"Brother Zhang".
Xu Rong called out.
Xu Huazhang, who was busy trying to shake off the girl, was startled by the sound. He looked around in the crowd and finally spotted her. Overjoyed, he ran over and exclaimed, "Sister!"
The girl was thrown aside by him and almost fell, but fortunately, her maid caught her. Sobbing, she ran towards Xu Rong and called out, "Second Sister-in-law."
It was Xiao Shan.
Upon approaching, Xu Rong noticed that she looked somewhat disheveled, with the hibiscus hairpin in her hair hanging askew, but her clothes were still relatively neat, so she should be alright. He then looked at Xu Huazhang, who was perfectly fine, and asked him, "What happened? Did you run into some bad guys?"
Xu Huazhang denied it: "I didn't. She ran into them. She was wandering around with her maid when two lecherous men stopped her and started harassing her. I saw it and scared them away, but then she started clinging to me and kept chasing after me."
Xiao Shan was both angry and embarrassed: "Who's chasing you! I just asked you to take me to find my sister-in-law."
Xu Huazhang scoffed, "I don't know anything about your sister-in-law. If you want to find her, go find her yourself."
His words betrayed hostility, leaving Xiao Shan bewildered and aggrieved: "You—even if I've offended you, you don't have to act like this—"
"Hey, are you stupid?" Luo Yanfeng suddenly interrupted, "Your sister-in-law stole Sister Xu's husband, and you still wanted Lord Xu to lead you to her. It's a miracle he didn't scold you."
"Exactly!" Xu Huazhang exclaimed, feeling a sense of kinship.
Xiao Shan finally realized what had happened, and twisted her handkerchief as she said, "I... I didn't mean it, and besides, that's all in the past."
"You think it's all in the past?" Luo Yanfeng retorted, her voice twice as loud as hers. "I bet you're the one who got robbed, that's why you're saying such nice things."
"..." Xiao Shan couldn't take it anymore and said angrily, "Miss Luo, this is none of your business, you don't need to lecture me."
"Who lectured you? I was just saying a few words because I saw injustice." Luo Yanfeng said righteously, "Am I not even allowed to speak? You're too domineering."
Feeling completely betrayed, Xiao Shan exclaimed, "You—"
“Young lady,” Xu Rong interrupted her decisively, “they’re still outside, and arguing like this will never end. Didn’t you leave with the Second Madam? How come you’re alone?”
Xiao Shan was pulled back to her senses, and she felt even more aggrieved when the matter was brought up: "My second aunt wasn't going to see her maternal family at all. She had her eye on a family and used the excuse of going on a spring outing to actually bring my second younger sister to meet them."
“The Second Madam didn’t explain clearly, and the young lady followed without knowing the reason. The Second Madam also thought the young lady was in the way.” Xiao Shan’s maid couldn’t help but chime in, “She sent someone to take the young lady to the First Madam’s place.”
Xu Rong asked, "Where did the Second Madam send to escort you? How come only the two of you are left?"
The girl hesitated for a moment, glanced at Xiao Shan, and then said, "We accidentally got separated."
It probably wasn't an accident.
The master and servant were angry and didn't want them to follow, so they deliberately wandered off. There were already many people around, which is why they got separated.
This is not entirely Madam Xiao's fault. A matchmaking is a private matter. If it doesn't work out and is made public, it will damage Xiao Qi's reputation. So, in front of the Luo family, she used her family as an excuse. As for Xiao Shan wanting to come along, she couldn't say no, nor could she reveal the real reason. She could only make arrangements for Xiao Shan after they came out.
Xiao Shan disobeyed instructions, which ultimately led to this mishap.
Fortunately, Xu Huazhang happened to be passing by and rescued her in time.
Xu Rong understood and didn't ask any more questions. He instructed, "Brother Zhang, you take Miss Luo back to the Luo family. Eldest Miss, come with me, I'll take you to find the eldest mistress."
Xu Huazhang was a little confused, wondering why he had suddenly been given the task of escorting the girl. His obedience to Xu Rong made him hesitate, but he still agreed. Xiao Shan was a little unwilling. She looked at Xu Huazhang and then at Luo Yanfeng, and said, "Second sister-in-law, I'll go back with you."
