Zheng Gaoyi was practically grinning like an aunt: "You guys go ahead, I'll walk back myself."
Stone: How can you say you're all alone? I'm here with you, aren't I?
Xie Linzhou walked in front, and Song Ning followed behind.
"You've really stolen the show today." Xie Linzhou's words were ambiguous, whether he was praising her or being sarcastic.
"General Xie, you saw everything today?"
Xie Linzhou didn't say anything and continued walking forward.
At the age of twenty, he was tall and strong, perhaps due to his martial arts training and combat experience. His posture was upright, and the veins on the back of his hands were faintly visible.
Standing beneath the stars in a white brocade robe, she was truly captivating.
If she's not cold right now.
How could someone like Xie Linzhou not see through her little tricks today?
She just doesn't know what this person means.
Asking her to go for a walk so late at night? Is it really just a simple walk?
Although the weather has improved a bit in the last couple of days, it's still very cold at night. He's not cold, but Song Ning is shivering from the cold.
Xie Linzhou remained silent and walked forward for a while longer. Song Ning finally couldn't hold back any longer: "Young General Xie, please just say what's on your mind. It's quite cold here."
Xie Linzhou hesitated for a moment, moved his lips in the darkness, and was about to ask when he heard a voice behind him: "Er Ya? General Xie?"
Song Ning looked toward the sound and saw a figure slowly walking over; it was Zhou Ling'an.
Just now, a group of people rushed towards Songjia. Zhou Ling'an had a lot to say but didn't get the chance. He wanted to take this opportunity to find Song Ning, but as soon as he got here, he saw two figures.
The moment Xie Linzhou saw Zhou Ling'an, displeasure flashed in his dark eyes.
"Greetings, General Xie." Zhou Ling'an bowed after recognizing the person.
Xie Linzhou's expression was hard to discern in the darkness. Song Ning just wanted to go home. Before Xie Linzhou could speak, she asked Zhou Ling'an, "Did you need something from me?"
Zhou Ling'an was taken aback, then nodded.
Very good.
"Since you have something to say, let's go home and talk about it. It's a bit cold outside."
Then he looked at Xie Linzhou and said, "Young General Xie, I have something to attend to, so I'll head back now. Please take care." With that, he quickly pulled Zhou Ling'an along and ran.
Xie Linzhou pursed his lips, and even the strands of hair fluttering in the wind behind him revealed his unhappiness.
Song Ning walked forward for a while, looked back, and could no longer see Xie Linzhou's figure. She finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"What's wrong?" Zhou Ling'an asked.
"It's nothing, let's go back quickly."
Once inside, Song Ning rubbed his hands together, and Zhou Ling'an asked, "Why did you go out with General Xie so late at night?"
Song Ning sat down on the kang: "Oh, he just wanted to talk to me about the future of Tianxiang County. After all, this is someone else's fiefdom. He probably heard the county magistrate mention it before, so he came to ask for my opinion."
Actually, Xie Linzhou had some kind of madness; he called her out and left her there to freeze, without saying anything of importance.
"By the way, is there anything I can help you with?"
Zhou Ling'an blushed and stammered, "I just... wanted to apologize to you. I'm sorry for the trouble I caused you today. Don't worry, it won't happen again."
Speaking of this, Song Ning also had something to say: "Zhou Ling'an, starting tomorrow, you don't need to come and drive the carriage for me anymore."
"Why?"
"Aren't you going to study soon? You won't be able to come back often, so you don't need to come anymore."
Besides, Madam Yu is Zhou Ling'an's mother after all. Over time, they will inevitably develop a rift. Apart from Ma Chunyan, who will be making hair ornaments for Zhou Ling'an in the future, she doesn't want to have any more dealings with the rest of the Zhou family.
To avoid being caught in the middle.
Yu's temperament is something that cannot be changed.
If she continues to have ties with Zhou Ling'an, she'll cause trouble again in the future.
It wasn't that she was scared, it was just that she was really annoying.
The Song family is busy with a lot of things all day long, and they don't have time to deal with these trivial matters.
It won't hurt her to cut ties with the Zhou family.
Although that's what they said, Zhou Ling'an also understood that Song Ning had become estranged from them because of his mother.
From now on, I probably don't want to have anything to do with their family anymore.
"And the matter of borrowing grain on the road before, that money is wiped clean, and in return, you owe me a favor."
Human relationships can be big or small. Zhou Ling'an definitely has to take the imperial examination. If she really rises to prominence in the future, she will have connections in the government.
Money can be earned back, but a debt of gratitude can last a lifetime.
Of course, Song Ning didn't intend for Zhou Ling'an to actually protect her in the future; she was just leaving herself another way out.
A few taels of silver for a favor—no matter how you look at it, she's making a profit.
“Go back and tell Uncle Zhou that the rest of the money doesn’t need to be paid back, and there’s no need to argue with Auntie over what happened today. After all, I’m an outsider.”
Song Ning's words left Zhou Ling'an speechless.
With just one word, "outsider," Zhou Ling'an knew that Song Ning would never treat him the way she used to.
"I...I understand."
Besides feeling embarrassed, Zhou Ling'an was mostly saddened.
Upon returning home, Zhou Ling'an first went to see Ma Chunyan, saying that he could start work at the Song family's house the next day.
After conveying Song Ning's message, he returned to his room without saying a word.
When Zhou Cheng saw his son like this, he knew that Er Ya must have said something.
Now, no one in the house wants to talk to Yu Shi. This time, Zhou Cheng didn't mention divorcing his wife again; the calm was unusual.
The quieter the house was, the more uneasy Mrs. Yu felt. She had indeed acted impulsively today.
But what's the use?
Zhou Cheng'an used to speak up for her, but now he hides in his house and won't come out even when he comes home.
This incident did not leave any negative impact on Song Ning.
The next day, Luo Yingying and Ma Chunyan arrived early after having breakfast.
Song Ning handed them the blueprints and took out all the items she had bought that she would need.
"I don't know the rest, so I'll leave that to you."
People who enjoy handicrafts are happy to see these things. Luo Yingying smiled and said, "Don't worry, we definitely won't let you down."
"If you don't have enough time, take it home to do, so you don't have to come every day."
After giving instructions to the two men, Song Ning packed his things to go to Jiangning County, as he hadn't delivered the braised food for today yet.
Without Zhou Ling'an, Song Dahai took on the job of driving the cart again. Fortunately, the weather is much better now, and the snow on the ground is slowly melting. It seems that true spring is just around the corner.
Song Ning sat outside the carriage, humming a song as she enjoyed the scenery along the way.
Suddenly, Song Dahai let out a sigh, stopped the mule cart, and looked to the side.
"Father, what's wrong?"
Song Dahai pointed to the clump of dry grass on the left and whispered, "Er Ya, there seems to be something over there."
Song Ning turned his head to look in the direction Song Dahai was pointing, and after examining it for a while, he realized that it was a shoe.
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