Perhaps... An Ran is right?
******
Now that the embroidery work had been assigned, Anran asked Master Han for advice on several embroidery techniques. After practicing on the embroidery hoop until Master Han nodded in approval, Anran began to work diligently.
Finally, the embroidered portrait completed by Liu Niang and the other two was to be framed on the silk fabric with the pattern that An Ran was embroidering. So the three of them always worked together in one place, while An Ran herself set up an embroidery frame in the room and began to embroider carefully.
Diligence can make up for lack of talent. Although she embroiders slowly, she is willing to spend a lot of time, and at the current pace, she shouldn't hold back the three of them.
"Miss, you should rest early." Seeing that it was already past midnight and her young lady was still doing embroidery under the lamp, Qingmei couldn't help but feel sorry for her and said, "Be careful not to strain your eyes. It won't make a difference if you stay up a little longer."
After listening, An Ran looked up and smiled. She put down the needle in her hand and rubbed her slightly sore neck.
“Tomorrow, Xi’er and Ze’er will come to the mansion with Madam Wu’s daughter-in-law. The Grand Madam has already allowed them to come and see me.” An Ran smiled with her eyes crinkling. “I need to finish tomorrow’s work quickly so I can spend more time with the two of them.”
Hearing this, Qingmei had even more reason to persuade Anran. "Miss, if you don't rest soon, you won't look well tomorrow! Taozhi, don't you think so? Our young lady has looked increasingly haggard these past few days. How could the young master and young lady not feel sorry for her?"
Peach branch nodded, suppressing a laugh.
Qingmei's words really startled Anran.
If she really doesn't look well, the two children will definitely worry.
Thinking of this, An Ran put the needle aside and hurriedly asked Tao Zhi to bring her the mirror. She looked at herself carefully in the mirror. Her face was fair and delicate, like the finest white porcelain, flawless and without any imperfections... Well, not without them. An Ran leaned closer and indeed found some dark circles under her eyes.
These days she's been working late into the night doing embroidery, practicing calligraphy, and reading, so naturally she's not getting enough sleep.
"Miss, you should rest early." The three were talking when suddenly the curtain moved, and Jinping lifted the curtain and came in. "Tomorrow, the Tenth Miss and the others will be leaving early in the morning. It wouldn't be appropriate for you to go back to pay your respects to the Grand Madam and Madam separately. Even if you're not going out tomorrow, you'll still have to get up early with them."
An Ran lowered her face.
Tomorrow, the three sisters, including Sixth Sister, will go with Fifth Sister to Miaoyin Temple outside the city to offer incense and have a vegetarian meal. Several close friends from the Marquis of Nan'an's family will also be going, making it a spring outing for several families to strengthen their bonds.
An Ran was originally going to go too, but not long after, the Grand Madam sent someone to tell her that An Ze and An tide would be coming to the mansion with Wu Mama's daughter-in-law the next day, and that the Grand Madam had allowed them to come and see An Ran.
Between the two, An Ran naturally chose to meet with An tide and her brother. However, she was afraid of offending Zhao Shi if she didn't go... So An Ran simply went to see the Grand Madam with a maid from the Grand Madam's courtyard, half-revealing her concerns and expressing her desire to stay.
The old lady readily agreed.
An Ran spent the entire evening enthusiastically doing her embroidery, and had Jinping and Cuiping prepare snacks and fruits to entertain An tide and An Ze. She also secretly had Jinping prepare two purses, each containing some small denomination banknotes.
Having money on hand is always more convenient.
"You can embroider again when you return from Madam's place tomorrow," Jinping urged Anran to wash up and go to bed, and told Taozhi to put away Anran's needlework. "It won't make a difference if you do it a little longer."
An Ran couldn't refuse them, so she had no choice but to obediently comply.
When Jinping was styling her hair, Anran stared blankly in the mirror and suddenly asked, "Look at me, what changes have I undergone these past few days?"
Upon hearing this, Jinping stopped what she was doing and carefully examined the person in the mirror.
An Ran had lost some weight since she arrived, and her pointed chin and large eyes added to her delicate charm. With her half-loose hair cascading down, she no longer looked as strikingly glamorous as before; under the lamplight, her features softened, making her even more captivating.
"Of course, the girl is getting more and more beautiful," Jinping said sincerely. "She's like a beauty who has stepped out of a painting."
An Ran chuckled.
After washing up, Anran lay in bed, tossing and turning a few times. Thinking about seeing Anze and Anxi the next day, she felt excited and increasingly thrilled. It was only after Jinping heard the commotion and spoke twice that Anran finally settled down and slowly fell asleep.
At that moment, she didn't know that if she could choose again, she would rather have gone out with Liu Niang and the others that day, so that there would have been no trouble later.
But humans cannot predict the future.
Chapter 21 Shocking News
The next morning, Shi Niang asked An Ran to go to the Grand Madam's place together.
Anran rubbed her eyes and yawned as she finished washing up, managing to get ready just before Shi Niang came in.
Today, Shi Niang dressed more elaborately than usual for going out. She wore a pale yellow jacket and a pear-white silk skirt, looking like a delicate flower, radiating youthful energy. Her neatly styled hair was adorned with several pieces of gold jewelry inlaid with rubies, exuding an air of nobility.
When the two sisters arrived at the Grand Madam's Rong'an Hall, Sixth Sister and Seventh Sister had arrived a little earlier than them.
The sixth sister was dressed in a moon-white dress, exuding an indescribable elegance and charm. The seventh sister wore a light pink dress, looking delicate and lovely. The two sisters stood side by side with the tenth sister, and the three beautiful sisters created a delightful and pleasing sight.
In contrast, An Ran was dressed very simply, in a simple lotus-root-colored long jacket and a pale yellow silk skirt, which looked quite elegant and refreshing.
The old lady looked at her four granddaughters, a hint of satisfaction flashing in her eyes. She gave the three of them a few instructions and then sent them to Zhao's place, keeping Anran behind for a few more words.
“We’re embroidering a Guanyin image.” When the Grand Madam asked Anran what she had been doing lately, Anran decided to take the opportunity to report to her. “Although our embroidery skills are not as good as those of the needleworkers in our mansion, I’m a little nervous. My sixth sister and the others advised me that sincerity is the most important thing.”
An Ran smiled sheepishly. "I have no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it."
The old lady was very interested. "Oh? What kind of Guanyin embroidery is it? Did the four of you embroider it together?"
“The pattern came from my mother,” An Ran described succinctly, then added, “We couldn’t decide, so we asked Master Han for help. Of the four sisters, I was the least skilled at embroidery, and Master Han knew that, so he assigned me the easiest task.”
"If I embarrass myself in front of my sisters, please ask Grandmother to stand up for me and not let my sisters laugh at me."
Anran's voice was soft and sweet, her pronunciation was very clear, and her tone was light and cheerful. Even when she said these things, it didn't sound like a complaint. Instead, it sounded more like a young girl's cute and charming coquettishness.
The old lady encouraged her a few words, and her smile deepened.
An Ran knew perfectly well that with the Grand Madam's cultivation, she would naturally see that something was amiss. It wasn't that she was truly afraid of being embarrassed, but she didn't want Sixth Sister and Seventh Sister to keep trying to smear her. They were all making a living in the Marquis's mansion; who had it easier than whom?
Although the Dowager Madam entrusted all the affairs of the mansion to Zhao Shi, she still held absolute power.
The one who could decide their fate, besides their stepmother Zhao, was most importantly their grandmother, the Dowager Lady. After all, it was the Dowager Lady's people who raised them! As for their father, the Marquis of Nan'an… they couldn't be counted on at all!