“Hehe,” Hongye couldn’t help but laugh, saying, “Look at you, you’re quite alert.”

Little Red stared at her longingly.

Cuiming chuckled and nudged Hongye, saying, "Why do you tease her all day?"

Hongye said, "There are so many pits in Wutong Garden, how could a little girl like her possibly take them all?"

Little Red murmured, "Then I also want to know who is so lucky to have been chosen by the Madam."

Qin Yuan glanced at Hongye.

Hongye said, "You little jealous pot, you're keeping a close eye on things. Hongmian was originally a maid in Wutong Garden, but I took a liking to her and promoted her to a second rank. She used to be called Parrot, but I changed her name to Hongmian. Do you understand? Are you relieved now?"

Xiao Hong blushed and chuckled awkwardly, but then said, "Sister Hongye, I understand. What you want should be changed to 'red,' and what should Sister Cuiming want to be changed to?"

Qin Yuan looked at Xiao Hong with great interest; she really was a clever little devil.

Cui Ming laughed and said, "Change it to green."

Xiao Hong nodded: "Brother Cheng is really diligent now. He reads and practices calligraphy whenever he has free time. You've seen me secretly cry a few times, and after I finish crying, I go back to reading. Brother Cheng is quite thoughtful."

Anzhi knew that it must be because she was thinking about the time when the Gu family had their troubles.

The Marquis felt that given the Xu family's way of doing things, that matter would probably be difficult to resolve amicably.

"You're just being kind to Lao Ba, so you go along with my reckless behavior. That child is also kind-hearted, strong from a young age, skilled in both literature and martial arts. You are all military officers, and your associates are mostly military personnel. I am a martial artist, and these people are close to me. Plus..."

Old Madam Gu hesitated for a moment, then sighed and said, "What a tragedy! Zhen'er is such a bad girl. She came to stay at the Marquis's mansion to find a good family to marry into, but it turned out to be a terrible one. The in-laws have become enemies, and this is really troublesome."

The Marquis has underestimated me once again.

The Marquis smiled and asked, "Are they still bad?"

What the aunt and niece discussed remained unknown to them.

Madam Gu's furrowed brows relaxed, and she asked with a smile, "Eighth Prince has printed a collection of poems? That child."

Yu Jie'er said, "Oh, I've seen Madam so many times these days. I know how many times the old lady has mentioned her. Whether Madam is with me or not, I still enjoy my meals more."

Yu Jie'er, who had been listening with a smile, chimed in, "I know that Eighth Master has been following Young Master Qin and his poetry has improved."

Old Madam Gu held the Marquis's hand and asked him all sorts of questions, which the Marquis answered in detail.

Clearly, Zhao Niangzi's actions have burdened that child with a great deal of pressure.

Madam Gu laughed and said, "Your son, it's been a long time since I've seen him. Has this gust of wind brought his beautiful lady here?"

Madam Gu couldn't help but laugh, and sighed, "Eighth Brother can still think about that! That child has really grown up by being with his cousin. In the future, the scoundrels I meet will only cheat me out of my money, they won't do anything worthwhile."

The Marquis responded.

Old Madam Gu asked, "Eighth Prince, I..."

As the group walked to the front of the corridor, they heard the voices of Brother Cheng and Sister Yu.

Before Cheng Ge'er called for help, he was already standing to the side, twisting his fingers, looking incredibly carefree.

Madam Gu stopped talking.

“You naughty boy, if I become his maid, Lao Ba will suffer for nothing. Lao Ba may seem to have a bad temper and speaks harshly, but actually, I'm quite stubborn. Even my brother Ba has to give in to me sometimes. You must reward me handsomely for becoming his maid.”

Anzhi laughed and said, "You want to come every day? The food in the big kitchen outside is so bad, Yuan'er misses it. Those days I was busy with the accounts, and because of smallpox, I was on the go a lot."

