Chapter 6: Miss Duan

Rich families are particular about it, and even have to choose an auspicious day to distribute porridge. Shen Anan looked at the booklet sent by the housekeeper and didn't say anything for a long time.

"Miss, but...is there a problem with the booklet?" the butler asked cautiously.

Shen Anan had just returned, and people in the mansion didn't know much about her temper. They just met her normally and thought that the eldest lady should be very easy to get along with.

Shen Anan came back to his senses and closed the booklet, "No problem, let's leave it at that."

The butler responded, bowed and saluted, "Then I will go down and prepare it."

"Um."

After the housekeeper left, Shen Anan wanted to pick up the teacup and take a sip of tea, but she accidentally knocked over the teacup because she was distracted.

Mo Xiang hurried forward to clean up, "Young lady, don't move. Don't let the fragments hurt you."

Shen Anan nodded and looked down at Mo Xiang cleaning up the mess.

There was nothing wrong with the booklet. Whether it was the time, the date for distributing porridge, or the rice and oil, they were all the same as in the previous life.

Mrs. Shen came from a merchant family. It was only after one of her sons passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi that the Shen family's fortunes improved.

The thing that merchants have the most is money. Among all the noble ladies, Madam Shen is the most generous. Even the porridge she gives is twice as much as other families.

In fact, it was also to earn her a good reputation. It was a pity that in the previous life, Chen Anan was clumsy and short-sighted, and only cared about the momentary mood in front of her.

Mo Xiang finished cleaning and then helped her get down from the armchair.

"The young lady has been absent-minded since she returned to the capital. I hope you are not sick. The old lady has been writing to you every few days, and she is afraid that you are not used to living here."

"I'm used to being idle in Jiangnan, and suddenly so many things happened when I came back. I'm just a little upset." Shen Anan sat down in front of the window frame, holding his chin and looking out the window.

Whether in Jiangnan or the boudoir of the Shen Mansion in the capital, she would place a desk and a chair in front of the window for her to daydream.

After a while, she asked Mo Xiang to prepare pen, ink, paper and inkstone.

"Miss, are you going to write back to the old lady?"

"Hmm." Shen Anan pursed her lips, but what she wrote down was not words, but the scenery in the courtyard.

The old lady of the Shen family was once a recognized talented woman in the capital. How could Shen Anan's talent be bad? Not to mention that she is proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, but she is not worse than any other noble lady in the capital.

The branches she painted have smooth lines and are lifelike, if not vivid. From the flowers and plants to the swing in the yard, they all seem as real as if they were carved.

"Miss, your painting makes me feel as if I am actually there."

Shen Anan smiled, "It's a pity that it's autumn. It would have looked better in spring when it was full of vitality."

"Then wait until spring and paint another one for the old lady."

Shen Anan smiled but said nothing.

Next spring was too long and she didn't want to wait.

"Young lady." Mo Ran, the maid that Mrs. Shen had just promoted, knocked gently on the door.

Mo Xiang walked over and opened the door. "The girl is painting. What's wrong?"

"The eldest son is back. He seemed to have been beaten with a stick and was carried back."

Mo Xiang heard this and turned to look at Shen Anan in the room.

Shen Anan had walked over quickly, "Where are the others?"

"It has been carried back to the yard." Mo Ran said.

Shen Anan stepped out of the door and walked down the steps quickly, asking as he walked, "Did you call a doctor? Who carried him back?"

"It's... the guards of the Fourth Prince's Palace."

Shen Anan paused, her almond eyes darkened a little.

When we arrived at Shen Changhe's Songzhu Courtyard, the maids and servants were in a mess and were so busy that they had no time to rest.

"Young lady." Everyone greeted her.

Shen Anan nodded and walked up the stairs. Mo Xiang raised her hand and knocked on the door, "Master, the girl is here to see you."

"Come in." Shen Changhe's hoarse and restrained voice came out.

Shen Anan pushed the door open and saw the man lying flat on the bed.

His face was pale and his lips were chapped. There was a pile of bloody gauze on the ground and a maid was feeding him water.

Shen Anan's eyes instantly turned red.

The scene before her was eerily similar to the embarrassing situation in her previous life when her elder brother had a fight with Xiao Yuan for her and was punished.

"Where's the doctor? Have you called for a doctor?" she said in a sharp tone.

The maidservant immediately replied, "Miss, I have already gone to invite him."

Shen Changhe waved his hand to block the spoon that was fed to his mouth, and comforted Shen Anan, "It's just a minor injury, don't worry, it's nothing."

Shen Anan walked forward and took the bowl of water from the maid, “Drink some more, being injured is the most exhausting.”

Shen Changhe was startled, Shen Anan's spoon was already at his mouth, he quickly opened his mouth and drank it.

My sister has never been so close to him before. Blood is thicker than water, so that's probably the case.

After feeding him a few more spoonfuls, the doctor was finally called.

