That night, the Duke stayed overnight in Liu's courtyard.
Under the lamplight, Mrs. Liu showed no sign of her age. Even when she lowered her eyes to drink tea, she gave the impression that she was a newcomer in the backyard. The Duke was distracted for a while, and even the important matters were almost forgotten.
"Master, you have to drink this stew first. I just heard from the old lady's doctor today that it is very good to drink it a few times a month."
Mrs. Liu avoided his approach and handed over the steaming soup cup in her hand. There was a gentle and demure expression on her face, which made people feel at ease just by looking at him.
"You are still careful."
The Duke of Guo took it, picked up the spoon and scooped it out.
I stayed in the East Palace for half a day today, and it was indeed a bit difficult to deal with the masters who were thinking a lot.
"I'm not considerate, I just feel sorry for the master."
Seeing that he didn't show any disdain for the stew, Ms. Liu looked away and said, "The master is busy outside every day, and I can't help. I can only do such inconspicuous little work to make the master happy." Fuck some backyard hearts.”
"You did an excellent job. I was lucky to be able to bring you back to my house back then."
Mrs. Liu smiled, and when she lowered her eyes again, there was only indifference in her eyes.
It wasn't until he woke up the next day that the Duke of Guo remembered that he wanted Liu to go to Zhuya Courtyard to inquire about it.
Although the people he arranged could not enter the courtyard, they could still see some movements outside. For example, the little girl Song Jinyin had not seen anyone since she left the house that day, and she had never worked as Pei Yanzhou's personal assistant again.
It is most likely that he has been rejected.
If it really comes to that level, he can let Mrs. Liu find excuses from the old lady to run to that courtyard more often.
Then find a way to rescue Song Jinyin at the critical moment of her life, and coax her into helping him wholeheartedly.
Women have always been like this, with soft ears.
The Duke of Guo thought so well that he didn't even pay attention to the sudden dizziness when he got on the carriage. He just wanted to wait until nightfall to return home, and then have a good talk with Mrs. Liu.
...
Song Jinyin didn't know that she had been targeted.
Three days passed since she woke up that day, and she saw the people transferred by Pei Yanzhou early.
Not Biyu, not even the ones she had seen before, but a nun, and two sword-wielding attendants who bore some resemblance to Cang Rin.
Not seeing Biyu, Song Jinyin breathed a sigh of relief.
She always felt guilty in her heart, because of the cup of tea that Biyu drank without warning, and also because of the look in her eyes at the end.
It's just that she didn't have time to think about it.
The grandma who came here looked a little serious. When she stared at her, she didn't know what she was thinking.
The only good thing is that on the first day of grandma's arrival, after a stalemate, he complied with her wishes and recommended all the medicinal meals for her.
"Girls should not stay on the bed all the time. They should get up and move around frequently. Also, the mattress should not be covered so casually. If the two of them sleep together in the future, it will be extremely rude for the girl to sleep like this."
As soon as she woke up, grandma came into the house with hot water, her brows furrowed and her face full of disapproval.
Song Jinyin looked at the newly lit sky outside, and for a moment she didn't know how to reply.
When he served Pei Yanzhou before, he never had such harsh words. Even Pei Yanzhou's own bedding was not always covered with hers, and he was always in the same place as hers.
"I think the prince is not too harsh on girls on weekdays, but if the girl is always so lazy and does not put consideration for the family master first, how can she win favor and be valued by the prince when there are many people in the prince's backyard? Also? ..."
"Mommy."
Song Jinyin listened to the visitor's words and finally interrupted her mother-in-law in the backyard.
Pei Yanzhou has not appeared in front of her since that day, and she has not thought about returning to the Duke's Mansion one day. She has not even thought about the word backyard.
At the moment, every word that this nanny talks about is reminding her how to serve Pei Yanzhou, how to please and be obedient.
She doesn't want to, and she won't.
She and Pei Yanzhou will eventually break up completely because of this child, and they will never be able to go back to the past.
And the tranquility of the past few days was just an illusion that she and he knew well.
"I know that the prince invited grandma here to keep an eye on my every word and deed. I am not afraid to tell grandma that I can do everything a slave should do, but this has nothing to do with the favor in the backyard. This is just me. Your duty as a slave.”
After a pause, Song Jinyin added, "This is what I should do to receive the monthly money from the mansion, so I ask you, grandma, don't look at me like I'm looking at my concubine's room or the outer room, not to mention that even the prince has never Come to think of it, why would I have to do such a thankless job as teaching my concubines how to behave?"
Maybe she didn't expect Song Jinyin to speak so directly and clearly, or maybe she had never seen such an unwelcoming maid. She was stunned for a while, and it took her a long time to react.
But after he reacted, his face lost a bit of the indifference he had just now, and he had no intention of causing trouble for Song Jinyin.
