Chapter 5 The Delayed Return of the Guest (Part 4) She could no longer remain in the manor. ...

The lanterns under the eaves swayed, their light and shadow spreading out like water.

Xinghui recognized the person's face and quickly said, "Young Master, this is our fourth young lady."

After speaking, he glanced at the two of them again. Seeing that Zhi Rou did not react, he bowed his head and stepped aside to greet the boy.

Wei Yuanzhan knew who the Fourth Sister was.

He came to the Song residence today because he was worried that Wei Mingying would speak inappropriately, so he rushed over as soon as he finished school, intending to keep an eye on her.

During dinner that evening, I heard her mention "Fourth Sister," and only then did I realize that the Song family had brought in not only a beautiful concubine yesterday, but also a girl.

Upon learning Zhi Rou's identity, Wei Yuanzhan suddenly lost his composure and raised his hand at her from where he stood: "Give me back my jade pendant."

The night air was cool, and the boy's clothes fluttered slightly, outlining his waist. He was still slender for his age, but his posture was upright, and his expression when he spoke was exactly like the image of a noble son that Zhi Rou had in mind.

Zhi Rou recognized him at first glance.

Fearing that he was like those纨绔 (spoiled brats) from Jiangnan who had come to cause her trouble for no reason, she flatly denied it: "What jade pendant? I've never seen you."

Wei Yuanzhan smiled, took a few steps down the steps, walked up to her, and carefully examined her.

The last time I saw her, she was dressed as a boy, unlike now, but she had the same innocent look on her face.

If it weren't for what he just witnessed, he might have believed it. But he saw it clearly from the corridor; the man was teasing the maid with pebbles, which revealed his mischievous nature.

At first, he found this person somewhat interesting, but now, for some reason, he only felt annoyed and sleepy, and the corners of his upturned mouth turned down: "You left something behind that day, and my servant found it."

He stared at her and said, "Give me back my jade pendant. I'll have someone send your things over tomorrow without telling your uncle."

Zhi Rou knew he was bluffing her, and frowned impatiently: "I really didn't take your jade pendant."

The little girl's eyes were bright and moist, her cheeks puffed out because she had been wronged. Wei Yuanzhan frowned at her expression; had he truly misunderstood her?

"Wei Yuanzhan!"

A crisp sound came from behind.

He turned around and saw Wei Mingying approaching with two servants. When she reached him, she said urgently, "My aunt wants us to stay the night, but I don't want to. Please help me..."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over the girl standing to the side, and he sized her up in just one glance. His eyes flashed, and he asked Wei Yuanzhan in a low voice, "Fourth sister?" His face was full of novelty and curiosity.

Wei Yuanzhan seemed unwilling to let them know him, and quickly put aside the matter of the jade pendant, grabbing her arm and pulling her back: "What fourth sister, that has nothing to do with us."

After the Wei siblings left, the small garden returned to tranquility.

Xing Hui stepped forward and said to Zhi Rou, "Fourth Miss, those two just now were the young master and eldest daughter of the Marquis of Yining's mansion. The Marquis's mansion is related to our second branch of the family, and we have frequent interactions. However, the young master hasn't been to the mansion for a long time, and it took me a while to recognize him."

He paused, then continued, "Why did you say that, Young Master..."

Zhi Rou wasn't worried about others misunderstanding her; she was only afraid that it would implicate her mother.

She furrowed her brows slightly: "I don't know. Sister Xinghui, will you tell Master and Madam about this?"

Xing Hui was stunned.

She was chosen by Master Song to serve Zhi Rou, but most of the servants in the second wife's household were managed by Madam Xu, so her master was Madam Xu.

Zhi Rou didn't know the details, but asked casually. After not hearing a reply for a while, she looked at Zhi Rou's face and realized something.

No wonder she felt a sense of closeness to me after only knowing me for two days; it turns out she was spying on me for the second wife.

Zhi Rou felt a pang of disappointment, but she still managed a forced smile and stepped out of the bushes.

A few days later, Zhi Rou followed the custom every morning, first going to Danyu Garden to greet her parents.

I've never called him "father" in my life, but after stammering for a few days now, I'm not too embarrassed anymore. But I still can't get used to calling someone else "mother."

Inside the room, Song Congzhao took a sip of tea, glancing at Xu Shi out of the corner of his eye, but speaking to Zhirou: "I plan to have you and your older brothers and sisters go to the family school to study in a few days. Your mother will prepare the things you need."

The Song family descendants, regardless of gender, all began their education at a young age, entering the family school at the age of five. Later, a government-run academy in the capital gained fame and attracted many learned scholars to teach there. As a result, the sons of prominent families began to study at Tingsong Academy when they were a little older.

Now, the oldest member of the Song family is only fifteen, and Zhi Rou has entered the family school, so she will see all of them every day.

Although she was surprised, she had a great longing for reading.

In the past in Jiangnan, only boys could attend school. Even when her mother wanted to hire a teacher for her, no one volunteered. If it weren't for Xiao'e's father's help, she wouldn't have been able to attend a private school in Luozhou.

Now that this opportunity has presented itself, it's only natural to seize it.

The little boy immediately rose from his seat and went to the center to express his gratitude: "Thank you, Father, Mother... Mother."

Not long after, the younger generation left the house.

Song Congzhao drank another cup of tea. Seeing that Xu Yueyuan didn't seem inclined to speak, he knew she was still angry about the naming of Zhirou.

In her own words, the little girl's origins are unknown, so how can she be worthy of the clan's generational name? Being able to use "Song" as her surname means she is already a person with a family, so why should she ask for anything more?

