Yinzhen had heard screams from inside the house and thought a thief had broken into the courtyard. He was both shocked and angry. He kicked open the door and came in. Suddenly, Tongshi jumped into his arms, her face pale with fear. She was only wearing a thin shirt and was obviously terrified.
Then, several more figures ran out of the room. Their clothes were intact, but they were all pale-faced. The maid was shouting that there was a snake. Yiren was the first to come to her senses and greet them.
"What happened? What's wrong inside?" Yinzhen patted Nan Yi's back to comfort her, not noticing their embracing posture, and asked the maid in front.
Yi Ren took a deep breath and said in a trembling voice, "Reporting to Master, there is a snake in the room." There was a snake? She had been checking carefully every day. How did it get in?
Yinzhen breathed a sigh of relief, thankfully it was just a snake. But his face darkened again in an instant. How could there be a snake in the bedroom? Although it was the time when snakes were active, there shouldn't be one in the bedroom, not even in the garden. How could the servants do such a thing?
He angrily said, "How did a snake get into the bedroom? Didn't you check beforehand? How did you serve your master? When you get back to the manor, all of you will go to the steward to be punished."
The thought of her almost being bitten by a snake made Yinzhen feel inexplicably clenched in his heart and extremely annoyed.
"Fourth Brother, is everything alright inside?" Thirteen also heard the screams, and now he heard Fourth Brother's roar. However, it was his sister-in-law's bedroom, and as the younger brother-in-law, he couldn't barge in, so he could only wait anxiously outside.
"Nothing, I've just entered the crawler."
Yinzhen glanced coldly at the group, his gaze sharp as a knife. The maids trembled with fear, their hearts filled with unease, terrified that their master would drive them away from him or expel them from the mansion, which would truly cut off their chance of survival.
After a moment, Yinzhen said, "Get up, all of you," his anger subsiding, realizing it was not the time to assign blame.
The three maids stood up trembling. Qingyun, being calm and composed, twitched her lips when she saw her master's appearance. Her master was truly...
She turned and went inside, carefully took off the outer robe from the screen, and handed it to her master.
Just as Yinzhen was about to help her put it on, Nan Yi struggled and twisted her body, clinging tightly to Yinzhen and refusing to let go. "Husband, there's a snake, there's a snake! Help me, I'm so afraid of it!" Her words were incoherent, and her low sobs escaped from Yinzhen's arms, clearly indicating that she was terrified.
Yinzhen frowned and gently comforted her, "Don't be afraid, we won't stay here anymore. Come back to the manor with me." He helped her adjust her outer robe and instructed the others to pack their belongings and return to the manor.
The maids dared not move. Yinzhen also realized the reason and wanted to put Nan Yi down, but found that she was not wearing shoes and her bare feet were exposed. She must have been so frightened just now that she didn't even put on shoes. If that thing came out of bed, even a grown man would be shocked, let alone a delicate girl. Without saying a word, he grabbed a piece of curtain and wrapped her jade feet.
Thirteen noticed the two men and smiled. Fourth Brother doted on Tong Shi. He couldn't see how Tong Shi could compare to Fourth Sister-in-law. One was virtuous, and the other was jealous.
Judging from the intimate manner of the two, and considering that Fourth Sister-in-law was still ill, it seemed that Tong Shi was being spoiled and pampered.
"I don't want to go back to the manor, I don't want to sleep, there are snakes." Nan Yi kept shouting nonsense about the snakes biting her.
It was terrifying; snakes even crawled into her bed. She was too scared to sleep and felt unsafe anywhere.
While feeling sorry for him, Yinzhen also found it amusing and gently scolded, "Nonsense, there are no snakes in the mansion. There are people in the garden who take care of them, so there won't be any insects."
Nan, looking alarmed, retorted, "Then where did this thing come from, and why is it on my bed?"
"Perhaps it's in the suburbs," he mused.
Nan Yi punched him on the back. "Nonsense, nonsense! Doesn't anyone clean the villa? I don't want to sleep here, the room is unclean." The snake bullied her, and she was determined to fight it out.
The maids were speechless when they saw Nan Yi talking nonsense.
