Perhaps it was Lady Hou who gave the order, because the servants in the west courtyard were no longer very obedient, since Lady Hou was now in charge of their indentures.

She was pondering whether to spend money to hire some help when she suddenly heard a commotion coming from the courtyard gate.

She subconsciously looked towards the door and saw Chi Yan leading a dozen or so tall and burly men inside, with Shen Ci among them.

Shen Tangning's eyes widened slightly: "What's going on here?"

Chi Yan smiled and pointed to the people behind him, saying, "Look, this is the professional moving team I hired!"

A hint of confusion flashed across her eyes: Is there such a way to make a living?

However, she quickly put this doubt behind her. Seeing Chi Yan directing a group of people to start moving, she came up to Shen Ci and asked, "Ci, what brings you here?"

Shen Ci raised his chin slightly, looking quite self-righteous: "What else could it be? I miss my older sister!"

A hint of amusement flickered in her eyes: "Stop being so cheeky. Does Mother know you're here?"

Shen Ci chuckled foolishly: "I only came because Mother agreed!"

The arrival of the Chi family elders was quite a commotion. Mother immediately guessed that it was probably because of the division of the family property, and that she was afraid her sister would suffer a loss, so she sent him over to take a look.

However, it seems that the older sister hasn't suffered any losses!

Chi Yan stepped forward, his eyes holding a half-smile: "Hey brother-in-law, are you here to help or just to have some fun?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Ci was displeased. He gritted his teeth, rolled up his sleeves, and strode aggressively into the house: "I'll move it then!"

Seeing this, Shen Tangning followed her inside. Everyone was busy, so she thought she would lend a hand. But as soon as she picked up a vase, someone suddenly jumped out from behind her, took the vase from her hand with a look of horror: "Young Madam, just leave it to us!"

Shen Tangning pursed her lips, feeling unusually flustered, and took a few steps back. Watching the man easily lift the vase away, she figured that Chi Yan was probably afraid she would break his precious vase.

Heavy objects were out of the question, so she decided to do something lighter. Shen Tangning went to the study and was about to organize the books on the bookshelf when suddenly another person appeared. Startled, she took a step back.

The man carefully and obsequiously snatched the book from her hands, chuckling foolishly, "Young Madam, please rest over there. We can handle this little thing!"

He held the books, looking relieved.

Young Master Chi has declared that if the young mistress lays a hand on them, their wages will be deducted!

Shen Tangning: "..."

...

After all that fuss, Shen Tangning was the one who had the most free time.

She then asked Xueqing and Granny Qin to prepare refreshing herbal tea and snacks so that they could replenish their energy when they were tired.

Seeing that Chi Yan and Shen Ci were covered in sweat, Shen Tangning said, "Sit down and rest for a while. There's no rush."

There was no room to sit inside. After a busy day, the two of them didn't care much about seating arrangements and simply plopped down on the stone steps under the eaves.

Shen Tangning handed over the poured tea, and the two of them took the cups and drank it down in one gulp, then fanned themselves with their sleeves, feeling quite content.

Chi Yan tilted his head and teased, "Brother-in-law, you've got some stamina!"

Shen Ci snorted coldly, displeased: "This young master is fine anywhere!"

He paused, then changed the subject, his expression hesitant, "I heard that the Ministry of Rites has made progress in the case of cheating in the imperial examinations, and I estimate that the punishment results will be announced soon!"

Chi Yan hadn't gone out much these past few days, so his information network wasn't as good as his. Hearing this, he gave a lazy laugh, his tone ambiguous:

"That's a good thing."