Zhulan registered and sealed up all the full-month gifts for her youngest son. There were really a lot of gifts; for the third day's birthday and the full month, there were several boxes of gifts for the little guy.
Zhulan really wanted to exchange them all for silver, as silver can make money, which is better than keeping them sealed up forever. It's a pity that the Zhou family can no longer sell the gifts, and the entire Zhou family will be lost.
Zhou Shuren helped Zhulan massage her shoulders, "Thank you for your hard work."
"It's not that hard, but the warehouse at home is not big enough to store them. We have accumulated wealth very quickly in the past few years, and it would be a pity to keep them piled up."
Zhou Shuren, "Xuemei is about to go back, pick some for her to take back, and pick some for the tribe."
"Um."
Zhou Shuren pulled Zhulan up and said, "It's been a tiring day today, let's take a rest."
Zhulan was indeed very tired, "Okay."
The next morning, Zhulan had just picked out some things to bring back for her daughter when Liuya came to report, "Mrs. Qi is here."
Zhulan guessed that she would come, "Please come in, yes, and Miss, today just ask Miss to come by herself."
Forget about Wu Ning. She actually wanted to take Wu Ning with her all the time to broaden her horizons, but Wu Ning's reputation was there, and these high-ranking officials' wives would not respect Wu Ning. She didn't want Wu Ning to be picked on like a commodity again.
Willow Bud, "Yes."
Zhulan returned to the main hall. Qi came with her daughter. Zhulan stood up to greet them, "Lady, please come in."
Qi smiled and said, "You and I hit it off right away. I always wanted to come here, but unfortunately you were in confinement after giving birth. Now that you are out of confinement, I came to see you since I have nothing to do."
Zhulan didn't believe it. It was obvious that she had brought her daughter here to show her. She smiled and said, "Please come in."
After Qi sat down, she said, "This is my daughter, Ran Yan, she is sixteen years old this year."
Ran Yan pinched her handkerchief slightly. She knew her mother did it for her, but she was really scared. How could anyone treat a woman who had broken off her engagement sincerely? She didn't know how much Lord Zhou's wife knew. She felt gloomy in her heart. "Greetings, Madam."
Zhu Lan raised her eyebrows. She had a good impression of Miss Ran San, "Miss Ran San, please get up."
Ran Yan smiled lightly. She didn't think that the Zhou family didn't know about her. Even if she was innocent, the engagement was cancelled. The stain was on her. "Thank you, Madam."
Qi felt a pain in her heart. Her daughter was so good. Not to mention her talent, just her temperament was incomparable to any other young lady she had ever met. She only had this one daughter, and she doted on her like a baby. She raised her by hand, and she was excellent in everything from housekeeping to other matters. Before her engagement was broken off, her daughter was so cheerful, but now she was cautious whenever she went out, and there was no cheerful smile on her face anymore.
Zhulan sighed inwardly, Miss Ran looked a lot like Qi. People with bold facial features, daughters take after their mothers. Miss Ran should also be a bright person, and her cautious and indifferent look now is really not suitable. She glanced at Qi, recalling the news she had learned, Qi was at least a good mother.
It is said that Lord Ran is well-known for being afraid of his wife. Qi is Lord Ran's second wife. Lord Ran's previous wife left two daughters, and then he married Qi. After Qi came into the house, she drove away the concubines. Currently, there is no concubine in the Ran mansion, only two elderly maids.
Yes, Qi used this to anger Liu a lot, because there were so many concubines in the Min family.
Xue Han came in and greeted her politely, "Shu Ren, Miss Ran."
Qi smiled and said, "Get up quickly."
Qi thought to herself that she had only met Miss Zhou once yesterday, and although she was picky, she still had some good feelings towards her.
Xue Han stood up and stood beside her mother with a smile. She couldn't help but look at Miss Ran San. She was not in the hall yesterday, but she heard some news. She saw Miss Ran San again today and had an idea in her mind.
Zhu Lan saw that Miss Ran San was uncomfortable, so she said to Xue Han, "It's almost summer, and the garden is beautiful. You and Miss Ran San should go take a walk in the garden."
Xue Han: "Yes."
Miss Ran San breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't want to stay in the hall, so when she saw her mother nod, she quickly followed.
Qi waited for her daughter to leave. She did not come here on her own initiative. She had discussed it with the master, and the master also supported her. Qi felt more confident, "Mr. Zhou Si will take part in the provincial examination next year."
Zhu Lan smiled and nodded, "There's no rush for this child, he's still too young and unstable."
This was not only what she and Zhou Shuren meant, but also what Xu Jinshi meant. Chang Zhi was too young and his mind was too pure, and he still needed training.
Moreover, Zhou Shuren did not plan to let Chang Lian and Chang Zhi take the exam in the same session.
Qi was stunned for a moment, but quickly reacted. The Zhou family also has a third son, Master Zhou. Comparing the two sons, Master Zhou is more optimistic about the third son. Qi opened her mouth, but thinking of her daughter's gloomy look, she didn't say anything. She didn't want to embarrass her daughter. There was no rush, so she smiled and said nothing.
Zhulan thought that Qi would continue talking, but when she saw Qi lowering her head to drink tea, she sighed inwardly. Qi was concerned about her daughter. This was the real Qi. Qi was very secretive and not an impulsive person. Of course, she was also a good mother.
In the garden, Xue Han and Ran Yan sat in the pavilion. Xue Han said politely, "This is the new scented tea. Sister Ran, please try it."
Ran Yan smiled and took a sip, "Good tea."
Xue Han, "If you like it, drink more."
Ran Yan looked into Miss Zhou's eyes and felt relieved. In the past six months, she never dared to go out. She slowly accepted several invitations and heard too much gossip behind her back. She was on guard against everyone. Miss Zhou looked at her without probing, and she felt a little happy in her heart. "Thank you."
Xue Han curled her eyes. She had always thought Miss Ran's smile was too fake, but now it was much more pleasing to the eye. Xue Han turned her head to look at the scenery of the garden. Soon her eyes paused, she blinked and stood up, "Sister Ran, we have been out for a while, let's go back too."
Ran Yan felt that the time was not short, but the lightness she had finally achieved became tense again. She didn't know what her mother had said. When she saw Miss Zhou next time, would Miss Zhou look at her differently
Xue Han said, "Sister Ran likes scented tea. I still have quite a bit. I'll give some to her."
Ran Yan smiled and said, "Okay, thank you."
Xue Han, “… .”
She put on the mask of fake smile again, and she looked really awkward.
The conversation with Zhulan was over too. Qi didn't say much else but just chatted with Zhulan about some gossip. The gossip seemed boring but it revealed a lot of information. At least, Zhulan knew that an eighth-rank official in the Jinzhou City Government Office was a distant relative of Liu.
Zhulan and the others saw off the Qi mother and daughter, and asked the girl, "Why did you come back so soon?"
Xue Han thought it was better not to say it, so she smiled and said, "Mom, I just saw that Miss Ran was not in the mood to chat, so I came back."
Zhulan heard the child crying and didn't have time to ask, "Mom is going to see your brother, do you want to come with us?"
Xue Han was thinking about something, "No, I still have some accounts to settle."
Zhulan touched Xuehan's hair and said, "Thank you for your hard work."
Without this girl, she would be very busy.
Xue Han curled her eyes and said, "It's not hard."