The fire-making girl’s task is not only to make fire. When not making fire, she also has to pick vegetables, wash vegetables, clean the kitchen, etc.
When Feng Lun came over, Xie Nanjia was sweeping the floor. Feng Lun said someone was looking for her in the front yard and asked her to come over immediately.
Xie Nanjia guessed that it must be her younger brother who had come, so she put down her broom, took off her apron, greeted Aunt Cai, and followed Feng Lun to the front yard.
When they reached a deserted place, Xie Nanjia called him, "Brother Feng, who's looking for me?"
Feng Lun said solemnly, "I think today's events are a bit strange. Master Xie came to our house, smashed the front yard, and wanted to find Miss Hualou and you. I don't know what he wants to do."
"Did he find the painting building?" Xie Nanjia asked.
"Found it." Feng Lun said, "That's why I smashed the front yard in anger because I found it."
"Why?" Xie Nanjia asked again.
"He said that he shouldn't let his sister's maid clean the toilet." Feng Lun said.
Washing the toilet? Xie Nanjia's heart tightened, and a variety of emotions surged into his mind.
When Hualou followed her, although she was a maid, she actually enjoyed better life than ordinary girls. She treated her and Lvliu like sisters and never let them suffer any grievances. How come she has now fallen to the point of washing toilets
Feng Lun saw that she looked unhappy and consoled her, "Don't worry, I'm here. If Master Xie really wants to make things difficult for you, I will protect you at all costs."
Xie Nanjia said: "Thank you, Brother Feng. Please don't offend Master Xie on my behalf. I will act according to the circumstances."
She knew her brother's temper very well. If he really did something stupid, not to mention Feng Lun, even Marquis Dingyuan would be unable to stop him.
She will need Feng Lun's help later on, and she can't let others know about their private relationship.
Feng Lun said, "I know you are always smart, but it seems that your name caused trouble this time. I heard that Master Xie said that the Crown Prince's wife's nickname is also Xiu'er, so he thinks your name is an insult to the Crown Prince's wife."
Xie Nanjia smiled and said, "I see. It's not my fault what the name is. If he doesn't like it, just change it."
Feng Lun said, "I'm afraid it's not that simple. Madam seems to want to drive you away in order to appease his anger."
Ha! Xie Nanjia sneered in her heart. The Marquis' wife was still the Marquis' wife. Her method of solving the problem was still so simple, crude and inhumane. But this time, she was afraid that it would not go as she wished.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Feng Lun thought she was worried about being kicked out of the house. He was also a little worried. He secretly considered suitable areas for renting a house in Beijing, and planned that if things really became irreversible, he would rent a place for Xiu'er to stay.
When they arrived at the front yard, Feng Lun led Xie Nanjia into the reception room, then he stepped out and stood guard outside the door.
The reception room was in a mess, but Xie Nanjia didn't pay any attention to it. She automatically ignored everyone else and her eyes fell directly on the girl who was standing next to Xie Nanfeng with her head down.
If she hadn't heard Feng Lun tell her beforehand, she would hardly believe that it was Hualou. How could that gray, skinny and haggard girl be her simple and naive little girl Hualou
With tears in her eyes, she walked towards Hualou step by step. Hualou heard the footsteps and raised his head timidly, but lowered it again when he met her gaze.
She didn't know Xie Nanjia and didn't care about her at all.
Xie Nanjia felt extremely sad. She had gone to great lengths to find Hualou, but Hualou didn't recognize her and wasn't even willing to look at her for even a second.
Lvliu said that Hualou only had eyes for the young lady, and it would be a waste to look at anyone else except her.
But Hualou, I'm right here, your lady is right in front of you, can you please take a good look at me
She knew in her heart that it was an unattainable luxury for Hualou to look at her more now. She forced herself to stop being sentimental, turned her eyes away from Hualou, lifted her skirt and knelt on the ground: "I greet the Madam and Mr. Xie."