After working until midnight, the group returned to the mansion. Nan Yi's residence, Lan Garden, was cleaned daily, so there was no need for tidying up; they could move in directly.
Yinzhen stayed with her, and after finally seeing her fall asleep, he remembered the sickness of his wife and went to check on her. When he returned, he saw Tongshi sitting on the chair with her eyes wide open, staring blankly. His expression changed slightly, and he patiently tried to coax her again. Unfortunately, she kept having dreams, shouting that there were snakes. He whispered in her ear and gently coaxed her until she finally fell into a deep sleep at dawn.
He himself didn't sleep all night, and neither could Lady Nara. Hearing what happened at the other courtyard, she stayed awake until dawn, her heart filled with hatred. She was truly unwilling to accept that she had only frightened Lady Tong. She had made careful preparations, but in the end, she only scared her. How could she bear it?
Now she's even returning to the manor early, having the master personally fetch her—what a huge honor! Hmph, there's plenty of time in the future; I hope she continues to have good luck.
When Nan Yi woke up, it was already noon. Yinzhen was lying on his side next to her, catching up on his sleep. She was stunned for a long time before she remembered that she had returned to the mansion last night.
Seeing his slightly tired expression, she knew he must have been exhausted last night. She quietly got out of bed and went to the outer room, where Qingyun was already waiting. There were also two unfamiliar faces, who followed her around excitedly.
After washing up, Nan Yi went to the west room, where Qingyun introduced her as another head maid, Qingqing, and a second-class maid, Qingfeng. Qingqing, as her name suggests, was as beautiful as a peach blossom, but her skin was slightly dark, giving her a wild beauty. Qingfeng, on the other hand, was pretty and charming.
“Master, when the master came, he instructed that you are exempt from paying your respects today and should do so tomorrow,” Qingyun said with a smile.
The master values his mistress. He spent time with her last night, and came to visit her again after court today. The Lan family has completely regained the face they lost recently.
"Yiren has also returned to the manor, bringing Qiu Ma with her. She will pay her respects to the master later," Qingfeng added. She already knew what had happened to the concubine in the detached courtyard and couldn't help but sigh.
"Oh, so fast. Qingyun, go and call someone. I have something to tell you all. Call Huan'er's mother."
She glanced at Qiu Ma, who was in her fifties, with a kind face and very decent clothes. She smiled gently when she looked at people, which made her very likable. She was also well-maintained and did not look like she was over fifty.
"Aunt Qiu, please come up and sit here," Nan Yi patted the first seat below. Aunt Qiu did not refuse and sat down. Nan Yi smiled with a smirk, feeling somewhat satisfied.
"Qingyun has probably already talked about the affairs of the other courtyard. I've forgotten some things. I won't mention the past. From now on, Qingyun will tell you your responsibilities and what you need to do. What I want to talk about is Aunt Qiu. Aunt Qiu will be in charge of everything in the courtyard. She's experienced and I trust her. Granny Zhao will be in charge of the kitchen. From now on, your monthly allowance will be doubled and will come from my private treasury," Nan Yi said calmly. After she finished speaking, she saw everyone's happy faces and thought to herself, "Money makes the world go round. Giving more money is never a bad thing." It's a pity she's a novice.
Everyone was overjoyed, unable to contain their happiness. Double the monthly allowance—this was the first time such an honor had been given in the entire mansion!
After a few more casual remarks, the group dispersed. Nan Yi returned to her bedroom, where Yinzhen was still asleep. His sleeping face remained handsome and refined, and even in his sleep, he was captivating.
Perhaps it was Nan Yi's gaze that was too unrestrained, for Yinzhen forced himself to open his eyes from his sleep, his eyes reflecting the woman's quiet and beautiful face.
Upon seeing that he was awake, Nan Yi, regardless of whether he was fully conscious or not, cleared his throat a few times and said, "I've entered the manor and want to explain a few things to you. May I?"
Her gaze was sincere and solemn. Not wanting to engage in any pretense or nonsense, she got straight to the point: since she wasn't the legal wife, she didn't need to pretend to be virtuous and gentle.
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