Green willow!
Xie Nanjia looked at the woman in front of her who was wearing light clothes, had bright makeup, and had a figure as delicate as a willow in the wind. She couldn't believe that this was the Green Willow she had been dreaming of seeing!
Her most trusted, caring and capable girl, Luliu!
It turned out that Lvliu did not listen to her and return to the General's Mansion, but stayed in the Marquis' Mansion. Judging from her clothes and condition, she did not seem to have suffered any grievances. Instead, she lived a more comfortable life than before. I wonder which master she is following now.
She is here, and where is the painting building? The two of them have always been inseparable, so why are they not together now
Did he return to the general's mansion, or was he assigned to different masters
Although Lvliu is a maid, she has developed a proud character after following her for a long time. Who can make her give up her identity as the adopted daughter of the general's mansion and willingly continue to be a maid
Could it be that she and Hualou couldn't bear to leave their newborn baby and volunteered to stay and take care of the child
Xie Nanjia thought a lot at this moment. He wished he could recognize Lvliu on the spot and ask her what had happened during this period of time and where the child was now.
Fortunately, she was not impulsive enough to do anything reckless. She just held back the tears that were about to burst out of her eyes, stepped back silently, lowered her head and hid all her emotions.
The Fourth Aunt successfully attracted the maids' attention and stood there waiting for them to come over and pay their respects to her.
The news that she stayed overnight in the front yard yesterday had spread throughout the mansion. No matter how the maids felt about her in their hearts, they still had to appear respectful on the surface and came forward to greet her.
Only Lvliu had a look of disdain on her face. She didn't even bow and turned away.
The fourth concubine could not tolerate such blatant contempt, and called her out in a stern voice: "Which courtyard are you from? Stop right there!"
The green willow didn't even look back, and walked away, brushing the flowers and willows.
When the girls saw her leaving, they quickly chased after her.
Then Lvliu scolded them in a dissatisfied tone: "How ignorant are you? A concubine is worthy of such flattery."
The fourth concubine was so angry that she fell backwards and asked Yunxia, "Who is that arrogant little bitch? How dare she be so rude to me?"
Yunxia whispered, "Auntie, don't be angry with her. She used to be Luliu, the personal maid of the Crown Prince's wife, and now she is the Crown Prince's new favorite, Aunt Liu. She is in her prime, so it is inevitable that she is arrogant."
"What did you say?" Xie Nanjia and Fourth Aunt exclaimed at the same time.
Xie Nanjia felt as if a muffled thunder exploded above her head, making her head buzz and her body sway a few times.
Lvliu is Zhao Jingping's new favorite, how is this possible
No, she didn't believe it. Unless she saw it with her own eyes, she would never believe it even if she was beaten to death!
Lvliu despised Zhao Jingping's romantic ways just as much as she did. How could she possibly climb into Zhao Jingping's bed after her death
Is she crazy
Fourth Aunt also couldn't believe it. She stared at Lvliu's back for a long while and asked Yunxia, "Is she Lvliu? Why didn't I recognize her at all?"
Yunxia said, "She used to dress like a maid, but now that she is favored, she looks brand new from head to toe. At first glance, she is a little unrecognizable."
The fourth concubine was amazed: "I knew she was smart and arrogant, but I never realized she was actually a beauty. Clothes make the man, and saddles make the horse."
After the two of them said this, Xie Nanjia finally came to her senses. No wonder she saw that Lvliu was dressed much better than before. It turned out that she was no longer wearing a maid's attire.
She was so excited when she first saw Green Willow that she ignored these details.
Xie Nanjia felt a pang of pain in her heart, and she could not accept the fact that Lvliu followed Zhao Jingping no matter what.
That was her loyal Lvliu, who treated her like a sister. She was still thinking about her even when she was dying. She had planned everything for her and wanted her to return to the general's mansion to be a rich lady.
It turns out that all this was just my wishful thinking, and the other person already had other plans in mind.
When did Lvliu start to like Zhao Jingping, and why didn't she realize it at all
Could it be that the two of them had already secretly made plans when she was still alive
If this is true, then is Lvliu a greater suspect than Qin Wanru
She didn't dare think about it anymore.
She couldn't bear such a truth, nor could she accept such filth.
She didn't want to believe that her true feelings had been wasted.
No, if all this is true, it is feeding the wolf.
Dogs only bite people, but wolves eat people.
"Xiu'er, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so unhappy?" Seeing that she had not spoken for a long time, the Fourth Aunt noticed that something was wrong with her.
