Rejected Beauty Practices the Villain Play
Chapter 104: Evil Fire

Chapter 104: Chapter 104: Evil Fire

The Marchioness, Lady Lan, and Lady Mudan personally came to the front gate to welcome the Feng sisters. The three ladies had not seen Feng Shu for over half a year and missed her dearly, greeting them warmly with bright smiles as they entered the mansion.

Feng Shu had inherited Feng Changqing’s tall and slender figure—even taller by half a head than the three ladies themselves. Versatile in both literature and martial arts, she was renowned as a talented woman with outstanding abilities in horseback archery. Her stride carried an imposing air of confidence. Though her appearance was quite similar to Fengyu’s, their temperaments were worlds apart; Feng Shu exuded a refreshing boldness befitting the daughter of a military general.

The Marchioness was particularly satisfied with the Marquis Zhenbei’s choice of this eldest daughter-in-law. Feng Shu, having traveled far and wide for years, possessed high emotional intelligence, an open and cheerful personality, and treated others with genuine warmth and sincerity. Since she had arrived in the Capital City, the Marquis Mansion had cared for her as though she were their own daughter.

In every letter Lady Lan wrote to Xie Zhang, she would praise his good fortune.

Fengyu, sensing they had matters to discuss, excused herself after finishing a cup of tea and wandered into the garden. The plum blossom grove remained lively and vibrant today. The sunlight was just right, with snowflakes fluttering gently. Inspired, Fengyu thought of painting.

Qiuxiang and Chunlu exchanged glances, their expressions faintly amused. The Marquis Mansion maids, Qinghua and Qing Mei, prepared brushes, ink, and paper for Fengyu, allowing her to paint near the pavilion by the plum blossom garden.

Miss Feng San’s hands were as smooth as fine jade, her wrist adorned with the crimson Soul Suppressing Pearl, its brilliance accentuating her snow-white skin. She reclined gracefully as she painted, her strokes bold yet fluid, exhibiting the style of a master artist.

Qiuxiang and Chunlu stood behind Fengyu, glancing back and forth between the plum blossoms on her canvas and those in the grove. Qiuxiang crouched to match Fengyu’s height, studying the grove and shaking her head in thought. She moved to Fengyu’s right to examine further, scratching her head in confusion, then shifted to her left—only to grow more bewildered. After looking left and right again, she rested her chin in her hand and pondered, "Miss, which plum blossom tree are you painting?"

Fengyu pointed to the lushest tree in the forefront, "That one—it’s the most beautiful."

Qiuxiang’s eyes widened as she stared at the naturally exquisite plum blossom tree, then at the one on Fengyu’s canvas. Her expression grew even more puzzled.

Unable to suppress her laughter, Chunlu suddenly noticed a figure approaching. Just as she was about to salute him, Xie Xun raised a finger to signal silence. Chunlu pulled Qiuxiang away, whispering, "Miss, we’ll go prepare some refreshments for you."

Xie Xun stepped up behind her, glancing at Miss Feng San’s painting before leaning slightly to examine the plum blossom tree she was recreating. Arching an eyebrow, Xie Xun inwardly mused that he could hardly discern the tree as plum blossoms in her artwork.

The branches were painted remarkably thin, and the flowers clustered tightly together, much like plum blossoms blooming in abundance—but her depiction felt overly crowded. Though she had used red pigments for the blossoms, her color choices seemed off; too red in some areas, too pale in others. The proportions between flowers and branches were all askew, reminding Xie Xun of the lunar-viewing painting hanging in his study.

Recently, he had noticed a peculiar addition to his study—a painting of moonlit viewing. A full moon hung high in the sky amidst scattered stars, while beneath a tree stood a figure gazing upwards. The moon and stars were skillfully rendered, yet the person beneath was drawn with a disproportionately large head and an oddly small body, giving their stance a bizarre appearance.

That, alone, was strange enough. What made it worse was that the painting depicted a young lady moon-viewing, wearing a vibrant dress that clashed dramatically with the serene moonlight. For this artwork to be hung in his study, it must have been created by a revered artist—but the sight left him doubting his own discernment.

"Who brought this painting here?"

Nuanyang laughed heartily, "Master, you’ve finally noticed the extra painting on your wall! It’s Miss Feng San’s moonlit viewing piece; it’s been hanging there for quite a while now."