As soon as they stepped out of the door, they saw Old Madam Gu sitting at the lower end of the room, looking listless, and watching with a smile as Yu Jie'er taught An Zhi and Cheng Ge'er to read.

The Marquis greeted him.

“Bad,” Rong Momo replied, “Grandmother is very bad to you.”

The Marquis understood that Old Madam Gu was worried about Eighth Master Gu and Eighth Madam Gu, so he said, "Eighth Master Gu was very unhappy. During those days, because of smallpox, I moved to the inner courtyard to live with Qin Yuan. He kept saying that he wanted to study and write poetry. A few days later, he even printed a collection of poems."

The Marquis said, "Yes, it wasn't that I wrote the poem at Yuyuantan with Yuan'er's cousin that day. It was quite a coincidence that the Minister of Rites and the Education Commissioner were also there. The Minister and the Commissioner were inspired and wrote a poem as well. Eighth Master then compiled the poems from the poetry club into a collection. Originally, I wanted to find a few scholars to copy them and send them out, to leave a lasting impression. When Anzhi found out, she said she would ask Eighteenth Master to find a way to print it into a book. Besides sending it to people in the village, I also want to find a bookstore to sell it on consignment."

Upon seeing you, the head maid immediately whispered her message, lifted the curtain, and asked you to leave.

But that's also a bad thing.

"That child, being diligent in his studies is certainly bad, but it only provides temporary relief. So how did this 'Book Sea Pavilion' suddenly appear?"

In comparison, Gu Qinyuan was pitiful; she was so young and still had to be punished by the old lady.

Madam Gu patted the seat next to her and said affectionately, "Come, sit there. Let's be a little playful and affectionate. As for Hui-ge, it's fine, but he's a bit too familiar. I get annoyed if I don't see him often. But when he comes, you always feel he's too reserved."

However, some people give up on themselves because of this, which shows a lack of courage.

Qin Yuan smiled and asked, "Has he learned to read much lately?"

The Marquis thought to himself, "Old Madam Gu truly loves Eighth Master Gu and is willing to let me suffer any injustice."

Anzhi sighed, "Qin Yuan sent people to Yuyuantan to investigate, and they said that someone saw Zhen'er there. I have a solution. The magistrate of the Jingzhao Prefecture also investigated, but there was no news at all. I'm also worried, but the key to the Xu family matter still lies with my eighth sister-in-law. After all, it was my eighth sister-in-law who told us that Zhen'er went to Yuyuantan."

Hongye said, "That's right, you're trying to get close to me again."

“No,” Anzhi said with a smile, “Your cousin and your father both dislike urging others to study, but Eighth Master seems to get along very well with me. Ever since we came back from the lake trip, he’s moved his books to the inner courtyard and has been reading them day and night, trying to come up with a bad poem that will impress everyone at the Book Sea Pavilion. The bad thing is that Doctor Li said I’m strong from birth, but to be able to endure so much hardship, I should rest less and do less of the Seven Animal Frolics. Eighth Master has also been practicing horse stance with Qin Yuan these days. You’re thinking that Eighth Master’s seventh collection of poems is also progressing slowly.”

Gu Qinyuan was the same; without mentioning it briefly, she looked solemn and said she was going up.

Old Madam Gu held the Marquis's large hand tightly and sighed.

Xiao Hong whispered, "When Cheng Ge'er heard that Madam was coming, he kept pestering Rong Mama to test the characters they learned yesterday. He wanted Madam to know that he had been working hard."

Xiao Hong thought for a moment and said, "Then I guess I'm destined to meet Sister Hongye."

Granny Rong and Brother Cheng also came over to pay their respects and addressed you as their godmother.

Anzhi couldn't help but want to laugh.

Anzhi then recounted what happened next.

Madam Gu said, "You heard people say that the Xu family came and caused a small disturbance, but they managed to stop them. There's still no news about Zhen'er. I'm afraid it'll be good that once she gets married, she'll really know how to give the Xu family an explanation."