Zhou Shaojin and Jiying covered their mouths and laughed. Jiying even more playfully said, "How did you do such a bad job? You didn't even notice a living person like me walking in from the outside. If it happens again, I will transfer you to the outer courtyard to sweep the corridor!"
The little maidservant was so frightened that she was trembling with fear, and her tears were about to fall. She said anxiously to the "Second Young Lady": "This servant has been watching with her eyes open, and she didn't see this young lady come in..."
Seeing that the little maid took it seriously, Zhou Shaojin hurriedly said, "This is Miss Ji. Is she kidding you?! She came in when you went to make tea, so maybe she strayed in time. Don't be afraid, it's not a big deal!"
The little maid was relieved when she heard this. She looked at Zhou Shaojin gratefully and promised repeatedly: "Second Miss, I will keep my eyes open when I am on duty in the future."
Zhou Shaojin gave her a handful of candy, smiled and said a few words to comfort her, then let her leave.
Jiying said in a bored tone: "It's really boring!"
Zhou Shaojin smiled slightly.
Or is it because Jiying has always been a favored child of heaven
She thought that she was a person like this little maid in her previous life, so she could especially understand their joys and sorrows, and therefore she could be compassionate and kind to the maids and old women around her.
Zhou Shaojin took Jiying to meet Li.
Li heard that Jiying was Zhou Shaojin's friend, and came all the way from Cangzhou Prefecture to visit Zhou Shaojin. Although she was a little surprised by the age difference between them, she still met Jiying warmly and attentively, and even invited Jiying to have dinner with her.
Ji Ying politely declined and returned to the main room with Zhou Shaojin.
Zhou Shaojin smiled and said, "Our chef came from Jiangnan and is good at making delicious Hangzhou cuisine. You came back empty-handed after entering a treasure mountain, so don't regret it later."
Ji Ying had lived in Jinling City for several years and was very fond of the exquisite food of Jiangnan. Hearing this, she couldn't help but salivate and said, "How about you invite me to dinner next time I come? I have to find Qin Ziping now, otherwise I will really have to marry him."
Zhou Shaojin said: "Didn't your two families propose marriage? What if you don't marry him?"
Ji Ying seemed a little impatient and said, "But I can't just marry him like this!"
Zhou Shaojin said, "If you don't mind him being Uncle Chi's servant, I think he's pretty good. He's considerate and knows everything about you..." At this point, she thought of Song Mu and changed the subject, saying, "But if you really don't like him, forget it. After all, he's the person you'll spend your life with. Tell your father and Uncle Chi honestly. I believe they won't force you."
"Like him?!" Jiying frowned.
"Yes!" Zhou Shaojin said with a smile, "You know Qin Ziping. If you really can't get along with him, it will definitely be painful to live with him..."
Ji Ying seemed a little conflicted. After hesitating for a long time, he said, "He used to be your uncle Chi's man... He is naturally very capable, but the more he is like this, the more annoying he is..."
Maybe it was because the two of them were opponents before, and no matter how good that person was, he couldn't attract her favor.
Zhou Shaojin smiled warmly and said, "Don't jump to conclusions so quickly! You can't judge a person by his appearance. Look at Jiao Ziyang. If you hadn't suddenly gone to Jiuru Lane, would you have known who he was? You should think about this carefully!" Then he said, "Do you want me to ask Uncle Chi where he went?"
Ji Ying nodded absentmindedly and said, "Then please ask the Fourth Master for me!"
Zhou Shaojin asked her to stay again: "You can stay here with me! There are only me, my wife and my younger sister in this house."
"I still want to try to find Qin Ziping." Ji Ying hesitated for a while and said, "The Ji family also has a shop in the capital, so I'll just stay there. It will also prevent my father and mother from worrying."
That’s fine!
Zhou Shaojin asked Nanny Shang to take Jiying to the Ji family's shop.
Nanny Shang smiled and said, "The Fourth Master asked me to follow you closely. Miss Ji is very skilled, so I think we can just ask a guard to take her to the Ji family's shop."
Jiying doesn't even need guards.
Finally, at Zhou Shaojin's insistence, they took a sedan chair to the Ji family's shop.
After this incident, she felt much better.
Nanny Shang came in and said to Zhou Shaojin with a smile, "Second Miss, the Fourth Master is here. He is waiting for you in the study room in the outer courtyard. He said he has something to tell you!"
"Really!" Zhou Shaojin was delighted.
Didn’t you say you had to go out today
She picked up her skirt and trotted to the study.
Cheng Chi was wearing a lotus-colored silk gown with dark flowing water patterns and a small jade seal hanging from his waist. He was standing in the middle of the study with his hands behind his back. He saw her running in, panting, with a flushed face, running in joyfully like a young swallow that had fledged into the forest.
The smile between his brows became brighter.
He walked up to Zhou Shaojin and hugged him, and asked softly, "What did you do today? Did you eat well?"
Zhou Shaojin looked slightly embarrassed.
She had originally planned to sew the sleeves of the winter coat that she had spent a lot of time making for Uncle Chi, but she procrastinated and hadn't even finished sewing many stitches yet.
"She's doing needlework at home!" Zhou Shaojin said vaguely, thinking of Jiying, and hurriedly asked, "Uncle Chi, has she seen Jiying? She just left and said she was looking for Qin Ziping. Do you know where Qin Ziping is?"
