"Oh, don't mention it. I don't know where to put my old face. Jinyu, why don't you say something to me? I'll feel better if you don't teach me well."

"What are you talking about, cousin? Young people are full of vigor and vitality, so it is inevitable that they will have some romantic affairs. If they happen, they should be dealt with. Although Qiaojie is a slave, she is also a first-class talent in our general's mansion, much better than the young lady from a small family. I wonder how cousin plans to deal with this matter?"

"We will marry Qiaojie, but she cannot be our principal wife. Not to mention that she is a maid. Even if she is a lady from some other family, she cannot be the principal wife after something like this happened. As for the betrothal gift, I wonder if the general's mansion has any requirements?" Fang was filled with resentment but there was nothing she could do. If her son did something like this and was irresponsible, it would be even more shameful.

"Why would I have such a request? Logically speaking, I shouldn't be in person for any of her maids. I only came forward because you are my cousin's wife and Zhihua is also my nephew. We shouldn't do things that would give people a chance to talk about us, right? As for the betrothal gift, you can handle it as you wish." Lian Jinyu's words carried a hint of sarcasm.

Fang pretended not to hear it.

Qiaojie could be considered a blessing in disguise. No matter what, as a maid, she would be destined to become a concubine sooner or later, and Mr. Chen was still a young man after all.

An Yanran looked very unhappy. Although no one said anything, Qiaojie was the one who served her and her mother. Fortunately, this kind of thing happened and it was resolved satisfactorily in the end.

After this incident, Shen Zhihua was quiet for a long time, so quiet that people forgot about the general's mansion and his guest.

Qiaojie and he were as close as honey. She served him morning and night, adding fragrance and serving tea and water. They were like other newlyweds and were very harmonious.

The more Fang saw how harmoniously they got along, the angrier she became. Her son was so stupid. Didn't he know which was a gold ingot and which was a brick?

At dinner time, Fang didn't go because she was sick, but everyone else was still there.

Shen Zhiyun was a guest, so she was there too.

The old lady hasn’t been feeling well lately. She was lying there with someone serving her and feeding her.

An Qingran looked at her style and felt very dissatisfied. Even with a body like the queen, she didn't have anyone to feed her, but did it herself. She was afraid that even the queen mother wouldn't be more stylish than her.

What does she rely on?

Is she just relying on her fifth-rank son?

She actually poisoned her own grandson. She didn't expect my father to do anything, did she?

Now her father is still kept in the dark, and she is the only one who knows her true identity.

What should she do?

She didn't think of any good ideas, but the old lady spoke up: "Qingran, you stay after dinner and help me take a look. My chest has been stuffy."

An Qingran nodded naturally, but not as much as before.

Lian Jinyu saw it all and knew in her heart that her daughter was the most sensible one. Obviously, she also had some opinions about her grandmother because of the Shen family's affairs.

In reality, the situation is much more serious than this.

An Qingran stayed. She put her hand on the old lady's pulse and listened for a long time before she spoke: "There is nothing wrong with grandma's body. It's just that there is a little stagnation in her diet. Just exercise more and it will be solved..."

The old lady heard this and said, "You mean the chest tightness is just caused by eating too much?"

"Yes." An Qingran met her displeased gaze with a calm face.

The old lady looked at her with scrutiny, and finally she sighed: "Child, I thought you were a slick one, but I didn't expect you to be a straightforward and good child. Grandma likes you."

"Thank you, grandma." An Qingran said as she stood up. "Grandma, I'll walk around the room a few dozen times before going to bed. If there's nothing else, Qingran will go see my brother. Mingchen can smile now. He smiles as soon as he sees me. If he can't see me at night, he will look for me. Grandma, do you think he's interesting?"

The old lady nodded: "Interesting, children are naturally interesting."

"Fortunately, he escaped the disaster last time. I dare not let my guard down again. Sooner or later, I will settle accounts with those who hurt Mingchen..." An Qingran smiled viciously.

The old lady laughed and said, "Okay, but your cousin has already left. Are you going to go look for her?"

An Qingran smiled: "It's hard to say..."

After saying that, she turned and left.

The old lady breathed a sigh of relief. What was going on? An Qingran was only thirteen years old. How could she have such scary eyes? It was as if she could see into your heart, making her back go cold.

Doesn't she know something?

Could it be that she meant something?

The old lady was so worried about this matter that she hardly slept all night. The next morning, she became more sick with a cold nose and a headache. Chu wanted to ask An Qingran to see her, but she refused and asked someone to find a doctor from the mansion.

Chu was very puzzled.

The atmosphere in the mansion was very disharmonious, and everyone had their own concerns.

Lian Jinrong, in particular, saw that An Qingran was still fine and stayed in the east warm room all day long. The three of them, mother and son, were talking and laughing, and they were having a great time. Seeing them happy, her heart felt like it was being stabbed by a knife.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the general's mansion suddenly became solemn, because there were rumors that a plague had occurred in the village outside the capital, and it was very likely to spread to the city. Every household made preparations first. An Qingran immediately scattered the herbs for epidemic prevention everywhere, and fumigated with mugwort smoke several times in the morning and evening. She remembered that the plague in the previous life also came suddenly, and finally spread to the capital, but there was no problem in their general's mansion, and no one was infected. It was a miracle.

The capital's disinfection and epidemic prevention measures were not lagging behind. Lime was spread everywhere, and the Jingzhao Yin sent people to disinfect every household. All kinds of physical enhancement medicines had been sold out. In order to prevent riots, large groups of soldiers patrolled the streets day and night.

Every time An Zhongtao came back from the court, he would sigh, because the emperor was very worried about the plague. The imperial doctors had been developing medicines day and night, but there was no effect for a while. Therefore, every time the current situation was mentioned in the court, the emperor would be furious. At this time, he had all his skills but nowhere to use them.

People in the mansion had to go out less, all necessities were reduced, and the daily meals were only distributed to the small kitchen. Everyone no longer ate together, and the ingredients were in the smallest quantities. If they were wasted, they would be gone, and they were supplied once a day.

The old lady was not used to being alone instead of being surrounded by people. However, there was nothing she could do as she was afraid of being infected.

Lian Jinyu's daily work was mostly about dealing with how to distribute food. Fortunately, there was enough rice in the mansion. Originally, there was a small private plot in the mansion, where some fruits and vegetables were grown for fun. Now it came in handy. However, sometimes she couldn't buy vegetables in a day, so she had to send a few young and strong people out of the city to collect vegetables. Sometimes, she also sent people to the mountains to dig wild vegetables.