Xu Rong didn't want to put them together, as they would argue endlessly and cause friction. Xu Huazhang was tough, and Luo Yanfeng didn't seem delicate, but Xiao Shan was not. To avoid her crying and complaining again, it was better to fulfill her initial wish.
He said, "The eldest mistress has a lot of people with her, so it's safer for you to stay with her. If you want to go sightseeing, there will be people to help you. If you don't want to go sightseeing, the Zheng Guogong Mansion should be more lively."
Xiao Shan was reminded by her that manpower was secondary; when she returned to her own territory, she would have to socialize with Madam Luo. Madam Luo hadn't even broken into the traditional noble circles, so what suitable connections could she have? The Duchess of Zheng was a different story.
She began to waver, but before she could make up her mind, Xu Huazhang, who was not one to procrastinate, said to Luo Yanfeng, "Let's go."
Luo Yanfeng quickly followed him, and the two soon walked out. Xiao Shan had no other choice, and Xu Rong urged again, "Young lady, let's go too."
She had no choice but to follow Xu Rong in another direction.
Xu Rong didn't know where the territory of the Duke of Zheng's mansion was located, but the scenery at the foot of West Mountain was beautiful everywhere, with spring grass as soft as silk and spring flowers in full bloom. He searched and strolled around, treating it as a way to enjoy the scenery.
Xiao Shan gradually couldn't hold on any longer. She wandered around aimlessly for a while, then chased after Xu Huazhang for a while, and now she was following Xu Rong. Her stamina, typical of a young lady, was running out, and she was starting to show signs of tears again.
“Young lady, look—” Xu Rong turned her head and saw that she was in tears, so she stopped talking and asked her first, “Are you tired?”
Xiao Shan nodded, looking aggrieved.
She rarely went out and felt she had never suffered so much in her life. She regretted her actions and thought it would be better to go back to Madam Luo's place.
Xu Rong squinted and glanced at the lakeside not far away again, saying, "Then you wait here for a while. I think I saw Grandma."
Xiao Shan hurriedly asked, "Where is it?"
I followed her gaze and looked around aimlessly.
Xu Rong pointed towards a weeping willow tree by the lake. Under the tree stood a young couple. Xu Rong felt that the woman's clothes resembled Chang Shuyin's, but since she was facing away from the tree, she couldn't see her face at all, so she couldn't be sure.
Xiao Shan also glanced at it. She wasn't as familiar with Chang Shuyin as she was with Xu Rong, and she couldn't recognize her. After assessing the distance again—if not, they would have wasted a long walk—she nodded and said, "Okay."
"Just stand here and rest for a while, don't move an inch," Xu Rong advised her, then left Bai Fu to keep him company before walking alone towards the lake.
There were quite a few people by the lake; children were chasing and playing, couples were strolling hand in hand, and others were resting on the grass. Xu Rong continued until she approached the weeping willows, and the couple didn't notice anything unusual. The young man in Xu Rong's direction glanced at her casually, a perfectly measured look of admiration in his eyes, before looking away and continuing to speak to the woman who resembled Chang Shuyin: "Second sister, don't worry about me. Although Pingliang Prefecture is remote and the wind and sand are quite strong, I'm not like you women, afraid the wind will roughen my face. Pingliang is peaceful now, unlike Annam, which is guarded by the Duke of Ying. Father transferred me there, and I'll accumulate some experience over the years. When I come back, my future will be much easier."
The woman nodded: "Yes, second brother, I know. Father is naturally thinking of you—"
As soon as she spoke, Xu Rong recognized her voice; it was indeed Chang Shuyin. In fact, she had recognized her from behind as she got closer, but the man had been talking the whole time, and she hadn't had a chance to interject.
"But that is, after all, Prince Qing's fiefdom, and I've heard that Prince Qing is extremely powerful."
"That was in the past, so many years have passed now—"
The man paused, raising his eyebrows and looking at Xu Rong with a mixture of wariness and doubt.
It's normal for a beautiful woman to pass by or linger and admire the scenery, but it's unusual for her to stand still.
Xu Rong had no intention of eavesdropping on their conversation, nor did she try to hide it. Seeing that he finally stopped, she nodded generously and then called Chang Shuyin, "Grandma."
Chang Shuyin's back trembled, and she quickly turned around.
