Chapter 668 A Dream of Youth 200

"Young lady, would you like to buy a flower? Even the most beautiful spring scenery cannot compare to the hibiscus. You are so beautiful; if you were to adorn yourself with a hibiscus flower, you would surely be even more stunning!"

A little girl with her hair in two buns walked up to Xie Ning and showed her the beautiful hibiscus flowers in the flower basket.

"Okay, give me three." However, Xie Ning didn't buy them to make hairpins.

Sitting in the carriage, Qing Le was dumbfounded when she saw Xie Ning pick a hibiscus bud and put it in her mouth. "Miss, can this flower be eaten?"

"It's edible, why don't you try it?" She bought three.

Qingyue was very curious and picked some flower buds to eat. They were smooth and crisp, with a tender texture and a faint fragrance.

"I think there were a few hibiscus trees in the village, right?"

"Yes, it's blooming now." Qingxu also ate the flower; it tasted really good.

"Have them pick the flowers and bring them over. These flowers can be eaten raw or cooked, and they have heat-clearing and detoxifying effects. Crushing the flowers and applying them externally can also treat boils and carbuncles..."

Xie Ning often talked to them about pharmacology, and the two maids listened very carefully every time, after all, this was not something that could be learned easily!

As they were talking, they arrived at the Zhao residence.

Although she was looking for Zhao Huilan, she still paid her respects to Zhao's mother first, based on the rules of respecting elders.

However... Xie Ning had been sitting in the small flower hall for half an hour, but Zhao's mother had not come out. Only an old nanny came over and said apologetically, "Young Miss Xie, my lady is not feeling well today. I hope you will be understanding."

"It's alright, then I'll go find Sister Huilan."

Unexpectedly, the old nanny blocked Xie Ning's way again, "Young Miss Xie, Lan'er has been copying Buddhist scriptures in the Buddhist hall to calm her mind these past few days. Please come another day."

If Xie Ning still couldn't see that the Zhao family didn't welcome him, then he would be a fool.

When she came in today, she noticed the neglect from the maid who greeted her. Not only did the maid take a detour, but Zhao's mother also left her waiting in the small flower hall for half an hour, a completely different attitude from usual.

"Then I'd rather not bother you any longer."

The two maids, Qingxu and Qingle, looked displeased. After leaving, they couldn't help but complain, "Miss, it's been a full quarter of an hour, and not only have we not seen you, but we haven't even served you a cup of tea. This is clearly a neglect of your privacy!"

Not to mention Xie Ning, neither of them had ever been treated like this.

Although they had never been to the palace with Xie Ning, they would always accompany him when he went to wealthy families to treat the ladies of the inner quarters, and they were always treated as honored guests.

How dare the Zhao family treat their young lady so poorly!

The coachman, sitting outside, nodded repeatedly in agreement. "That's right!"

"Go around to the back alley."

ah?

The coachman hesitated for a moment, but still obediently drove the carriage to the back alley.

Xie Ning mentally calculated the location of Zhao Huilan's courtyard. Seeing the high courtyard wall, she knew no light-footed skills, so she simply had the coachman bring the carriage close to the wall, and then climbed over the roof of the carriage to get inside.

At this moment, Zhao Huilan had already heard about Xie Ning coming to find her but being driven away. She was so angry that she ran to her mother's courtyard and made a scene. Finally, she looked at her mother coldly and said, "Mother, do you love me, but does that mean you've clipped my wings?"

No, I should say you won't allow me to grow wings!

That Miss Xie is no ordinary woman in the inner quarters. Not to mention her father, Xie Wangzhi, she herself is a fifth-rank collator in the imperial court. Are you trying to make an enemy of her and the Xie family by treating her so poorly?

You always say that women should manage the household affairs for their husbands and build connections within the household to make their husbands' careers smoother. Now, aren't you ruining your father's career by doing this?

You said I shouldn't have had the ambition to leave, but you didn't go, and what good were you anyway?

Towards the end, Zhao Huilan started to speak recklessly, but she was so angry that she deliberately provoked her mother.

"Smack—"

"Is this how you talk to your mother? It's utterly disrespectful!"

Another slap landed, but Zhao Huilan was now able to accept it calmly. She believed that her mother loved her, but not enough. Her mother loved her for being well-behaved and conforming to the rules, as a lady from a respectable family.

"Huilan! Your mother is doing this for your own good!"

Zhao Huilan didn't want to continue talking to her mother, and only said, "Mother, you should think carefully about how to explain things to Father when he comes back."

Zhao's mother turned pale.

Walking back to her courtyard step by step, Zhao Huilan looked up at the azure sky. In fact, she had never left this small courtyard.

When the wet nurse saw the slap mark on Zhao Huilan's face, she sighed, told the maid to bring an egg to reduce the swelling, and then applied medicine to her.

"That's just how Madam is, why did you provoke her?"

"Granny, Ning'er, Ning'er is gone. Mother treated her like this, she won't come back..."

She couldn't leave, and now even her only close friend had been driven away by her mother. Why? Zhao Huilan didn't understand.

Xie Ning's achievements surpass those of many men in the world, yet many people, even women, belittle her, deeming her restless and despicable.

But clearly, she was saving them.

The osmanthus tree, slanted into the window, swayed gently, dropping golden buds. Zhao Huilan looked up and, through the gaps in the leaves, met Xie Ning's half-curved eyebrows.

In an instant, tears fell into the shattered gold, mingling with the fragrance of osmanthus, and it didn't seem so bitter anymore.