C81

"Isn't Miss Liangqiu a good sister to Min Er? Why didn't you protect her? " Yuwen He asked.

Liangqiu Yayin raised her eyebrows and said: "Even sisters cannot always be by her side. Moreover, Min Er was the king's wife, so wasn't protecting his wife a duty that was perfectly justified? I don't mind if I do the work for you. Are you willing? "

Yuwen He: "Of course not."

Liangqiu Yayin laughed without saying a word.

The carriage left the palace, heading straight for Xiao Mansion.

Lu Yi knocked on the door for a while before an old butler answered.

The old butler looked at Lu Yi and asked, "I wonder who little brother is?"

"Old butler, my master wishes to see Lord Xiao." Yin Lin walked over from behind.

"It's Aunt Yin Lin." The old butler was startled for a moment before recognizing Yin Lin.

Yin Lin laughed, and then indicated to Xiao Ruyue who was beside him, "It's not convenient to talk at the entrance, it's not a place for you to talk."

The old butler immediately understood and immediately invited Xiao Ruyue and the group to enter.

Xiao Ruyue and the rest entered the main hall, the old butler immediately instructed the servant to prepare the tea.

"Esteemed customer, please wait for a moment. This old servant will ask Master to come out now."

Xiao Ruyue laughed but did not say a word.

Xiao Mansion was her home, but it took them so long to return.

The furnishings in his memory had not changed in the slightest, but after so many years, they had become much older. His brother and sister were no longer around, his parents were gone too, leaving only his grandmother and Jing Yu behind.

When she came into contact with the scenery, Xiao Ruyue's eyes reddened slightly. When the green clothes got closer to her, he gave her a puzzled look.

The old butler came back very quickly, and Old Mistress Xiao and Xiao Jingyu also came out together with him. There were only eight people left and right in the manor. All of them kneeled down and kowtowed.

"Your Highness, this humble subject's family has not gone far to welcome you. They deserve to die a thousand times for this crime!"

The Xiao Mansion was not as it used to be. There were only a few cooks left in charge of cooking, an old lady and two maids taking care of the madame's clothes and food, and an old housekeeper taking care of both the inside and the outside.

What was left was only the Old Mistress Xiao, Xiao Jingyu still had more ripples.

In the past, the great Xiao Clan of Xiao Mansion had now fallen to this stage.

"Let's skip the formalities and rise."

Xiao Ruyue quickly hid the sadness in her eyes and said calmly.

However, he still couldn't help but want to lean towards his grandma.

In the end, she managed to hold her hand, clenching her fists so tight that her nails nearly dug into her flesh.

Xiao Jingyu helped the Old Mistress Xiao up, and looked at Xiao Ruyue in puzzlement, "May I know what orders the Empress is here for?"

It was obvious that she did not expect the Empress to disguise herself as a man again and had secretly visited the Xiao Mansion.

"Lord Xiao, this time, I have come out of the palace to visit you and to see if you have caused any trouble. Not for national affairs. " Xiao Ruyue glanced at the ripples.

Ripple's cheeks were flushed and shy.

Being mocked like this, Xiao Jingyu was so embarrassed that he did not know what to say.

"Lord Xiao is not fully recovered yet, I still need to take this opportunity to have a good rest. The Lord Xiao needs to have a good body in order for him to be able to serve the Kingdom and work hard for you. " Xiao Ruyue very naturally changed the topic.

Xiao Jingyu nodded his head.

Considering that Xiao Jingyu had gotten sick, most of the documents were sent to the Xiao Mansion. Although they had left early in the morning, they had mostly returned after the imperial court was over, and would not stay for long.

Of course, this was also to deceive people.

Jing Yu was a talent that had always been a pillar of support. Now that he had followed Yuwen He and honed himself a bit, it was good for him.

Thinking about it, Xiao Ruyue took another look at Xiao Jingyu.

Being looked at by her made Xiao Jingyu have a strange feeling in his heart, but he was unable to tell what it was.

Xiao Ruyue cordially held onto Old Mistress Xiao's hand, "Old madam, the hall is very formal, can you lead me to the backyard to talk?"

"Of course you can. It's an honor for the entire Xiao Mansion." The empress in front of him made Old Mistress Xiao feel even more intimate, the old lady could not stop smiling.

Xiao Ruyue then followed Old Mistress Xiao to the backyard. Yin Lin, Lu Yi and Ripple also followed along.

The remaining three men, Shen Liang, Xiao Jingyu and the old butler, who were of different ages and different identities, looked at each other in dismay before they smiled.

The backyard was no different from what Xiao Ruyue remembered it to be, but it lacked a lot of liveliness.

Previously, his family had been quite lively. Now that there were fewer people, this mansion seemed a lot lonelier. On top of that, he didn't have enough manpower, so he could not help but have more weeds.

Seeing Xiao Ruyue look left and right, the Old Mistress Xiao was a little disappointed. She thought that Xiao Ruyue despised the vicissitudes of life in the palace and sighed. Our Xiao family is no longer the same as it was before. "

"Old madam, you've misunderstood. That's not what I meant." Xiao Ruyue patted the old lady's hand to comfort her, "Being diligent and thrifty is exactly what His Majesty advocated. The Xiao Mansion is very quiet. Compared to the large families of the noble families extravagant and extravagant, I actually admire the old lady for having a good family. "

"Esteemed Empress is too kind."

