Su Rong had a chat with Madam Shen and then returned to the courtyard where she was staying.
Su Xingze was waiting for her in the courtyard. Seeing her return, he first looked her up and down, then heaved a sigh of relief and asked her, "How is Zhou Gu?"
Su Rong repeated Zhou Gu’s situation.
Su Xingze nodded, "I’ll go see him later."
Su Rong nodded.
Su Xingze took out a stack of letters from his sleeve, "These are letters written to you from home."
Su Rong was shocked, "Why are there so many?"
Su Xingze sighed, "Father, Mother, Master Xie, as well as your aunt, sisters, including Wet Nurse Zhao and Yuewan - everyone has written you a letter."
Su Rong: "....."
Su Xingze couldn’t help but chuckle at her expression, "In contrast, only Master Xie and Father have written me a letter."
Su Rong blinked, "Should I give you some of mine?"
Su Xingze laughed, "No thanks."
Seeing him rarely say such a thing, Su Rong suddenly felt that this stack of letters, even if burdensome, was quite sweet. It had even touched her elder brother, so she immediately took the stack of letters, and walked into the house.
Su Xingze followed her into the house. Seeing her opening and reading each letter, he patiently sat on the side, sipping tea while waiting for her to finish.
Su Rong read the letters quickly, despite many to read, it didn’t take much time to finish. After finishing, she divided the letters into three parts. "One letter from Father and Uncle Xie should be enough. A single letter from Aunts and sisters should suffice. Mother gets a letter on her own, and Wet Nurse Zhao and Yuewan can suffice with a few words. Just to let them know that I am well."
Su Xingze was surprised, "Are you going to write back in person this time? A separate letter for Mother?"
Su Rong nodded, "Yes, mother is the great heroine of our family, she deserves special treatment."
Su Xingze couldn’t help but laugh, "No wonder mother favors you the most."
Su Rong raised her eyebrows, she wanted Madam to feel the favoritism of her daughter. After all, all the aunts in the house now have daughters by their side, but Madam, with one son and one daughter, are both in the Capital City, who knows what they are thinking about. Madam is always stubborn but soft-hearted, very tough, and even misses them, she won’t say a word in the letter.
So, she instructed Su Xingze to grind the ink for her, and then she picked up a brush and started writing.
Madam asked in the letter, she heard from Su Xingze that she and Zhou Gu had broken off their engagement, and within a few days, she had arranged a new wedding engagement on her own. How could she be so reckless with such a big life event? She also asked what kind of person is Ye Guixue, his manners, and his talents. Before Ye Guixue leaves Nanchu, she wants to meet him personally. Should she come to the capital, or should Ye Guixue go to Jiangning County? She also mentioned that everything was fine at home. Recently, many people have come to propose to her sisters, and she is still considering. In summary, she wrote a lot, mainly concerned about whether she was doing well in the Capital City. She didn’t mention that she missed her at all, but every word and line were full of worry.
Su Rong, rarely being patient, painstakingly wrote back to every question in the letter. She truthfully described Ye Guixue, his character, appearance, and talents, etc. She also mentioned that she would discuss with Ye Guixue to see if it would be convenient for him to go to Jiangzhou. He won’t be staying in the Capital City for long, perhaps he might pass by Jiangzhou on his way back to Nanchu. But if she comes to the Capital City that’s also okay. She has already asked Madam Shen to give marriage options to her sisters. After her brother’s examination listings are out, if she leads her sisters to the Capital City, they could also meet their potential husbands, weigh different options, and select the best. Ideally, all of them would get married in the Capital City and would be there to support each other. With the time before she goes to Nanchu, it would be wise to decide on her sisters’ marriages.
The letter Su Rong wrote to Madam was substantial, she said all that needed to be said. After finishing, she massaged her wrist. The letters to her father and Xie Yuan were much simpler, getting the point across with just a thin sheet of paper. Then she wrote to her Aunts and sisters, which was even simpler. She asked the aunts to stay well in Jiangzhou and informed her sisters to prepare to meet potential husbands in the Capital City led by Madam. Then, she informed Wet Nurse Zhao and Yuewan that she was safe and well. She managed to reply to the pile of incoming letters within a short span of time.
After replying to all the letters, she tossed the pen aside and slumped in the chair, "So tired."
Replying to letters was more exhausting to her than drawing a sword and fighting.
