After Xie Fengran finished speaking, Liu Yi kept nodding. "The entrance exam for the girls' academy is approaching. Miss should go and offer incense to the Bodhisattva to pray for good luck so that Miss can pass the exam smoothly."
"If your miss needs the Bodhisattva's blessing to get into the girls' academy, then she might as well not take the exam at all."
Liu Yi stuck out her tongue, accidentally pulling at her wound, and hissed in pain. Xie Fengran quickly told her to sit still and not speak.
She looked at Liu Yi's face with some uneasiness, a cold glint flashing in her eyes. "I'll get even for this sooner or later. Prime Minister Zhang is no good at raising his daughter. Sooner or later, he'll fall."
"Miss..." Liu Yi timidly glanced at Xie Fengran. Why did she feel that there was something about her miss that they maids didn't know?
The carriage soon stopped in front of the medical clinic. Xie Fengran took Liu Yi inside. After applying some swelling - reducing medicine, they headed back home.
When the carriage turned into the East City, Xie Fengran suddenly remembered what she had promised Xie Chenghui. "Uncle Feng, don't go home yet. Go to Li's Restaurant."
"Sure thing, Miss."
Uncle Feng turned the carriage around and headed towards Li's Restaurant.
Seeing that Xie Fengran still remembered to buy food for Xie Chenghui, Liu Yi sighed, "Miss is so kind to the young master. The young master will be blessed in the future."
"Being born into a marquis's mansion doesn't necessarily mean one will be blessed." Xie Fengran paused for a moment and asked, "What have you heard?"
Liu Yi hesitated a bit and said, "I haven't heard much. The maids said that all the young master's personal affairs are taken care of by the wet - nurse, and no one else is allowed to interfere. When he's in the mistress's courtyard, as long as he doesn't provoke the mistress, no one really cares about him. Although his food, clothing, and daily necessities are provided, but as you've seen the wet - nurse, she doesn't seem to take good care of the young master."
"It's not unexpected." A mocking smile curled up on Xie Fengran's lips. "She doesn't seem to care much about her own daughter, let alone someone who wasn't born from her own belly."
Liu Yi didn't know how to console her. She could only say cautiously, "Miss, the mistress has it hard too."
Xie Fengran twitched the corner of her mouth, non - committal.
As they were talking, they arrived at Li's Restaurant. Although this mutton restaurant was located in the East City, it didn't target the high - end market. Its ancestors once cooked for Emperor Gaozu and were highly appreciated. Emperor Gaozu bestowed a mansion in the East City, and they started their mutton business here.
This cooking skill was passed down through generations, and the taste was incredibly good. It quickly won the hearts of the high - ranking officials and nobles in the East City.
Grandma Xie liked the mutton from this restaurant very much and had someone buy it several times. Xie Fengran didn't like the smell of mutton but preferred to drink mutton soup.
Since she was here, Xie Fengran decided to buy some for everyone in the family. She told Uncle Feng to go in and buy more and also rewarded Uncle Feng with a portion.
After returning to the mansion, Xie Fengran didn't want Grandma Xie to know what had happened that day, so she told Liu Yi to take the portion for Tingfeng Courtyard back first.
She herself carried the portion for Grandma Xie and went to Qingsong Courtyard.
She accompanied Grandma Xie and chatted for a while. She told Grandma Xie that she wanted to go to Huguo Temple to offer incense, and Grandma Xie fully approved.
"Go and light a long - burning lamp for Chenghui for me and donate some incense money. Su Momo."
Su Momo answered and turned around to take a silver note from the box.
Grandma Xie took it and stuffed it into Xie Fengran's hand. "This is a one - thousand - tael silver note. Keep it well."
Xie Fengran quickly declined. "Grandma, it's too much. I won't need so much."
"You will. If you get into the academy, making friends and going out, you don't need to save money like boys do when they study. This is all Grandma's private money. Your father doesn't know."
Xie Fengran thought for a while and put it away. "Thank you, Grandma."
"Good child. Since you've bought mutton, Grandma won't keep you for dinner. Hurry back and eat. If it gets cold, heat it up."
"Then Grandma, you should rest first. Granddaughter will go back now."
Xie Fengran curtsied and backed out.
Su Momo sent Xie Fengran to the courtyard gate. She waved away the servants and whispered, "Second Master came to see Grandma today, but Grandma sent him away."
Xie Fengran's heart skipped a beat. She whispered, "Is it because I had the wet - nurse of Chenghui thrown to the Western Courtyard that Second Uncle came to see Grandma?"
Su Momo nodded. "Don't worry, Eldest Miss. Grandma knows what she's doing. It's just that she doesn't have the energy to manage everything. Now that there's Eldest Miss, everything will be fine."
Xie Fengran sighed. "Momo is overestimating me. I had the courage to throw that person out because Grandma is backing me up. Momo, you should also take good care of yourself. Grandma depends on you for everything."
"Thank you for your concern, Eldest Miss. Since Eldest Miss knows what to do, I won't say more."
"What are you saying, Momo? Fengran knows that Momo is kind to me and is giving me advice."
Su Momo was quite pleased and said with a smile, "I won't keep Eldest Miss any longer. Eldest Miss, go back quickly."
Xie Fengran nodded and walked towards Tingfeng Courtyard with a little maid.
When she was almost there, surprisingly, she didn't hear Xie Chenghui's noisy voice. It seemed that the delicious food really worked.
Xie Fengran couldn't help but smile at the thought. When she reached the courtyard gate, she found that the gatekeeper grannies were also gone. Her heart immediately felt something was wrong.
She entered the courtyard. After turning around the peach tree, she saw that all the maids and grannies in Tingfeng Courtyard were gathered in front of the main hall, and there was a person kneeling in the middle.
"Liu Yi, why are you kneeling here!"
Liu Yi slightly raised her head and gave Xie Fengran a meaningful look. Before she could say anything, a person stepped in front of her. "Greetings to Eldest Miss. Eldest Miss is back! The mistress has been waiting for you for a while!"
Xie Fengran narrowed her eyes. This was the head maid beside Yun Shi.
Mother is here!
She quickly glanced at Liu Yi kneeling on the ground and then stepped into the main hall. Yun Shi was sitting upright on the upper seat, and the food box given by Qin Junxing was placed on the table beside her.
Lan Fang was holding Xie Chenghui and standing on one side. When she saw Xie Fengran come in, she slightly shook her head at her.
Xie Fengran's eyes tightened slightly. She walked over and respectfully bowed. "Greetings to Mother."
Yun Shi still had that calm expression. She looked at Xie Fengran. "Where have you been?"
"Daughter went to Guanlin Bookstore."
Yun Shi nodded. Her eyes swept over the food box on the table and asked, "Since you remembered to bring something for your younger brother, did you send something to your father?"
"Daughter went to Li's Restaurant to buy mutton and has already sent someone to deliver it to Father."
"It's filial of you, but recently you sent Xie Yunxi to the estate and disobeyed your father. This is not what a daughter should do."
Xie Fengran knew her mother would say this. She didn't even move her eyebrows and said in a deep voice, "Daughter doesn't agree with what Mother said. Daughter is just following Grandma's instructions to maintain the reputation of the marquis's mansion and to advise Father."
"The marquis's mansion belongs to your father. Your father is the sky of the marquis's mansion. Grandma is old and may overlook some things. Do you have to ignore your father's wishes just for Grandma?"