Xiao Ruyue's comforting words were very useful, with just a few words, it caused Old Mistress Xiao to be beaming.

In the backyard, there was a Pure Heart Pavilion that Xiao Jingyu built when he was young. At that time, Xiao Ruyue was still young, but he was only a few years older than Jing Yu. The Pure Heart Pavilion was their shared memory.

Ripple diligently brought in hot tea and snacks. Not daring to say too much, he stood behind Old Mistress Xiao in silence.

Xiao Ruyue looked at her, laughed and asked Old Mistress Xiao: Old madam, since Ripple is here, does the Xiao Mansion give you any trouble?

"No, no, the Empress has misunderstood. Ripple is a good child, ever since the ripples began, most of the family's work has been taken care of by her alone, always fighting with the cook girl and the others for it. This old one doesn't want her to work so hard, but this child just won't listen."

The old mistress was afraid that Ripple would be punished, so her tone was urgent.

"Empress, please help me persuade her that she cannot be wronged like this. No matter what, Ripple was the one who invited the people from the Phoenix Palace."

The madame's words were filled with concern for the ripples, but in the end, she was afraid that Xiao Ruyue would notice it, so she quickly added.

Xiao Ruyue paused, "Then the madame came out from the Phoenix Cry Palace because of the ripples, do you not want to make her suffer, or are you worried about her working hard?"

Saying that, Xiao Ruyue's gaze shot towards the ripples.

Old Mistress Xiao didn't know how to respond to this.

Ripple stood behind the madame, her face pale and at a loss.

"Empress, this old woman knows that Miss Rippling is someone from the Phoenix Palace. Our Xiao family should not be delusional. But this kid and our family, Jingyu. "

The old lady wanted to say something, but she stopped in her tracks. Turning her head, she saw the pale-faced Ripple, and could not care less, she got up and knelt down in front of Xiao Ruyue.

"Empress, Ripple is a good girl. This old woman has seen all that she has done in our house these past few days. This old one begs the Empress to let Ripple stay! "

Ripple followed suit and knelt down, trembling in fear. "Empress, Ripple begs you to let this servant stay behind. From now on, you can do whatever you want with Ripple. "

"Madame, please get up." Xiao Ruyue immediately got up from her kneeling position and helped the old lady up.

Lu Yi's hands were quick as well, helping the ripples up.

Xiao Ruyue said: "Madam, I understand your meaning as well. As a rule, when a palace maid reaches her age, she can leave the palace to get married. This isn't without precedent. This was not a difficult matter. If Lord Xiao and Ripple were in love, I can help them out. There's no need to be so serious. "

Ripple was so excited that his eyes turned red and tears fell from his eyes.

The old mistress thanked him profusely as well.

However, Xiao Ruyue lowered her voice and said, "But madame, have you really thought it through? With the Xiao Clan Courtyard, do you really want Master Shang Shu to marry a little girl like Ripple? If Lord Xiao marries a young palace maid, I'm afraid that in the future, others will have to gossip about her. "

Although she was happy to be a beauty in adulthood, this matter was related to Jing Yu's future, so she didn't want to be too hasty.

As Xiao Ruyue said this, Ripple bit his lower lip, but his tears stopped.

She knelt in front of Xiao Ruyue and kowtowed seriously, "Empress, Ripple knows that she is not worthy of being one of Lord Xiao's and Xiao Mansion's concubines. However, if Ripple is lucky enough to marry into the Xiao Family, Ripple will do his best to take care of Milady and Old Mistress, so that Milord won't have to worry about anything else."

"Empress, you heard it too. With these words of Ripple, this old one has nothing to worry about." Old Mistress Xiao was also moved by Ripple's words.

"Matrimony is indeed an important matter, but the love between two people is even more important. Empress, please let Ripple stay."

The old mistress was about to kneel again.

Xiao Ruyue quickly supported her with her hands, "Old madam, do not kneel anymore. Since the Lord Xiao and the old lady have ripples in their eyes, and the ripples are willing to stay in the Xiao Mansion, I will not forcefully take them away. However, a marriage is not something to be trifled with. After this exam is over, we still need the Lord Xiao to make proper preparations.

"Yes, yes, yes. Rites cannot be wasted." The old mistress had something on her mind as she smiled.

"This servant thanks the empress for her kindness." Ripple solemnly kowtowed to express his gratitude.

This time, Xiao Ruyue did not stop them.

Because, in terms of emotion and logic, whether she was Xiao Ruyue or the empress, Ripple had to thank her.

Xiao Ruyue was also relieved.

However, she suddenly heard the madame's sigh and said, "If my son and daughter-in-law were still alive, my grandson and daughter-in-law would be here as well. My family would be happy to marry Yu-er."

Xiao Ruyue's heart stopped for a second, as she felt the pain of being hit by a hammer.

At this moment, tears almost rolled down his cheeks.

She had a lot of things on her mind. She wanted to call her Grandmother in front of the madame. She wanted to tell her grandma: It's Yue Er. Yue Er is back.

But she didn't have the courage, and she couldn't do it.

Ripple supported the old lady and said worriedly to Xiao Ruyue: "My great grandmother often talked about the Master and the Lady. The young miss had married Prince Wei to become her consort, but unfortunately she died in childbirth. Ever since Prince Wei had married this consort, the two families had broken off all contact. "Grandmother must be in love with him."