in-law, try this Shanyang Small Spirit Seed first. It works best while hot."

Xu tremblingly took a sip. The bitterness and unique lingering charm of the spirit tea washed over her heart. In that instant, she almost wanted to cry.

She had spent nineteen years as a daughter of the Changning Xu Clan, then twenty-one years married into the Ping'an Wang Clan, yet she had never been blessed enough to drink even one cup of spirit tea. The first cup of spirit tea in her life was actually offered to her by Wang Shouzhe.

When she came here, she had already prepared herself to beg him. If that failed, she had planned to throw a tantrum in the streets and make a huge scene, alarming every clansman.

For her son, she could no longer care about anything, and she could throw away every shred of dignity.

Yet she had never imagined that Wang Shouzhe, a noble direct descendant of the clan and its Clan Leader, would treat her, his sister-in-law, with such respect and hospitality.

"Fourth Uncle, that, that matter..." In that instant, Xu felt she could hardly bring herself to speak. Wang Shouzhe had treated her husband and her with such kindness; perhaps there was still room to turn things around.

"Sister-in-law, are you referring to Zongwei?" Wang Shouzhe had no intention of avoiding the matter and said with a smile, "I have already given it thought. Once Elder Brother arrives, we can discuss it as we eat. Sister-in-law, have some snacks first to tide yourself over."

"Yes." Xu hurriedly swallowed her words. Judging by Wang Shouzhe's attitude, he did not seem intent on pursuing the matter relentlessly, though her heart remained uneasy.

Not long after, the clan cook arrived. After paying respects to Wang Shouzhe, she was about to light the stove in the courtyard's small kitchen when Wang Shouzhe stopped her. "No need to make too much. Just slice the fresh ingredients. Cut the Spirit-Horn Yak meat and Red-Scaled Eel into thin slices and arrange them on plates—the thinner, the better. Also, use top-grade charcoal to light a brazier. Prepare a clean copper basin, fresh water, and some salt as well."

Though the cook found this baffling, how could she dare disobey the Clan Leader's orders? She naturally went to carry them out.

"What are you making, Zhe'er?" Gongsun Hui asked curiously. "Why are you lighting a brazier in this sweltering weather?"

"You will know in a moment, Aunt." Wang Shouzhe smiled. "It is a method of cooking I saw in an ancient text. It is something entirely new and exceptionally delicious."

"You really are becoming more and more impossible to fathom. Just do not ruin such precious Spirit Food." Gongsun Hui suppressed her curiosity and began taking Xu's hand, asking after her well-being. She was very surprised by the way Wang Shouzhe had handled Wang Zongwei's matter. At the very least, he had not relied on the Clan Leader's authority to forcibly suppress it with brute methods.

But based on what she knew of Xu, Xu would not simply let the matter rest. Thus, Gongsun Hui became even more curious about how her son would handle what came next.

After another while, Wang Shouxin hurried over under Wang Gui's lead. The moment he entered the room, his face turned cold and anger rose within him as he rebuked Xu. "You ignorant woman! How dare you, how dare you come looking for Shouzhe..."

Wang Shouxin was forty-three this year. He had a square face, a beard, and a naturally imposing air even when not angry.

Yet Xu did not yield to that at all. The temper that Wang Shouzhe and Gongsun Hui had suppressed immediately erupted. "Wang Shouxin! What kind of bullshit are you spouting? Zongwei is already in that state—how could I not come beg your brother to spare him? Zongwei is my son. Am I supposed to watch helplessly as you beat him to death? Or watch helplessly as his future is stolen by that worthless... by Wang Luotong?"

Under normal circumstances, she would likely have blurted out "worthless girl." But before Wang Shouzhe and Gongsun Hui, she absolutely dared not say those words, and in her urgency, swallowed them back down.

"You, you, you... Shouzhe is the Clan Leader! Besides, that little beast deserved to be beaten and punished." Wang Shouxin's face reddened as he shouted angrily. "If not for you shielding him... I would have long since..."

But clearly, that approach could not suppress Xu.

"Sister-in-law, Elder Brother." Wang Shouzhe waved a hand at once to stop them from escalating their quarrel. "We are all family. What does all this bickering look like? Sit down and eat first. We can talk slowly as we eat."

"Yes, Uncle." Xu immediately put away her fierce shrewish manner. After sitting down obediently, she said gently, "I will listen to Uncle. We are all family. No arguing—we will reason things out."

Hiss!

Wang Shouxin, standing nearby, sucked in a sharp breath. His heart was filled with doubt and alarm. Had Fourth Brother used some kind of sorcery? This was the first time in his entire life that he had seen Xu so docile and obedient. Her explosive temper had been suppressed in an instant, and she was even talking about reason?