Chapter 5 She was certain that what she dreamed of was real.
Cui Linghui said this, and Old Lady Zhai was the first to be reluctant to make her legitimate grandson feel awkward. She smiled and said to Cui Lingyan, "Your second brother has been thinking about you all these years. Now that you're back home, you two siblings should get along well. Twins, a boy and a girl, are something no one can hope for."
Cui Lingyan knew very well that her grandmother was reminding her not to vent her anger on her younger brother Cui Shenbo because of what happened in the past.
Cui Lingyan naturally understood the old lady's meaning, so she gave Cui Shenbo a friendly smile.
Cui Shenbo bowed and called out, "Third sister."
Cui Lingyan nodded and replied, "Second brother."
Zhan sat upstairs with Old Madam Zhai, and seeing the politeness and distance between the siblings, she couldn't help but feel a little satisfied.
She said that Yan had lived in the Qi family for so many years, and no matter how strong the blood relationship was, they would become distant if they didn't get along, and this gap could not be made up no matter what.
Not to mention, sister-in-law Qi felt very sorry for her son Cui Shenbo. She always felt that Cui Lingyan had a strong horoscope and would harm her younger brother Cui Shenbo. If Yan girl returned to the mansion and Cui Shenbo had any health problems, Qi would have to think about Cui Lingyan's horoscope again.
Zhan glanced at the eldest daughter, Cui Linghui, who was standing there with a dignified demeanor, and felt even more deeply that even if this family was harmonious, it was just a facade.
This mansion is full of cunning people, and everyone has their own schemes.
Qi also felt the distance and politeness between her two children. After being separated for many years, it was impossible for a single word from their grandmother, Madam Zhai, to bring them close all of a sudden.
There were many people in the room at that moment, and although the two sisters-in-law didn't show it on their faces, they must have been laughing at her in their hearts and watching the show of their eldest son's family.
For a moment, Qi was a little unhappy about Cui Lingyan's return home, and she wished she could live with her parents for the rest of her life and not return to the Ningshou Marquis' Mansion.
She thought this in her heart, but dared not show it on her face. She just smiled and said to Madam Zhai, "Madam, my sister-in-law and her family have been exhausted from the long journey. I'm afraid they must be hungry now. Why don't you tell your subordinates to prepare a meal?"
Old Lady Zhai also felt that it would be embarrassing to have her aunt, Madam Zhan, and the Qi family's two children witness this scene, as it would damage the reputation of their Ningshou Marquisate. Hearing what Madam Qi said, she immediately smiled and agreed, "Okay, okay, let's eat first. There will be time to talk later."
As Mrs. Zhai spoke, she stood up.
"Today, my uncle's wife and Yan girl will sit next to me and talk to me about the customs and people of Jiangnan."
The group chatted and laughed as they walked towards the front hall.
The guests were divided into male and female, and there were two tables in total, separated by a screen. The tables were filled with delicious food, and the atmosphere was lively, intimate and full of laughter.
After dinner, everyone took their leave.
Qi personally arranged accommodation for her eldest sister-in-law Zhan and her family, and only ordered Nanny Jiang to accompany Cui Lingyan back to Chuyunyuan, where she lived in her childhood.
Chuyunyuan is a little far from the main courtyard where Qi lives. When Cui Lingyan was young, she didn't understand why. Now she knows that Qi, as her mother, probably never loved her.
Most mothers in the world are biased and harsh.
There are two crabapple trees planted against the wall of Chuyunyuan. The flowers are in full bloom at this time, a sea of bright red. Smelling the fragrance of flowers in the air, Cui Lingyan was a little dazed, her eyes fixed on the blooming crabapples.
Nanny Jiang could more or less guess Cui Lingyan's mood. After all, Cui Lingyan was supposed to grow up in Chuyun Courtyard instead of being sent to the Qi family. She only returned to the mansion now.
However, she was the Madam's confidante and depended on her for support. Naturally, at this time, she could only help Qi to ease the relationship between her son and mother.
"Madam has ordered people to take good care of these two crabapple trees. One year, they were infected with insects and were almost beyond saving. Madam even attacked several servants. It's obvious that Madam still cares about the young lady."
"Now that you're back, you should stay with Madam and show your filial piety to her. There's no such thing as an unbridgeable barrier between mother and daughter."
As Nanny Jiang spoke, she lifted the curtain and led Cui Lingyan into the house.
The furniture in the room was neatly arranged, exuding elegance everywhere. On the table was a tea set with a painting of crabapple flowers.
Seeing Cui Lingyan's eyes fall on the tea set, Nanny Jiang smiled and explained, "This tea set was sent by Nanny Xie, who is by the eldest lady's side. The decoration of the room is also thanks to the help of the people around the eldest lady. Otherwise, how could it be decorated so well?"
Cui Lingyan smiled and said nothing more.
However, a hint of dissatisfaction flashed in the eyes of the maid Bi Tao who followed behind her. The young lady returned home, and the lady didn't care at all, and even bothered the young lady to intervene?
Although she had accompanied the young lady after leaving the Marquis' Mansion for many years, she still remembered that the eldest lady Cui Linghui's favorite flower was the crabapple blossom.
