Crowned Consort in Golden Age-Chapter 33. The Young Masters of Xu Family

33. The Young Masters of the Xu Family

At the entrance of Ye Mansion, two handsome young men disembarked from a carriage. The one in front, glancing at the Ye Mansion’s Steward-in-Chief waiting to welcome them, showed a hint of dissatisfaction. He clicked his tongue, then turned to the person in the carriage with a smile, "It seems Eldest Brother’s reputation isn’t grand enough; no one important came to receive us." The youth who followed him out, a couple of years older, glanced at him and said, "Did Eldest Brother ask you to come along just to make a scene?" The younger one, unconcerned, made a face at his brother. "Who cares about that! I came to see Sister Li."

"Xu Qingyan, mind your manners," a cool voice said from inside the carriage.

Xu Qingyan winked at his brother and complained softly, "Second Brother is even fiercer than Eldest Brother."

Xu Qingbai rolled his eyes at him. If you know he’s fierce, why do you keep provoking him?

The Ye Mansion’s Steward-in-Chief stood to the side, looking troubled as the two young masters from the Xu Family continued their conversation, clearly ignoring his earlier invitation to enter. They showed no intention of going in, let alone the others still seated in the carriage who hadn’t even shown themselves. Just as he was hesitating whether to extend the invitation again, Ye Li’s slightly excited voice came from within the main gates, "Is that Fourth Cousin and Fifth Brother?"

Xu Qingbai turned to see a young woman in green robes walking out quickly. His initial gaze, somewhat unfamiliar, warmed with a smile as Ye Li drew closer. "Li’er, it’s me, your Fourth Brother. Do you remember?" Ye Li nodded slightly. Among the five Xu sons, Xu Qingbai was the closest to her in age, just one year her senior. Consequently, they had been very close in childhood, studying and playing together when she lived with the Xu Family. "Fourth Brother..."

"Hehe, Sister Li’er, I’m Qingyan," Xu Qingyan chimed in, not wanting to be left out.

Ye Li looked at the handsome youth before her and smiled, her lips curving. "Fifth Brother has grown up so much, and you look just like Eldest Aunt! You were just a little child when we left the Capital City back then." Xu Qingyan’s handsome face immediately fell. "Sister Li, you’re teasing me!"

"Eldest Brother, Second Brother, and... Third Brother? Where are they?"

The curtain of the carriage behind them was suddenly flung open, and Xu Qingfeng jumped down, laughing. "Good thing Li’er still remembers Third Brother, or he would have been quite jealous!"

Following him, two young men emerged from the carriage. They were none other than Xu Qingchen, the eldest young master of the Xu Family, renowned as the "Number One Young Top Scholar Under Heaven," and Second Young Master Xu, Xu Qingze.

"Li’er." Dressed in white, Xu Qingchen’s handsome, elegant face broke into a faint smile upon seeing Ye Li. In contrast to Xu Qingchen’s refined grace, nineteen-year-old Xu Qingze possessed a more serious and stern demeanor. This initially gave an impression of coldness and distance, but Ye Li could still feel the gentle warmth in the gaze he rested upon her.

"Eldest Brother, Second Brother," Ye Li called softly, her eyes unexpectedly stinging. A strange feeling of bewilderment enveloped Ye Li, who had always considered herself composed and capable. Even though she had many sisters in the Ye Family, she had always felt alone. But now, with so many brothers suddenly around her, it was as if she had returned to the time before her mother passed away, before her maternal uncles and grandfather had left the Capital City. It felt even more like she had returned to that boisterous, constantly bickering, yet heartwarmingly large family from her previous life.

Xu Qingchen reached out to smooth a strand of hair by Ye Li’s ear and sighed softly, "These past few years must have been hard on you, Li’er?"

Ye Li shook her head repeatedly, but her throat felt as if it were constricted, and she couldn’t utter a single word.

"Third Sister, it’s too impolite to keep our cousins standing at the entrance. We should quickly invite them in," Ye Ying said softly to Ye Li as she gracefully stepped forward. Then, she curtsied elegantly to Xu Qingchen. "Ying’er greets Cousin Qingchen." Meanwhile, Xu Qingfeng rubbed his nose and moved to stand behind his Second Brother. He’d been to Ye Mansion countless times, but the ever-arrogant Ye Ying had never been this courteous to him.

Ye Ying’s expression flickered, and she managed a strained smile. Ye Li quickly calmed the emotions in her heart and smiled at Xu Qingchen. "It was my oversight. Eldest Brother, let’s go in. Father and Grandmother are waiting for our cousins and Fifth Brother." Xu Qingchen nodded. Beside him, Xu Qingze gestured with a hand, and the Xu Family servants, who had been waiting nearby, retrieved the gifts from the rear carriage and respectfully followed their masters into Ye Mansion.

Walking beside Xu Qingchen and Xu Qingze, Ye Li asked softly, "Eldest Brother, how are Eldest Maternal Uncle and Eldest Aunt?"

Xu Qingchen nodded and said with a smile, "Mother stayed behind in Yunzhou. Father is well, just a bit weary from the journey. He’ll be fine after some rest."

"Eldest Uncle Ding and my cousins are here, and no one told me? I could have gone to welcome them," Ye Li complained softly.

