Later, even Sima Lian, who rarely went out, knew that Mingyu was ill and came to visit her. The little girl was about thirteen or fourteen years old, a little older than Mingyu, thin and small, wearing a half-worn aqua-red skirt and old shoes. The embroidery on them was worn out, like an old adult's shoes that had been made smaller.
"I heard that my second sister-in-law was sick, so I came to see her." Sima Lian sat in front of Mingyu's bed, feeling a little restrained.
In fact, Mingyu was even more uncomfortable. It felt so weird that a girl older than her respectfully called her sister-in-law.
Sima Lian brought a small gift to Mingyu, a blue purse embroidered with six-petal plum blossoms, with a string of small dark wooden beads hanging from the bottom. "I don't have anything good to bring to my second sister-in-law, I made it myself, please don't dislike it, second sister-in-law." Sima Lian said embarrassedly.
"You're welcome, little sister." Mingyu smiled and asked Lixiang to tie the purse to the clothes she hung on the bedside. "It's very delicate and beautiful. Much better than my handwork."
Sima Lian was very happy to receive the compliment, her face flushed, "My aunt wanted to come and see you, but she was not feeling well, and she was afraid that she would pass on her illness to you, so she didn't come to see you, please don't blame me, sister-in-law."
Mingyu quickly shook her head. She had been ill for such a long time, and her legitimate mother-in-law had never come to see her. How could she dare to ask her father-in-law's concubine to visit her? She said modestly, "Auntie is the elder. How can an elder visit a younger person? It's really embarrassing for Mingyu. I will go to visit Auntie when I get better."
In fact, Mingyu and Sima Lian did not have much in common. Sima Lian was quiet, introverted and timid. She usually followed her master to learn music, chess, calligraphy and painting. She basically never went out of the house. When she was free, she did some housework. Mingyu knew nothing except her good calligraphy.
The two chatted for a few words and then ran out of topics to talk about. Sima Lian sat for a while, told Mingyu to take good care of herself, and then said goodbye and went back.
Li Xiang sat at the head of Mingyu's bed, looking through the purse Sima Lian had sent. The fabric and wooden beads were cheap, but the embroidery was good, and the flowers were vivid. She couldn't help but sigh, "The young lady is really good at needlework!"
Madam Zou had already seen from Sima Lian's attire that she and Madam Wen were not well off, so she said, "What's the point of being good at needlework? If you are not liked by the Madam, you won't be able to live a good life."
Sima Qing had two sons and did not pay much attention to this concubine's daughter whose personality he disliked. He had no intention of taking care of the affairs of the harem. Miao did not like them, so Concubine Wen and her daughter could only live a miserable life.
It was not until the beginning of April, when the weather warmed up, that Mingyu was finally fully recovered. At noon, while the sun was still warm, Mingyu sat in the yard and let Madam Zou and Lixiang wash her hair.
After washing, Lixiang used a towel to wipe Mingyu's hair half dry, poured out the water herself, and let Mingyu sit on the lounge chair to dry her hair in the sun.
When Sima Hong came in, he saw Mingyu lying with her back to him. She was wearing a half-worn white skirt and a short jacket of the same color, with only a circle of small flowers embroidered on the cuffs. Her inky black, shiny and soft hair looked like the finest black silk, covering the entire recliner. Sima Hong felt itchy and wanted to touch Mingyu's hair to see if it was as smooth and soft as he imagined.
Hearing footsteps, Mingyu turned around and saw it was Sima Hong.
Sima Hong looked at Mingyu's cheeks, which were originally round. After being sick for more than ten days, she had lost a lot of weight, revealing a pointed chin, and her black pearl-like eyes seemed even bigger. Master Bao looked at the little girl with her hair loose, and suddenly felt a little embarrassed. He looked up at the sky. It must be because the sun was too strong today, no wonder it was a little hot.
"Are you okay?" Master Bao cleared his throat and asked.
Mingyu nodded.
"Well, that's good." Master Bao nodded, "I've been worried about you these past few days."
Mingyu bowed politely and said, "Thank you for your concern, Second Master." Her long, silky, satin-like hair slid back and forth with her movements. It took Sima Hong a long time to resist the urge to touch it.
Seeing Mingyu being so polite and awkward, Sima Hong felt annoyed again, "I really didn't mean it that day, don't mind it, I just wanted to... tease you."
Mingyu resisted the urge to smear mud all over his face again, "Are you kidding me? Are you happy with me teasing you?"
However, Mingyu's words went around in her stomach, and she didn't dare to really yell at Master Bao. She put on an innocent smile that only little girls can, "I don't mind, I really don't mind. Even if I want to mind, I don't have the courage to mind you, Master Bao!"
Before he could finish his words, a surprised voice called out from the gate of the courtyard, "Second Master!"
Mingyu tilted her head and looked over Bao Erye who was blocking her way. She couldn't help but frown. It turned out to be Zhuxiang. She had been locked up for so long and was finally let out to jump around.
After Zhuxiang was released, in order to show that she had learned the rules, the first thing she did was to pay her respects to Second Mistress. Unexpectedly, she was lucky enough to meet Second Master Bao. She must come here every day to set rules in the future, Zhuxiang thought happily.
