Zhou Shaojin felt a little uneasy.
Whatever the reason, she felt that Pan Qing paid too much attention to her.
She smiled perfunctorily and said, "Nothing. Just standing here to get some fresh air."
The wind blowing off the lake is cooler.
"Really?" Pan Qing smiled and looked towards the waterside pavilion opposite, saying, "I think the scenery over there is quite pleasant, but it's a pity that it's the small garden of the fifth room, and it's not convenient to walk around."
Zhou Shaojin smiled and said nothing.
Cheng Jia came over, waving a Xiang Fei red round fan with a gold-plated handle and embroidered butterflies, and asked, "Why are you all standing here? What is there to see here?"
"It's just cool." Pan Qing said, looking at Zhou Shaojin with a smile.
"You're sick!" Cheng Ji muttered quietly and glanced at Pan Qing, then smiled and said to Zhou Shaojin, "Can you take half a day off tomorrow afternoon? I want to invite you to go boating in the garden. The lotus flowers in Qingxi River have sprouted buds, and I want to pick some lotus leaves and dry them in the sun so that I can make beggar's chicken in the winter."
"That won't do!" Zhou Shaojin said with a smile, "Since I promised Madam Guo, I can't go back on my word. Go by yourself and pick some for me."
An open request means that you don’t consider yourself an outsider!
Cheng Ji immediately became happy and said, "The pond is full of lotus flowers, and there are many lotus leaves. I will pick some lotus leaves for you. In addition to making beggar's chicken, you can also make tea..."
The two of them chatted for a long time without letting Pan Qing get a word in. When Cuihuan came over to report that Aunt Shen had arrived, Cheng Ji took Zhou Shaojin's arm and went to Jing'an Zhai.
Pan Qing's eyes were slightly cold.
Unfortunately, neither Zhou Shaojin nor Cheng Ji, who were walking in front of her, noticed her. When they arrived at Jing'an Zhai, they were still whispering to each other and left her aside.
As a result, Cheng Ji almost fell into the lake when he went to pick lotus leaves.
Zhou Shaojin was shocked.
In her previous life, before the accident happened to her, Cheng Ji was doing very well. How come such a big mistake happened in this life
Fortunately, Cheng Ji was pulled back by the old woman in time and was only a little frightened.
Zhou Shaojin and his sister went to visit Cheng Ji together.
When Old Lady Guan heard about this, she called them over and said, "... Ask for me too, whether Jia-chan wants to calm down. If she does, I have some top-quality cinnabar here."
The two of them responded with a smile and went to Ruyixuan with Mrs. Mian.
Ruyixuan is located in the middle of the three rooms, with Cheng Zheng's Linglong Pavilion to the east, Li's Daoxiangyuan to the west, and Changqingtang of the upper room of the three rooms to the south. The scenery is very beautiful and the layout is magnificent, especially the Duobao Pavilion partition made of nanmu to the south of the hall, which is filled with all kinds of Ruyi made of gold, silver, jade and stone, shining brightly, and it is hard to open your eyes at a glance.
When they arrived, Cheng Ji was leaning against the head of the bed, wrapped in a bright red brocade quilt with a phoenix and the rising sun, talking to Jiang and Old Lady Li who were sitting around her bed. Cheng Xian and Pan Qing were standing behind Jiang and Old Lady Li, while Jiang, Old Lady Li and others' personal maids and servants were outside the inner and outer rooms. The huge main room was filled with people, and even the scent of the air was a mixture of the fragrance of various cosmetics.
Zhou Shaojin was used to light food and couldn't stand the smell of that, so he frowned.
Maybe it's because she has been in the orchid room for a long time and the fragrance has faded. Cheng Ji didn't seem to be unusual. When Madam Mian and Old Madam Li came to greet her, she waved to Zhou Shaojin and said, "Why are you here? I'm fine, don't worry." She also greeted Zhou Chujin loudly, "Sister Chujin!"
