Song Xingzhi lived during the reign of Emperor Huizong

Chapter 25

"I've always been in poor health and take medicine regularly. I was just too tired from playing that day and hadn't recovered yet. I told everyone I'm fine," Yuan Rou said hastily, trying to explain. "If Second Sister really cares, she could let me go to the garden less often and let me rest in my room more..."

Yuan Rou's next words were clearly full of complaints and dissatisfaction, but she was always gentle and easy-going. She had never spoken harshly to her sisters and brothers, or even to her servants. Therefore, Yong Jiao was speechless when she heard these words.

After Yuan Rou finished speaking, her face turned even paler, but she still held back her sadness and continued, "Rou'er's health is not very good to begin with. Second sister, please don't let me go out to play with you. Otherwise, if something really happens, I will be the one who suffers. It's so hard to take care of myself. When I play with you, you are happy, but I have to stay in my room for several days to recover. It's really hard."

Yongjiao stared at her blankly, as if she didn't recognize the person in front of her. He Suchen forgot to let go of the tent curtain in his hand, and just looked at Yuan Rou.

This really isn't her, it really isn't her. He Sucheng seriously doubted whether someone who looked a lot like Yuan Rou had replaced her, and whether she had truly been switched.

Yuan Rou has always been a very kind and gentle child. Whenever someone begs or makes a request, she will do her best to help, no matter what it is. Su Chen has wondered more than once how such a person could grow up in the third branch of the family.

However, because Yuan Rou is so different now than before, the two of them could only stand there, not saying a word, pretending not to have heard what had just been said.

Yuan Rou hesitated for a moment, then gripped the pillow beside her legs tightly and said, "Second sister, Guazi, I'm not feeling well. Can you let me rest by myself?"

Yongjiao said anxiously, "How can this be? You really don't look well. If you're sick, you need to see a doctor. I'll go tell Grandma, Rou'er, how long has it been since you've eaten or drunk anything? Why are you so haggard?! It must be your sister bullying you! And Third Aunt is ignoring you again, isn't she?!" Yuan Rou's expression changed, and she said sternly, "Second sister, how can you always say that my sister and mother are bad? Are you the only good people in this world? Are we from the second branch all bad people?! I already told you not to tell Grandma, do you think Grandma doesn't dislike us enough? I know Grandma dotes on you, why do you have to say such things to me..."

“That’s not what I meant, you know perfectly well!” Yongjiao opened her mouth, wanting to continue, but Yuanrou interrupted her, “I don’t know anything. If you really care, Second Sister, just stop bothering me. Every time I go out with you, I come back so tired. Mother says I do something but get blamed. If something happens to you, everyone will say why I didn’t stop.” She paused, then added, “I’m really tired. Can you all go back first? Let me rest by myself for a while…”

Yongjiao desperately held back her tears, feeling nothing but grievance in her heart. She said dryly, "You at least need to eat something. If you're really not feeling well, you need to take good care of yourself. I'll go find a doctor, okay? I won't tell Grandma, I'll have the little maid go and ask..."

Yuan Rou had already reached her limit with those words, and now, hearing her say this, countless thoughts churned in her mind. Just as she was hesitating whether to reveal the matter, a little girl who had just woken up at the door suddenly called out, "Grandma, why did you get up? You came over without saying a word." Another girl seemed to move aside, "Grandma, please be careful walking this way. There are small stones, and you might trip on your toes if you're not careful."

Yuan Rou's panic was even more obvious, and her voice suddenly rose: "I said I don't want it anymore, I'm so tired, can you please stop bothering me..."

"Rou'er, who disturbed you? Why aren't you resting properly?"

He Suchen looked toward where they were talking and saw Liu Shi wearing a thin summer dress with small yellow peonies embroidered on it. She was holding a maid with her left hand and the door that Yongjiao had kicked open with her right hand. She stood there, frowning and displeased.

“No, no…it is,” Yuan Rou said, avoiding eye contact with her mother. Her words were incoherent and she couldn’t explain what had happened.

Yongjiao and Su Chen stepped forward to greet her, and Madam Liu nodded in acceptance: "I thought it was some ignorant little girl, but it turns out it's you two who came to visit. Rou'er isn't feeling well, so come back in a few days."