Xie Xun suspected Fengyu deliberately intended to offend his aesthetic sensibilities. Now, as he observed her painting, the truth dawned on him: Miss Feng San’s artistic style was indeed unconventional—an abstract approach, one might say.

"Your plum painting is rather unique," Xie Xun remarked with a hint of sarcasm. At the time, realistic depictions were most popular in painting—flora and fauna rendered as lifelike as possible. Fengyu’s distinctive style was something unfamiliar to him.

Surprised to see Xie Xun standing there, Fengyu exclaimed, "You didn’t go to the government office?"

"My shift has ended," Xie Xun replied, his gaze still on her canvas. "Which esteemed artist taught you to paint?"

"I taught myself," Fengyu replied matter-of-factly.

Xie Xun thought inwardly, "That explains it. If she’d been tutored by any master, her paintings wouldn’t have turned out like this." He recalled the other eccentric paintings hanging in Fengyu’s chambers—though unimpressive, her enthusiasm for painting and displaying her work was undeniable.

"Do you think it looks nice?" Fengyu asked expectantly, clearly fishing for praise. "This is the best plum blossom painting I’ve done recently."

Xie Xun lowered his head and chuckled softly, crafting a compliment, "It’s certainly unique."

"Then I’ll gift it to you!" Fengyu, having painted several plum blossom pieces in her idle days, generously offered him one.

Xie Xun, "..."

Clearing his throat, Xie Xun leaned against one of the pavilion’s pillars in a lazy posture, while Fengyu put the finishing touches on the branches—adding blossoms to every twig. Xie Xun hesitated to intervene.

Painting plum blossoms required restraint: focusing on the small rather than the grand, achieving balance with scattered blossoms. Yet Fengyu seemed fixated on filling every inch of her canvas with blooms—a reflection of her aesthetic preference for excess.

Setting her brush down, Fengyu weighed her painting paper with an inkstone, waiting for it to dry. When she looked up at Xie Xun, she noticed his gaze lingering on her wrist—the alabaster skin adorned with the crimson Soul Suppressing Pearl that symbolized their strange bond.

She tucked the Soul Suppressing Pearl under her sleeve, hiding its conspicuous red hue. Every time Xie Xun saw the gem, he was reminded of his predicament, souring his mood—a sentiment Fengyu preferred not to provoke.

Xie Xun shifted his gaze away, asking evenly, "Did Master Miao Yun mention when she’ll return from her travels?"

Fengyu shook her head, "I haven’t received any letter from her in a long time."

Master Miao Yun had left the Capital City to pursue a solution for the soul exchange predicament. Fengyu and Xie Xun had both lost contact with her, aware of her unpredictable movements, and could only wait for her return.

Whenever Xie Xun encountered the Soul Suppressing Pearl, his heart felt disquieted—an uneasy blend of anxiety and irritation. Yet lately, he’d found Miss Feng San increasingly pleasing to the eye; even the sight of the pearl now struck him as fresh and lively.

"I’ve been thinking..." Fengyu glanced cautiously at Xie Xun’s expression, mustering her courage to continue. "I plan to find someone to get engaged to. Honestly, I thought Jiang Yang was a decent option."

"What did you just say?" Xie Xun’s faint smile froze, as a suppressed anger surged to the surface, consuming his emotions. "A decent horse doesn’t graze the same pasture twice—how does Jiang Yang even catch your eye again? Are you that determined?"

"I know the Soul Suppressing Pearl complicates matters. If I get engaged and marry, it’ll inevitably burden you," Fengyu responded calmly. "But with the Third Prince coveting me, I can’t afford to sit idle. If I were to receive an imperial decree, I could not disobey. Before he becomes a prince and establishes his residence, securing an engagement could extinguish his hopes. Jiang Yang’s character is flawed, but he lacks money and is easy to control. The engagement would be merely nominal, and marriage is still a long way off. If we quietly annulled it in three years, the Third Prince would likely lose interest by then. Two birds with one stone—why not? However..."

"You’re so sure Jiang Yang is easy to manage? If he were, how do you explain him humiliating you by breaking off your engagement during your coming-of-age ceremony, making you the laughingstock of the Capital City?" Xie Xun interrupted her bluntly, his tone sharp with displeasure. "Miss Feng San certainly has a short memory for past wounds."

Fengyu scowled, "Don’t interrupt me while I’m talking."