The moment she saw Xu Rong, her expression was one of utter terror.
To put it bluntly, it was like seeing a ghost.
Xu Rong: "..."
What's going on?
She didn't even reach out to pat Chang Shuyin, she just called her name, and this reaction was far beyond the normal range of being startled.
The man also noticed something was wrong, and he couldn't help but reach out to support Chang Shuyin: "Second sister?"
Chang Shuyin was distracted and only responded after a while with a soft "Mmm." Her gaze remained fixed on Xu Rong as she stared at her and asked, "When did you arrive?"
Xu Rong met her gaze and smiled, "Just now, I wasn't eavesdropping on your conversation, but your second brother saw me."
I saw that he continued talking, but it wasn't anything important.
In public, no secrets are usually discussed.
Therefore, Chang Shuyin's reaction is quite intriguing.
Xu Rong tilted his head, pretending to recall: "I only heard two or three sentences, you were talking about Pingliang Prefecture and Prince Qing."
As soon as she finished speaking, Chang Shuyin's face, which she had barely managed to suppress, turned even uglier.
“This man—” Xu Rong looked at the man again, “you must be Second Master Chang? Please be my witness, I really didn’t come here to eavesdrop on anything, I have something to discuss with Madam Chang.”
Master Chang nodded, but since he didn't know Xu Rong, he first asked about her identity. After Xu Rong answered, his eyes deepened and his expression became more complicated. He didn't say anything more, but gently nudged Chang Shuyin to remind her.
Chang Shuyin then asked, "—What brings you here?"
“The Second Madam has something to attend to and has entrusted the eldest daughter to you,” Xu Rong turned her head and looked at Xiao Shan, who was still standing there looking in this direction. She waved to Xiao Shan and gestured for her to come over. Then she said to Chang Shuyin, “I will bring the eldest daughter to you.”
"..."
Chang Shuyin's expression calmed down a little, but it didn't improve. When she saw Xiao Shan running over with a happy look on her face, she still showed a little impatience.
Clearly, they didn't want to take on this trouble.
Xu Rong ignored her and waited until Xiao Shan got closer before saying to her, "Young lady, you should stay with the eldest mistress and not wander off again."
Xiao Shan was exhausted and had no energy to think about anything else, so she obediently nodded.
Xu Rong decided not to stay any longer. Chang Shuyin's unusual reaction today was an unexpected gain. She would definitely be on guard in a short time and would not give her another chance.
She said goodbye, "Madam, I'll be going back now. Madam Luo and Miss Luo are still there."
Chang Shuyin said, "Mm."
Her expression finally returned to normal, and her attitude became indifferent. Xu Rong gave a slight bow to Master Chang again, and was about to leave when Master Chang hesitated for a moment and called out to her, "It's not safe for you and the maid to go back. Wait a moment, and I'll have two people escort you."
Xu Rong shook her head, somewhat surprised: "Thank you, but no need."
There are many people coming and going here, so the safety level is actually quite high. She's not like Xiao Shan; she won't panic just because two lecherous men are around.
She turned and left, the spring breeze carrying Master Chang's whisper to Chang Shuyin: "Second sister, you don't have to be like this..."
And Chang Shuyin's explanation: "Second brother, it's not what you think..."
Xu Rong couldn't hear what was said after that. She led Bai Fu around again and found their own territory. When they went inside, they first saw Xu Huazhang sitting in her old spot, with a pile of pastries and snacks in front of him. He didn't even look up and was happily eating.
Xu Rong: "..."
She thought that given Xu Huazhang's previous lack of tact, once the person was sent there, they would be unable to stay and would run away.
"Sister Xu is back." Luo Yanfeng saw her first, put a cup of tea on the table in front of Xu Huazhang, poured a new cup, and greeted her happily, "Sister Xu, you've walked a long way, you must be thirsty, come and have some tea."
Xu Rong walked over, and Xu Huazhang finally looked up and chuckled as he said to her, "Sister, I came out alone and I'm starving. I had nothing to eat, but luckily you have some here."
After saying that, he gulped down the cup of tea that Luo Yanfeng had just poured for him.
Xu Rong looked at him speechlessly: "It was Mrs. Luo and Miss Luo who entertained you. Did you thank them?"
"Thanks, thanks." Xu Huazhang popped another piece of sugar pastry into his mouth.