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I need pink votes, I need pink votes... I need opinions, I need recommendation votes... My family wants everything...

I've recently become a huge fan of Nalan Xingde's *Free and Easy Wandering*, and also, Zou Zou has finally started a new novel, *The Economical Man of the Qing Dynasty* (oops, I only just noticed!). Although it's the dreaded Qing Dynasty time-travel genre, Zou Zou's unfinished stories are guaranteed to be high-quality—definitely a good read!

Chapter Thirty-Eight, Thus it is

<><A><>The promotional function is now open! What are you waiting for? Join us now!!!</A><> He Suchen turned to look at Yuan Rou. When Yuan Rou saw her mother arrive, she not only did not get up to greet her, but her eyes were filled with confusion and fear. Her fingertips were gripping the pillow so tightly that they had turned white. She was startled, but she couldn't figure out why.

Although Yuan Rou originally felt fear and inferiority towards her mother, she would never have been so terrified that she dared not move.

After bowing, Yongjiao couldn't help but say, "Third Aunt, Rou'er is really not well. Why haven't you called a doctor? She hasn't eaten properly for days. How are these maids taking care of their mistress? What if something happens to my sister?!"

Liu swayed slightly, stepped across the threshold, and entered the dimly lit room. Her face, not illuminated by the setting sun, became much clearer. The flush on her face still lingered, and her eyes darted around. Releasing the hand of the little maid supporting her, she scolded the other maids, "How could you look after your mistress?! You've made such a mess and you didn't even try to comfort her!" With that, she shuffled to the bedside, lifted her daughter's hair to check her complexion. Yuan Rou, her face filled with panic, had already retreated to the corner of the bed, with nowhere left to go. She let out a short, urgent cry, buried her head in her knees, and began to sob.

The two people in the room were extremely surprised. Liu was both angry and annoyed, but she couldn't do anything in front of her two nieces. She could only soften her tone and say, "What's wrong? What happened? Your mother is here. What are you afraid of? Get up and eat something and wash up."

Yuan Rou clutched her pillow tightly, hugging her knees and burying her head, sobbing. Her hair was disheveled and covered her shoulders. Yong Jiao and Su Chen exchanged a glance and went to help, but no matter how they tried to persuade her, Yuan Rou wouldn't look up. Liu Shi said disapprovingly, "Nieces, go back first. Rou'er needs to rest. I'll take care of her. Don't disturb her here." Yong Jiao was about to retort, but thankfully she wasn't completely stupid and clenched her fist, keeping quiet. The two women whispered a few words of comfort to Yuan Rou with concern, but seeing that she didn't respond at all, they could only sigh and apologize before leaving.

As they approached the garden, not even far from the third house, Yongjiao grabbed a plant by the path and began to tear it apart with both hands until her fingernails were stained with green sap, yet she remained silent. Seeing that she was about to tear the flowers again, He Suchen quickly stopped her, saying, "Don't do this, it's useless, why get angry for nothing."

Yongjiao's chest heaved as she threw away the grass stems and veins in her hand. She wanted to curse, but then sat down dejectedly on the stone bench beside her. "Guazi, do you think I've caused Third Sister's distress? I don't know what's wrong with her like this. What happened?"

He Su pondered for a while. Today's situation was strange. She thought for a moment and said, "Where did Third Sister fall that day? Let's go and take a look."

Yongjiao hurriedly stood up and led Su Chen away. It was nearly night, and the garden was quite quiet, but it felt eerie in secluded spots. The artificial hill wasn't far, and they were almost there. Just as Yongjiao was about to lead the way in, a rustling sound came from inside, followed by a woman's deliberately lowered voice, "You've got some nerve! You dared to call me here?! What will you do if we get caught?"

There was a moment of silence inside, followed by soft breathing. The man took a breath and said, "What am I afraid of?! This place... this place is untouchable, everyone in the manor knows that... if that woman and her mistress come here, who would dare to come... it would only benefit us."

