Luo Shenyuan was sitting in a sedan chair as it passed along the official road. He felt it sway slightly. He lifted the curtain and saw it was a carriage escorted by guards, accompanied by a plain-looking maid. She had just passed by this group of people.
Luo Shenyuan played with the seal and asked calmly, "Whose convoy is that? It's so grand in the inner city."
"Your Excellency," the attendant outside stopped the sedan chair and said with a bow, "I haven't seen it clearly. Would you like to go and take a look?"
"No need." Luo Shenyuan said, "Let's go to Gu's house quickly." Then he lowered the curtain and the sedan started moving again.
When they arrived outside the Duke of Yingguo's mansion, someone outside raised a curtain for Yining to disembark. Yining descended, Baoger in her arms. She saw the familiar plaque and the double black lacquered doors of the Duke of Yingguo's mansion and breathed a sigh of relief. She was finally back at the Duke of Yingguo's mansion.
Xu was waiting for her at the screen wall with her maids and servants, and came over to greet her as soon as they saw her.
The familiar old women all looked at her and wiped their tears secretly.
Yi Ning handed the sleeping Bao Ge'er to Qiu Niang, bent down and called out to her mother, and asked Xu: "Is Grandmother all right?"
Xu was no different from a year ago. She was a shrewd woman, keeping her house in perfect order and living a comfortable life. She said, "The old lady is still in good health, but Ting'er has gone to the Tianjin Garrison and I'm afraid he won't be back until the New Year. He's grown a lot taller in the year you were away!"
Yi Ning was not very familiar with Xu, so she nodded with a smile. She went to Jing'an Residence to pay her respects to Old Madam Wei.
Mrs. Wei looked even older than before, and tears welled up in her eyes the moment she saw her. Her lips trembled, "I knew you were seriously ill, but I couldn't even go see you. Now you're better... You're better now!"
The Luo family had spread the news that Yi Ning was seriously ill and had gone to Baoding to recuperate. They had kept it a secret from even the Duke of Ying's residence. Besides Wei Ling, Yi Ning suspected that the Xu family also knew something.
Yi Ning smiled and hugged her: "Don't worry, I'm back."
Yi Ning talked with her for a while. When she heard that she had given birth to a child, the old lady was very surprised.
"Where is my great-grandson?" After the old man checked that she was fine, he let her sit on his Luohan bed and was eager to see his great-grandchildren.
Yi Ning had Bao Ge'er brought to her. Xu sat down beside her and said to Old Madam Wei with a smile, "Look how well your great-grandson has grown. He's so white and plump."
Baoger had just woken up, rubbing his eyes and unable to see his mother, so he burst into tears. Yining took him over.
Xu added, "He looks a lot like Elder Luo. I've only met Elder Luo once from a distance, and he was surrounded by others. The Luo family is truly aristocratic these days."
"Why mention him? When Yining fell ill, he was sent to Baoding for recuperation, but he joined the cabinet. Now that I'm back, I haven't seen him come to visit. It's obvious that Lord Luo looks down on our Duke of Yingguo's Mansion." Old Lady Wei spoke with a hint of dissatisfaction. She didn't like Luo Shenyuan very much in the first place.
Luo Yining smiled bitterly and said, "It's not his fault. He doesn't even know I'm back yet. I didn't tell him about it."
He's now powerful and is about to be called a cabinet minister. Hearing her father say he didn't look for her, how could Yi Ning not feel disappointed? She should stay at the Duke of Ying's mansion for a while before deciding. She could ask him about it later, or discuss what to do. What if there's a misunderstanding? For example, he looked for her but her father didn't know, or he wasn't colluding with the Tatars? No matter what, she needs to get to the bottom of it.
But right now, she really couldn't face the negative consequences. She even wanted to avoid Luo Shenyuan, afraid of seeing him. Let's stay for a few days and see.
"Then Yining, come live with me in Jing'an Residence." Old Madam Wei took her hand and said, "You stay here first. I'll find a suitable day to ask Luo San to come over. There's no rush for now. Tomorrow I'll ask the second daughter of the He family to accompany you! She just returned to her parents' home with her child."
"Okay." Yining answered the old lady with a smile. In her heart, she still felt that home was the best and no place could be as comfortable as home.
*
When she woke up the next day, she didn't hear the whistling wind, but felt gentle and comfortable all over.
Yi Ning opened her eyes and found that the little girl wasn't beside her. She half-sat up and looked up, only to see that in the west side room, Old Madam Wei had already picked up Bao'er and was playing with him. The wet nurse, the maid, and Xu Shi were all around them. In front of Bao'er were toys like bracelets, rattles, and small pillows, and Old Madam Wei was holding him up and trying to grab them.
Bao Ge'er is the easiest to get along with after waking up in the morning. He's so full of sleep that he doesn't even notice he's been taken away from his mother. He excitedly waves his little arms, trying to grab the brightest little pillow and chew on it. When Old Lady Wei takes it away from him, he looks at her with a puzzled look.
Yi Ning got dressed and walked to the west side room. Bao Ge'er smiled at her from a distance and waved his arms even more happily.
Old Madam Wei and Madam Xu surrounded him, unable to contain their sympathy. "Ah, this little thing, he wants to eat everything. I'm afraid he's about to start teething!" Madam Xu, who hadn't had any children yet, felt her heart soften at the sight of the little pink ball, especially since Bao'er was so white and soft. She followed Old Madam Wei early in the morning and quietly took Bao'er out to play.
Mrs. Wei laughed and said, "Your hands are really strong. You might even be able to become a general!"
He didn't care at all that this was the son of the cabinet minister. Whether he was to be a civil servant or a military officer, it was up to his father to make decisions.
When Old Lady Wei saw Yining get up, she hurriedly called her over: "I saw you were sleeping so soundly that I didn't wake you up. Come and have breakfast. I've heated it up in the steamer for you."
As they spoke, the dishes arrived: white porridge for the main course, a bowl of steamed egg with shrimp and milk, thinly shredded beef sprinkled with sesame seeds, and a stack of golden brown sugar rice cakes, both sides coated with pine nuts. There was also some pork floss, which was mixed into the porridge and tasted truly delicious. The food was much more refined than in Xuanfu. Yining's appetite was so strong that she drank three bowls of porridge in a row, and even Mrs. Wei's gaze on her changed.
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