The old lady was really amused by Eleventh Lady and ate most of the porridge. The egg fruit was also ready, so she had it put in a paper box and took it to eat in the carriage.

You can take one in one bite without touching your lips.

The lady told her: "When we were your age, it was popular to draw straight eyebrows, but Tzuyu, oh, that is Mrs. Huang, has a square face, and she never attends every party."

Eleventh Lady found this interesting and asked with a smile, "Did you and Madam Huang know each other when you were children?"

The lady nodded. "When my father was the provincial governor of Shaanxi, her father was the governor of Shaanxi. When my father was the minister of the Ministry of Justice, her father was the minister of the Ministry of Works... our two families lived next to each other for ten years. Later, I married into the Yongping Marquis's Mansion, and she married into the Yongchang Marquis's Mansion. We are both only children, neither of us are from Yanjing, and we married into noble families. We have always interacted like sisters."

No wonder no one from the lady’s house came when I got married.

The old lady seemed to have seen through Shiyi Niang's thoughts and smiled at her, "Maybe it's because my family is small. I've always envied other people's families with many brothers and sisters since I was a child, and I especially hope to have many children." Her face turned red. The old lady looked at her and laughed, changing the subject, "I see that you don't like those lapis lazuli and rubies, but you like these corals, beeswax and the like."

Without talking about the issue of offspring, Eleventh Lady was much more natural. She smiled and said, "I'm young, and I can't feel depressed wearing those things. It's not that I don't like them."

The two chatted and laughed, and soon arrived at the Zhongshan Marquis Mansion.

Eleventh Lady's dress really attracted everyone's attention.

Grandma Huang San even pulled her hand and looked at her from left to right, and asked her: "Is this bracelet a gift from the Empress?"

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "I just play with it when I have nothing to do."

Grandma Huang San was amazed by it.

Madam Liang and Madam Tai laughed and said, "Only the Fourth Madam can wear such a color. If it were someone else, they might have such plainness and elegance, but not such grace."

The lady-in-waiting looked at Eleventh Lady, who was standing with Third Madam Huang, Grandma Lin, and Madam Zhou, smiling sweetly and gracefully, and her eyes were full of smiles.

After lunch, when everyone went to see Miss Tang, Eleventh Lady attracted the attention of the young ladies who came to see Miss Tang off.

“Wear lake colors in the winter!”

"Look at that bracelet."

"The emerald green skirt is embroidered with oily green twined flowers."

"Do you know who it is?"

"I heard it was the wife of Yongping Marquis."

"The new one?"

"So it turns out that the concubine sister of the wife of Marquis Yongping is Qiao Lianfang..."

The voice gradually died down, and someone else looked over with envy.

For a moment, everyone was talking about Lady Luo, the wife of Marquis Yongping.

When a strong wind blows down the paulownia tree, people will always comment on its merits and demerits.

Eleventh Lady was immune to all the strange looks, and returned home early after attending the wedding with the Lady Dowager.

It was the Third Lady who came to greet them.

Seeing Eleventh Lady, she was a little surprised: "Fourth brother's wife is dressed so beautifully today."

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "Because we want to drink at the wedding!"

The Third Lady nodded, looked at her twice, then knelt down to salute the Grand Lady: "The Marquis and the Fifth Master haven't left the yamen yet. The Third Master is in the office. You're back really early today."

The lady smiled and said, "You are old and can't stand the hard work. It's better for you to come back early." He was helped back to the house by the third lady, and Mama Du and others helped him change clothes and wash up.

The Third Lady smiled at Eleventh Lady and said, "The New Year is coming soon. You are free anyway, why don't you help me buy New Year's goods!"

Eleventh Lady was stunned.

"I will talk to mother about this." The third lady smiled and said, "After all, the Chinese New Year is a big event. If we can deal with some of the etiquette during the Chinese New Year, living at home normally will be a piece of cake." She said in an encouraging tone.

In a flash of lightning, Eleventh Lady suddenly understood.

The third lady decided to go to the post with the third master.

She was afraid that no one in the family could take over the household chores, and that the Madam would keep her...

Eleventh Lady felt both amused and annoyed.

She and Xu Lingyi were worried that the Third Madam would not go, but the Third Madam was worried that she would not be able to go! It was just unknown how the couple would arrange for the two brothers Xu Siqin and Xu Sijian...

While they were thinking, Zhen Jie'er and Zhun Ge knew that they had returned and came to pay their respects.

The two of them looked surprised when they saw Eleventh Lady's outfit.

After asking about An, Zhen Jie'er stared at the tassel on her wrist with curiosity.

It's a pity that this tourmaline bracelet is too valuable. It would be a bit inappropriate to give it to a child like Zhen Jie'er. Otherwise, I would give it to them to play with... The thought flashed through her mind, and Eleventh Lady had an idea. Why not make one for Zhen Jie'er with pearls and keep it as a gift in her box when she gets married!

Just as she was thinking about it, the lady came out of the bathroom after washing up in high spirits. Seeing that Shiyi Niang was still there, she smiled and said, "You are tired today, go back to your room and rest. You don't need to come here today."

After being out for a day, she always felt covered in dust. Eleventh Lady smiled and said "yes" and went back to her room.

As soon as she entered the room, Bin Ju said, "Qiu Hong, the maidservant beside Madam Wen, has come several times to see if you have returned!"

"Madam Wen has something to talk to me about!" Eleventh Lady took off her cloak with a smile, and went to the bathroom with Luyun's help.

