After having breakfast at the old lady's place, she lost all her spirit. All she wanted was to roll back into her own bed and have a good sleep, using this as a short - term escape from the impending disaster that was about to befall her.
However, she had always been the type to face difficulties head - on. And at the moment, the enemy hadn't reached her doorstep yet, and she hadn't fully grasped the whole situation. So, it wasn't that she was extremely scared. Maybe it was because she had been woken up this morning and didn't sleep well, which made her chest feel stuffy.
Thinking of this, she returned to her own courtyard. For now, her main goal was still to work hard to earn money.
Chu Liyin had already woken up. She was kicking a shuttlecock with Yun'er in the yard.
It had to be said that since Chu Liyin came, this once - silent courtyard finally had a bit of vitality. This home finally had one more reason for her to stay.
"I heard that sister went to grandmother's yard for breakfast. Why didn't you call me? It's not fair for you to eat without me!"
Seeing Cheng Xiran standing there in a daze, Chu Liyin bounced towards her and grabbed her slender arm.
Cheng Xiran came to her senses. She saw Chu Liyin looking at her longingly. This pitiful little look touched her, and she couldn't help but sigh, "I have to say that Xue Lianyu is really ungrateful. Leaving such a cute little girl alone and going around flirting outside. It's really abominable!"
As she said this, she playfully lifted Chu Liyin's chin with her hand, which made Chu Liyin dodge repeatedly and pout, "Sister is always making fun of me. Maybe I'm just like Shen Yu'e in your book. I'm just a bit curious about Luo Mu in my admiration, not really in love with him."
"Come on, aren't you talking nonsense? How could Shen Yu'e not love Luo Mu?"
Cheng Xiran looked at her with interest for a while. Chu Liyin felt even more ashamed and quickly covered her face with her hands. "Sister is so bad. I shouldn't have told you about this in the first place. Otherwise, you wouldn't always tease me about it."
There was an undisguised smile on Cheng Xiran's face. After they played around for a while, she took Chu Liyin to the newspaper office. The Lantern Festival wasn't completely over yet, and there were always lively markets to stroll around during the day. Unable to resist Chu Liyin's nagging, Cheng Xiran promised to finish writing the manuscript quickly in the morning and then go to the market in the afternoon.
But when they got to the newspaper office, the shopkeeper told her that she didn't need to write a manuscript today.
"Guard Zuo came to inform us early this morning. I guess it's for the young lady to have a good rest for a day."
Chu Liyin was munching on a butter cake. With oil stains around her mouth, she grinned and said, "It seems that the prince really understands our women's minds. Amid his busy schedule, he still remembers to think about sister."
Cheng Xiran rolled her eyes at her but still walked into the newspaper office. "These two days are a good opportunity for the newspaper to sell well. I won't let this chance slip away easily."
She strode straight towards the second floor while saying, "I appreciate the prince's kindness, but I still have to write what needs to be written."
The shopkeeper followed her behind in a daze. He thought what she said was indeed right. In his eyes, Cheng Xiran had always been a work - enthusiast. So he didn't say anything more and just started to make a new pot of tea for her.
Chu Liyin wasn't happy. "Sister, why do you work so hard? Are you really short of money?"
Cheng Xiran just smiled without saying a word. She took out new writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, and started to conceive the story of the regent and the female spy in her mind.