It was inconvenient for Shen Anan to be present, so she retreated behind the screen and waited.

The figure was unclear, but Shen Changhe's low moan of suppressed pain could be heard.

A quarter of an hour later, the doctor treated his wound and prescribed some medicine.

Shen Changhe glanced at the slender figure reflected behind the screen, barely curled his lips, and said in a hoarse voice, "Why don't you come out?"

Shen Anan sniffed and raised her head to hold back her tears.

"An An."

"Yeah." She tidied her appearance before walking out.

When Shen Changhe saw her red eyes, his heart softened immediately, "Brother is fine, why are you crying?"

Shen Anan turned away and said coldly, "I shouldn't have saved that ungrateful bastard."

She gnashed her teeth in hatred.

Shen Changhe was stunned for a moment, then realized that she was scolding the Fourth Prince Xiao Yuan, and his face twitched.

"Everyone, please leave."

"Yes." The maids and servants in the room retreated in unison.

Shen Changhe said, "If you don't save him, it won't be as simple as a few beatings. I'm afraid he will lose his life."

"There was such a big commotion on Nanhua Street, but the guards were completely unaware. It is indeed my fault, big brother. Your contribution cannot make up for my mistake."

Shen Anan didn't say anything, but her dissatisfaction was shown on her face, "Did he order you to be beaten?"

Shen Changhe nodded, "The Fourth Prince's punishment was not severe, it was also to stop the public from talking. If we wait for the Emperor to give the order, it will be much heavier than this."

Shen Anan responded with a nasal tone.

"Mother asked me to be in charge of distributing porridge. I'm afraid I won't have time to visit you in the future. You should stay at home and recover from your injuries."

"Okay." Shen Changhe touched her head.

Shen Anan lowered her head obediently, and waited until he finished touching her before getting up and leaving.

"Miss, the madam and the eldest master seem to like touching your head." Mo Xiang said with a smile.

Shen Anan said "hmm". In the past, she always thought that they treated her as a child, but later she understood that it was a manifestation of love.

The autumn wind was bleak, but the bluestone path was swept very clean, and not a single fallen leaf could be seen.

She was very afraid of the cold, so she kept the doors and windows closed in early autumn.

The next day, she got up very early.

Mo Xiang dressed her up and said, "Although it is autumn and the sun is not too hot, you should still apply more snow skin cream if you are exposed to the wind and sun. Your skin is delicate."

Shen Anan nodded, letting Mo Xiang's fingertips rub and press on her cheeks and the back of her hands.

The snow skin cream has a light fragrance and makes the skin soft and shiny after application.

Shen Anan has always paid great attention to maintenance.

She looked carefully at the beautiful face in the bronze mirror and smiled.

How come she didn't notice such a beautiful face in her previous life and just kept praising Xiao Yuan?

Tsk, that bastard, how can he be worthy of her?

Mo Xiang took out a set of ruby ​​hair ornaments from her makeup box and wanted to put them on her hair. Shen Anan tilted her head, picked out an inconspicuous jade hairpin and handed it to her, "Use this."

Mo Xiang was startled, "Girl..."

This jade hairpin is the most inferior of all the girl’s jewelry. It is gray in texture and even the daughter of a minor official would not look down on it.

"Today we are distributing porridge to help the refugees, not attending a banquet or beauty pageant. It will not be good to dress too extravagantly."

Never test human nature under extreme circumstances.

Mo Xiang put a jade hairpin on her hair, took out a box of rouge from the box, put a little on her fingertips, and applied it on Shen Anan's lips.

A lotus emerges from clear water. This sentence is the most appropriate for Shen Anan today.

"Big girl."

Along the way, the servants all greeted him in unison.

Shen Anan smiled and nodded at them, gaining a lot of goodwill.

Outside the mansion, the housekeeper had already prepared everything and was waiting.

"Miss, today's rice and flour have been delivered. You can go over and start now."

"Yeah." Shen Anan lifted her skirt and got on the carriage.

The housekeeper followed behind with a group of maids and servants.

Although she was said to be in charge of distributing porridge, in fact, she didn't need to intervene at all. All matters were supervised by the housekeeper himself, and Shen Anan just showed up.

Not only the Shen family, but other families also do this. The only difference is the third Miss Duan from the Marquis Duan’s Mansion.

He is kind-hearted and virtuous. He could not bear to see the people suffer, so he personally stepped forward to help.

In the previous life, he was very famous.

Of course, half of it was brought about by Shen Anan's self-sacrifice.

At the fork in the road between East Street and Nanhua Street, the carriage stopped again.

Shen Anan knew that it was because they met Miss Duan San's carriage.

However, in this life, she was not engaged to Xiao Yuan, so why was Miss Duan San still so persistent?

Tsk, I guess it’s because the emperor intends to arrange a marriage for the two of them, and that petty-minded third girl is unhappy.