Xie Nanfeng had been staring at her since she entered the room, and he realized that the first person she saw was not him, but Hualou. The way she looked at Hualou was so passionate, it was as if she had seen her lover.
But Hualou obviously didn't know her and ignored her.
This made Xie Nanfeng feel incredible.
Qin was not as idle as he was to observe this and that. She just wanted to get rid of these annoying people as soon as possible and lie down quietly in her backyard.
So, she said, "Master Xie, this girl is Xiu'er. If you have anything to say, just ask her quickly!"
Xie Nanfeng smiled and said, "Madam, are you in a hurry to get me out?"
Qin bowed slightly without responding, and she didn't even bother to hide her mood of seeing the guest off.
Xie Nanfeng was not annoyed, and turned his eyes to look at Xie Nanjia: "Do you still remember what you said to me that day?"
Xie Nanjia said: "I remember, Master Xie, please forgive me, I lied to you."
"..." Xie Nanfeng was blocked by her words. He choked for a long time and said angrily, "Bold slave, why did you lie to me?"
Xie Nanjia said, "I was doing this for your own good. If I hadn't stopped you, you would have killed the prince. Killing someone means paying with your life. The general only has you and your sister. Your sister is gone. Have you ever thought about how the general and his wife would survive if you were gone?"
"..." Xie Nanfeng was speechless. He knew she was quibbling, but he had no words to say.
Xie Nanjia added, "Let's take a step back and say that even if the young master didn't kill anyone, you made such a scene during the funeral of the Crown Prince's wife. Was it to vent her anger or to make her restless? How would the Crown Prince's wife feel when she saw her father, a general who defended the country, had to fight with a group of guards in public to protect her only brother?"
"..." Xie Nanfeng's eyes suddenly turned red, and for a moment he didn't dare to look directly into Xie Nanjia's eyes.
Her eyes were the same as her sister's, and even her tone and expression when she scolded him were the same, and every word she said made it impossible for him to refute.
Yes, she was right. He was only thinking about venting his anger for his sister but forgot to consider his parents' feelings. He made a big fuss in the Marquis' Mansion and his father helped him. He felt very relieved, but he ignored the fact that others were watching their fun while watching the fun in the Marquis' Mansion. When he returned home, his mother not only did not blame him, but also helped him scold Zhao Jingping. But does this prove that his mother really wants him to beat someone to death? How does he know that his mother is not worried about him behind his back
And there is my sister. When she was alive, she was worried about his willfulness and recklessness. Now that she is gone, he is still like this and has not improved at all. How can she leave with peace of mind
The more he thought about it, the more ashamed he felt. If he hadn't cared about his own face, he would have almost run away.
Qin had not expected Xiu'er to be so eloquent. She could render Xie Nanfeng speechless with just a few words. Moreover, she was so calm in front of Xie Nanfeng. She did not act like a little girl at all. Instead, she seemed like she was teaching a child a lesson. She really did not know where she got the confidence from.
Compared to Qin, Hualou, who knew Xie Nanfeng better, was very worried about Xie Nanjia. This young master had always been the one to teach others, but it was never the turn of others to teach him, especially when the girl came from an unknown background. It was really a blessing in disguise that he could hold his temper and not draw his sword.
Xie Nanfeng said slowly, "Although you are too presumptuous, I am not an unreasonable person. I thank you for your reminder, but this does not mean that I will forgive your disregard and deception, so you still can't escape the punishment you deserve."
"I am willing to accept the punishment." Xie Nanjia knelt straight and suddenly burst into tears without any warning. "I lost my father when I was young, and my mother raised me with great difficulty. I followed Fourth Aunt from the farm to the mansion, thinking that no matter how hard or tiring it was, I would work hard here and save more money to honor my mother.
