Xu Yunci also sensed something was wrong: "What's inside?"

"A sachet, that's all," Xu Lingzi answered quickly, and only after confirming that there really was only one sachet did she hand it to Xu Yunci.

However, no matter how Xu Yunci looked at it, there was only one sachet inside.

Li Shiyue lowered her eyes. Xu Yunci and his sister both felt that this sachet was not simple. Especially Xu Yunci, whose face was already cold, now looked even more frightening with his serious expression.

"Who sent this?"

Qiu Fan was young and couldn't withstand such fright. She almost knelt down on both knees in an instant: "Yes, it's Third Master. Every day Third Master has someone send purses and sachets and the like. It's been like this for many days. I want to refuse, but Third Master says that all the young ladies in the manor have them. If I refuse again, it would be disrespectful to him."

Li Shiyue stepped forward and said in a very soft voice, "Cousin."

Xu Yunci didn't speak, but his eyes remained calmly fixed on her, waiting for her to continue.

Li Shiyue took a deep breath and instructed Qiu Fan, who was kneeling, "Go outside and help Lian Dong and Chun Ling. They probably haven't finished pasting it yet."

Qiu Fan breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly retreated.

Xu Lingzi glanced at her brother, whose face looked rather pale, and walked over to Li Shiyue, her expression worried: "Have you run into some trouble? Tell your brother quickly, and he will definitely help you solve it."

"It's not exactly troublesome, but it's not exactly a good thing either." Li Shiyue's smile was bitter, and she didn't even want to look at the wooden box and the sachet inside.

“Since I returned from the market a few days ago, my third cousin has been sending these things to me every day. They are all personal items. I have always kept in mind the difference between men and women, and I am afraid that if word gets out, it will ruin my or my third cousin's reputation, so I have refused them all.”

"It's just that my third cousin sent people to say that these things were given to each of the sisters in the family by my third cousin. If I don't want them, it means I don't respect my third cousin."

“Such accusations are disrespectful to brothers and sisters. If my grandmother knew about them, it would probably upset her. So I told them to keep them and put them away in a quiet place.”

“But my third cousin does this every day, which bothers me a lot. He doesn’t need to do it.” Li Shiyue’s beautiful face was furrowed, her lips pursed, and she looked very conflicted.

Xu Yunci remained silent, but Xu Lingzi, standing to the side, spoke up with dissatisfaction: "What is Third Brother doing? Is he trying to imitate Fourth Brother?"

Xu Yunci looked at his younger sister with a deep gaze, and the latter realized she had said the wrong thing and quickly covered her mouth.

"Actually, I've thought about it too, but I feel scared, not anything else." Li Shiyue smiled bitterly and looked directly at Xu Yunci.

“As my cousin knows, I went through what I went through on my way here. It was the same experience I often had at the Earl’s mansion. I don’t want to think too badly of people, but my third cousin is just too overly attentive.”

“Chengyu Pavilion has everything it needs. My eldest aunt has already had everything made up for what is missing or lacking. I am uneasy every day because of what my third cousin is doing. If it is true, as my cousin said, that my third cousin and fourth cousin have the same idea, I am even more afraid. I would rather cut my hair and become a nun than be watched like a piece of fat meat.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Lingzi quickly hugged her: "Pah, pah, pah, what are you saying? Why should you become a nun when you're perfectly fine!"

Li Shiyue's eyes reddened, as if she had remembered something, and she nestled into Xu Lingzi's arms with lingering fear. She bit her rosy lower lip, and a tear slid down her cheek: "But I'm really scared. He was watching me at the Marquis's residence, and now that I'm in the capital, someone else is watching me..."

He from the Earl's Mansion?

Xu Yunci's gaze was deep as he thought of Meng Zhuo, who was still in the Jingzhao Prefecture prison. His little cousin's soft sobs still echoed in his ears; it seemed that his little cousin had been traumatized.

Xu Lingzi wrapped her arms around her little cousin's shoulders and gently patted her back.

Li Shiyue raised her hand to wipe away the tears that had fallen with her sleeve, and lowered her head as if embarrassed, avoiding the gaze of the brother and sister: "I'm sorry to have made my cousin and sixth cousin laugh at me."

"No matter what, it was Sanlang who was wrong. Don't worry, it won't happen again." Xu Yunci's expression was calm, and there was no impatience in his eyes, but he took out a neatly folded handkerchief from his sleeve.

The indigo-blue square handkerchief, without a single embroidery, was clean and tidy, much like Xu Yunci's style.

Before Li Shiyue could take it, Xu Lingzi had already taken it and quickly wiped her cheeks clean. However, when she looked up, there were still tears on her fluttering eyelashes, making her look pitiful and endearing, which softened people's hearts.

Xu Lingzi was an impatient person. Seeing her little cousin like this, she was unwilling to wait. She grabbed Xu Yunci and tried to leave, urging him repeatedly, "Second brother, you must stand up for Jiaojiao in this matter."

The two figures gradually disappeared into the distance along with Xu Lingzi's voice, and Li Shiyue's expression gradually returned to calm.

The heavy curtain was not drawn, and everything in the courtyard could be seen through the door. Li Shiyue's eyes were red. When she looked away, she exchanged a glance with Qiu Fan, who was standing beside Lian Dong, before calmly shifting her gaze.

The joy on the servants' faces under the eaves of Chengyu Pavilion, along with the bright red lanterns hanging on the branches, dispelled the oppressive whiteness of the snow piled up at the base of the wall, and soft laughter slipped in from outside the door.

Li Shiyue walked back to the east room and sat on the wooden couch. The teacup beside her had long since gone cold. The green branches from the tea stall quietly drifted into the cup, and she raised her hand to stroke the patterns on the teacup.

He glanced up, completely ignoring that it was a cup of cold tea, picked it up and took a sip.

It's cold, and the herbal tea is very bitter.

Li Shiyue frowned slightly, put the teacup back, leaned against the wooden couch, and seemed lost in thought.

When Qiu Fan returned, she didn't even look up: "Miss, Sister Lian Dong said that the corridor is all set up. She and Chun Ling went with Granny Liu to get the other things."

Li Shiyue leaned against the soft cushion behind her, and after hearing this, she got up: "Okay, go find those things from before, put them together, and you come with me to Shousong Hall."

Qiu Fan was young, and her expression wasn't as serious as Lian Dong's or Chun Ling's; the doubt in her eyes was quite obvious. She seemed to sense this, quickly lowered her head and replied "Yes," then went into the inner room to tidy up her things before following behind Li Shiyue.

She had done this intentionally; she couldn't let Xu Yunyang show off in front of her and win over her grandmother. Today's events seemed unintentional, but the young Qiu Fan was far more suitable than Lian Dong and Chun Ling. One was steady, and the other was closest to her. Neither of them could play this game more perfectly in front of Xu Yun Ci.

Shousong Hall was right in front of them. A maid lifted the curtain, and Li Shiyue took a deep look at Qiu Fan.