"No, no, how could you say that about my master..." The woman seemed to have been bumped by something, letting out a startled cry. Her voice gradually faded, and only the panting and groaning of the two could be heard. A moment later, a loud "slap" rang out, as if the man had been slapped. "You heartless bastard! Don't even think about touching me unless you're absolutely certain! Do you think I'm someone you can easily bully?!"

He Suchen knew almost immediately what was happening inside. Her face flushed, and she instinctively grabbed Yongjiao. She was stunned for a moment, then suddenly turned around. She thought Yongjiao would be confused, but to her surprise, the girl looked at her calmly.

Yongjiao pried Su Chen's hand away and dragged her outside, her expression strangely calm and indifferent. Su Chen, being dragged until they reached the garden gate, seemed to regain her heartbeat and asked hoarsely, "Do you know what they're doing?"

Yongjiao said confidently and calmly, "Of course I know, isn't it just having an affair in private?" She looked at Su Chen's dumbfounded expression and seemed to find it somewhat amusing, "Which slightly larger mansion doesn't have such affairs? How can you be so short-sighted today?"

Unlike you people, who are numb to these sordid and private matters in the shadows... He Suchen didn't know what to say. She was used to the impulsive and straightforward Yongjiao, and now, seeing the child skillfully ignoring what she saw, she felt a little helpless.

Yongjiao added, "Judging from that voice, it sounds like Liuse from Third Aunt's room. She's having an affair with a servant. What a disgrace to the Third Household! Even the maids are so ill-mannered." Yongjiao only sighed briefly before letting it go, too lazy to pay attention. But Su Chen secretly pondered what he had just heard. Judging from the situation, it seemed that it wasn't just these two servants having an affair, but also a powerful figure who made people afraid to come here.

Seeing that she couldn't find the reason today, Yongjiao was a little discouraged. The two of them had just stepped out of the garden gate when they saw an old nanny hurrying into the garden—who else could it be but Granny Jiang?

When Granny Jiang saw the two of them, she was startled. She paused for a moment, and then a woman wearing a cloak whose face was not visible appeared behind her. She was also surprised to see the two of them, but she quickly composed herself and said, "Why are you in the garden so late? Why aren't you going back?" It was Liu Shi.

He Su Chen felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He thought to himself, "No way, no way." After exchanging a few polite words, he and Yong Jiao returned to their room. Just then, Qing'er came to take Yong Jiao back to her room, saying that she needed to go to bed early because tomorrow was Zhang's mother's sixtieth birthday, and she needed to go back to stay for a while. Yong Jiao frowned. Although she was still full of worry for Yuan Rou, she had no choice but to go. Before leaving, she kept asking Su Chen to help her third sister and to visit her often.

He Su Chen agreed verbally, having already guessed most of the reason for Yuan Rou's illness. She was secretly at a loss for what to do, and could only walk around thinking randomly. She unintentionally walked back to the study.

She saw that the lights in the study were already on, and was about to call out to her brother when she glanced around and saw two people sitting opposite each other, each with a table in front of them, with teacups and teapots on it, and a small stove with a kettle on it next to each of them.

She was slightly taken aback. She didn't recognize the person sitting in front of her. The other person was dressed in white with loose hair and bare feet, wearing a wide-sleeved water robe. He looked like a Taoist, but it was incongruous. In addition, his figure had not yet grown up and he still had a childish look. At first glance, she almost couldn't help but laugh out loud. But after looking closely, she realized that it was Cui Shiran!

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When I wrote "I was surprised," I accidentally typed "ate a pound" instead of "was taken aback"—it suddenly reminded me of some children's magazine I read when I was a kid, where a teacher was grading one of his students' diaries (the student was in first grade), and it said—

Today, my mom and I went out, and to our surprise, we saw a little yellow dog pooping on the wall by the door. I was shocked!

Ugh, so disgusting, so funny, so cute! Even now, thinking about it, it's still so cringeworthy. I'm just posting it to shock people.

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Tea Tasting Competition

The promoter function is now open! What are you waiting for? Join us now! On the table, where the wood is not visible, are arranged a small copper kettle, a large teapot, a purple clay teapot, teacups, small teacups, and a small bottle less than three inches tall.