But since I came to the Marquis's Mansion, my life has been in danger every other day. Not only was I sent to the kitchen by the Fourth Aunt to be a fire-making maid, but because Qiqi stopped the Master that day, I was called a foxy woman who wanted to climb into the bed and climb up the social ladder. I know that I am stupid and have no backing, so no matter how difficult or aggrieved it is, I have to endure it. The Master can punish me if he wants, but as long as he doesn't drive me out, I'm fine with whatever he does."
"… "
Everyone in the room was stunned.
This girl is too cruel. She was righteously teaching someone a lesson just now, but now she has become the most wronged person in the world. Look at how pitiful she looks. Who would have the heart to punish her? If one can have the heart to punish such a pitiful person, is he still a human being
Especially for a young man like Xie Nanfeng, how could he have the nerve to haggle with a little girl with a miserable life
"Uh..." Xie Nanfeng hesitated for a long time with his mouth open, smacked his lips and said, "Why are you crying? I'm not that unkind. Besides, I'm not the master of your mansion, so I don't have the final say on how to punish you. But you offended me today, so it's not your masters' turn to punish you, so why don't you decide for yourself? You have the final say on what kind of punishment you think you should receive, okay?"
“…”Everyone was even more speechless.
A young man is a young man. He does whatever he wants and lets the person being punished decide how to punish him. This is really unheard of.
Hualou widened her already big eyes and looked at her young master deeply, thinking to herself, is this really Young Master Nanfeng? When did he become so easy to talk to
Xie Nanjia saw Hualou's silly expression out of the corner of her eye, and felt sad but also wanted to laugh. This ignorant and silly look was really what Hualou was like!
Looking at Hualou, she wanted to do whatever it took to punish herself by washing the toilet so that she could be with Hualou.
But she couldn't say that, she had more things to do.
"Sir, you are such a kind person. Since you don't have the heart to punish me, then let me stay in the kitchen and do my job. Whenever you come to visit, I will cook for you. Okay?"
"Pfft!" Xie Nanfeng finally couldn't help laughing, "Don't try to coax me anymore, you're just a fire-burning girl, what kind of dishes can you cook?"
Xie Nanjia blinked: "In order to repay you, I can learn it!"
Xie Nanfeng laughed loudly: "Okay, I agree!"
Qin came to her senses and suddenly felt that something was wrong. Things shouldn't have turned out like this. Xie Nanfeng came here specially to make trouble, wasn't it just to take Xiu'er away? Why did both of them end up being happy, and Xiu'er had to continue to stay in the mansion
How is this going
How come it is completely different from what she thought
If it can be done so easily, then what does the mess in my room matter
What does a broken nanmu chair matter
This is outrageous!
Just as she was confused, she heard Xie Nanfeng say to her, "Madam, let's leave it at that for today. Let Xiu'er continue to work in the kitchen. I will come over from time to time to taste her cooking skills. I hope she won't be bullied here again. If you think it's inappropriate, I will pay her monthly salary. Is that okay?"
"..." Qin Shi had a mouthful of blood stuck in her throat. Listening to what he said, today's matter was like this. It was obviously infuriating. She finally understood that this ancestor was not after Hua Lou Xiu'er at all. He just wanted to do something he could do to her. He thought she was dying too slowly, so he wanted to find an excuse to make trouble.
Oh my God, why am I so frustrated
However, even more frustrating things are yet to come.
Xie Nanjia asked Xie Nanfeng: "Sir, should I change my name?"
Xie Nanfeng waved his hand and said, "Don't change it. It's just a name. There are so many people with the same name in the world. Knowing that there is someone with the same name as my sister in this mansion, I can have more thoughts. It's good."
There was one thing he didn't say. This Xiu'er looked too much like his sister. And because of this name, he felt as if his sister had come back again. He was reluctant to change her name.
Qin was almost going crazy. After sending Xie Nanfeng away, she could no longer bear this humiliation and kept asking people to invite the Marquis back. She wanted to let the Marquis see how the child of the Xie family humiliated the Marquis's mansion. She wanted to ask the Marquis if he still had any dignity as a Marquis.
(End of this chapter)