“Miss…” As soon as the housekeeper opened his mouth, Shen Anan’s lazy voice rang out.

"Let someone measure who is closer to the fork in the road, and who should step back to make way."

housekeeper,"……"

He glanced left and right at the car windows, wondering how the girl knew what was happening outside.

On the other side, a slender jade finger lifted the curtain, revealing a delicate and gentle little face.

"What's going on?"

"Replying to the Third Miss, we have encountered the carriage of the eldest lady of the Shen Mansion. The fork in the road is crowded and cannot accommodate two teams of people entering and exiting at the same time."

Miss Duan San hummed, leaned forward and looked forward, her eyes fell on the carriage not far away.

The person sitting there should be the eldest daughter of the Shen family.

Even though there was such a big commotion outside, she didn't even show up.

"Miss Shen." She spoke softly.

The car curtain didn't move at all, and the people inside seemed not to hear her voice.

Duan Mengmeng frowned slightly and called out again, "Miss Shen, the road is crowded and I'm in a hurry. Can you please give me some convenience?"

After a while, the curtain was finally lifted, revealing the face of a maid with a bun on her head. "My daughter is also very anxious. Why can't Miss Duan San help her?"

“…”

Duan Mengmeng bit her lip, her face flushed, "Miss Shen misunderstood, that's not what I meant. The people of East Street are waiting for me now. If I delay for a while, they will be hungry. I was just anxious for the moment."

After Duan Mengmeng finished speaking, she saw the maid shrink her head back and frowned slightly.

The next moment, a beautiful face poked out. She leaned against the car window with a calm expression, "What did I misunderstand? You didn't mean that."

"Miss Duan San is going there to do charity, and I am not going there to eat, drink and have fun. Could it be that in Miss Duan San's mind, the people of East Street are human beings, but those of Nanhua Street are not?"

"I, I didn't mean that." Duan Mengmeng looked unhappy.

"Those who know her think that Miss Duan San is kind-hearted. Those who don't think she is using the people as a raft to gain a good reputation for herself."

"You——" Duan Mengmeng's face changed and she looked around quickly.

Shen Anan's eyes were heavy, and the look he gave her was very cold. "Don't worry, Third Miss. My people have already gone to the front to check, and it will be resolved soon."

Duan Mengmeng gritted her teeth, but with so many people present, she had to maintain her demeanor as a lady and couldn't say anything.

Shen Anan leaned against the soft pillow, occasionally looking up to glance at Duan Mengmeng's face, with the corners of his lips curled up coldly.

This place was the origin of her notoriety in her previous life.

Duan Mengmeng is a lady brought up in a large family. She speaks with sharp tongues and never lets a single drop of ink leak out.

But she grew up in Jiangnan, so she doesn't have those evil thoughts.

She only knew that Duan Mengmeng spoke softly and was very friendly, but for some reason, every word she said could provoke her anger.

Finally, she became furious and blocked the exit of the road, arguing with Duan Mengmeng.

But from beginning to end, she was the one who was going crazy and tearing things apart. Duan Mengmeng had a very anxious and aggrieved expression, and she wanted to cry but couldn't.

In the end, even the people in the Shen residence felt that it was she, a grown-up girl, who had gone too far.

Shen Anan thought about it, and suddenly smiled.

I have to say that Duan Mengmeng is a character. At least she can't learn her ability to be pitiful and make innuendos.

Because of their dirty talk, the time for distributing porridge was delayed.

The people gathered here and learned that it was she who blocked the road and prevented Duan Mengmeng from leaving, so they started to curse her.

She went from being spoiled and domineering to finally becoming narrow-minded and jealous of Duan Mengmeng's talent. She became jealous of Xiao Yuan and Duan Mengmeng's friendship and deliberately made things difficult for Duan Mengmeng.

It was also at that time that she found out that Duan Mengmeng was actually Xiao Yuan's junior sister.

"Girl." The housekeeper's words interrupted her thoughts.

"We have half a head more power than the Duan family. We turned the corner first, and the Duan family followed behind."

Shen Anan raised her eyelids and looked at Duan Mengmeng, "Miss Duan San, did you hear it?"

Duan Mengmeng was stunned for a long moment, and clenched her cardamom-stained hands into her palms.

After a while, she smiled gently, "Ms. Shen is really an interesting person. It's not a big deal, but it's worth taking it so seriously."

"Someone, make way for Miss Shen."

Shen Anan's face was calm, "Miss Duan San is more interesting. It is said that speaking is a profound knowledge, and this knowledge is played by Miss Duan San."

“…”

The carriage backed up, and Shen Anan didn't see Duan Mengmeng's face, but she thought it must be very ugly.

"How can a country bumpkin who grew up in the south of the Yangtze River be so smart and difficult to deal with?" Duan Mengmeng lowered the car curtain with a unhappy look on her face.

Her eloquence was not at all superior to Shen Anan's straightforwardness.