He knew that when he was away, the maid was too lazy to even leave the house.
Cheng Chi scratched her beautiful nose and said with a smile, "Qin Ziping went out to help me with some work. She will be back in a few days. I saw her sitting in the sedan chair, so I didn't say hello to her."
He had thought it was Zhou Shaojin before.
In other words, Uncle Chi watched Jiying leave!
This seems a bit egregious...
However, Uncle Chi seemed to always treat people as he pleased... Zhou Shaojin didn't say much.
Cheng Chi took out a paper bag from his arms and said, "It is said that this is a water lily the size of a bowl. If you plant it now, it will bloom in the fall, or even in the winter. Do you want to try planting it?"
"Yes, yes, yes." Zhou Shaojin was very happy.
Cheng Chi handed the paper bag to Zhou Shaojin and whispered, "I originally wanted your sister to leave you in the capital. Now, my mother is coming to the capital. You should stay with my mother in the capital—it is the right thing to do!"
"The old lady has come to the capital?" Zhou Shaojin was very surprised.
"Yes!" Cheng Chi laughed, "He even asked the chief steward Qin to help him and hid it from me. He said he would move to my house in Chaoyangmen tomorrow, and asked my brother and second sister-in-law to move with him. I may be very busy these days and have no time to accompany you. If you don't think it's fun, ask Steward Xiang and Nanny Shang to take you out for a walk. Buy whatever you want, and Steward Xiang will put the bill on my side. Don't always stay at home doing needlework by yourself, and keep an eye out, understand?"
He gave gentle instructions, so meticulously and thoughtfully that Zhou Shaojin's heart was almost overwhelmed by the tenderness and love.
She nodded obediently and said softly, "Then you should also take care to rest and don't get tired. If there is anything I can help with, just let me know..." At this point, she asked Cheng Chi hesitantly, "Should I kowtow to her?"
After what happened with Uncle Chi, she felt guilty whenever she thought of Old Madam Guo.
Cheng Chi smiled and said, "She saw through my thoughts. But it's not the time to make it clear, so I didn't say much to her. Since she's here, you should go and kowtow to her. But don't panic, she's not someone who doesn't know the importance of things. Before the division, she would never tell you these things. Just go visit the old lady with your sister and wife as before. If the old lady says something in an ambiguous tone, just pretend you don't understand. I'll take care of everything!"
How could a man as patient as Uncle Chi be seen through by the old lady
He was taking everything upon himself just because he didn't want to embarrass her.
Even if she had not had the experience of her previous life, the fact that there was a man who cared about her like this and was the one she loved made her feel that her life was not in vain. Now with the comparison of her previous life, Zhou Shaojin was even more moved.
She hugged Cheng Chi for the first time and whispered, "I know!"
Although he only carefully grabbed the clothes on both sides of Cheng Chi's waist, this was the first time that Zhou Shaojin took the initiative like this.
Cheng Chi was overjoyed.
But he didn't dare to act rashly.
Shao Jin is just a timid little rabbit and can only approach slowly.
He tried hard to stop the various thoughts that emerged in his heart. He just touched her head lovingly and said with a smile: "Then I'll go back first!"
Zhou Shaojin reluctantly saw Cheng Chi off, and after returning to the inner house, he immediately went to see Li and told her the news that Mrs. Guo had come to the capital.
Li was surprised and delighted. She asked, "When should we go to see the old lady? Should we go to the clothing store over at Xizhimen to make some clothes?" She stood up uneasily and adjusted her temples, as if she was going to see Madam Guo soon. "I think I should also make some jewelry." Then she remembered her brother and anxiously ordered the little maid, "Go and tell the eldest uncle that Madam Guo has come to the capital. Tell him not to leave in a hurry and to go to pay his respects to the old lady." After saying that, she was afraid that this would be inappropriate, so she said to Zhou Shaojin, "Do you think my brother should go with us to pay his respects to the old lady? Or should he go at another opportunity?"
Zhou Shaojin didn't expect that she took this matter so seriously, and he became a little cautious, saying, "How about I wait until I ask my sister before making a decision?"
Li nodded repeatedly and said, "I will send a maid to tell the eldest aunt the news."
Zhou Shaojin nodded, went back to the upper room, and told Jixiang Ruyi to get a water container, and started peeling the lotus seeds with a paper cutter.
Jixiang asked curiously, "Second Miss, what are you going to do?"
Zhou Shaojin smiled and said, "This is how lotus seeds can sprout."
Jixiang lay beside Zhou Shaojin and was unwilling to leave. He said, "Second Miss, can it really bloom like this?"
"Yes!" Zhou Shaojin said with a firm smile, "However, if I damage the lotus seeds, they may not sprout."
Jixiang even breathed lighter.
Zhou Shaojin smiled and asked her, "Do you like flowers and plants?"
Jixiang nodded continuously.
Zhou Shaojin said: "Okay. You can help me take care of the flowers and plants from now on."
Jixiang was overjoyed.
The maid came in and reported, "Second Miss, someone has come from the eldest aunt's place and said they will come to visit you and your wife early tomorrow morning."
※
Sisters and Brothers Letter, today's update.
There will be more updates for everyone to read tomorrow morning!
O(∩_∩)O~
※(To be continued)