Xie Nanjia seemed to have been drained of her energy and vitality. She replied weakly, "I feel a little uncomfortable. It may be because the weather is too hot."
"Don't tell me you've got a heat stroke?" Yunxia asked with concern. "I think the weather is getting hotter and hotter. Why don't we go back? Auntie and the Marquis are getting along really well. We can't let you get sick at this critical moment and give others an opportunity to take advantage of you."
Upon hearing this, the Fourth Aunt did not dare to stay any longer and hurried back to Qingfeng Courtyard.
Back in the yard, Yunxia said again: "Xiu'er, if you feel uncomfortable, just go back to the room and rest. Auntie, I'm here!"
The fourth concubine nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, just let Yunxia serve."
She was afraid that Xie Nanjia was really ill, and would pass on her illness to her, thus hindering her from getting close to the Marquis.
Xie Nanjia understood everything clearly, but she didn't have the energy to care about it at the moment, so she obeyed the order and went back to her room.
The door closed and she fell headfirst onto the bed, tears streaming down her face silently.
She had made up her mind on Zhuangzi that she would never cry easily again, but tears were not as easy to control as she thought. At this moment, she really broke down.
…
Xie Nanjia stayed in her room all day and didn't go out until dinner time.
The Fourth Aunt thought she was really ill, and told her that she didn't need to be served by her side. If she was still not in good spirits tomorrow, she could let Yunxia and Sumei go with her when she went to pay her respects to the old lady.
Xie Nanjia naturally couldn't miss the opportunity to go to the old lady. Lvliu had been included in her suspect list, and she had to hurry to find out the whereabouts of Hualou. Now the only one she could count on was Hualou.
Hualou is a simple and honest person, a little slow, and not as cunning as Lvliu. She believes that Hualou will never do the same thing as Lvliu.
"Don't worry, Auntie. I'm fine." Xie Nanjia said, "Auntie just came back from the farm. I don't know what will happen at the old lady's place tomorrow. I will be worried if I don't follow you."
The Fourth Aunt thought about it and felt that she would feel more at ease with her around, so she didn't say anything more.
Nothing happened that night. At dawn the next day, the masters of each courtyard got up, washed and dressed, and went to pay their respects to the old lady.
Yunxia was busy selecting beautiful clothes and jewelry for the Fourth Aunt. The Fourth Aunt also wanted to stand out in front of everyone, so she took out all her best clothes to try on.
Just when they were in high spirits, Xie Nanjia came in and poured a bucket of cold water on them.
"Auntie, have you forgotten why you went to the manor in the first place? In a few days, it will be the seventh day of the marriage of the Crown Prince's wife. If you don't want to be caught by the Madam, you'd better dress plainly. If you are found to be wrong by the old lady, it may not be as simple as going to the manor."
The Fourth Aunt's good mood was dampened by her. She was very unhappy, but she had to admit that she was right. She had to choose a plain dress, take off all the hairpins on her head, and pin on an inconspicuous gold hairpin as an embellishment.
The old lady's courtyard is called Ci'an Ju, which is the largest courtyard in the marquis's mansion. The layout and landscape inside were carefully designed and carved by skilled craftsmen from Jiangnan. It is leisurely, quiet, rich and elegant, fully reflecting her noble status and filial piety of Marquis Dingyuan.
The second largest courtyard in the Marquis's mansion is Zhao Jingyu's courtyard. The reason why the entire west wing was given to him to live in was mainly because the Marquis felt guilty about him. In order to show her magnanimity, Qin acquiesced and named the west wing Guiyuyuan, which means the lost and recovered precious jade. However, Zhao Jingyu thought it was too pretentious and forbade people to call it that, so everyone still called it the West Wing.
Fourth Aunt had gotten up early enough, but when she arrived, there were still people who had arrived earlier than her waiting in the yard.
The masters of the second and third rooms were all the old lady's illegitimate sons. Although they had been separated and lived in separate houses at an early age, they relied on the help and support of the marquis and both the old and the young got good official positions in the capital. Therefore, they were always respectful to the first room and did not dare to slack off.
The second and third wives tried their best to please the old lady, for fear that they would be outdone by the other and that good things would not fall upon them.
Therefore, on the first and fifteenth day of every month, the two ladies would always get up at five in the morning and come here with their children to wait.
Qin didn't need to be as attentive as them. She always estimated the time when the old lady would get up and come slowly. After she had enjoyed the greetings and flattery from her two sisters-in-law, it was just the time for the old lady to call people in. She knew her timing very well.