Zhou Chujin smiled at her.
Zhou Shaojin didn't notice it because he was far away, but when he got closer, he found that her face was flushed and she was smiling like a flower. She didn't look frightened at all. On the contrary, Jiang and others looked more nervous than her.
Mrs. Miao laughed and said, "When a child is sick, it's typical that once the wound heals, the pain is forgotten. Before she came, our old lady An reminded us again and again to make sure to find out what happened to Jia girl, but she is fine, as if nothing happened. It's a pity for us as parents."
"That's right! She scared away three of her grandmother's seven souls," Jiang came to her senses. She felt the same way when she heard the words. Her eyes turned red. She took the tea from the maid and handed it to Madam Mian herself. "But she was still smiling. We old Ans were so anxious. If Madam Zhou hadn't said it was okay, we would have forced the master to invite another doctor."
Cheng Ji blushed and muttered, "How can it be so exaggerated? It was just that the old woman who was picking lotus leaves accidentally stepped on the boat's string, and the boat shook a few times. I didn't expect it, so I panicked and shouted, and they tried to pull me back, and my sleeves got wet..."
"You're still talking!" Jiang glared at Cheng Ji, "You're not making me feel at ease at all. If you want to pick lotus leaves, just give the order, but you got on the boat by yourself..."
Old Madam Li was unhappy after hearing this and said, "Okay, okay, you've said it so many times. She already knows she's wrong, so stop nagging her. What's the name of the maid holding the flute? She needs a big reward! Otherwise, who would want to be a loyal servant?"
Although Jiang did not take her mother-in-law seriously, she was very respectful to her in front of others and behind their backs, and would never let anyone catch her.
She stood up, bowed and said "yes", and said nothing more.
Cheng Ji winked at Zhou Shaojin.
Zhou Shaojin sighed in his heart.
This is how Cheng Ji was spoiled.
However, it is better to be spoiled by someone than to be spoiled by no one.
Old Madam Li took Zhou Shaojin's hand and said, "You two have played well together since childhood. Your cousin Jia needs to stay at home to recuperate for a few days. If you have nothing to do, come and accompany her and cheer her up."
Zhou Shaojin responded with a smile.
Mrs. Wen from the fifth room came over.
When she entered the room, she did not ask what happened to Cheng Ji. Instead, she held Jiang's hand and choked with tears, saying, "I am a miserable person. After something like this happened, I am too ashamed to walk around in the other rooms."
Jiang was annoyed that she didn't understand the point, so she led her to sit on the armchair next to her.
Yuan from the eldest house and Mrs. Hong and Zheng from the second house also came.
The people from the fourth room left early.
Jiang personally sent them out of Ruyixuan.
The sky is dotted with stars and the moon is bright.
Zhou Chujin took Mrs. Mian's arm, talked about family matters, and walked slowly towards Jiashu Hall.
Zhou Shaojin, who was following behind them, was thinking about Cheng Yi and was full of thoughts.
At Cheng Yi's age, he is a playful child. He is curious about gambling, drinking, sleeping with willows and flowers, and even tries it. It is normal. As long as he knows his mistakes and can correct them, he is a good child. Even if she reported this to her grandmother, her grandmother would probably just stop Cheng Yi from playing with those people, but she would not care whether the singing and dancing in the small garden of the fifth room would continue. After all, it is someone else's place, and the children of other families. The fourth room is neither the eldest nor the legitimate heir, and it has never offended other rooms easily. It has no qualifications and will not care. At most, it will inform the elders of each family about this matter in a tactful way. After this storm is over, they may get together again... The loophole of the fifth room is still there.
If you want to plug this loophole, the best way is to make a big fuss about it and let the elders of the Cheng family know the harm involved.
But as a girl, how could she bring the matter to the attention of the elders of the Cheng family
Zhou Shaojin thought of Mrs. Wen... She couldn't help but smile bitterly.
