He Jiuniang felt very sorry for her when she saw her like this. No matter what era, girls are always a vulnerable group, especially girls like Lianhua who are beautiful and capable. They will always become the target of some people.

This wasn't the first time Lotus had experienced something like this, but each time it left her feeling so helpless, undoubtedly causing her considerable harm.

He Jiuniang patted her little head and said softly, "Because I'm your aunt, of course I have to come and save you. Anyone in the family would do the same. We're family."

Lotus cried even harder, saying, "This face of mine always gets me into trouble. When I get back, I'll find a pair of scissors and ruin it so I won't cause trouble all the time!"

She was really considering it. She used to be proud of her good looks, after all, every girl loves beauty. But with these one accident after another, she was really exhausted. She would rather be more ordinary-looking and live a simple and uneventful life.

How could He Jiuniang, who cared so much about appearance, hear such words? She was instantly displeased and said, "Lotus, how could you have such thoughts? So many people dream of having a face like yours. Aren't you taking your good fortune for granted?"

Lotus was stunned for a moment. Was this a blessing?

"But there are too many troubles, and sometimes I almost lose my life. Compared to my life, I think my appearance is no longer important."

Lotus spoke with a touch of sadness, feeling that this face had brought her too much trouble and that she might as well not have it at all.

He Jiuniang earnestly advised, "This is where you're wrong. None of these things are your fault, and you can't blame yourself for being good-looking. It's an advantage, not a disadvantage. You should be happy, not upset about your appearance. Those who aren't good-looking should be the ones who are upset, worrying every day about how to become more attractive. You have this advantage, so you should be even happier, instead of trying to ruin such a beautiful face, understand?"

As He Jiuniang spoke, she reached out and rubbed her face. Her skin was delicate and smooth, and it felt bouncy to the touch. How could she bear to ruin such a beautiful face?

Lotus didn't answer. She continued, "The ones who are truly at fault are those scoundrels who did bad things. They are the ones who should be destroyed and taught a lesson. When you are hurt or bullied, never look for the cause within yourself, understand?"

She looked into Lotus's eyes, and Lotus nodded with tears glistening in them.

He Jiuniang hadn't finished speaking when she asked Lianhua, "Look at me, do you think I'm pretty?"

Lotus nodded again and said, "My aunt is much prettier than me!"

He Jiuniang was anything but modest: "That's right! Someone as good-looking as me cherishes my face so much, how could you not? In other words, with my looks, do you think no one would have designs on me? But why have I always been safe and sound? It's because I'm strong enough to protect myself, so those with bad intentions don't dare to easily cause trouble. What you need to do is keep making yourself stronger so that others don't dare to easily hurt you, instead of starting to doubt yourself and wondering if it's wrong to be good-looking."

Lotus listened attentively to all of these words. Every time she heard Aunt Jiu Niang speak, she felt as if a new world had opened up for her. Every time she thought she was bad, it was precisely the thing that Aunt Jiu Niang thought was good.

She really learned so much from Aunt Jiu Niang!

"Auntie, thank you! I won't think that way anymore. I will definitely work hard to become stronger so that bad people won't dare to have any bad ideas and won't cause me any more trouble!"

She clenched her fists, having made up her mind.

As it turns out, Aunt Jiu Niang's words were always very reasonable. The reason she was able to hold out until Aunt Jiu Niang came to rescue her was because she had been practicing martial arts and strengthening her body during this time, which enabled her to fight against the maids and servants in Aunt Zhang's courtyard.

Seeing that she no longer had those negative thoughts, He Jiuniang smiled and said, "That's right! We should be more optimistic. Problems can be solved as they arise. They're not a big deal. Just remember, your uncle and aunt will support you! Go ahead and do it!"

Since Lianhua had only mentioned that she came to save her and hadn't mentioned Lu Baichuan much, she deliberately brought it up to let Lianhua know that she wasn't the only one who could support her!

Lotus nodded emphatically and burst out laughing: "Yes! I know, Uncle and Aunt are my biggest support!"

The two walked and talked, and after they had comforted Lianhua, He Jiuniang hailed a carriage by the roadside to take them back to Xishuiyuan.

There's nothing I can do. I was just showing off my love with Lu Baichuan, the two of us riding a horse together, but we're going our separate ways on the way back. I even brought lotus flowers with me, so I can only play an ancient version of Didi.

When they returned to Xishuiyuan, the other children had almost finished getting ready. They had all changed into clean clothes and were doing their homework. Only Lu Xiaoyang and Leizi were waiting anxiously at the door.

Lu Xiaoyang didn't tell the children in his family about the possibility that Lianhua might have gotten into trouble. He even told Youya that Lianhua had gone to take someone's measurements. But when they left, he saw how anxious He Jiuniang was, and he already felt uneasy.

So after he came back and changed his clothes, seeing that they hadn't returned yet, he went out to wait at the door.

When Lei Zi saw that only Lu Xiaoyang and You Yatou had returned, and that their eyes flickered when they talked about lotus flowers, he became anxious. He even forgot about his homework and came to wait at the door.

He desperately wanted to rescue Lianhua himself, but he didn't know where she was or what the situation was like there. He was worried that he might do more harm than good. After much deliberation, he decided to wait at the door with Lu Xiaoyang. He believed that his third uncle and aunt would definitely be able to rescue Lianhua.

"Third Aunt, Lotus!"

Seeing the two get out of the car, the two young men rushed over. They saw that Lianhua was fine except for her hair being a little messy. Although her eyes were still red, indicating that she had been crying, she was smiling now, so she must be alright. The two men breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing this, He Jiuniang became gossipy again, since she quite liked both of these young men.

Although Lu Xiaoyang had made mistakes before, he has now learned his lesson and is a very business-minded child, which He Jiuniang greatly admires.

Of course, to be honest, she still favored Leizi a bit more, because he was her sister-in-law's child, and if he stayed with Lianhua, she could see Lianhua every day.

Most importantly, I hope that my elder brother and sister-in-law can love Lianhua more. This child suffered in the first half of her life, and she should enjoy a good life in the second half.

But if she married Lu Xiaoyang, they couldn't live together; she would have to move out with him, which she found very difficult to bear. Besides, although Lu Xiaoyang was related to them by blood, only Lu Fugui and his son remained from Lu Xiaoyang's branch of the clan, and they hadn't reconciled yet. Their relationship was simple but not easy, and she didn't want Lianhua to be troubled by those things.