Master Bao was still as handsome and suave as ever. Zhuxiang looked at Master Bao whom she missed day and night, and her nose felt sore. She almost cried. She sobbed and said, "Master Bao, Zhuxiang thought she would never see you again!"
Mingyu lowered her head and curled her lips, "Don't worry, there is a saying that good people don't live long, but evil deeds last for a thousand years. You and Master Bao are not good people, so you will definitely live a long life."
Master Bao had almost forgotten about Zhu Xiang and asked in surprise, "Why are you here?"
Zhu Xiang wiped away her tears of grievance and said quickly, "I'm here to pay my respects to the Second Madam."
"Oh, I see." Master Bao said casually, "She's not feeling well, you should go back first."
Zhuxiang was anxious and wanted to say something else, but Master Bao had already turned his head away and didn't look at her. Zhuxiang was completely confused. She looked at Mingyu, who was sitting on the recliner and didn't even look at her. Zhuxiang stood there awkwardly, but she didn't want to leave. Lixiang came back after pouring the water and pushed Zhuxiang away, "You should go back. Second Madam has just recovered from her illness and can't stand the tossing."
Sima Hong talked to Mingyu for a few words. Mingyu was distracted by Zhuxiang and her responses were incoherent. Sima Hong thought she was just recovering from a serious illness and had no energy, so he talked a few words and went back, telling her to have a good rest.
After Sima Hong left, Mingyu lay down on the recliner in a depressed mood. She could feel the warmth of the sun with her eyes closed, but she felt darkness in front of her eyes.
Concubine Zhu is already so difficult to deal with, I wonder what the other two concubines will be like. They have been staying in Master Bao's yard all this time, so they should be very honest... Not necessarily. Just look at Yingrong and you will know. The maids serving Master Bao are not easy to deal with. Each of them has a heart higher than the sky and a love deeper than the sea.
Mingyu was more determined to divorce. If it didn't work out, Sima Hong could divorce her. She couldn't accept a teapot with several bowls. She didn't expect her husband to love her deeply, but at least he should respect her and be loyal to her.
Nanny Zou was doing needlework in the room, and had a panoramic view of everything that happened in the yard. She came out and touched Mingyu's hair, which was still wet and not completely dry. She sighed, "Girls from the capital city are so thoughtful." She is also very enthusiastic towards men, which Nanny Zou could not help but say.
Li Xiang went on to say, "Second Master's other two concubines seem to be girls from the northwest. Their families are from here. I don't know if they are honest or not."
Mingyu lay on the chair with her eyes closed and smiled: "Whether a person is honest or not has nothing to do with the region. Not all girls in the capital are like Zhuxiang, and not all girls in the northwest are like Yingrong."
"That's right." Aunt Zou smiled. Seeing how much the Second Master cared about the Second Mistress, she was also happy and satisfied. Speaking of girls from the northwest, Aunt Zou remembered something.
"Before coming to the northwest, I heard from people who fled to our Jiangnan area that if you go west from here and pass Longxi, you will find the Tartars often appearing. They not only robbed us Han people of our food, but also killed everyone in the village and set fire to the village." All the women were abducted. Matron Zou didn't say this for fear of scaring the two little girls.
Li Xiang was terrified and patted her chest and asked, "What about us here?"
Madam Zou patted Li Xiang on the back and comforted her, "We will be fine here. To the west of Tianshui is Longxi. I heard that it is heavily guarded to protect Tianshui Prefecture. The Tartars cannot get in."
Li Xiang was relieved at this moment. Her face turned pale with fear and she muttered, "Jiangnan is still the best."
In fact, if there is really an invasion by foreign races, even Jiangnan would not be safe enough. Mingyu remembered that there was a dynasty in history that was driven south by the people on horseback, and finally the Han emperor was driven to the sea, destroying the dynasty. A national hero who resisted the invaders also emerged and wrote a famous poem, "Since ancient times, everyone has to die, but I will leave my loyalty to shine in history."
When others bully you, you retreat timidly, not daring to fight back. In the end, you have nowhere to retreat and only one way out is death, Mingyu sighed softly.
Li Xiang asked again: "Why didn't the imperial court send soldiers to drive away the invading Tartars?"
Madam Zou whispered, "I don't know either. I can't remember it was more than ten years ago. At that time, I went out to buy vegetables and heard people on the street whispering that the emperor had executed the prince who was good at fighting and killing Tartars, saying that he was scheming a rebellion, and killed many of the prince's soldiers. At that time, some people said that without talented generals, the Great Chu would definitely be bullied by the Tartars!"
"So, did that prince commit a rebellion?" Lixiang asked curiously.
Mingyu closed her eyes and listened carefully to the two people's conversation. That prince must be the Mao Wang fifteen years ago. Lu Hao's father was implicated and lost his job. It doesn't matter whether the Mao Wang rebelled or not. What matters is that the emperor sentenced him to treason. Maybe he felt threatened by his military power, or maybe he was really interested in the throne.
"Who knows?" Madam Zou shook her head. "How can ordinary people like us know the truth about the Tian family's affairs? Don't tell anyone when you go out. If people find out, you will lose your head."
Li Xiang blanched and nodded.
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