Qin Junxing raised his eyebrows slightly and shot a cold glance over. Qing Ye immediately dared not say a word and bowed his head as he backed out.
So, on the next day, while Xie Fengran was still paying respects in the Green Pine Courtyard, Qin Junxing's gifts were sent to her own courtyard.
Xie Fengran remained oblivious, intently listening to the conversation between her father and her grandmother.
Since Second Aunt Xie from the West Courtyard had relinquished her position as the housekeeper, Lady Yun had been confined by the old lady in her courtyard to learn how to manage the household.
Lady Yun came from a humble background. She was only taken in by Xie Yi because of her outstanding beauty. Moreover, she had never been in the good graces of the old lady. Her skills in managing the household were not even half as good as Second Aunt Xie's.
These days, she had been in a complete mess and didn't even have time to come and pay respects.
However, she finally seemed to have some sense of being a part of the family, dragged into the mundane world by these trivial matters.
Therefore, today, it was only Xie Yi who came to pay respects.
Xie Fengran heard her father say to her grandmother, "Mother, I wonder when the inventory of the mansion will be completed. I went to the accounts room to withdraw some silver for my social engagements, but the accountant said the accounts hadn't been audited yet, and that you've only allocated the daily expenses?"
The old Lady Xie lifted her eyelids and glanced at Xie Yi. With a straight face, she said, "If you want to socialize, just ask Nanny Su for the silver!"
"Mother, this... isn't it inappropriate?"
Although Xie Yi was a bit of a libertine, he hadn't asked his mother for silver since he got married.
After all, the Marquis Mansion would be his someday. Whenever he needed silver, he would just go to the accounts room to withdraw it. Anyway, Second Aunt Xie never cared.
The old lady had a rough idea of how much silver Xie Yi withdrew from the accounts room every year. But in the past, she didn't have the energy to interfere. Now, things were different.
"All the belongings of the mansion are in my custody. If you want silver, just ask Nanny Su!"
Xie Yi shrank his neck and didn't dare to refute, but he had another idea.
He glanced at Xie Fengran behind the old lady and suddenly asked, "How did Fengran do in yesterday's exam?"
Xie Fengran was pleasantly surprised and quickly replied, "Replying to Father, Daughter thinks it went quite well. I should have no problem getting into the Girls' Academy."
"That's good, that's good!" Xie Yi nodded and continued, "You see, your second younger sister has suffered a bit on the estate. I think she has realized her mistakes. How about bringing her back and sending her to the Girls' Academy to study?"
"Father, the entrance exam for the Girls' Academy is already over. There's no way for Sister to get in."
"You don't need to worry about this. The Emperor has granted a special way to enter the Girls' Academy today. One just needs to donate some silver, and they can get an enrollment quota."
Xie Yi didn't know where he heard this from. He looked quite proud as he turned to the old lady. "Mother, you've been taking care of Fengran's marriage, so I don't need to worry about it. But Yunxi is only a few months younger than Fengran. It won't be long before we can start discussing a marriage for her. We can't keep her locked up on the estate forever. My thought is that if she goes to study, it might discipline her a bit, which will make it easier for her to find a good husband, right?"
Xie Yi spoke with such emotion, looking like a good father who was really thinking about his daughter.
Xie Fengran knew that the old lady would be swayed, because they couldn't keep Xie Yunxi locked up forever. If she could get into the Girls' Academy and gain some prestige, she would have more options when it came to marriage. Maybe she could even marry into a family that would be beneficial to the Marquis Mansion.
Sure enough, the old lady didn't refuse. She lowered her eyes and thought for a while, then slowly nodded, signaling Nanny Su to take out two silver notes and give them to Xie Yi. "She's your daughter. You can handle this yourself. Bring her back only after you've taken care of everything."
This meant that they weren't going to let her into the mansion for the time being.
Xie Fengran saw that the two of them had settled the matter in just a few words and didn't say a word.
Xie Yi was satisfied now that his goal had been achieved. He left the Green Pine Courtyard contentedly.
After her father left, Xie Fengran winked at Lan Fang. Lan Fang quietly slipped out along the wall. She found a little maid from the Wind - listening Courtyard and whispered a few words to her. The little maid nodded and scurried away.
No one really paid much attention to this little episode.
After Xie Yi left, the old lady waved her hand and motioned for Xie Fengran to sit down. She asked, "Do you resent your grandmother for letting your sister come back?"
"Grandmother, you're being too serious. Sister is also a member of the Xie family. I sent her to the estate to teach her a lesson so that she wouldn't ruin the Xie family's reputation. If she can get into the Girls' Academy now, that would be great."
After a pause, she looked up at the old lady and smiled sweetly. "After all, if Sister marries well, it will be beneficial to both the Marquis Mansion and me."
The old lady smiled gratifyingly and patted Xie Fengran's hand. "My little Fengran has grown up and is so sensible. Grandmother is also thinking about the reputation of the Marquis Mansion. But after she enters the mansion, you have to keep an eye on her. Don't let your father spoil her."
"Grandmother, you're putting me in a difficult position. But I'll do my best to discipline Second Sister."
"Good, good, good!" The old lady was obviously very satisfied with Xie Fengran's understanding. She nodded and suddenly remembered something. She asked with a smile, "I heard that you received a feast from Jingyueju yesterday. Why didn't you let grandmother share some of the fun?"
"Grandmother, you're teasing me again. I'm just a bit of a glutton. You even know about this." Xie Fengran smiled on the surface, but her heart sank.
Grandmother asking like this must mean she had heard something.
Yesterday, she had specifically told Lan Fang to tip off the gatekeepers not to say anything.
So, was grandmother just joking or was she testing her?
The old lady's expression remained unchanged. She smiled gently and said, "It's okay to be a glutton. Grandmother liked to eat a lot when she was young. Is your monthly allowance enough?"
"Enough, Grandmother!"
Xie Fengran obediently replied. After chatting with the old lady for a while longer, she took her leave.
Only after they walked out of the Green Pine Courtyard did Lan Fang dare to pat her chest and come closer to Xie Fengran. "Miss, what does the old lady mean by that?"
"What do you mean? We've already eaten the meal. What else could it mean!"
Since the old lady didn't bring it up again, Xie Fengran didn't think much of it. Instead, she was wondering why her father would suddenly bring up Xie Yunxi.
Based on her understanding of her father, he was definitely not someone who would take the initiative to care about his children.
The fact that he was so eager to mention it to grandmother now could only mean...
Just as Xie Fengran was thinking, the little maid ran back. "Greetings, Miss."
"Get up first. How did it go?" Lan Fang stood up, eager to hear the result.
"The Marquis went to Concubine Yuan's courtyard," the little maid said crisply and quickly. "I asked the guard, and he said the Marquis came here three or four days ago."
Xie Fengran and Lan Fang looked at each other. Neither of them was very surprised.
Lan Fang pulled the little maid over and stuffed a handful of copper coins into her hand. "You did a good job. This is a reward from the Miss. Don't tell anyone about this."
After all, it wasn't good if others found out that they were snooping on the Marquis's whereabouts.