When Lu Mingxiu entered, he saw An Ran holding Nian Ge'er's sleeve and personally applying a thin layer of ointment to Nian Ge'er's arm.
"Lord Marquis." Upon seeing Lu Mingxiu arrive, An Ran simply nodded and continued applying the medicine for him.
Lu Mingxiu responded and leaned closer to look at the ointment An Ran was holding. It should be the topical ointment that Doctor Wu mentioned.
"How are you?" He stood next to Nian Ge'er, patted Nian Ge'er's shoulder, and asked in a gentler voice, "Does it still hurt?"
Knowing that Nian-ge'er was still injured and in the most pain and discomfort at this moment, neither An Ran nor Lu Mingxiu asked him about the cause of his fall. Even if they didn't get the answer from Nian-ge'er, they could glean the truth from others.
Therefore, neither of them pressed Nian Ge'er for answers.
Nian-ge'er shook his head very sensibly and whispered, "It doesn't hurt anymore."
Qingping suddenly remembered that she needed to take care of Nian Ge'er. She busied herself blowing on the arm that An Ran had already applied medicine to, and muttered, "Blow it and it won't hurt anymore, blow it and it won't hurt anymore."
She murmured to herself, and Nian-ge'er seemed to remember something. He lowered his head and showed a hint of sadness.
Nian Ge'er leaned against the bedside, looking dejected, without saying a word.
"My dear boy, how could you be so careless?" Qingping muttered to herself, "Madam arranged so many people to take care of you, yet you still managed to slip through the cracks. You're so naughty! Remember to apologize to Madam later."
An Ran and Lu Mingxiu hadn't left yet.
Qingping seemed to realize what had happened and hurriedly said, "Madam, I misspoke. Please don't take it to heart!"
Seeing that An Ran didn't speak, she quickly knelt on the ground, ignoring Nian Ge'er beside her, and whispered, "This servant really didn't mean any harm, please forgive me, Madam!"
After all, she was someone who served Nian Ge'er's birth mother, so An Ran didn't want to argue with her too much and simply replied, "Get up."
Lu Mingxiu completely ignored Qingping. He bent down and said to Nian Ge'er, "Nian Ge'er, you are a man now. You should be strong in these minor injuries and pains."
Nian Ge'er nodded vigorously.
"Take Nian-ge'er back?" Lu Mingxiu looked at An Ran and asked in a low voice.
Seeing that An Ran hesitated, he added, "If I carry him back, I won't be able to touch his wound."
"My lord, my lady, it's cold outside right now. It wouldn't be good if the young master got cold." Qingping hurriedly stepped forward and said earnestly, "This servant will take good care of Nian-ge'er."
An Ran's gaze fell on Nian Ge'er, who lowered his head and avoided looking into her eyes. He said softly, "I want to stay here and be with Aunt Ping."
“Alright.” An Ran did not directly refute Nian Ge’er’s words. She instructed, “Jin Ping and Qing Xing, you two stay here and take care of Nian Ge’er with Qing Ping.”
Jinping and Qingxing quickly stepped forward and agreed.
Although Qingping kept her head down and her eyebrows twitched, she did not make a sound.
An Ran and Lu Mingxiu stayed with Nian Ge'er for a while longer, and after watching him finish dinner, the two of them left Yilan Courtyard together.
"I'm going to the study. You go back first," Lu Mingxiu suddenly said.
An Ran looked at him with some doubt, but seeing the trust and smile in his eyes, she guessed Lu Mingxiu's intention. Lu Mingxiu probably knew what she was planning just by looking at the brocade screen and green apricots she had specially left behind. The two of them had gone out with her that afternoon, so they were definitely not involved in this matter.
Everyone else was taken back to the main courtyard by An Ran, who was definitely going to inquire about the matter.
An Ran was the mistress of the Marquis's mansion, and she was in charge of handling all matters within the household. Today's matter concerned the illegitimate son, and if Lu Mingxiu were present, it would seem as if he didn't trust An Ran. Therefore, he decided to sit in his study for a while until An Ran finished dealing with these matters before returning.
“My Lord, my Lord—” An Ran bit her lower lip, her eyes slightly sore.
Unconditional trust meant she didn't need to explain anything. On the contrary, Lu Mingxiu supported all her decisions with his actions.
Lu Mingxiu reached out his finger and gently traced the teeth marks still on An Ran's lips. He lowered his head and whispered to An Ran, "If you dare to bite your lip again, I'll kiss you."
Tsk! She was clearly moved by Lord Lu just now, but Lord Lu started teasing her again.
"Did you not hear me, Madam?" Lu Mingxiu's voice carried a slight smile. "Would you like me to repeat it?"
But Lord Lu was staring intently at her, and there were maids and servants around, so An Ran could only blush and shake her head first, then nod.
Lu Mingxiu then left for his study, satisfied.
An Ran returned to the main house alone. When she arrived at the corridor, she found Tao Zhi and Tao Ye kneeling outside the door. In such cold weather, she wondered how long they had been kneeling.
"What are you doing?" An Ran's face immediately darkened, her voice revealing a hint of anger.
When Taozhi and Taoye saw Anran return, they trembled and couldn't speak, whether from fright or cold.
"Cuiping Qingmei, Lanxin Lanyue, help them both inside." Although An Ran's expression did not soften, she sighed and had someone help the two of them inside.
The four agreed, and Biluo lifted the curtain. The four helped Taozhi and Taoye, whose legs were almost unresponsive, into the house, and Anran followed them in.
When An Ran saw that the two of them were only wearing a thin vest over their jackets, she couldn't help but frown.
Once inside the house, An Ran sat down on the soft couch, and both of them immediately knelt down because their knees buckled.
"Answer my previous question, what are you doing?" An Ran's expression did not improve just because they were kneeling in front of her; on the contrary, her expression worsened.
Tao Zhi and Tao Ye seemed to have warmed up a bit. Tao Zhi spoke in a dry voice, stammering, "Madam, it was our fault for not taking good care of Nian Ge'er. We know we were wrong, and we are willing to accept punishment. Please, Madam, decide our fate!"
An Ran looked at them without saying a word for a long time.
After a long while, An Ran sighed softly. She looked up at the peach branches and leaves and said softly, "Could it be that in your hearts I am such an incapable person who cannot distinguish right from wrong?" Her voice was not loud, but it made people feel sad and upset for no reason.
Upon hearing this, Peach Branch and Peach Leaf hurriedly raised their heads to deny it.
"No, no, Madam!" Taozhi hurriedly explained, "We've caused you trouble, which is why you're in this predicament. We—"
Actually, she didn't need to explain; An Ran understood their intentions.