Su Xingze chuckled, serving her a cup of tea. He then helped her seal the letters with wax, and told her, "I’ll take these letters. They’ll be sent out today."
Su Rong nodded.
Su Xingze still wanted to say a few words to her, to ask about her trip to the Buddha Temple and how she got along with Ye Guixue. However, seeing a faint greenish hue under her eyes, he realized she might be a bit tired. He decided not to ask further, stood up and said, "You should rest!"
Su Rong rubbed her eyes, "Is my complexion really that bad?"
Just now on the way back to the Shen Residence, Ye Guixue had also urged her to rest as soon as she got out of the carriage.
Su Xingze nodded, "It’s quite obvious."
Mainly because her skin was fair, the dark circles under her eyes were extremely noticeable, and her overall expression looked fatigued.
Su Rong agreed; she was indeed a bit sleep-deprived. After all, she had been digesting the contents of six rare books in her mind without proper rest. She waved her hand at Su Xingze, "You can go now, big brother. I’m going to sleep."
Su Xingze bowed slightly, holding the letter as he exited her courtyard.
Su Rong returned to her room and went straight to bed.
When Ye Guixue returned to the Duke Residence, Ye Qiuying curiously asked him numerous questions, tugging at his sleeve.
Tilting her little face up, she asked seriously, "Uncle Guixue, I heard that Sister Su Qi went to the Duke Residence from the Buddha Temple in the middle of the night yesterday to treat Lord Zhou. Isn’t she caring too much for him?"
Ye Guixue squeezed her face gently, answering softly, "It was simply an emergency to save someone’s life. What are you implying? If anyone asked for help and she had the suitable medicine at hand, she would do the same."
Ye Qiuying pouted, "Uncle Guixue, don’t fool me. Is it really the case that anyone else could make Sister Su Qi risk facing danger multiple times on her way to the capital, even in the middle of the night? I heard people saying that when she entered the capital, she was covered in blood and without any delay, she went straight to the Duke Residence."
Ye Guixue frowned, "Who is spreading such nonsense in front of you?"
Ye Qiuying immediately closed her mouth.
Ye Guixue’s expression turned cold, "Speak up."
Ye Qiuying lowered her head, "Uncle Guixue, no one was spreading rumors, I heard it myself. Everyone in the residence is talking about it."
Ye Guixue’s brows furrowed, "I already knew from the start that the Duke’s Residence was chaotic, as messy as a pot of porridge, and after living here for a few days, I had to tolerate it but now it seems that just one day of my absence made you forget the rules, listening to idle gossip. If things continue like this, it will be really difficult to stay any longer."
He looked at Ye Qiuying, "When I leave Daliang, I’ll make arrangements to settle you elsewhere. It won’t be possible for you to live in this residence."
Ye Qiuying apologized guiltily, "Uncle Guixue, I’m sorry."
Ye Guixue patted her on the head, "You’re still young, it’s natural to be somewhat influenced by rumors. But Qiuying, Uncle Guixue wants to tell you, wise people discern right from wrong, they don’t just believe everything that others say."
Ye Qiuying bit her lip and nodded, "Uncle Guixue, I was wrong."
Ye Guixue picked her up and put her on the chair, sitting down himself, looking at her, he started to recount the events at the Buddha Temple and the rest of the occurrences for the past two days, omitting the part when Su Rong and Fen Ling infiltrated the Book Pavilion. He did not obfuscate details because she was a child. After finishing, he looked at Ye Qiuying and said, "Lady Su Qi asks for my opinion in every matter and obtains my consent before proceeding. Although she’s a princess and could make decisions herself and wouldn’t be stopped by me, she respects me and asks for my opinion. Not only that, but she also explained the reasons behind her involvement in Lord Zhou’s affairs. It’s rarely seen for someone to go to such lengths. At least, I am very grateful to her for treating me like this. Therefore, Qiuying, no matter what the outside world says about her, she didn’t do anything wrong in my eyes. You should not judge and speculate about her based on others’ words."
Ye Qiuying nodded heavily, "Uncle Guixue, I understand. It won’t happen again. There won’t be a next time." She said softly, "In fact, I think Sister Su Qi is also quite nice."
Ye Guixue smiled slightly, "Yes, she is indeed nice. Anyone with discerning eyes can see her good qualities."
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