255 Alone
It was obvious that this concubine’s daughter had climbed over the head of the first wife to show off her might.
She no longer cared about the etiquette of a scholarly family.
Yu Youyao knew the inside story. “It’s quieter in the nunnery. Old Madam Tang isn’t in good health, so it’s rare for Fifth Sister Tang to go to the nunnery to pray. In the future, we’ll write more letters to Fifth Sister Tang to prevent her from being bored.”
After all, they were in someone else’s house, so it wasn’t appropriate to say much about this.
The few of them nodded and skipped the topic.
Qi Sinian held Yu Youyao’s hand. “My mother hasn’t been sleeping well at night for a few days. She’s used a lot of methods and even asked a doctor to prescribe a prescription, but it didn’t work. That day, I brought the medicinal fragrance home, and my mother ordered it at night. The next day, when she slept until dawn, she prepared the medicinal tea and medicinal cuisine recipe you gave her. She recovered in less than two days. Thank you so much.”
Yu Youyao pursed her lips and smiled. “Don’t thank me. I’m just worried that you won’t bring me along today and let me go alone. I have to put in more effort.”
Hearing this, Qi Sinian rolled his eyes and glanced at Yu Shuangbai. How could she be alone?
She shouldn’t have thanked her.
Song Wanhui covered her handkerchief and laughed. Suddenly, she remembered that on Yu Youyao’s birthday, she had returned to the residence with many bags and went to her grandmother’s house first. Her eldest brother, Song Mingzhao, was also sitting in her grandmother’s house.
Her grandmother had asked her about Yu Youyao’s birthday banquet.
Song Wanhui turned to look at her eldest brother. Seeing that he was sitting still and did not seem to have any intention of avoiding her, she could only tell him everything that had happened at the small banquet.
In the end, she took the medicinal tea and medicinal fragrance that Yu Youyao had given her and left her grandmother’s house.
Her eldest brother, Song Mingzhao, came out with her.
Song Wanhui remembered that her brother seemed to like Yu Youyao’s medicinal tea too, so she gave him another bag of medicinal tea and medicinal fragrance. “Take these.”
Song Mingzhao reached out to take it and nodded. “Thank you, Third Sister.”
After receiving the gifts, she strode to the front.
Song Wanhui looked at her eldest brother’s indifferent back and felt that something was amiss.
As she walked, she realized that something was wrong. She had left her grandmother’s house with her eldest brother, but he did not seem to come and go as he pleased. Instead, he had even walked with her.
He also took her things and left.
It was more like—
He was deliberately waiting for her to deliver the items to him!
Song Wanhui was stunned for a moment. She tapped her head lightly and muttered softly, “How is that possible? How could Eldest Brother have guessed that I would give him the medicinal tea made by Eldest Miss Yu? It must be a coincidence. Yes, that’s right. Besides, Eldest Miss Yu’s things are indeed good. It’s normal for Eldest Brother to like them. Didn’t Grandmother give some to him previously?”
Thinking of this, she did not think much of it.
Song Wanhui came back to her senses. “My mother used the medicinal fragrance you made and felt that it was especially good. She even specially asked me for more and gave it to my eldest brother. My eldest brother lit it when he was studying. It could also calm his mind and nourish his mind.”
If she had known earlier, she wouldn’t have given her the medicinal fragrance. Yu Youyao resisted the urge to purse her lips.
Yu Youyao chatted and laughed with Yu Shuangbai, Qi Sinian, and Song Wanhui along the way. Occasionally, she would stop and admire the flowers and trees planted on the wooden railing.
Yu Jianjia bit her lip.
Just now, when she followed them and saw them chatting and laughing intimately, she unknowingly slowed down. After a while, she fell behind.
Yu Jianjia couldn’t be bothered to lean forward anymore. She tilted her head and saw that not far away, there were a few young misses who were dressed exceptionally well. They surrounded Fifth Miss Lu and Seventh Miss Cao and chatted and laughed. Then, they walked to the wooden railing in small steps to admire the flowers and plants.
Looking at them, she seemed to be really attracted by the colorful flowers. Unknowingly, she walked along the wooden railing to take a look.
“Eh, Third Miss Yu, why are you alone?”
Hearing the voice, Yu Jianjia was stunned for a moment. She subconsciously looked up and saw Lu Mingyao and Cao Yingxue, as well as a few young misses of noble families, standing not far away and looking at her.
The person who was talking to her was Cao Yingxue.
Yu Jianjia hurriedly took a few steps forward and pursed her lips into a smile. “So it’s Fifth Miss Lu and Seventh Miss Cao.” As she spoke, she turned to look at the three people who were with Yu Youyao not far away. She forced a smile and said, “I was only focused on admiring the flowers just now. I didn’t expect to fall behind.”
Cao Yingxue followed Yu Jianjia’s gaze and saw a few young misses chatting and laughing together not far away. It was really lively. She understood that there must be Yu Jianjia’s sisters there.
Looking at the delicate Third Miss of the Yu Residence, Cao Yingxue couldn’t help but purse her lips. She wondered what kind of big sister she was.
She clearly knew that her younger sister was weak, but she still ignored her and let her younger sister be alone. She was really too selfish.
Lu Mingyao had a good impression of Yu Jianjia.
After saying that, Yu Jianjia hurriedly changed the topic and smiled. “I’ve been weak since I was young, so it’s not good for me to walk around and cause trouble, so I’m more concerned about these flowers and plants. In order to let me rest in peace, Father built a greenhouse for me. In the past, I’ve planted flowers in the courtyard, but I’ve never seen so many flowers in the Marquis of Changxing’s Residence.” Yu Jianjia smiled and pointed at a carefully placed flower on the wooden railing.
“These Moutan peonies are bright red and beautiful, and there are white spots on the petals. They have a unique aura and are blooming extremely well in the Marquis of Changxing’s Residence. The flowers are big and beautiful, and they’re really the same as normal peonies. I almost couldn’t tell just now that it was actually a camellia.” After saying that, she pointed at another pot of white Camellias. “This is a white pearl. It’s a rare variety of white camellia. They usually bloom around February to March. It’s already April, but they’re still blooming so elegantly and beautifully. It’s obvious that the Marquis of Changxing’s Residence has put in a lot of effort…”
At the mention of the flowers and plants that she was interested in, Yu Jianjia seemed to be in high spirits, and her delicate face turned red.
She explained all the good breeds on the wooden railing in a logical manner. Every time she mentioned something interesting, she couldn’t help but praise the Marquis of Changxing’s Residence for knowing how to nurture them.
The Marquis of Changxing’s Residence held a flower festival. She praised the flowers for blooming beautifully and doing a good job. She also indirectly praised the Marquis of Changxing’s Residence for holding a good flower festival.
Cao Yingxue was happy to hear this. She pulled Lu Mingzhu over. “You have a greenhouse in your courtyard. What flowers and plants are there?”
Yu Jianjia was a little embarrassed. “It’s just some orchids, camellias, peonies, and Chinese peonies. They’re not as expensive and rare as yours.”
Her calm flattery made Cao Yingxue take another step closer. “You’re really impressive.”
Yu Jianjia blushed and quickly waved her hand. “I only asked someone who knows how to help. I wasn’t the one who put in the most effort. How could I be impressive?”