Madam Luo, sitting at the head of the table, looked at him with loving yet worried eyes: "Slow down, don't choke." She then instructed the maid, "Pour the young marquis another cup of tea."
"Mother, I can do it."
Luo Yanfeng picked up the small white porcelain teapot with great enthusiasm and refilled his teacup.
"..." What could Xu Rong say? This little playboy was living the life of a fish in water.
After a while, Madam Xiao returned with Xiao Qi. Xu Rong observed the expressions of the mother and daughter and found them to be good, so he guessed that the matchmaking should have gone smoothly.
Since there was food to eat, Xu Huazhang stopped walking and wandered around aimlessly. When he got tired, he would go inside the tent to eat. Luo Yanfeng followed him like a little tail. Xu Huazhang once tried to catch insects to scare her. Luo Yanfeng was also scared and screamed. After screaming, she pulled weeds and plucked leaves to throw at him. The two of them single-handedly stirred up a lively scene in the area.
Xu Rong sat behind the curtain and pressed his forehead.
She initially tried to step forward and analyze Xu Huazhang's mindset, whether he was also tempted, but gave up after observing for a while.
It's noisy.
She doesn't understand children's games.
Madam Luo looked at her with great admiration and couldn't help but praise her: "Second Madam has such a good demeanor. My eldest daughter is just like that when she's at home. It's just that this second girl—sigh."
She also showed a headache expression.
"Second Miss is innocent and kind-hearted; she is an excellent girl," Xu Rong said, coming back to her senses and comforting her.
"That's true, Second Madam. You have a good eye. Second Girl is a bit impulsive, but her heart is impeccable—" After all, she is her own daughter, and Madam Luo couldn't help but praise her again.
Madam Xiao Er also joined in, and the two sides chatted until after noon. Finally, Chang Shuyin returned with Xiao Shan. By then, it was getting late, the sun had passed its zenith and was beginning to set, and everyone was packing up to go home.
After bidding farewell to the Luo family and instructing Xu Huazhang to hurry home, Xu Rong took a carriage for another half hour and finally arrived back at the Changxing Marquis's residence as the sky was ablaze with colorful clouds.
The day's fatigue also surfaced at this time, but being young, Xu Rong rested in the warm pavilion for a quarter of an hour, and had Hong Liu massage his waist and legs, and then he recovered, only feeling a buzzing in his ears.
The kids are so noisy.
If Luo Yanfeng had simply run away at the sight of insects, that would have been fine. But instead of running away, she fought back, which ignited Xu Huazhang's fighting spirit, and the two of them kept bickering.
Xu Rong found it incomprehensible how they could play such a childish game for so long.
As the sunset faded to gray, Bai Fu lit the lamp, and Hong Liu called out lively from outside, "The Second Young Master is back!"
Xu Rong stretched and got up to leave the warm pavilion. While instructing people to set out the meal, she casually glanced at Xiao Xin and saw that he looked numb and tired again. She couldn't help but empathize with him. He had been nagged by his teacher all day, and she had been bothered by a young couple for half a day. It was like a demonic cacophony in her ears. Weren't they almost the same?
Xiao Xin was also looking at her, and asked expressionlessly, "What's wrong?"
He wasn't indifferent; he was just too tired to bother with any expression.
Xu Rong knew this, so she didn't take his cold face to heart. She simply described her own experience and then sighed with a sense of vicissitude: "I guess I'm getting old."
I don't understand young people these days.
Xiao Xin remained expressionless and silent. He simply put down a stack of things in his hand and then suddenly left.
Xu Rong didn't know what he was going to do, and waited blankly for a while before Xiao Xin returned.
He seemed to be holding something in his hand, and when he got to Xu Rong, he raised his hand and revealed it.
A long, thin, wriggling worm.
Xu Rong: "...!"
She opened her mouth but didn't make a sound; her three quick steps back betrayed her deep fear.
Xiao Xin looked at her trembling eyelashes and slightly parted red lips, a hint of smug satisfaction in his eyes—he no longer seemed numb, but rather full of energy, and asked Xu Rong, "So, do you understand now?"
Xu Rong: "..."
She closed her eyes briefly and ground her teeth.
I understand.
None of my younger brothers are reliable.
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