Song Jinyin walked in the huge mansion for half an hour, but still did not reach the main courtyard in front.
She simply stopped and looked at the garden, which was as good as the Duke's Mansion, and looked for a pavilion.
The slaves here are not as skillful as those in Zhuya Courtyard, and some are even not very familiar with the rules.
Presumably Pei Yanzhou had no intention of settling down, but just sent her here temporarily, and there was no time to replace her.
But it’s better to be ignorant of the rules than to be ignorant of them.
Song Jinyin sat in the pavilion and meditated, panting slightly due to the exertion on her body.
"Girl, it's windy here, sit down for a while or go back. If the girl is angry with Hongli and doesn't want to see her, you don't have to let her wait in front of you."
"Angry with her?"
Song Jinyin put her hands on the stone pole of the pavilion, curved her lips and smiled, but her brows and eyes were still cold, as if she didn't take this into consideration.
In fact, a maid she didn't know how many times she would see her was not worth taking her seriously.
"Although I am not a person of high status, I am too lazy to do such things to praise others."
Song Jinyin stopped at the corner of her mouth to say "we are also a maid", and she was always wary in her heart, not wanting others to know more about her.
And she also knew that even if she and Pei Yanzhou were now in opposition, with Pei Yanzhou's temperament, even if someone were sent to him, he would not take a second look.
On the contrary, she was currently hoping that someone would catch his eye and give her some peace and quiet.
Song Jinyin ignored the depression in her heart and looked at the greenery in the distance that rarely appeared in winter.
He wanted to raise his hand to cover his belly, but he resisted under Zhao Mei's gaze.
Over the past few days, she had developed the habit of touching her belly from time to time. Especially when she woke up and learned that the child was still there, she felt a sense of joy at finding her.
But now, although Pei Yanzhou has temporarily kept her child, he will not allow her to stay for too long.
Song Jinyin lowered her eyes, remembering the eagerness and scarlet eyes of the person in front of her, and the fingertips in her sleeves trembled.
The chaos of that night dissipated, and now she was awake, with only one thought in her mind.
Having experienced the pain of thinking that her child was gone, if it happened again, she would not drink the soup. She would rather die together.
The cold wind blows in bursts, picking up some debris, making people have to close their eyes.
But when Song Jinyin closed her eyes, she suddenly remembered something.
Pei Yanzhou came too quickly that night.
Even if he hadn't stopped all the way, there was no way he could have found the village overnight.
Unless, as soon as she left, someone sent a letter back.
But she clearly watched everyone drink the tea, even the coachman who came out of Zhuya Courtyard. Because of her caution, she drank more tea than others.
But who was it that sent the letter and didn't stop her from leaving? It seemed like he just sent a message by the way and didn't intend to help anyone.
Song Jinyin thought about it for a while, but still had no clue.
She only knew that it shouldn't be Biyu. If it was a letter sent by Biyu, she should be among the people chasing her that day.
"Girl, I don't know when the people ordered by the master will come. Why don't you go back to the courtyard and wait? I will give the girl... the slave to pass the meal to the girl."
Zhaomei's words interrupted Song Jinyin's thoughts, and she turned her attention to the title of the maid.
The first time she heard someone calling her Master Pei Yanzhou in the mansion, she felt strange for no reason, as if the person she thought of was not the same person they saw.
But this thought swept away very quickly.
Song Jinyin stood up and stepped on the path back.
Although she hadn't heard Pei Yanzhou mention his future arrangements, she could guess that he wanted to open a house alone.
He will always be what others call him, and he will always be the head of the family.
At that time, he will forget the anger he once had in the mud of memory, never mention it again, and will never remember Song Jinyin again.
She looked forward to that day.
He looked forward to having a group of wives and concubines, having children and grandchildren around his knees, and looking forward to her getting married to him.
...
When Song Jinyin returned to the courtyard, drizzle fell again.
At this time, in the Fulu Courtyard of the Duke's Mansion, Mrs. Liu served tea, put away her embroidered handkerchief, and patted the old lady's shoulders.
Aunt Fu came in from outside, followed by the maid who brought the cloth. Seeing the two of them talking and laughing, her pace slowed down a little.
"Why have you been here for so long? Have you picked out the ingredients for Jinzhi?"
"Replying to the old lady, the second young master Zhilan Yushu, as a vulgar old slave, will inevitably have some scruples when picking up things. I am afraid that the second young master will not be happy with the chosen objects when he comes back, so he will naturally be slower."