Unable to reach a consensus, he simply got up and strode out of the room.

Granny Liu watched him leave, then took two steps to Xu Yueyuan's side and lowered her eyes: "Madam, the master's idea of ​​naming the fourth young lady is just a casual remark, please don't upset yourself."

“Those clan elders are most on his side. I’m afraid that once he persuades them, I’ll be the only villain in the whole family.” Xu Yueyuan raised her arm on the table, her tone leisurely, showing no emotion.

Granny Liu had served her for a long time and knew her temperament well. The colder she appeared, the more she cared. After a moment's thought, she carefully spoke, "The old lady will not agree to this."

Xu Yueyuan thought for a moment, then perked up and said, "The weather has changed. Tell the embroiderer to take two sets of the winter clothes that were made for Jin'er to Longyue Pavilion for Fourth Sister. Everyone in the family school is from the same clan. If she looks too shabby, it's better than those from the collateral branches. People will say I'm mistreating her."

Granny Liu nodded in agreement, then sighed, "Madam is kind-hearted."

Xinghui didn't report her chance encounter with Wei Yuanzhan in the small garden to her superiors. Zhirou, however, started avoiding her from that day on.

Just as I left Danyu Garden and was about to go to Xixiang Garden to see Lin He, I heard hurried footsteps coming from the depths of the corridor.

Zhi Rou slowed her pace, watching as a slender figure gradually grew larger, finally stopping breathlessly in front of her: "Fourth Miss, I was just... just looking for you..."

Zhi Rou's brow twitched: "Sister Xing Hui, what happened?"

"It's Consort Lin..."

Before a stick of incense.

The autumn wind rustled the osmanthus tree in the courtyard, causing the branches to tremble and scatter pale yellow petals all over the ground.

Lin He stood under the eaves, gazing at the osmanthus tree. She was beautiful, with fair skin and a hint of untamed spirit in her eyes.

The servants stared at her, slightly lost in thought.

They were all servants born into the Song family and grew up in the mansion. Their greatest ambition was to follow the old lady of the Song family and become someone of some importance among the servants.

In a sudden turn of events, he was sent by the second wife to work at Xixiang Garden to serve her concubine. His promising future was ruined, and seeing her every day inevitably made him resentful, while he couldn't help but think about the future.

Few people took her seriously, so much so that when Zheng accidentally wandered into the courtyard, no one noticed.

Zheng was Song Hanjin's wet nurse. She risked her life to save her master in her early years, nearly losing her own life. She was saved with great difficulty, but was left with an incurable illness.

She was sometimes lucid and sometimes confused; when she had an episode, she would talk nonsense and even physically harm people. If it weren't for the Third Miss's insistence on protecting her, the Second Madam had planned to send her out of the mansion.

Under the bright sunshine, the fragrance of Osmanthus Garden filled the air. Madam Zheng strolled through the courtyard, looked at the unfamiliar decor, closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again, raising her hand to pound her forehead.

She didn't know where she was, she couldn't remember, and she slowly walked forward step by step.

A faint halo of light swirled around her, and Lin He stood on the steps, her skirts fluttering, like a deity.

Zheng's body stiffened, unable to believe her eyes. After a while, her lips trembled uncontrollably, as if she wanted to speak.

Lin He caught a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye and gently turned his head.

The moment their eyes met, a surge of heat welled up in Zheng's eyes, causing her to shed tears.

Her heart was pounding, and in shock, she opened her mouth and uttered a single sentence.

It consists of three characters.

"Miss Ling."

The name Miss Ling was once famous throughout the capital.

In an era that valued lineage and refinement, the Ling family, as the most prestigious and prominent family in the north, produced numerous renowned figures. The imperial family intended to arrange a marriage between them, hoping the crown prince would marry a daughter of the Ling family, but the Ling family politely declined.

From that day on, whenever the Ling family's carriages went out, young men would always ride after them, hoping to catch a glimpse of Miss Ling's beautiful face.

Along the corridor, Xinghui walked quickly while explaining to Zhirou.

"I originally intended to go to the small kitchen to get some pastries, but on the way I saw Granny Xin and Doctor Wang heading towards Xixiang Garden. I didn't pay much attention to it at first, but when I came back from the small kitchen, I happened to run into a lady who was in charge of the work at Xixiang Garden. I asked her and found out that Aunt Lin had fainted in the courtyard."

"Mother is in good health, how could she suddenly faint?" Zhi Rou followed behind Xing Hui, her hands clenching slightly in her sleeves, afraid that the old incident from two years ago would happen again.

"I heard that Madam Zheng fell ill, which frightened Aunt Lin."

Zhi Rou asked, "Who is Madam Zheng?"

Xinghui was still young and not entirely unaware of everything that happened in the manor. When asked, she shook her head in shame and hurriedly turned and left the corridor.

By the time the news reached Jue Xu, it was already late in the day. Song Han Jin had just returned from her cousin's courtyard and hadn't even sat down properly when an anxious voice burst in from outside the door: "Miss!"

A maidservant stepped in and frowned at her, saying, "Something has happened."

"Today, Madam Zheng mistakenly entered Xixiang Garden and offended Concubine Lin. Granny Xin has already sent someone to check on her. Concubine Lin is in bed due to fright and has some minor injuries."

Knowing the Third Miss's feelings for Zheng Shi, the maid hesitated to speak.

"The lady said that Madam Zheng can no longer stay in the mansion and must be sent out."

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