Is the elder girl's intention good, or is she secretly demonstrating to the younger girl so that even if she has any concerns in her heart, she will have to swallow it secretly?
After all, if the young lady feels wronged for this, I'm afraid everyone in the mansion will say that the young lady was raised in the Qi family and is petty. Not only will they not appreciate it, but they will also use such dirty thoughts to speculate about their elder sister.
The master loves the eldest daughter, the daughter of the late wife, the most. If such a misunderstanding occurs, how will his daughter gain a foothold in this marquis's mansion in the future?
Bitao unconsciously looked at her own girl, but she only saw Cui Lingyan with a calm expression and a smile on her face, as if she didn't realize anything was wrong at all.
Not only that, Cui Lingyan also smiled and said to Nanny Jiang: "Big sister, you are really troubled. I like the furnishings in this room very much. I must go and thank you in person."
Cui Lingyan casually asked, "By the way, I heard from my second aunt today that my elder sister has been recuperating lately. Is that true? If so, I feel so bad for letting my elder sister worry about me so much while she's ill."
When Nanny Jiang heard this, the smile on her face froze. She hesitated at first, but then she thought that since Cui Lingyan had returned to the mansion, she would not be able to hide all the big and small things in the mansion from her, the third lady. It would be better to tell her early so that she would not say anything inappropriate without knowing anything.
Thinking of this, Nanny Jiang began to explain to Cui Lingyan in a low voice.
After just a few words, a look of horror flashed in Cui Lingyan's eyes. She tightly grasped the handkerchief in her hand, closed her eyes, and her mind exploded.
The words of Madam Jiang were still ringing in her ears: "This matter of Master Lu is a source of worry for the young lady. Please don't mention it in front of the young lady, lest you make her sad."
Cui Lingyan calmed herself down, her mind gradually becoming clearer. She replied in a gentle voice, "Don't worry, Ma'am. I know the severity of this matter."
Seeing that she was understanding, Nanny Jiang smiled again and said, "Young lady, there's no need to take this matter too seriously. The Empress Dowager and the Emperor both value the Crown Prince and will definitely invite a famous doctor to remove the remaining poison from him. No matter what, the position of the Crown Prince's wife, the Duke of Wei, is inevitable. I believe that God will also favor you and the Crown Prince."
"Young lady, you must be tired after all this travel. You should rest early today. The maids will prepare hot water for your bath. Tomorrow, Madam will give you two maids to use, so you will have more people to help you."
Cui Lingyan nodded and personally sent Nanny Jiang out. Then she and Bitao returned to the room and sat down on the couch.
Bi Tao endured it for a long time, but finally couldn't help it anymore and complained in a low voice, "Young lady, it seems to me that the eldest young lady is doing this on purpose. Before, she came with the third young master and acted so close to him, as if they were siblings from the same mother, making the young lady look like an outsider. Now she is decorating the young lady's room and sending this teacup with a crabapple blossom painting. She is clearly trying to make the young lady feel uncomfortable."
"These matters are clearly Madam's orders. Why is Madam so indifferent to the young lady? She even wants to arrange for a few maids until tomorrow. I just can't believe that such a huge mansion can't even find a few capable maids."
Cui Lingyan smiled and said, "Alright, regardless of whether it's what you think, we can only pretend that we didn't see anything. Could it be that I can bring these suspicions to Grandmother's attention and make her dislike me right after returning home?"
Cui Lingyan took her hand and smiled, saying, "It's good that there's no one serving in the room today. We, the master and the servant, can relax and have a good night's rest. Do you really want to bother dealing with a new maid?"
Bi Tao was surprised that Cui Lingyan wasn't upset or angry about this. After listening to her young lady's words and thinking for a moment, she agreed, "Young lady, you're right. My young lady and I just returned home, and we wouldn't be used to having someone else around us."
"But from now on, young lady, you must be very cautious in the mansion. This mansion is not like the Qi family, and young lady has no one to rely on."
Cui Lingyan pointed to the Canaan Incense Eighteen-Bead Bracelet on her wrist and said, "Grandmother gave me this bracelet as a token of her support. If this gets out, no one will dare to disregard Grandmother's authority and embarrass a young lady like me."
"As for the future, we'll take it one step at a time. After all, I have the blood of the Cui family, so I'll always be able to gain a foothold in the mansion."
Bi Tao was shocked by Cui Lingyan's composure. She felt that the young lady was now a little bolder than when she was at the Qi family. But this was also a good thing. If the young lady had been weak in character, she would have been bullied by anyone in this mansion.
After Bitao helped Cui Lingyan take a bath, the two of them went to bed.
Cui Lingyan closed her eyes, but her mind couldn't help but recall what happened in the dream. She was in a complicated mood and couldn't fall asleep.
She was certain that the dream was real. Heaven had warned her that all she had to do now was avoid being schemed against, having her reputation ruined, and end up like the person she had dreamed of.
......
Cuiwei Courtyard
Mrs. Qi was complaining to Nanny Jiang.
"Although Yan was born from my belly, to be honest, I really can't like her. I don't feel as comfortable with her as I do with Hui."
"With this mother-daughter reunion today, Bian and Gao must be laughing at me, their sister-in-law, in their hearts."
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