The third prince felt enlightened.
This was to use his excuse to avoid the punishment of the little girl and show it to others.
But if he pretends to be disobedient to Pei Yanzhou's wishes, he doesn't know whether he will make the usually aloof person look ugly.
When he thought that Pei Yanzhou's face might be stained with a dark color, and he looked like he wanted to say something but was reluctant to say it directly, the third prince only found it quite interesting, and subconsciously wanted to make a few jokes.
It seems that we have returned to the days when there was no fetters of power. When a group of people wrote policy questions in front of the old gentleman, they were full of innocence.
The pace of the two of them slowed down a bit. Although the third prince looked at Song Jinyin curiously, he never mentioned anything related to her.
In the peripheral vision, Pei Yanzhou pursed his thin lips into a tight line, as if he was about to lose his patience. He pretended not to know and asked sideways.
"The calligraphy and painting that Yan Zhou just mentioned were made by those famous artists?"
The "yes" obviously added a bit of suppressed dissatisfaction.
The third prince suddenly felt funny, and suddenly remembered Pei Yanzhou's chill when he talked about the Ye family just now.
Thinking about it, his suppression of the Ye family in the court a few days ago also seemed to be a form of public revenge.
Thinking of this, the third prince, who had been planning the affairs of the imperial court, relaxed and relaxed, and raised his hand to the people on the ground sincerely without any further fuss.
Pei Yanzhou, who has selfish motives, should be a normal person that can be reassuring.
What's more, she was just a little maid, so she helped Pei Yanzhou while he was paying attention. It was a cost-effective thing to win over people without any effort.
"Speaking of which, you should change your temper. In this cold weather, if you punish a maid like this, are you not afraid of being laughed at if the news spreads?"
Seeing Pei Yanzhou's tight lips loosen, the third prince raised his eyebrows lightly, shook his head and laughed.
"Come here, help this girl up. She was very good at making tea just now. I, the prince, enjoyed eating it and will reward her again!"
Everyone in the courtyard heard this compliment, and their eyes fell over one after another. Some people who rarely came to Zhuya Courtyard were envious of the frail figure on the ground.
No one seemed to remember what kind of punishment Song Jinyin had received in this cold day before saying this.
"Yes, His Highness the Third Prince."
Biyu, who had been accompanying Song Jinyin, took two steps forward, glanced at the silent master, and leaned over to help him up.
Even through the thick skirt, Biyu could still feel the coolness blown by the wind on the girl in front of her.
"My slave, thank you Third Prince for the reward."
Standing firm, Song Jinyin endured the discomfort in the old injury on her lower back and saluted. Her knees were a little weak and she felt pain like needles.
She bit her lip, bent her knees little by little, and kept her voice gentle. She didn't have the shady thoughts that others would have when they saw a noble person. She was magnanimous and followed the rules to the extreme.
"It is my blessing to be able to make tea for the Third Prince and the Crown Prince."
At this moment, she was so clear-headed by the cold wind.
She didn't want to look into Pei Yanzhou's deep eyes, as if she suddenly had a despicable attitude that she had dismissed in the past, and wanted to use everything in front of her to get up from this muddy water.
She knew that as long as the rare prince in front of her stood here for one more time, those who wanted to drag her into the water would think twice, and this matter would not be easily involved in her again.
The two people in front looked at her, one with a gloomy look, and the other nodded with interest.
"You follow the rules well. You are worthy of being the maid by Yan Zhou's side. Get up. You are good at your craftsmanship and you deserve the reward."
After a pause, the third prince added: "If I have some free time someday, I will come over and appreciate your craftsmanship."
Song Jinyin's heart dropped back to where it was with these words.
She saluted the two of them again, and when she faced Pei Yanzhou, her eyes returned to their previous indifference and calmness.
The third prince's visit must be related to Pei Yanzhou.
But Song Jinyin understood that her gratitude to Pei Yanzhou for showing mercy had nothing to do with the gap and rift between her and Pei Yanzhou.
Alienation and gratitude are never things that can be tied together, and they cannot offset each other.
She will not be ignorant, but she will never be sentimental.
When he left, he happened to meet Butler Wang who was leading General Xu to pick him up.
General Xu took long strides with great air, his posture was tall and straight, and he was quite strong.
Seeing the look of relief on Butler Wang's face, Song Jinyin thought that with the words of the third prince, whether it was the old lady or the Xu family, they would not be able to implicate her for the time being.
Song Jinyin turned sideways and lowered her head, waiting for the noble man to go first. However, she saw General Xu's boots paused and he dropped them carefully.
Unlike the cold look in the Duke's eyes when he looked at her, even though she was oppressed by someone in a high position, it didn't make people feel uneasy.