Bin Ju followed and said, "It is said that the Third Master of the Wen family is going to Beijing to give New Year gifts, and the Third Mistress of the Wen family is also accompanying him. I wanted to come and say hello to you. The steward of the Wen family has been waiting at the gatehouse, waiting for a reply from here!"

I don’t know what kind of collusion the Xu family and the Wen family have, so I’d better ask Xu Lingyi first.

"Tell them it's too late today and it's not convenient. Let's talk about it tomorrow!"

Binju left immediately.

Eleventh Lady washed her hair and bathed for nearly two hours. When she came out wearing a fur coat, she was surprised to see Xu Lingyi reading a book on the big kang by the window in the inner room. She was startled.

"When did the Marquis come? Why didn't you send someone to tell us?"

Xu Lingyi looked up at her and said, "I've been here for a while." He lowered his head to read a book and asked, "Do you want to grow daffodils?"

"Oh!" Eleventh Lady responded, her eyes looking at the daffodils on the windowsill, "Let's see if they can bloom like in the greenhouse."

Xu Lingyi hummed and said, "Go and twist your hair quickly. I have something to tell you."

Shiyi Niang hurriedly sat down beside the dressing table. Several maids tremblingly helped Shiyi Niang twist her hair, and it was soon half dry. She casually tied her hair into a bun, sent the maid away, and sat opposite Xu Lingyi.

Xu Lingyi then put down the book and asked, "Can the Wan Daxian you mentioned read?"

"Can read!" Eleventh Lady was shocked.

It seemed that his strategy had worked. And Xu Lingyi had begun to make arrangements for the outer courtyard...

I knew in my heart that this was a big deal, but my eyes couldn't help but glance at the cover of the book.

It turned out to be a collection of annotations on the Four Books.

"It's almost the New Year, and I'm busy with things to do," Xu Lingyi said calmly, "I'm going to temporarily hire a few errand boys. Let him go too!"

The Huichu was in charge of the reception affairs in the mansion, reporting the guests and entertaining them. It was a very lucrative job. But Wan Daxian was an honest man who did practical things. If he stayed in such a place, he might not be able to find his strengths. She had few people under her control, so she had to train them according to their different needs, so that each of them could be independent.

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "Wan Daxian is too honest. I'm afraid he can't handle important tasks. If you really want to use him, you might as well place him in the ancestral hall. Helping to manage the sacrificial utensils is in line with his personality."

This is of course a very easy job, but it requires loyalty. Otherwise, if someone steals the sacrificial utensils and sells them, even if you beat the person to death, you won't be able to get back the items that were sold.

Xu Lingyi listened and nodded.

Eleventh Lady dared to say this, so Wan Daxian must be a very loyal person.

He pondered and said, "The ancestral hall may seem simple, but the person in charge of the sacrifices needs to be familiar with the way of image worship. He may not be suitable."

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "I haven't thought about it so much, but the Marquis is more thoughtful."

Xu Lingyi pondered for a moment with a blank expression and said, "Why not let him go to the office? The office will need a few servants to help anyway."

I didn't expect Xu Lingyi to make such a big move... It seems he has made up his mind to reshuffle the cards!

It's good to go to the office. An honest man will feel more at ease when doing practical things.

Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "I will send someone to take a letter to him. Let him come to thank you tomorrow morning."

"I'm just a servant, why should I thank you?" Xu Lingyi said with a smile, "No need!"

Eleventh Lady thought of what happened this morning, smiled awkwardly and agreed, and mentioned that the Third Mistress of the Wen Family was coming to greet her: "...I don't know if I can see her or not? I want to ask the Marquis for advice."

Xu Lingyi considered and said, "The Wen family is a business family after all. They value making a profit. It's better not to meet them."

Eleventh Lady was very surprised.

She thought that although Xu Lingyi didn't like the Wen family, the Wen family was one of the few big merchants in the Great Zhou Dynasty, so they would be able to deal with it. Moreover, the Wen family could send their legitimate daughter to the Xu family as a concubine, and the Xu family accepted it. This in itself was a kind of humble and submissive attitude. As time went by, Xu Lingyi seemed unwilling to have more contact with the Wen family!

Although she didn't understand, she respected Xu Lingyi's decision.

After all, he is the head of this family.

"I understand!" Eleventh Lady said with a smile, "I will go back to her tomorrow."

Xu Lingyi nodded, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.

Seeing that everything that needed to be discussed had been discussed and the sky was gradually getting dark, Eleventh Lady smiled and asked, "My Lord, are you going to serve the meal now? Or will you serve it later?"

Xu Lingyi looked out the window and saw that the big red lanterns were hung under the eaves. He said, "Let's set the table!"

Eleventh Lady asked the maid to serve the meal while she served on the side.

Xu Lingyi looked at him and smiled: "I saw you came back so early, I thought you didn't eat?"

"Miss Tang's auspicious time is the beginning of the third month, so it's a bit early to eat."

Xu Lingyi had dinner alone and went to Qiao Lian's room.

Eleventh Lady took out the name card given by the lady dowager and familiarized herself with the character again, but it was not necessary for her to know it by heart.

The next day, when Aunt Qin and Aunt Wen came to pay their respects to Eleventh Lady, Eleventh Lady kept Aunt Wen to talk and politely declined the Wen family's offer.

Madam Wen was very surprised and whispered, "Both the Luo and Wen families are from Jiangnan. They are unfamiliar with the place in Beijing, so they should look out for each other. We know each other all the time, and there are many businesses that can be cooperated. Madam, why should you be so cautious just because the Wen family is a merchant? You don't know that merchants value integrity the most, and they will never regret what they have promised!"

Eleventh Lady was secretly shocked.

It seems like every word Madam Wen says has a hidden meaning!