"Jin Zhi has a good temper. Even if you choose something that doesn't suit his liking, he won't really blame you!"
The old lady smiled and waved, and asked someone to bring the things up to her for a look.
Seeing this, Ms. Liu behind her stopped what she was doing and said some nice words in agreement. It wasn't until the things were sent down that Grandma Fu glanced at Ms. Liu and then spoke about what she had learned about.
"Old madam, just now when the old slave went to the warehouse to pick things up, he happened to meet Zhu Sheng from the Prince's Courtyard going to the embroidery room to pick up clothes. Normally, Miss Jin Yin is doing this kind of thing, but now she has changed the person rashly. I don't know if it's that What happened to the girl?"
"What could happen?"
The old lady didn't even raise her head, she just picked up the tea cup.
After all, she still complained about what her eldest grandson said to her last time, that he used the Pei family's future to pressure her, and with such momentum, he completely ignored her as a grandmother.
Although she is now reconsidering the relationship between their father and son and the future of the Pei family, she still feels a sense of anger in her heart.
Fortunately, Jinzhi is coming back soon, and at least there will be a filial person left in front of him.
"It's not my turn as an old woman to care about Zhuyayuan's affairs. Whether that girl is dead or alive is not something I can interfere with now."
In the peripheral vision, Mrs. Liu was buying cakes for her to have tea with. Her face was calm and she didn't make any trouble at all because of these words.
The old lady thought of her honest and responsible service over the years, and finally changed her tone and added: "Maybe Yan Zhou has changed the girl's job again. Please pay attention to it in the past few days and don't make too big a fuss." movement."
"Yes, I understand."
After talking about Zhuyayuan, the room looked peaceful again.
Ms. Liu stayed with her until sunset, and then she planned to return to the courtyard. But as soon as she moved, she heard the old lady calling her, with a look of emotion on her face.
"Although you are just the side wife now, all the affairs of the big house are in your hands, and you have not made any mistakes in these years. Now that there are so many people in the boss's backyard, you still have to show some power. Sending everything away, leaving less of the foxy ones seducing the boss all day long."
Ms. Liu bent her knees, her face was calm, her eyebrows were smiling, and she looked dignified.
"Old madam, please relax. The Duke of Guo has always been aware of this and will not really be stumbling upon those women."
"Then has he been in your room recently?"
The old lady frowned, and when she saw her shaking her head, she even looked angrily.
Compared to the previous Madam of the Duke, she indeed prefers a boss like Liu who is easy to manipulate and can coax people. If she is given some power at will, she can manage the big house in an orderly manner, and she will follow her all the way, and will not give in to anything. She worries.
If you change it randomly, it may cause trouble at any time, which is difficult to control.
The greed of the second daughter-in-law and the lack of closeness of the third daughter-in-law were neither of them that made her feel at ease.
Thinking of this, the old lady couldn't help but think of those days again.
Back then, the eldest daughter-in-law was too stubborn and had a high temper. She didn't care about anything and didn't want to bow her head.
She was worried about her family's identity and could not take action to rectify it.
Unable to win over each other, they had no choice but to remain in a stalemate and do face-saving tricks.
Now that she had finally lived a comfortable life for a few years, she didn't want any cat or dog to appear and bother her again, upsetting her.
"Since you have given up on that girl and are living your life wholeheartedly in the big house, how can you be so arrogant right now? If some thoughtful people take advantage of the situation, do you still want to sit down safely in the position of the lady on your side?"
"Even if you are valued by the boss now, don't forget that you are not the only one in the backyard just because of Mrs. Side, especially Xie Yun who has given birth to a bastard. If she wants to fight one day, you may not be able to win. she goes."
"The old lady taught you a lesson."
Mrs. Liu looked embarrassed, but she quickly agreed.
Seeing that she seemed to have listened, the old lady used the tea cover to stir up the tea noodles, lowered her eyes and said: "You should have heard something about Yan Zhou's mother back then. Before you, she was plotted by the people in the backyard. , the root cause of the disease fell."
"But if she had been willing to lower her head and coax the bosses back then, maybe her life would not have passed so quickly."
"You have always been smart and can see everything far-sighted. You should know that if you want to stay stable, you must not be like her. Being aloof and cold is not a good thing."
Liu's calm face fluctuated for a moment.
But only for that moment.
Before the old lady looked over, she returned to her normal and familiar appearance, curtsied and said hello.