In just a very quick moment, the sturdy middle-aged man took another step and walked to the front.
Song Jinyin followed Biyu and left.
The fact that several people met in Zhuya Courtyard soon spread throughout the entire Duke's Mansion.
General Xu didn't stay too long, and there was no news that he wanted to kill the maid, so the noble ladies who had been thinking about Ye Wanqiu's words gradually stopped inquiring.
If you can't see the excitement of the Duke's Mansion, then you have to flatter the Duke's Mansion.
After all, they are all people who are involved in some conspiracy. If you don't take this kind of thing seriously and just start spreading rumors based on a few words from others, you will die without knowing it.
...
Since Song Jinyin was exempted from punishment, the servants and maids who had entered Zhuya Courtyard in Muddy Waters also secretly returned to their respective masters' courtyards.
The old lady listened to the report from the third room, and her mental arithmetic was half calm.
"Old madam, the maid who went to Zhuya Courtyard just now came back."
"Well, what happened to the Xu family girl? Did Yan Zhou protect Jin Yin girl again?"
"This has never happened before. The maid said that she saw the prince getting very angry. Song Jinyin's body is just right, so she is afraid that she will have to suffer some losses. As for the girl from the Xu family, the doctor said that there is nothing serious. Thinking about it, That person just wanted to make some noise and slap our Duke's government in the face."
"She didn't want to slap the Duke's house in the face. She was just an arrogant person who wanted to sow discord between the Xu family and Yan Zhou, and by the way, she wanted to use Xu Youyi's hand to get rid of Song Jinyin."
The old lady shook her head, "But a maidservant can make her stare at her so hard. Fortunately, the previous marriage was not agreed. If we wait until the marriage is finalized and then see the girl's evil thoughts, I am afraid that the entire Duke She can peel off the skin of any house."
"No, it was thanks to the old lady's blessing that it didn't cause a big disaster."
Aunt Fu took a newly added hand stove for the old lady, "The other end is listening to a play right now. The guests are the troupe that you usually like to listen to, old lady. The third lady came and asked several times, do you want to go over and sit down?" Sit down?"
"Of course I have to go. I have to accompany Lao San's family. Otherwise, if others really think they are looking for fault in our government, they can pick someone easy to do."
"Yes, that girl Jinyin..."
"In your opinion?"
"I don't dare to say anything, but the prince has already directed his anger at Song Jinyin together with the matter of the preserved fruit. If the old lady interferes again, I'm afraid there will be some..."
"Even you think it would be a little unkind if I take the opportunity to punish her again?"
"I don't dare, old slave."
The old lady's eyes were clear, and when she didn't speak, she had an air of calm and authoritative oppression.
She glanced at Nanny Fu next to her and said nothing.
That's not what her eldest grandson had in mind.
The sun was bright outside, and the old lady was helped out of the house.
Although there was a moment of chill when I came out, the heater and the heavy cloak in my hand kept the cold away. But after just a few steps, I saw Lingqiao scolding a maid under the verandah.
The old lady stopped walking.
"You've always had a good temper, why did you get so angry?"
"Go back to the old lady."
Lingqiao turned sideways and saluted, frowning, "I don't know where this maid heard other people's nonsense. She was arranging things in the prince's courtyard. I was afraid of disaster, so I gave her a few words."
"What has been arranged?"
"The person who came just now said that the third prince was kind-hearted and exempted Song Jinyin from punishment. Now that the prince has spoken, it is not the slaves' turn to comment, but this maid turned around and provoked Song Jinyin. What’s wrong, if this spreads out, and someone is punished for being disrespectful to the prince, I’m afraid it will..."
After all, Lingqiao didn't say those ugly words, but only chose some that were audible.
The maid kneeling on the ground was muttering, her face full of injustice. Although she was worried, she was not too scared.
The old lady didn't like Song Jinyin, and she could see it clearly during this period. If it hadn't been for the prince's quick arrival just now, Song Jinyin would have suffered a lot again.
Now that she is attacking Song Jinyin, she is actually standing on the old lady's side. At most, she will be punished, but she may not really do anything to her.
But just as the maid finished thinking, the old lady asked someone to detain her.
"Well, that's how it should be. You really can't keep a slave girl like this who speaks so freely."
The old lady looked at the unrepentant person on the ground, and her face darkened, "A maid should behave like a maid, and sell it for 20 pieces, so that the people in the mansion can take good care of it."
"Yes, madam."
Grandma Fu on the side saw the person being dragged down, and knew that when she asked the old lady just now about Song Jinyin's treatment, there would probably be no response.
That's fine, that little girl is the one who was implicated, and she really doesn't need to suffer this unreasonable disaster again.