Xu Qingfeng, walking behind, laughed heartily. "You can’t blame me for this! It was Eldest Uncle Ding who sent a letter beforehand instructing that no one was to come and greet them. My father only found out after Eldest Uncle Ding, Eldest Brother, and the others had already settled into their private residence in the Capital City. He was furious!" Ye Li knew her Eldest Uncle Ding’s personality; he disliked such formalities and constraints. She wasn’t bothered and said with a smile, "Then I’ll go pay my respects to Eldest Uncle Ding tomorrow. How are Nanny Lin and Nanny Wei doing?"

"They are both well," Xu Qingze replied. "Nanny Lin and Nanny Wei were extremely loyal to Aunt. Their families are also willing to follow you to the King of Ding Kingdom’s Mansion. So, Grandfather allowed their families to come along as well."

Ye Li nodded, not offering any polite pleasantries. Inwardly, she felt even more guilt towards her maternal grandfather. She had never been able to be by his side to offer comfort and joy, yet he, at his advanced age, still had to worry so much about her.

Xu Qingchen looked down at her and gently patted her shoulder. "Don’t overthink things. As long as you are living well, Grandfather will be happy."

"I know," Ye Li said.

Ye Lin and Ye Shan watched as the group of handsome young men escorted Ye Li further away, then glanced at the gloomy expression on Ye Ying who stood nearby. They exchanged a look, and Ye Lin cautiously asked Ye Ying, "Fourth Sister... are those... Third Sister’s cousins?" Ye Ying looked up and glared at her fiercely. It was a vicious expression Ye Lin had almost never seen from her before, causing Ye Lin to involuntarily step back, nearly bumping into Ye Shan behind her. Ye Ying sneered, looking at her disdainfully. "You’d best give up any ideas. The Xu Family is of such high standing, they would never be interested in someone like you!" With that, she turned and followed the others, ignoring Ye Lin’s reaction.

Ye Lin was stunned by Ye Ying’s words, and her pretty, youthful face instantly turned crimson. Realizing what Ye Ying implied, she felt a wave of shame and mortification. Ye Shan looked at her and shook her head. "She’s in a bad mood. Why did you have to go and provoke her? Let’s go, Grandmother will be upset if we’re late." Ye Lin hadn’t expected Ye Shan, who usually minded her own business, to actually offer some comfort. Seeing that the others were already almost out of sight, she quickly hurried after them with Ye Shan.

「Rongle Hall」

"This junior, along with my younger brothers, pays respects to Old Madam and... Uncle," Xu Qingchen stepped forward first, greeting Old Madam Ye and Minister Ye. The others followed suit. Old Madam Ye looked at the five young men standing in the hall. Not to mention the long-renowned Xu Qingchen, who was strikingly handsome and impeccably refined, even thirteen-year-old Xu Qingyan had delicate features and composed manners. Even if she was unwilling to admit it, she had to concede that the Xu Family was indeed better at raising children than the Ye Family. Old Madam Ye’s eyes flickered, and she quickly said with a smile, "We are all family here; dispense with these formalities. How is your father?"

Xu Qingchen stood tall, responding with elegant composure, "Father is well. It is merely that the arduous journey prevented him from coming to visit Old Madam personally. Please forgive him."

Although Old Madam Ye knew these were just polite words, she couldn’t press further. She simply smiled and said, "The journey must have been tiring; it’s right that he should rest well. Rong’er, come over and greet your older cousins."

Ye Rong stood beside Ms. Wang. He had been about to say something but stopped when he caught his father, Minister Ye, staring at him sternly. Only then did he reluctantly step forward. "Rong’er greets his older cousins." Ye Rong was not a scheming person; he wasn’t even good at maintaining superficial pleasantries. He disliked Ye Li, and by extension, disliked her cousins. Thus, despite prior warnings from his father and grandmother, he couldn’t completely hide his feelings. Even his greeting was delivered with a touch of careless perfunctoriness. Seeing this, Minister Ye’s expression darkened further.

Xu Qingyan curled his lip and turned his head away without speaking. Anyway, he was the youngest, so it wasn’t his place to speak. Xu Qingchen, however, seemed not to notice Ye Rong’s expression. His smile remained warm and courteous, perhaps even a touch more amiable. "Greetings, Young Master Ye. I hear you have a fine talent for literature. Qingyan here is not much different in age from you, though he is quite mischievous. When you both have leisure time, you should interact more."

Xu Qingyan was inwardly fuming. Who wants to interact with *him*? Outwardly, however, he didn’t dare to refute Xu Qingchen in the slightest. He obediently put on a friendly smile. "Eldest Brother is right. This younger brother will certainly learn much from Young Master Ye."

Xu Qingchen was very pleased with his younger brother’s obedience. He turned and had someone present the gifts intended for Ye Rong and the other members of the Ye Family. Ye Rong immediately felt a surge of goodwill towards Xu Qingchen. Compared to Xu Qingfeng—who was always finding fault with him, frequently intimidating him, and looking at him with utter disdain—Xu Qingchen, who showed absolutely no sign of looking down on him, was simply wonderful!

Xu Qingyan, who was being forced to "make friends," subtly sidled up to Xu Qingbai. He secretly nudged his arm and shot him a puzzled look: Why would Eldest Brother take a liking to this idiot?

Xu Qingbai returned an upright and impartial gaze: Because he’s foolish and idiotic enough.

Only a complete idiot would believe that their Eldest Brother would genuinely like anyone from the Ye Family other than their cousin. The probability of that was even lower than Eldest Brother not making things difficult for Prince Ding, right?