When she saw her grandmother, after asking about Cheng Jia, she told them that they should not pick flowers or lotus by themselves in the future, and be careful not to "fall into the water or fall to the ground". She was moved and asked Chun Wan to call Fan Qi over after leaving Jiashu Hall, saying, "I have something for him to do."
Zhou Chujin asked curiously, "It's so late, what's so urgent that it can't wait until tomorrow?"
"Oh, I'd like to take half a day off tomorrow morning to accompany Cheng Ji." Cheng Ji was resting at home these days, and only she and Pan Qing were left in Jing'an Zhai. Instead of talking to Pan Qing who was always talking to her, she would rather listen to Cheng Ji's nagging. Even if Pan Qing also took a leave to accompany Cheng Ji, with Cheng Ji and the maids and old women who served Cheng Ji present, Pan Qing would have to behave herself in a timid manner - she had to act like a virtuous woman in front of others, so how could she let Jiang hear any rumors
Zhou Chujin didn't ask any more questions.
Zhou Shaojin whispered to Fan Qi: "You continue to help me keep an eye on the Second Master. If there is any movement over there, tell me. Then see how the Second Master and the others got here from the Fifth House."
Fan Qi thought she was going to complain to the elders, so he patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, I promise to find out everything without disturbing a single tree or blade of grass."
Zhou Shaojin smiled, asked Shi Xiang to give him a handful of copper coins, and said, "Go and ask a few more people to go to the garden to pick some lotus leaves. These are for you to treat them to some wine."
She was also involved in Cheng Ji's task of picking lotus leaves. Now that Cheng Ji was lying in bed, she might as well send some to her as a way of repaying her favor.
Fan Qi took the silver and left happily.
In the middle of the next day, Fan Qi brought over two large baskets of lotus leaves.
Zhou Shaojin didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so he asked Chunwan and a few maids to pick the lotus leaves according to old and tender. The old ones were dried to make lotus leaf rice and beggar's chicken, and the tender ones were made into lotus leaf tea, which they sent to his grandmother and then to other rooms in the name of the fourth room.
Cheng Ji was deeply moved when he knew this. Seeing Zhou Shaojin smiling as sweetly as honey, he said to Pan Qing, "Shaojin is always the best to me."
Pan Qing also took a leave to accompany Cheng Ji, but Cheng Ji didn't say a single good word to her. However, she remained calm and continued to do what she was supposed to do. Zhou Shaojin felt bad for her, but he also made up his mind to stay away from Pan Qing.
The next day, as soon as she came out of Hanbi Mountain House, she saw Fan Qi squatting under a roadside tree, drawing with a branch in his hand, looking bored.
"What are you doing?" Shi Xiang asked him.
Fan Qi jumped up immediately.
"Second Miss." His eyes sparkled as he whispered, "Second Master and his friends have arranged to gamble in the small garden again tonight."
Zhou Shaojin was delighted, but in order to ensure that everything was safe, she asked, "How do you know that they went to the small garden to gamble?"
Fan Qi chuckled and said proudly, "The cook of the fifth room brought home chickens, ducks, fish, meat, and delicacies from the mountains and the sea early in the morning, but the lunch of the fifth room was still the usual dishes. Then the servant next to the master went to the pawnshop and pawned a woman's gold hairpin. It was a current account, and the money was ten taels of silver. I heard from the clerk in the pawnshop that it was not the first time that the servant went there, and he went there more frequently these days... And Sanbao next to the second master, the purse hanging around his waist was bulging, I bumped into him on purpose, and it was hard... What else would they go to do if not gamble?"
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I caught a cold these two days and had an injection in the afternoon. I ended up sleeping until midnight. Today's additional content was written in the morning and I haven't had time to proofread it yet. Please bear with it for now. I estimate that the chapter with the corrected typos will be posted in an hour.
Because I have to go to get an injection today, I will try my best to update at the old time in the evening, no later than 8 o'clock. I apologize for the inconvenience.
※(To be continued)