It was the same this time. After everyone was present, Qin came slowly with Zhao Jingping and five young ladies.
Even if she is a concubine's daughter, she is still her daughter and can only follow her, not her concubines.
Of course, Zhao Jingyu would not come with her.
Zhao Jingyu never even abided by the rules of the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month. He came whenever he wanted and no one could control him.
In the entire marquis's mansion, he was probably the only one who could come and go freely as he pleased in the old lady's courtyard.
When Qin arrived in front of the crowd, the first thing she did was to look for the Fourth Aunt. When she saw the Fourth Aunt's simple attire, she was very surprised.
The Fourth Aunt has always been the most ostentatious. Wherever there are people, she will be like a peacock spreading its tail, trying to outdo others.
She had been angry all day yesterday and was thinking of using this as an excuse to take action against the Fourth Aunt, but she didn't expect that the Fourth Aunt would be the most low-key one today.
It's really weird.
The Fourth Aunt noticed Qin's intention and couldn't help feeling a little scared, but also a little relieved. Fortunately, she listened to Xiu'er's reminder, otherwise she might have been punished by the Madam before she even saw the old lady today.
Everyone came to greet Qin, the two sisters-in-law spoke nicely as usual, the younger generations also chatted with their familiar brothers and sisters, the courtyard was filled with joy.
Xie Nanjia was not interested in any of these hypocritical social engagements. She was concentrating on finding Hualou among the maids, but she couldn't find him after searching everywhere.
She was looking for Hualou, but Zhao Jingping was looking for her.
Zhao Jingping had been thinking about her ever since he saw her in Qin's room last time, but she was the Fourth Aunt's maid, so Zhao Jingping couldn't rashly go to the Fourth Aunt's courtyard to look for her.
He guessed that today was the fifteenth day of the lunar year, and Xiu'er should come with the fourth concubine to pay respects to the old lady. He had been looking forward to it since last night, looking forward to it so much that he slept alone for the first time in his life, without asking anyone to serve him.
Sure enough, Xiu'er really came today, and he found her in the crowd at once. She was standing next to the Fourth Aunt, her clear almond-shaped eyes looking around curiously, as if she was admiring the scenery, or looking for something.
Isn't she looking for me too? Zhao Jingping thought to himself, and he took it seriously. He forgot where he was and went over to greet Xie Nanjia excitedly: "Xiu'er, you're here too?"
Xie Nanjia was looking for the painting building when she suddenly heard a man calling her name. She was startled and turned around to see Zhao Jingping appear in front of her, smiling and acting in a very romantic manner, like a male peacock spreading its tail tail to a female peacock.
What an idiot! Xie Nanjia cursed in her heart. He just did what he wanted and didn't think about what trouble this voice would bring to her.
Sure enough, with this shout, everyone's eyes turned over here.
But Zhao Jingping was completely unaware and asked her with a smile: "How many days have you been here? Are you used to living here?"
Faced with his unrestrained behavior, Qin was so angry that her face turned black, and Qin Wanru's face was even blacker than the bottom of a pot.
Xie Nanjia had no choice but to bow to him in public: "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. I am living very well."
"You rude slave girl, you actually called yourself 'I' in front of your master? Slap your face!" Qin Wanru lost her temper and scolded.
The little girl next to her immediately came up and tried to slap Xie Nanjia in the face.
Xie Nanjia frowned and reached out to grab the little girl's wrist: "I am the Fourth Aunt's person, what qualifications do you have to hit me?"
The little girl was not very experienced, and said arrogantly: "So what if I am the Fourth Aunt? I belong to my cousin."
"Miss cousin?" Xie Nanjia sneered, "Since she is a cousin, she is a guest of the Marquis' Mansion. What qualifications do guests have to teach the host family a lesson?"
The word "guest" was like a stab in the heart of Qin's aunt and nephew. Qin Wanru was so ashamed and angry that she was about to cry.
Everyone was in an uproar.
Where did this little girl come from? How dare she speak such nonsense? Does she think her life is too long
The Fourth Aunt was also frightened. She was just feeling grateful that Xiu'er had helped her escape a disaster, but she didn't expect that Xiu'er would turn around and cause her a big trouble.
Daring to ridicule Qin Wanru in front of Qin, isn't it obvious that she is putting her neck on Qin's knife
What should I do
Seeing that Qin was about to lose her temper, the fourth concubine stepped forward and said, "Xiu'er, don't be rude. Kneel down and kowtow to your cousin. Your cousin is very generous and will definitely forgive you because you are new here and don't know the rules."
(End of this chapter)