She just glanced at the little girl in front of her steadily, and then nodded imperceptibly.
"It's great that you can have such a character that is neither humble nor arrogant. But don't go too far in anything. Those who are too strong will be easily broken."
Song Jinyin's open lips moved, and she suddenly felt a little fond of her mother's last reminder.
Just as they were talking, there was a slight knock on the door, interrupting their conversation.
It was the voice that brought breakfast.
"Girl, I am the new cook in the back kitchen. If you want to eat something in the future, you can send someone to talk to me at any time."
The cook did not enter the room, but handed the things to Zhaomei, and then smiled honestly.
"I made some pancakes today, just chicken shredded porridge and wontons, as well as some sweet milk cakes and glutinous rice cakes. I just don't know what the girl's taste is, so there are more types of pancakes. The girl must taste it carefully. Stay!"
The cook's voice was a little loud.
Song Jinyin felt that he was a little too excited, which showed that he smiled sincerely, so she thanked him even though they were some distance apart.
Everything was immediately forgotten.
There were a lot of things on the table, and the aroma that came from it did make Song Jinyin a little unbearably hungry. However, before she could sit down, she heard a slight movement from outside.
Listening carefully, it was the voices of Hongli and the little cook Shicai.
Song Jinyin simply stopped moving.
Without waiting for Pei Yanzhou, Hongli became even more impatient and did not even enter her room for two days in a row.
It's just that Song Jinyin's attention has been focused on her grandma who is staring at her these past few days, and she has no mind to care about other things.
"I don't know why you are trying to flatter me. This is not a serious master. Are you a new recruit to the house? I don't even know this."
"Yes, girl, the kitchen is recruiting people these days, and I happened to learn some skills from the master, so I have the good fortune to come in and serve. What the girl just said... living in such a big yard, isn't it? Where is the master?"
"Have you seen the master in the past few days? Even the person in charge has not come to see me. He only lives in a courtyard. I deserve your flattery."
The pancakes on the table were still steaming, and Song Jinyin stood beside her. In her peripheral vision, her grandma had a stern face, as if she could eat the people outside in the next moment.
She tilted her head, suddenly becoming interested.
It turns out that this nanny is not only strict with her, she also views everything upright.
"It's true that I haven't seen the master."
The voice of the man who brought food outside was hesitant, but after a moment, he smiled and raised his voice again, and said cheerfully: "But I am just a cook. I don't understand what Sister Hongli said. As long as I live in the yard, , in my opinion, they are all my masters."
After saying that, the man paused for a moment, and then spoke to the people in the room: "Girl, those pancakes are specially made by Xiao Xiao. When I was learning crafts outside, many wealthy businessmen came to buy Xiao Xiao. For food, Xiufang Buzhuang medicinal materials shop, the shops for miles around know the name of this small one, girls must try it!"
Song Jinyin was stunned for a moment. After hearing the words "Rich Owner", she immediately stopped thinking about watching the show.
Seeing that grandma didn't look at her, she pretended to pick up the pancake and took a look at it casually, "It doesn't look like something powerful. I guess I like to exaggerate."
"A girl must not look down on anyone."
Auntie disagreed and turned to look at her. Her sharp eyebrows had not yet dispersed, and she looked quite majestic.
It's just that Song Jinyin has been by Pei Yanzhou's side for many years, so she doesn't take this idea of pressure to heart at all.
The next moment, she nodded along with her grandma's words, with a hint of apology in her smile, "What grandma taught you is that I got caught in the trap, so I will keep the pancakes today and eat them later."
At this moment, Song Jinyin's heartbeat was beating like a drum, but there was no trace of it on her face.
When grandma turned her head, she picked up one with a smile and prepared to break it open.
If it was as she suspected, she would have a way to contact the outside world and a way to leave again.
...
As soon as Pei Yanzhou returned home, he called the doctor to the study.
At this time every day, the doctor would leave the house to report to him the day's medication.
Today, the doctor stood in front with his body bowed and felt a little uneasy when talking about Song Jinyin's spirit.
Three days later, the little girl still looks bad.
Pei Yanzhou didn't look at anyone from beginning to end. He just looked deeply and kept playing with the not-so-valuable jade pendant in his hand.
It originally belonged to Song Jinyin, but over the years it seemed like it had been engraved with his name.
"Did she ask you anything else?"
The doctor was stunned for a moment, then realized that the other thing was referring to the fetus in his belly.
Knowing the truth should make the person in front of him feel colder, but he had no choice.
"His Majesty, Miss Jin Yin didn't ask anything. She even... didn't want to see me."
Pei Yanzhou paused and held the jade pendant tightly in his palm.
The dull pain in my heart spread little by little.
How could it be the doctor she didn't want to see?
The only thing she didn't want to see was him.
