tallest building

Chapter 71 A Quick Guide

As soon as Gong Xu returned, he saw Yun Ying already waiting at the second gate, looking like she had been waiting for a long time. She was stunned for a moment when she saw him before she smiled.

With a touch of shyness, she walked up to Gong Xu and said softly, "Master is back. Madam went to speak with the First Madam and instructed me to take good care of you before she left. Zhang Ma has already prepared dinner. Would you do me the honor of coming over, Master?"

When Gong Xu heard that Wen Mingqian was not there and knew that she wouldn't be back for a while, he dispelled his only concern and said, "Since the meal has been prepared, I'll go over there! Otherwise, wouldn't it be a waste?"

He then turned to the servant who was following him and said, "Go and tell the people around the young mistress that she should eat properly by herself. I'm going to have my meal with the mistress. Afterward, go to the study to write a few letters, tell her to take her medicine, and then get some sleep."

“The young mistress is taking medicine to nourish her pregnancy, so she must be avoiding many foods,” Yunying said with a slight smile. “From now on, we can just have them prepare meals for the young mistress. When the master is home, we can have Zhang Ma take care of her. I think that will suit your taste.”

Gong Xu remained silent, as if he hadn't heard what Yun Ying said.

Yunying smiled quietly and led the way with light, graceful steps.

She was slender and graceful, charming yet dignified, and her demeanor and speech were full of gentleness; even when she smiled, she never showed her teeth.

Every time Gong Xu saw her, it was as if the woman in the painting had come to life.

Wen Mingqian's courtyard was quiet. Many lotus flowers had already bloomed, and the evening breeze carried the fragrance of lotus flowers, which was refreshing and pleasant.

"Would you like to admire the lotus blossoms, sir?" Yunying sensed Gong Xu's thoughts from his slight pause in his steps. "Then this servant will bring the wine and dishes to this pavilion. Wouldn't it be more elegant for you to enjoy the scenery while drinking?"

"You are truly understanding," Gong Xu smiled. "How many taels of silver did Madam pay to bring you into the household?"

"Reporting to Master, it cost two hundred taels." Yunying lowered her head slightly, a blush appearing on her cheeks.

Gong Xu immediately understood. Generally speaking, even a maid who was sold under a death contract would only cost twenty or thirty taels of silver, and you had to choose the best ones.

Wen Mingqian paid such a price for her, clearly not to make her a maid.

"Please wait here for a moment, sir. I will go and serve the wine and dishes." Yunying turned around shyly, but her handkerchief fell to the ground.

She left in a hurry, and Gong Xu didn't have time to call her, so he bent down to pick up the handkerchief.

The fabric is made of solid yarn and is embroidered with a pair of colorful mandarin ducks. Next to them are two lines of poetry: "Though we have no wings to fly together like a phoenix, our hearts are connected by a single thread of understanding."

After a while, Yunying brought up the wine and dishes with her maid Mei'er.

"Good sister, go and bring the two new pastries you just made," Yunying said gently to Mei'er.

After Mei'er left, Gong Xu smiled and asked Yunying, "Can you read too?"

"How did you know, sir? I do know a few characters." Yunying was quite surprised.

"Did you embroider this handkerchief yourself?" Gong Xu asked, spreading his hands.

"Oh dear, look at me, how could I be so careless? I didn't even realize I'd lost my handkerchief." Yunying's face turned red again, and Gong Xu realized that she really blushed very easily.

"Do you know the meaning of these two lines of poetry?" Gong Xu couldn't help but want to tease the little girl. "This servant doesn't know much about them, but when I read Li Yishan's two lines of poetry, I don't know why, I felt both happy and sad." Yunying sighed softly, "I've been thinking about them ever since, so I embroidered them on a handkerchief. This servant is so stupid, I've made you laugh at me, sir."

“I’m not laughing at you; the meaning of those two lines of poetry is excellent. It’s just that you’re young, and even if you understand the literal meaning of the words, you still won’t grasp the deeper significance,” Gong Xu sighed forlornly. (Do all old Dengs like to pretend to be profound?)
"It's all my fault," Yunying said remorsefully. "I will never use this handkerchief again."

As she spoke, she reached out and took the handkerchief from Gong Xu's hand. Her slightly cool fingertips lightly touched Gong Xu's palm, like a petal falling down.

“My sigh is not because of you. You are intelligent and spiritual, which is good,” Gong Xu comforted her. “If you like reading, you can read as much as you like.”

"It's strange that the master doesn't laugh at me and even tells me to study more," Yunying said, puzzled. "People like us who study will be laughed at."

“Only by knowing books can one understand reason. What’s wrong with reading? Just keep reading, don’t be afraid.” Gong Xu’s tone held a gentleness he himself was unaware of.

"But I can't understand it by myself; I need a master." Yunying bit her lower lip and looked at Gong Xu. "I wonder if you, sir, would be willing to accept me as your disciple?"

Seeing the expectation in her eyes, Gong Xu couldn't bear to refuse: "If I have free time, I can certainly answer your questions."

Meanwhile, Song was not having a good time. Gong Bao'an had been making a fuss and finally fell asleep, but in his dream he was still murmuring, "I want rose cake..."

Song was so confused and annoyed by him that she felt dizzy and even more frustrated.

"Young Madam, how about I go and invite a sorceress to take a look?" Granny Yang asked tentatively.

"What's the point of inviting them? Do you want everyone to know that our courtyard is haunted?" Madam Song said irritably.

"Young Madam, please don't be upset. Let's wait and see. Maybe things will be better by tomorrow," Granny Yang quickly agreed.

"I think it was that brat Gong Chang'an who did it. That kid is full of evil intentions. Why didn't he die on the way back then?!" Madam Song gritted her teeth in hatred.

“Young Madam, the man who came with the master said that you should eat dinner by yourself and that you should get some rest.” Liu Yun said somewhat nervously as she entered.

They all knew that Song was in a bad mood at the moment, and hearing these words would definitely bring bad luck.

Sure enough, Madam Song sneered after hearing this: "Ha! He must have been seduced by those little vixens in that courtyard! This man surnamed Wen must have gotten two little beauties from somewhere, and he's completely bewitched by them!"

"Young Madam, please calm down. There's no need to get angry over them. Taking care of your health is the most important thing. As long as you're alive, you can always make something of yourself!" Granny Yang advised.

"I told you long ago, to catch the thief, you must first catch the king. As long as Wen Mingqian, the king of thieves, is around, he can always attract the fox spirits. Once we take her down, the rest will be no threat." Madam Song knew that she had to remain calm at this moment and could not afford to suffer a complete defeat.

"Has the young mistress thought of a way to deal with her?" Granny Yang asked.

Madam Song placed her hand on her lower abdomen and remained silent for a long time before saying, "This child is hard to save either way. Rather than letting him suffer through bitter medicine every day, it would be better for him to die quickly, which would be doing my part."

Upon hearing this, Granny Yang didn't think Song was wrong at all. Instead, she chimed in, "As the saying goes, 'No one can enjoy wealth and honor without being ruthless.' This time, Wen Mingqian was sent back to her hometown for seven years. We must cut off her escape route completely."

"Besides, I haven't had a moment of peace since I got pregnant with this child. I also feel that he is unlucky. Since that's the case, it's better to get through this pain quickly than to suffer for a long time. I will properly pray for his soul in the future."

(End of this chapter)