Hearing rustling sounds from behind, Jiang Si quickly closed the window.

Erniu poked his nose on the window screen, poking a hole in the thin screen, revealing his wet black nose.

Jiang Si turned around and saw that Xie Qingyao had just turned over. He breathed a sigh of relief and turned around again.

The dark nose moved, but remained obediently in the hole.

The window screen vaguely reflected the outline of a large dog.

Jiang Si couldn't help but twitch his lips and opened the window again.

The big dog looked at Jiang Si with an innocent face, as if he knew he couldn't wake up the others, so he was very obedient and said nothing.

"I'll get you something to eat later, and then go back quickly, okay?" Jiang Si felt a little distressed because Erniu was hungry, and was afraid that it would be discovered, so he whispered to it.

"Asi, who are you talking to?"

Jiang Si turned around quickly and saw that Xie Qingyao had already sat up, his eyes were swollen like walnuts, and he was still dazed and not fully awake.

Erniu cleverly hid back under the window.

Jiang Si walked back and said, "I think the weather is good, so I'm talking to myself."

Xie Qingyao did not suspect anything and called the maid in. After Hunhun washed up, she sat numbly at the table to have breakfast.

The breakfast placed in front of her was just a bowl of porridge.

According to the rules, after the parents passed away, they would not have this bowl of porridge for three days, and could only drink water. However, rules are dead, and people are alive. Not to mention Xie Qingyao, a delicate girl, even if a strong man did not eat for three days and only drank water, crying during the day and keeping vigil at night, I am afraid that he would be almost ruined after three days.

People don't eat meat or fish, but there is nothing wrong with eating plain porridge to fill their stomachs.

In addition to a bowl of porridge, Jiang Si also had two vegetarian buns in front of him.

The vegetarian buns were only bigger than a child's fist. Two buns and a bowl of porridge should have been enough, but thinking of Erniu by the window, Jiang Si felt a little worried.

Xie Qingyao had no appetite at all. After drinking two mouthfuls of porridge, she didn't want to eat anymore. She used a spoon to stir the porridge from time to time.

"Asi, don't worry about me. Eat it while it's hot. If it's not enough, ask the maid to bring more."

Jiang Si was silent for a moment, then said shamelessly, "Then bring ten more buns."

The maidservant standing by asked in a daze, "Ten?"

Xie Qingyao glared at the maid: "Stop talking too much! Go and get it."

I didn't expect Ah Si to have such a big appetite. It turns out that people change as they grow up.

Soon a plate of vegetarian buns was served. The buns had even wrinkles, thin skin and large fillings, and were neatly arranged on a white porcelain plate.

The maid secretly glanced at Jiang Si, unable to hide her curiosity.

Jiang Si couldn't help but frown.

How can she feed Erniu if she is being watched so closely?

"I can't eat with people I don't know. Please leave for now."

Seeing that Xie Qingyao had no objection, the maid quietly withdrew.

Xie Qingyao ate absent-mindedly and was distracted from time to time. Jiang Si took the opportunity to throw a vegetarian bun out of the window. By the time the plate of buns was finished, he was sweating from exhaustion.

She knew that Yu Qi was a troublemaker!

"Someone from my grandparents' family should be coming today." Xie Qingyao said softly as they walked to the mourning hall.

Jiang Si patted the back of Xie Qingyao's hand, giving silent support.

In the mourning hall, Xie Yinlou was kneeling and burning paper.

Under the licking of the flames, the paper money turned into gray butterflies and was blown away by the wind. The boy looked focused, his face as cold as ice.

"Brother——" Xie Qingyao burst into tears as soon as she saw Xie Yinlou.

Xie Yinlou paused, raised his eyes to look at Xie Qingyao, then looked at Jiang Si and nodded in greeting.

Xie Qingyao knelt beside Xie Yinlou, took the stack of paper money from his hand, lit it, and murmured.

"You and Jiang Simei go sit inside first and wait for relatives and friends to come before coming out."

"Brother, I want to be with you."

Xie Yinlou's expression turned cold: "Be obedient."

Xie Qingyao now only had Xie Yinlou as his closest relative, so he naturally would not refute his brother's words. He stood up silently and went inside.

During the day, people came to pay their respects. If there were any female relatives, Xie Qingyao would come out to return the greetings.

As noon approached, the guest of honor called out, "Uncle and his wife from the Hedong Zhang family have arrived."

The Hedong Zhang family is the maiden family of the wife of the Earl of Yongchang, and is a prominent family in the local area.

Soon a group of people came in, crying.

Several women hugged Xie Qingyao and cried for a while, then hugged each other and went into the inner hall.

One of the women wiped her tears and hugged Xie Qingyao tightly: "My child, you are really suffering. Your aunt is late."

A group of women, young and old, surrounded Xie Qingyao, expressing their sympathy one after another.

In this situation, Jiang Si had no choice but to quietly reduce his presence.

"Who is in charge of the affairs of the mansion now?" asked the woman.

Xie Qingyao said nothing and just kept crying.

The woman exchanged glances with the others and thought to herself that after all, she was just a little girl, how could she understand these mundane matters.

"Qingyao, your grandmother fainted when she heard that your mother had passed away. She was still saying your name in her sleep. The old lady is worried about you." The woman wiped her tears and changed the subject, "Don't be afraid. With your uncle and I, we will definitely take care of your parents' affairs and will never let others bully you young people and suffer in vain."

"I don't understand these. Aunt, please go talk to my brother." Xie Qingyao said woodenly.

The woman choked and said softly, "Well, I'll tell your eldest brother about this later. And your uncle also has something to tell your eldest brother."

Seeing Xie Qingyao's confused look, the woman said no more and continued to cry about the miserable life of the Xie brothers and sisters.

At noon, Xie Yinlou urged Xie Qingyao to go back to the house to rest, but he himself looked very tired, and even his lips were dry and chapped.

Xie Qingyao wanted to persuade her brother to take a rest, but she knew that the huge Bo Mansion could only be supported by her brother now. No matter how much she persuaded, it would be useless and it would only make her brother upset. So she put it aside and went back to her room honestly.

She did not understand many things, but she knew that obeying her brother's arrangements was the most sensible thing to do at this time.

Jiang Si quietly reminded, "Qingyao, I think my aunt may have other ideas besides condolences, so you should pay attention."

Xie Qingyao nodded slightly and left a maid to watch over it.

The two returned to the house, washed their faces and hands, and soon after they rested, the maid came hurriedly, with a gloomy look on her face: "Miss, the uncle's wife and the eighth wife are arguing."

The "Eighth Madam" mentioned by the maid was the woman who spoke to Xie Qingyao when Jiang Si came over yesterday.

Xie Qingyao moved his eyelids and said in a cold voice: "What are you fighting for? Are you fighting for who will be our housekeeper?"

Obviously, although Xie Qingyao didn't know the answers to any of the questions asked by her aunt just now, she actually did understand everything.

She knew it in her heart, and it was precisely because of this that she felt even more sad about not having her parents as her support.

She really only has her brother now.

The maid looked strange, "No, my aunt and the eighth wife are competing to arrange a marriage for the prince. They say that the Bo's house is not in good shape without a mistress. If we get the marriage done during the mourning period, we won't have to wait another three years. It will also comfort the spirits of the Bo and Bo's wives in heaven."

When Xie Qingyao heard this, his expression changed immediately.