It was nearly Mid-Autumn Festival, and a message came from the palace that Prince Qing and his wife, who had been stationed in Yidu for many years, would return to the capital from Qingzhou Prefecture to attend this year's Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. Before she got married, Princess Qing was a close friend of Princess Rui'an in the palace. She had been away from the capital for many years with Prince Qing, and this rare return to the capital made her want to see this former good sister. The two had not seen each other for more than 20 years, so they had a lot to talk about, so they decided to stay in the Marquis's mansion for a few days.
This was not a good thing for Yuan Xi, who had just taken over the government and was in a state of chaos. The rules for welcoming the princess of a vassal king were complicated, and it was a headache for her to find a residence that matched her status. In the end, she followed Aunt Cai's suggestion and renovated the Qixia Courtyard next to the main courtyard where the princess lived. This would save time and effort, and would be convenient for the two of them to move around. However, this would be another huge expense. How much money to allocate, how many craftsmen to arrange, and how to control the construction period all needed to be planned in detail.
Yuan Xi was almost always caught up in these trivial matters, so busy that she could only take a break to go back to her room. On this day, she was just stealing a half-day of leisure, leaning on the beauty couch, sipping the sour plum soup that An He had prepared for her. Her eyes moved to the book on the table that had been idle for who knows how long, and she suddenly felt deeply sad that she could never go back to the days when she could hide in the prime minister's mansion and read books alone in a daze.
However, it is not an easy task to manage such a large mansion. If Aunt Wang were still here, she would definitely be able to arrange it properly. Thinking of this, she looked at the sweet and sour soup in the cup and sighed silently: Although Aunt Wang is selfish and greedy, she has spent all her energy on the mansion. Who can tell the right and wrong of what has happened today?
Just as she was daydreaming, Nanny Li pushed the door open gently, followed by a pretty little maid. There were traces of tears on her fair face, and her big round eyes were looking at her timidly, looking quite pitiful.
Yuan Xi saw that Nanny Li seemed to be hesitant to speak, so she asked quickly, "What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Nanny Li sighed and said, "Madam has been very busy lately, so I shouldn't have bothered you casually, but..."
Yuan Xi put down the porcelain bowl, deliberately put on a stern face, and said: "Why are you and I still talking about these things? If you have something to say, just say it quickly. If you don't say it, I will be angry."
Nanny Li then pulled the pitiful little maid behind her to her front and said, "This maid's name is Chan'er. She serves in the Second Young Madam's room. She happens to be from the same village as me, so we get along very well. Who would have thought that just a few months ago, when she went to bring tea to the Second Young Master, she was..." She paused and sighed deeply. Chan'er covered her face and sobbed. Nanny Li also wiped her tears. She shed tears and continued, "We servants have no control over our fate. We have no choice but to swallow the bitterness of having our innocence ruined. Who knew that she would find out that she was pregnant this month? The Second Young Master refused to admit it, and the Second Young Lady also said that she was misbehaving and wanted to abort her baby and expel her from the house. She is a weak woman with no relatives in the capital, so she had no choice but to find the old slave and ask the Madam to make the decision for her."
Yuan Xi frowned. If what she said was true, and this matter concerned the bloodline of the Marquis's Mansion, why was it not her turn to come forward? So she tentatively asked the crying Yuan Xier, "Do the master and the princess know about this?"
While wiping away tears, Qian'er said, "I went to ask the princess, but she only asked Nanny Yu to tell me that the Second Young Master had never been under her control, so she couldn't interfere in this matter. I also went to find the old man, but he refused to see me."
Yuan Xi was a little confused. Why were the old man and mother-in-law so cold when it came to the bloodline of the Marquis' Mansion? She was embarrassed and was about to refuse, but Yuan Xi knelt down and cried, "Please, Madam, save the child in my belly. I am just a worthless life, but the baby in my belly is innocent. As long as I can give birth to this child, I am willing to leave the Marquis' Mansion forever, hand the child over to the Second Young Lady to raise, and swear never to see him again."
Seeing that she was determined to save the baby at all costs, Yuan Xi felt something in her heart. After hesitating for a while, she said, "How about this, I'll try to talk to the Second Young Madam for you and see if there is any room for discussion." Di'er raised her head in surprise and thanked her profusely. Nanny Li was also delighted and hurriedly helped her up. Yuan Xi comforted her again and took Nanny Li to Wang Shuqin's room.
When she entered the room, Wang Shuqin was pruning a peony in front of her. She looked much thinner, and there was still a hint of sadness between her brows. She turned her head and saw Yuan Xi, bowed solemnly, and said, "Sister-in-law, how come you have time to come to my room today?"
This is Wang Shuqin. No matter what she has in mind, she can always act so dignified and decent. Yuan Xi inexplicably recalled the time when she was framed by her. He tried to put these thoughts aside, sat down and said, "I came here today because of the maidservant's death."
Wang Shuqin's face flashed with resentment, but she still smiled and said, "Why bother my sister-in-law to come out for a lowly maid?"
Yuan Xi hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "She told me that she was willing to keep the child and raise him under your name, and she would stay away from the mansion and swear never to see the child again. I wonder what my sister-in-law thinks."
Wang Shuqin gently twisted up the branches and leaves she had just cut and threw them out of the window. She said with a dull look on her brows: "People are people in my room, and things are also matters in our room. As for how to deal with it, it seems that we don't need my sister-in-law to do it for us." Make the decision."
Her words were cold and hard, but they were also reasonable. Yuan Xi sighed, knowing that there was no room for negotiation, and had to take Li Ma'am and say goodbye. As soon as she returned to the room, Luo Er immediately came up to her expectantly, but as soon as she saw her expression, she knew what had happened, and then she knelt on the ground softly, covering her face and crying in despair.
Yuan Xi asked Li Ma to send Luo Er away. She felt a little uncomfortable. She knew that she could not do anything and it was not her job to do anything. But were some people born to be treated like grass and trampled upon by others? She looked out the window at the gradually dimming sunlight and suddenly wanted to go back to the prime minister's mansion and be a girl who was not favored but lived a happy and simple life.
At this moment, a servant outside the door called out, "Madam, the marquis wants you to come over." Yuan Xi thought of Xiao Du, and her heart softened. She put away her sad feelings, straightened her clothes, and followed the servant all the way to the study where Xiao Du was.
As soon as she entered the room, she felt that the atmosphere was a little strange. Xiao Du stood with his back to the door, his eyes fixed in an unknown direction outside the window. Hearing footsteps in the room, he just coldly called the servant to go out and close the door, but did not turn around.
As soon as the door was closed, the room immediately fell into silence, a suffocating silence, with only the sound of water dripping from the leaking pot. Yuan Xi had never seen his back so cold and stiff, and her heart skipped a beat, and she felt a little uneasy.
At this moment, Xiao Du finally turned around, with a look of pain and mockery on his face. He picked up a piece of paper on the table and asked, "Why do you have another name called Wanwan?"
Yuan Xi's body shook violently, as if struck by lightning. She stared at the half page of the book in his hand, unable to speak for a long time.
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